Juggling Stories

I’ve written before, and mentioned in some comments, that I try to keep multiple projects going simultaneously in order to maximize my productivity. The primary reason is that when I hit a writer’s block on one project, I can easily jump to another one without missing a beat.

That’s the idea.

To put it in Pokémon terms: BEN used JUGGLE PROJECTS! It’s not very effective . . .

Part of the problem is that I have difficulty letting things go. I think of a neat idea, I put it in my writing projects folder. But then I keep working on it periodically.

This wouldn’t be a problem if, y’know, I didn’t keep working on EVERY IDEA I’VE EVER HAD.

I’m exaggerating a little, but not much. The whole “juggling projects” thing becomes more difficult when you’re dealing with not just different characters, but totally different story universes. A story multiverse, if you will.

(See what I did there? See? What I did was–OK. You get it.)

To give you a rough idea of the mess I’ve gotten myself into:

-THE END: A contemporary fantasy novel about the end of the world.

-THE CHAIN: A paranormal serialized story about . . . well, you’ll have to see, won’t you?

-HEAVEN ON EARTH: A series of stories set in a sci-fi dystopia where advanced technology is deployed as the “miracles” of an AI-run theocracy.

-ELYSIAN FIELDS: A novel interlaced with a series of short stories, all set in a universe where displaced supernatural beings have to make ends meet in the mortal world, featuring (among others) a cynical Cupid, a mermaid who can’t swim, and a stressed-out Sasquatch.

-HEARTBREAK SISTERS: A series of novellas set in a far distant future of intergalactic exploration, following two thieving sisters as they try to pay off their debts to a vast criminal organization.

-RE/SET: A novel where individuals with the power to shape reality compete to see who will be able to design the next universe.

-THORN: A short story about a filmmaker who stumbles on a terrifying secret hidden in the deep forests of Germany.

-BEHIND THE CURTAIN: A short story about a crime fiction author who, when interviewing a serial killer, gets more than he bargained for.

-HERO MACHINE: A short story that asks the question: what do you do if you need not one hero, but a thousand?

-WHAT MAKEST THOU?: A novella set in an alternate-history version of WWII, where a brilliant scientist is forced to design deadly robots for the Nazis.

-POSTMORTEM: A novel set in a world where police investigation regularly continues into the afterlife.

Suffice it to say, I need to control myself. These are just the ones for which I have (tentative) titles and a plot summary. What about you? How many projects do you like to work on concurrently? Or are you the kind of person who likes to focus on one at a time? What works best for you and why?

The Chain: Link Eight

It took a little time before Timothy remembered he had to breathe. He went over the email again, just to make sure he hadn’t misread it.

He hadn’t.

Now, the question was, how should he respond? He was slightly tempted to murmur to himself that: “This changes . . . everything.” That sounded appropriately dramatic, but would make no sense of course, given that the reply had only confirmed his expectations. He supposed he could slowly take off his glasses, while exclaiming “Mother of God!,” the only problem being that he didn’t wear glasses. “The game’s afoot?” No, he was alone in his apartment except for his overly-affectionate cat, and Miss Whiskers made a poor Watson. For starters, he doubted whether she had any medical training at all.

While Timothy continued these inane internal musings, a much smaller, more sensible part of him quietly wondered if his exceedingly tangential response was a feeble attempt at distraction. That brought him up short. A distraction? From what? he scoffed, but Timothy had argued with himself before, and knew that he was always right.

Timothy was, as a polite observer might put it, “a person unafflicted by self-doubt.” And this was, in most times and places, true. But ever since he’d seen Samantha Mien die, a strange feeling had been growing inside Timothy. It was difficult for him to describe, which made it even more troubling. Timothy didn’t like things he couldn’t put in to words. But if he really tried, it would go something like this:

He imagined himself walking through a deep gloom. He had no idea where he was going, or from whence he came. Only that he continued to plod forward, one foot in front of the other, until a wide band of darkness could be made out in the distance ahead of him. As he drew closer, he abruptly left the fog that had clouded his vision, and found himself standing at the edge of a vast precipice, stretching out before him and to either side until it vanished from sight. And as he stared into the depths of the chasm, he sensed rather than saw a darkness that was not merely the absence of light, but its very opposite, a kind of un-light.

It terrified him.

That was the feeling Timothy had been avoiding for over a week now. That was the sensation that inexorably rose in him as he considered the only conclusion that could be drawn from what he had read in the email:

Jonah Bradley had not been the first one to die, and Alicia Dorgan would not be the last.

Of Blog Awards and Kickstarters

Got some updates, a plug, and a question to ponder– so stick around until the end!

Blog Award!

I’ve been meaning to get to this, but as I did a post about blog awards fairly recently, I thought it was worth waiting a bit before I bombarded you with another one. Thanks, Deb, for choosing me! I’m truly honored and grateful that you thought my blog was creative enough to warrant mention. I certainly try to write things that will engage people.

Those of you who I in turn nominated, pass it on to six other blogs you think exemplify creativity, and tell us ten things we didn’t know about you!

Six “Kreativ”  blogs you should check out:

1. Scriptophenia

With clever, snappy writing, imaginative worlds, and wit, Vaeru’s is a blog after my own heart, in particular her series A Pooka Problem.

2. creative barbwire

Barb’s blog is great! If you’re interested in reading about both the fun and the hard work that goes into being an indie author, you should give it a read.

3.The Rubber Duck Brigade

I’m sorry to disappoint you rubber duck fans, but Amanda’s blog is not about buoyant plastic avians. Instead, it’s about a whole host of interesting topics, including writing, reading, and life as a writer.

4. Word Flows

Julie is no stranger to blog awards, but that’s OK. I think she deserves this one anyway. Her writing is detailed, precise, and extremely entertaining.

5. Fangirling Through Fiction

Meg’s blog would get this award if only for the lovely little drawings that accompany her blog posts, but she’s a terrific writer to boot!

6. Mary on the Run!

You can accuse me of nepotism if you like, given that Mary and I are related– but once you’ve read the humorous, thought-provoking, and thoughtfully written pieces she has on her blog, you’ll understand why I placed my itinerant cousin in this list.

Ten things you didn’t know about me:

1. I had a highly active and visual imagination as a child (well, I still do). So much so, that when I first began to get scared of monsters in the dark, that my solution was to imagine bigger, badder monsters that would protect me. And so I slept soundly.

2. My taste in music is extremely eclectic. EXTREMELY. Movie soundtracks, classical music, electronica, folk music, blues, heavy metal, j-pop, classic rock . . . you get the idea. To wit: Metallica, Mozart, and Miku Hatsune all appear in my favorites.

3. Part of my background in theater, debate, speech, and communication is that I’ve learned how to behave like an extrovert. I liketo think I’m pretty good at it, given the feedback I’ve gotten as a lecturer in the classes I’ve taught. However, inside I’m still very much an introvert. I like writing, reading, and video games (single player only, please!), and I’m more than a bit of a homebody.

4. I’m a crisis cleaner. I let a mess accumulate until it reaches critical mass, and then I become a whirlwind of activity.

5. My inspiration to be a writer comes from many sources, but mostly from my father, Jim, who managed to find the time to write dozens of magazine articles for Air & Space and Smithsonian, while working a 9-5 job, and being a darn good dad. He then went on to write two excellent books, Inviting Disaster, and The God Machine. He’s also appeared several times on the History channel. So, y’know, I’ve got a bit of catching up to do.

6. I spend WAY more time than I should planning exactly how I will survive the zombie apocalypse.

7. I was born in Texas, raised in Minnesota, went to college in North Dakota (basically), and grad school in Chicago. So the Midwest (ignoring Texas) is pretty deep in me. As a result, I am pretty darn concerned with avoiding conflict and behaving in a socially appropriate manner.

8. That being said, as people who know me from debate are aware, I frequently do a Jekyll-and-Hyde thing when I actually DO get into an argument, wherein I morph into a snarky, condescending, and bitterly competitive jerk. So perhaps it’s a good thing that I avoid conflict.

9. I was bullied and teased in middle and high school, but only in the general sort of way that small, nerdy kids are. I was fortunate never to be the victim of targeted harassment. Nevertheless, it left me with a deep empathy for others with similar experiences. It also made me aware, however, that it may be more helpful to think of bullying as a cultural or social practice as opposed to bullies as individual aggressors. Even kids who have been bullied can sometimes bully others, perhaps if only to alleviate some of the suffering they themselves experience. Wow, that was probably too heavy for this forum. Moving on.

10. CATS. Big fan of ‘em. Always have been. And, as near as I can tell (although one can never be certain with cats), they seem to be fans of me as well.

Pluggin’

I mentioned Erfworld in my post on interesting IF webcomics, and so thought I would mention that the Rob Balder (the creator) is currently running a Kickstarter project to fund a fully voiced motion comic of the first book of his series. You should check it out! And if donating to creative projects is your thing, go for it.

(I should mention that, given my not-so-secret desire to do voicework, my plug here is not entirely altruistic. Rob has promised to hire Erfworld fans to do the voices!)

Questions that need answering

So, now that we’ve gotten partway through what I’ve roughly labeled as the “Introduction Arc” for The Chain, I wanted to try to get a little feedback. Answer any or all questions you would like. Or, I guess, you could choose not to answer any of them. Fine. Be that way.

1. Length. I’ve tried to keep it short and manageable, so that people can breeze through it without having to make too much of an investment. Would you like more, less, or to keep it about the same?

2. Frequency. Once a week is nice from my end (less work, suckers!) but I recognize that the entries can be a bit cliffhangerish.

(Dang it, spellcheck, if you’re going to keep correcting my made-up words every two minutes, I’m going to have to turn you off.)

Anyway, would you be interested in seeing me increase the frequency to twice a week? Possibly Tuesdays and Fridays?

3. Content. What do you think, so far? Is it interesting? Boring? Too wordy? Not wordy enough? What do you like, or dislike? This is an ongoing project, so I am by no means averse to changing things up to meet the desires of my audience (the ten or so of you who read The Chain).

The Chain: Link Seven

He was not one for nervous pacing, and yet there he was, anxiously marching back and forth as he waited for a reply to his email.

Timothy tried to avoid pacing for several reasons, not the least of which was the heavy clomp, clomp his ungainly feet made as he strode across the wooden floor of his apartment. While it didn’t bother him so much, he knew it sounded like a giant’s tread to Mrs. Hilde downstairs, and he’d rather not have her file another complaint. In an attempt to take his mind off the wait, he turned his attention toward inspecting the room for dust. It was clean, of course, as well it should be– he cleaned it twice a day, after all– but a little vigilance never hurt.

As though drawn by a magnetic force, Timothy found his gaze dragged back to the glowing rectangle of his computer monitor. Even from a distance, he could tell that his inbox remained as empty as it had been when he began pacing. What was taking so long? he wondered, but knew that there was nothing he could do for right now. Not until he had more information.

The information that he did have was scrawled in his unintelligible shorthand on a whiteboard mounted on the south wall, opposite his computer desk. It read:

#1: Three people were dead. Jonah Bradley, former police chief. Samantha Mien, Mayoral aide and rising star in Chicago politics. Alicia Dorgan, Samantha’s cousin and a first-year undergraduate at University of Illinois-Chicago.

#2: The cause of death in each case was different. Bradley was killed in a car accident; Mien suffered an aneurysm. Alicia, on the other hand, had a fatal heart attack.

#3: Bradley and Mien had both died at 3:15 PM on a Tuesday, a week apart.

Timothy had only been a little surprised when he’d made inquiries about Alicia’s death and learned that, although she had been found in her apartment on Thursday, the coroner estimated her time of death at between 2-4 in the afternoon on Tuesday. Obviously Timothy couldn’t be certain, since Alicia had died alone, but he would be willing to bet that Alicia had died at the exactly same time as Bradley and Mien.

All his life, Timothy had felt a quiet urge to be a part of something larger than himself. It was for this reason, among others, that he’d chosen to work as a Recorder for the FA community. If he was right, this could be the beginning of something . . . something beyond Timothy’s imagination.

His computer dinged, announcing the arrival of the much-anticipated reply to his inquiry. It was only with great effort that he did not sprint over to the chair, and took a deep breath before opening the email. Timothy exhaled softly, a noise that was somewhere between relief and resignation.

I was right.

The Chain: Link Six

“Greetings, gentle readers . . .” typed Timothy, as he began his latest entry for his website. He was the kind of writer who enjoyed directly addressing his audience, and was particularly fond of using the phrase “gentle readers.” Fortunately for his meticulous mind, he was not guilty of the grievous inaccuracy usually inflicted upon Truth when writers refer to “gentle readers,” many of whom cease being of gentle disposition once they read that highly annoying turn of phrase. Given that Timothy, and Timothy alone, was virtually the entirety of his website’s readership, and he was indeed a fairly gentle sort of man, his description was mostly correct.

Timothy’s memory was good. In fact, it was very good. He could recall virtually every detail he wrote down– although in many cases, only  the details that recorded in his notes. Somehow the very act of writing gave his thoughts, usually so ephemeral, a sense of permanence. So it was that, with very little exception, he was able to compose his blog posts without needing to consult the extensive notes he took.

This level of elaboration may seem superfluous, but it is necessary to emphasize how unusual the following events were. In the final part of each of his pieces, Timothy listed the basic facts of each of the funerals he had attended since he last wrote. Cremated or buried. Closed or open casket. Religious affiliation. Number of attendees. Manner of death.

Time of death.

Timothy’s fingers froze, his hands hovering above the keyboard.

That can’t be right, he thought, I must have made a mistake.

Timothy turned to the relevant page in his notebook and double-checked the stated time of death for Bradley. Then he flipped ahead to the page containing the same information for Samantha Mien.

Both of them had died at exactly the same time, a week apart. To the second.