Midnight Circus

I've just had a story published in EAB Publishing's "Classic Lit on the Side", the latest edition of Midnight Circus. The journal is currently available for free download, and copies can be purchased from Amazon. Click here to get a copy.

The story is called "An Exile of Mars" and is based around the character of Sarkoja, who is a villain appearing in A Princess of Mars, the first book of Edgar Rice Burrough's Barsoom series. There are many other great short stories and poems as well, so check it out!

My Oh My

I've been thinking a lot lately about memory and nostalgia. It's a complex thing, and it's not always to put your finger on it. But there are those experiences you have, often unexpected, that take you back to the time and place where you grew up. For me, the first time I heard "My Oh My" by Macklemore was one of those instances.

I'm not the biggest Macklemore fan, but when I stumbled on this, it was like going back to my 1995 when I was nine years old and the Mariners were on a tear. I don't really recall the details of the season itself - most of my specific baseball memories come from a highlight video (also titled "My Oh My" if memory serves) that my brothers and I would watch endlessly in the summer months.

For me, this song captures that feeling of being wrapped up in the excitement of a team that has captured the imagination of an entire state. Actually including Dave Niehaus's call of "The Double" to win the division series was genius. It give me goosebumps every time.

But I think that might be what is so powerful about this song for me: it captures my memories and feelings as a ten year old and transports me back to that time, in the best way possible.

I know that my reaction to this song is not unique; in fact, I suspect that almost any young person from the Pacific Northwest will have a similar reaction. The joy of this song and others like it is to remember those things which united us, and hope that maybe there will be something like that in the future. So, if there any PNW kids out there who haven't heard this song, check it out. I think you'll be glad you did.

Writing process

One of the things that I struggle with quite a bit as a new writer is the process. I often find that I'm not sure what should come first in terms of planning, actual writing, refining, editing, etc. It's certainly been a trial and error process over the last several months, and I definitely feel much more comfortable in my own skin as a writer now than I did a year ago. 

At this point, I've got a process down sortakinda; I do some planning on and world-building before I even think about writing a script. Having a roadmap when you're writing is essential, at least for me. If I don't have one, I tend to flounder around and end up with page upon page of superfluous material that has little bearing to the overall story that I'm trying to tell. Or maybe it does, but it's just superduper boring. 

I find that getting out and simply spending time with other writers is one of the best ways to improve your craft. I attend a monthly workshop at my local comic/coffee store, Legend Comics and Coffee (in Omaha, NE), and it's probably the best thing I've ever done for myself as a writer. I've met artists, other writers, and a wide variety of other talented people. Being in that environment give you a chance to discuss how you do what you with other people who are trying the exact same sorts of things. 

And on top of all that nice stuff, I usually come away feeling far more inspired to write than I did when I stepped through the door. It's nice to have a group of people who care about what you're doing, and it's a good way to hold yourself accountable to actually produce something over the course of a month  (which seems like it should be easy, but I have failed at it too many times to count). 

So go, get out there and be a part of your local artistic community. It's one of the best, most rewarding experiences that you can have as an artist. And it's crazy fun. 

MIND MGMT #10

I picked up MIND MGMT #10 this week. Let me just say, if you are even slightly, remotely, sortakinda interested in comics, read this book. Read it now. Not later. In fact, stop reading this, and go order the hardback that collects the first story arc. And then come back here.

I'll leave the reviewing up to the reviewers, who have already said more than I could eloquently say about this book. I'll just say that MIND MGMT is consistently packed with high quality story telling and fantastic art. And Matt Kindt does everything...writing, art, the whole deal. It's really great, and it's the book that I'm most excited to pick up each month.

I also had the opportunity to meet Matt Kindt at Planet City Comicon in Kansas City and get a few issues signed, which was a treat. He was great to meet, and I'm really looking forward to the full 36 issue run of MIND MGMT.

GO READ IT!!!

Intro...

Hello everybody, and welcome to my new blog.

I'm trying my hand at comic script writing. It's been an interesting process so far, and my plan for this blog is to use it as a way to post my thoughts about the things that I'm writing, folks that I'm collaborating with, as well as my thoughts about other comics out there and the industry more generally.

Right now I've got a few ideas that I've been working on - one is a slightly darker spin on the power of teleportation, and I'm also working on a modern adaptation of an opera plot that's really interesting. Aside from that, I'm usually working on short scripts and story ideas.

If anybody's interested, my favorite books that I'm reading right now are:

MIND MGMT by Matt Kindt
Angel & Faith by Christos Gage & Rebecca Isaacs
Change by Ales Kot & Morgen Jeske (just finished but so awesome)
Star Wars by Brian Wood & Carlos D'Anda

I might post about some non-comic related stuff along the way as well, but we'll see.

If anybody's reading, I hope you enjoy and feel free to drop me a line or a comment. Cheers!