The End is Just the Beginning

Photo courtesy of imdb.com

It's December 31st, 2021 and Betty White has died.

"Awe, man! That sucks," is what I said after my son braced me for the most recent social media news I had yet to see.

Then I thought about it. Maybe it didn't suck in the way we are programmed to receive such news. Betty White, an icon for most of her 99 year life (so close to 100), the ray of sunshine that had carried us through these last three years of pandemic hell because she simply existed, has left us at the very bitter end of a very long tenure. 

Maybe her passing is her way of passing the baton. "It's been a good run, ladies and gentlemen. I've enjoyed being your symbol of hope, of cheer, of the promise that there is always a reason to laugh and smile. I hope I've taught you well. Now it's time for you to carry that baton for the generations to follow. Laugh. Enjoy life. Become a beloved example for your grandchildren to aspire to."

In short, I'm not going to mourn the death of Betty White. I'm going to celebrate her contribution to the world. Let's all thank Betty White for what she gave us through the end of 2021 and aspire to be the Betty Whites of 2022 and beyond.

God bless you, Betty White. Thanks for those memories.

The Woes of an Indie Author Re: Amazon Kindle

 Many apologies, if you have recently tried to find any of my titles in ebook form at Amazon and have been directed to their infamous "Oops! Sorry about that" page. It's like getting banned—for all the wrong reasons—all over again (refer to my previous blog post—and yes, I am writing this in my car. One day, I’m going to be famous and have stories to tell, like Rowling).

I haven’t been literally banned from Amazon. But there has been a disconnect in their system that has removed many titles associated with my publisher. I have been told that they are aware of it and that they are trying to fix it. How long it's going to take is the unknown.

Again, my apologies. A big chunk of my readership finds me through Amazon. But they are not the only place to find my ebooks. In fact, I get a bigger piece of the cut from sales at any of the links below. So help an indie author out and consider your purchase through these online retailers!

Also, thank you for your support!

BOOKBABY 

BARNES AND NOBLE

KOBO

APPLE BOOKS

NaNoWriMo and Getting Banned

 

NaNoWriMo is going to be a challenge this year, and not for the reasons you might think. For those of you unfamiliar with the acronym, November has been deemed National Novel Writing Month by the internet writer powers that be, and I’m all in. It's free and an opportunity to connect with other writers, and its sole purpose is to motivate writers to write.

The rules are pretty straightforward—reach a 50,000 word count by the end of the month. That's it. And there is no one monitoring your progress except you. I'm already "cheating," because the novel I’m working on is already well past the 50,000 word count in length, but I’m using the event to add to what I have while editing and restructuring at the same time. My current count is close to 70,000 words. By the end of the month, I might be down by 30,000. Who knows? And I will be counting this blog post as words on the page. You betcha! Because writing is writing as far as I’m concerned. And the focus of NaNoWriMo is not competitive in nature.

So why, you may ask, is this year going to be challenging for me? It's a weird little story. Embarrassing even. It's because I've been banned. And this is where some of you reading this blog post may decide I’m petty. Probably. But any names from this point forward will be changed to protect the innocent. Or the guilty, depending on your point of view.

I work in a small two room office doing billing for a service oriented company. There are 6 people in the office running the business side of things on most days. It doesn’t have a lunch room or even a bathroom. Terrible, you say! But not really. The business owners are members of a private club that resides next door, and we can use the bathrooms there. The place is also literally empty throughout most of the day Monday through Friday. Our office staff takes the club's deliveries, contacts their club management if we see anything in need of attention and lets outside maintenance and cleaning crews in when no one else is there to do it. This isn’t an occasional thing. It's daily.

This is also where I, being the only hourly employee in our office, go to eat my lunch. I’ve done it for five plus years. I can’t eat at my desk and take advantage of the moment to get in some lunch time writing. Can’t do it with other office staff around. They’re like most non writers. If they see you contemplating your iPad, they see no reason why they can't flag you down to chat. This isn’t a gripe, it's just the way it is and, recognizing this, I slip away to someplace quiet—the usually vacant club next door—where I can eat and write in relative peace.

Except that I've recently been banned. That's right. Banned. Why? Because I’m not a club member. And the incoming president of the club happened to show up one day and find me eating my lunch all alone in what is apparently his club. Because he's incoming president. And there are bylaws. I know, I know. Clubs have rules, and who am I to be Karening on because I don’t agree with rules?

Let's break down the day that I got banned. I was sitting alone eating my late lunch, when a maintenance man showed up to flush the beer lines behind the bar. No one was available at the club to help them. The place is locked without a key, but I was there, and I didn’t let him in because he never rang the doorbell. He did go to our office though, and someone from our office let him in twice. But since we couldn’t help the guy, and a call to the club's office manager ended up finding out that the bar manager needed to be there to supervise, he left. Not two minutes after he was gone, the incoming club president (I didn’t know this at the time) saunters in and gives me a look. I said, "Hey there! We didn’t know anyone was here. There was a guy who showed up to flush your beer lines, and he just left. You can still catch him if you need him."

The incoming president knew nothing about it and didn’t seem to care. Instead, he homed in on me. "Are you a member?"

Having eaten there on and off for five years with the knowledge of several club staff, I answered honestly. "I work next door. I'm just on my lunch break."

That's when he broke the news, and rather bluntly. I could no longer eat there. Only club members could be there. And when I tried to explain in shock that it hasn't been a problem for over five years, that my bosses were members of the club and that we did a lot for the club when no one was around to take their deliveries, etc., he looked at me flatly and shrugged. "Those are the rules. That's just what I was told."

When I asked who he was, I found out he was the incoming pres, and when I asked him to talk to the office manager, and to my bosses who were members, he said he would. He never did. But I did, and my employer was incensed when I told them, considering all that we do.  Meetings were held, and the acting committee of the club held firm. "You can do all the good things you do for our club when we aren’t there to do it. You can continue to use our bathrooms, but we shouldn’t even allow you that. And thank you for being such pleasant neighbors." I'm paraphrasing. I wasn’t part of the meeting. It was above my pay grade.

So in a nutshell, be quiet, be helpful, get banned. One more point for the decline of humanity. I will be spending my lunches at work sitting in a cramped car trying to write while trying to balance my cup o noodles on my knee and hoping it doesn’t spill. But I will get to claim a NaNoWriMo badge. The one you award yourself with when you're guilty of writing in unlikely or unusual places.

If you're a writer and don’t know about NaNoWriMo, check them out here. And join in!

Halloween Reading

Some might read the title above and say to themselves, when is this blog not about Halloween appropriate reading? A fair enough dig, and also, how dare I post a Halloween book review only days before Halloween! Again, you're right. And I'm sorry. But since the majority of books that I review are horror themed, I guess it doesn't really matter.

I was going to post a review for Demonic Indemnity by Craig McLay, a fun read if you prefer your horror with fantasy elements and a dose of humor. There is an entire series about supernatural insurance investigator Tim Lovecraft, and I'm betting they are all fun reads. But while I was at work (yes, indie authors usually have to make a living from things other than writing), my boss asked for book recommendations for her grandson, and I had to suggest Big Pumpkin by Erica Silverman, illustrated by S. D. Schindler. 

My kids loved Big Pumpkin, about a witch who plants a pumpkin seed that grows into a pumpkin so big that she can't get it off the vine in time to make pumpkin pie for Halloween. Drat! Literally! Others who are bigger and stronger than her offer to try, including a vampire and a mummy, and a little bat who gets laughed at for suggesting it is big enough and strong enough to get it done. But the bat has a plan. A very good one. This is a great read to introduce your kids to Halloween monsters that aren't really that scary, and it teaches a great and simple lesson about what happens with a little bit of teamwork.

Check out this link to find Big Pumpkin. BIG PUMPKIN 

Check out this one for Demonic Indemnity. DEMONIC INDEMNITY

FX's Reservation Dogs is well worth your time

 

Photo courtesy of FX and Hulu

Reservation Dogs on FX and Hulu

I'm going to change things up and give you my review of a TV series instead of a book, because I'm really enjoying this one. I seem to be hitting on a lot of content with Native American themes lately. This isn't by design. Creative content crosses my path, and I latch onto what sounds interesting, and modern stories from a Native American perspective are long overdue. Maybe you think this white girl with a 94% Northern/Western European core of DNA has no business sharing her opinions on books and TV shows about the Native American experience, but that 1% Indigenous thread inside of her is itching to be heard.

That thread came from my grandmother who came to this country at the age of 2 and was quickly abandoned by her American father while the system deemed her Puerto Rican mother fit for a sanitarium. That thread of Spanish and Indigenous culture was lost for my grandmother who was adopted and raised by New York farmers with a German surname. As is the case for many Native Americans living today. Their culture, their history, is constantly being eroded, ignored, left behind. And that sucks.

Enter Reservation Dogs. A half hour dramedy about a group of Res kids in their teens, on the verge of adulthood, who are trying to escape the dead end prison that reservation life means to them. Their goal is California. But can they do it. Can they get there without losing the value that is unique to their culture, their heritage. This is a show about the struggle with identity that a Native American kid faces--where do we fit in, and how much of our ancestral history should define us.

Taika Waititi and Sterlin Harjo are the heads of this creative effort labeled as a comedy, but don't expect Waititi's signature brand of comedy here. The laughs are often bittersweet. There is a deeper melancholy to it all, one that is connected to an event that happened a year prior to where the four main characters are at the start of the show. The event is the reason why these four kids, Elora, Bear, Cheese and Willie Jack want to escape reservation life, and that event is tragic. It's a reflection of how much living on the reservation feels like a dead end for them.

Not to worry, because the adults surrounding these kids may seem like complete and utter losers--until they're not. And that's when the sweet of these bittersweet episodes kicks in. Guest and recurring performances by some familiar faces are stellar. Season 1 episode 5, Come And Get Your Love, is the standout for me after viewing the first 7 episodes. Harjo, who has been the predominant writer of the series to this point, pairs the young character Cheese (Lane Factor) with Big (Zahn McClarnon), a reservation patrolman who isn't taken seriously by the "real cops" of Eastern Oklahoma, or even the residents of the reservation for that matter. But Big takes himself seriously, and it's all because of a special spirit whose presence shaped his seemingly meager destiny when he was a child. Cheese isn't initially thrilled about the opportunity to skip school to join Big on a ride along. He doesn't have much respect for Big. But that changes as nuggets of his backstory unfold.

These kids, who are the main characters, are at a serious cultural crossroad in their lives, and Harjo navigates us through their individual journies with honesty, sadness and humor. So check it out! I’m glad I did.

My Heart is a Chainsaw by Stephen Graham Jones—Review

 

What can I say about My Heart is a Chainsaw by Stephen Graham Jones. It's a mess. Why give it 5 stars then, you say? Because it's a mess as seen through the lens of a very messed up main character, Jade Daniels, and that messed up, hyperactive, suicidal point of view rings true. Jade's character has some major issues, and a mind that is all over the place as she tries to navigate the hell that is her life. There’s a good chance that you won’t like her from the start, but cut her some slack. She really deserves it.

Jade isn’t even her real name, but it suits her because she’s become so jaded by the people in her life, that her only outlet for pleasure is horror movies. Slashers in particular. And this is where Jade proves that she has a brilliant mind, something to offer the world, if the world wasn’t so cruel. She buries herself so deep in slasher movie lore that, when things start to go awry in her small and picturesque Idaho town, she’s the only one who sees it coming. Because she knows how slashers work. And does that scare her? No. That excites her because she has nothing to really live for, except in terms of a slasher movie, and what a way for her to go out. For her, it’s ending on a high note.

Jade will come to that end with a shocking revelation, something that she refuses to admit to herself from the start. She can never be the final girl in this nightmare come true for a very specific reason. But she can play her part, and she struggles with that.

Of course, if you’re a true horror movie aficionado, you’re in for a treat. I consider myself a mid level horror aficionado—I remember writing a paper in my college days about the importance of horror films as social commentary, so when Jade writes extra credit homework for her history teacher doing essentially the same, I could really relate. Also, Jaws and The Shining are two iconic movies that shaped my own movie viewing tastes in a big way. What I’m getting to is that it doesn’t hurt to be a horror movie fan on some level. Or even an 80’s movie fan. I felt like there were a few nods to movies like The Breakfast Club and Heathers too.

I highly recommend this book. The only dissatisfaction I have is with its symbolic end that I wish had more closure regarding Jade and the mother who essentially abandoned her. The metaphor is clearly apparent but it doesn’t quite reflect how it turned out for Jade.

Thank you, NetGalley and Gallery Books for the opportunity to read this ARC.

You can find My Heart is a Chainsaw wherever books and ebooks are sold.

Book Review: Keyport Cthulhu, by Armand Rosamilia, Chuck Buda and Katilynn Rosamilia

For fans of Lovecraft inspired stories

Keyport Cthulhu by Armand Rosamilia

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


A nice little addition for anyone fond of Lovecraft inspired stories

This was a great read, especially for a .99 cent ebook. It’s a series of short stories about, as the title says, Cthulhu, if he resided off the coast of Keyport NJ. 

I enjoyed it. I enjoyed the homage. Each short story had its own tone, from children’s story (yes, you read that right) to steampunk, to something in the realm of hard boiled detective with a hint of Burroughs. 

I have to be honest, though and mention that I felt the main story (the meat of the collection and maybe long enough to be considered a novella) felt incomplete. I was hoping for a more solid end to that one before I was thrown into the next chapter, which wasn’t a chapter but a new short story.

As a whole, though this collection of Cthulhu inspired stories was a fun read. 

Book Review: The Institute -- Stephen King

First of all, it doesn't really matter what I have to say about Stephen King's novel, The Institute. King is an established author with an established following. Some consider him to be the voice of Modern American horror. This book was destined for the bestseller lists before it was a twinkle in Mr. King's eye.

And I'm a fan. I grew up on Stephen King. His work influenced my own work in that I found a passion to write about, well...horrible things. But here I am, a huge fan of King's early works, that have gone on to become iconic horror movies, and I'm only giving The Institute a 3--okay, 3.5 but not quite a 4.

I like it. It was a fine story. Some reviewers have--and will want to make comparisons to the TV series Stranger Things, but let's face it. Stranger Things is a homage to King's work, so you can't really go about saying, "Hey, he's just trying to ride the coat tails of Stranger Things with this one."

What I am going to do is categorize this story as Mainstream Horror. There are truly better horror stories out there right now with a much harder edge to them. I've reviewed a few. And as mainstream horror that will appeal to the masses, this book is fine. It's about a kid with special powers who gets abducted by a secret government organization, to be referred to as The Institute, then is forced to undergo horrible experimentations in order to be used for global political reasons. There are other kids forced to undergo the same treatment, but our MC Luke has a goal--to find a way out.

I admire King's underlying message here--that kids are our future and we need to trust their capacity to change the world for the better on their own, not use and abuse them because of our own fears. Something like that. It's a great theme.

But too much of the story felt too familiar to me, with King relying on tropes and characterizations that are so common in his older works that here they feel like a recycling of old material. I enjoyed reading it. If you're a sporadic reader of King's work, you might enjoy it too. But I wasn't riveted. Like I mentioned, this horror story with scifi elements is on the mild side of the horror salsa spectrum.

You can find a copy of Stephen King's The Institute pretty much wherever books are sold.

Something to Tweet About!

 

The Chain:Francisco Pizarro is a pilot episode for a historical fiction drama. That's all. That's the tweet. Thank you, Los Angeles International Screenplay Awards!

IndieReader Approved! And an Interview to Boot!

I am more than willing to admit that I have yet to master the art of self promotion. I've written three self-published books so far, but haven't submitted them to many book competitions other than Readers Favorite, which is part of the package I opted for through BookBaby. I've invested in a few editorial reviews through Kirkus and IndieReader, and I've been fortunate enough to garner some actual reader reviews that run the gamut between the one ⭐Dull, I don't see the point of this, to the five ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Thanks for the original and thought provoking horror series.

But because IndieReader's editorial reviews have ranked a couple of my books as "Indie Author Approved," I got to fill out their author interview questionnaire. Kind of cool! check out the link below:

IR APPROVED AUTHOR DIANE M. JOHNSON: “THERE’S A LEVEL OF VALIDATION THAT COMES FROM BEING ACCEPTED BY A TRADITIONAL PUBLISHER.”

 

Book Review: The Only Good Indians

Make no mistake, this is more than a horror novel with a Native American inspired monster. There is an underlying theme in The Only Good Indians, one that shines a light on what it means to be a Native American trapped in modern America. Trapped by what the white man expects you to be and finding no way out of it, no way off the reservation except to die. Or maybe there is hope. I guess you'll have to read the book to find out.

There is plenty of gut wrenching horror here, and the characters are not always likable, except they're trying. They’re trying to be better than what they were born to be in the eyes of the rest of America. And the diehard horror fans will probably catch a too obvious hint near the end concerning which final characters live or die.

But that's okay. The deeper meaning that I got from the story is what pushed me to rate it from a four to a five. Well worth the read.

You can find out more about this book--and about Stephen Graham Jones HERE.

BOOK REVIEW: Creature, by Hunter Shea

I normally just post my book reviews at sites like Goodreads and Amazon and BookBub, but it's April and I need to commit to posting an actual something to the blog -- so why not reviews? It makes no sense to not post the reviews to the blog, and I need to make that monthly blog entry that I promised myself I'd get to every month this year.

So, in the spirit of cheating, here's my book review that's also the monthly blog post. I consider it fortunate that I happened to be reading Creature, by Hunter Shea.

This isn't the first Hunter Shea book I've reviewed. The first was Slash, which was a solid piece of creature feature horror writing. But Creature is different. It's more personal for Shea, it doesn't get to the traditional horror elements right away and, in my personal opinion, it's the better read. There, I've already written more than the original quick review itself. And since I'm longing to get back to my own writing, here's the review posted at all the other places mentioned above:

I’ll get straight to what I liked about this book, the time and energy Shea put into building character. Or as some writing gurus will tell you, write what you know. And in Shea's own words, elements of this story are very personal.

It's a slow development of character for a good two thirds of the story. The creature in question doesn’t rear its ugly head until the bitter end, but that's okay. The story isn’t really about the creature itself, but of the creature as a manifestation brought on by the every day horrors of living with a brutal and uncompromising disease. Literally.

Kate is the one who lives in pain every day of her life. Her husband Andrew loves her and just wants her to be well, but her ever constant need for care wears on him as well. So they take a trip to the wilds of Maine hoping to enjoy nature and some alone time for healing.

But the disease isn’t forgiving, and the creature in question is eventually drawn to it.

I’m not going to give away any more spoilers than that. The slow development of the plot to get to the final moments of horror is essential to this story (in my opinion), so stick with it.

I’m glad I did.

 You can find Creature at most of your favorite online book outlets. Or, if you're feeling like supporting the indiebook community, purchase it here, direct from Flame Tree Press.

What's In A Name

 Plenty, apparently. There are a slew of female authors who go by initials. Men have done this too, but for women the reason is often to disguise the fact that they are, in fact, women. J.K. Rowling, J.D. Robb (who is, in fact Nora Roberts, if you didn't know), S.E. Hinton...even Louisa May Alcott, the author of Little Women, started her career as a man--A.M. Barnard. 

I'm sure that not all female writers who go by their initials made the choice because being mistaken for a male author sells more books. But the fact is that many do, and that's a sad account of history. Still, it's not the only reason authors choose initials. Sometimes, it's for a certain anonymity. Authors tend to be an introverted lot--I know I am, and as unlikely as it may be, none of us want to become the victim of our number one fan, as with King's memorable character from Misery, Annie Wilkes. Many authors choose a pseudonym for this reason, among several others too. Stephen King chose to write as Richard Bachman for a time. It has been told that part of the reason King chose to do this was because he wanted to see if his work would sell without his quickly famous name attached to it. Other well known authors have done the same because their name may be synonymous with a genre of book, and they want to branch out. Dean Koontz has done this, as has Anne Rice.

Sometimes an author will choose a pseudonym that rings true to the genre of books they write. Peter B. Germano, for example, wrote under the pseudonyms of Barry Cord, James Kane and Jack Slade. He wrote westerns. The world of romance novels is rife with male authors hiding behind feminine names, because come on. Would you rather read a romance by Bill Spence or by Jessica Blair?

As an author who chose my given name, I have experienced a different problem. Diane Johnson is a well known author. Le Divorce and Flyover Lives are well known best sellers. Some authors might change their name for this reason. I added my middle initial because I wanted to be me and because I wanted to make my mom proud if I ever happened to pen a best seller. Regardless, with or without the M., Diane Johnson is an all too common name. I also have a relative named Anne Perry -- she's not that Anne Perry either.

The one author who I am NOT is Diane Johnson-McFadgen. This may seem like a tangent, but it's true. At the time I write this, if you were to Google any of my books, Google would tell you that they were written by Diane Johnson-McFadgen. I will guarantee you that Stephen King or Anne Rice or Anne Perry do not have this problem. Such is the life of a self published indie author. What's weirder is that Google can't seem to figure out that the search brings up more about Diane M. Johnson than it does Johnson-McFadgen. Google needs to do something about this, and if they have finally taken my request off the back burner, this blog is sure to confuse their algorithms all the more.

Let it be known that I have nothing against the author Johnson-McFadgen. She wrote a book, and if you are looking for some Christian spiritual insight, by all means click on this link: Today's Stones at B&N.

I have an inkling as to why my books might be confused with her book. The sequel to Perfect Prophet, Prophet Reborn has a similar color scheme and a reference to religion. 

Prophet Reborn at iBooks

But seriously, I'm guessing that Ms. Johnson-McFadgen would be uncomfortable being associated to the first book of the series... Right?

Perfect Prophet at iBooks

Anyway, I've said my peace. Best of luck to Ms. Johnson-McFadgen with her book on spiritual inspirations. I'm Diane M. Johnson, and I approve this blog post.

Other Links to the Perfect Prophet series by Diane M. Johnson NOT McFadgen:

Amazon US

Amazon Canada

Amazon UK

BookBaby

As An Author, I Take Time To Leave Reviews

 It's my way of paying it forward for the reviews I receive, because every indie author hopes for honest reviews, but no indie author wants to be trapped by the prospect of being asked to write an honest review as a favor. So, I pay it forward. Don’t ask me to review your book. But appreciate it if I choose to. Screenwriting is a different story, but we had better know each other well enough before you ask.

But that's not entirely why I'm writing this post. I recently reviewed a rather popular self-help book on Amazon, and because of Amazon's rules and regulations about book reviews, my review was denied. Indie authors can offer a litany of complaints about Amazon's policies when it comes to garnering reviews, but this occurrence highlights the company’s ignorance and over reliance on algorithms when it comes to determining what is an acceptable review.

The book I read was The Subtle Art of Not Giving A F*ck. Don’t @ me. That's the title. It was a NY Times bestseller, and the title admittedly intrigued me. So I bought it on a whim, and I enjoyed it. It wasn’t earth shattering, revolutionary advice for me, but it resonated when it came to some points that I believe to be true. So I rated it and wrote a review. Here it is, posted on BookBub. 

It's the exact same review that I tried to post on Amazon, except that Amazon had the option of including a title. I referenced the title of the book in my title of the review (asterisk* included), and the review got declined because of policy issues. The policy? Profanity...

Seriously. Amazon bots "carefully reviewed" my review and found a swear word (asterisk* included) that deemed it inappropriate for people who might have checked out this book. Seriously. Of all the things I could give a f*ck about, this one inspired me to write this blog. Even funnier is that they allowed a one star review from a reader who goes by the name Scumbag... Don’t believe me? Here it is.

Algorithms are incredibly flawed. Bezos, if there's the slimmest chance that you might read this post (humor me here) fix this. Your review policies are flawed and overreaching. And I'm telling you this as a reviewer, not an author!

Okay, rant over. Time for me to leave the past behind and find something better to give a f*ck about.

Here's something that might interest you if you stayed with me to the end of this post. A book giveaway! You can enter a Goodreads giveaway between February 15th and February 28th, 2021 for a free hard copy of my latest, Prophet Reborn, the thrilling sequel to Perfect Prophet. The first book is hard to come by in paperback, but you can purchase it here. It’s widely available at the online retailer of your choice as an ebook. Good luck if you choose to enter, and thanks for your support!

GOODREADS GIVEAWAY LINK

Writing As A Chore

I'll be honest. I'm starting off the new year spinning my wheels on the writing front. maybe it's the arm still being in a sling, the daily ache left from surgery, the one and a half handed hunt and peck across the keyboard. It's a bit of a chore.

Oh, I'm still committed to the write something, anything, every day mantra. I've been working on book thre of the Prophet series, and I've come up with a fun way to antagonize the book one protagonist. I've really committed my focus to it. But it doesn't propel the story forward. There's little traction from it. Spinning wheels.

And that's the problem. I haven't hooked into where I want to go with book three. I've got characters that I want to expand on, whose journeys need to continue. I've got a title! But I've got no goal, no theme. Therefore, writing it has become a chore. I need an outline -- and outlines are chores. A list of things to get done before you can enjoy the getting done part.

I'm also thinking about setting the book three idea aside and returning to the script series. But again, I would need to revisit the old, outline the new and research research research. A list of chores.

Don't get me wrong. I look forward to that spark of achievement that comes with getting the work done. But I believe that it's okay to recognize that the process can be a chore. No one likes chores, but we all know they need to get done. Daily.

So if you too are stuck in your writing endeavors, make a list -- You need to define your main characters, their flaws, their fears. You need to define your ending before you define your beginning. You need to commit to a singular theme and tape it to the top of your computer screen so you don't forget it. You need to stop at the store and  buy some whiskey, because whiskey is key to your writing process... You get the idea.

Whatever your process, remember. If it feels like it's missing something, or becoming a chore, it probably is. Embrace the chores. It's part of the process.

Also, forgive any typos. My shoulder is feeling it. But I got the January blog entry done! A tick off on my list of chores.