Hey guys!
So first off, good news. My son Marcus has just gone through the second surgery of his life about three weeks ahead of schedule, and now has a digestive tract that is in one piece. We ended up spending most of the day in the hospital with him. He was a little hungry because they didn't want to keep feeding him just before putting him under for a surgery, but other than that he was a real trooper throughout the whole thing. The doctors were pretty optimistic about his recovery too, especially since he didn't seem to need to keep the breathing tube in once he came out of it. So who knows, my son might actually come home way ahead of schedule.
We also got the chance to speak with his pulmonologist as well. He's going to be the guy that Marcus has at the CF clinic in Philadelphia for the first three years or so, which means he had plenty of advice and information for us. It was good to talk to him, and he managed to reassure us a lot about what was going on with Marcus and where we would be going from there.
In more good news, I started a new day job this week. It's going to be a good opportunity to grow and learn new skills, and they've already been really understanding and helpful for me, so I've been very lucky to make the transition. The job is also much more in the field I would like to go into for a stable, permanent career, so there's that upside as well. It's basically a wonderful opportunity that's come at a great time, though I will miss my old coworkers a little bit. Change always comes, whether we are ready for it or not!
Finally, Eagle and Broken Halo both seem to be doing fairly well. I've decided to continue the price promotion on the earlier books, at the very leas until the end of the month. The exception to that would be the German edition of Wolfhound, which is already back up to its previous price. Aside from that, I've been scraping out the time to write here and there, and hopefully I will be able to recover a little bit as things start to get back to normal.
In any case, I hope everyone is doing well out there, and I will see you around!
Showing posts with label Life. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Life. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 15, 2014
Sunday, December 15, 2013
On Marcus, Cystic Fibrosis, and Trying to Plan for the Future
So my son was born on Tuesday! Marcus is officially in the world and our family is one person richer. He also likely has cystic fibrosis.
The reason we think that he does is because earlier on in the pregnancy, my wife and I received genetic testing that indicated that both of us carried a gene that leads to the condition. We hadn't had that testing done when Sera was born, so it was a complete surprise to us. Neither of us knows of any cystic fibrosis tendencies in either of our families, but the disease is fairly rare, so I guess that is not surprising.
Cystic fibrosis is basically the unfortunate result of evolution screwing things up in classic style. The genes associated with the disease control a particular protein that is associated with mucus and secretions. Most of the mutations involved make it so that protein just doesn't get made or doesn't get put in the right place. That leads to abnormal mucus development throughout the body, including the lungs, intestinal tract, and reproductive system.
That development results in increased amounts of respiratory infections due to pools of mucus gathering in the lungs, malnutrition since the mucus near the pancreas keep enzymes from helping in digestion, GI blockages due to extra-thick mucus in the intestines and infertility due to blocked channels in the reproductive system. It used to result in frequent deaths in childhood due to these combined problems, but these days they have managed to mitigate a lot of the damage due to early treatment and effective options in terms of transplants, enzyme injections, and respiratory therapy. As a genetic disease, though, it isn't curable. At least, not unless somebody manages to design an effective retrovirus-based gene therapy to counteract the nonfunctional genes.
Marcus ended up having a GI blockage right off the bat, which meant that within twenty four hours of being born, he went through surgery. He's doing very well and is a strong, healthy little guy with a huge chin and a scowl to brag about, but recovery time from the surgery is going to be about eight weeks. The surgery didn't entirely solve the situation, because the bowl had actually been perforated due to the extra sticky crud in his intestinal tract. That meant the doctors had to more or less install a couple of tubes in his stomach to allow them to rehabilitate his lower bowels so that when he's recovered, they can reattach his stomach and upper intestinal tract to his lower intestines again. After that, it's hopefully just another eight weeks in the NICU and then he can come home.
So obviously things have been a little difficult lately. My bosses at work have been extremely understanding, and coworkers, friends, and family have all been extremely supportive. We're still kind of trying to figure out how to balance our lives over the next sixteen weeks; the hospital where Marcus is staying is about an hour and a half away, so seeing him, taking care of Sera, and continuing to work/go to graduate school/write is going to be an interesting challenge. It's tempting to pretty much attempt to live at the hospital, but my wife needs to recuperate from giving birth (the little guy went from water breaking to delivery in two hours, which is absolutely crazy) and life kind of needs to go on despite the drama. In the long term, it's going to be a question of how to figure out a pattern of life that allows me to be a part of my son's life while trying to secure our future as a family at the same time. I doubt it will be easy, but we will just need to get through it.
To everyone who has already expressed their support, we appreciate everything you are doing for us. It might get a little frustrating, because at the moment we are mostly just playing a waiting game. We won't know a lot of details about how fast recovery will be until a little time has gone by--in fact, the tests coming back confirming CF as a diagnosis aren't official yet, we're just basing it off the genetics and the type of GI block he experienced, which is typical of CF--and a lot of what we are doing right now is just trying to be there for the little guy. Your prayers and well-wishing is very much appreciated, and even if we might be a little reclusive, we really are grateful for everything you've said and done. It is just taking us a little while to process things emotionally, and since emotions are not really my strong suit, I hope that you'll be patient with me.
In terms of writing, my schedule's been kind of up in the air since Tuesday. I'm not sure if my previous plans for writing in 2014 are going to work out, but we will see. Eagle and Broken Halo are both still going to be published this year, however. The only thing we are waiting on is cover art for Eagle to be completed, and the artist we are working with on that is already doing a great job. I think I can be confident in saying that both will be up soon.
In any case, I hope that everyone is doing well out there. See you around!
 |
| Our current motto |
Cystic fibrosis is basically the unfortunate result of evolution screwing things up in classic style. The genes associated with the disease control a particular protein that is associated with mucus and secretions. Most of the mutations involved make it so that protein just doesn't get made or doesn't get put in the right place. That leads to abnormal mucus development throughout the body, including the lungs, intestinal tract, and reproductive system.
That development results in increased amounts of respiratory infections due to pools of mucus gathering in the lungs, malnutrition since the mucus near the pancreas keep enzymes from helping in digestion, GI blockages due to extra-thick mucus in the intestines and infertility due to blocked channels in the reproductive system. It used to result in frequent deaths in childhood due to these combined problems, but these days they have managed to mitigate a lot of the damage due to early treatment and effective options in terms of transplants, enzyme injections, and respiratory therapy. As a genetic disease, though, it isn't curable. At least, not unless somebody manages to design an effective retrovirus-based gene therapy to counteract the nonfunctional genes.
Marcus ended up having a GI blockage right off the bat, which meant that within twenty four hours of being born, he went through surgery. He's doing very well and is a strong, healthy little guy with a huge chin and a scowl to brag about, but recovery time from the surgery is going to be about eight weeks. The surgery didn't entirely solve the situation, because the bowl had actually been perforated due to the extra sticky crud in his intestinal tract. That meant the doctors had to more or less install a couple of tubes in his stomach to allow them to rehabilitate his lower bowels so that when he's recovered, they can reattach his stomach and upper intestinal tract to his lower intestines again. After that, it's hopefully just another eight weeks in the NICU and then he can come home.
So obviously things have been a little difficult lately. My bosses at work have been extremely understanding, and coworkers, friends, and family have all been extremely supportive. We're still kind of trying to figure out how to balance our lives over the next sixteen weeks; the hospital where Marcus is staying is about an hour and a half away, so seeing him, taking care of Sera, and continuing to work/go to graduate school/write is going to be an interesting challenge. It's tempting to pretty much attempt to live at the hospital, but my wife needs to recuperate from giving birth (the little guy went from water breaking to delivery in two hours, which is absolutely crazy) and life kind of needs to go on despite the drama. In the long term, it's going to be a question of how to figure out a pattern of life that allows me to be a part of my son's life while trying to secure our future as a family at the same time. I doubt it will be easy, but we will just need to get through it.
To everyone who has already expressed their support, we appreciate everything you are doing for us. It might get a little frustrating, because at the moment we are mostly just playing a waiting game. We won't know a lot of details about how fast recovery will be until a little time has gone by--in fact, the tests coming back confirming CF as a diagnosis aren't official yet, we're just basing it off the genetics and the type of GI block he experienced, which is typical of CF--and a lot of what we are doing right now is just trying to be there for the little guy. Your prayers and well-wishing is very much appreciated, and even if we might be a little reclusive, we really are grateful for everything you've said and done. It is just taking us a little while to process things emotionally, and since emotions are not really my strong suit, I hope that you'll be patient with me.
In terms of writing, my schedule's been kind of up in the air since Tuesday. I'm not sure if my previous plans for writing in 2014 are going to work out, but we will see. Eagle and Broken Halo are both still going to be published this year, however. The only thing we are waiting on is cover art for Eagle to be completed, and the artist we are working with on that is already doing a great job. I think I can be confident in saying that both will be up soon.
In any case, I hope that everyone is doing well out there. See you around!
Monday, July 8, 2013
On A Quick Snapshot of Life
I'm not dead yet! Yeah!
So, I'm terrible at blogging. I think that's probably an obvious thing to most people by now, but I might as well get that out there. It's probably the same kind of fault I have in terms of writing a journal, only here the failure is quite a bit more public. Ah, well...
In any case, here are some of the things that have been keeping this writer/husband/father/etc busy over the past few weeks. I might revisit some of these things later just to give them a bit of depth, but I might as well give some kind of an overview, right?
First up, with the collaboration of a wonderful translator by the name of Michael Drecker, we are going to have a German translation of Wolfhound up in a couple of weeks. There is a free sample up for the rest of this week, with the first eight chapters or so available. It's been an interesting experiment in foreign publishing for me, so I hope that it will turn out well. Here goes nothing!
Second, progress has continued on the third Jacob Hull book, Eagle. It has not gone as quickly as I might have liked, but I think that the book really will turn out better thanks to the changes I am making. It had a few pacing issues that needed to be worked out, which seems to be an intensely difficult revision to make. Unfortunately, that means that I likely won't make my August deadline for publishing it, but that's the way life goes sometimes. At the very least I will be publishing something I am confident in, which counts for more than punctuality in this case.
Third, I'm going to have to do a major rewrite of The Social Contract before it sees the light of day. Recent events have taken some of the villainous aspects of the bad guys in the book out of fiction and into reality, so that makes the whole premise a little less workable. It's scary when a piece of your cyberpunk dystopia novel becomes obsolete, not because of advances in technology or societal changes, but because it's already a part of our daily lives. Whatever else you might think of the PRISM thing, it has certainly made the lives of sci fi writers much harder, which I think we can all agree is the important thing here!
Fourth, I'm going to start taking graduate courses in computer science, beginning in the fall. No, it's not related to the previous topic, it's more just a gradual career shift required by our current situation. Any suggestions, heckling, stories, or advice would be appreciated. My main concern is that my cheapo, three year old laptop isn't going to be up to snuff, but I may just replace it before we start. I've been noticing some major problems with this one, and it may just be time to get something new.
Fifth, because I like to bury the lead, we're having another kid! My wife is yet again expecting, and we're both really happy about it. It is going to be a bit scary, since child number one is kind of active and challenging at times, but it will be kind of cool to see how our family grows. Unfortunately, this may be the time where I have to admit that I am an adult now. Sad, but probably true.
So there you have it, life as it is right now for me. The next few weeks...well, maybe the next few years are going to be interesting, so we shall see how I get through it. Thanks for all your support out there guys, and I hope your life goes as well or better than mine. See you around!
So, I'm terrible at blogging. I think that's probably an obvious thing to most people by now, but I might as well get that out there. It's probably the same kind of fault I have in terms of writing a journal, only here the failure is quite a bit more public. Ah, well...
In any case, here are some of the things that have been keeping this writer/husband/father/etc busy over the past few weeks. I might revisit some of these things later just to give them a bit of depth, but I might as well give some kind of an overview, right?
First up, with the collaboration of a wonderful translator by the name of Michael Drecker, we are going to have a German translation of Wolfhound up in a couple of weeks. There is a free sample up for the rest of this week, with the first eight chapters or so available. It's been an interesting experiment in foreign publishing for me, so I hope that it will turn out well. Here goes nothing!
Second, progress has continued on the third Jacob Hull book, Eagle. It has not gone as quickly as I might have liked, but I think that the book really will turn out better thanks to the changes I am making. It had a few pacing issues that needed to be worked out, which seems to be an intensely difficult revision to make. Unfortunately, that means that I likely won't make my August deadline for publishing it, but that's the way life goes sometimes. At the very least I will be publishing something I am confident in, which counts for more than punctuality in this case.
Third, I'm going to have to do a major rewrite of The Social Contract before it sees the light of day. Recent events have taken some of the villainous aspects of the bad guys in the book out of fiction and into reality, so that makes the whole premise a little less workable. It's scary when a piece of your cyberpunk dystopia novel becomes obsolete, not because of advances in technology or societal changes, but because it's already a part of our daily lives. Whatever else you might think of the PRISM thing, it has certainly made the lives of sci fi writers much harder, which I think we can all agree is the important thing here!
Fourth, I'm going to start taking graduate courses in computer science, beginning in the fall. No, it's not related to the previous topic, it's more just a gradual career shift required by our current situation. Any suggestions, heckling, stories, or advice would be appreciated. My main concern is that my cheapo, three year old laptop isn't going to be up to snuff, but I may just replace it before we start. I've been noticing some major problems with this one, and it may just be time to get something new.
Fifth, because I like to bury the lead, we're having another kid! My wife is yet again expecting, and we're both really happy about it. It is going to be a bit scary, since child number one is kind of active and challenging at times, but it will be kind of cool to see how our family grows. Unfortunately, this may be the time where I have to admit that I am an adult now. Sad, but probably true.
So there you have it, life as it is right now for me. The next few weeks...well, maybe the next few years are going to be interesting, so we shall see how I get through it. Thanks for all your support out there guys, and I hope your life goes as well or better than mine. See you around!
Saturday, November 3, 2012
On Birthdays
Well, I'm old now.
Or at least, I'm older. I've now officially turned twenty-eight. That puts me so much closer to thirty than I ever wanted to think about.
At this point it's probably time to give up any illusions about being a young adult. Closer to middle age at this point, which is...disturbing. Somehow it seems like I should have a much more stable lifestyle at this point, that things would have settled onto a more predictable track. Obviously, that has not been the case. :) At least not yet.
That said, I have been fortunate to have so much go right in my life. I've managed to publish four books, have a wonderful wife and a beautiful little daughter, and we aren't quite living at the desperate edge of poverty anymore. Big achievements in my book! I suppose that a lot of people aren't doing as well, and it is always better to look on the bright side... or so I always get told. :)
So in this case, I should say that I am quite glad to have made it this far. Hopefully I can look forward to another productive year! See you around!
Or at least, I'm older. I've now officially turned twenty-eight. That puts me so much closer to thirty than I ever wanted to think about.
At this point it's probably time to give up any illusions about being a young adult. Closer to middle age at this point, which is...disturbing. Somehow it seems like I should have a much more stable lifestyle at this point, that things would have settled onto a more predictable track. Obviously, that has not been the case. :) At least not yet.
That said, I have been fortunate to have so much go right in my life. I've managed to publish four books, have a wonderful wife and a beautiful little daughter, and we aren't quite living at the desperate edge of poverty anymore. Big achievements in my book! I suppose that a lot of people aren't doing as well, and it is always better to look on the bright side... or so I always get told. :)
So in this case, I should say that I am quite glad to have made it this far. Hopefully I can look forward to another productive year! See you around!
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
On Early Mornings and Productivity
I've recently made a change in my morning routine. Said change involves me getting up at five thirty in an attempt to get some writing done before the chaos of my day comes crashing in.So far, my little experiment has been a resounding success. I've gotten an astonishing amount done in the past few weeks, even with the intrusion of a chaotic vacation and a few other difficulties. At the same time, I've been sleeping a little better, and I've felt like there has been a remarkably positive change in my mood. Crazy what a little advice from Benjamin Franklin can do, huh?
As a result, the crushing amount of work I've been facing has declined to somewhat managable levels. Both books look like they are going to come out more or less as planned, and I've even been able to head off some interesting problems before they've started. New intro material is ready to go into the back parts of my books, setting up a schedule for Eagle (Jacob Hull's next book) and Broken Halo (Iron Angel's sequel), as well as Murders in Whitechapel. I'm still debating on the schedule for some of the projects for 2013, but that's probably for another post. As things stand, I'll just be happy to finish 2012 with two Hector Kingsley novels, two Jacob Hull novels, and one Iron Angels book out, and it is looking like I'll actually be able to pull that off.
That is, if five thirty doesn't kill me first. Seriously, it's productive, but just seeing that number hurts...
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
On Tough Stuff
Soooo... yeah. I'm sure you might be wondering where I've been for the past month or so. At least, what's been keeping me so busy that I haven't been posting here. It's a funny story, you see little elves from the future abducted me and... okay, so you're not going to buy that one. I guess I will have to tell you about the mission the CIA sent me on to...not that one either, huh? Well fine then. I suppose the truth will have to do.
So, first off, Iron Angels. This book is supposed to be published in May, which makes time a little bit short on that one. I've been working like crazy to finish it up so that my copy editor can have it (thanks again for your patience, Tristi!) and the story has been a tricky one to resolve. At the very least I think I've got the hang of it now, which means that I will be able to get it done this next month and have a third book. Hopefully the payoff is worth all the agony it's put me through!
The next thing that has been taking up my time has been something called Tough Mudder. No, not the Firefly thing. Tough Mudder is a race where you go through twelve miles of obstacles, mud and various other pleasant stuff like electrical wires and burning bales of hay. No, I am not making that up, and definitely no, I am not running in it. At least, not this year. :) However, my dad and a bunch of the guys from the ward are running the race in a couple of weeks, and so I've been getting up early every Saturday morning to work out with them. And by work out, I mean getting up early enough that the sun isn't out and running through freezing cold mountain streams.
On top of all of that I have the cutest little girl in the world who wants nothing more than to have her daddy read her the pidgeon books. Those unfamiliar with the pidgeon books written by Mo Willems should acquaint themselves with these works of art. Otherwise we will be sending Sera over to make you read them to her.
So yeah, it's been a bit busy, but we are still moving along. I wanted to provide photos in this post, but for some reason the internet is not cooperating with me tonight. Oh well. Grumble grumble grumble...
So, first off, Iron Angels. This book is supposed to be published in May, which makes time a little bit short on that one. I've been working like crazy to finish it up so that my copy editor can have it (thanks again for your patience, Tristi!) and the story has been a tricky one to resolve. At the very least I think I've got the hang of it now, which means that I will be able to get it done this next month and have a third book. Hopefully the payoff is worth all the agony it's put me through!
The next thing that has been taking up my time has been something called Tough Mudder. No, not the Firefly thing. Tough Mudder is a race where you go through twelve miles of obstacles, mud and various other pleasant stuff like electrical wires and burning bales of hay. No, I am not making that up, and definitely no, I am not running in it. At least, not this year. :) However, my dad and a bunch of the guys from the ward are running the race in a couple of weeks, and so I've been getting up early every Saturday morning to work out with them. And by work out, I mean getting up early enough that the sun isn't out and running through freezing cold mountain streams.
On top of all of that I have the cutest little girl in the world who wants nothing more than to have her daddy read her the pidgeon books. Those unfamiliar with the pidgeon books written by Mo Willems should acquaint themselves with these works of art. Otherwise we will be sending Sera over to make you read them to her.
So yeah, it's been a bit busy, but we are still moving along. I wanted to provide photos in this post, but for some reason the internet is not cooperating with me tonight. Oh well. Grumble grumble grumble...
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
On Re-finding the Balance
So I have to confess that recently I've felt the temptation to get into a new hobby. Writing was once my main hobby, but now that it has morphed into a career, I've kind of been left hobby-less. It wasn't quite so apparent in Texas, since between my job and my writing I didn't have enough time to contemplate it. Now that I have a bit more breathing room in my day, I find myself returning to the concern.
This post might sound like it contradicts my previous posts (read: whining) about not having a whole lot of time. It's not quite that, though. The problem I'm having is more that I don't seem to focus very well anymore. I might have time, but it certainly isn't productive time, and when I finally get around to being productive, I'm either exhausted or distracted or both. Part of that has to do with the fact that I have been left with only a few main hobbies, namely videogames and reading. I can be rather obsessive about both, and both tend to lead to me wasting time on the computer, so I find myself needing to branch out.
So, solution one has been to restart my habit of running. The weather here has been cooperating nicely, and I'd have to say the exercise has certainly helped me feel a lot more at home here in Pennsylvania.
Solution number two is a lot nerdier. A whole lot nerdier. Which is why I will post about it on Thursday. Both because I am a terrible person, and because this post is way too long already. See ya. (Mwahahahaha...)
This post might sound like it contradicts my previous posts (read: whining) about not having a whole lot of time. It's not quite that, though. The problem I'm having is more that I don't seem to focus very well anymore. I might have time, but it certainly isn't productive time, and when I finally get around to being productive, I'm either exhausted or distracted or both. Part of that has to do with the fact that I have been left with only a few main hobbies, namely videogames and reading. I can be rather obsessive about both, and both tend to lead to me wasting time on the computer, so I find myself needing to branch out.
So, solution one has been to restart my habit of running. The weather here has been cooperating nicely, and I'd have to say the exercise has certainly helped me feel a lot more at home here in Pennsylvania.
Solution number two is a lot nerdier. A whole lot nerdier. Which is why I will post about it on Thursday. Both because I am a terrible person, and because this post is way too long already. See ya. (Mwahahahaha...)
Thursday, March 15, 2012
On Adjusting the Balance
Alright, so the past couple of weeks have not been the best for writing. Some of this can be blamed on the move. Packing and shifting every ounce of your crap over a thousand miles can be rather...disruptive to a person's creative process. My shift in work schedule, workload, social interaction and family circumstances can all bear their share of the guilt as well.
Not everything can be blamed on that one choice, though. I am starting to worry, just a little, that I am crushing myself with my own expectations. Wolfhound succeeded so spectacularly that I began to get a bit carried away with delusions of grandeur and hopes of being a self sufficient writer by the end of 2013. Realistically, as Wolfhound's sales start to settle down a bit from the post-Christmas writing craze and Kingsley continues to poke along at the okay-to-good level, I am glad we haven't left the day job just yet.
Right at that same moment, when my wildest dreams are fading back to a more humdrum practicality, I've landed in a pretty comfy spot. My new job is no longer an exercise in crazy, I can sleep, attend church and act almost like most normal people, and I now live rather close to family instead of a time zone away. That is a level of comfort that we haven't had in a long while, and I worry that it is lulling me to slack off on my writing almost as badly as my crushing burdens in Texas were.
But perhaps all of this is merely an example of excuse finding. Maybe I simply need to regain my focus, settle my shoulders, and get back into it. Yet where do I begin? Any ideas? Blergh.
In any case, I will get back to work on Iron Angels. No rest for the wicked...
Not everything can be blamed on that one choice, though. I am starting to worry, just a little, that I am crushing myself with my own expectations. Wolfhound succeeded so spectacularly that I began to get a bit carried away with delusions of grandeur and hopes of being a self sufficient writer by the end of 2013. Realistically, as Wolfhound's sales start to settle down a bit from the post-Christmas writing craze and Kingsley continues to poke along at the okay-to-good level, I am glad we haven't left the day job just yet.
Right at that same moment, when my wildest dreams are fading back to a more humdrum practicality, I've landed in a pretty comfy spot. My new job is no longer an exercise in crazy, I can sleep, attend church and act almost like most normal people, and I now live rather close to family instead of a time zone away. That is a level of comfort that we haven't had in a long while, and I worry that it is lulling me to slack off on my writing almost as badly as my crushing burdens in Texas were.
But perhaps all of this is merely an example of excuse finding. Maybe I simply need to regain my focus, settle my shoulders, and get back into it. Yet where do I begin? Any ideas? Blergh.
In any case, I will get back to work on Iron Angels. No rest for the wicked...
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Monday, February 27, 2012
On Baby Steps
So first off, and most exciting of my current news, is the fact that Sera has officially began to walk. She took her first steps on Friday, and she has been practicing every day since then. Her record so far has been four solid steps in a row. She is quickly catching on to the fact that this is a BIG DEAL, especially with her grandparents joining her parents in the congratulations. She is growing up way too fast, but every little smile she gives makes the entire journey.
Also, I am proud to announce that we have put the hardcover up for Hector Kingsley's first book. This copy has the excerpt that I included as bonus content for those buying the more expensive paper edition. Given that it is pretty much just an appendix with extra background material, those who choose to read the electronic version will not miss out on anything relating to Hector's adventures, nor on anything relating to Patricia, Benjamin, or the rest of the Kingsley crew. It is, however, pretty cool background, so if you like the world of the Distillation, then feel free to investigate a copy.:)
In all honesty, I plan on publishing all the excerpts, along with more material, in a companion book someday, but just not yet. So if you really want to read the stuff, you will get the chance to see it electronically. Just not until the series is done. Heh heh heh...
In any case, we are starting to get settled in here in Pennsylvania. My job has been going pretty well, and as I get adjusted to it, the oppoortunities I have to write and develop my ideas increase. Hopefully that will lead to some progress this week. I will let you know! See you later!
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
On A New Schedule
It's different when you get home in the late afternoon.
I knew that already, intellectually at least. I had braced myself successfully for the tiredness in the morning, at least initially. During high school I was a bit of a morning person, so I kind of hoped that I could recover and start to push back against my own weariness sooner rather than later. The work has been more or less what I expected.
What I hadn't anticipated was the wholesale shift in my schedule after work. It has been a bit difficult to adjust to having hours of free time available and still being able to get a good night's sleep. For some reason, that's thrown me off a little bit, but hopefully my befuddled state will wear off soon.
In any case, I am still plugging away on Social Contract, and my work on Badger's partial rewrite has gone well. I just need to get back in the swing of things, and I think things will go entirely well. Here's hoping I'm not overly optimistic about that; then again, optimism is something I have only rarely been accused of. :) See you around!
I knew that already, intellectually at least. I had braced myself successfully for the tiredness in the morning, at least initially. During high school I was a bit of a morning person, so I kind of hoped that I could recover and start to push back against my own weariness sooner rather than later. The work has been more or less what I expected.
What I hadn't anticipated was the wholesale shift in my schedule after work. It has been a bit difficult to adjust to having hours of free time available and still being able to get a good night's sleep. For some reason, that's thrown me off a little bit, but hopefully my befuddled state will wear off soon.
In any case, I am still plugging away on Social Contract, and my work on Badger's partial rewrite has gone well. I just need to get back in the swing of things, and I think things will go entirely well. Here's hoping I'm not overly optimistic about that; then again, optimism is something I have only rarely been accused of. :) See you around!
Monday, February 20, 2012
On A Successful Move...So Far
We made it! It was a frantic rush, especially near the end, but we've managed to get the stuff from the apartment all packed, the cars shipped, and the family flown to Pennsylvania, where we will now be working and living. Our hopes are that a change in situation will help encourage us in our efforts to both raise Sera and continue to publish. We have a new job up here that is offering a lot of opportunities we did not have in the emergency room, and I am hoping that a more consistent schedule might relieve a little of my own personal stress. But we will have to see!
In any case, as a quick update, the books are doing well. Wolfhound continues its march, and Kingsley seems to be finding its audience person by person. As I'm looking back on the move we just went through and the past couple of months, I can only be thankful for all the blessings we've enjoyed and the fact that in spite of everything, we've managed to pull it off.
Now if only we could find an apartment to rent...
In any case, as a quick update, the books are doing well. Wolfhound continues its march, and Kingsley seems to be finding its audience person by person. As I'm looking back on the move we just went through and the past couple of months, I can only be thankful for all the blessings we've enjoyed and the fact that in spite of everything, we've managed to pull it off.
Now if only we could find an apartment to rent...
Friday, February 10, 2012
On Moving Soon
In less then seven days, my entire house needs to be packed and ready to move cross country.
AHHHHHHHH!
AHHHHHHHH!
Saturday, February 4, 2012
On A Bit of a Change
So, yeah. In two weeks we will be moving from Texas to Pennsylvania. We did not know this fact two days ago.
You see, I had been interviewing at a company in Pennsylvania. Friday morning they called and told me we got the job! We kind of start fairly quickly there though, so a crazy rush to move is now in order. We need to find a new apartment, organize our exodus, hopefully find a new renter for our apartment lease, pack our stuff, figure out how to get two cars to a state thousands of miles away with a baby in tow... You kind of get the idea.
At the same time, I'm trying to support writing and all that. I had even worked out a schedule on what I was going to revise and write over the next two months or so. :( My best laid plans may get waylaid a bit, but the best part about this new job will be the fact that it will give me more time to write and a much shorter commute. So hopefully that will go a long way to making up for the lost time in the next couple of weeks.
So both excited and nervous about the change. Wish us luck, and I will see you around!
You see, I had been interviewing at a company in Pennsylvania. Friday morning they called and told me we got the job! We kind of start fairly quickly there though, so a crazy rush to move is now in order. We need to find a new apartment, organize our exodus, hopefully find a new renter for our apartment lease, pack our stuff, figure out how to get two cars to a state thousands of miles away with a baby in tow... You kind of get the idea.
At the same time, I'm trying to support writing and all that. I had even worked out a schedule on what I was going to revise and write over the next two months or so. :( My best laid plans may get waylaid a bit, but the best part about this new job will be the fact that it will give me more time to write and a much shorter commute. So hopefully that will go a long way to making up for the lost time in the next couple of weeks.
So both excited and nervous about the change. Wish us luck, and I will see you around!
Thursday, January 26, 2012
On Delicious Treachery
So the past couple of weeks I've kind of been struggling with some health issues. Eating was difficult, I kept getting chills and shivers, and I was generally weak. Acid reflux seemed to be a major problem as well. I figured it was just a flu at first, then I kind of started to worry as it continued to last. I lost a little weight and started to get a little desperate to find something my throat would tolerate. I won't lie, I was kind of starting to worry that I was on the edge of a major mental breakdown over stress or something. Or maybe that something incredibly serious was wrong with me.
No, it was not stress, nor was it disease. It was poison!
You see, in my family we have this weird hereditary trait that makes all the males develop food allergies in their twenties. That means we could be eating food that's never hurt us before, such as avocado, and all of a sudden our throat swells up. Once we figured that out, we've kind of been tracking my dad's allergies and avoiding them preemptively, just to avoid the problems he's had. These include cats, avocado, tree nuts, apple skins and a few other things.
We had wondered if my problems lay in my allergies, but we couldn't figure out what I was eating every day that would cause the issue. Guacomole has been banned, I don't eat apples fresh anymore, and I don't eat cats (though that does sound delicious). And its not like I was chomping down on a brazil nut every afternoon. So we gave up on that idea.
Which is why it wasn't until yesterday, after I had an attack of cold sweats and sudden weakness, that I checked the packaging of the granola bars I've been taking to work. You know, the ones I've eaten at work as a snack or a side for my dinner for nearly two years. Guess what they have in them? That's right. 'May contain traces of tree nuts.' So now I can confirm I've got that allergy. Believe me, I've been poisoning myself with it for the past two weeks, and the symptoms are nothing I want to go through ever again. Blergh.
Treacherous little nut-filled granola bars. Why couldn't you have stayed loyal? Mutter mutter, ungrateful hippy food mutter mutter...
Monday, January 9, 2012
On Keeping Perspective
So the book thing is really moving forward! We're kind of shocked at how well Wolfhound seems to be doing, and we've already gotten two more positive reviews. It's been great seeing what people have enjoyed about the story, and I'm kind of looking forward to that kind of feedback in the future. Something I could get used to! :)
We've even been selling a few copies of Killer as well. For those who don't remember, Killer is the short story I wrote and entered in the Mayhew Short Story Contest at BYU. It did pretty well there, but it hasn't sold a lot on Amazon while it's been up. I guess some of Wolfhound's success is pulling it along though, which is kind of fun. We'll have to see what happens with both of them once Kingsley's first book goes up!
While that's been going on, I've been readjusting to going back to work in the ER, getting far too little sleep, and frantically trying to juggle writing projects. Between writing the Kingsley extras, writing the new material for Social Contract, getting ready to do the final revisions on Kingsley and a bunch of other stuff, I'm going kinda crazy. The fact that I keep obsessively checking Amazon to see if I'm failing yet doesn't help. :P
At the same time, I've needed some help to keep things in perspective. Luckily the other day I got to take my daughter on a walk. We just wandered around the bike paths near our apartment and visited a local park for a while. It was lot of fun to watch her experience the world; just grabbing a leaf and playing with it was like a wonder to her. Seeing the world through her eyes and being able to enjoy those little moments reminded me of simple and straightforward life can be, and how important it is to just sit back and take a breath of fresh air. Otherwise we get lost in the mess of things, and that's no good for anyone, least of all us.
So that's my rambling report for the moment. Hope all is going well for you guys! See you around
We've even been selling a few copies of Killer as well. For those who don't remember, Killer is the short story I wrote and entered in the Mayhew Short Story Contest at BYU. It did pretty well there, but it hasn't sold a lot on Amazon while it's been up. I guess some of Wolfhound's success is pulling it along though, which is kind of fun. We'll have to see what happens with both of them once Kingsley's first book goes up!
While that's been going on, I've been readjusting to going back to work in the ER, getting far too little sleep, and frantically trying to juggle writing projects. Between writing the Kingsley extras, writing the new material for Social Contract, getting ready to do the final revisions on Kingsley and a bunch of other stuff, I'm going kinda crazy. The fact that I keep obsessively checking Amazon to see if I'm failing yet doesn't help. :P
At the same time, I've needed some help to keep things in perspective. Luckily the other day I got to take my daughter on a walk. We just wandered around the bike paths near our apartment and visited a local park for a while. It was lot of fun to watch her experience the world; just grabbing a leaf and playing with it was like a wonder to her. Seeing the world through her eyes and being able to enjoy those little moments reminded me of simple and straightforward life can be, and how important it is to just sit back and take a breath of fresh air. Otherwise we get lost in the mess of things, and that's no good for anyone, least of all us.
So that's my rambling report for the moment. Hope all is going well for you guys! See you around
Saturday, December 31, 2011
On the End of 2011
Well, somehow we've made it all the way through 2011, and man has it been an interesting year. As seems to be traditional, I will spend this last post of December as a way to run through some of the major events and accomplishments that marked my life this year and express gratitude for the opportunity to have them. None of these things came free, but they are each definitely worth it.
First among them was the birth of my first daughter, Sera. She has been a wonderful blessing to my life, and I have been able to get to know this wonderful little being as she has grown up. So far, she doesn't seem to mind me, which is always a plus; hopefully that continues in 2012!
Second, I managed to start a writing career! Wolfhound was published in December, and has already sold a fairly decent amount. Besides that, I've managed to write over 340k new words in four different novels. Now I have a revision schedule that says I will publish each of those four novels in 2012, while writing four more to follow them up. It has literally been a miracle for me to be able to pursue that dream, and I think I've done rather well getting four rough drafts written in a single year. The revising has gone pretty well too, and I have high hopes to be able to continue the process in the coming months. We shall see if my abilities meet my expectations of course, but so far I think we are doing pretty well.
Third, I finally outgifted my wife for Christmas! Mwahahaha! It took me about four years to put that accomplishment together, but I managed it. Okay, it's kind of a small victory, but I say that it was totally awesome, so there. :P We've also been able to keep the writing group going for over a year now, and I've officially been working full time at the emergency room for over a year as well. We've been able to move forward in a lot of ways, and that has me looking forward to what we can accomplish together in the future. Thanks to everyone for all of your help, support, and love, and I hope that you are all celebrating the accomplishments in your own life and looking forward to the dawn of a new year.
So there's the year in very, very brief terms. Here's hoping that after all the trials and obstacles, all the work and the struggle, we can keep moving forward in the coming year. Thanks again for all of your help, and I will see you in 2012!
First among them was the birth of my first daughter, Sera. She has been a wonderful blessing to my life, and I have been able to get to know this wonderful little being as she has grown up. So far, she doesn't seem to mind me, which is always a plus; hopefully that continues in 2012!
Second, I managed to start a writing career! Wolfhound was published in December, and has already sold a fairly decent amount. Besides that, I've managed to write over 340k new words in four different novels. Now I have a revision schedule that says I will publish each of those four novels in 2012, while writing four more to follow them up. It has literally been a miracle for me to be able to pursue that dream, and I think I've done rather well getting four rough drafts written in a single year. The revising has gone pretty well too, and I have high hopes to be able to continue the process in the coming months. We shall see if my abilities meet my expectations of course, but so far I think we are doing pretty well.
Third, I finally outgifted my wife for Christmas! Mwahahaha! It took me about four years to put that accomplishment together, but I managed it. Okay, it's kind of a small victory, but I say that it was totally awesome, so there. :P We've also been able to keep the writing group going for over a year now, and I've officially been working full time at the emergency room for over a year as well. We've been able to move forward in a lot of ways, and that has me looking forward to what we can accomplish together in the future. Thanks to everyone for all of your help, support, and love, and I hope that you are all celebrating the accomplishments in your own life and looking forward to the dawn of a new year.
So there's the year in very, very brief terms. Here's hoping that after all the trials and obstacles, all the work and the struggle, we can keep moving forward in the coming year. Thanks again for all of your help, and I will see you in 2012!
Thursday, December 22, 2011
On Christmas
It's that time of year again! This week we will be heading home to visit family. It's been a while since we have been able to take time off (I think my last break was sometime in June, to give you some perspective on that) and it will be a welcome opportunity to reconnect with people who are way too far away.
I hope that all of you are also near family, or that they are at the very least close to your hearts. Have a very Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year. See you around!
I hope that all of you are also near family, or that they are at the very least close to your hearts. Have a very Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year. See you around!
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
On Being Published+Guest Post with Joe
Well, it is finally dawning on me that I have a book up where people can buy and read it. It is a weird feeling.
I guess part of it is the fact that I've worked so hard on that novel, and now there is nothing left to do. It's done, all over but the formatting. By the end of the week we hope to have the paperback and hardcover versions more or less adjusted and squared away, and after that point I will never have to edit Wolfhound ever again. That alone is a strange, unfamiliar feeling.
That's not even including the social aspect of the thing. I occasionally mention the book to my coworkers, half of whom don't seem to have remembered or realized what I was doing with the whole writing thing. Their reactions range from surprised to indifferent, but at the very least they tend to wonder what in the world I am doing with my life. When I try to explain about how pubishing has changed these days and what my writing plan is for the next few months, I get a few polite nods and maybe a glazed look. I think actually publishing something has forced me to realize exactly how much technical jargon I've absorbed over the past year of working on this thing.
Perhaps the strangest thing is that I actually know what I'm doing for the next year. Kingsley will probably be out by February, if everything goes to plan, and Iron Angels won't be too much longer after that. Good crappity, Badger is planned as coming out in six to eight months unless I totally drop the ball. And after that I have other books planned out stretching out all the way to December 2013; the main question about the whole thing is how I will find enough time to revise everything.
So yeah, I suddenly have a career outside of the emergency room. And it's awesome and strange and I'm not quite used to it yet. But thanks to everyone who has already bought the book (and thanks for the patience of the people waiting for the hardcover!), and I hope I don't let you all down, despite my failings. Also, go check out the guest post I did on Joe's blog! It talks about space pirates. Can't go wrong there! See you around!
I guess part of it is the fact that I've worked so hard on that novel, and now there is nothing left to do. It's done, all over but the formatting. By the end of the week we hope to have the paperback and hardcover versions more or less adjusted and squared away, and after that point I will never have to edit Wolfhound ever again. That alone is a strange, unfamiliar feeling.
That's not even including the social aspect of the thing. I occasionally mention the book to my coworkers, half of whom don't seem to have remembered or realized what I was doing with the whole writing thing. Their reactions range from surprised to indifferent, but at the very least they tend to wonder what in the world I am doing with my life. When I try to explain about how pubishing has changed these days and what my writing plan is for the next few months, I get a few polite nods and maybe a glazed look. I think actually publishing something has forced me to realize exactly how much technical jargon I've absorbed over the past year of working on this thing.
Perhaps the strangest thing is that I actually know what I'm doing for the next year. Kingsley will probably be out by February, if everything goes to plan, and Iron Angels won't be too much longer after that. Good crappity, Badger is planned as coming out in six to eight months unless I totally drop the ball. And after that I have other books planned out stretching out all the way to December 2013; the main question about the whole thing is how I will find enough time to revise everything.
So yeah, I suddenly have a career outside of the emergency room. And it's awesome and strange and I'm not quite used to it yet. But thanks to everyone who has already bought the book (and thanks for the patience of the people waiting for the hardcover!), and I hope I don't let you all down, despite my failings. Also, go check out the guest post I did on Joe's blog! It talks about space pirates. Can't go wrong there! See you around!
Monday, December 5, 2011
On Eggnog
How is it that this stuff only comes around once a year? We should start a petition or something...
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