Over the holidays I managed to garner quite a few new watchers!
To a writer, there is no higher honor than having readers, and I appreciate and thank all of you for finding me a writer you could get behind.

As a Boxing Day gift, I thought I'd give you all a peek into what I was brewing- plus it's a good way to keep me on track.

-An As of Yet Untitled Fantasy Story: While set in a fantasy world, this is a modern day introduction to Basil, a worldweary sorcerer (not a wizard) and his much younger companion, Clara, who is cursed. The jist of the story is that Basil, while something of a charismatic douchebag, is still a good person deep down, who has a strong sense of justice when he's not falling down drunk. I'm very excited about this as I've never worked with sorcerers before, and I love the idea of them as an integral part of a modern world. Plus, I love the relationship dynamic between Basil and Clara.

-Childlike (name subject to almost certainly change): A Clocktown story, this time a backstory for Chester. But wait- I've already done one of those!- well yes and no. This follows him over the course of several months when he was nine years old, and has already become quite lengthly. I've been working on it off and on for a while now and I hope it'll be finished soon!

-The Music Box chapter two, Sunlight: Since Music Box is one of my oldest and dearest stories, new chapters take a lot of work, frustration, and pulling out of hair. I've been plotting the second chapter for a while. I have to write things linearly or they won't get done- though I've done several standalone scenes for the future that I keep deleting. I'm so sorry I'm slow on this, I know a lot of people enjoyed the first chapter and much about the world is to be unveiled in the second.

-Opening Act: A Clocktown story, this time an introduction to Silas from childhood up. I've written several scenes for it, but I've yet to get it to bow to my will.



For those of you who missed or were uninterested, I recently posted Aquarium, which is a Clocktown story. It's apparently disturbing, according to several of my friends, and for that I refuse to apologize. It deals with the Hospital District in West Clocktown, which I've never explored before but almost certainly will again.


I hope everyone had a splendid Christmas and spent it with joy and warmth!

Many thanks to !
I placed third in their nonfiction contest for my entry Cookies, and won a one month extension of my rapidly fading subscription.

Thank you to Prose Please and all the judges!!

I'm mailing off my first ever submission to a literary journal!
I'm submitting "The Cellist's Wife" to Crazy Horse, a journal that, while well respected, is notorious for taking an egregiously long time to get back to the submitters and next to impossible to be published in.

I don't expect much to come of this submission for those reasons- I honestly have a higher chance of winning the lottery- but I do think that all authors must learn to face rejection and even expect it before comes acceptance.

And besides, when I DO get the almost inevitable rejection letter, I'm certain that means I'm professional.

^__^

I know people say it's silly to be sad over the ending of a tv show- but to me, Monk was more than a show.
It was the show that defined an era of my life. From the time we moved to California to the present day, my family has almost never missed an episode of Monk. It became an event in my house. Make popcorn- Monk's on!

I went through a really rough patch there, struggling with depression, self loathing and immense loneliness, and cheesy as it sounds, I could always turn Monk on and find a friend there with problems I could relate to, a tragic figure that could be anyone I knew. That is why Monk was in fact the only tv show I've ever followed consistently, certainly the only one that has managed to bring me to tears on more than one occasion.

But the ending was hopeful and a fine conclusion to the series which at time made my teenage years bearable. To Tony Shaloub, Traylor Howard, Ted Levine, Jason Gray-Stanford, Bitty Schram, Andy Breckman and co. - thank you so much. You have no idea what your series meant to me personally.

It was an excellent run, and leaves me hopeful for my own future as this era of my life seems to really be over, and another finally and thankfully right around the corner.

I won't be in pain. And I won't be afraid.
And the glory of God will come down from on high
and put us in the clothing we always knew we wore.