New 6 Goals Podcast Episode

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I do a podcast about productivity and getting in shape and I finally uploaded a new episode today. I talk about my writing, my art, running, and a few other things. Here's the notes from the show: This week I talk about finally going for a run after buying some brand new running shoes, and doing some eBook and podcast artwork for some fellow authors. It's great to be running and podcasting again!

Here are links to the podcast and authors I mentioned:

http://www.actionpackpodcast.com/

http://www.michellplested.com/

http://www.jrmurdock.com/

http://www.scottroche.com/

TV Memories 04 | Michell PlestedGUEST BLOG POST

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Growing up on the farm, television was always a means to connect with the outside world. We lived more than twenty miles out of town and the nearest neighbor was a couple miles away, so it also served as a social outlet.

The fact that we only had three channels for the first several years of my life meant we watched whatever was on at the time and we liked it. Especially if the weather was bad and one or two of those channels were unwatchable.

Still, there were several shows that I never missed: The A-Team, the original Battlestar Galactica, “V”, Charlies’ Angels. They showed me worlds that I never dreamed I could be a part of. Whether it was outer space or some foreign country, I was able to put aside my rather mundane life and experience something totally different.

I think it was the fantasy and spectacle of those shows that really made me gravitate towards Science Fiction and Fantasy writing. Through that fiction I was able to go wherever and whenever I wanted. It also had the additional benefit of being portable so I could go to those worlds anywhere I was. That was probably the real beginning of my love affair with books. I read all the time.

I don’t think I really realized what effect some of the shows had on me. Some were obvious, like Dark Shadows (reruns – I’m not THAT old). I never quite looked at the dark the same way. Every time I had to cross a dark yard I would wonder if something was out there watching me.

Other shows impacted me in ways that weren’t quite so obvious. The one show that I now recognize as an important one to me is a little known show called Cliffhangers.

Cliffhangers was one of those television shows that was totally different. Instead of one story, it had three. Instead of one genre, it had several and the music the show used in each of the three stories? Well, let me say, I really grew to love the moodiness of “Moonlight Sonata”.

The show made me see things in a different way. My favorite of the three sub-shows was Dracula. I wasn’t a big fan of horror then, but the writers made Dracula into something different. Instead of a simple predator, he had feelings. He had depth.

It wasn’t until last Fall that I even remembered the show. That memory was sparked by two of my online friends, Scott Roche and JR Murdock. They were talking about their writing plans for 2012 and I thought, “Gee, wouldn’t it be cool if we did something together?”

Then the show, Cliffhangers, came to mind (and I didn’t actually recall the title until another online friend reminded me). That’s where the idea of the Action Pack

Podcast came to life. Perhaps the three of us could share a common goal of writing an episode of our own story each month and podcast it together?

We met, talked about the idea and you will now see (in multiple eBook formats) and hear the Action Pack Podcast beginning February. I’m thrilled because it is allowing me to write a story partially inspired by some of the more recent television shows and movies about zombies. My story is Boy Scouts of the Apocalypse and I’ve wanted to write it for more than two years now.

So television has been good to me. It provided me with an escape and window to the world when I was young. It made my imagination soar so I had to fuel it with reading and now, it is giving me ideas for more books to write and podcasts to produce.

Is there nothing television can’t do? ;)

Michell Plested is a writer and podcaster living in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. I came to know him through his excellent writing podcast called Get Published. I have learned a lot about writing and the writing business from listening to his show, and on top of that he has great interviews with authors and people in the biz. If you haven’t checked it out you need to, Michell is a great interviewer. His other podcast of note is a novel that had me laughing out loud each and every episode. Galaxy Billies is the story of five humans from the Appalachian Mountains who are abducted by a semi-sentient starship named Grokmar who he needs an intelligent crew in order to function properly. Hilarity and all sorts of adventures ensue. Go have a listen for free Michell’s website or at Podiobooks. Also, this year Michell has a young adult super hero novel coming out through Five Rivers Publishing called Mik Murdoch, Boy Superhero. I can’t wait to have that one on my shelf. Also this year from Michell look for the Action Pack Podcast over at http://www.actionpackpodcast.com/. I’m really excited about this and did a lot of the artwork for them. Go subscribe and get your helping of sci-fi, western steampunk, and young adult zombie survival action. With all his writing projects, full time job, family, and scout trips with his son, let’s just say that Michell is a busy guy. You can follow him on twitter, and many other social media sites. Find out more at http://www.michellplested.com/.

TV Memories 03 | Tim WardGUEST BLOG POST

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I could write about living in Korea for six months, and the only thing I could watch was 24 hour loops of UFC fighting (with Korean announcers). I could write how I'd spend hours in the local video store scouring the shelves for anything serviceable to watch. Instead, I think I should write about what happened last night when a friend and I watched the last two episodes of The Walking Dead.

One reason why I highlight this memory is because I can't remember being this excited about and during a show. Two "hour" long episodes felt like twenty minutes, the last hour feeling like five minutes. I don't really know why, because there is a lot of dialogue and only a tiny fraction is zombie hunting. Maybe it's that anticipation of the large zombie fighting scenes that keeps me on the edge of my seat.

The other strange thing is that The Walking Dead is the epitome of what I'm looking for in a zombie experience. Since I don't have AMC (extremely bummed about this fact, but oh well) I've been watching it at my friend's house, sometimes a month or more between getting together. In between, I'm building anticipation and trying to satisfy that hunger by reading books, playing Resident Evil 4 on Wii (not the best zombie escape, but that's what I'z gots), and watching whatever post-apocalyptic movie or zombie flick I can find. The thing is, nothing compares to the experience I get from The Walking Dead. Resident Evil movies have lots of zombie action, but I don't care about the characters, so it's a yawn fest.

I guess that's what The Walking Dead has going for it, a combination of engaging characters with the ideal survival-amidst-zombies setting. The result is me feeling like I'm in elementary school when I didn't have many responsibilities outside of chores and Cub Scouts. Watching The Walking Dead makes me forget about all my responsibilities because I'm enjoying the best entertainment man can make.

My friend and I even had fun searching the AMC store with covetous hearts after every shirt, action figure, and zombie valentine's day card we could find. You know a show is good when it gets an adult to start collecting action figures again.

Timothy C. Ward writes Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror that reveals what glory can be found on the other side of pain. He also hosts two podcasts on writing, AudioTim and the Holy Worlds Podcast. Tim used his bachelor’s degree in English to send him to live in Australia and South Korea before he earned his Master of Divinity at Faith Baptist Theological Seminary in Iowa. His stories reflect his love for adventure and observations on how trials shape character. You can find him on Facebook, Twitter, or his website, TimothyCWard.com.

A New Book Cover for My Novella

Happy Valentine's Day! Show that special someone you love them today. I don't mean just buying them something, I mean sitting down and snuggling and just telling them how wonderful they are and how your life is so much better because you have them.

As many of you know I'm revising what will be my debut novel right now, and I'm getting closer to finishing it, but something I haven't talked about is the novella I'm currently writing. I've been writing the first draft of a middle grade adventure novel. I wanted to write something like the fun Hardy Boys books I read when I was a little kid.

Here's the synopsis from my Projects & Progress page:

A boy goes to stay with his grandma for the summer since his mom works full time soon after his grandfather's death. Grandma tells him that she doesn't know where their cat goes all day, but that he only comes back in the house at the end of the day to eat. He investigates and finds the old cat goes to grandpa's old tool shed where he spent most of his time. Sometime later the cat never comes home and is discovered to be badly injured. The vet keeps him overnight and says he's been in a fight with a wild animal. Soon after the cat is home and felling better it goes out and doesn't come home again, but this time it can't be found anywhere. Our hero attempts to find the cat, and what has happened to him.

Anyways, last fall I took a ton of pictures of the old shed next to my back yard in hopes I could use one as the cover for this story. In creating the cover I came up with a final title as well. I like the angle and the way the grass sticks up at the bottom. It will be a fun story to record in podcast form. I think I'm going to try something that I've never done before for the podcast version too. I'm going to write and record songs for it. It will be like in a Disney film, where the story is moving along and then all of the sudden the character busts out in song. It's an idea that just sounds like too much fun not to try and I'm excited about it.

Thanks for stopping by the blog. I hope you enjoyed Jeff Hite's TV Memory guest post as much as I did. There another one from another awesome guest for many more Friday's to come. Next up will be my friend and fellow writer Tim Ward.

TV Memories 02 | Jeff HiteGUEST BLOG POST

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“Good Afternoon Baltimore. It’s 5 o’clock.” I have no idea who he was, or what station he was on but this man was my very first TV Hero. It may sound silly that the anchor for the 5 o’clock news was my hero, but you have to remember I was three at the time, and when he said those words, it meant it was only minutes until my dad came home. And like most three year olds my dad was my real life hero.

Times moved on, so did TV and so did we. By the time I had reached the more informed age of seven we had moved to Ohio, and had gotten our first cable box. Scooby Doo was on this new cable box, and the first of the muscle bound super heroes started to appear. Thundarr the Barbarian and Blackstar. I often wonder how the writers of Thundarr felt when 1994 came and went with nary a comet in sight. But Blackstar would leave more of an imprint on me as his double sword would be the basis for my very first written story. And no, I will not share it with you.

All these fantasies formed who I was in ways that I can’t begin to describe, and probably don’t even want to think about. At the same time I was introduced to Star Trek and Star Wars, between these and the real life heroes of the NASA astronauts I am still inspired today. With all of these factors it is easy to see how I became the person I am today. But there was one more strange turn that would alter my life.

In 1984 my family moved to Germany and due to a space time continuum that was called AFN (Armed Forces Network) we were warped back to the 50’s. We watched Classic TV before it was cool. I was raised (for a number of years) on Mchale's Navy and Hogans Heroes, and for 45 minutes in the afternoon we got Touche Turtle, Atom Ant and Roger Ramjet. My TV life went from the amazing 25 channels of that first cable box down to one. I rather quickly learned to speak enough German to watch the more up to date channels but it had been an experience. I mean who knew that two dimensional planes could fly.

Some time in the late 80’ Sky Network came online and we got a satellite dish, I was introduced to cricket, which I still don’t understand, but at least we got more channels again. After that a lot of it is a blur until Star Trek The Next Generation.

This show cemented my already deep devotion to the Trek universe. I can honestly say that when nothing else in the past 20 years has grabbed my attention, I have been able to go back to Star Trek. When we didn’t have cable for a few years I would sit and watch the snowy images of Enterprise over the other clearer channels that were on. This universe more than any any other in the TV world has captured my attention, and given me countless hours of entertainment. I have all 4 series in my Netflix instant queue and watch them far too often after the kids have all gone to bed.

I honestly don’t know who influenced me more Mr. Rogers or Mr. Spock, but I think they both taught me a valuable lesson. Be nice to your neighbors, and live long and prosper, but I think they both speak volumes to the person I have tried to become.

Thank you both, and thank you for the TV memories.

Jeff Hite is primarily a husband and father, but when he is not at home playing with the ever growing number of kids he is an IT professional by day. In his "spare time" he is a writer, one of the co-founders of Flying Island Press, a co-editor of A Method to the Madness a Guide to the Super Evil and the managing editor of of Pirate's Cove. He lives by the motto : "I am a pirate your rules don't apply."