Goal Post: First Week of Summer in the Books

You know I’ve had a week if I’m writing this post on Saturday instead of the night before.  I could have done that, but I was tired when I got home yesterday.  Soooo tired.  Summer was supposed to be relaxing and allow me to get my energy back.  I’m the same amount of exhausted as I was when I worked.  So, what happened?

First, the idea that I can sleep in isn’t entirely true.  I spent the entire school year waking up at 4:30/5 AM.  That’s before my alarm, so my body is clearly used to doing it.  Some times I can fall asleep again, but the other times I’m just fidgeting in the bed.  The heat we had for most of the week didn’t help even with the air conditioning.  So, I certainly didn’t catch up on rest.  We’ll see what happens down the road.

I didn’t get any writing done this week.  No editing or outlining either.  The reason is because I had my son the whole time.  A few nights he went to his mom, but I was already drained after a day of adventure.  There were plenty of those:

Sunday–  Father/son trip to the Bronx Zoo.  It was really hot and crowded.  Lots of people without masks, which wouldn’t worry us too much if we didn’t keep seeing people sneeze or cough into the ether.  Guess the whole hygiene thing went away once the mask mandate was lifted.

Monday–  I had the dentist in the morning, but a Mario Lego Set first.  I came back to lunch then Lego DC Super Villains before family came over.  Visited my grandparents’ graves, which we don’t do a lot.  My son spoke of vaguely remembering the area because it’s been a while.  A big accomplishment for him since he doesn’t typically remember these things.

Tuesday–  Walk along an oceanside park with friends and then hanging out in a library when it got too hot.  My son hadn’t seen my friend’s daughter since last summer, so it was great seeing them hang out.  Got to socialize myself too.  Then it was ‘Who Framed Roger Rabbit?’ for lunch followed by another Mario Lego set and then Lego DC Super Villains for a bit.  Way too hot to do more.

Wednesday–  Not much different from before.  Only we played Pokemon Snap like I had promised.  It wasn’t the hottest day, but it kept threatening rain or being too hot. We were tired from the previous days too.  Got a haircut on this day too.

Thursday–  No video games!  Mario Lego Sets were made.  We watched a Hong Kong movie called ‘Dynasty Warriors’ and my son made another drawing.  Slowly getting back into the art, so I might be able to do another of those posts in August.  He starts art camp next week, so we’ll see what he comes back with.  He invited the entire block to his birthday party too.  Eep!

Friday–  Made the last of the Mario Lego Sets.  I’m going to post pictures of them and  video of the whole collection on my Instagram in a bit.  We did video games too, but it was mostly just hanging out because of appointments and being sleepy.  Oh, I had to help my dad move furniture back into the house too.  That took up the morning and we didn’t even finish.  After my son went to his mom, I did errands and got together with high school friends, one of which is visiting from out-of-state.

That brings us to today when I’m going to be heading into NYC soon.  Hanging out with a friend I haven’t seen since before the pandemic.  We have no real plans beyond trying to stay dry and avoiding large, suspicious crowds.  More than likely, I’ll get lost in finding our new meeting place since I can’t hang around Penn Station these days.  One final adventure before I dive into editing War of Nytefall: Anarchy.

Speaking of books, I’m not sure when I’m going to publish again.  Need to make contact with the cover artist for War of Nytefall and see what’s possible.  The series might spill into next year instead of ending in December.  Do I Need to Use a Dragon? is still missing an artist.  With summer camp expenses, I’ve taken another hit that makes this one very difficult.  So, everything is up in the air.  With my son in camp, I’ll be able to get more done.  My hope is to edit the book in a week and then start writing the first ‘Slumberlord’ volume.  I considered tackling Ichabod Brooks instead, but I might start on his second collection if I finish the other book before the end of the summer.   Again, we have an issue with cover art if any of these finish.

Blog-wise, I got everything set up for July and August.  Have a topic list for September too, so I might whittle that one down during when I have only 20-30 minutes.  This would be when my son is taking a shower since it doesn’t give me enough time to write a book section.  Guess I’m going to be busier than I realized during the summer.  Makes all the people suggesting I’m sitting around doing nothing look rather foolish.

Did I watch any TV that wasn’t with my son?  I watched the new episodes of ‘Seven Deadly Sins’.  It was fun, but the show jumps around events a lot.  So, I got a little lost during the moments I turned away from the screen.  Began watching an old anime called ‘Heat Guy J’ and might try ‘What We Do in the Shadows’ after that.  Not sure how much TV time I’ll have now that I’m trying to write a bunch.  Also, there’s plenty of drama continuing to keep me drained.

Goals of the week?

  1. Enjoy NYC trip today.
  2. Start editing War of Nytefall: Anarchy and possibly finish.
  3. Time with son when he’s not in camp.
  4. Rest
  5. Pizza at some point?
  6. Fiddle with another idea?
  7. I got nothing
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Poetry Month Overflow: Crossing Bedlam & Chasing Bedlam #adventure #dystopia

Cover by Jon Hunsinger
Cover Art by Jon Hunsinger

The United States
Cut off and collapsed
Under the weight
Of sins and hate
The Shattered States
Born from violence
And supported through death
None matters
As two seek survival
A woman
Sharp of tongue and aim
A man
Loose of mind and moral
Together
They shall cross the land
Birthing carnage
That will secure their legend

Barrel into a copy of Crossing Bedlam & Chasing Bedlam on Amazon Kindle for 99 cents each!

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A Fond Farewell (Queen Titania’s Court)

A good time was had by all.

A Fond Farewell (Queen Titania’s Court)

Thanks for a month of magic and fun.

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Poetry Month Overflow: The Life & Times of Ichabod Brooks #fantasy #shortstories

Cover Art by Circecorp

Ichabod has no quest
Beyond the basics
Food on the table
And a roof
Over his family’s head
Adventurer by trade
Known far and wide
His bow holds fame
While his face shows miles
Knees click
And hips ache
Ichabod cannot rest
Until his bills are paid

Pick up your copy of The Life & Times of Ichabod Brooks on Amazon Kindle for 99 cents!

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Poetry Month: Savagery #fantasy #vampires

Cover Art by Alison Hunt

Two lands of fangs
Warring
And never gaining ground
Both
Will be shoved
To the edge of oblivion
Once man
And now monster
This beast seeks blood
Seasoned with agony
Bodies fill his vision
Headless and cold
Brining a smile
That grows wider
As his true prey
Comes into view

Bite into your copy of War of Nytefall: Savagery on Amazon Kindle for 99 cents!

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Overdues and Occultism (Queen Titania’s Court)

And the magic continues!

Overdues and Occultism (Queen Titania’s Court)
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Peavley Manor (Queen Titania’s Court)

Come in, the ball is under way!

Peavley Manor (Queen Titania’s Court)
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Chaos Wolf (Queen Titania’s Court)

The wolves are at the door! But it’s okay, they were invited.

Chaos Wolf (Queen Titania’s Court)
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Poetry Month: Ravenous #fantasy #vampire

Cover Art by Alison Hunt

Do you hear the whispers?
The Pleasure Shadow beckons
Its mistress
Licks her lips
At the aroma of guests
Knowing they bring money
Excitement
And power
She thrives in the umbra
Famous in the right circles
Until today
When the wrong eyes
Have turned her way

Devour your copy of War of Nytefall: Ravenous on Amazon Kindle for 99 cents!

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Poetry Month: Eradication #fantasy #vampires

Cover Art by Alison Hunt

Across the lands
Followers of the sun march
Led by a man
Holding their master’s fist
Creatures of night
Retreat and fall
As Durag’s army advances
Seeking the destruction
Of the man
Who bares his fangs
And the blessing
Of their blazing Lord

Dive into your copy of War of Nytefall: Eradication on Amazon Kindle for 99 cents!

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