Archive for category Writing
Character Interview, Lieutenant June Trynamour
Posted by edslapdesk in interview, Synergy of Hopes, Writing on 05/09/2016
After much diplomacy I have succeeded in getting a few moments to ask the second most important character in my Worlds Together series a few questions. As with my interview with Nivpul Exavent, this took place shortly before the events in Synergy Of Hopes. Given the conditions under which we talked her short replies may be more than I could have hoped for.
What is your greatest fear?
Being rejected by the Samafm ambassadors Carlos and Uno Yondu.
What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
The way I let pride get in the way of common sense.
What is the trait you most deplore in others?
Inconsistent people throwing wrenches into well planned operations.
Which living person do you most admire?
The Samafm Ambassadors at large, Carlos and Uno Yondu. They see something in me nobody else can see.
Which living person do you most despise?
A certain Guard Fleet officer who wouldn’t let it go.
When and where were you happiest?
When I’m free to distract myself in the pursuit of certain private research projects.
If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
I would erase the memory of things I’ve been forced to do.
What is your most marked characteristic?
The way I can terrify with a look.
What do you most value in your friends?
The love that binds them whatever the stresses they face.
What is your greatest regret?
Not swallowing my pride when the opportunity arose to return home after my discharge from Guard Fleet.
Visit my Published Works page to find stories involving this character.
Character Interview, Ensign Nivpul Exavent
Posted by edslapdesk in interview, Synergy of Hopes, Writing on 28/08/2016
I caught up to the main character in my Worlds Together series shortly before the events in Synergy Of Hopes could take place and asked him the following questions. His answers were a little terse, but I’ll take what I can get.
What is your greatest fear?
Never finding a love like the one my Grandfather knew before the too soon loss of my Grandmother SSilsnia.
What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
The way I freeze when asked to speak up in public.
What is the trait you most deplore in others?
Duplicitous people.
Which living person do you most admire?
My Grandfather Roggi. No one has had to overcome more pain to fullfill his dreams.
Which living person do you most despise?
Duke Argodr. His ego is nothing but trouble to everyone who has to deal with his people.
When and where were you happiest?
Working with my Grandfather Roggi making the Konhor project a success.
If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
I’d learn how to speak to a girl who catches my eye rather than pulling into myself.
What is your most marked characteristic?
My Exavent red hair.
What do you most value in your friends?
People who do what they said they would do.
What is your greatest regret?
Not forming any lasting relationships during my time as a Cadet in the League Star Academy.
Visit my Published Works page to find stories involving this character.
Podcast Mania
Posted by edslapdesk in Musings, Personal, Writing on 04/08/2016
I have a moderately long commute to and from my bread and butter job each day. About two years ago I decided to try maximising that and other driving times by exploring to growing world of podcasts. What once was a handful of listens has now become a stable to fill my entire week.
Over this time specific podcasts have come and gone. Some because the stopped making new ones, some because they didn’t speak to me, and some due to technical reasons around my present sound system. That is simply the nature of the beast.
I thought it might be interesting to post a list of my present listens, so in the order they appear in my podcast app here are the shows I presently listen to on a regular basis:
Helping Writers Become Authors
Science Fiction and Fantasy Marketing
In closing I should note that not all these podcasts are released on a regular basis but most do come out at weekly.
3D Computing Part 2
Posted by edslapdesk in Synergy of Hopes, World's Together, Writing on 03/06/2016
My last post, Into The Land Of 3D Computing, details my first foray into the world of 3D computing and 3D printing.
I have since rescaled my model and produced a demo sized model in a medium I can polish to perfection. 3dhubs came through again.
Now for the tricky part. Doing the actual polish and deciding if I need to add any markings. You will have to read the opening of Synergy Of Hopes to understand why that’s an important question. (Is that blatant enough?)
Into The Land Of 3D Computing
Posted by edslapdesk in Personal, Synergy of Hopes, Writing on 26/05/2016
I have been musing over the question of how to generate professional grade images of the ship in my stories, Konhor, for some time. It is the one element missing from my cover to Synergy Of Hopes, my blog image, and even my Author Cards.
My Konhor Board on Pinterest shows many of the diagrams and images I’ve developed to date, but none of them are clean enough to use in the manner described. I simply don’t have the artistic or graphic skills to take them to the next level .
In response I have attempted two very different tactics to acquire such an image. Method one had me contract a designer on Upwork. This got me a wonderful ship design that didn’t work for me once I’d had a chance to think it over and cost me too much money to try it again any time soon. Method two had me consider the option of creating a 3D rendition of Konhor which I could either render from various angles or 3D print an actual model. The latter has the added benefit of being able to put it out on display at Cons and other public venues.
My first intro into the world of 3D printing came through the powerful but free program Blender. It’s taken me hours of watching online videos to get a grasp on the basics of this program. My second biggest foray into 3D came after being pointed to Tinkercad. Though this online program appears primitive it only took a few short videos to give me the skills to build a first prototype of Konhor.
One thing Tinkercad doesn’t have is the ability to add a light and capture renders of my ship in that platform. Thus I turned to the idea of seeing what it would take to have a 3D model printed. This meant finding a service able to handle the job at a reasonable cost. Enter Hubs, a site where I could find local 3D printer services and collect quotes. Four days later I had my prototype. A model so small I could make it into a tie clip or earing as the picture above attests. Seems I still have a bit to learn about this whole 3D thing.
My next iteration will be 4 times larger, which in a 3D environment actually increases its volume by a magnitude of 64. This may cost me a wee bit more than prototype #1 but is still cheaper in time and cash than the other options I have at this time.
More to come.
Interviewed by Lorna Suzuki
Posted by edslapdesk in Synergy of Hopes, Writing on 15/11/2015
The esteemed fantasy writer of The Imago Chronicles and The Dream Merchant Saga, Lorna Suzuki, has interviewed me on her All Kinds Of Writing site. Check it out.
Then look at my Events Page for information on future appearances and links to past activities.
A Few Thoughts On VCON 40 Revisted
Posted by edslapdesk in Musings, Personal, Writing on 11/11/2015
I wrote a few thoughts about this year’s VCON shortly after the event had ended this year. A month has not passed, and I feel the need to revisit what I had to say then. Not about my core question of whether what I experienced at VCON indicates a trend or a blip, but about the bias I (and others?) are carrying with us when we attend.
I am a writer. Though this is a fan and not a writers convention it does have a strong writer track to its scheduling. The more I consider the way I thought about it after my last post, the more I saw how I have been limiting my experience by attending as a writer.
A closer look at the schedule revealed how many of the panels that had been presented were only writer related because I approached them with that overlay. While panels like Time Travel in Film and What Makes a Good SF Television Series can present ideas writers can use, that was not the primary aim of either.
On the flip side. Is it possible that some people have stopped attending VCON because they have come to feel it is too writer centric rather than offering more in their particular fandom?
I recognise that no con can reach out to every fandom in every medium. I also know that a new writer centric con has been added to the local calendar, and that more than a few people who attended the latter chose not to attend VCON because of the perceived overlap. Hotels and travel costs for out-of-towners aside, it does not have to be this way.
I do not want to see VCON fade away. I also do not want to see it become so narrow in its focus that people continue to stay away because it has stopped speaking to them. I for one plan to attend future VCONs with the eye to seeing it from more than my writers eye.
The Sacrifice Of Being A Writer
Posted by edslapdesk in Musings, Personal, Writing on 07/11/2015
I hear lots of people comment on how much you have to sacrifice to be a writer. Today I got to thinking about how wrong such a sentiment can be. It can be likened to the person who says you can’t enjoy a party if you don’t get drunk or don’t go out of your way to show off.
The world and all that implies is too big for anyone to take in during a finite lifespan. We all have to make choices about what we desire the most during this life we’ve been given.
In this sense I see sacrifice as having to give up something we desire in order to accomplish that which has to be done. I would rather be writing than have to spend long hours each day earning a living. It could be argued that I sacrifice my writing time in order to keep a roof over my head.
Mind you, a quick look at how I describe myself will show that I put writing beneath God and family. In that sense keeping a roof over my family’s head is a higher priority than writing.
All that being said, I do put writing over everything else. I am not sacrificing TV time to write. I am not sacrificing sport time to write. I am not sacrificing travel time to write. Though I may add travel time to my writing world if I reach the point that attending cons outside the local area makes sense to my writing outreach. What I am sacrificing is writing time to go off and do any of the above.
To rephrase an earlier statement, choosing to make writing a major part of my life is a matter of priority, not sacrifice. There are plenty of lesser things I willingly give up to write because they are just not important enough to place above writing. No sacrifice required.
Synergy Of Hopes is live
Posted by edslapdesk in Synergy of Hopes, Writing on 25/09/2015
Synergy Of Hopes is now available for purchase at all the major ebook stores. See my new Published Works tab for details and links.
Edwin Downward 