Moving My Blog

 Howdy everyone,

I have an announcement to make! I'm moving my blog!

Yep, you read that right. Allow me to give a little history here.

When I first started this blog, i used a Wordpress site that I had set up on my domain, at http://blog.rlcopple.com. But the constant requirements to keep it upgraded, the time it took to deal with that since practically every time it upgraded, I had to replace the theme since it invariable broke the one I had been using--I grew tired of dealing with it so I made the decision to move the whole site to blogger.

Which did take some doing, but I was able to edit the Wordpress files enough that it would point a person who clicked on an old link somewhere to the same post on blogger, and I successfully imported all my posts, except any comments, to this site you are reading on now.

So, yep, recent events dealing with "Big Tech" giants and their power have caused me to, in as much as possible, to "deGoggle" myself. Being that this blog site is owned by Google, that means I want to no longer use it if I could figure out a way to do so. I investigated the online Word Press option, Blogger's direct competitor, but it appeared I would have to fork over extra cash of some amount to get the same services I have here for free. So, what to do?

Then I realized that I could potentially modify my "Simple Website" to work as a blogging platform. So after looking into the coding (boy, it has been a while since I looked at the coding on this php software/application) last night, I figured out how to turn it into a blogging platform. So I spent today working on putting some content on it, basically all the chapters of Ally's Angelic Adventures, onto the blog, and it is now ready for devouring by the public at large!

I've decided that importing all the blog post from around 2007 or 2008, don't recall exactly what year I started this, would be too big and time consuming of a task, after working with the xml file I downloaded from blogger. So, currently, I'm electing to leave these here as they are, as long as Google keeps this site open, and start with fresh posts on my new blog.

Now, there is some functionality I will lose out on, at least for a while. First, and this is the biggest one, I don't yet have a means to allow comments to be put on blog posts. And I am reluctant to do so for two reasons.

One, in all my time of hosting blogs, I've rarely ever had a "real" comment. Mostly it has been  a bunch of spam, 99% of the time. I'm not eager to use my time coding and then managing all the spam I'm likely to get as a result of that coding.

Two, most of the comments I've received on my blog post have come from, yep, you guessed it, Facebook posts! So, why not just post any blogs there and have people respond to them there, since that is what they will likely do anyway. And yes, I'm trying to stay away from FB as much as possible too. I think I've come down on the side of using it to "advertise" blog posts and my Linux videos, but to do most, if not all, my personal stuff on MeWe. Just so you know where to find me.

Another function that I'm still working on, but plan on "fixing" soon (just depends on how would be the best way to go about it) is categories or "tags" that searches could be done on. Yes, that is one feature I do have is a search function. Sort of basic, but it works.

Aside from those two things, the only other issue (if I were to use this for other people) is the theme-ing is limited to a CSS file that can mainly change the way things look, to a certain degree, but can't rearrange items etc. since the basic structure is hard-coded in. That would take a good deal more coding work (than it would be worth) to make that happen. It serves my purposes adequately.

At any rate, this should be--unless something goes horribly wrong on my new site, the last post on this site, but to say it again, all the post that are here, will remain here. Only new post will go up onto my new site. That seemed to be the simplest way to do this. 

What is the new site? It is: https://blog.rlcopple.com

Oh, I also don't have a way to "subscribe" to my blog yet. I'll have to work on that. I may make one more post here announcing that function when I have it. Until then, I'll see you at the new blog!

2016, Here I Come!

A new year is upon us. Normally a time for evaluation and making new goals in many areas of our life. Not the least for a writer is establishing writing goals.

But I have to be honest. As the lack of activity on this blog and my output the last couple of years have shown, the grand writing goals of 2014 and 2015 never materialized. Never really got off the ground. At the end of 2013, I had finished a year in which I had consistently put out a story a month here, as well as other hopefully interesting content. In addition, I had been added to the blogging staff at Speculative Faith.

In addition to those blogs, I had started a blog for my infidelity site and book that had come out that year: healinginfidelity.blogspot.com, at which I had been posting multiple articles a month on different subjects related to that topic, and had plans to write a follow-up book, “Healing Infidelity Through Faith.” I think I had written a couple of chapters on that book, but intended to also re-purpose some my blog articles for it as well.

I had also started a blog to track my journey with Parkinson's Disease in 2013—rickspdjourney.blogspot.com. I made no commitments to keep a schedule with it, as it primarily was a means for family and friends to find out how I was doing and to have some record of how the disease has progressed and what things I've done to deal with it.

So at the beginning of 2014, I had committed to keeping up four blogs, two of them with at least once a month postings and one with weekly postings. Of those four blogs, however, I only kept up with two of them: the Speculative Faith once a week blog post and the occasional post on my PD blog. The other two, including this blog, fell by the wayside.

On top of that, I had several writing projects I had hoped to accomplish in 2014.

The first story in a new fantasy series had been accepted by a publisher, and they had requested some significant editing/rewriting. I knew that would take some time to do, but as it ended up, I totally bombed on getting that done. As of now, I still haven't touched it. I'm sure by now the publisher has given up on me and is no longer interested in publishing that book. So if I get around to straightening that story up, I'll probably have to self-publish it.

I had started a episode-story I planned to make a book out of about a woman who gets involved with a rebellion group against a corrupt government in a planetary system. I did get one more story/chapter written during 2014, but that was it. I've not returned to it since then.

I was also in the middle of writing the fourth book in my Virtual Chronicles series: Reality Game. I had written about seven chapters during 2013 National Novel Writing Month in November before real-life forced me to give up on finishing NaNO that month. So I had hopes of finishing that book by summer of 2014 and have it published by that fall. As it happened, I did nothing on it that year, and only succeeding in writing one or two more chapter this year. So still a long ways to go. Motivation-wise, it probably didn't help that book three in that series has had zero sales other than one person at my church, and so far I don't think he ever got around to actually reading it, even though he's been a big fan of the series. I'm only aware of one person who has read the book: the person who helped me edit it. So it is hard to get rid of the feeling that I'm wasting my time writing it. But I'd hate to never end the series correctly. Who knows? Someday it could become popular and people will be unhappy that book four never saw the light of day. So I still want to finish it.

I also had two publishing projects. A collection of my poetry and another anthology featuring the short stories I'd written during 2013. The only progress I've made since then is to run the poetry through my local critique group I'm a part of. The poetry book should be a quick project. All I've got to do is edit the poems and format the book and ebook. Then it would be ready to be published once I figured out a good title and cover for it. I probably still need to work on the short stories to get them ready.

So as you can see, I had big plans for 2014, which aside from some successes, failed to materialize, especially on the novel and publishing fronts. At the end of 2014, feeling that outside pressures of life were going to make it even harder, I resigned from my blogging position at Speculative Faith. I had hoped it would allow me to write here more and get some writing done, but as is obvious by now, that didn't happen either. The only blog I've kept halfway up with this year is my PD blog. My only accomplishments this year were writing another chapter in my Reality Game book, helping my writers' club to publish an anthology of our club's stories and poems, and writing a couple of short stories and a couple of poems. Meanwhile, all those projects still sit waiting for me to do them.

So first I should evaluate why after a good year in 2013 on the writing front, I've bombed since then. Not to make excuses, but to evaluate what happened that caused those results so I can determine for 2016 whether or not they were still a factor, and if so, how could I change things to accomplish my goals.

One potential reason was fallout from the infidelity issues of 2011. When I discovered that, my writing came to a screeching halt on May 11, 2013. Naturally my focus turned nearly 100% to dealing with that trauma. But I had hoped that after a few months, I'd get back to it. That didn't happen in any big way until the end of 2012. When I had a pretty good year in 2013, I felt the dry spell from those events were over. But perhaps they returned.

I think in retrospect there were two reasons it caused such a long dry spell in the first place, aside from the immediate trauma of the whole thing, which grew manageable after 3-6 months. One was the adjustments I made to my schedule to spend more time with my wife. The natural results of that meant I had less time for writing than before. Still, that should explain why I slowed down, not why I stopped writing

The other reason I've struggled from that is the fear I won't find a balance, but slip back into the same mode as before. I had treated my writing like a second job, putting in eight to nine hours a day in addition to my full-time job. That in essence meant I spent precious little time with my wife. I was engrossed in my own writing world, and I avoided even holiday activities like handing out candy on Halloween or decorating the Christmas tree, etc. If I could get out of doing anything to have more time to write, I did. I was driven to write, so much that I saw other activities as leeches on my writing time, and would only do what I had to do, often begrudgingly.

While that dynamic didn't cause my wife to cheat, it certainly made it more tempting than it otherwise would have been. Plus, I feel due to that, I didn't pay as much attention to warning signs as I should have, and therefore I was totally blindsided when I discovered the truth. The result of that was a lack of motivation to return to writing, fearing it had a part to play in the resulting events, and certainly wasn't conducive to a good marriage or family life either. But could I get back into writing without sinking into it again?

The first reason needs to stay. I'm unwilling to short-change my wife and kids' time with me for the good of my writing goals. But can I find a balance and still maintain a drive and motivation to write? That seems to be the tricky part. So one issue is when I had a great 2013, and set some lofty goals for 2014, my inner motivation/drive to write shut down because it appeared I was taking on too much that would require cutting into time with my wife and kids. So I backed off in fear that I couldn't find the correct balance, that I was doing it again.

That lack of motivation and drive to write seems to be at the heart of this last two-year dry spell. There have been several times this past year when I've thought, “I could get some writing done on . . .” insert the project. But I wouldn't feel like doing it, opting for a more passive activity.

I believe the route to fixing that is the following. One, set realistic goals given the amount of time I can validly give to my writing life. Two, make soft deadlines, not hard ones. If I don't meet a goal's deadline, no big deal. I've not “failed.” Just reset expectations. Two, set a time aside, preferably daily, when I do writing tasks, then keep it within that time. When time is up, I stop writing and move onto other things. That way I don't have to worry that I'll allow writing tasks to suck away time from other priorities. Three, prioritize my writing tasks. If a blog post would prevent me from making enough headway with a novel, then time with the novel wins out. If I can accomplish all my goals, great, but I need to know which ones to sacrifice first in order to accomplish the most important ones.

I think the above is key to regaining the motivation to write. When my brain no longer perceives it as a threat to my marital success, then I won't be afraid of wanting to write. That is done by giving my writing life not just goals, but boundaries.

But other practical issues have played into the dry spells. Primarily, the progression of my Parkinson's Disease. It has played a part on two or three fronts. One, it is well known that PD can affect one's motivation to do things, both due to depression (which I don't think I've had much of to this point) but also because the neurotransmitter that is being reduced, dopamine, is not only responsible for smooth movements, but also motivation for various activities. That has obviously added to the lack of motivation on the writing front. The only way to deal with that is to know it is there, and know once I start writing, I enjoy it. So do it anyway. If PD is helping to drive the lack of motivation to write, there's not much I can directly do about that other than what I'm already doing.

But it has also taken away even more time from me. In that my typing speed has been cut in half. So the amount of writing I used to be able to do in three hours now takes six hours, thanks to PD. It may even be more than half by this point. For example, I've been working on this post for three hours. I've done 1931 words at this point, which is 643 words an hour. I'm actually having a good day today, but pre-PD, I could do more than a 1000 words an hour.

One potential solution to this is to transition toward using Dragon Speak more. I have it set up on my Windows 10 Surface tablet, and it seems to work pretty well now. I need to see if I can become proficient in using it, as it could eventually get my word count back up. I need to start using it more so I can become comfortable with it.

You'd think a guy out of work would have more time for this, but there have been several reasons that's not as true. One, since March of this year, in an effort to slow down the PD train, I exercise around 9 hours a week. Add to that 6 hours of driving time a week to get to the classes. I spend around 5 hours a week doing the bookkeeping for my wife's business. I help out on her jobs around 2-3 hours a week on average. It used to be more, but as my PD has progressed, I'm not able to help out as much. Back in 2014, I was doing a lot of jobs with her. This year that has gradually dropped as I've gotten worse.

Plus, that's another issue with PD: fatigue. There are times I crash and need to take a nap. My energy level is not what it used to be when I could get four hours of sleep a night and do fine the next day at work and writing when I came home. Add onto that several pressing issues on my to-do list that have been hanging over me most of this year, and it is easy to see why I've had little time for writing.

At one point, I counted the hours I had put into writing when I had a full-time job and what I was able to do now. Back then it was 8-9 hours. Now, I'd do good to find 3-6 hours a day. That's about enough time to write a blog post like this one.

The good news is that toward the end of this year, I've made some good progress on dealing with several financial issues that have been hanging over my head this year. They all required a lot of paperwork, but I've recently slogged through them all and much of it has been resolved or is well into the process of being resolved. That means I no longer have to focus on them and they shouldn't be sucking attention away from writing so much. And if one of them pans out, could significantly improve our financial situation.

So I feel I'm in a good spot now to take another stab at setting some writing goals for 2016, and see if I can find that balance while regaining my drive to do it. So here is my plan.

Primary soft writing goals for 2016:

• Finish Reality Game, and get it published in time for Christmas. Hopefully end the series with it so I can move onto some other projects waiting to be done.


• Work on getting a non-fiction book written: Healing Infidelity Through Faith. Maybe get it published this year, but I'm not going to list it as a goal.


• Work on finishing my small devotional book on the Parables of Christ. Not only for a writing goal, but to motivate me to spend more time in the Word.

Secondary soft writing goals for 2016:

• Publish my poetry collection.


• Write one short story a month to be posted here on this blog.


• Write one article a month for my infidelity blog.


• Continue to write post on my PD blog as I'm able and have the time.

Mid-year, I'll evaluate where I'm at, and either keep it the same, add on goals, or reduce expectations accordingly. Also I'll try to block off time in the afternoons to get writing tasks done, when I'm able to do so. Additionally, I'll work on using Dragon Speak more to improve my writing word count, so I can use the little time I have more productively.

So that's where I'm at. Thanks for following me this far. I hope to have some improvement in 2016 in regards to writing and publishing. Making no promises, but time will tell whether my plan works or not.

Mid-Year Adjustments

Yeah, I know we're past mid-year. But I've been giving this some thought since then on what to do.

The problem? If you go back to my new year goals, and what has happened since, you'll see the problem. The two serials I planned on putting out monthly, nada. The books I intended to edit, publish, or write--no movement. In fact, until last week, I'd not written one piece of fiction all year. So not only am I not going to make my goals, but I won't show any progress on them at all if I don't change something.

In my evaluation on what I need to do differently, I've come up with a strategy. One item in that strategy involves my approach to my list of projects. Part of what happened is it quickly became obvious that I didn't have the time to swallow that whole elephant. I hadn't planned in taking bite-size pieces. So when potential time to write did pop up, I was faced with a huge job, and no plan on where to take the bite my time afforded me. So it was always easier to opt for some other task.

So my first task is to prioritize what projects I'm going to work on aside from my weekly commitments. That's why I'm writing this post. Both to let my readers know (all two of you--you know who you are) why the blog and my announcements of new books have been silent this year, and for my own benefit to go through the process of doing this.

I'll add, I think I need to start off with writing something. I need to get back in the game on fiction. Who knows, I may even blog my progress, however long it takes.

I'll also state that I've decided to get out of Nano mode. Nano is short for the "National Novel Writing Month" annually held in November. That is often abbreviated to NaNoWriMo (the first two/three letters of each word) and Nano is obviously even shorter, being the first four letters of that. I first did Nano in 2006 and didn't have a break until 2011 (due to the effects of discovering my wife's infidelity that year, and the rush to get my non-fiction How to Make an Ebook out before Christmas). Most of my novels have been written during the Novembers of those years.

In other words, most of my writing the rest of the year didn't involve novels. Those only happened in November, and the last three years, that happened only once. The more I've learned about successfully making this my primary income and job, the more it has been obvious I need to put out a lot more than one novel a year. One a quarter would be a good goal to shoot for. But even two a year would be a step in the right direction. To do that, I need to start treating every month like Nano, not just November. Write a novel. When finished with it, start a new one with a short break. If it takes two months to write it instead of one, so be it. But consistently write something most every night.

So here is my list of projects/bites I'll do starting this week in order of priority. I'm going to take my list from earlier this year and organize it.

1. Reality Game – Virtual Chronicles series. Need to pick up where I left off, which is like chapter 1 or something. I started it for Nano last November, but didn't have the gumption to finish it, instead worked on writing a Christmas devotional.


2. Edit the 12 Days of Christmas devotional I did and republish by the end of November.


3. The Magic Within – Need to edit for my publisher so she can finally publish it, if she still has a mind to.


4. Healing Infidelity Through Faith – Follow up to Healing Infidelity, written more specifically to the Christian market. Need to finish writing it and working toward getting it published.


5. Rebellion – My serial experiment. Partially written. Need around another 10 chapters/episodes for the first novel.


6. Poetry Book – Need to finish editing and publish.


7. Anthology – An anthology of stories I've written in 2013 – 2014, mostly 2013 unless the rest of this year becomes productive.


8. Devotional – Finish writing a devotional on the parables.


9. Introducing Orthodoxy - Write/compile articles for this book, then edit and publish it. A goal I've had since 2003.

I could list more, but that will do for a start. Also, the ones further down on the list may get reshuffled as they rise on the list. The new series, for example, which The Magic Within starts, I've written another book which needs serious editing, and the first few chapters of a third book. Planning two more books in the series for a total of five. I didn't include all those projects. Plus I have the outline and several chapters written of a YA dragon story that I tried to do in 10 days last year. That will get added to the list. I have half of my first novel I ever wrote rewritten that I want to eventually get back to, and the two other books I'd planned in that series. I'll be doing good to get all that done before I'm unable to write or die. So the actual list is quite long.

First up, however, this week is to pick up writing Reality Game again. Though I could finish it before then, I'll shoot to finish the first draft by the end of September. Stay tuned for my progress on that novel. We'll see if this fourth book in the series ends the story or not. I'm interested to see how it turns out myself.

Now that I've got my bites lined up, my other plan is to free up time by cutting out activities I don't need to do. I've already stopped following one busy blog that tends to suck up a lot of my time. I'm going to be more selective about what I allow to take away time from my writing job.

We'll see how the rest of this year pans out, and how fast I cross items off my project list. It already feels more doable.

Mind Game Sale: $0.99!

That's right. Mind Game, book one of The Virtual Chronicles, is going on sale for my birthday (7/16). From 7/16 through 8/3, the ebook, which normally sells for $4.99, will be on sale for:

$0.99!!

That's right. For just under a buck you can enjoy the first installment of the exciting space opera adventure. Here's the description from the back cover.

They said it was just a game. A game containing the most realistic virtual reality ever. Little does Jeremy know that this game will send him on an adventure to a distant galaxy, encounter strange aliens, fight dangerous battles, and struggle to rescue himself, his friends, and thousands of players from a dictator's trap. It will test not only his courage, but his trust in others and loyalty to his friends.

Join Jeremy, his scatter-brained friend Mickey, and his annoying sister Bridget as they embark on a journey like no other, and go where no virtual reality has gone before.

Still need more info? How about reading a sample chapter or two?

The ebook is available at the following locations

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Kobo

Apple

Smashwords

Then be sure to read the sequels:

Book 2: Hero Game

Book 3: Virtual Game

Thanks for reading.

Monthly Free Fiction Upgrade!

I recently discussed my 2014 goals, which included my goal to continue writing one free story here each month. 12 stories costing you nothing more than the time to read them. What a deal, right?

I've decided to upgrade that goal. (A little Cyberman terminology for you.) I've decided to do a 12 episode serial for the year.  Each month will deliver a new chapter in the . . .

Well, I haven't figured it out quite yet. I'm leaning toward a space opera, maybe superhero in space, or some kind of space cop series. Maybe some kind of mixture of it all. Hopefully have the first one out later this week.

Be sure to subscribe (links in top right of website) if you wish to follow the story.

Until then, keep reading!

So be watching for it. If any of my readers has a preference on what kind of tale to tell, speak up soon!

Goals for 2014

It is that time of year to evaluate how my goals for the current year panned out, and to establish new goals for the coming year, in this case, 2014.

Blog Goals

On January 14th, I wrote a blog post about goals for this blog. I promised to:

No matter what I write about, I will focus on it being entertaining. That has to be the number one goal.




I will do a fiction story a month, probably a flash fiction, but I’m not guaranteeing it will only be those.




I will do something funny. Whether that be a “comedy” routine, or a character interview, etc., once a month.




I will endeavor to post once a week, around Monday or Tuesday, not counting announcement posts, or future how-to articles, so readers will know what to expect.

My success on #1, I'll have to leave it with the readers how successful I've been at that. Based on commenting, my most entertaining post have been those on marriage leading up to announcing the publishing of my book, Healing Infidelity. Otherwise, it has mostly been crickets chirping on most posts. However, page views have slowly declined over the year. That could be due to the shift in my blog content, so a natural drop off of how-to seekers coming my way. Or it could be I've not succeed as well at being entertaining. It could be my more eclectic approach to be entertaining means I alienate more than I'm gaining.

On #2, I've been pretty successful. Though none of the stories made it into the top ten most viewed posts. That said, I think those may be my most productive aspects for several reasons:

1. It forced me to write short fiction. I'd practically abandoned it in my focus on novels over the past years. I'd forgotten how much fun it is to write it.


2. Writing is always productive work for a writer.


3. I still feel the primary goal of the blog should be to entertain, and the best way to do that is to tell an entertaining story.


4. At the end of the year, I'll have a new anthology book I can create and sell.


5. The best advertising for my novels is showing I can write fun stories. People that sample my writing will be more likely to consider buying my novels.

For those reasons, I plan to continue writing one original short story/flash fiction a month in the coming year.

On #3, I didn't keep up with it as I had planned. If I'd kept people in stitches all year, maybe I'd been more successful. Who knows.

#4, I posted at least once a week all year, but fell off the wagon during November, and picked back up in early December. However, when during the week varied quite a bit. Plenty of times I posted late in the week instead of early.

So, after evaluating things, here is my goal for my blog during 2014:

1. Continue to work on the entertaining factor.


2. Post one original story a month on the blog.


3. The rest of the time to post some combination of comedy, theology, how-to articles. No promise on a schedule.  What ever floats my boat, but with the goal to be entertaining and if it fits, informative.


4. To post at least once a week, probably around Thursday or Friday, but no promises.

Novel Goals

Though I don't think I wrote it down last year, I recall setting a goal to publish 4 novels in 2013. As it turned out, I've ended up with 2 new published books, Healing Infidelity and Virtual Game. I also published a couple of novelette-length books. One, the Virtual Hero ebook, and a non-fiction booklet, Celebrating the Fullness of Christmas. Didn't hit my goals, but did take some steps forward.

You'd think my lack of success would mean I should trim my expectations back. Nay, my friend. Here is my list of books I hope to publish in 2014:

1. The Magic Within - New series. Written and in editing.


2. Reality Game - Virtual Chronicles series. Started writing, barely. Will need to finish it and go through the process.


3. Underground - Need to change the name, but is my serial experiment. Partially written.


4. Healing Infidelity Through Faith - Follow up to Healing Infidelity, written more specifically to the Christian market. Just started writing.


5. Poetry Book - No name yet, but plan on publishing a compilation of my poetry.


6. Anthology - Not set in stone since some of my monthly stories went into the Virtual Hero novelette, so may want to wait and make it a 2013 - 2014 anthology.


7. Devotional - Started writing a devotional on the parables. I want to finish that this year.

So, yeah, I plan on keeping busy writing this coming year.

In addition to that, I'll being doing weekly blog post at Speculative Faith blog and Healing Infidelity blog. So pray for me. I'm going to need it.

Also, if you want to keep up with this blog, you have the option of subscribing by RSS feed, or by email. So you don't miss a thing. Thank you for your support over this past year. Looking forward to an even better year in 2014.

Virtual Game is Here!

Book 3 of The Virtual Chronicles is available: Virtual Game!

Just when Jeremy, Mickey, and Bridget think the worst is behind them, a new threat to Zori and the entire virtual world arises. Not from a distant planet, but from Earth.

When ESEL, a mysterious, Earth-based military organization, threatens not just Zori but the entire virtual world, Jeremy, Mickey, and Bridget's virtual superpowers are compromised. Natalie gains superhuman powers, pitting the trio against each other. Even the Overlords can't stop ESEL from gaining control of the Virtual Machine.

Will the four superheroes in this space opera style science fiction adventure be able to navigate the twists and turns thrown at them by ESEL and their own emotions to defeat ESEL's plot? Like books one and two, this middle grade/young adult focused novel is accessible for adults who enjoy fun, mystery, suspense, and an exciting superhero, space opera romp.

Jump aboard and say with Mickey, "Let's do this!"

Currently available in print and ebooks at Amazon and Smashwords. Visit the book's webpage for direct links and to read a sample. Other outlets soon to follow.

Free on Kindle!

Virtual Hero, my collection of four superhero, space opera short stories set in the Virtual Chronicles universe, is now available for free on Amazon Kindle!

The collection has been free for some months on other sites, but I'd been waiting for Amazon to price match. They finally did so within the last few days. So if you've been saying, "I want it--oh do I want it--but I'll wait for it to be free on Amazon first," well, your wait is over.

Go to Amazon to download your copy today.

Exciting News!

Most who follow me know of "The Reality Chronicles" trilogy I wrote, published by Splashdown Books: Reality's Dawn, Reality's Ascent, and Reality's Fire. I know you've all read them and loved them, so I won't bore you with details about them. (Sarcasm aside, click the links to find out more about them and where to pick them up.)

The ending of Reality's Fire left open the possibility of a spin-off series. Which I've taken advantage of, and planned a five-book series which I've tentatively titled, "The Legend of the Dragons' Dying Field." So far I've written two of the books in that series and started on a third one: The Magic Within, The Dragon Within, The Dragon Without. The first of those, The Magic Within, I submitted to AltWit Press back in January. Splashdown Books was willing to look at it, but we both thought some cross-pollination would be good for all involved and she encouraged me to check out some other options.

This week, in communication with AltWit Press, they indicated they wanted to publish the story. Today, a contract with my signature left my mailbox. So, being it is official, you will all be excited to know that the first book of this series has a home! I'm thankful to Pauline at AltWit for adding me to their line up and look forward to some profitable years together.

The tentative release date, if all goes as planned, will be this coming fall, in time for your Christmas shopping. Stay tuned for any news as this publication progresses.

Interview with Mickey Linerman from Mind Game

R: Today on Entertainment Tomorrow, we have as our guest Mickey Linerman from the smash hit series, "The Virtual Chronicles." Book 1: Mind Game, book 2: Hero Game, and coming in 2013, book 3: Virtual Game. Mickey, say hi to our audience and say a bit about yourself.

M: Hi, audience. (waves hand) I'm a teen...I mean, young adult of 17 years. I live in a town in Montana, or did. Long story yet to be told. But it's a cool story. Anyway, I like games, so these stories play right into my strength.

R: And that would be...?

M: Why, flying space ships and shooting down the bad guys. What else is there?

R: I see you're a bit single-minded on that subject. But how old were you when this series started?

M: 15. To say the least, I've matured through the experiences.

R: In what way?

M: Well, I don't want to brag, but when you're going through the crazy...uh, excrement I've gone through, and helped to save the world more than once, it grows you up fast.

R: So what would you say is your role in this series?

M: (Laughs) To save Jeremy's butt.

R: Fill us in on who Jeremy is, for those unfamiliar with the books.

M: Oh, sure. Jeremy is my best friend. Most of the story is written from his point of view, but I get a slot here and there. He's a lot more cautious than me, but way too trusting of people sometimes. That's where I have to come in and keep him on his toes.

R: This might be a good time to let people know what the series is about. Give us a quick summary of Mind Game.

M: Summary, okay. Mind Game is about me and Jeremy getting trapped in a virtual reality game that, surprise, surprise, isn't all virtual, but interacts with reality in a galaxy far from Earth. Some dictator uses us and other players from Earth to fight in a real war. We try to escape. Things go horribly wrong. How it ends, you'll have to read to find out. Obviously we survive because there is a book two. Duh. But people do die.

R: And Hero Game?

M: We end up having virtual superhero powers, which is cool. We can change into any number of heroes. We thought we'd be fighting normal Earth crime, but then...don't want to give away too much, but some bad stuff happens because the brother of the bad guy in Mind Game comes looking for revenge on Jeremy and to take over Earth. Again, horrible stuff happens, and how it ends, you'll have to read. Plenty of twists and surprises in both books to keep it interesting.

R: And can you tell us anything about the upcoming book, Virtual Game?

M: Hum, we'll, I can say the threat comes from Earth, one we weren't expecting. I'd say of the three, it has a more ominous feel to it, and there is more conflict between us characters. Plus, we are put in an impossible survival situation. And what happens to us by the end was a surprise. Even for the author.

R: Thanks, Mickey, for being here with us. I look forward to reading your next adventure.

M: Thank you. Hey, is it time to eat that burger you promised?

R: (Clears throat) Sure. Let me sign us off here. Until next time, faithful followers, when we'll be back for another celebrity interview.

M: Wow! You mean I'm a celebrity?

R: (Shush) Goodbye, everyone.

Read more about Mind Game and Hero Game, along with sample chapters and where they can be purchased.

Blogging and Platforms

I can't help it. I hate using the word "platform" or "tribe" to describe my readers. To me it makes it sound like my fans are nothing more than a launching point to my success. Of course, my success as a writer in sales is totally in my fan's hands. And I know what having a platform means. It isn't what some people may think it means. But I've been giving this some thought of late. Would appreciate any input from folks, especially readers who venture forth to read this.

Platform is more building a following to prepare to launch your next book(s). Not to increase sales of existing books, though if that happens, few authors are going to squawk about it. The goal, however, is to grow a base of interested followers so that when that new book comes out, you will have developed a relationship with potential readers who will likely be more inclined to not only give your book a try, but to become part of the "tribe" and promote it through reviews and telling others about it through their contacts. It primes the pump for a good book to get some traction.

The problem has been for fiction writers that this process is more designed for non-fiction. People who have an interest in how to raise platypuses, for instance, give someone with a book on that topic a natural focus to their blog. Since non-fiction tends to be topical, any blog about it focuses on that topic. But what does a fiction writer focus on? Our goal isn't to inform on a specific topic, but entertain people with a good story.

When I started this blog, initially I figured it would be an easy way for people to follow my announcements on short stories being published, or other milestones in my writing life. I wasn't looking to gain a huge blog following. It was primarily to be a "news about my writing and coffee adventures" blog. The coffee part never took off though I'm still drinking it. As I progressed in my blogging experience, I heard you should have more than just that if you want people to read it. They need to have something to come there for. Okay, that sounded logical, so I began doing a series of articles on various topics. Writing tips, book reviews, opinion pieces on writing topics, among other things thrown in here and there. All intended to give my blog some value. That has worked to a degree, but not like gang busters.

One thread that grew was some how-to articles for writers. My most popular post of all time was how to set up Open Office to write novels by using it to do what a lot of writing software does, like automatically renumbering chapters when you move them around. It has only been surpassed in a month twice, currently during this month by two other how-to articles on creating a mobi file and uploading to Amazon, and using Open Office and Calibre to create ebooks. The popularity of these articles led me to write the book How to Make an Ebook: Using Free Software, which has been my best seller.

All well and good. Still, that is mostly targeting writers. While writers are often avid readers themselves, they represent only a tiny fraction of the total readers out there. Those coming here to find my how-to articles are not in the mindset to grab my fiction while they're at it. So while the non-fiction sales and how-to articles are great, that doesn't build any kind of platform for my fiction.

So what kind of platform does a fiction writer build? I've heard two main responses to that question...no, three...three responses. One, "I don't know." Two, "You can't build a platform for fiction, that is only a non-fiction process." Three, "A fiction author him or herself is the 'brand' and you've got to sell yourself."

However, I think those responses are focused on the outward symptom. What are other successful bloggers in fiction doing? Well, this one talks about issues. This one does book reviews. This one talks about various things in their life. This one broadcast their varied opinions on all sorts of topics. But that is just what they do, not what makes their blog interesting to readers and fans.

What does a fiction writer do? What is their goal? To entertain. What does a fiction writer have to do to generate a following through their blog that builds their platform? Be entertaining. Whatever you are talking about, be fun to read. Engage the reader. Whether your blog represents a buffet of things, or a narrow focus, if you fail to make it entertaining, what will motivate them to think your fiction will be anymore entertaining? If you are entertaining, what better advertizement do you have that you can do the same in a novel?

I think what many of us fiction writers do is read post about building platforms that are by nature non-fiction focused. Instead of asking why do people want to read my book—because it is entertaining—we copy others and think it is about dishing out information. We think it is about what topics we write about. But the fact is, if I can write an entertaining post about going to the bathroom, that accomplishes the goal just as much as writing about politics in an entertaining way. It doesn't so much matter what you write about, only that it be entertaining. That is what will build a platform for fiction writers through blogging. That is what successful fiction writer blogs do: they are entertaining.

This hit home to me today while reviewing my blog's statistics for the past month. As I noted above, my most popular articles have been my how-to articles. But this past month my unique page views have broken 1000 for the first time since I started this blog. In part because several articles have hit over 100 unique views when in the past it has been around a couple. One of those articles surprised me, for it is my Christmas fiction I wrote last month, and it has broken 100 views currently. Yes, a piece of fiction broke into the territory previously dominated by how-to articles. Why? Because it is entertaining. The story actually has comments saying how entertaining it was! Imagine that. This is what will give me fiction readers, not how-to articles.

So, having given this a lot of thought, and leading you through my thought processes in a probably not-that-entertaining way, here is what I've decided to do with my blog in the coming year that I hope will not only generate more followers and readers of the blog, but a platform that will be more aligned with fiction.

1. No matter what I write about, I will focus on it being entertaining. That has to be the number one goal.


2. I will do a fiction story a month, probably a flash fiction, but I'm not guaranteeing it will only be those.


3. I will do something funny. Whether that be a "comedy" routine, or a character interview, etc., once a month.


4. I will endeavor to post once a week, around Monday or Tuesday, not counting announcement posts, or future how-to articles, so readers will know what to expect.

I'll do this for a year and evaluate the results in January 2014, assuming I'm still alive and kicking by then.

This post doesn't count. So I'd better get busy and do one for this week. Thanks to all who are reading.

Why do you read the blogs of fiction authors?

Reality's Dawn Free on Kindle!

If you missed the free Kindle download of Reality' s Dawn last August, now's the time to cash in. The book will be free on Kindle through Saturday, 1/12. So don't miss out, grab a copy from Amazon!

Don't have a Kindle or tablet? You can download the Kindle app to your computer.

Don't wait and miss out again. No telling if this free offer will happen again.

How Storytelling Conveys Truth Better than Non-fiction

That is the title of my first guest article at the Speculative Faith blog. I stumbled upon a website discussing the way descriptive storytelling affects the brain, and it gelled some concepts in my head. Being I'd been invited to do a guest blog, I wrote the article for that blog. Check it out if you get a chance.

How Storytelling Conveys Truth Better than Fiction

Yippee for Christmas! by R. L. Copple

As I've been doing for the last few years, I'm presenting to friends, family, and fans a Christmas short story as my Christmas gift to you. Thanks to everyone who has read, supported, and been a friend over the past year, and I pray into the new year as well. Now, enjoy my new Christmas short story: Yippee for Christmas!

---

Once upon a time, in a land far, far away that amazingly looked a lot like Texas, there lived a king named Loren. King Loren ruled a kingdom full of joyous, peaceful, and loving people. For they had much to be thankful for. From the mountain ranges in the west, to the plains in the north, to the ocean beaches on the southern coast, and the forest in the east, rarely was heard a dissenting voice. Crime gained no foothold here, as no one lived in discontent. It was Heaven on Earth.

What you say? Impossible? One would think so, save for one basic fact. The biggest celebration in this kingdom happened every December 25th on Christmas day. Each year, the king threw the grandest party in his castle, not sparing neither Christmas turkey, Christmas ham, Christmas tamales, or Christmas picante sauce. No child left without a present from the king. The whole kingdom celebrated Christmas.

What? Oh, you're wondering why this created their private utopia? Not because of the food, but because of what they celebrated: joy, peace, and love. The celebration reminded them all year long to practice these virtues, and so they did with the utmost fervor. They celebrated and practiced these virtues so well that all crime vanished, no one starved or lacked a roof over their heads, and no one complained over what they had, didn't have, or what their neighbor had that they didn't. The focus on joy, peace, and love overshadowed everything else.

One Christmas eve, King Loren's death ended his reign. The funeral line processed in a solemn march through the city as adults and children lined the streets. The normal joy of the season fell silent against the night of the king's life. Everyone reminisced about the good king's deeds and heroic decisions, and the most honorable kingdom in the world under his rule. No one shared a negative word against him, so great was their love for him.

King Loren's rule fell to his oldest son, Xander. Before the festivities of Christmas began, the lords of the land installed King Loren's son to the throne.

As King Xander examined the solemn crowd in the usually festive hall, he said to them, "My loyal subjects. Ever did my father find joy, peace, and love in the Christmas celebration. We can do no less in honor of his memory. He would not be pleased to find us sad on this day, lest we forget all he has taught us. So let us lift a glass to his memory and celebrate this festival as if he is watching, for he very well may be."

Heads nodded and smiles filled the sea of faces sitting around tables laden with all sorts of Christmas foods. Hands reached for glasses to join in the toast, all except one. One hand raised above the growing hum of voices and said, "My lord, I have a complaint!"

Gasps raced across the hall; talking halted. The king, along with every other eye in the crowd, stared at the man with the upraised hand. King Xander scratched his beard in disbelief. "Kind sir, are you from our fair kingdom? For complaints are rare with our people who celebrate and practice joy, peace, and love throughout the year. What possible complaint will you bring before us on this august day?"

The man lowered his hand and stood. "My lord, I am new to these parts. I had heard of the joy, peace, and love of this land, and wished to join such worthy festivities. Now that I am here, I feel excluded, for I am not of your religion. Would not it be more inclusive of all faiths who also celebrate joy, peace, and love, if we gave this holiday a new name? I beseech you to consider this request so that I too, and those who follow other faiths, are free to celebrate with you." The man sat down.

All eyes turned to the king in anticipation of his words. King Xander stroked his beard for a moment and then said, "Long has it been the tradition in our land, set by my father, to call this day Christmas. Yet your argument is sound. I will put my wise men to the task and by next Christmas—or whatever it will be called—we will have a new name. So be it."

The lords replied back, "May the king's will be done." The man smiled, and the celebration continued through the day as it had for many years.

Shortly before the next Christmas...I mean, whatever it would be called, King Xander made an announcement in his court. "My dear subjects. Last year, I declared we would find a more inclusive name for our celebration of joy, peace, and love. After much consultation with my wisest counselors, we have settled on that name.

"Beginning this year, it will no longer be referred to as Christmas, but Yippee! You will no longer have a Christmas tree, but instead, a Yippee cactus. Santa will no longer deliver Christmas presents; he will leave children Yippee presents. No longer will you hear Christmas in your songs. Rather you'll hear songs like, 'Yippee, Yippee time is here. Time for laughter, time for cheer...' Instead of hearing the story ''Twas the Night Before Christmas,' you will hear, ''Twas the Night Before Yippee.' All references to Christmas will be changed throughout the kingdom in favor of the new name to commemorate joy, peace, and love: Yippee!"

The hall erupted in a glorious, "Yippee!" followed by clapping and shouts. They had never felt more inclusive.

Christmases...I mean, Yippees came and went for seven years. Each year the celebration grew grander to outdo the last. But other changes emerged over the seven years. Crime rose from nearly non-existent to 30%. Complaints became the norm instead of the exception. Despite doing more in the Yippee parties than his father, King Xander received notices of discontent about them and a good many other government services as well. Joy, peace, and love declined even while their virtues were lauded.

At the eighth annual celebration of Yippee, King Xander put on another exciting Yippee party at his castle. After listening to a rousing rendition of "Yippie Bells," and a fun sing-along with the king of "O, Yippee Night," the king sat at the head of a table filled with Yippee turkey, Yippee ham, Yippee tamales, and Yippee picante sauce. By this point, King Xander had also added his own touch to the menu: Yippee figgy pudding.

King Xander stood, raised his glass of Yippee wine, and then said, "My loyal subjects, each year at this time we celebrate the virtues of joy, peace, and love: the founding principles of our land. So I toast with each of you that these virtues will prevail among us and that our country will always celebrate their values and benefits."

A couple of heads nodded. Many said, "Whatever." Hands wandered toward glasses to join in the toast, all except one. One hand raised above the growing grunts, and an eight-year old boy said, "My lord, I have a complaint!"

A few, "What's new?" comments echoed among them as eyes focused on the king's response.

King Xander waved his hand. "You'll need to take it to the complaint department. It is open on Mondays through Fridays from noon to one o'clock."

The boy stood. "I have a question then. Why?"

The king's forehead wrinkled. "Why what?"

"Why do we celebrate joy, peace, and love? Especially when there is so little of it."

King Xander moved his mouth as if to talk for two seconds before emitting an answer. "Why? Because my young lad, you are not able to remember the joy of my father's reign. The celebration of these virtues is what provided such prosperity and harmony in our land for many years. We have fallen from that ideal, I will grant you, but that is no reason to not celebrate their glorious effect upon our kingdom."

The child shook his head. "But why celebrate something that ain't happening?"

King Xander scratched his head, then turned to the wise men seated on the left side of his table. "Answer the boy's question."

The wise men stared at each other to see who would give an answer. Five seconds passed, then the oldest of them stood. Wise Joseph—King Loren's trusted adviser and the one, lone dissenting voice concerning the Yippee celebration change—bowed to the king.

Wise Joseph faced the child. "In the ancient writings, the angels appeared to shepherds in the fields by night. Upon arriving, the angels declared a message of great joy, and upon departing, they shared the words, "On Earth, peace." That is, peace and goodwill among men. But these virtues were not the purpose behind their celebration. Rather the angels pointed to One who would infuse joy, peace, and love among mankind. It is not the virtues we celebrate, but the god-man who came from Heaven to give us joy, peace, and love." Wise Joseph returned to his seat.

Silence prevailed for five seconds. Then the child asked, "Who is this god-man?"

The king stared at the boy, then raised his hand. "My loyal subjects. I fear we have made a grave mistake these past eight years. In our attempt to be inclusive, we have excluded the very person who instills these virtues into each one of us. Knowledge of and living by His words have diminished, and therefore, so has joy, peace, and love. From this moment forward, we will return to calling this celebration Christmas. We will have our Christmas trees, our Christmas foods, our Christmas presents, and yes, even our Christmas figgy pudding to celebrate the Christ through who we are made joyful, peaceful, and loving. We are not inclusive by excluding anyone, most especially the guest of honor, but by inviting all to join in His celebration. So be it."

The lords raised their glasses. "May the king's will be done." Loud clapping and cheers arose from the celebrants.

And so the kingdom celebrated Christmas once again, and a measure of joy, peace, and love returned to the land over the following years. What? You want to know what happened to the ideal kingdom? Once corrupted with the knowledge of evil, the kingdom is rebuilt one person, one heart at a time as they partake in the redemption of the God-man and find true joy, peace, and love abiding within. The ideal kingdom reigns in such persons, and it is this truth that the people of King Xander's country learned to celebrate.

Yippee for Christmas!

Hallow Fright

Decided to offer a free Halloween story this year to my fans. It's around 1300 words, so not long. Enjoy!

--------------

"Ouch! Mom, that hurt."

"You can thank me later." She yanked again on Tulek's rough hair. "Now hold still like a good little orc, and I'll give you some more."

Tulek smiled. He'd not messed up his hair for nothing. After all, he had to look good for Halloween. "Ouch!"

She put the brush down and wiped her finger-claws on her apron. "That's enough. Don't want to make you look primed and proper, like those vampires."

Tulek frowned and hopped off the stool. He sat at the table next to his little brother, Jukel, already chewing his bat innards. But he turned his attention to his plan for the night.

His mother's thoughts appeared to be there as well. "Tulek, you remember what your dad said about tomorrow?"

"Yes, ma'am." But he knew she'd tell him again anyway. She never believed he remembered anything. Well, sometimes he had to admit, he forgot things, but really?

"For your coming of fright day, he's signed you up for a bed. Did he go over with you what to do under that bed?"

Tulek nodded. "Yes, ma'am. Once the lights are out and the parents have left, I make growling noises and shake the bed."

She stared at him. "You should appreciate this opportunity. Your father worked hard to get you an easy shot like that. Do you want to get your fright by jumping in front of a car or eating someone?"

Tulek grimaced at the thought of eating a human. They tasted horrible. "No, ma'am."

She nodded as she pulled her apron off and set it on the counter. "I should hope so. Now finish your bat and go enjoy your last Halloween as a little orc. I've got to help your father with his lunar array project." She walked down the hallway of the cave. "Can't let those werewolves get a jump on getting to the moon's energy."

Jukel let his bat skin fall to the plate. "Are we going to go now? Huh? I want some candy."

Tulek swallowed. "Right after I get my first fright."

"But Mom said that was tomorrow, not tonight."

"I know."

"And you can't get a fright on Halloween."

"So they say." Tulek ripped the last of the intestines from the bat and gulped it down with some poison ivy juice.

Jukel shook his head. "Dad will not like this. No, no, no."

Tulek swung his head around. "You didn't tell Dad, did you? Or Mom?"

Jukel's long nose flared. "No, of course not. I'm not ready to lose any limbs."

Tulek relaxed, but pointed a finger at Jukel. "And don't you forget it, either."

Jukel dropped from his stool. "I still think it is a waste of time."

"That is precisely why I'm doing it."

"What? To waste time?"

"No, silly. To prove it can be done."

Jukel grabbed his bag and slid his feet into his shoes. "My life goals are so much more practical. Candy."

Tulek laughed. "You don't understand. But that's okay. Keep it simple, until you no longer can." He breathed deep before grabbing his own bag and heading for the door.

# # #

Tulek scanned the horde of children accompanied by their parents. Halloween, the one night an orc could mingle freely with humans and not scare them. Many of his kind, as well as vampires, werewolves, and other monsters, joined the kids for trick or treating. But it also was the night hardest to get one's first fright. A day off for most monsters, but not him. Not tonight. Tonight, he was set on becoming a man-orc.

Jukel pulled on Tulek's coat. "Come on. If we wait much longer, all the candy will be gone."

"Just a minute. First things first."

"We've been waiting for several minutes."

Tulek huffed. "Okay, okay." He scanned the area for a good target. He saw a small group of girls, unattended by any adults. He smiled. They would be the best bet. "Stay here. Watch and learn."

Jukel frowned, but nodded, and then sat on a small tree stump.

Tulek followed the girls and caught up to them. One dressed as a witch, typical pointy hat, broom, and black dress. Another girl arrayed as a fairy princess Please! One of them wore a pirate outfit, eye patch and broad-flat hat. The girls, looked to be around eleven or twelve, giggled among themselves as they gawked at other costumes and discussed their candy hauls.

Tulek leaped in from of them, extended his claws, and yelled out a big, "Aaaaaaarrrrrrrgggg!"

The girls screamed and ran away. Tulek grinned. He knew he could do it. Then his smile sank into a frown. "They're laughing!"

Jukel had walked to where he stood. "Of course. That's why it's hard to scare anyone on Halloween. They don't take you seriously."

"I know that." Tulek growled. "But I just thought I could be different. Though I could prove to Dad that I don't need an easy job. That I'm as good as anyone."

"Don't take it hard. At least you have tomorrow. It'll be like taking candy from a baby."

Tulek stared into the stars. He blinked. "What did you say?"

"You have tomorrow."

Tulek smiled. "No, after that."

"What? Like taking candy from a baby?"

He snapped his fingers. "That's it. You're a genius, little brother."

"Can I get that written in blood?"

"I'll write it with my decomposed flesh if this works. Wait here."

Jukel shook his head. "Here we go again."

Tulek spotted a child dressed as a dragon. He'd just hopped out of a car. The perfect target. Tulek crossed the street and approached the child.

The kid's eyes peered from behind the dragon mask and he paused, watching Tulek.

As Tulek drew close, he stopped. "Have some good candy, kid?"

The child clutched his bag to his chest. "Uh hu."

Tulek bared his teeth and flexed his claws. The kid shrank back, his feet shaking. Hard to see his facial expression behind the mask, but he looked scared. Tulek had his fright!

The child stepped back. "Don't take my candy!"

Tulek lunged forward and grabbed the bag from the child's hands, ripping the paper. Two pieces of candy fell to the sidewalk. Tulek grinned at the fake dragon snout. "Boo!"

The kid's fake dragon mouth opened. Tulek knew it was to scream.

A whoosh of fire engulfed Tulek's face. The smell of burning flesh flooded his nose. Heat seared his head. Pain soared through his skull. He dropped the bag and fell backward, screaming.

As Tulek lay on the ground, writhing, he heard the kid running to the car screaming, "Mommy, I got my first scare, on Halloween!"

# # #

Tulek spit in the urn by the side of his bed. They'd taken him to an orc hospital. He had to spend a few days recovering, which meant he'd miss his appointment for an easy scare. Now he'd be seen as a total failure instead of the hero he wanted to be.

His dad and Jukel entered the room. His dad smiled. "Heard you tried to take candy from a dragon."

Tulek growled. "I didn't know he was a real dragon. Could have sworn he wore a costume."

Jukel giggled. "He did wear a costume. A dragon wearing a dragon costume. How cool is that?"

"Not very." Tulek stared out the window. "Sorry for ruining your Halloween."

Jukel pulled closer to his brother. "But have you seen your face yet?"

Tulek raised his hairless eyebrow. "No."

Jukel grinned and grabbed a mirror laying on a stand next to the bed. "Look!"

Tulek took the mirror and placed it in front of him. A horrid mess of charred flesh stared back at him. If he'd been human, it would have made him throw up.

Tulek's widened his eyes and turned to Jukel. "With this face, I can scare anyone!"

Jukel nodded his head. "Isn't it cool?"

His dad patted Tulek's chest. "Good job, son. You should have no problem getting your first fright now. Thanks to some dragon-based plastic surgery."

Tulek turned back to the mirror and caressed his face. "This is so cool." Yes. Now he would stand out and be the hero after all.

Is Indie Publishing the New Vanity Press of Old?

That's the question author L. A. Sartor ask on her blog, and invited author Anthea Lawson and myself to give our thoughts on the matter. Naturally, I opined mightily. You can check out my thoughts and Anthea and L. A. Sartor's thoughts on the subject by reading the article: Is Indie Publishing the New Vanity Press.

Thanks for checking it out!

What's the Name of Your World?

World building is one of the funner things a fantasy or science fiction writer (to a lesser degree) gets to do. At least from my perspective, it offers me the freedom to design the very laws of nature to create a unique experience. So I thought I would let you in on how I developed the world of The Reality Chronicles.

There are two basic types of world builders. There are those who plan out the whole world, how it operates, functions, land masses, seas, forest, mountain ranges, language of people, etc., before they ever lay a word to page. Then there are others who start out with a very minimal idea of the world, and it grows and develops as they write. In truth, very few writers are totally one way or the other. Most of us will find ourselves somewhere between those two poles. But most writers will lean to one side of the fence. Even that can change from one novel to another, depending on how dependent the plot is on how the world is designed. I would designate the two types as pre-planners and organic-planners.

I fall more into the organic world builder. I find out more about the world as the story progresses. That is true of novels like Mind Game, which is more a traditional novel plot, but even more true of the Reality Chronicles, which started out as a short story, three more short stories, another short story added to it. Then a novel sequel to those. Then a third novel. Then went back to the first book and added ten more short stories. Because of the way it grew from that one short story, the world naturally grew with it as I added more and more.

The task in doing it this way, is to keep it consistent. Adding onto it as you go, it is easy to forget some detail that what you are adding that would contradict what you've done before. That requires keeping a good database of what you've added or defined, so any proposed additions or changes can be checked against what's gone before. But even someone who plans it all out before hand will find themselves making mid-story adjustments as characters and plots develop.

But when it comes to the Reality Chronicles series, two of the common questions I get is first, does the world have a name? And two, is it modern or medieval?

To the first question, that is no, the world as a whole doesn't have a name. This is counter to a lot of fantasy where the whole area or world will usually be called something. For sure, people like to have names for things. But when I wrote the first short story for this world, I didn't bother deciding whether it was in our world's history or an alternate world. I didn't name the town it was in. It was just about the story of a kid in a small, primitive town with a strange steam house. The story was meant to be an allegory of the Last Judgment. Figuring out the name of the town or where it was or the world it was in beyond the little bit you get in the first story wasn't critical to the story.

But then I added on four more short stories to that one. Sisko traveled to new places and towns, which I did give names to. Those first five stories gave a bare sketch of the world and how it operated. But by the time I had finished those, I had a good idea of how magic worked in that world, that it was an alternate reality from our own Earth, and the rules of how the ring worked, mostly, and what it even represented. But there was still a lot left undefined as those five stories become my first published novella, Infinite Realities.

Including I never gave Sisko's home town a name. That didn't come until I wrote the full novel sequel, Transforming Realities, currently listed as Reality's Ascent. When Sisko decides they should return to his hometown, I figured it was time to give the place a name. That's when I gave it the name Reol. When I added the other ten short stories to Infinite Realities and Splashdown Books published it as Reality's Dawn, I went back and added mentions of the hometown into the previous stories I'd written where appropriate, as well as using it in the newer stories. But if you read the original novella, you'll never see the name of Sisko's hometown.

The development of the political aspects of the world resulted in a city-state type governments. So a king in the Reality's world is king over a city and its surrounding territory. There is no king over all the land. And whether a city had a king or not depended upon the city, and how they set up their governments. You'll find some very much like a traditional kingship, and others more “democratically” organized. Sometimes this is mentioned, other times just assumed if it doesn't play into the story.

Because of that, the people tend to focus upon their own world, their own towns, and don't think in “big picture” ways. Because there is no overarching governmental structure, or developed sense of geography, no one saw a reason to give their whole world a name. At least, not one that was commonly used by most everyone. Theoretically, individual places might have a name for the whole world.

In the third book, Reality's Fire, the world grew again. Our characters headed west, across the forest, into a less “Christian” section of the world. New cities and mountain ranges and deserts are added, and a sea, an island called Pluto, and new races including a group who live in the caves of the north called Burrowers. When Transforming Realities was first published, I came out with my first map that I had visualized as I wrote the stories of the adventures. The third book added to it.

By the time I added the extra ten stories to Infinite Realities to create what had eventually became Reality's Dawn, I had already written two rough drafts of a new series in that world, which I've tentatively called, “The Dragons' Dying Fields.” These stories have greatly expanded not only the geography of the world, but its history and even how that world is connected with our own, as well as other alternate realities. Knowing that as I wrote the ten new stories gave me the ability to not only help introduce characters that appeared later on, like Joel, and fill out the stories of the characters better that were only alluded to before, but I was able to foreshadow what was to come in the next two books and the future new series.

One thing that never changed, however, is the world as a whole never received a name. In the first book of the new series, I play on that as well a bit, because the characters have no concept of a country or names of anything beyond a forest or mountain range.

When it comes to the feel of the world alluded to in the second asked question, I wanted to give it enough of a historical basis that it was grounded in some type of familiar reality, but change things up a bit. Being an alternate world gave me the freedom to do that. I focused on it having a medieval feel to the world, but there are more modern things about it. Primarily, I used common English we are used to hearing, without worrying about whether it sounded too modern or not. I did limit it some in that regard, but I wanted the language to connect with the readers instead of attempting to stick to an Earth-like language during the medieval times. Being an alternate world gave me the freedom to do this, though I know some will balk at it.

However, that doesn't mean I didn't do any research to keep it “real” in other respects. When I had a reference to toilets, I asked, “Did they have toilets back then, and if so, how did they operate?” So I researched it, and discovered yes they did, but usually only the rich had them. Common folk had a “spot” in a secluded area and used leaves for wiping. But often toilets were nothing more than a bench with a hole cut in it, and flies buzzing all around as you did your business. Not very sanitary. Castles were often better off, where toilets were on upper floors, and the disposed of mess dropped all the way to the ground so it stayed as far away from the seat as possible.

In another story, I wanted to use a dentist. Did they have dentist back then? Yes, though they were mostly crude and involved pulling teeth out more than anything. I took some liberties that in this world in that they'd developed the ability to use tools to “tap” the cavity corruption out of the tooth (to Sisko, it felt like pounding), and packed it with a substance that would keep it from getting worse, a primitive filling material. So you see a more modern type of dentistry than what actually existed in our medieval history, though Sisko no doubt would label it as torture, not healing.

Though I hadn't decided in the first story whether it was an alternate world or not, early on I decided it wasn't our Earth, and even though it had a parallel history, there would be some significant divergences in progress and abilities and historical facts. Enough real history to keep the reader grounded in a world, but enough differences to say, “We're not on Earth anymore, Todo.”

What I liked about that approach is the ability to just focus on the story, without worrying about getting a bunch of historical facts “just right.” Yet enough I could make some allusions and analogies to our world.

So that tells a lot of the story how the Reality Chronicles world developed and grew. You'll be reading more and getting into a lot more history and worlds within Sisko's world in the near future, when the first book of the new series comes out.

How did your world(s) develop?

Hero Game Now in Print!

That's right. The ebook I published a few months back, I've finally come around to getting into print. I've got my copy...how about you?

From the back of the book:

Being virtual superheroes gives Jeremy, Mickey, and Bridget all of the glory with none of the danger. Using Zori's virtual engine, the trio can become any number of superheroes to right the wrongs on Earth.

But Jeremy hadn't counted on Lorian arriving in the Solar System, the brother of the alien Jeremy helped kill to save Zori. With revenge on Lorian's mind and the invasion of Earth in his plans, the super trio find the odds stacked against them. Earth's armies are defenseless before a virtual fleet they can't kill. The three superheroes are all that stand in the way of Lorian enslaving Earth before retaking Zori. It will take more than super powers to save Earth and Zori again.

To read more about it, go to the book's web page.

As of this writing, there are two places you can buy it. Either at CreateSpace or Amazon. It should be appearing at other outlets like Barnes and Noble as time goes by. The ebooks, however, are already available at most places.

If you get a copy and read it, I appreciate any reviews people can offer. Word of mouth is my best advertising. Thank you.

Get Reality's Dawn for FREE!

Yes, for the next 5 days, you can get the Kindle version of my book, Reality's Dawn, for free. A great introduction to the series, and sets the stage for the next two adventures.

So don't wait too long and miss out! Grab a copy of it today!

What? Don't own a Kindle ereader? Have no fear, you are not left out. When you follow the preceding link, look toward the bottom-right of the screen and you'll see a link for Kindle apps that can be installed on most computers, tablets, and smartphones. Follow that link to install one on your device of choice, then get this book.

Grab, read, and enjoy. And if you would, once you've finished it, please post a review on Amazon and any other places you would like. Thank you.

Interview with Gabrielle from Reality's Fire

Welcome to another edition of Author Interviews. Not interviews of authors, but an author interviewing their characters. Today, author R. L. Copple interviews his character, Gabrielle, who plays a starring role in the newly released novel, Reality's Fire from Splashdown Books.

RLC: Hello, readers. My name is Rick Lee Copple, thus the author by-line: R. L. Copple. I write fantasy and space opera stories. As stated in the opening, the third and final novel in "The Reality Chronicles" has just been released. One character that has appeared in all three novels, but hasn't played as large a role in the story until this book, is Gabrielle. Why don't you start by introducing yourself.

Gabi: Hi Rick. Funny talking to you. It's almost like talking to myself.

RLC: It does help an author to have split personalities. Maybe to start, tell us a bit about your family life.

Gabi: My parents lived on a mountain just outside Jerole, in the northwest edge of the Cluster Range. My mother died early in my life, leaving myself, my father, and older brother, Seth, to fend for ourselves. My dad did his best, but a wizard of sorts put a curse on him and my brother so that the littlest provocation sent them into an uncontrollable rage. I spent several years keeping them from killing one another. So while life started out pretty normal enough, it went from crazy to crazier after that.

RLC: But Sisko came along and saved them from that curse. Yes?

Gabi: Oh yes, he healed them from their hate, after almost killing us all. But if you think dealing with a miracle man is not crazy, not to mention his children, I have some lake-front property on Dark Lake to sell you.

RLC: You did have a significant part in the first novel, Reality's Dawn, even if it wasn't extensive.

Gabi: Yes, even though I was only in two of the stories, I did play a part in the last story that was key. If not for me, that would have been the end of the series right there. And what was my thanks? The next book, Reality's Ascent, you lock me up in a crystal prison for practically the whole book!

RLC: Yes, I did feel guilty about that. But look at it this way, the readers felt really sorry for you for the whole book too. And you had a couple of good scenes, opening and closing the book. But, that was part of the reason I wanted to give you a starring role in the final book of the trilogy.

Gabi: Indeed, it was quite the part. I had my own point of view for nearly half the book. And not only a big part, but I got to play a part of "eternal significance" to many people, as Father Jonah put it. And it was nice sharing the stage with my daughter, Kaylee. I think we made a good team.

RLC: Naturally, I would agree. But let's talk a bit about your co-star, Josh. Like you, this was his biggest role. He played a part in the first stories of Reality's Dawn as the fledgling wizard. But by the end the second book, we discover that he has become a very powerful wizard. What was it like sharing the limelight with him in Reality's Fire?

Gabi: Yes, he did become a very powerful wizard. He explains that in more detail in this book. However, that turns out not to be as big a help as you'd think in attempting to fulfill my task of finding Kaylee and Nathan, and change the course of events. Naturally, you'll have to read to discover if I succeeded despite that or not.

RLC: How did he make it harder, without giving away any surprises?

Gabi: Let's just say, he doesn't have full control of himself for most of the story. Making him on the unpredictable side. When you have the most powerful wizard in the world not able to control his power, we'll just say, setbacks happen.

RLC: What is your favorite part of the story for you?

Gabi: Despite the frustration of the moment, it was probably turning Josh into a dog.

RLC: We forgot to mention that you end up with a power yourself.

Gabi: Yeah, that steam house. You never know what it is going to do.

RLC: If you had to sum up what this story is about, how would you put it?

Gabi: There's lots of things I could say, but if I were to boil it down, I'd say that the fear of God will either redeem you or defeat you, depending on how you approach Him. Each character experiences that in one way or another.

RLC: I couldn't have said it better myself. Now, let's shift gears a little to some topics the books don't usually touch on. The world you are in, does it have a name?

Gabi: Huh, just the world.

RLC: It doesn't have a name?

Gabi: You call your planet, dirt. Earth.

RLC: Hum, you have a point. But here we have nations like the United States, England, Germany, Australia, and a lot more. Is there anything similar there and why not?

Gabi: Not being from your world, I couldn't say for sure. But our world has a series of city-states. Mostly they get along though there are fights from time to time. A small handful of cities might govern an area, but most have their own king, ruler, or whatever, and they trade and work with neighboring villages and towns in an organic way. So there's not a bigger political entity beyond that.

RLC: And therefore, no need to name a bigger area.

Gabi: There are forest, deserts, and mountain ranges that have names. Like the city I'm in when this book starts out, Reol, is in the Durge Forest.

RLC: So your lands have never experienced wars much?

Gabi: If you believe the myths, thousands of years ago there was a big war between humans and dragons. Some say our peaceful living is in part due to our bonding together back then to fight a common enemy. Most people believe they are scary stories told to frighten kids around camp fires and that dragons don't exist. I used to think as much too, but Sisko's encounter with an invisible dragon gave me pause to wonder about that.

RLC: Interesting. Thank you so much, Gabrielle, for being with us today. Any last words to leave with our readers?

Gabi: Sure. God's reality is the reality. Don't hide from it, embrace it.

RLC: Your on a roll today. Until next time, faithful readers. Be sure to read the series if you haven't and if possible, leave honest reviews on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and anywhere else you please. You can find the book list at my website along with the other books I've written. Thanks for reading.