I shall continue my Evil Plan.

I've been reading up on the publishing industry.

Big mistake.

"Never tell me the odds!" Han Solo.

Doesn't matter.  I have my little five year plan, and I'm on track, and I'll just keep doing it.  If it requires putting blinders on, then that's what I'll do.  If I keep on this track, I'll get there.

With the store, I used to make these kinds of plans and I'd start putting them into play and nothing would happen and nothing would happen, then there would be a spark, and then a little flame, and eventually a full nurturing campfire.

So I'll just assume the same thing can and will happen with my books.

My job is the write the best books I can and put them out one by one.

That's it. Nothing else.

Another Downtown Event bites the dust?

It's no secret I haven't been a fan of the streets being closed so bike riders could circle us like wagon train pioneers being circled by rampaging Indians. 

However, the effects have been less each year as I have slowly "mainstreamed" my store.  This year, in fact, we did very well. 

So whatever happens, I'll live with it -- as if I have any choice.

So Cascades Cycling Classic.

I wonder how much money is really raised on these things, or whether the vast majority is just 'cycled' (so to speak) back into the promotion industry?  It sounds like it costs a lot of money to put on the event, too much for the organization that benefits to put it on without a sponsorship.

It sounds a little desperate -- they have only a month to come up with a new sponsor.  (It sounds like they've known for some time, and I assume they've been looking...)

This has been a 'traditional event' -- and homegrown -- and despite it's inconveniences over the years, I may even be a little sad to see it go.  I'm willing to take one for the hometown team, if you will.  (What I object to is the constant expansion and numbers of events...and, well, the closing of streets when it isn't necessary.)

Chances are, they'll find a sponsor.  Too many fingers in the pie to let it go.

These things just take on a life of their own.

I also wonder if these things just have a life-span and that's it.  The bigger they are, the more they seem to be vulnerable. 

We've lost a big golf tournament, a downtown music festival, the Bend Film seems to decline each year, the Nature of Words is done, and so on and so forth.  A combination of overreaching (we aren't Portland) and losing founders and just wearing out.

Here's something I'm pretty sure of.  Downtown Bend is not only getting lots of visitors, it is in danger of being throttled by too much stuff going on.  I'm serious.  I'm not sure a decline in events would have as big an impact as the planners seem to think.  Not distracting the tourists and just being a normal, thriving retail center might not be such a bad thing.

What I would like to suggest to the Downtowners, and the city, is that we don't instantly replace this event with another -- that we let a summer weekend go free.  Please?

Indie bookstores are back, baby.

I take the mass media memes with a grain of salt, even when they are in my favor.

I never thought indie bookstores were doomed.

Nor do I think they are having a dramatic resurgence.

They hit bottom and those who could survive, survived, and those who entered in the business had clearer notions about what it takes to survive.

Still... all the things I've been predicting on this blog for the last 8 years seem to be happening.  The demise of Barnes and Noble is well underway.  The Nook was a mistake, as I've always thought.

Physical books aren't disappearing.

I've more or less changed my mind about ebooks.  I think the legacy publishers would be wise to embrace ebooks, share the loot, and pick up the better indie authors and treat them fairly.

I don't think they are going to do that.  I think they are going to go down with the ship.

Anyway, whether the mass media (and therefore the public) thought bookstores were doomed or not never really mattered to me.  I knew that I was doing just fine, and in fact my book sales have increased every year I've carried them, and that's without taking too much risk on them.  (Carrying what is comfortable and financially easy to me.)

What did matter about the impression of doomed bookstores was that it was going to make selling a bookstore so much harder.  I'm getting near the end of my career.  At some point I was going to want to sell my store(s).

It's at least a few years away.  We renewed our leases at both Pegasus Books and The Bookmark.  So maybe by the time we're ready, the meme will have changed completely from "Bookstores are doomed" to "Bookstores are Hot!"

35 years old. Is my book a Classic?

Star Axe came out almost 35 years ago.

Gee, that almost makes it a classic.  Heh.  I do believe the old books gain a certain "halo."  Like, those were the days, you know.

Here's the original cover, which I think is charmingly retro:

Anyway, I'm hoping to put Star Axe back out as an ebook.  The way I read the original contracts, the rights have reverted to me.  Interestingly, the publisher sold out to Amazon a couple of years ago, after finally giving up the ghost.  So I guess Amazon will be telling me if I can publish my book or not.

OH....after writing the previous paragraph, I went to Wiki and found this:

"In August 2012 Amazon Publishing announced that it had acquired at auction the publishing contacts of over 1000 books from Dorchester Publishing. Dorchester authors were offered the opportunity to join Amazon Publishing and receive the full back royalties that Dorchester indicated were owed. Under the terms of Amazon’s bid, any former Dorchester Publishing authors that chose not to work with Amazon Publishing will have their rights revert to them to pursue other publishing opportunities including self-publishing via the Kindle Direct Publishing platform."

So the way I read this, I'm free to do what I want.  (I doubt there are any royalties due...Dorchester went through a bankruptcy soon after publishing my books -- I got all but the final advance.)



I took the book to a printer and had it scanned.  I thought it would be an easy thing.  Just do a few touchups and ready to go.  But it came out pretty scrambled.  I can decipher it, with some difficulty, but it takes time.  I have to check each and every paragraph.  (Man I had long paragraphs back then.)

Other than a couple obvious errors, I haven't changed anything.  This book has existed in its current form for a long time, so I'm sticking to it.

I'm not sure, but I could probably type the damn thing about as fast.  In fact, I'm thinking of doing that with Icetowers (my third book.)

My second book, Snowcastles, I found online, pirated all over the place. (It was published in England, so got a much broader distribution.  All over the world.)

The one thing I really want to do is use the original covers.  I think the covers were kind of cool, and was probably the reason the books sold as well as they did.  I didn't like the third cover, though it was done by a name artist.  So I'll probably use the Snowcastles cover for Icetowers as well.  I'm thinking of combining the two books, actually.  Just call it, Snowcastles and Icetowers, what else?

The artist, Ramos Kukalis, wants a fair chunk for the two covers, but I'm going to go ahead and buy the rights because I think they'll sell the books -- if they sell at all.

Meanwhile, though, it is a very slow process.  About 5 pages an hour, (a total of 50 hours) plus it will need proof-reading.  But when I'm done, it will be fun to see them out in the world again.

But I have enormously fond feelings for these books, obviously.

They transformed my life.  Gave me hope and confidence.

So let them live.

I am a bookstore.

I've told this story before, but here it is:  When I was in grade school, a teacher sent us home with instructions to count how many books we had in the house.

So I spent all weekend counting.  First the large attic that was filled with books, stacked to the ceiling, then the living room, lined by bookshelves, then each bedroom, each of which had bookshelves, then the kitchen where cookbooks and gardening books lined the upper walls, then the bathrooms (yes, the bathrooms) then inside the closets, then in the basement in boxes, and...well, you get the picture.

The teacher looked at me when I gave her the number -- "No, I meant count books."

I remember being speechless, and the dawning look of amazement on the teacher's face when she realized I meant it.

In case you think I'm exaggerating, I have to tell you that Linda and I own a thriving used bookstore that was stocked in the beginning, in the main, with those very same books.

What the result of all these books surrounding me was, I read a whole bunch of books.  Not only that, I read every kind of book. Fiction, non-fiction, classics, the best-sellers of the day, and every kind of genre.

I remember thinking when I was about sixteen years old that I was probably being silly reading a book about the crusades, followed up by a book about gladiators, followed up by Ann of Green Gables, followed up by The Naked Ape, then Exodus, and so on and so forth.

No real rhyme or reason.  Just whatever caught my fancy.

I didn't know what a hoarder was back then -- so I didn't realize my dad was a hoarder and books were part of his syndrome.  But thank goodness it was.

My dad was probably also a genius, and had an incredible trove of knowledge, and had read more books than anyone alive.  I thought, perhaps, I would someday catch up.  So I started gathering "trivia" so that when he questioned me, he couldn't stump me.

I never did catch up.  (I'm no genius.) But by then the habit of gathering knowledge for knowledge sake was ingrained.  Superficial knowledge, in many ways, knowing a title or and author for no other reason than to know it.

I remember walking into his room once.   As usual he had a pile of books near his bed (I mean piles of books stacked from the floor...)  There was an interesting cover.  "What's this?"

"Oh, that's kind of fun...you might enjoy it."

It was the Hobbit, and my life has never been the same since.

I read once that writer's have a couple of common characteristics -- that they read voraciously, and that there was a period in their life where they were incapacitated for some reason and were forced to do nothing but read.  What with my natural inclination and my years of depression (and agoraphobia) I did both.

I've read so much, that even if I haven't read a book, I often know what it is and what it is about.  For enjoyment I read the New York Times Book Review from cover to cover.  Not because I think I'll ever read all those books, but because I like knowing what they are.

Anyway, when it came time to include carrying new books in my store, I started out just getting those books that I'd read and loved and/or knew about.  I figured I'd start there, and then add, you know, bestsellers and books I hadn't heard of.

Thing is, my budget has never been as big as my experience.  I've been buying books I'm personally knowledgeable about mostly since the beginning, and my budget has never stretched as far as my knowledge.

That is, there are always other books I'd like to bring in that my budget can't allow.  I'm beginning to realize that I could probably fill a store just with my own tastes and knowledge, never referring to anything else.

Which in essence, makes my store -- well, me.

Not entirely, I admit.  I do buy lots of books I haven't read.  Either because they are on sale or because they are the new hot thing and they fit into my parameters of what I think I probably would like.

Which still reflects my tastes, if you will.

I don't know if I could do a bookstore that was dedicated to nothing but books.  Pegasus Books is still only 1/4th books.

But I think I probably could, with a few fill-in's here and there.

This is what independent bookstores do.  I believe the best bookstores try to indulge the owner's idiosyncratic taste, while at the same time trying to fulfill the customers needs.  It is where those two things meet that make a independent bookstore a unique experience.

And I think it's turning out that there are enough people in the world that appreciate that to keep bookstores around.

The Dead Spend No Gold has sold to Books of the Dead Press.

I got a contract for The Dead Spend No Gold: Bigfoot and the California Gold Rush from Books of the Dead Press.  Took a little longer than I expected, but I was probably expecting it too quickly.  Anyway, I've sent off the signed contract today and hopefully the book will be up for sale in the near future.

Taking the good parts out.

I've been reading over the shorter version of Tuskers, and...well...I don't like it as much.  It requires leaving out the most interesting character in the book, as well as the two most sympathetic characters, who are also the major sacrifices in the story.

I just don't think without these characters and scenes the story is strong enough to send to Amazon Singles.

I'm not sorry I did it.  It was a worthy exercise that taught me a few things, made me start doing a rewrite, and got me to catch some copy-editing things.

So, no harm.  Just a few extra days.

It gave me the time to realize that I'm more in the mood for rewriting than I am in starting off a new project.

I have any number of books I can work on.  I'm thinking right now that I might tackle the rewrite of Wolflander.  Or I may just finish Deviltree, which would be easier.  Get the easy one done first.  I've got a cover ready for Deviltree and the story is more or less complete.  I have a couple of things I want to do to it, but that shouldn't take all that long.

I also have the sequel, and I can just concentrate on rewriting it, too. 

What would be really cool is if I could get Star Axe and Snowcastles and Icetowers out, with the old covers, redesigned, but under my name and imprint.  That just requires doing it.  (I have to buy the old art and fix it up...)

I'm feeling like it is time to start finishing up these books and put them out one by one.  Just get it done.  Not wait for anyone else.

Trying something shorter.

People are always recommending that I write short stories or something.

As if that would be easier.

But that's like asking a long-distance runner why he doesn't do sprints.

It takes a certain type of thinking to create long-form stories.  It comes naturally to me.

Short stories are a whole nother thing.

Anyway, when I started writing Tuskers, I thought it would come in around 20K words and that was Okay.  But, as usual, I started adding characters and scenarios and I ended up at 47k words.  By the time I rewrite, it will probably be 50K words, because my tendency is to under-write and have to flesh it out later.

The S.F. writer Rudy Rucker was in my store, and he thought Tuskers was fun and that I ought to submit it to Amazon Singles.  I'd never heard of that, and when I checked it out, it required a story less than 30K words.  It is also a judged submission process, so the chances of it being accepted are unknown.  I suspect it isn't easy.

But I'm spending several months editing the story anyway, so what harm could there be in trying?

So yesterday, I started out to see what could be done to cut 17K words.

First I eliminated all the secondary characters.  That cut about 16K words.  To my great surprise, the story still holds up with just minor changes.

That left me with 31K words, so I spent the day cutting, and it looks like by the time I'm finished, I'll have cut another 1500 words, getting me under the limit.

So I'm going to go ahead and submit the story on Monday -- but not expect anything.  Really. 

It turned out to be a useful enterprise no matter what.  Cutting unnecessary words really tightened it up.  Made me aware of where I was being too wordy.  More often than not, cutting a few words made the sentence less passive.

I have a couple of bad habits I really wasn't aware of,  but over the last two manuscripts I've started to see it.

Anyway, if by some miracle, the story gets accepted, it will delay the longer book for some time, which is all right.  I've titled the shorter version "Tusker" instead of the plural "Tuskers."  If the short version gets published, then I'll put out the novel version later.  May even say something like:  Tuskers: the Novel.

It's all forward progress, I suppose.  I hate the complications (which is why I don't do much promotion) but I guess some of it is unavoidable.

Trick is just to do it and forget it.

Try to remember, the kind of September...

September has always been a melancholy month for me.  Sweetly melancholy, if there is such a thing.

I try not to let it take too deep a hold.  Dangerous that.

It's strange to see such diminished traffic in town.  Refreshing too.  But I can go on my nature walks now and not be surrounded by tourists.

What I always think at the store is, "I can't wait until summer/holidays are here."  And then when I'm in the middle, I think, "I can't wait until summer/holidays are over..."

Thing to remember, though, is that without summer and Christmas, Pegasus Books just wouldn't be viable.   I always say, "I make money 4 months out of the year, I lose money 4 months out of the year, and if I'm lucky, I break even 4 months out of the year."

There is an interesting article about restaurants today in the Bulletin where one of the owners says this:

"In the summertime, it's great.  But it's a 365-day business, so you can't be busy 90 days and make it through 365 very profitably."

Maybe all my meanderings are floating through the Zeitgeist.  There's another quote from a new restaurant in Bend who pretty much says what I've always advised:

"...she... realized one of the keys in Bend is starting small and making an appropriately sized initial investment....I think it's hard to make it in this town."

I believe that people who move to Bend to open businesses simply don't get how extreme the difference is between what they saw in the summer while visiting and the dismaying loneliness of a cold, wintry day in late February.

Meanwhile, there's a bookstore opening in a small town in Illinois that described itself thus:

Abet Books "will carry new and used books from children's tales to novels, as well as board games and comic books. The board games won't just be classic family titles, but 'niche European board games' that Nissen hopes to introduce customers to." (Shelf Awareness)

That sounds pretty familiar as a business plan... (almost makes me wonder if they visited my store.)  Or, like I said, maybe it's just the Zeitgeist.

*****

Anyway, having these melancholy thoughts.

In my past writing career, fall was also the most productive writing time, which I think came from starting school in September for 18 out of my first 28 years.  I used to not be able to write in summer and holidays.

These last two years, I've overridden those impulses.  Writing all the time.

Haven't heard from my publisher, and I'm wondering now what I thought was going to happen.  Of course it's going to take time.  The first books were accepted quickly once the decision was made but there had been almost a year leadup to that point.

I'm thinking my publisher has gotten busy doing other things.

The book is ready to go, whatever else happens.

I think I'm feeling stymied.  The necessities of the real world are blocking my free expression, man.  I'm waiting for publishers, editors, artists...

 *****

Meanwhile, in a time of changes, I've started a diet -- not for health or looks reasons, but because I have a whole closet full of cloths that fit a little too tightly, and if I lose 10 or 15 pounds will fit quite nicely.  I seem that have a pretty strong will when it comes to doing this, though I let it creep back over a couple of years.   ("I can quit smoking...I've done it hundreds of times...)

Been concentrating on Linda's store, which needed a little bit of kick.  Which is what I enjoy doing.  I'm investing in book CD's, and just generally spending more time there rearranging and filing.  I think we're already seeing some results.

It gets me out of the house and around people, and yet doesn't disrupt my writing.  I could work at Pegasus Books instead, but I feel like I get underfoot and it also gets a little intense, blowing away my writing mood.  Besides, my guys are doing such a great job that I don't like interfering.

I'm not letting the melancholy take over.  I'm making sure I do all the things that drive the melancholy away.  Because it can be a pretty severe drop from a little melancholy to worse.

Downtown Comings and Goings. 9/4/14

I have a shiny new neighbor, Cosas, which sells Mexican art and furniture.  Very cool looking, and way more retail-ee than the Christian Science Monitor was...

It appears that Alpenglow has closed its doors.

NEW BUSINESSES DOWNTOWN

Cosas, Minnesota Ave, 9/4/14
High Desert Chamber Music, Brooks St., 7/9/14
Via Delia/Just a Little Charm, Oregon Ave., 7/9/14
Angelina Organic, Bond St., 7/9/14
Fire in Bend, Franklin Ave., 7/9/14
Stihl Whiskey Bar, Franklin Ave, 7/9/14
The Red Pinecone, Minnesota Ave., 4/10/14
The Painted Gallery, Bond St., 4/10/14
The Basement, Bond St., 4/10/14
Bend Modern, Wall St., 1/10/14
Legum Design, Bond St., 1/10/14
Dogwood Cocktail, Minnesota Ave., 1/10/14.
Salud Raw Food, Franklin Ave., 10/10/13
Bhuvana, Minnisota Ave., 10/10/13.
Outside In, Wall St., 9/26/13.
Bishop's Barbershop, Oregon Ave., 7/24/13
Oregon Store, Wall/Franklin, 7/24/13
Supervillain Sandwiches, Bond St., 7/24/13
Taste Oregon, Bond St., 7/24/13
Wild Rose, 5/2/13.
Bluebird Coffee Company, Franklin, 3/29/13.
Pure Kitchen, Franklin (Bond), 3/29/13
Jeff Murray Photography, Minnesota Ave., 3/29/13
Luvs Donuts, Minnesota Ave. 3/29/13
Hub Cyclery, Wall St. 3/29/13
Ju-bee-lee, Wall. St.  3/29/13.
Sweet Saigon, Wall St., 1/20/13.
Brickhouse, Oregon Ave., 1/20/13.
The Drake, Wall St. , 1/20/13
541 Threads, Minnesota Ave., 10/13/12.
O Mo Mo!  Bond Street, 10/3/12.
Crow's Feet Commons, Brooks Street, 9/21/12.
The Cozy Lamb, Minnesota Ave., 9/14/12.
Noi, Bond Street, 9/14/12.
Azillian Beads, Greenwood Ave., 9/6/12.
Earth*Fire*Art, Oregon Av., 7/10/12.
Pastrami Deli, Franklin Av., 7/10/12.
Bend Your Imagination, Minnesota Av., 7/10/12.
Paul Scott Gallery), Brooks St., 7/10/12
Natural Edge Furniture, Bond St., 5/10/12
Hola!, Bond St., 3/3/12.
Amanda's, Franklin Ave., 2/24/12
Barrio, Minnesota Ave., 2/12/12.
Rescue Moderne, Harriman, 1/12/12.
Letzer's Deli, Franklin Ave. 2/12/12.
Navidi, Minnesota Ave., 2/9/12.
Mazza, Brooks St. , 2/9/12.
La Magie Bakery, Bond St., 1/6/12
Brother Jon's Ale House, Bond St., 12/10/11.
What Lola Wants, Wall St. , 12/2/11.
Jackalope Grill, 10/12/11.
Gypsy Soul, Wall St. 10/12/11.
Colour N' the City, Tin Pan Alley, 10/12/11.
Lotus Moon, Brooks St., 10/12/11.
The Lobby, Bond St. , 10/12/11.
Ruby, Minnesota Ave., 10, 12/11.
Kariella, Lava Road, 8/24, 11.
Plankers, Wall St., 7/11.
Faveur, Franklin, 7/11.
Dream Pebbles, Minnesota Ave., 6/15/11.
Bend Yogurt Factory, Franklin/Bond, 4/26/11.
High Desert Lotus, Bond St. , 4/4/11.
Tryst, Franklin Ave., 3/11/11. (Formerly Maryjanes, **Moved**).
D'Vine, Wall St. , 2/9/11.
Let it Ride!, Bond St., 1/29/11.
Gatsby's Brasserie Bar, Minnesota Ave., 1/8/11
Tres Jolie, Wall St., 12/20/10.
Caldera Grill, Bond St., 12/7/10
Bond Street Grill, 12/7/10.
Perspective(s), Minnesota Ave., 11/20/10
Toth Art Collective, Bond St. 11/20/10
Boken, Breezeway, 11/20/10
Dalia and Emilia, Wall St., 10/3/10.
Antiquarian Books, Bond St., 10/3/10.
Giddyup, Minnesota Ave., 10/3/10.
The Closet, Minnesota Ave., 8/11/10.
Showcase Hats, Oregon Ave., 8/11/10,
Red Chair Art Gallery, Oregon Ave. 7/13/10.
Earth Sense Herbs, Penny's Galleria, 7/12/10.
Mad Happy Lounge, Brooks St., 6/2910
Common Table, Oregon Ave. , 6/29/10.
Looney Bean Coffee, Brooks St. , 6/29/10.
Bourbon Street, Minnesota Ave., 6/22/10
Feather's Edge, Minnesota Ave., 6/22/10
The BLVD., Wall St. , 6/13/10.
Volt, Minnesota Ave. 6/1/10.
Tart, Minnesota Ave. , 5/13/10
Olivia Hunter, Wall St. 4/5/10.
Tres Chic, 4/5/10 (Moved to Minnesota Av.)
Blue Star Salon, Wall St. 4/1/10.
Lululemon, Bond St. 3/31/10.
Diana's Jewel Box, Minnesota Ave., 3/25/10.
Amalia's, Wall St. (Ciao Mambo space), 3/12/10
River Bend Fine Art, Bond St. (Kebanu space) 2/23/10
Federal Express, Oregon Ave. 2/1/10
***10 Below, Minnesota Ave. 1/10/10
Tew Boots Gallery, Bond St. 1/8/10.
Top Leaf Mate, 12/10/09
Laughing Girls Studio, Minnesota Ave. 12/7/09
Lemon Drop, 5 Minnesota Ave., 11/12/09
The Curiosity Shoppe, 25 N.W. Minnesota Ave, Suite #7. 11/5/09
Wabi Sabi 11/4/09 (**Moved, Wall St.**)
Frugal Boutique 11/4/09
5 Spice 10/22/09
Cowgirls Cash 10/17/09
***Haven Home 10/17/09
Dog Patch 10/17/09
The Good Drop 10/12/09
Lola's 9/23/09
**Volcano Wines 9/15/09
Singing Sparrow Flowers 8/16/09
Northwest Home Interiors 8/5/09
High Desert Frameworks 7/23/09 (*Moved to Oregon Ave. 4/5/10.)
Wall Street Gifts 7/--/09
Ina Louise 7/14/09
Bend Home Hardware (Homestyle Hardware?) 7/1/09
Altera Real Estate 6/9/09
Honey 6/7/09
Azura Studio 6/7/09
Mary Jane's 6/1/09
c.c.McKenzie 6/1/09
Velvet 5/28/09
Bella Moda 3/25/09
High Desert Gallery (Bend) 3/25/09
Joolz
Zydeco
900 Wall
Great Outdoor Store
Luxe Home Interiors
Powell's Candy
Dudley's Used Books and Coffee
Goldsmith
Game Domain
Subway Sandwiches
Bend Burger Company
Showcase Hats
Pita Pit
Happy Nails

(List begun, Fall, 2008.)

BUSINESSES LEAVING

Alpenglow, Wall St., 9/4/14
Christian Science Reading Room, Minnesota Ave., 7/9/14
Roberts Clothes for Men, Wall St., 7/914
Pure Kitchen, Franklin Ave., 7/9/14
Dream Pebbles, Minnesota Ave., 1/10/14
Pastrami Deli, Franklin Ave., 10/10/13.
Edman Furniture, Wall St., 9/26/13.
At the Beach, Wall ST., 9/18/13.
New York City Sub, Bond St. 3/29/13
Soba Asian Bistro, Bond St., 3/29/13
Volt Lighting, Wall St.  3/29/13.
Topolino, Wall Street, 1/20/13.
Cozy Lamb, Minnesota Ave., 1/20/13
Amalia's, Wall Street, 1/5/13.
El Jimador, Wall Street, 9/1412.
The Closet, Minnesota Ave., 9/1/12
Common Table, Oregon Ave., 8/11/12.
Honey Threads, Minnesota Ave., 8/11/12.
Bella Moda, Wall St., 8/11/12.
Giddy Up, Minnesota Ave., 5/10/12
Pottery Lounge, Oregon Ave., 5/17/12.
Boondocks, Newport Ave., 3/27/12
Game Domain, Oregon Ave., 3/27/12.
Toth Gallery, Bond St., 3/27/12.
Letzer's Deli, Franklin Ave., 3/22/12.
Clutch, Minnesota Ave., 3/22/12.  (Moving to Tres Jolie).
High Desert Gallery, Minnesota Ave., 3/22/12.
Tart, Bond St., 3/3/12.
El Caporal West, Franklin Ave., 2/24/12
Bo Restobar, Franklin Ave., 2/9/12.
The Lobby, Bond St. , 2/9/12.
Arts Central, Brooks St., 2/7/12.
Typhoon!, Bond St., 2/5/12.
Gatsby's, Minnesota Ave., 2/5/12
The Dog Patch, Minnesota Av. 1/9/12.
Bend Mapping, Bond St., 1/9/12.
Lotus Moon, Brooks St. 1/9/12   (Moving to Tres Jolie)
Bond Street Grill, Bond St., 11/20/12.
Mad Happy Lounge, Brooks St., 10/11.
Azu, Wall St., 10/25/11.
Showcase Hats, Oregon Av., 10/11.
Bourbon St., Minnesota Ave. 10/12/11.
Curiosity Shop, Minnesota Ave., 7/11
Luluemon, Bond St., 8/26, 11.
Shear Illusions, Franklin Ave., 7/11.
Crepe Place, Wall St., 7/11.
Pita Pit, Brooks St. , 6/28/11
Smith and Wade Salon, Minnesota, Av. , 6/3/11.
Perspectives, Minnesota Av., 6/1/11
River Bend Art Gallery, Bond St., 5/5/11.
Donner's Flowers, Wall St. 3/11/11. (Moved out downtown)
Maryjanes, Wall St. , 3/11/11. (new name, Tryst,  Franklin.).
Di Lusso, Franklin/Bond, 2/9/11.
Earth Sense Herbs, Penny's Galleria, 1/2/11
Marz Bistro, Minnesota Av., 12/20/10.
The Decoy, Bond St., 12/7/10.
Giuseppe's, Bond St., 12/1/10.
Ina Louise, Minnesota Ave., 11/3/10.
Laughing Girl Studios, 10/21/10
Dolce Vita, Bond St, 10/21/10
Diana's Jewell Box, Minnesota Ave., 10/15/10.
Lola's, Breezeway, 10/8/10.
Oxygen Tattoo, Bond St., 10/3/10.
Great Outdoor Clothing, Wall St., 10/3/10.
Volcano Vineyards, Minnesota Ave., 10/3/10.
Subway Sandwiches, Bond St. 9/2/10.
Old Bend Distillery, Brooks St., 6/19/10.
Staccato, Minnesota Ave. 6/18/10.
Showcase Hats, Minnesota Ave., 6/1/10
Cork, Oregon Ave., 5/27/10.
Wall Street Gifts, 5/26/10
Microsphere, Wall St. , 5/17/10.
Singing Sparrow, Franklin and Bond, 5/15/10
28, Minnesota Ave. and Bond, 5/13/10.
Glass Symphony, Wall St., 3/25/10
Bend Home Hardware, Minnesota Ave, 2/25/10
Ciao Mambo, Wall St. 2/4/10
***Angel Kisses 1/25/10   (Have moved to 'Honey.')
Ivy Rose Manor 8/20/09
***Downtowner 8/18/09 (moving to Summit location)
Chocolate e Gateaux 8/16/09
Finders Keepers 8/15/09
Colourstone 7/25/09
Periwinkle 6/--/09
***Tangerine 7/21/09 (Moving across the street.)
Micheal Cassidy Gallery 6/15/09
St. Claire Coffee 6/15/09
Luxe Home Interiors 6/4/09
Treefort 5/8/09
Blue 5/2/09
***Volcano Tasting Room 4/28/09
Habit 4/16/09
Mountain Comfort 4/14/09
Tetherow Property 4/11/09
Blue Moon Marketplace 3/25/09
Plenty 3/25/09
Downtown Doggie 3/25/09
***King of Sole (became Mary Janes)**
Santee Alley
Bistro Corlise
Made in Hawaii
EnVogue
Stewart Weinmann (leather)
Kebanu Gallery
Pella Doors and Windows
Olive company
Pink Frog
Little Italy
Deep
Merenda's
Volo
***Pomegranate (downtown branch)**
Norwalk
Pronghorn Real Estate office.
Speedshop Deli
Paper Place
Bluefish Bistro

(List begun, Fall, 2008 )

Writing thoughts.

Changing the 1st person chapters to 3rd person has confirmed one thing to me.

I probably need Tuskers edited.

If nothing else, having an editor forces me to take the time and the energy to look at the manuscript longer, which it probably needs.

It holds my feet to the fire.

I just need to keep reminding myself to do one thing at a time, one after the other.  I've done a lot, and I have a lot unfinished, and the only way to continue is one step at a time.




With all of this, I come back to asking myself -- does it matter?  What if I didn't know? What if I was just writing my stuff and putting it out and I didn't know what was happening?  Would it matter?  Am I doing it for reputation, for ego, for praise, for money?

What if none of those things were forthcoming in any way?

What if, I just concentrated on the art of it?



Basically, I do understand this isn't going to work.

But I feel compelled to write anyway.

This isn't really like the store.  I always thought the store would work if I did it right.  But I didn't necessarily feel compelled.  So while there are many similarities, the final result just isn't the same.
Writing in the end is a lonely activity, done alone, without feedback or results.  You do it anyway.

The store shows results from the efforts.  Which I suppose is why I went there.



 I feel compelled to write.  I enjoy doing it.

One thing I've noticed from professional writers my age is that they tend to be slightly jaded and cynical about the whole thing.  You get the impression that they'd just as soon do something else.

I think writing is a hard way to make a living.  I'm probably lucky that I didn't spend the last 30 years writing only to be soured on it.  Instead, I made a living doing something else, and have come back to writing full of enthusiasm.  I don't need to make a living at it.  I can do it for fun.



Whenever I encounter difficulties, I tend just to put on my blinders and go forward.  Doesn't always work.  But I'm not really aware if it's working or not.  I just do it.

Writers today are lucky.

It's amazing, in many ways, that 30 years ago (or longer) that anyone would set out to be a writer.  The only real explanation is ignorance.  Not knowing the odds.  The power of daydreaming.  I mean, you really did write in a vacuum back then.  You got a lot of skeptical looks.  Your parents urged you to be 'realistic' and find a 'real' job.  (I suppose that hasn't changed...) 

You typed your manuscript, making every effort to correct mistakes.  If you made any changes you had to completely rewrite the manuscript, so you tended not to make small corrections.  I remember having stacks of discards of just one page, because I was compulsive/obsessive.

You paid a printer to copy the book.  Paper and ink and print were substantial costs if you were poor, which you probably were if you were quitting your day job to write a novel.

Postage was pretty big expense too. 

You sent it off to one agent or publisher at a time and waited.  And waited.  And waited.

I called it, "sending it into the Void."  Months, even years.  Imagine applying for a job and having to wait for each single employer to turn you down before you went on to the next, and that that employer automatically took at least "six weeks" to answer (which if you were actually considered could turn into six months.)

I mean, there was almost no feedback then.  Either you hit the big time (as in being published by a major publisher) or you didn't.  Not a lot of in-between.

Oh, there was the short story/art route, but even then it was almost as hard to get a short story published as it was a novel, with very little of the payoff.

Now, at least you can see your name in print without breaking the bank.  The term "vanity press" really isn't valid, because you aren't spending a lot of money to salve your ego.  You really don't have to spend much money at all.  If you are tech savvy, you may not have to spend any money.

The actual process of writing is 10 times easier.  

Ultimately, the odds of making money today are probably nearly as long as they were then.  But there is much more in-between validation.  It's easier.  It doesn't take so long.  And you aren't dependent on others to see your work see daylight.

It's a great time to be a writer for art's sake.

Tis and tat.

Started to write a "serious" story yesterday.

Fuck that.  I'm depressed already.  Serious fiction is depressing.

*****

I'm in-between stories.  Waiting for a sign as to which story to tackle next.  Trying to enjoy the vacation.

*****

Linda and I watched both Hobbit movies last night.  7 hours of Hobbit.

Why does Peter Jackson have to overdo everything?  When he sticks to the story, he's great. 

*****

Saw a documentary on the Pig Explosion in the USA.  My Tuskers stories are more apropos than I knew.  Coming up with a species that is smarter, stronger, faster and bigger than any others isn't so outrageous after all.  Heh.

*****

Haven't heard back from my publisher.  I shouldn't be impatient. 

Besides, if he doesn't take it, I'll just put it out myself.  No harm.

*****

My reading has just died off.  I'm too conscious of all the tricks.  (I'm also conscious of the tricks in TV and movies...)  I've gotten really observant of the details.

I've just got to stop doing that and enjoy the books.

*****

Outlander isn't really doing it for me.  But it's entertaining enough to keep watching.  I'm assuming the book is "better."

*****

Linda and I are going to the movies.  She wants to see The Giver, I want to see Sin City, so we'll probably see something else...

Finished! Tuskers II.

It's always a euphoric feeling to finish a book.

Wow.  I did that.

Finished right on schedule.  Tuskers II is currently about 42K words long.  I figure it will probably be about 45K long by the time I finish rewriting it.

Tuskers I is about 47K long, probably 50K by the time I rewrite it.  Short books, but not outrageously so.  It's going to be a trilogy.  The whole saga will be one long book.  Tuskers III will be set in a real post-apocalyptic world, and I'm looking forward to writing it.

The goal was to get to the end by the shortest path possible.  No detours, no lollygagging.  Straight to the point all the way.

I really like these two stories.  I allowed myself to be as over the top as I wanted.  The books benefited from that.  But no matter how outrageous I try to be, I tend to want to ground my stories in some kind of reality.  I want to be both outrageous and believable.

I'm not sure if I'm ready to tackle Tuskers III just yet.  I'm going to do a quick rewrite of Tuskers I over the next three days and send it to Lara.  After that, we'll see.

I have plenty of directions I can go from here.  Plenty of material that needs to be rewritten.

But sometimes a new idea pops up at these moments.  Sometimes the subconscious demands I go someplace new.  And I always listen to that voice.

I've settled into a nice writing routine.  I just need to keep that going.

Two year writing anniversary.

Two years ago I went on a writing vacation to the coast.

My idea was to write an analog story about my childhood and set it in a fantasy setting.  I called it The Reluctant Wizard.  What this trip did was unlock my creative door.  I'd been struggling for a year with Faerylander (at that time called, Almost Human.)

Somehow, tapping into my childhood emotions got me going again.

Then I had an idea of writing a cyberpunk version of the Hobbit, which I  called Freedy Filkins, and which is now called Cyber Flash.  It was fun to write.  I didn't worry about whether it might sell or not.

Anyway, from that point on, I haven't stopped writing.  Anything that came to me, I wrote.  A vampire story?  Haven't vampires been overplayed?  Maybe, but its knocking at the door so, well, Okay.

Sequels to my earlier unpublished books?  That seems dubious, but Okay.

Stories about a wild pig apocalypse?  Uh, Okay.

Donner Party Werewolves?  I like it, Okay.

Bigfoot and the California Gold Rush?  I like it, Okay.

Even though I'm struggling with Faerylander, write two more sequels?  Okay.

And so on.

I worked out a work strategy, a pace I could maintain, and cleared the decks to do nothing but writing.

I gave myself 5 years to concentrate on writing, and I'm now at the 2 year mark.  (I don't count the struggle of the first year where I was just relearning how to write.)

I'm going to try to moderate a little.  Fit in some more gardening and trips and more work at the bookstores and movies and books and so on.

But I think I can still keep up a steady writing schedule.

I'm not worried about how well they sell, only about how well I write them.  I've worked out the math, and it's ridiculously low odds.  ("Never tell me the odds!)

But I don't care.  It turns out I like writing, telling stories, and crafting them the best I can, so I'm going to just keep doing that. 

My garden is out of control.

Two years of ignoring my garden and it has grown like the blob.  A big mass of bio. 

I had to do radical surgery yesterday.  Just cut out entire sections that were infested with grass.  Pull out viable plants that had just taken over too much territory.  I had to take off the top 1/2 inch of soil almost everywhere, which hurts because it is top soil and top soil is a valuable commodity.  In theory, I'll get that soil back when my refuse pile become my top soil again.

I hired a landscaping service this summer and they revived my lawn, informing me that I wasn't watering enough.

The garden had responded to the extra water by exploding.

I did about half the backyard yesterday, and I'm going to finish it today or tomorrow.  Try to keep up from now on.  I'm afraid that the grasses and weeds have seeded in pretty firmly, so next year will be a huge struggle if I don't try to keep up.

As usual, I found great satisfaction in the gardening.  It feels good to dig in, to make it look nice.  I really should do more of it.

***

So...meanwhile, I have only one chapter and a epilogue to write on Tuskers II.  I love what I've got planned, but I'm hoping for a giant burst of inspiration to get what I've got planned down on paper.

Then I'm going to quickly rewrite Tuskers I for editing. 

Then move on to Tuskers III.  To be fresh on the Tuskers III, early in the book I'm going to jump ahead a few years.  It will be a post-apocalyptic world where the non-diseased Tuskers and Humans band together to fight off the diseased (dare I say zombie?) Tuskers and Humans.

Should be fun.

I want to know about You.

I quit smoking -- like fifty times.

I've never announced I was giving up on social media because I doubted I was and because if I stop doing something, I just stop doing it.

So I stopped checking Twitter, completely, without saying anything. 

The only social media I still go to is Facebook.  (And Reddit, which is not 'social' for me, I just browse.)

Last night, I checked Facebook and I'd say about 30 out of the top 50 entries were videos.  Not original videos, but passed along.  Of the twenty left, 10 were non-original photos.  It took forever for me to weed out the crap.

I don't know if this is a new feature but as I scroll down, the damn videos start playing whether I want them to or not.  It freezes the computer for a few seconds each time and is totally distracting.  If I can figure out a way to turn off or avoid that feature, I might continue but it really is the last straw.  (With Reddit I at least have a choice about whether I want to see something or not.)  Add that to the advertising, and the incredibly stupid "tests" and I've had it.

Enough, already.

Here's the thing.  I want to know about you.  Not about some fluffy cat or squirming piglet.  You.

So I'm going to check Facebook to see if there are any personal comments -- and then stop.  Because I'd done.

Veronica Mars

Watched the Kickstarter funded movie Veronica Mars last night.

A very nostalgic experience, which just reminded me how great that show was.

Why does a show like this get cancelled after three seasons and a piece of formulaic crap like NCIS is the number one show?

What people seem to forget is that these "cult" shows were never popular.  Buffy almost got cancelled every year, and even changed networks.   Star Trek had 3 seasons.  Firefly...oh, firefly.  I was BEGGING people to watch this show -- my supposed nerd customers at the store and not one took me up on it.   I've found since, almost everyone thinks they watched it, without realizing they watched the repeats.  I'm here to tell you, almost no one watched it when it counted.

Apparently The Good Wife was on the "bubble" last year.  The well written shows just seem to struggle.

To bring that around the books.  The question is -- if you write a good book will people notice, and the answer I believe is -- probably not.

Sales and quality simply don't correlate as much as people would like to think.

Writer's group as support group.

Sometimes you take something to writer's group that you think is great.  And they disabuse you of the notion.

Other times, you take something that you think has problems...and they like it.

Either way, just getting feedback is wonderful.

You see, most of the time I'm writing I don't get feedback.  Days, weeks, months go by of hard work and I don't know if I'm writing something good or not.

Sometimes I don't get real feedback until I send it to my editors, or even when it's published.  Linda is always willing, but I try not to wear out my welcome.

Anyway, I took the first three chapters of Tuskers to group last night.

When I was writing this, I loved it.  I thought it was fun.

But my first beta reader didn't care for it much, which brought me back down to earth.

I followed his suggestions, tried to beef up (pork up?) the danger quotient for the Tuskers.  I took the first person chapters and made them third person like the rest of the book.

But reading it over, I was pretty uncertain.

The writer's group really liked it.  They seemed impressed, (I believe I can tell when people are genuine and when they're just telling me what I want to hear) and they found little beyond a few typos to suggest changes.

So, yeah. That's what I needed.  I was starting to feel a little insecure about it.

This make me feel like I'm on the right track.

Not to get all egotistical about it, but I think I'm getting the hang of it.  Mostly from having done so much writing over the last couple of years that I'm avoiding the worst problems from the beginning and I'm learning a few tricks, both in writing and in my work habits. 

I don't know where it leads.  The next book could be something awesome, certainly I didn't expect Tuskers to come along.  Whether Tuskers ever hits it big or not, it has been so much fun to write that it has been a great experience.

I want more of that.

Taglines for Tuskers I thru III.

I'm writing this from my new MacBook Air.

The computer I bought at Christmas was a flop.  I tried to save a little money by buying something other than an Apple and that was a mistake, obviously.

This will have a long battery life and is light enough to throw in my backpack and take anywhere I go.  So....cool.  I'm liberated.  I can write whenever and wherever I want.

I'm going to ask Aaron to adjust this machine to copy my other laptop as much as possible.  For instance, when I scroll I go the opposite direction than the one that is installed.  (Which drives me crazy.)

Simple things that most people probably know how to do...




Checked Smashwords for the first time in a couple of months.  Led to the Slaughter had dropped off the best-seller lists for a month...so thought that was it.  But I'm back on the lists, so that's pretty cool.  Apparently it doesn't mean much in actual sales, but at least the book is getting noticed by somebody.

I'm hoping to get the second quarter results from my publisher.  I have a vague idea of how it's gone, but it would be nice to see more info.

One thing that is interesting to me.

If you plug in my book on Amazon and search for best-selling books including reviews Led to the Slaughter is #165 out of 53,000 books.  Which is pretty good, when you consider how many good horror books have been written and how many good authors there are.

That doesn't really translate into sales, unfortunately.  But still...I need all the encouragement I can get.

 

Hoping to finish Tuskers II in the next day or two.

Then immediately start in on Tuskers III.

My total focus is to make these as fun and fast-moving as possible.

I think I've come up with the three taglines.

TUSKERS:  The pigs are not all right.
TUSKERS II:  Stay out of the desert.
TUSKERS III:  Mankind is so over.