Guns, On Writing, Writing

Shot in Fiction

I keep seeing scenes in stories and movies, where Character A shoots Character B with, say, a .44 Magnum or a 12 gauge shotgun. Character B goes flying through the air until he crashes into the wall behind him.

That just doesn’t happen. Not when shot with a .44 Magnum, not when shot with a 12 gauge. Not even a .50 BMG will send Character B flying backward. It’s entirely possible that he wouldn’t even fall down right away.

If Character A wanted to make Character B fly backward, he’d probably need to shoot him with a rocket launcher. But then, the rocket would just blow Character B to pieces.

If shot with a .44 Magnum, 12 gauge, .50 BMG or any other caliber, Character B will not fly backward. His feet won’t leave the ground. If the projectile hits Character B in the chest, he might fall backward or he might stumble around a bit, and then fall. But he’s not going to be lifted off the ground

Series Talk

The Walking Dream

The Walking Dead is on break and won’t be back until February. If the Walkers aren’t infesting my TV, they’re infesting my dreams. Since the latest episode, I’ve had two dreams that featured Walkers.

Last night, I escaped a town that was overrun by Walkers. I had a bolt-action rifle, but only four bullets. I outran the group of Walkers that was chasing me and found myself in an empty barnyard.

Or I thought it was empty. I stepped on a tripwire and Walkers began coming from every direction. I fired my rifle until it was empty and had to use the rifle as a club to fight my way through the herd.

I made it through without getting bit, but soon stepped on another tripwire that somehow (I don’t know how) attracted more Walkers.

There were too many. They closed in around me and I woke up.

It was fun.

Misc, On Writing, Writing

Morning, Sam

Morning, Ralph.

I’ve been getting up at 6 AM. I try to have a new blog entry written before seven, but it often takes me longer. And then I work on the novel. If I manage to get ten pages into the novel, I’ll work on a short story and try to get five pages. That doesn’t always mean writing, sometimes it’s editing.

I finish my day by reading no less than  one chapter of whatever book I happen to be reading. Right now it’s Finding Fish, by Antwone Fisher.

I have a checklist on excel, that’s divided into two columns. One column is blog, novel, short story and reading. The other column is chores that I can get up and do if I’m stalled on the stuff in the first column. I don’t always get everything on the list checked off, but I try to.

Football, NFL, Sports

What did the Lions do to the Giants?

Eh, not much.

Yesterday, the Lions managed to get two field goals, while the Giants got one field goal and… two touchdowns. The final score was 6-17 and the Lions are now 9-5.

The Lions are still in first place, but they’re now leading the NFC North by only one. The regular season has two games left. Although the Vikings lost yesterday and are no longer a threat, the Packers did not lose.

Next week the Lions have the Monday Night Football slot with the Dallas Cowboys. I hate the Cowboys, not as much as I hate the Buckeyes, but still….

The Cowboys are leading the NFC East. They’re currently 12-2. Good Luck against that, Lions. If Stafford and them can beat the Cowboys next Monday, I’d be impressed. But after their loss to the Giants yesterday, I’m preparing for the worst.

Misc

Think I got back ten years of my life

I shoveled my sidewalk and driveway twice this month. Over the years, anytime I shoveled snow or did any kind of physical work, I’d be coughing and gasping for air. Not anymore.

Since I quit smoking in June, I’ve been noticing how much better I feel. I don’t wake up in the morning feeling like I’m suffocating and I can laugh without breaking into terrible coughing fits, and I seem to have more energy.

I have not had a single cigarette since June 3rd, when I smoked my last one and announced on Facebook that I was going to quit. I don’t know how I managed to just quit like that. For twenty-three years, I failed, failed and failed again to quit smoking. All of sudden, I’m a non-smoker. How did that happen?

On Writing, Writing

…and I’m off

20161216_192714Yesterday I announced that I got that novel submitted to a publisher. I don’t know when I’ll hear back from them. Could be weeks, could be months.

Before starting Book Two of the series, I remembered the new illuminated keyboard I bought a couple weeks ago and decided to hook it up. I have another one of these that I was using until a year or two ago when some of the keys stopped functioning properly. But this new one feels like it’s better made and the letters are bigger. It also has seven different light colors, but I like the white light best.

This means I can write in the dark again. It also means I don’t have to strain to see the keys anymore, which I often had to do even when the lights were on. I was never one of those people who can write without looking at the keyboard.

So, yesterday, I got 312 words into Book Two. That’s not a bad start.

On Writing, Writing

Novel Sent Out

Yesterday was a long day. I spent the entire day putting together a submission package for one of the big publishers. I didn’t think it’d take me till one in the morning to finally submit the thing.

Writing a cover letter and synopsis, and all that stuff, is like pulling teeth. It’s not fun at all. The fun part is writing actual fiction. The rest is just agony.

I got up from my desk only a few times yesterday.

Think I’m going to start Book Two today.

I guess my motto is “Let’s see what happens”. I’ll do the best I can with each project, send it out and see what happens.

Books, Reviews

Echoes of a Dream, by Melissa J. Lytton

51jpxlklm3lWhile reading Melissa J. Lytton‘s Echoes of a Dream, I kept thinking that the prose rolls like it does in Walter Mosley’s Devil in a Blue Dress. They’re completely different stories; Mosley’s is a noir set in 1948 Los Angeles and Lytton’s is a science fiction set in the future. But I feel the writing is similiar in that it just takes you in. I don’t think “grabbed me and held me” is the right way to describe it. It’s more like you’re comfortably settled into the story and it’s a smooth ride.

Eric Hudd is a drug addict, though he has been clean for some time now. He has a job and his own place, and it seems his life is on a better path. But something is wrong. When Hudd accidentally kills a man, he’s not sure it really happened or not. Soon he finds out that the factory near the building he lives in has something going on that tampers with people’s dreams and realities. Hudd decides it needs to stop.

Lytton did an outstanding job creating this novel. Her character development and world building skills are excellent, and she has a keen sense of story.

Football, NFL, Sports

9-4

So, yeah, the Lions beat the Bears on Sunday. It might have gone the other way if the Bears hadn’t had a few penalties thrown at them in the end and gotten backed up to, I think it was 25 yards. Far enough from the goal post to prevent them from kicking a field goal and tying the score.

So, the Lions won, 20-17, and their first place standing is looking more secure. I’d feel better if the Vikings and the Packers had lost their games, but they didn’t. So, the Vikings and Packers are still two behind the Lions and there are three games left for the regular season.

The Lions play the Giants on the 18th. If they can beat the Giants, that’d be great.

Series Talk

I knew that Python would find its way back to Rick

In last night’s episode of The Walking Dead, Rick and Aaron cross a zombie infested river and reach the boat on the far bank. There they find loads of shit. Food, guns and other supplies.

Meanwhile, Daryl makes his great escape. While reclaiming the motorcycle that is rightfully his, he is confronted by one of Negan’s men. Though the guy acts all nice, Daryl is having none of it. Daryl beats the asshole to death with a rod and discovers the asshole was carrying Rick’s Colt Python.

Rick and Aaron make it back to town to find Negan’s crew waiting for them. Of course, all the stuff they had just collected is claimed by Negan. In the town center, Negan kills two more people and takes Eugene away.

This is when Rick decides he’s had enough of Negan. In the end, Rick and other members of his group arrive at Hilltop and Rick tells Maggie that she was right, they need to fight Negan. Then Daryl shows up and hands Rick his Python like it’s a warrior’s great sword.

That completes the first half of this season. The second half will start in February. What will happen then? I expect the whole second half will be war.

Who will die?