So with the last update for Stalking Shadows, I announced I would be changing my update day to Sundays rather than Fridays. Well, come Sunday, I had to rethink things again. I'm going to stick to Sundays, but I'm going to have to do only half chapter updates. I'm about at the end of my pre-written material and will have to start generating it completely from scratch, which I have never done before, but I know I will not be able to write a complete chapter in a week. I have a full-time job, I'm about to start an art class at the community college, and I would like to keep somewhat active with the Web Fiction Guide, which all means, ain't no way I'm writing a full length chapter in a week.
It's frustrating that I have to keep scaling back, but I know what I can and cannot do.
Other than that, everything's peachy. Hope people keep enjoying SS!
Fiddling with the Update Schedule
Fun New Listing Site
I check my stats like a caffeine addict checks the coffee pot. Has it stopped perking? How much is left? Is it still warm? Should I make more? Should I brew another pot? I've had one today, but it isn't even noon yet. I can drink another pot easy. Has it stopped perking yet? How much is left? Is it still warm? Should I make more? You get the idea.
Anyway, I was checking my stats, and saw a new incoming link. It was for New Free Books. I didn't submit to the site, but it doesn't look like one can you can send an email with your site's info if you want to be included. What charmed me about this site is the explanation text at the bottom of the page. It reads:
My Treasure Hunt Philosophy: I am checking regularly for ways to expand these offerings. I try to pick the best ones. "Low minded" books should not be here. Please alert me of dead links and books that don't meet good standards so they can be removed.
Just keep in mind, this IS a "treasure hunt." The random order you find on this list is not accidental. It is simply a recognition that each book has its own unique personality. And moreover, if something is really fresh, it will defy traditional categorization.
With that in mind, I will stay focused on collecting valuable links, and I hope you enjoy browsing the wide variety of offerings for treasures that are right for you. And don't forget your friends... you may come across something that is just right for someone else.
So I'm wondering if each time you go to the site the order of the entries is different? Hitting refresh didn't do anything, but it would be an interesting experiment, having the stuff rearrange every time so you find something new, but I think the person running the site just sticks the new links in anywhere in the list. The link to me appears to be a newer one, but it's among older links. The entries aren't categorized beyond putting stuff by the same author together. I like the idea, and I'm very flattered to be listed. It seems to have been around for a while. I'm surprised I hadn't landed on it before.
Bit of a Blip Today
Didn't get chapter 2 of Stalking Shadows posted until after midnight tonight, which is later than planned. Got hit with a nasty bit of malwary earlier in the day and have been fighting with it for five hours. I forget exactly what it's called, but it masquerades as a virus removal program. I didn't install it or anything, but some site I stumbled on must have infected me. It was a bitch to get rid of. My dad put me onto Malwarebytes, which I highly recommend. I'd been running Symantec and Ad-aware, and they were finding some of the badness but not all of it, and so the badness just kept coming back. I seem to be running clean now.
Thanks, Dad.
Chapter 2 is up. I'm a little unsure of it because I didn't get to obsess over it like usual, but maybe that's a good thing. I'll be reading back over it soon any way and fixing anything I missed...And I just went back and spotted something I wanted to change. It's a compulsion.
Rolling in the Debt
As opposed to rolling in the money, I am rolling in debt. I am in so much debt, not from writing, just from life. Yeah, this whole writing on the web thing is no get rich quick deal. I haven't sold a single copy of SM. That's kind of depressing. I really didn't expect any real gain from this. My royalty for SM is like a quarter a book. That's right, I have the chance to make a shiny quarter per copy sold, and Lulu won't cut a check until I reach $25 (so I've got to make a lot of shiny quarters before I see anything), but that doesn't matter since I've sold nada. That's why I've increased the number of ads on some of the sites. I don't think they're too intrusive, but I want to start making a little money. I've made about $20 total in ad revenue, but that's over six months. Like I said, no get rich quick deals here.
Unicorn Bait Reviewed by Pychmum
Damn, I'm going to save this review for when I'm feeling down and out. Like when I wonder why I bother to write, I ain't making money off it, nobody appreciates it, I suck. (Every downward spiral ends with 'You suck', which is kind of ironic considering the metaphor of the downward spiral, but you're unlikely to appreciate the irony when you're in the whirlpool.) Then somebody writes you something: a note, a comment, a review that says, "Good job!" And presto, change-o, you're out of the spiral and flying high. Just gotta be careful not to fly too high. Don't want those wings melting.
So thanks, Psychmum. Appreciate it :-)
Link to review. :-)
Stalking Shadows Begins
The fact that I'm still not sure about the title to this project should indicate how very much it is still in the air. Half the time, I call it Shadow Stalking and the other half, Stalking Shadows. It's not that one moment I like one better than the other, it's because they seem interchangeable to me, and I keep forgetting that I've settled on the latter.
I have not worked on the sequel as diligently as I should have. I have maybe four chapters written at this point. I'm not even to the halfway mark. I'm not sure what is going to happen, but chapter one is going to post at midnight in a little while, and SS will be begun. Starting a new story on New Year's Day feels really good to me. It's how I should begin the year. Hopefully, I'll be able to keep up with my writing and not take any of those dreaded hiatuses, but I probably will be taking one in a month or two. I apologize now because I'll probably be too worn out to do so when it happens. Hopefully I'll be aware enough to post a hiatus message.
I hope readers enjoy Stalking Shadows. So far it's been pretty fun to write.
