I Can't Draw Either, 2016 - Day 2

"I Can't Draw Either" continues!

You've played with Hot Wheels.

You've eaten potatoes.

But have you experienced "Hot Potato Wheels"?

...

Didn't think so. You're welcome.

I Can't Draw Either - 2016 - Day 1

It's January -- time for another marathon of "I CAN'T DRAW EITHER!".

For those of you new to my blog, this was my attempt last year to illustrate one simple picture a day to inspire students past and present who're convinced they can't draw to give it a try anyway. "I Can't Draw Either", but I do it anyway and have a whole lot of fun with it (see how the title works?). Click here to see my artwork from last year.

It was amusing to quite a few readers, and I kept it up for a good twelve days before the bad news about Egmont came through. I didn't feel much like drawing after that.

But I'm back in a great new year -- 2016 -- the year I debut. I'm set to try it again and see how long I can keep it up.

Today I have a drawing of my smelly feet. They're not really my feet, though. They look nothing like this. Just thought I'd clarify.

I AM DRUMS preorder links!

Hey you! Yes, you -- the one wasting time on the internet when you're supposed to be working on homework or finishing that report for your boss!

Look to the right of this post. Do you see it? Yes, the preorder links for I AM DRUMS! The CORRECT preorder links to the CORRECT edition from Clarion Books!

Yes, that's right! You can preorder your copy now from any of those outlets, and more are on the way. See the official video announcement below! Keep your eye on this page for more in the coming weeks.

A Theory on George Lucas as an Artistic Prisoner (AKA Writing Lessons Learned From The Force Awakens)

I don't know how good stories work.

I could rattle off random tidbits pulled out of a hat, but half of them, at best, would be conditionally true, and null in alternate circumstances.

The truth is that the only way to know if a story works is to experience it. If you enjoy the experience, it's good. If not, it's either for someone else or destined to stay in someone's desk until an estate sale long after they're gone.

That's what I was thinking after seeing Star Wars: The Force Awakens earlier today. The movie works so well that it's restoring the faith of millions in a franchise that has long been a running joke among its most devout fans.

Tone, action, dialogue, acting, set pieces, story. Any aspect of film you can name, this movie does it better than the prequel trilogy. But as for specifics on how J.J. Abrams has handled George Lucas's universe better than the master himself, you would be hard pressed to identify how. Narratives tend to have their own personalities, and respecting what they require in order to be successful and complete is mystifying even to the greatest of writers.

I personally think the hardest job of a writer is identifying a good story while in the drafting process. How do you know you're going in the right direction? If we're always making decisions, how do you spot when you've made a bad one before it's too late? If you're on the right track, how do you convince yourself of this so you don't throw in the towel?

I've come to believe there is only one truth about good writing: when it's good, you can FEEL IT.

I know. I sound like I'm using The Force to craft fiction. But that's kind of what it's like. Watching The Force Awakens, I could sense the presence of a cog missing from the prequel trilogy the moment the opening crawl floated across the screen. An intensity in the dialogue. A feeling of dread within the story's conflict. A sense that the actors really were who they were playing. Making that happen comes down to so much more than the order of twenty-six letters and an assortment of spaces and punctuation. You have to view the work in its entirety, and cut, edit, and paste together a holistic something that is bigger than its parts.

How do you know when you've accomplished that? You don't. You just let go and hope the end result is good enough. Sometimes it is, and sometimes it's not.

That leads me to my theory -- I think George Lucas has long been an artistic prisoner. I think he has always loved and hated the masterpiece that made him rich and famous. It's been a lucrative monster that has destroyed any and all dreams he might have achieved in an alternate life.

Making the prequels was his attempt to accept his fate as the tortured leader of one story that usurped every other script he'd written. He was forever fated to explore this world, and because it was his, he didn't want anyone else to ever put their hands on it, even when it had become clear his heart was no longer there. I don't think it was his fault, necessarily. I have an agent and editor who have given me guidance in my writing career, but no one had the power to tell Lucas his hold on the story was gone, save for a raging army of fans whom Lucas had come to loathe. I suspect that if I had written Star Wars I would have burned out managing the subsequent explosion, too.

Then, in his own words, Lucas had his "divorce" with Star Wars when he sold it to Disney. I'm sure it's both frustrating and a relief to see it in the hands of someone else, but it was the right choice. He arguably should have made it sooner.

Meanwhile, after years of having sworn off this series, I'm excited about Star Wars again.

Something's Missing, and That's a Good Thing!

Have you noticed something missing?

It's the Egmont cover for I AM DRUMS. And as beautiful as it was, it's gone for a good reason.

The new cover has been finalized by Clarion Books, and it's so... freaking... awesome! I can't wait to share it, but I HAVE to because I'm setting up a cover reveal with a middle grade blog and I don't want to spoil it.

Get excited, book friends. More to share soon!

Why I Don't Have A "Man Cave"

1) I don't really watch sports.

2) My wife wants to play video games, too.

3) I forgot the third reason.

Time for Nanowrimo!

I went back and forth on this for a while, but I finally decided to jump into Nanowrimo for the second year in a row.

Why the hesitation? It's honestly because it doesn't fit my work ethic. I'm propelled by the desire to write regularly and hold a finished project in my hand. Word counts? Not so much. I do enjoy keeping track of them, but 50k as a goal doesn't work for an author whose word counts are dictated by the moment the story feels over. Middle grade books tend to have with fewer, meticulously voiced and designed word counts.

But I'm jumping in again for one reason, and it's not to win. This school year (and my recent move) has been a certifiable writing killer. I've been managing a million moving parts while allowing writing to become the moving piece that gets shafted.

That's not cool, dude.

So I'm Nanowrimo-ing this year to jump start my writing again. Not writing stinks worse than a wet sock sitting out in the sun with a dead carp in it.

So far I have 1,700 words for a book tentatively titled THE HONESTY PLEDGE.

Have you jumped in, too? Be my writing buddy by clicking here.