CM Simpson: Writer & Gamer

So, I’ve been doing a bit of reading to get a better idea of what the term ‘steampunk’ encompasses. I have two that I really enjoyed: God Save the Queen by Kate Locke To be honest, I thought this was going to be one of those clichéd vampire-werewolf-zombie-virus things. It was not. God Save the Queen was one of the most entertaining reads I’ve had in a long while. The world-building and history-bending was well done, and the characters believable, in spite of their origins. The use of underground movements, political machinations and the genetic stratification of society made for an interesting interpretation of a Victorian England that had survived past what our world recognizes as the Victorian era. The steampunk element was present, but more a part of the background than a main feature, which allowed the intrigue and the characters take center stage. I liked the way goblins were explained and treated and the way this complemented an underlying theme of the commonality of ...

Some progress was made this week, but not as much as I’d like.   Current Projects The following progress was made on the current projects: DarkFantasyNovel1A— Shadow’s Rise : Final edit on first 8 chapters complete. Backburner Project I took a look at some of my backburner projects this week as part of planning next year’s publishing schedule: RPGAdventure12 plot advanced for arc. Publishing Tasks Began development of 2013 release schedule and work load. Craft Tasks Background reading for steampunk genre. New Arrivals The following ideas arrived this week: RPGAdventure12: pre-existing setting. RPGSupplement6A: beasts with a theme. RPGSupplement7A: more bugs. RPGSupplement8A: some classes RPGAdventure13: paranormal urban adventure centring around a morning walk. The following titles are being considered as part of next year’s publishing program. They already existed, at least in draft, but had not been assigned a reference n...

So, I spent most of last week, sourcing photographs for the concepts I wanted on the covers for my first dark fantasy trilogy and then composing the covers. I finished them Saturday night. Here they are: Book 1: Shadow's Rise EBook format                                                       AND                                 print format Book 2: Shadow Trap EBook format                                                    AND            ...

Progress for the second week of December was good. Current Projects DarkFantasy1A: Revised Ch. 27-30; added 10,000 words. Completed at 86,000 words. Revised twice. Covers for print and e-versions created and formatted. Backburner Projects Nil, this week. I have been good, and focussed. Publishing Tasks Updated this blog thrice. Revised cover art for Eleanor Maine’s erotic time-travel romance, Hunters of the Nile . Cover is now more indicative of genre. See the post on the C.M. Simpson Publishing blog . Updated C.M. Simpson Publishing blog with two entries. Sourced photography for DarkFantasy1A-C covers. Designed covers for DarkFantasy1A-C . Created covers for DarkFantasy1A-C . Updated my blog and publishing blog pages with links to sale sites. Enrolled in Kobo Writing Life and began uploading titles. Uploaded DarkFantasy1A—Shadow’s Rise small print version to CreateSpace for final check. Craft Tasks Nil, this week, unless you count editing and...

Today, I got into a bit more cover design . Actually, I've spent all week doing cover design for my dark fantasy trilogy, and edits for DarkFantasyNovel1A. Today, I completed the cover design and second edit for DarkFantasy 1A and uploaded the first print version to CreateSpace, where it is being processed prior to one final edit and then release. The large print and e-book releases will shortly follow , and probably be out early next week... and then I'll complete the cover for, and start edits on, DarkFantasy1B. In the meantime, let me share the cover joy for DarkFantasy1A- Shadow's Rise : EBook Cover                                                AND                       Print Cover My other cover update is for Hunters of the Nile , Eleanor Maine's erotic timetravel romance se...

Are you ready? Here they are. Enjoy. Craft Chuck Wendig on a different way of thinking of, and representing, characters in story: http://terribleminds.com/ramble/2012/12/03/in-which-my-toddler-helps-me-think-of-character-in-a-new-way/ Katharine Britton on the line between fiction and non-fiction: http://authorsoundrelations.blogspot.com.au/2012/12/katharine-britton-buttercup-principle.html  Publishing Dean Wesley Smith on the six routes to publishing and why there is no ‘right’ way any more: http://www.deanwesleysmith.com/?p=8272 Alex Mutter on a new mobile independent publishing platform launching in Russia: http://publishingperspectives.com/2012/12/mobile-self-publishing-platform-xinxii-launches-in-russia/ Andrii Degeler on self-publishing platform launched in Russia: http://thenextweb.com/2012/12/04/self-publishing-platform-xinxii-enters-russian-market/  Fodder Paul Sawers on John McAfee in Guatemala: http://thenextweb.com/insider/2012/12/04/john-...

So, yesterday was the first day of December, but because it falls on a Saturday, it counts as the end of the first week of December—there’s logic in there somewhere; I’m sure I’ll see it someday. Anyway, I got no writing done at all for four days this week. Progress was still made, but this reduction in writing time is looking like it could become permanent. I guess it’s okay, though. Progress will still be made, and projects will still be finished, just not as quickly as I’d like. Life goes on. Current Projects DarkFantasy1A: Revised Ch.21-26; added 18,000 words. I am now 2,000 words ahead of where I was at this point in the original novel—and that is with the large bleeding chunks I’ve torn completely out of it. The good news is that I’m have just on 11,000 words to revise and should have this draft completed this weekend, meaning I can get started on the editing, with a view to cover design and upload within the next fortnight. Yay. The bad news is that I now have 29 days...