New Bloggy Update 6/19/22

Summer.

Not my favorite time of year. It’s hot. It’s buggy. There’s spiders around most corners. But, there are things I like about the season. The flowers, the butterflies, not having to wear layer upon layer of clothing.

My favorite season is fall. What about you?

On the “second half” of my writing hiatus – I’ll be starting draft #3 of Sanctum in sometime around the middle of July. I’ll have been away from it for a number of weeks, which, in my case, will help bring new eyeballs to the manuscript. I’m not in a hurry to finish, but I want to stay on track and that means committing segments of time (large segments of time) to working on it.

As for events, the next one in the queue is the Dark History and Horror Convention (Champaign, Illinois) on Saturday, August 20. It’s actually a two-day event, but I only plan on being there for one day. It runs from 11am to 7pm, so, yeah, it’s a long one. I was there once before (last year – 2021), and did fairly well. I think I’ve mentioned this before, but MY books probably fall on the “tamer” side of things when it comes to this convention. LOL. LOTS of cool things/vendors/programs/guests, though. All the info will be in the Events Section of the blog.

I’m debating on whether to do the Haunted Flea in Wheaton this year. I’ve done it twice before and had a pretty darn good showing. But it’s a looooong day (3pm to midnight). I know, I’m just crabbing about it, but I’m still up in the air about doing it.

I’m also thinking about a NEW SEGMENT/SECTION of the blog – a guest corner, if you will. I’m thinking of inviting authors to do something of an “All Business” take. Basically, I’d be asking someone (different folks – anyone who is interested – anyone who would like to share) to write a short column on SOMETHING about the writing biz (how they come up with ideas, how they market their work, why they chose this kind of publishing over that, etc.). Thinking this could be a monthly thing. Again, just brainstorming “out loud”. I want to give writers a chance to share their experiences/advice, but I’m trying to come up with a different angle so it’s not a “re-hash” of what’s been done before. Stay tuned.

And as far as what we’ve been watching?

Creepshow 2 (80s) – Meh. I kind of knew this going in, but honestly, I was bored. I found that I could scroll on my phone and not really miss a thing. For me, that’s a sign of a “bad” movie/show. I’d NEVER think about looking away for a second during Breaking Bad or Better Call Saul. I know it’s old, but that doesn’t mean it has to be bad. This was bad. Predictable. Boring. Not as clever as the first one. I’d give this a definite pass.

Marriage Story (2019) – Pretty good film, but here again, I wasn’t blown away. I had read reviews from others that it “hit deeply” and “provoked all kinds of emotion”. I understand, but, as someone who has lived through TWO divorces, I didn’t feel any connection to the characters, nor believed their “fights”. It felt like watching two good actors do various scenes on a stage. I wasn’t pulled in. I didn’t think they conveyed true emotions. Maybe I’m too stoic, but it left me rather dry.

A Few Good Men (1992) – I finally watched this! LOL. It was a solid movie…BUT… here was Tom Cruise again, chewing the scenery. I know that’s what he does best, but it felt a little dated to me. I’m not one to judge older movies with today’s “standards”, but I don’t think they needed to add the “love story/attraction” to this tale. I would recommend this, but leave the current culture standards behind when viewing. There’s quite a bit of misogyny here.

No Escape (1994) – RIP Ray Liotta. Charlie wanted to re-watch this one. I had never seen it and now I know why. It’s an eye-rolling romp that’s part Papillon, part Rambo, part Welcome to Woop-Woop (wacky Australian movie), but executed much worse. I gave it a passing grade (4 out of 10), but that was just for effort. You’ve been warned. (lol)

Okay – keep cool. Stay away from all things multi-legged (well, more than 4…) 🙂

Sue