Author Journey (December 5, 2022)
Seven days, seven real-life family events. Coincidence? Probably not, but I can’t help but start to get suspicious. Anyhow, I like to think I made the most of the time I did have. The holidays are coming!
December 5, 2022
Hot Topic
I mentioned a couple of weeks back that I had started to listen to the audiobook of Fifty Shades of Grey while walking my dog. Well, this week after getting through five and a half hours, I am calling it a day. This is not a good read. It was clunky and awkward. There were some truly cringeworthy lines of dialogue – “Do you like cheese, Anna” for example. However, I was coping with that because it was making me laugh. The deal breaker for me was the sex scene. Now, before you say anything, it’s not that I don’t enjoy a good sex scene. I do. This, however, was not a good sex scene. It was lifeless and dull.
The fact that I dropped it probably isn’t overly surprising, dropping The Living Dead by George Romero was. This was the final book George was working on when he sadly passed away. I was almost seventeen hours into this book when I decided to have a break. Now, I have sat through some of the most low-budget, ridiculous zombie movies ever. I love zombies and can’t get enough. However, this book was more like six zombie stories that had been cut up and bundled together. So, rather than trying to follow one group of survivors, it was six and there was very little overlap. It was very slow and I just got bored. Maybe, I’ll pick it up again sometime, but for now, I’m done.
What have I been watching/reading?
I didn’t watch any anime this week as I focused all of the time that I could find on working through the pile of manga I have from the library. Last Monday, I said I had twenty-four days to read eighteen books. Well, I managed to get through eight in seven days so that takes me ahead of things. It’s entirely possible that I could get through the remaining ten this week. It’ll be a push, but I’d love to grab some time back for other things.
Work in Progress
So, yeah. No writing again this week. I did manage to put together some more sketches and I’m excited to be able to share them… once they’re a little more ready. At the moment, they’re very raw and messy. I know the poses, but I have some things to work out regarding arm placements and faces. I’ll probably end up trying a number of different things, which is yet another reason for me to get on with learning more about digital drawing. That way, I can cut and replace different aspects. Anyhow, until then, it’s just me, a pad of paper, and a pencil.
Since I dropped those two audiobooks, I’ve started listening to podcasts again and am feeling very inspired to get my writing projects off the ground. I’d like to think things are starting to come together with my other plans so I’ll bring writing back in and push on. If I can just get one session a day in, I’ll be off to a good start.
The Plan
Read ten books in seventeen days. That’s the goal. Everything else is on hold until I’ve done that. Once I’ve accomplished that, I’ll have eighty-one manga reviews ready for the New Year. Of course, I’ll be posting four a week so that’s about twenty weeks’ worth. Then, I’ll slow down and read four a week going forward, maintaining the buffer. I already have a quarter’s worth of anime posts scheduled, so 2023 is going to be off to a great start.
Posts
- 2022 (Full Year)
- Author Journey – 49/52 (+1)
- Review Posts – 247/247
- Review Pages – 131/131
- Inktober – 5/5
- Specials – 1/2 (+1)
- 2023 (Quarter One)
- Author Journey – 0/13
- 08:00 Posts – 69/78
- 14:00 Posts – 47/52 (+1)
- 20:00 Posts – 39/39
- 2023 (Quarter Two)
- Author Journey – 0/13
- 08:00 Posts – 16/78
- 14:00 Posts – 24/52 (+7)
- 20:00 Posts – 3/39
- 2023 (Quarter Three)
- Author Journey – 0/13
- 08:00 Posts – 0/78
- 14:00 Posts – 2/52 (+1)
- 20:00 Posts – 0/39
I have four posts left to write for 2022 and three of those are weekly updates. That’s right, there are only three and a bit weeks left! This year has flown by…
Writing
- Out of Time (Time-travel Murder Mystery)
- Chapters – 7
- Words – 7,423
- RIP Tide (Zombie Novella)
- Chapters – 17
- Words – 18,261
- Swap Isekai (Isekai)
- Chapters – 9
- Words – 10,146
- The Beach (Ecchi)
- Chapters – 35
- Words – 40,861
No progress again and I’ve cut this section down to just show active projects. My goal has got to be to finish these before starting anything else. Well, that’s the plan anyhow…
Final Thoughts
On paper, this week should be less stressful that the ones before it. That might give me the chance to finish off my manga reviews so that I can enjoy the holidays without worrying about whether I have any library books to return. As soon as the holidays are over, I’ll be placing some more holds, but that’s going to be like going to the sales. Saying that, I definitely need to stop myself from buying any more books until I’ve read the ones I have. I don’t think I’ll be starting any new series, so I can focus on keeping up with the ongoing ones I am collecting.
I’m ready for whatever this week throws at me. At least, I hope so! Stay safe and thanks for reading.
Last Week’s Posts
- Monday
- Tuesday
- Wednesday
- Thursday
- Friday
- Saturday
- Sunday
Seven Real Life Family Events? Wow. I hope your family’s okay! Real life sometimes makes it tough to get into a rhythm, doesn’t it?
Yeah, everyone’s fine, but it’s not for want of trying. Had a good day today so far, so might be coming to a calm patch.