Alrighty, hopefully you guys have been enjoying our construction updates on 2022 and 2023. We've been pushing out content and doing some serious investigative work and I just couldn't thank you guys enough. Those videos have just been doing so well every day. All the videos we've been uploading have been doing a lot better than I even anticipated so just wanted to take a quick second to say honestly thank you, thank you to anyone that has come up to me and Craig at the park and said hi or to like thank us for our content. It really means the world. You wouldn't even understand. It's just truly amazing to receive any ounce of praise or even feedback at all. Even if it's not the best feedback, if you got feedback please don't hesitate to give it to me. If you have ideas too, people are commenting ideas and I am using them, okay? So anything you want or anything you want or need or feedback wise, just comment and I am listening. I promise I am reading every single comment. That's new for me too. Normally I'm so depressed I just like hide away. I am reading everything. I am trying to respond to everything but yeah. Let's get to the video. This isn't what the video is about. Oh my God, a minute in and I haven't even talked about anything Wonderland. With that being said, we all know that stage three is starting July 16th. What does that mean for Wonderland? Well, that means Wonderland can technically open at 75% capacity. What could that look like? Well, if they still have seating restrictions on their roller coasters and I'm hoping they don't, I have messaged the park seeking an answer on that and we'll wait to see if they have any information on the seating of rides but we do know that the park will be opening at 50 to 75% capacity and if I know a business they're gonna open to what they're allowed to open necessarily do I think they're gonna get up to 75% capacity based off of what I've seen maybe on weekends and Splashworks yes but I don't think on weekdays we're gonna see them actually be able to get 75% capacity they haven't even been able to hit 25% capacity on some weekdays. So with that being said, book weekdays avoid weekends. That's my advice to you. What could that look like? Well, we know that all the indoor restaurants should be opening. We know that some of the other attractions may open as well. I do want to let people know that there obviously is a staffing issue like there is everywhere in Ontario and everywhere in the United States. So things might not open due to staffing issues. So if you're at the park and you're wondering why a restaurant is an opening or a drink stall is an open or all the rides aren't open. It's just because of the after COVID groans of hiring and again they only had 30 days to prep and they had to do a hiring fair and training in 30 days blah blah blah I've already said this in a previous video. That is why the park isn't necessarily fully staffed which 100% makes sense. So again just be patient maybe avoid Wonderland if you're not patient enough to wait in lines or buy Fastlane that will help you significantly by the way this isn't a paid sponsorship but Fastlane at Canada's Wonderland is an amazing deal and we are hearing again I will not confirm because I will not put my 100% certainty behind it but if you have a 2021 season pass and you buy an add-on to that current pass that was purchased before this year any of your add-ons and your pass are good until Labor Day next year. So if you buy Fastlane, meal plan, drink plan, parking it's good until next year Labor Day. I would confirm with the park again do not take this as certainty do not make your decision based off of what I just said ask guest services or ask someone from the park to get that clarification for yourself. Whew nonetheless what could that look like? Well the lines are already pretty full at 25% capacity on some days like Leviathan, Yukon Striker isn't necessarily full queue yet but at 75% capacity with social distancing in the queue line it's going to look like a nightmare. Being full honest not trying to be negative or anything it's going to look really bad. So again avoid weekends. That's why I'm hoping that Wonderland being an outdoor attraction and most restrictions being lifted on outdoor activities social distancing will disappear on the rides and I think that they'll still be forced to clean but based off of what we saw in the states we could see social distancing on the rides actually disappear and cleaning of the rides could disappear as well. The vaccination rates in Ontario are significantly high and we shouldn't see any consequences from being outdoor in summer with COVID. I'm not a scientist I'm just going off of what we've heard and what we've seen so yeah I mean that's all I have to say about that. There isn't too much to talk about what it's going to look like. I think anyone that has seen the park in the last week can predict what it's going to look like it's obviously going to be busier. You're going to want to keep your masks on on the midway. I'm sure that Wonderland will actually probably change their mask policy. I'm not quite sure what the guidelines fully are for stage three outdoor activities but I can assume that the average person is going to want to wear your mask on the midways because it's going to be a little busier and the real like what we all really want to know is will social distancing still exist on the rides and if it does what rides and what not rides will have social distancing that's the big question and my honest hopeful opinion is that social distancing will disappear on rides. Maybe they'll be able to fill all the rows but they won't mix families or groups. That's what I'm kind of hoping for. So all the rows will be open but no mixing and matching different groups or different families. Indoor dining will open I believe at 25% or 50% capacity. I don't know the exact percentages but some of those indoor restaurants. I'm really looking forward to try some of that Middle Eastern food from Backlot so I'm hoping they open. I've seen the lights on. I've seen the lights on in Marketplace as well so I'm really hoping there's some sort of ability to open in there. I would love to be able to escape some of these heat dome days. But yeah, I'm definitely excited. Wonder Mountains Guardian is ready by the way so we could see it open but again there are some staffing issues just like everywhere in Ontario in North America this isn't Canada's Wonderland or a problem to Canada's Wonderland everywhere is having staffing issues. So that could mean that all the rides aren't open yet. I'm trying to think if there's anything else that I could possibly predict. Again if I'm going to give you advice if you're going to go on these days starting July 16th or if you're going on a weekend bring an empty water bottle for the water fountains they are turned into water bottle refill stations by Fastlane if you're able to totally understand if you're not able to if you're not able to be prepared to wait they are still in their first week they're learning they're making mistakes and that's okay we all do it anyone who is angry at a worker in their first week at Wonderland for being slow or making mistakes clearly has never worked in retail and hasn't understood that your first week or your first two weeks at your new job you've struggled shouldn't be visiting the park anyone who's complaining about anything take a deep breath trust me I totally get being frustrated we've all been in those situations where we've been somewhat hypocritical ourselves and lashed out or maybe been a little more upset than we should be I totally get that but be patient bring an empty water bottle wear sunscreen be in a group of friends so you have some sort of ability to socialize and if you don't bring bring your phone for YouTube and thing and just enjoy the day like don't go when expecting that you're gonna get on all the rides you're not if you don't have Fastlane go in expecting to do a couple of your favorites plan out your day pick a few rides that you want to do and make some other reservations you can have up to two reservations you can really have up to four but you have up to two reservations and once you get into the park you can already make your second reservation again so you know pick dates stay stay to with stick to weekdays bring your water bottle wear sunscreen go with friends and be patient that's literally the best advice I could give you if you are one of those people that are impatient like all those people in TikTok that just need to shut up then don't go to the park that's my honest advice this is the park right now is for people that are really looking for something to do after being locked away for over a year and I just thoroughly enjoy the ability to even just walk around again best advice most of us own phones practice some photography it's a really fun hobby to pick up I know nothing about photography and today I was literally just standing on Timber Wolf Bridge trying to take photos of vortex and you should see all the horrible photos I took but I sat there and I practice I got advice from friends they taught me how to end up taking these six shots so you know use your phone practice some photography like and go from there it's a really fun hobby to learn and pass some time with like as you're standing in line there's all these unique angles you can take photos of even if you don't have the best camera it's still somewhere to start and it's still the ability to learn but yeah anyways thanks so much for listening to this if you're still here you're a real MVP because we are literally nine minutes in and I just blabbered by the way if you really like our channel I suggest you follow us on amusement insiders plural on Instagram we're posting a lot of our photography that Craig and I had been practicing with and trying to get better with so it would be really awesome if you guys could go support us over on Instagram with our photos and all that thanks so much hope you guys have an amazing Saturday night and Sunday remainder of your weekend and thanks so much for always supporting the channel and watching our bids have a good one guys bye


Welcome to church of the chair where we celebrate all the things we do while seated I'm your hostie here today with my co-host Chad Lutzky and we are working on a collaborative novel tentatively entitled planet caravan I believe we're just gonna I think we're just gonna call it planet caravan at this point, right?  But yeah, never know I don't know but I I'm starting I've been referring to it in my head as planet caravan. So Hopefully it doesn't become one of those things where we end up changing and in every every place we talk about it It's gonna be like yeah planet care. Oh, nope. That's not what the title of it I Did that with Bay's end for the longest time because it was initially called the end and then summer's end And then I finally settled on Bay's end the title of town because both of those other titles The editor thought the end was boring Just too commonplace, which I mean the stand the shining, you know, anyways, but and then summer's end There were so many books called summers and probably and I still regret Naming the town what I named it because everybody thinks it's a fucking error so much so For those of you watching you might find this funny Chad already knows this. Good morning, Boggle. Good morning as well So The original first line after the intro, you know, I'm I'm living with ghosts There's that the first thing Eddie Tramont said to me The day I met him was also the last thing he said or something like that and you mentioned that should have been the first line It was the first line. Good morning Tim but so many people mentioned in either their reviews or This was back when I still googled myself. I would come across people going. I don't think the I think the title is the typo And it wasn't like if you actually read the book you get to it but so many people assumed right off the bat that I had made a mistake that they weren't going to buy it because the author didn't know possessive versus, you know, non-possessive Essies and so I went back and I put that first paragraph there and nothing hurts me more than having that paragraph there but and it's it's also the first and last time I've ever but not kowtow, but I'd like Kater yeah, that I've given in to to Outside elements people that I didn't even know but I'm always more concerned with the thoughts and feelings of people I don't know that I am and that's part of my narcissism But I'm always more concerned with the strangers than I am the people that you know, I know You know, what not it's just like I'm also harder on my friends when I'm reading their books because I think They're not doing the right thing and I care about them.  Well, I I did Nowadays I don't give negative reviews at all. I'm just I just forget about the book. Hey. Hey, century. How you doing? but uh Yeah, it's the But yeah, the the the whole type the whole assumed typo thing drives me absolutely nuts like no one will give No, I won't say no one but there are people who love the book who sent me a message saying I'm surprised the book was so well I got three of these emails I'm I was surprised the book was so well written because you have a typo in the title and this is before I changed that first paragraph And I'm like, it's it's not a it's literally in the book The town is named after Francis Bay and Francis Bay that the town literally killed him And but it also took me four books to tell his story. So it wasn't until I don't understand I don't understand why they would jump to that conclusion. It's not like Bay's and is a is a Like nobody has heard it's not like a common thing like you're saying San Francisco or true But it is a place.   So Lauren was always about pushing boundaries always about upsetting people Always that that was the whole experiment and it worked Unfortunately, and we were talking on discord about how many subs have been dropping off on the channel and A couple people even brought it up. It's like, you know, there's two well Derek said there's two things that sell sex and controversy And I know I know that logically that's why I started the Edward Lauren name to put all the stuff that no publisher would touch with the 10-foot pole and Now that I'm no longer doing rage reviews I'm no longer, you know doing takedowns like I did with nocturnal readers box and Shane Staley and dark views and all that stuff now that the drama has disappeared. I'm losing followers And also I'm not engaging with you know with dipshits online anymore either if someone comes in and starts acting a fool I just ignore them and the mods have been, you know The the mods have been told if someone does come in acting that way just get rid of them I don't don't engage with them. I've even gone to the point where I've said, you know, don't even say hello to them until I engage with them and It's been working in fact last night someone came in to my game stream and I thought a hundred percent This is a troll Because I didn't know that the game stream Broadcasted also on PlayStation Network like on you could watch it on a PlayStation You just show it down down in their little bar And it also broadcast to to YouTube so he popped into the YouTube and he's like I saw you on PlayStation Thought I'd hop over and you know and then finally with me him and Derek played for like two hours But I kind of let it let it stew for a while before I engaged with him Because he came in and just started like not spamming chat But he's one of those people who like type one sentence and then don't like don't wait for the thought to finish in their head And then type another one my friend Nettles is like that too like you Stream I don't I don't mind it because I used to be the same way I don't like it if it's like on my phone. So it's like bootily bootily bootily bootily. I understand it I understand But uh, yeah, and you know that right when I see a a string of You know comments from one person I kind of shut down. I'm like They're obviously trying to spam or get attention or whatever. So I was ignoring him at first And then I just happened to he wasn't quitting. So I happened to look over.  So I engaged. Hey, hey snake. How you doing? and uh, but uh that that happens so rarely that I get new people in you know that That you know actually want to be here Uh and not just people, you know trying to troll or whatever do spam bots Um, but I am so much what I mean is I'm so much happier now So I'm not going to go back to the old stuff just because I'm happier. Um, and things are working out My monetary issues are working out themselves. So I don't have to worry about the income stream coming into youtube anymore But also I've gotten addicted to this daily content. Like it's become a challenge to me a game So I'm like, how long can I keep this up? I'm almost to video 100. Um, I have two more to upload and I will be, uh 100 videos Uh consecutive Which I'm insanely proud of because I can't do anything. I can't do a hundred of anything It's other than words. I mean, let me take that back other than words Uh, anyways, let's I guess I unless there's something else you want to talk about Uh, no, I got till I on my cutoff time is uh, noon No, I got till noon, but um And I did uh, I wrote last night. I wrote this morning um And I did want to run by you Uh, depending on how today goes I'm wondering if Because I don't want you to get too far ahead and that's why I've been, you know writing off camera um, I think I've got 3000 some words highlighted Okay, um, so, you know some revised some written and I've and I've just this morning started the uh, just barely started the Shana thing or the taking off and Going to the fair um What's it gonna say? Oh, I also had suggestions for they're just suggestions for different Chapter titles for a couple of the for the last two chapters that I just did and uh What was the other thing I was gonna say? Uh, man, I can't remember um shoot It's all right. It happens to me constantly. I'm surprised it doesn't happen to me more when I'm talking to you Because it seems like everything you say like you'll have a a brick of A brick of conversation and everything you say I have a response to and I have to force myself to be quiet Sometimes I can sometimes I literally I'm like hang on. Let me let me let me throw this thing But you it's like everything you say it's like I have something for that, you know I either have a response or whatever it might be something to have cut off time and oh my suggestion or my uh Depending on how date today goes how much I get done because I'm not going to be revising I'm going to be writing which is going to go even slower probably Maybe I don't know yeah Depends on when if I hit that dialogue once I hit that dialogue it'll probably be different but um Of potentially taking Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday off Thursday to allow You do whatever you want to do and I can Fully catch up. So we're back into like a linear um Progression with you know like by that time and like I said depending on how What what's if I can manage to get this whole scene done were um Yeah, because I know you've been writing scenes ahead and I don't want to If we find out that we're Kind of like I don't know in a different direction and then we have to scrap that scene. I don't want that to happen so um But yeah, I just don't want a lot of wasted writing Not that there has been so far. There hasn't been so far. Let me let me let me try and Put a bomb on that wound or not even a wound, but let me let me try and whatever.  I'm not done with it yet I'm planning on finishing it today Um, and then I was gonna go back and you know kind of help you build instead of and so we're on the same We're still on the same page here as far as mentally because I am getting too far ahead and But what I'm getting at is if you get to the venus section and you decide I don't want any of this whether it be to crass too crude Or it's just something that we can't use for plot or whatever Then fine, um, just let me know and I will copy and paste that over into my cannibal file because I'm going to use that um I know there's But you you go you go just as crude and crass as I do It's like some things I've I've read in just broad street bastard Um, so I don't think that's going to be an issue But if it but also like I was talking about with the carnival chat the carnival section a lot of that um, I I like the idea of us kind of Not Following each other like just have these little sporadic scenes these little slices that have nothing to do with the plot Maybe they're thematically they they fall in thematically Um, like like this character, you know that gets into confrontations Just because she loves getting in fights and she wants to do without going to jail But if you get to that and it's uh 1500 words or however long it is or if it's 5000 words and it doesn't work Just tell me we'll throw it. I'll throw it into my cannibal file You don't have to worry about me overworking myself because I'm going to overwork myself anyway um The my rough drafts when the writers talk about rewriting when they're actually talking about editing Me I literally rewrite books. Um south of here Nothing like south of here when it first came out south of here read when when I when I first wrote it it read more like uh Just like the pros from everything is horrible now very basic, you know, whatever I literally went in and cut half of everything Uh chopped it chopped down um and made every single line matter, uh, and I I just can't express enough how it's not going to bother me Don't worry about cutting anything. Don't worry about just give me a heads up Like like you said with the other thing with the uh eagle and the snake Just like I don't like any of this. That's fine We'll move it over there because I want both of us to be happy and I'm going to be happy no matter what But whether you you delete everything or not I'm going to be happy with it because I'm still involved in the story and uh, I am a storyteller not a writer Uh, that's how I I've always I've always really thought of myself that way So it's not about the words or the mechanics for me It's about the story that I'm telling as long as the story is something that I want to be working on I'm going to continue working on the story and then I'm going to choose the style for the story After I'm done the difference here is you're already doing that So you're saving me all the back end work. Um, because I've gone back. I've read everything you've done I might have changed like one or two words here and there but other than that Yeah, I'm the easiest person to work with in this regard because I don't really have darlings As much as I have scenes that I like Or stories like the eagle and the snake little stories that I like that may not fit here But I'm going to write them anyways.  I I did I I didn't I haven't thought about anything you've cut Other than today when we started talking and I'm thinking about the stuff that you have changed or cut and I'm like, yeah, it's fine. So But we do need to slow down because I want you to be able to do more If not we're gonna and I'm gonna end up with a whole novel sitting over in my cannibal file Yeah, so But that's fine. It's easy. It's easier work. That's what the cannibal file is for it's uh, it's to feed other work. So Um, but I do I really really love this venus section Um, and it's it has the the themes of sounds again And uh, just character development with what you know, this this person is and just filling out night I I really like the idea of each one like in between these weird chapters We come back to the plot So it it would be there'd be connective tissue that would all serve to feed the ending And the ending of course serves the beginning which is the idea of being trapped versus being free, you know, that that whole thing um, that circular narrative and the his his obsession with sounds and this I I really wish you you read the venus stuff because And that's another thing if anything my egos get in the way because I'm like, dude I want you to read my shit. Yeah I really enjoy this even if you hate it. I want you I want someone else to read it But this is one of the get that Yeah, this is one of those books that Even though we're sharing it Like this is one of those books that I would normally have to fight the urge to share with people Uh, because I tell everybody do not share anything unfinished period There's I have multiple reasons for that but don't share any unfinished thing with any anybody Especially not if you're feeling Like it's going to the wrong place because you're gonna end up writing the book. They want not the book you want but um With this one, I'm so excited about it that, you know, I've been like, can I should I send it to shell?   It's about the story So all right well for the viewers we are now at just over 19,000 words So, uh, which is probably Uh, maybe projecting here, but uh over a fourth of What we're hoping for yeah, um I will say this because it's insane how accurate I am But if you'll remember and anybody wants to go back and clock me on this I literally said That the first 20k was going to be him getting to the carnival But so it wouldn't be getting there until the end Well, of course, it was like 1500 words that happens later on But we're very very close like as soon as I uh as soon as I have an idea or whatever I usually know how long it's going to be within a give or take 5000 Works and it's a insane talent of mine. I'm proud of something that I don't even try at but it's it's like I know exactly how long this story is going to be and the only time I've been wrong Is the project that I'm currently working on that I've been working on since december of 2021 uh, that Was supposed to be a 400,000 page the 400,000 word novel is now 902,000 words Uh, so yeah, I'm approaching a million words and I got a little bit left uh Now I got to work on how to fuck to sell it because nobody wants big books My my game plan just to give a quick overview my game plan is to write two more shorter books uh before Trying to sell this one again because everyone I've talked to all the agents the publishers everyone there's like Really no one cares about lengthy literary fiction anymore. Even though this is fabelism More than it is literary fiction It is there are long stretches where nothing happens and it's all about character and theme But everything is important come that final come that final section of the book Uh, and I plan to cut it up into three, but anyways, um I had a point here, but I always do this to myself um I was talking about Length anyways, it doesn't matter. I went off on a tangent and I completely lost what I was doing So we'll go back to if I remember I'll I'll bring it up, but I need to read chat stuff from uh, what he what he did last night Or yesterday, whatever 48 words. I'm not 48 words. I'm getting words and pages mixed up Amit Anyways, oh, I was talking about how close I am. Um with uh when predicting word counts of things Like if someone asked me, um Like if I'm going for an anthology or something like that or uh, whatever it might be and I have a specific word count to hit I do not try to make the idea fit the word count. I find an idea that fits the word count. Um If that makes sense to everybody, um I will you know, if it's like an open call or something and I have free reign Then I would just go through my book of ideas and be like, okay. Yeah, this one will be about 5000 words In search of referring to both the cornbread and the cassies whereabouts Oh, is that the uh, instead of posted bills? I got yeah Yeah, I like that. I've read a considerable amount of this. Did you do anymore at the beginning of this chapter? In search of uh You ain't never know. Yeah, I I've read all this I believe Yeah, yeah, I read I read all this Um because it ends. Yeah, I don't know. Yeah, but I will be going waxed. I did go I did go back and change the um Yeah made it so that he was using the plastic Changed, you know so that he he didn't know what to do with the turn so he goes outside Yeah, and I fused Um what I was writing and what you were writing. Yeah I'm just I'm just making sure I'm not reading over stuff that hasn't changed Uh since I read it yesterday. I haven't read any of this waxed distraction chapter and then I think afterwards I wrote um I don't know if you read any of the Stuff where he starts to head out and look for No, the last thing I read of yours, uh was yesterday. It was the on the way home I want to tell him about the fair but there's no way his parents will let him go No sense in teasing him with the idea, but I will be going. That's the very last thing I read of yours yesterday. So Let me share my screen You know I have your permission What was it I used to ask you permission for? It's something it was like a running joke for a hot minute.  I'm glad I stopped though Oh, yeah, you know you used to tell me that I can go ahead and write and stuff like that like It was like, uh, feel free to talk to chat or something. Yeah, well, I'm honestly I'm always so worried about, you know, uh, also, I'm not used to having this is going to sound terrible But I'm not used to having guests or people on here that I don't have to lead Like either with questions or something, you know, someone who's comfortable on the camera or, uh, things like that It's it never fails. Like I'll bring somebody on and I'll ask them a question And it'll be like a yes or no when I expect them to expand and then I have to just drag the rest of the The answer out of them. So yeah, that's where that comes from Why'd you put an extra apostrophe there? Because uh It's the incomplete word No, I already had one there.  Oh, it's blocking it. It's blocking it. Okay Oh, okay. Yeah. Yeah, sorry My bad. I was like what it's what? The best for my only the best for my boy Oh, I also wanted to I've been wanting to talk to you about this before we get going again Um, how would you feel? I probably should have talked to you about this in private, but How would you feel about me trying to do an audiobook for you? For me? Yeah, for one of your books I mean you got a account set up and all that stuff or No, but I would send you like a chapter or two and you get approval and I'll figure out the rest because I really I find myself when I'm reading your stuff.  Um, but it I would take it seriously Uh, I just you know, I want to give it a shot And I find myself like I said, I just I find myself all the time reading your stuff out loud And I like listening to myself when I'm reading your stuff. So I was wondering if you would if you wouldn't mind me giving it a shot Yeah, if you want to set up a thing and and I can send like a Uh Audition thing or whatever that or like what do they call it like the first Yeah, it's a it's an audition. Yeah Because I know I there's some that I've just been slacking that I haven't that I don't have for Like all of the jex books. None of those are our audio That's what that's what I was that's what I was seeing and I was hoping uh that I could do those because I specifically like reading those aloud um Did I see that you have one for skull face boy Yeah, that's that's I think my newest or no, that's not my newest one three I'm broke my heart.  There is no red It's like when it's like when kubrick changed the color of uh, steven king's car and then puts the It was said apparently with some kind of like middle finger to steven king at least that's how people took it I can't remember what like the original The original car was like broken down in the back somewhere And kubrick's got this completely different car with a different color No, I did I did that to show um That he has to compensate that he's that he's still happy even though he doesn't have the color that he needs for Oh, no, I get it. I get it.  It's not that I changed the color.  I mean stuff.  That's some good shit It took shell so long to get used to that with me. It's like, why do you keep calling everything?  I yeah Yeah, she'll she'll wasn't she she thought She thought I was being mean there for a while when we first met Yeah, I was talking about nicolodine down there Okay, I was kind of last night when I was doing this I was like I was gonna play a joke on you but Because I knew you'd probably be reading this live when it says it's six letters one name I was gonna put it's six letters one name two girls one cup Yeah, I would have got I would have got a kick out of that.   I don't I don't want to have to explain that so Yeah Yeah, the kind of focus makes his tongue pop out and curl up over his lip Yep Yeah, I was I was literally just looking at that and it's like should I change the that or should I put something in there? And then here you come New there's too much dirt Let me get rid of this even down here. I don't know. I think it reads better without it I'm stuck on something I wrote here. I don't know what I was Yeah, I me too. I've read it like three times after not from the dumpster It's literally where your cursor is. I'm not sure I ever had I've some yeah Yeah, uh Yeah, I'm my brain glitched. I'm like, I don't know what you're getting at either I figured it was my own like dyslexia not catching something. But yeah it's something about you know I I know I know like I have a Anyways, it doesn't matter like in my in my brain like I was I could understand the point I just didn't know how to fix it I think it was something that was left in there before from a sentence that I was doing And then I decided to do this whole paragraph of stuff instead For doomed luggage Something here Come on work it out brain the lights Lights are out Lights are out Phone fire is painted the far wall Anyways, I'll I'll I'll come back to that I know what I want to say. I just don't know how to say it Something's going on with your mic again Hang on hang on. It stopped I don't know if you want to go ahead and change it, but I don't know if it's my chord I don't know. I don't know what it is. It just will start It was perfectly fine. And then all of a sudden I heard a click like your keyboard and then it started going kick click click click click click click click click click click And now now it's gone So I don't know if you got a short in your chord or what but that's what it sounds like This right here gets on my nerves irrationally Like just having the the numbers like it's I I'm not not going to change it not even really complaining about it Is this I was like I was reading it in broad street bastard Like you have eight colon zero zero instead like eight a.m. Or eight p.m.  Or it's only nine p.m. Or whatever if I think if I saw just the number or just the You know spelled out nine I'd be like automatically at first be able to probably be like nine what There's nine. There's nine what? But I I understand what you're saying. I think What bothers me is when people do a m or p.m. When they don't need to do a m or p.m Yeah, because it's such a it's such a long thing nine o'clock a.m.p. I don't know Well, I stay away from like giving the time at all in my stuff not because I have anything against it, but because I tend to forget things like that like dates Bay's end wasn't was a fucking nightmare because I used dates And I kept like I'd have to go back and change keep changing the date Because I didn't count the days right because some days were only half days or whatever And the editor kept going. There's only been four days.  I also had a bad problem with adding chapters So I stopped doing chapter numbers for the longest time Because I would have like two chapter 11's because I changed something I added a chapter or something and forgot to change the rest of it So I try not to do chapter numbers either I remember in a life after day and I had two chapter the 36's It's like anyways What do they call other than is there a specific name for uh, like The caretaker of a cemetery or is it literally just like cemetery caretaker? Isn't there a name for just uh, I think just a caretaker. I think yeah The groundskeeper caretaker groundskeeper. Um But there's also a groundskeeper in Gulf, you know and and stuff like that or college campus You mind if I reverse this from grave digging to digging graves? I don't know it like the cadence flows better. I'm like an old groundskeeper trying to get out that couch My body stiff from digging graves. I don't know why but Digging a great digging a grave digging a grave which adds another syllable in it might make Digging a graves. Good job My body stiff from digging graves. Yeah Startling David David Lee raw scream.  I'll be there five till 15 till 30 till Yeah, so I got my phone with me, but it's usually not and But once in a while If I'm on a podcast and it goes off or like final guys I just leave it in here because every time you're the only person that just just lose it and laughter when it goes off Because of the david lee roth scream because it's a random and I've had this I've had this notification sound on here for years and my wife Hates it every time it goes off. So do I She's like, would you would you would you change that? That's why I don't that's why I don't laugh honestly because it it actually annoys me But yeah, don't you know, don't don't think anything that it's it's not like it's hilarious me off, but it actively annoys me.  I cannot start staying being startled Uh, I got Of course I got picked on a lot when I was a kid But people used to always sneak up behind me and either scream Or there was one dude when we were playing volleyball at my the back of my hair on fire There's several different things. I beat the brakes off that kid put that kid in the hospital for three weeks. Anyways, but Um, I'll never forget that moment.  Um, and it's funny because jump scares don't bother me in movies whatsoever I got a buddy named david who who does he can't watch anything because it was ptsd from war, but um That doesn't bother me.  It's like you're fine. You're in a safe place.  I need to put do he's not gonna say why you think Uh, why do you think mingo sent me out to collect?  So why are you fussing like I just don't get why he trusts me? I guess is what I'm saying like I've only known him a week Like I've only known him a week Uh, she says, uh, he probably doesn't trust you and this is the way of letting you earn it Like that makes no sense at least not to me listen spaz. She also calls them spaz for whatever reason in my head So feel free to change that listen spaz. We're we're weird here Everyone's got their own way of doing things and their own things need doing my own damn self included and mingo isn't any different You steal from him. He'll hand to you the way he handles everyone else Who crosses him simple as that and then he goes on I don't ask her to explain her warning is cryptic yet tangible Something I don't understand but something real I can hold on to I don't need to know what mingo would do to me if I stole from him All I need to worry about is that he won't let that shit fly without consequences Um, so while he's like this, you know, kind affable dude, you know, people know not to cross him But he also will put you in a position to allow you to break his trust So, I don't know if you want to keep that or not, but that's kind of how I see things. Okay so Just in case you get to mingo before I do, um, I don't know if you want to keep that but that's something to keep in mind Yeah, this uh Once once this shenna chapter is done. Well, and then the next chapter where he actually leaves Which should be the end of the first act, I guess Yeah, definitely really really looking forward to the rest of yeah me too I'm like I said, I'm already having fun with uh, I've got some boy. I got some keepers in here the uh Sorry, so uh Venus is naked in in her trailer Uh sitting across from this. It's a very awkward situation. You got a 16 year old boy sitting across from her But she's also kind of flirting with him uh, and She walks over to the mini fridge And I watch her ask flex and release Flex and release flex release as she struts hunching over to keep she's also seven foot tall To keep from banging her skull on the ceiling to her trailer's mini fridge She bends over and I have concrete proof that she's all woman. It's like a roast roast beef sandwich smashed between two glazed Oh dude Like I said, if it's too much for you just get rid of it, but uh It's probably the uh, I have concrete you would probably just do the I have concrete proof She's all woman and leave it at that but uh, yeah Yeah, probably You got to remember who you know to like who like him as a character But that's the thing he he hasn't seen one before He's like it's the it's the best It's it's the the simplest explanation. He can I'm gonna go ahead and get rid of it. But yeah, uh, it's It's the best explanation he could give I mean, it's better than uh, you know a bulldog after having eaten a canum or a jar of mayonnaise That's a good one I haven't heard that one, but it's it's but that's what I'm talking about. It's like instant recognition You know exactly what they're looking at. Oh, that's hilarious a bolt. Oh god damn. I'm not gonna get that image out of my head Sorry everybody Sorry ladies. I'm not sorry. I'm not a bit.   Yeah, we're now we're into this. I'm gonna go use the restroom take a break I'll be back when I get back. I will get to writing I just uh added something to page 34 um about um his history with fair and his mom and The urgency to go Because that really hasn't been talked about too much So I slipped it in there during where he sees the flyer Because I started writing it below, but I was like, well I should probably throw this up up above when we first when he first hears about the fair Yeah I highlighted it I'm reading it Okay Yep You okay with having such a short chapter I got?  Sorry. Let me explain before you say anything else so The three chapters I'm working on right now the middle one is only like a page long And I was literally sitting here going I wonder I I was like, I wonder if it's too short. No, he'll probably go back and and add more to I just find it funny that I was literally thinking about that just a second ago. Go ahead Well, I just I I had this closing this line that feels like a closing line And and it would it would help skip, you know, because he just left And then the next thing he could just be there not not dealing with the journey getting there and you know We just yeah, we don't need another journey. We've had two two or three journeys so far So yeah, just him arriving is is perfect. Yeah, but it's only like five paragraphs That's fine. Yeah, um the one I like I said the I have fly trap and then one that's called look hook. Sorry hook period line ellipses um, that's really short and then it jumps into Yeah, it's a maybe a page page and a half and then it jumps into ellipses and sinker So it's like the beginning the beginning of a scene But then I have to cut it because they leave that area and it's technically another scene So no, I have no problem with it whatsoever I I actually enjoy that when I'm reading along and also it makes people keep reading Like if they've just got done with a long chapter or a longer longish chapter and they see they only you're you're fucking Great slash bad at this because about about this not at this about this because every single one of your books you'll have like that like Two or three page chapter one page chapter Five to ten page chapter and then another short it just keeps you reading it keeps you burning through it Um, so no, I have no problem with it whatsoever because that's just going to keep people reading Uh, thanks ish male. We're uh, we're glad you join you're joining us Happy some people are getting something out of this Ish male, what what what language is that in your name there? I believe he's from Iraq Okay, for a minute. I thought it was Arabic because I have here I have uh ballstorm supplies is in arabic Which I I'm judging by the uh, some of the um The reviews isn't a great translation I wouldn't know though Yeah, it's uh, it's I believe it's Arabic Egypt Egyptian publisher I get that I the name escapes me. I wouldn't be able to pronounce it anyway There are a number of languages spoken in iraq with mesopotamian arabic Iraqi arabic is by far the most widely spoken In the country.  I like that one better than your cover and I love your cover So which cover there's there's the cover that I did the green one with the fly on it Okay, well, then there's the ben bald one cover too I don't think I've ever seen that one. Hang on.  Oh, okay. Yeah the uh, the one on the swing set Yeah, that was originally for the hardcover poltergeist press release and then Ben Ben let me have the uh the art for that. So that's that's just cover now I like it I think it's almost like too like post apocalyptic looking but uh I like it kind of looks post apocalyptic But I think it also says, uh And then this is the the one from spain Which is kind of cool That is interesting The uh the only copy I have of any my international, uh, it's funny because I own the worst one. Give me a second So not only is this the worst cover even I think it's even worse than the uh The original bay zen cover, um the black one with the flame that I never actually used Uh Not only do I think this is the worst cover I've ever had on any of my stuff But it it doesn't fit. It looks like sci-fi other than kind of it's nothing It doesn't capture the tone quality anything like that But also this is my worst reviewed book of all time but only in this language as the german edition of the sound of broken ribs I mean, I don't think I don't think it's I've seen way worse But I don't understand any of this like the checkered floor makes no sense the ribs. Yeah, but then there's this line That's like, I don't know. It looks like a horror sci-fi Yeah, it looks horror sci-fi And it's not I mean, it's definitely horror and it's got some uh spec thick stuff in it, but It's pretty much just a really down-to-earth revenge story Really simple and it's like there's like a ripple and I guess the ripple effect is like, you know, like the butterfly effect Uh, the butterfly theory, um that you know a butterfly, you know, you know the theory anyways, um And I I guess that's it because it kind of follows that but it just does this cover makes no sense to me whatsoever And especially not the checkered floor. I I don't know where the hell why they put the checkered floor there maybe because Checkers or chests or whatever.  They were expecting splatterpunk kind of deal or uh extreme horror because that's what festa verlog does And it's not that at all. It's a very tight character drama with supernatural elements at the tail end of the book that are hinted at throughout Um, I don't know if you've read that one. I don't think I don't think you've ever mentioned I don't even think that I I don't even think I own that Gotcha. Okay. I I've thought about life of dain a few months ago But I haven't and then and then all the ones that other ones I've read I I own Yeah, that's the cover. I'm redoing next is dain. Um, I've never been happy with that one either my favorite books Well, Bay's end is in the favorite book, but my favorite books do not have good covers in my opinion Except for the limited to south here Russian I mean like it I like you supposed to be like I I signed an italian contract, but um, covid killed him Really?   So I I can only imagine what kind of a effect that had these So I think this is funny for anyone watching this who's interested in international stuff Um, just because some things is is successful in america does not mean it's going to translate to the same success, uh, one of the main reasons is germany is a very literal society, uh, they don't care too much about supernatural They they like, uh, they like violence.  Yeah, I worry tell me my career. Yeah. Okay. So you know about it Um, completely derailed my my direction because then I got like 50 some odd reviews all saying this is nowhere near extreme horror This is this is like a character drama.  I'm like Thanks a lot, dude.  But anyways, um, and uh It just it just goes to show that just it you really have to Play because it was my choice what they were going to publish They reached out to me and I completely killed all future business stuff with them because not only did the book Do poorly in reviews, but also the reviews killed the sales So they had over 500 copies left of the book that they had to destroy so they can do tax write-off shit Um, and I ended up getting a final check. They uh, I think after my advance was earned back I think I got maybe 35 dollars something like that So it was it was it was a complete an utter failure And uh, germany was just like edward lorna is not for us. I should have gave them bay's end I really should have gave them bay's end. I got Advanced for germany and signed contract and uh, that was years ago. Um Last night they're like it's definitely coming out this year. This was like I don't I think it was supposed to come out in 2020 and then like, um, sorry about that We ran into some, you know, definitely coming out you know this year A year had passed and they lapsed the contract and then and then um, they said well, sorry about that You can keep the you know, obviously keep the advance um Uh, is there any way that you could and I was like if you guys still want to do this go ahead and just do it, you know It's not like I got You know germany knocking on my door waiting for you know skill face boy Yeah, but then but then it's I haven't heard from them in Maybe another year a year and a half. So I think it's dead at this point. I don't think I don't think it's coming out Which is a shame. Yeah, I love having those on the shelf I mean the the small advance was nice, but I'd rather have the book too, you know, yeah, um, you ever go through your international stuff and uh Try to pick out translations like you know, like certain lines or favorite lines And do you ever go through them and try to find? You know the the ones that No, but there's I'm very very curious about the The apostromes and flies and how they dealt with the threes company references With the theme song and stuff that the neighbor sings Um, very curious how they handle that or even uh, the blueberry pop tarts that uh Like if they if they use pop tart or if they use like an equivalent Right, just something like that, you know What I wonder in this one is how they did the all the uh the hick vernacular all the country Uh speaking this because there's a lot of stuff that makes no sense Uh, like might could I might could go for a biscuit right now that kind of thing Or like you like you were talking about with what instead of that, um, like uh That dog what did that thing, you know that kind of thing, um, I do wonder how they do that So I will look up certain things and what they did with this one is sometimes they just left it english uh, and then like if it was uh Either a shortened word or a contraction or whatever you want to call it.  You got plenty of time No, no one no no one is is banging. I'm talking about aspiring writers.  Oh man. What was it? uh It's the last it's the last one I signed for uh Foreign translations. It was Czechoslovakia, but I don't remember what book it was. I think it was uh the pale white So but I haven't heard from them. Hopefully they're they're working on it. I don't here it is Yeah, I signed it in april so That's now that's not very long ago Published no later than december 31st 2024. So Oh, yep the pale white cool Yeah, hopefully that'll come out I don't I don't know how to seek these out all of the ones that I've gotten Same here. They've all contacted me But I would like to know how to sometimes people ask me how do you do it? I was like they just they just email me It literally it's it usually comes down to getting an agent. Um unless you're gonna get invites, but uh And that's why I tell people all the time who are like, how did you get to where you're at? You know, how are you? Literally everything just fell in my lap. I I cannot give you advice on how to get where I'm at And that's why I said it's mostly about who you know, who's talking about you word of mouth It's literally about that if you get some what exactly because I never would have had uh paul Contact me if it wasn't for uh h michael casper He's the one who said hey check this dude out and now I have a I mean he Thunderstorm saved my ass so many times with checks that I didn't realize were coming Um, and he also saved my career because uh something had happened And I thought my career was dead, uh, and that would literally like the same week he emailed me So I'm not sure if h was like I see him struggling over here thinking about killing the lord name. Let me you know talk to paul Or if he'd been talking to paul the whole time, I don't know But uh, it was literally perfect timing And then the book sold out before it even hit uh before it even went up for sale How that works for anybody watching is he has a book club and people get to Buy the book or reserve the book before it even is announced to the general public and Nine out of the ten things I've done with him have all sold out prior So I I'm I'm amazingly lucky there because I'm not doing any promotion for them Uh, but literally all my movie stuff, uh, they contacted me all my international stuff They contacted me all my traditional publishing stuff. Um, I had uh an agent find Um, find me through a short story that I had sent to a journal the journal declined the story But they sent the story off to this agent the agent contacted me and said do you have a novel sitting around? Because I love the way you write it didn't fit for the journal, but they wanted They they want so even my agents over and I had the same same agent for seven years until unfortunately passed away from covid But uh, I had for a long stretch of time I had the same agent and a wonderful working relationship and ever since he died I've been struggling to find to actually go out and find and I got numerous pin names Numerous writing credits all this stuff and I am struggling to find an agent right now That's that is worth a shit and that doesn't want to completely carve up my work to turn into something trendy That's the biggest problem. I have right now because uh, I've had an agent once go ahead. Go ahead Well, it's I'll I'll spit it out real quick. Please. I want to hear what you say though. So remember, um But uh, the last agent that I was so close to signing a deal with Uh said have you thought about writing a tiktok thriller? I'm like, what do you mean tiktok thriller tiktok's really hot right now? There's publishers looking for tiktok theme thrillers. I'm like No, I have all these other books to give you like no, no, no, we want to get you something with your foot in the door I'm like, I could bang something out But it's not going to be anything like my other stuff because it's saga stuff.  I don't think we're going to work out because you keep pushing me to try and write something That I don't want to write so I'll go find someone else But yeah, that's that story there of the there of the business mindset and not the artistic mindset money. Yeah, they chasing money Yeah, I had a I had a uh an agent Uh that I signed on for a year Can't remember her name But I knew right away This isn't going to work out and I never sent her a thing and and had no intention to um because Uh, I was it started to feel kind of sketchy and like maybe they didn't really know what they were doing And then I saw them in a group one time in like a books of horror type type facebook thing and Somebody was talking about skull face boy and how much they loved it and they're like, um Said something like uh They said something like oh, I'm not sure if I've read this yet and um Some other people talked about that liking it And they're like you don't And what's it about or something she said and I I can't remember but somebody finally just said Um because this is supposed to be my agent not that they're supposed to read everything that I that I have published but she said uh or somebody said you don't remember if you If you read a book where with the The character has a skull for a face. She's like I just read so many books And I was like I am never sending you anything and just that was that was like That's like all red flags in one bundle. Shit. It was it was a catalyst for because I was like I can't even remember what the other things were but that was the top. It was like You don't know what you're doing. Uh, you probably haven't even read me because they saw me out And that was also kind of a red flag That they that they would seek me out. Um Uh Because I thought if I'm seeking, you know, that means you're probably laying out that busy and you're not maybe not making things happen You're not in high demand And then the closest other thing that I would have to have Having an agent but but it's not even close to that but maybe Kind of adjacent is josh mailerman's uh manager Who is part of the production team for The the wormwood screenplay um He has read a bunch of my stuff and there's an open door there anything I want to ever send him that he thinks that he can um You know like he like skullface boy I pitched it to him. I was because I had already sent him like three four books And he would say I don't think like pay away. I can't do this Too much sexual, you know, uh salt stuff and I was like, okay, I get it And then When I I I said, well, I've got this book called skullface boy, but if you can't do this and this There's no way you're gonna be able to do this And I said it's about this and he's like, well, that might just be what we need So I sent it to him. He's like Absolutely love this book, but you're right. I don't know what to do with this The the way I see skullface boy in my head is like a scanner darkly like rotoscope I think you got that's what I that's what I that's what I've always and I don't know if you got that for me or But that's how I picture it too. This is the first time I ever read it The the first it's been in my head like that ever since and if you I mean, it just makes sense. I think where it comes from is your cover Because your cover screams rotoscope Like a realistic but animated also. Yeah And if I if I were to do it or have that's that's exactly how I would do it Rotoscope and just yeah highly stylized What I want to see is a very well done Clean crisp visuals Indie small film kind of deal of wallflower Almost like love lisa Train spotting that kind of thing.  Yeah, okay.  Is he hot? Yeah, you're just watching him nod for like two minutes. Yeah, yeah something like that If I were to do that that's exactly how I would do it and I want to see that one day damn it um We'll get there We'll get there eventually I thought about taking a year just writing just screenplays Yeah, and you know getting and seeing You know trying to nab an agent seeing what I can see and what I can do I I can't when when sending this stuff to Ryan. I told him before Uh In in a phone calls like dude, I can't I can't um Like figure you out like if I you know like you he read foster homes and flies.  It would make for a great movie, but something Is missing or maybe it's just I Like he doesn't think he can make a movie out of everything He knows that there are things that would make a a wonderful movie But he doesn't know how to do it personal, right? And so he's kind of like he's looking for stuff that can fit into his wheelhouse And all I've got to go by is is the movie bird box Which I'm never gonna You know, none of my stuff is ever gonna be like that. So yeah, I don't I'm like I don't know what to I don't know how to figure you out, man I don't know what's you know, what what's what's gonna be the one I mean because then he wanted wormwood So it's like well if you want wormwood Why don't you want? You know a foster homes and flies I I have to read wormwood after I read broad street because I do not see Your writing and tim's writing working together whatsoever Because I've read a lot of tim the switch house Malevolent summer malignant summer. Sorry malignant summer Numerous ones the neon. I can't remember what it's called.   So I'm interested in that And it was it was a it was a lot like what we're doing right now kind of But and he's super laid back.  He loves his supernatural stuff And yeah, he he tried to go there a couple times, but Uh, yeah, I I mean I'm proud of it People like it. I like well wallflower. I don't think it's wholly original. I think it's a good story But I think it's something that's you know, maybe been done before but just differently um I was just talking to Tim today because you know, this whole uh screenplay thing No buyers, uh, you know for the funding. So we're thinking about talking to everybody and seeing you know See what we can do with it and add in some stuff that they had us take out that uh That I I one scene in particular probably only just this one scene in particular that I'm I'm I'm almost wondering sometimes if if uh That's what that's part of what may be killed it Like if somebody's reading it because it makes it and it's actually a scene that Tim wrote that he came up with And when they wanted it out, I was like, oh man, but I understood because it's it's uh It's a little dark and a little perverted um So some unsolicited advice for anyone out there listening the uh One of the best pieces of advice I ever got as far as my writing career was uh if you Even even if you don't have aspirations to be a screenwriter always write a screenplay of your book Um, oh at least one time write a screenplay of your book just so you You have the experience doing it Also, you don't want to I have screenplays for all of my stuff because you don't want to be caught Empty handed when someone comes across it and goes. Oh, hey, look Uh, you want to be prepared not only but they they can hire someone to adapt it but Definitely have it ready for uh for for someone In case something takes off because you never know what's going to take off and scripts are Really easy to write when you have a novel to work off of Especially if you're the author and you know all the intricate season everything You know exactly what to cut and keep it still, you know Uh on on theme on you know topic and all that Uh, but yeah, uh always always write At least one at least one screenplay based on your words That's yeah, I agree and it's It is easier, but there is a learning curve with there's definitely a learning curve with with Trying to ignore the pros and trying to realize What is really needed here and now otherwise you're going to have a 300 page uh suggestion you Unless you're Tarantino and no one would ever even glance at it Yeah, exactly guys Trying trying to get that down to what what is it like 110 pages or something it can be really tough But for those of you that don't know a script has to be um, it's roughly about one minute per page One and a half one two minutes No more than two minutes per page So uh Just keep that in mind if you're going to work on it, uh every single page Translates to about a minute on screen also You don't have to go into great detail about what the camera does because they're going to rewrite the director That's a whole different screenplay. It's a whole different script. It's called a shooting script So it's a completely different thing just focus on The writing focus on getting the story across in as few words as possible I know that makes a lot of people cringe because it's like oh god, it's like writing a blur It's a lot more than just writing a blur. It's about carving down your scenes To the visuals and to the character reactions And sometimes they don't even like the character reactions because they want the actor To you know perform however they want to the actor doesn't want to be have their hand held They want to be able to do what they want to do So and you're going to get you're going to get rewrites because actors are finicky beasts So they are going to change your dialogue and things like that. There's very few scripts That get shot exactly how they're written Um, Kevin Smith was a stickler with that. He didn't let people ad-lib at all for the longest time They had to say it's exactly how he wanted it said Uh Yeah, I know about the script shadow thing. Um, I don't like This still holds up too. I think this still holds up. Oh, I haven't read that one I'm sure there's many more additions after this one, but um, or at least one or two The only writing books I've ever Screenplays novels any of that stuff there's only two That's in in the art of writing writing by Ray Bradbury and on writing by Stephen King and neither one of those books are really Books about writing they're more about the journey of writing Um, they're they're not really about structure if you want that you just trunk and whatever the hell his name is Uh, the their style books out there if you want to book just on writing But alec, I'm gonna I'm gonna throw this out there I don't like the whole script shadow program Because you're putting your stuff up for everyone to see Yeah, you're putting your un-copyrighted material out there Your unfinished material out there. I don't really Stand behind things like that. But uh, uh, if it works for people it works for people But my advice is to not do things like that. Um, you you want to keep as few eyes as possible on your Whatever on your on your project save the cat is a fantastic book as well, especially for new screenwriters Um, the how to book screenplay How how to book screen the how to book book Screenplay by cid field tells you to set up the script in the first 10 pages because you don't have 200 pages to make the story happen I mean, I would say the same thing for a novel I mean, you want to you want to go in with your point you want to start with the You know, if you're just meandering trying to find the place That's why that's why some editors just cut out the first couple paragraphs But yeah, I would I would say, you know, stay stay on stay on thread Have you read the politics book on writing? I have it. Uh, yeah, me too. Um, I haven't read it though Um, consider this. Yeah. Yeah, I have it. I had the hard cover Um, but I haven't read it yet. Uh, like I said, the only two that I've read at all is zen in the art of writing by Bradbury and kings on writing That was the only on writing is is 100 essential reading. Absolutely for no matter what genre you're writing It needs to be taught in schools. Uh, it it needs to be in every writer workshop It just needs to be there. Um, so people can open it up and read it because I have one copy that is nothing but highlights Um, in fact, I can't read some of it because the uh, the highlighter made the ink bleed So but anyways, I know the sections and I just went through it Literally it got to a point where it was kind of absurd because there was more highlighted than there was not Um, so but I just kept doing it because I got into a routine. I was like, that's brilliant. That's brilliant. That's brilliant um, and the the best thing Stephen King ever said about writing is his, uh, allegory for toolbox Everything goes in the toolbox Everything and that's also where I get when I tell people, you know, write what you know means, you know, write Use your own life experience to make situations realistic Uh, believable, uh personal that kind of thing. Uh, it's not about only write doctor books if you're a doctor, you know that kind of thing I do have, uh I have a hang on I like William Gildman. I got a bunch of those books. Which which lie did I tell? By William Gouldman something like that uh Damn it It's around here somewhere, but uh Anyways, I haven't I haven't read it all but I've read bits and pieces of it. Um, and that one is more like a Uh, uh, not a diatribe, but um him talking about the the stories that No one associates with him like Stories that are just like the the princess bride. No one believes he wrote that considering some of the other stuff he wrote Um, because he has one of the most eclectic catalogs of any author ever Um, like I'm trying to think of a good example Magic marathon man Yeah, uh Yeah, it's which lie did I tell is the book I'm talking about but, um I'm trying to think of the of one that he did that just completely blew my mind to find out that uh, That he wrote it. Um Yeah, see one of the first things when you type Books by William Gouldman is did William Gouldman write the princess bride? It's like right off the bat. Um But yeah, the same person who did princess bride wrote heat. Um Let's see here works There was one that really blew my mind all the president's men You know, I just realized I just remember misery.  He wrote the uh, the screenplay from misery Oh Yeah, he's right. He's written a lot of screenplays. Uh, uh I believe you he wrote a handful of twilight zone too. I'm not mistaken But I think I just remember it. I think the very first like novel I ever I think red was a William Gould as uh his uh temple of gold. It's a coming of age The college age coming of age thing.  It's Crazy how eclectic his his catalog is I think there's some good youtube videos of him too talking about all this stuff Definitely, um, he he was a consultant on the lores clayborne Um, and and he's an uncredited writer of the of last action hero I do wonder if he's uncredited because he asked for his name to be taken off of it But uh, I don't know. I like that movie. I think it's I think it's actually Did you write uh the screenplay for magic? I thought I think he did. Yeah. Yeah, he did. Yeah, um magic 1978 directed by Richard Attenborough Have you read that or seen the movie? I've seen it. Yeah, anthony hopkins. Yeah, I didn't know this until probably last year that metallica song sad But true is about that is about magic Really? Yeah, and if you if you if you keep that mind you listen to the lyrics I'm going through the lyrics in my in my head and I'm like Okay, that makes That makes perfect sense. That's that's funny. You would think it'd be wait for it master of puppets Oh, jeez. Sorry. It's a bad joke Yeah, you did an uncredited rewrite of goodwill hunting. Yeah That's just That was such an amazing fun uh Anyways, uh, yeah, I'm your dream. Make you real. I'm your eyes when you must steal. I'm your pain when you can't feel yeah Yeah, I'm your eyes while you're away.  I had no idea Yeah, there's a uh a very um It's not like dark web or anything, but there's a a dark Like it's almost like the the supposed hanging person in the Wizard of Oz Yeah, they say if you watch magic the the long as the movie goes on the puppet looks more and more like anthony hopkins But it's the same puppet throughout the it's the same dummy throughout the entire movie But there's people out there that say that the the dummy Looks more and more like him the farther on, you know how some people's that Dogs or animals look like them. Yeah, it's kind of like that same effect But it's the same it's the same dummy throughout they didn't change anything But people people swear up and down that the the dummy change the dummies face changes um, and I think it's more anthony hopkins falling into the role so deeply that he starts to take on the The features of the dummy, but it's been a long time since I've watched I haven't watched it since I read I've read several articles about it Because I went down a rabbit hole with the the ghost from three men and a baby was just a cardboard cutout But I read that I read several articles on that because I was going to do this the story I had called plot wheel. Oh no anyways, there's I had this story I shouldn't even said the title but I had the story in mind And I will do it eventually, but it is far bigger of an idea than I ever thought it Could be and I was going through it's one of those not really lost footage or lost movie kind of things. It's uh, one of those It's kind of like night film where someone's reputation becomes, you know legend and you're trying to find out how much of it is real and how much isn't real and uh Going through that I I was researching movies that had like like Wizard of Oz with the hanging person um, then uh, all all the stuff all like people actually dying on film That didn't actually die But but lore has it that everybody died like a cannibal holocaust that kind of thing Everybody thought they were all dead and they had to go to court to prove that those people were still alive Um, it's a there's an amazing fictionalized version of that called we eat our own by kia wilson amazing book um And it's completely fictionalized But it's it's the fictionalized version of what happened with the trial and what actually happened on set because they were actual Bad things that happened on set But none of the stuff that uh, they the the director literally had to go to court for As you've got to be out of here. It's already 11. Yeah. Yeah, I got a bail I'll say on that note though that there is a uh, I think it's a shutter series and within the series a documentary series and within the series there is a uh documentary on cannibal holocaust and That has interviews with the actors. It's recent has uh with the director And all that kind of stuff, uh, it didn't dive as deep as I was hoping it would but it was still history of horror Or whatever it's called. Is it the elai raw thing? He's the host of it. You you would you would I mean if it's not hosted by him Then we're talking about two different things, but no, it's uh, that's a different Um, what is it called? I think it's just cursed films too. If you've never watched that that's it cursed films. Yeah. Yeah, you've never watched that series amazing amazing series Yeah But the the darkest one is being the twilight zone, which is That man that will bum you out for a week If you if because of the people killed on uh in that But it's got uh the omen I think Was it poltergeist Or was it yeah, I think it was poltergeist the exorcist omen the crow and uh kind of a holocaust and a couple of other ones, but I thought I found the most interesting ones to be Uh the omen for sure that one had the most eerie stuff that I hadn't heard of before Yeah, the the the production of the omen was something something serious uh See here No, not ad stream Um Stop screen sharing Um, I have a glitch right now that I can't I'm having an issue Merge visible I'm having an issue saving. I don't my wraparound cover for bay's end The new one that I showed you Mm-hmm No, not jpeg. Well, I want to let me pick pdf I don't know what's going on here save Okay No, I don't want the editing compression Maximum no, I'll do I'll do medium see if that helps Yeah, there it is right there, but when I go to try and upload it to Kindle it won't now it's showing up yesterday. I don't know what I did yesterday. I must have been too tired I was literally sitting here working on this uh the wraparound cover if y'all want to see it I'll throw it up on screen real quick Um, but I'm rebranding all the lorn stuff Uh to look more like it should to where they don't look like horror novels Um, let's see here. What do I got to do? present Uh share screen Window Yeah, there's the the new wraparound for bay zen. There's going to be a hard cover Uh paperback, um and an e-book of course the e-book's already updated but, um Yeah, that's that's what i'm going for I wanted the title and everything to pop better on the the spine, but I couldn't get it any way to keep this image and uh and uh have fonts that you know The font pop out So i'm i'm happy with it the way it is because if I use white Then it's going to disappear if I use black it's going to disappear down here I'm you can't see my cursor, but if I use up here where it says bay zen if I use white it blends into that Um, and then the the name is too long If I use black it disappears at the bottom So but I love the way this turned out with the title And the burn around it. I love the way that turned out. It took me over an hour and I was sitting here um working on I was working on this from I I read broad street bastard I had an idea while I was reading it for the new cover. So I went looking for certain images And I found them finally Uh And then I worked on that I would say from 4 30 All the way up until 6 30 and then I had to stream at 7.  But anyways, um Yeah, I I like it. I don't know if anybody else likes it, but I'm finally happy with it. Uh, this is the first one that feels right um, and I'm gonna try chad had an idea to take the match and make the uh The apostrophe in bay's Uh The make the match Be the apostrophe, uh, but I'm wondering if people will get that if people will understand that it's supposed to be a um, I guess they could look at the spine and tell but uh That's that's just yeah shrink it move the title down below So, you know, it has more room in there put it in there. Just put it in there See what it looks like see if you think it still looks like a You know a match or or whatever because I mean it would make for a great apostrophe It would yeah, because it literally is the same shape if you flip it over. Um, if you Invert it um It it looks like an apostrophe. So I mean that's brilliant But uh, yeah, the next one I'm going to work on is life after dain I'm gonna try and get all these to where they look good on a shelf together too. Um, I'm gonna do life after dain then Because that's technically my next novel after bay's end even though there were three books in between them One of them isn't available for sale anymore. Actually three of them are none of them are available for sale anymore. That's uh, um Dastardly bastard hope for the wicked and pennies for the damned um So I had three books in between that and none of them are available anymore Uh And I want I want to go from that. I want to do them in chronological order of publication So I'll make that work. Also. I wish there was a way I could go back and take off the fact that um This is a series Because I think it keeps people from reading the middle books even though they're all 100 stand-alones Um, it keeps them from from reading them Anywho, but yeah, I'm I'm for once I'm finally happy with oh, let me show you guys. There's a new uh I can't show that screen. It has my name on it. Um Chad has Let's see here. Chad has updated the cover for south of here.  You got that right, brother. You got that right But yeah, um, this is absolutely gorgeous. Uh, I can't wait for my copy to get here. I'm gonna be showing it off to everybody um Anyways, so I'm gonna let Chad get unless you want to do some more writing I don't know. I don't I don't have I'm completely I get a bolt I'm gonna and then I'm gonna eat my lunch and watch this guy talk about his favorite Stephen King covers while I'm eating You do that too yeah I watch uh, I watched my That's when I watch my videos is when I'm eating Yeah, um, it's a bad habit, but uh, especially if it's a long video because I keep going back for more food So but anyways, all right guys, uh, thanks for joining us We will get more work done on monday by the way We are taking thursday friday saturday and sunday off so chad can get caught up with everything And then when we come back on monday, we will be focused in that'll also give me time to work on a bunch of videos Because I still haven't edited my my king redux short story collection stuff Um, I need to edit that they've been done for months like two months, but I still haven't edited them Uh, solvent. I didn't even know you were in here solvents. Uh, take care solvents by alec by viking By anybody else who might be lurking in the background Uh, everybody until next time all hail the chair


Backroads is made possible by the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund with money by the vote of the people November 4th, 2008. Lars Nelson, I make original blues rock music with a twist of psychedelic and funk. Mike Jacobs, bass, Ben Beaver drums, and Dan Fink guitar. And when did you first start getting into music? As long as I can remember, my dad recorded audio tapes with me singing and making up stories at the age of two. My dad's a choir teacher, so music was always in the house. I was able to differentiate between radio stations from a pretty early age. It influenced me incredibly.  Well, I think it was through primary school and high school. I was always in choirs and I was in community theater and musicals and stuff. So I was always approaching it from a bunch of different angles as far as the performance aspect. I always loved performing in front of an audience. So whether it be musical stuff or having my own band, I always approached it from a few different angles. If Grime Still Pays, that was one that I liked exploring a character and kind of coming up with this fictitious story about a guy kind of searching for his options in a world where he was having a tough time keeping a job and he was middle-aged and it was, you know, things that were in flux in his life and to what degree would he be pushed to maybe go any legal route and try something that's outside of the bounds of normal societal rules. And I enjoyed that. I've written a follow-up to that song since kind of exploring the characters further on after something like that goes down. It's kind of, it's a fun little creative challenge. What drew you to rock music? I think digging through my dad's vinyl collection when I was a kid listening to Sergeant Pepper and Stevie Wonder and things of that nature I always liked exploring into what those lives must have been like when you can open up Sergeant Pepper and see these guys and these cool outfits and like, you know, crazy facial hair and like it just, it looks like, well, what a cool job that must be and then these wild stories that take you very much out of your small-town upbringing I definitely think I was drawn to that. So what's performing like live for you? Like what's the performance atmosphere? Like what do you do to like prepare for a live show? Well, I usually end up, not even for gigs but I just end up singing most days like just in the car, in the shower, you know. I'm always hearing melodies are always, you know, in that kind of creative space. For shows I like to play a lot of music that inspired me so, you know, stuff that'll kind of get me revved, get me going, play some Chicago blues and Rolling Stones, you know, any number of things that just depending on the day, OK, what is speaking to me? What's going to get me to that place of, you know, energized to play out? And when you have a performance, do you usually come in with like, all right, here's the songs I'm definitely going to do tonight or is it kind of just an outline of what you might play but like if you feel like changing it up during the show, would you do that?  I think my band members are more into having it really definitively laid out. I like having a little more flexibility of let's see how the audience responds because sometimes you'll have, you'll get a good flow going on, you get a dance floor and suddenly it's like, oh, I know what to drop next. That was much further in our set but let's put that right here because we have a dance floor, let's keep them. Hollywood Hills is another one that I wrote out in Los Angeles. I was auditioning for this. I got a callback for a TV show and the producers sent me out on their nickel to stay at a hotel and just being in Hollywood and seeing so many people in that area that are living that dream like or trying to live that dream. Your waiter is trying to be an actor. The person that's checking you in at the hotel is trying to be a singer. It's just like everybody's got a side hustle. Everybody's got, you know, this dream and that's what a lot of that's about is just all the different variables that go into late night television or film or, you know, there's so many people out there in such close proximity that are all chasing that dream that they've had since kids and to varying degrees of success. But you can see why there's been a lot of cool creativity that's come out of that area is just because so many people have to bring their best game because there's other people that would be very happy to take their place. Do you approach songwriting? Do you have like lyrics come to mind first? Yeah, oftentimes they kind of come concurrently. I have both lyrics and melody. They can't come at the same time. But sometimes it can just be like a rhythm. Sometimes I've had that from driving. You go over, you know, like potholes at a certain pace or where they'll fix the road and you can hear it. I'm like, oh, that's a cool beat. And you start singing over it and coming up with something around it. There's a lot of things that in nature that are rhythmic. So what do you do in those situations? Do you like have like a recording device with you? Yeah, oftentimes have a digital recorder with me. Okay. Or sometimes I'll keep it by my bedside because it's just like you never know when you have an idea, just when you wake up and if you go, oh, no, I'll get to it. I'll remember it.  So I like having it really a close proximity because sometimes those ideas are the best because you're not overthinking it. You're not trying to dissect if it's good or not. It's just like, oh, that's fresh, you know. I've dreamt a few songs before where I had it in my head and I can hear this melody and I'm like, wake up, record it. And I'm like, now have I heard that before or is that mine? You know, so it's sometimes the creative process is still going while you're sleeping. Well, thank you very kindly. I say this often during our live shows. You can be anywhere in the world tonight. You're with us. You're coming to see a performance.  And I always feel it's a great honor to have an audience that wants to explore some of the good time things in life. My chance, anticipate, now I shall taste how it feels. Use that to walk upon your dance to taste. Backroads is made possible by the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund with money by the vote of the people November 4th, 2008. If you enjoy watching Backroads online, please consider making a tax-deductible donation at lptv.org.


Hey guys, a little bit of a different video, but this is a shout out for a pretty good guy here. This is for Greg. Oh hey everybody! I didn't see you over there! Greg is a great guy right now because he is trying his best to do what he can for his students during this time where obviously schools are still closed and there's not really much to do so he took this isolation and he made the best of it and he's been making YouTube videos for his students. And he's been pretty consistent with it to the point where he actually got featured in the local newspaper for his videos and I wanted to do a shout out for him because I appreciate someone going through this much effort especially considering how he's not really done much video editing stuff. He's very good with music at one point actually I would say his fourth episode for any of you who've ever wondered how to use Google Songmaker he pretty much gives you a step-by-step tutorial of how to do it. I've never understood how to use it so I was really happy for that video and he's giving his students as well as anyone else anyone who wants to try something because you don't really have an excuse to try these different little experiments with music and now he's actually started to move on to exercise which I'm going to give him a little suggestion.   He's doing a great job in my opinion with what he's doing. He's got great humor in it. I'm no scientist but I'm gonna give it the old college try and try and pour some water into these glasses. Here we go. He's got some good funny lines and he is actually doing some pretty interesting little stuff with music that you can do at home and that's probably one of the best things to do. People who are doing videos about doing at home exercises, projects, cooking, all these things. I am appreciating all of these people right now but I definitely want to give a good shout out to Greg here. Greg's on his sixth slash seventh episode technically right now. I really hope he continues with this because these have been great. I've watched all of them. They've been really really funny. I've enjoyed them all.  It doesn't hurt to check them out and give a few of the experiments a try yourself and they're really funny. They're really fun to try and it's something to do, right? So Greg, this is me to you. Thank you for doing these videos. Good job, man. Keep it up. I can't wait to see what you do next and see if you can do what I'm about to do now. Don't worry, John.  I'm gonna tuck my shirt in because I don't want to hurt myself. Now some people have been able to do this backwards against the wall. Me? I can pretty much do it now standing up so we'll see if he... So yeah, try and do that. And if you were wondering if I did any of his music experiments... I'm not very good at this so we'll see.


Hello and welcome to stats that exist but do not matter episode number 22 talking about Mike Trout today. Mike Trout is really good at playing baseball. I wanted to find out what day is Mike Trout the best at playing baseball? What day does Mike Trout put regular old any day Mike Trout to shame? So I went through all the stats, all the data, and the first date that popped out was June 27th. He has played seven games on June 27th and he has never once gone hitless. Seven games at least one hit in every single one. In those seven games he has 16 hits and two walks. That's the most amount of hits he has for a single date. 16 hits and two walks which gives him a 533 batting average and a 600 on base percentage but he only has two home runs. Not a lot of power so I kept searching and then I stumbled upon August 27th. August 27th he's played eight games on August 27th and in those eight games he has 10 hits, nine walks, five home runs, and a double. Seven RBIs. In the eight games he's played on August 27th that's probably his best date. So who are the angels playing on August 27th of this upcoming season? They're playing the Padres. Padres don't say I didn't warn you watch out for Trout on August 27th but then I looked at these two dates June 27th August 27th. What number does Mike Trout wear? 27. Is that just his favorite number? So when he wakes up and he sees the date as the 27th he just his lights out. Turns out kinda yeah I took all of the games he's ever played on a 27th be it April, May, June, July, August, or September. He's played 45 games on the 27th day of the month. In those 45 games he has 198 played appearances. 51 hits, 30 walks, and 10 home runs. 45 games, 30 walks, 10 home runs. Four stolen bases, 31 runs. That's 31 runs in 45 games. Come on that's crazy. I mean that means that on the 27th of the month he has a 311 batting average, a 494 on base percentage, a 567 slugging, and an OPS of 981. You do not want to face this man when his jersey number and the date are the same. Don't do it. So I already warned the Padres in April, Rangers watch out in May, A's watch out in June, Reyes watch out in July, Rockies watch out in September. They have an off day. Trout will rest. So there you have it. Mike Trout is really good all the time and he's a little bit better on the 27th.