Script Frenzy tomorrow!

Tomorrow Script Frenzy starts! It is going to be very hard to write 3+ pages a day with all of my other commitments, but I am definitely inspired to try.

Tonight, I am writing an outline and coming up with a list of characters for the script. I am also working on a location and prop list to help me keep the script to something I can actually film.

If you are reading this and would like to act in a cheap horror film, please get in touch with me!

Demon Slaying

Today was something of a milestone for me. I spoke to a students at a local school about my experiences in Haiti. This is the first time in my entire life that I was able to stand up and an do "Public Speaking" like that. Not that it was smooth, I had some technical issues with the hardware for showing my videos... but for 90 minutes I stood up there and spoke. Anyone who knows this Stephen Hermer, knows he is not a fan of public speaking or even attention.

The students were great, asking lots of good questions and only peppering me with silly ones very rarely. It was definitely a friendly crowd, which helps! Especially when the plan to mainly show video falls through. ha ha

Stephen Hermer, March 28, 2011

I am also feeling a bit better, health-wise, so there is some hope I can catch up at work and start writing again.

Tuberculosis? Probably not, but I feel pretty crummy

I've been fighting something for over a six weeks now. It started as a bad cold, and it cost me my sick days right at the start. My lingering cough and general lassitude cost me a lot of hours at work, so my income was reduced perhaps 20%. After a few weeks, I was down to just a chronic cough. Then, almost overnight, I was hit again and left work midday to go to my family doctor. Weakness, coughing, intense chest pain... I wasn't going to mess around anymore.

My doctor got me in with an hour's notice (that is something, here in Canada), and gave me prescriptions for co-azithromycin (an antibiotic) and hycodan (a cough suppressant). I was virtually bedridden for the next four days, missing two and a half work days. In my entire work history, I have never missed so much work in a single year.

By the following Monday I was feeling a bit better, but still weak and coughing so I worked 6-7 hour days. By Saturday, I was starting to feel weaker and more ill again, and coughed up blood a couple times. This makes me exceptionally nervous as weakness, chest pains, chronic coughing, and blood in the sputum are definite signs of tuberculosis. Of course, they can be symptoms of other illnesses as well.

I just want this over with... I haven't had any energy or motivation for work or my writing, I haven't even been keeping up with my blogging or status updates on social media sites. I almost feel like I need to take a week of my vacation time, so I can spend it sleeping and maybe fight this thing off.

Japan Earthquake

My heart goes out to the victims of the massive magnitude 8.9 earthquake that hit Japan today.

Zdeno Chara's hit perfectly fine, According to the NHL

I am all for fighting and hitting in the NHL, but dangerous hits like this one should be discouraged some way. Zedno Chara did not get a suspension, or a fine, or anything for this tragic "accident". Meanwhile, Max Pacioretty recovers in hospital from a concussion and broken vertebra. Right now, there is a good chance that Mac Pacioretty will never play hockey again. Air Canada, a sponsor for all six Canadian teams, is unhappy as well, and has demanded that the league crack down on these.

The NHL players are split, half of them saying that this is just part of the game, and half saying that this kind of this is not acceptable. Everyone knows where these danger spots are, and Chara should be aware of them. Funny thing, one of the reasons stated for the lack of punishment was Chara has a clean record... and he still does, since nothing came of this.

So, decide for yourself, does the above photo look like a clean hit to you? If it does, maybe you need to check out this clip too.

      

Amanda Hocking

Amanda Hocking is my hero. Heroin. Er, heroine.

I first read about her success on J.A. Konrath's blog, and because I am interested in writing I started to follow her on Amazon. On January 19, 2011, I purchased her novel Hollowland, partially because I wanted to read something she had written and partially because I really like Zombies.

The novel was quite good! I was surprised at how well she wrote and at how much I enjoyed it, despite it being written for the young-adult market. I am looking forward to a sequel.

Why am I writing a blog post about Amanda Hocking now when I could have written about her in January (when I finished her book)? Well, she has made the news! CNN, newspapers, the works. This indie author, with nine eBooks published in 2010, has earned around $2,000,000 on those books! She has optioned three of her books for a movie deal as well. It is an incredible success story, and one that any author (or aspiring author) could dream for.

So, what is her secret?

• She has been writing for years, and has worked hard to perfect her craft.
• She writes about interesting topics, and targets a demographic (young adults).
• She markets her books by getting bloggers to review them.

Seems straightforward enough, no? To be a successful author, one needs to write well, write about topics people are interested in, and get market their work.