This year I’m going to clear out the shed. I’ll try this long hike someone recommended. I won’t sleep in every day. I’ll eat healthy, all these yummy vegetables and fruit that are available now. I will finish the story that has been on hold for so long. Summer break starts on Monday, and I have a very long list. What about you? Maybe try to write a prompt story?
PT Prompt #352
Dale bought an ice cream maker, but vanilla, chocolate, or strawberry are just about that
I think I've done it. After literally years of tinkering and trying different workouts, this week is the first time since I've turned forty that I've managed to work out five days in the same week, and not ended up with aching joints.
My workout of choice had always been weightlifting. I love lifting so much. Change is dramatic, and you get out of it what you put in. There's nothing easy, and you have to push past your notions of what you can do. It's absolutely a mental challenge as well a
I saw a prompt on Reddit I couldn't resist.
A prankster in the future rigged a tank with speakers blasting heavy metal, traveled back to the 1400s, and went on a 2 month havoc filled joyride. Now in 2022 you are reading the legends born from those that witnessed this event.
__________________________________________________________________
Trouble in the Provinces
"Angus laddie, whatever is that bloody racket?
"It sounds like thunder sire."
The Wheel of Time: A Rambling, Digression Filled Review
By: A Fan of the Books
So somewhere & somewhen, I started replying in a Wheel of Time: The Series thread and realized after a few pages that it was way too long to post in a thread. Plus it was filled with colorful metaphors, talks of naughty bits, and generally senseless ramblings that I decided about that time for a new Blog Entry by the amazing Jason Rimbaud. Or is that the absent Rimbaud? Doesn’t matter.
But before I
Soundtrack
Track List
Luka (Suzanne Vega)
What’s The Matter Here (10,000 Maniacs)
Watch Me Bleed (Tears For Fears)
Broken/Head Over Heels (Tears For Fears)
These Dreams (Heart)
Weightlifting (Trashcan Sinatras)
Reap The Wild Wind (Ultravox)
Rescue (Shey Baba)
Only Love (Brandon Chandler)
King Of Pain (The Police)
Monsters (Empathy Test)
Love Will Tear Us Apart (Joy Division)
It Hurts
In 2011 The Dear Hunter, a progressive rock band, released an album that intrigued me since I heard its premise.
The Color Spectrum is a concept album composed of nine EPs each corresponding to the colors black, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet and white. Each color is interpreted in a series of four songs that invoke the flavor, emotion and feel of those colors. It was so unique I've been curious about it for years. I finally found a copy of it on eBay and have been jamming
Many people are asking: What is a DAC? And Do I want one?
A great many people play music on their phones and computers. That's all well and good, but have you ever listened to the difference between the all digital sound you get from your computer and a dedicated analog stereo system? The difference is so real it's astonishing.
There is a good nuts and bolts technical reason why analog and digital sources sound so different. It is because of the nature and the difference of analog and
My husband has gone to bed. his life right now ... I pause because I cannot think of the words ... his life right now is sadness and chaos. And I am not sure why. his days are filled with Prime TV and pills that numb him.
I cannot fix him. Doctors tinker but the result is the same.
They say time heals. But there is something inside him I cannot reach and he cannot stop.
It makes me feel impotent and helpless. I wonder how much time this will take.
But in the face of th
Do you want to read or listen to music for fun? I understand perfectly. After all, what's the point otherwise?
We ask too little of our art these days. We want it to give us a few laughs. We like to be entertained, maybe excited or even frightened. We don't often ask that it teach us anything and that's a shame. That's what art is for. It's supposed to challenge you, disturb you, open your eyes, expand your consciousness and understanding.
There is another level to reading and listeni
I can't believe it's been a decade since I last updated this blog. Heck, I can't believe it's been almost seventeen years since I joined Gay Authors. Indeed, I see there's a shiny gold "20 years" under the logo now, and it's both gratifying that I was there nearish the beginning and also a bit sad that I've missed most of those years.
I've a lot to thank Gay Authors for. It was insanely formative for me as a young person figuring out my sexuality and taking those early first steps out of th
Looking at all of the numbers related to the Delta and Omicron variants, I suspected since I'm in healthcare and my husband is in one of those "Essential Services" positions with lots of customer service interaction, that it was only a matter of time before we got hit. The night before, I felt ... odd. Cold. I went to bed dressed in a sweater, sweat pants, a knit cap and two pairs of socks. I woke the next day to largely the same symptoms. But I was feeling mostly okay - to the point where I deb
i'm not into resolutions but i'll put this here
NOTE TO SELF IN 2022
i must be consistent in
the things i do for my
spiritual, mental,
emotional and physical
well-being. i can’t
expect to get where i
want to be by doing
things only occasionally
or just when i feel like
doing them.
i'm looking forward to seeing what lies ahead this year.
It's been a long and crazy year. SP just left for work; we'll stay up & have a glass of Champaign when he gets home.
Spent some time this week working on his house, but not as much as he would have liked. We have got a lot accomplished (I think).
We made Hoppin' John for supper tonight, and there's enough for lunch tomorrow (a VERY Southern US dish for New Years that, in it's most basic form, contains rice, black eyed peas, ham and/or bacon, green bell pepper, and some cayenne pep
This Christmas I had two choices: either I let my old stereo die or replace it with something new and modern that could do things like streaming my old system could not.
I've been replacing it by bits, but my old amp was on its last legs.
I did my homework. I read reviews, looked at specs and found something I could afford and gave me the kind of options I wanted.
The core of my new system is a Cambridge Audio ARX-85. It's a capable little amp that can push 85 watts over two pairs
The Unblinking Eye
Once upon a time, the news of the world came to us at the sedate speed of the newspaper man's Linotype. The news of the world would arrive at your door every morning along with sports, comics, book reviews and obituaries. On its way, editors might decide that the typhoon in China or the earthquake in Persia wouldn’t be of interest to local subscribers. Sometimes the images of distant disasters and war took weeks or months to end up before the public.
I joined GA over twelve years ago when I was just 17 and still in high school. If I think back to that rock bottom point in my life, I would never have imagined then that I'd come to enjoy life as much as I do now. I honestly never thought I'd make it to now, on the brink of turning 30. The last time I wrote a blog entry on here was in August of 2019, a time in my life that was so immensely exciting and filled with never-ending hope for the future. I had met and fell deeply in love with a boy, h
The chapter I'm currently writing has this scene. It's a scene with a therapist and her client, and I am trying to portray her as clever, caring, and deeply insightful. I mean far more insightful than I could ever be. And let me tell you, that's tricky business.
So I'm faking it. I get the luxury of time, while she has to deal with someone sitting across from her, and she is having to think on her feet. What takes me writing and rewriting, and hours of thought, she does in moments.
I g
The Epilogue is now live, here are some notes:
Thanks again for all the readers
-Not everything is perfect in the world, good people have to continually struggle, but I wanted to leave a sense of progression
-We met Mr. and Mrs. Brooks for the first time, they are very down-to-earth people with personal touches. I wanted them to act as foils to Gaston family
-Gary Gaston isn't the only member of his family with a cruel streak, remember the sister I mentioned from Chapter 9, I
Chapter 20 is now live, here are some author's notes
-I left a bunch of Easter eggs throughout the story, the lack of cameras at handicapped entrances, the trip to New Hampshire, and so on. Well, it all pays off in the chapter
-Some readers will be asking, "Cats? Why are they torturing cats?", there was a few news articles about college kid torturing cats and I saw the Netflix documentary "Don't Mess with Cats", so I went there. Also, it is quite true that cats are killed by pounds, es
There's this album by "The Decemberists", and it's called The Hazards of Love. The first time I heard it, I didn't know it was an epic. It's a story, and it's told from song one to seventeen, in order.
The title fits as well as a tailored glove. It's not all good, and it even ends in ... well, nevermind. I'll let you listen to find out.
Regardless, a couple of days ago, I had this scene slam into my head. If you want to read the unedited, raw scene, it's here. In it, we watch someone s
Chapter 19 is now live, here are some author's notes
-Well, Sammy turned out to be very helpful. In addition to being an upperclassman, barista, and bartender at night, he's got an unique background.
-I got the inspiration for this scene at Keller Hall from a combination of real-world events. A concept from the "January 6th" insurrection/riot in Washington DC was logistically how I organized the mob and invasion force within Chapter 19. The most violent groups relied on non-aligned gro
So like my current novel-length story True As It Can Be, I want to share some thoughts about the story I submitted for the Fall 2021 Anthology:
-I had a wild idea of trying an unusual combination of story elements:
a. A western holiday story with a gay wedding
b. A funerary rites exploration with commentary on little known details involved in Taoist funeral practices.
c. I also wanted to write a ghost story that starts off heavy with melancholy, but ends lighter with potent
Chapter 18 is now live, here's some thoughts
-Brad's freak out about his insomnia and growing sexual arousal are side effects of Methadone withdrawal. He's not crazy or unstable, Brad is trying to be responsible and protect Beau even if it means being distant from him. Beau understands that
-A tasteful sausage making joke Freud would be proud
-We get to see a Thanksgiving celebration
-Morris' dilemma is something a lot of heterosexual black males face. Having an unplanned ba
Just the facts:
THRESHOLD Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster
THRESHOLD Synonyms: 74 Similar and Opposite Words | Merriam-Webster Thesaurus
Word of the Day: Threshold | Merriam-Webster
ON/AT THE THRESHOLD Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster
THRESHOLDS Synonyms: 72 Similar and Opposite Words | Merriam-Webster Thesaurus
A threshold in storytelling marks the vital boundary where a character leaves the familiar safety of the ordinary world and steps into the unknown. It drives the plot forward by forcing personal growth, creating structural tension, and establishing high stakes.
Narrative Architecture and Progression:
Commitment to the Quest: The exact moment a character steps past a physical or emotional line, signaling they are fully locked into their journey with no easy way back.
World-Building
I totally agree with you. I was trying to find examples that did not relate to chemicals & reactions. Something that GA authors and members could relate with. I found the following and I think it sums up what you stated.
It is what Ga Authors does for all of us here, now and has since it first started.
Play the Catalyst Role in Life
Thank you Myr,
sandrewn
"Threshold" comes from Old English (þrescold), denoting a doorsill or entry point. It is a compound word: the first part relates to thresh (treading or stepping), and the second originally signified a piece of wood or base (from the same root as "hold").
According to the Oxford English Dictionary (OED), the noun threshold was first used in English during the Old English period (before 1150), with historical records showing examples like þeorscwold appearing around 888 AD.
Same here. Last week July till September. And I still have 15 days Flexitime...
Going to an island with no running water and no electricity. Digital detox par excellence.
Enjoy the guessing! I am so not participating ... or am I?
Just the facts:
CATALYST Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster
CATALYST Synonyms: 59 Similar and Opposite Words | Merriam-Webster Thesaurus
CATALYTIC Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster
CATALYSIS Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster
A catalyst (or inciting incident) is the irreversible turning point that shatters a character’s normal life. It forces the protagonist out of their comfort zone and into the main conflict. Without it, the story lacks direction, urgency, and the foundational tension needed to drive any meaningful character growth.
The concept serves several essential functions in narrative structure:
Shifts Status Quo: It destroys the protagonist's "normal world" and makes returning to it impossib