Cynus

Have you heard about the LGBT film festival in Uganda? You know, the place where LGBT rights are at an all time low? if not, you should click this link to learn more. They're doing some really cool things! http://www.queerkiff.com/

Thanks! It'll be an adventure for sure.

It's here, it's finally here! "Rivers of the Dead" looks amazing with its brand new cover and renovation to this new-fangled age of digital media. That's right, it's available as both a paperback and as an ebook, and here's four reasons why you should consider buying it: 1) It's a story about love, about sacrifice and overcoming grief—it'll pull on your heart over and over again as you journey with Caleb as he journeys to The Underworld to reclaim his friend's soul. 2) The mythological perspective is fresh, even if it returns us to the classic Greek myth of Orpheus. He may be ancient, but he's traded his lute for a guitar and a wickedly sarcastic attitude. You'll love him. 3) If you like my stories, you'll like this one, too. If you trust me to tell a good story, you'll definitely like this one. 4) If for no other reason, I'm taking the plunge in October and quitting my day job to become a full-time writer. Your support simply by purchasing this book will do more for me than you can possibly imagine. Whether you decide to pick up a copy or not, know that I appreciate you getting this far. I love being part of this community, and I appreciate all the support you've given me over the years. That being said, there's a link here I hope you'll check out: Ebook: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0742J15QF/ref=s9u_simh_gw_i1?ie=UTF8&fpl=fresh&pd_rd_i=B0742J15QF&pd_rd_r=7TC92AN6F77Y97R4E8G1&pd_rd_w=DRFPb&pd_rd_wg=BkBqf&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=&pf_rd_r=XBV8WT4VN04MG2K0HAEK&pf_rd_t=36701&pf_rd_p=781f4767-b4d4-466b-8c26-2639359664eb&pf_rd_i=desktop Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/Rivers-Dead-Samuel-D-Roe/dp/1521885354/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

I'm on a fact-finding mission here, and I hope the admins will bear with me. There will be no ads here or attempts to direct people to my Patreon, so I'm hoping this doesn't run against the rules for Google Ads or anything else, and from my understanding of the rules as they have been explained to me, it does not, so I request your patience. If this post IS a problem, I hope you'll simply let me know and delete it and that will be the end of it, as I'm definitely willing to comply with any and all rules. That disclaimer out of the way, I'd like to pick my readers' (and anyone else's) brains about Patreon for a moment. If you've heard of Patreon and what it is, feel free to skip to the next paragraph. For those who haven't heard of it, it is a crowd-funding website allowing patrons to support artists who release their work to the public. Basically, a person pledges a small amount of money (or a significant amount if they feel so inclined) per month or per creation, allowing a creator to earn a small income for their work. In theory, the small amounts of money add up and the artist is able to make a living through the service. Due to some generous patrons, I have also benefited from this service and I'll be able to cut back on hours at work soon in order to pursue writing more fully. Who doesn't want more writing, right? Now, the reason I'm writing this dangerous post is because I need some help with figuring out what to offer my patrons. This has been a constant struggle since I first started my own Patreon page. I never know what to offer. I attempted this experiment yesterday on Facebook of opening it up to everyone to make suggestions, and here is what has been suggested to me so far: Writing advice/consultation: An offer to either look over someone's work and offer pointers, or general advice on how to approach various stages of the writing process. Copies of handwritten chapters/short stories signed by me. Copies of hand-drawn maps of locales used in my stories (I really enjoy making maps) Copies of notes used to create my stories/backstories to how different stories were written. Audio files of me reading my stories. An invitation to friendship, through text or email. There were a couple more which I don't rightly remember anymore, not without consulting my notes, but I think you get the idea of the type of thing I'm looking for. What I'm hoping to do here is to generate a discussion about what sort of things you might want from an author beyond just their stories. Even though it's not something I can advertise here (and I realize posting this is a risk because it may be seen as advertising), I'd like to enlist your help in making my Patreon more attractive and inviting, in the hopes that those who do visit my Patreon page will be more inclined to donate. So, with that in mind, here's the question: What would you want to receive from an author which they could reasonably offer you? Any answer could be helpful (Even though my dad's answer of "I'd like Louis L'amour's ranch" only helped by making me laugh, it's still a good one). Any thoughts? Any comments at all? Please comment either here or through PM, or email me at Samuel.D.Roe@gmail.com if you think the subject is inappropriate for this forum.

An update: First, I appreciate everyone who read and showed your support. You're all wonderful, and I'm glad to be a part of this community. Secondly, Wattpad responded and said that they'd disabled the content, so I can breathe a sigh of relief. I even managed to get some writing done today.

This was a message to my Patrons, which means there will be some information in here which will likely make no sense to you, but I wanted this to be known. This last weekend was hell. The only worse weekends I've ever had involved loved ones dying, just to give you a measure of perspective. Over the course of 48 hours, my already bad mood for the week (because the week was fairly shitty, too) went full depression.There's a lot going on, but I'm only going to tell you about the two things which are affecting me the most, because they also affect you, and make me question a lot of things.First, we'll set the stage a bit...On Friday night, I had to do inventory at work. This kept me there fairly late, though I was home before Midnight. I had volunteered to work the opening shift the next day, despite knowing I'd be there late on Friday, so having only a six hour window for sleep was on me. I normally can function well enough on 5 hours of sleep, so I wasn't too worried about it, but I hadn't accounted for insomnia and anxiety to keep me up well past 3:00 am... So, I started Saturday on two hours of sleep, which has probably compounded this whole thing, but it is what it is... When I walked out to my car on Saturday morning, I found out it had been burglarized. This is hardly a new experience for me. I live in a bad area and my back doors don't lock. There's really not much I can do about it other than try to avoid leaving anything valuable in my car. Well, I had three copies of "From the Cup of the Worthless" in my car, and these were stolen from my trunk. Why they stole these and not the other books in my car I can only guess, since selling an unknown self-published book can't be easy for a thief, especially since it's difficult for me, the author, to do. And so I can only speculate, and that speculation doesn't take me anywhere good. What will they do to my books once they find out they can't sell them? Throw them away? Deface them in rage? Burn them out of spite? My art is in the possession of unsavory characters, and I think this is the closest I'll ever come to knowing what it feels like to have a child get kidnapped. I realize it's probably not even close, but my books are my children... and I feel devastated. That set the tone for Saturday, and I did not have a good day in any sense of the word. I finally slept again on Saturday night, but it was restless, and full of dreams I'd rather not dwell on. I tried to have a good day on Sunday. I tried to do a lot of things to take my mind off of everything, and then I finally laid down for a nap, but before I did, I decided to check my email. Which is when I found out that someone had stolen one of my stories and put it up on Wattpad, claiming to be the original author. Thankfully a reader noticed several of this individual's posted stories did not belong to him and he decided to investigate all of them. He wasn't familiar with my work, but he managed to track it down anyway. After investigating the matter and contacting WattPad, I was drained. I'd planned to work on chapter 6 of "The Pious Road to Perdition", but I couldn't find the energy. I couldn't find the energy this morning, either. In fact, I seem to have even less enthusiasm than I did yesterday. I am emotionally drained, which is cancer to art. I have never felt so violated in my life. I am more depressed than I have ever been, a feat I would have thought impossible before it happened. And I don't know what's going to happen. I don't know when or even IF I'll be able to write again, especially something as emotional as "The Pious Road to Perdition". And this sucks, and I realize it sucks for you, too, but I don't have any other answer for you. This is breaking me. That's all there is to say.

Granted. Yeah, that's it. The only day you'll ever have off again. I wish Valkyrie worked 24/7, 365 days a year like I now will be.

Granted. You now think it's Monday, September 6. I wish I didn't have to close late tonight.

Granted. But he doesn't know it. I wish I could read white text on white backgrounds...

Granted. You can, but with my telekinetic powers. I wish Valkyrie could juggle.

Granted. You forgot to put any salt at all in your seafood salad, so all the salt content in the seafood means it will no longer be part of your salad. You don't even recognize what you're eating anymore. I wish I had telekinetic powers.

Granted. Now you can see out your window, but everything is dark, and you realize your house has been sucked into a cosmic void of some sort. You try to replace the blinds but find that you've broken them again, and they will no longer allow you to see anything but the cold, dark, nothingness outside your home. I wish it was already October.

Granted. You found them with your foot. They were open. I wish I could afford these knives I'm looking at.

Granted. It's not your tummy, but a magnitude 8 earthquake. I wish my date hadn't been canceled today.

Hah! He is DEFINITELY not straight. And he is into me, thankfully. Granted. You did so many loads of laundry today that you realize you've been washing clothes for the whole neighborhood, and you wonder when you became such a kleptomaniac. I wish I could tell him how I feel, but it's too early... *sigh*

Granted. You manage to attach a better handle to the structure, but then you realize this isn't woodshop and you still have no idea how to approach the issue. I wish this boy I'm flirting with was easier to read.

Granted. Those zombie cats are eyeless now, but their heads are still inclined in your direction, I wish I didn't have to go back into work tonight.

Granted. You have the best teeth in the world, but they've been made into a necklace for you by some psychotic dentist. I wish I didn't have to go back into work tonight.

I think that's the best granted wish yet! I would love to have unlimited kimchi, and if they stay away, more for me. Granted. You now no longer wish to sleep, but you've also developed narcolepsy. I wish there was more coffee in my thermos...

YUBITSUME! (Thank you, that made my day) Granted. Deception is no longer possible, all nations' secrets have been revealed, jumpstarting World War III as each country finds out how much spying the other countries have been doing. I wish I had some non-spoiled Korean food to eat...

Granted, the person moving it is you, and you don't get to wear gloves. I wish I was in the Yakuza. (Inspired by my last granted wish, )

Granted. You did it all early, but realized today that it was all done incorrectly, resulting in doubling your workload. I wish I could visit Costa Rica right now.

Granted. Now it rains every night, with thunder and lightning so loud and bright you can never sleep. I wish I had energy to exercise...

Granted. You now know that your printer is at the heart of a government conspiracy orchestrated by the ink companies, who want to make you spend lots of money on ink without any returns. Be careful. They're watching you... I wish there were more divers at the pool today.