Tag Archives: religion

Vacation! Woo!

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Alright, not your typical vacation. There will be no palm trees and beaches, deep forests and glades, or even high altitudes and snow. Instead, it’s a project-vacation.

What am I blathering on about? Well…

For those of you who follow me on G+, you’ll maybe know that I had a certain bit of a meltdown (okay, not THAT drastic) yesterday in this post. Basically, I’m hitting one of the downer-moments with The Veil, to the point where writing it is laborious. If I am not enjoying writing it, you’re likely not gonna enjoy reading it.

So, following some advice, I am taking a month-long vacation from the project. Gonna catch some fresh air and work on other things, and I actually have two in mind. First, I am gonna try and wrap up the beta notes on Blood in the Machine (gonna stick with that name). After that point, it will be ready to head out for editing and such (gulp).

Second, I am gonna start work on a new Scifi piece. I have a concept in mind, and am actually very curious to see where I can go with it. Thus, while I am tidying up BitM, I am gonna start drawing up a map of how I can make this new Scifi piece work and get a rough idea of how the story and characters will flow.

In other words, it’s a working vacation, allowing me to catch my breath and focus myself on something new and creative, rather than wallowing in an anxious and slightly depressive mentality I currently am in with The Veil. Hopefully, it will allow me to smooth some things out, get some creative freedom spent, and come back to The Veil with renewed eagerness and ambition.

When will this begin, you might ask? What about tomorrow’s chapter that you’re expecting? It’ll still come, don’t worry. It’s mostly complete, I just have to deal with some polishing and finishing touches. After that, however, the next chapter will arrive on October 22nd.

I win by catching some fresh air. You guys win, in the long run, with another couple of stories much further along than they would be otherwise. Everybody wins, even if there’s a slight delay in how long it takes for your next fix of The Veil.

… Well, unless you’re a rabid junkie for The Veil. In that case … well, you don’t really win. Oh well, somebody has to lose for somebody to win, right?

– James.

My thoughts on: R.I.P.D. (Film)

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This weekend, after having an absolutely spectacular writing streak, I went and saw R.I.P.D. Now, I have some thoughts on it that I wanted to share for those that either have or have not seen it.

I won’t include any spoilers in here that can’t be gleamed from the trailers, so don’t fret.

I saw the trailers awhile ago. I’ve been seeing them for what feels like forever. Every movie, radio-station, and occasional TV ad has been hawking this thing for eternity. I also wanted to see it. To me, it seemed like MiB meets Hellboy or Constantine. It looked bad, but in that fun way that makes me feel entertained enough to have enjoyed myself and considered it “worth it.”

So, come Sunday, I went and saw it. Overall, if I had to make a vocalized expression to surmise my feelings on it, it’d be “Eh.”

The concept isn’t a bad one: Talented, skilled cops are, after death, given the option of serving in the Rest In Peace Department to capture the souls of the dead on Earth that hide and refuse to face judgment. As part of their work, they’re made to not look or sound like themselves back on Earth so that friends and family don’t recognize them and to prevent them from, essentially, breaking the universal rules.

Not bad, right? Not a terrible concept, some room to work with, plenty of options for stories, ect.

The problem is that I just didn’t get that much enjoyment from the film. I split from the norm is that I actually like Ryan Reynolds as an actor and he plays the newly dead cop that signs up with the R.I.P.D. Even still, I didn’t really feel much attachment with the character. It wasn’t a fault of his performance, but more of where he seemed to be told to focus his efforts.

Jeff Bridges also brings out a performance as an old-school lawman, adding a nice “timeless” feel to the R.I.P.D., but it sometimes felt like he went a bit over-the-top with the character. Grant it, the setting is over-the-top in concept, but the character kinda went further.

If you also watch the trailers, you’d imagine that there’s a hefty amount of humor, similar to MiB and such. The problem is, outside of Jeff Bridges’s character and a couple passive-aggressive lines from Reynolds, the attempts at humor felt dry and forced.

It also felt like they spent too much time lingering on the topic of Reynolds adjusting to losing everything he had by dying. Yes, I know, that’s actually something that should be there, but it felt like they focused on it a bit too hard. In MiB, for example, the focus was more on “J” being the rookie who was adjusting to the agency and all of the strange things there-in. Kind of a situation where one film dealt more with the past, while the other lived in the now.

The effects and visuals were nice, though some of the Deado’s (escaped souls) were so obviously CG that the quality reminded me of watching Van Helsing (I actually like that movie, so don’t flip me that much crap) in style and effect.

I have mixed feelings on R.I.P.D. I want to like it, even having gone in expecting it to not be winning any awards anytime soon, but it felt like it spent its time focusing on the wrong points. It felt like if they’d re-assessed the story and changed it up a little, it could have been something that was much more memorable than it was.

As it is, I am left with another piece of media that had a pretty slick concept, and even a great cast, but it just let the pieces fall in the wrong pattern. It makes me feel like the parts are greater than the whole, and that actually disappoints me with it.

Who knows, maybe a second watching will give me a more favorable opinion of it when it comes out.

~ James.

Announcing: The Veil.

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Time for some fun. Well, for you guys anyway. For me, it’s fun, stress, anxiety, urgency, obsessiveness, ect. Hell, I’m even still wondering how I managed to think I could pull this off, but we’ll see.

I’m here, today, to reveal my latest project, one that you guys will be able to experience a bit more frequently than most of my pieces.

TheVeil

(That cover artwork is temporary, I assure you.)

Today I am announcing The Veil, an episodic piece of urban fantasy content that will be available for anyone and everyone to read *for free.*

So what is The Veil about?

~*~

Alec Rho is a normal guy who went camping for the weekend but woke up in the hospital after a strange series of events took place that altered parts of his body. Upon waking, his definition of reality starts to warp as he not only sees but is also hunted by demons.

Breaking ties to his former life, Alec strikes out on his own so that he can come to grips with the changes he has to endure. In doing so, he winds up becoming the prey in a deadly game of cat-and-mouse pitting him against a manipulative demon who wants him dead and a pair of FBI agents who want the truth.

With only the help of a guardian angel who treats this more as a training exercise than anything, Alec must survive the hunt long enough to try and stop it. With foes both of the Human world and from beyond, the odds are stacked against him as he tries to understand what lies beyond the veil.

~*~

I know you lot probably have some questions, so let’s bop straight into the (anticipated) Q&A then, just to get the details hammered out in a slightly stylish manner. It also lets me throw out lots of details and plans without looking like I’m giving some scripted speech from a podium.

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Question: What does the title mean? How does a veil play into this story?

Answer: The Veil, in terms of in-story narrative, is the barrier that shields Mankind from the creatures (Demons and Seraph) on the other side. That said, it’s more akin to something that blocks one from noticing them, rather than stopping them from interfering with us. As such, it’s similar to a veil, and thus the title.

–

Q: I’ve been a longtime reader of yours and am familiar with this story. Why the balls should I care about you re-doing it?

A: If you’ve been with me for that long, you know just how bad this story was the first time around. Horribly (and I do mean horribly) constructed, long sequences with nothing happening or things happening for little to no good reason, ect. The very first version of this story, written about three years ago now, was a damn train-wreck.

This time around, that won’t happen (as badly). Between the time that’s passed by, the works I’ve published, and the feedback I’ve gotten, The Veil will be something to be proud of. The pace will be fixed, the characters will have more meaning and personality, and Alec will be less passive and at the whim of everything around him.

–

Q: You could have just made a new story, rather than recycle your old idea. Why are you bothering us with this?

A: Plain and simple, this is a story that I’ve never been able to let go of. Even over a year after I mothballed the story concept, it’s still something that constantly nags at my thoughts and demands for me to tell it. At the same time, hardly anybody ever saw it back in its original form, so it’ll still be fresh and new content for many members of the audience here and now.

–

Q: Okay, fine, but what makes this a serial project rather than just another novel?

A: It was brought up as an idea that I introduce some new free content on this site in order to give a taste of my style, along with try and draw in new readers. I figured what better way than try and release a piece of content that readers both old and new can look forward to at set times.

To that end, I’m aiming at 12 to 15 chapters which will be written every week, examined and given a read over on my end, then posted online every Wednesday (starting on 6/19). Think of it as an extended, more polished version of NaNoWriMo that you all get to see the results of on a weekly basis.

–

Q: Dude, you don’t have the best track record for an attention span or releasing material on time. Why should we be anticipating that you’ll actually stick to this time schedule?

A: This type of rigid timeline should hopefully allow me to focus myself better. If I am analyzing myself correctly, I’ll likely have the first draft of a chapter written in the first few days. That should allow me to spend a couple days on edits and revisions, then to continue my work on other projects as well.

–

Q: So, wait, what’s getting stuck on hold for this? You’ve obviously gotta be sticking something on the back-burner so you can do this project.

A: Nope, everything remains on track. This is entirely in addition to the other projects and work I currently have, so you’ll miss nothing and gain something new.

–

Q: You said before that you’ll release this as a paid thing after you finish. That mean you’re gonna just post up a chapter and yank the previous one down so nobody can access them later on?

A: That’s not how this will work. You’ll always be able to read The Veil on this website for free, no chapters excluded. Hell, once the story is completed and it’s edited by a third party, I’ll go back and post up the newer versions of chapters for free as well. I want you lot to be able to see and experience this story, in full, for free at any time.

The paid option you’re thinking about is a premium option for this story. It’ll be up to you to decide to read it on your kindle or phone using the app, get the bonus material, or just decide to contribute. What it’ll be is the story in a completed and edited form, as on this website, complete with cover art, some material that takes place directly after the story but doesn’t affect it, and other things as I imagine them.

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Q: So how do we read it? WordPress has pretty shitty formatting for actual story content, and I don’t want to be arsed with a dozen individual file downloads.

A: Right now, I’m looking at using Google’s Drive system to host the chapters individually. That way, you can just read them straight off the web without too much hassle, yet it still retains proper formatting.

–

Q: Let me guess, you’re gonna charge $10 for the premium version because you can.

A: Nope, I’m gonna charge the lowest possible amount (99 cents) because I can.

Q: Bullshit.

A: Cry moar.

Q: You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?

A: Quite a lot.

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Q: This sounds like you’re gonna get a bit preachy with your story, can I take this to my Sunday Service and recommend it?

A: You’ll probably get a few strange glances if you do. Make no mistake about it, this is straight-up fiction, not the, “God saves All,” kind. We’re talking about violent deaths, the ruining of lives, the effects of violent zealotry, ect. Hell, even the Seraph (think Angels) aren’t exactly lining up for their photo with Hallmark. The Veil takes some concepts used in modern day religions, but it’s more of my spin on those elements in my style of story.

–

So there you have it, folks. The Veil is a reality and it’ll be coming your way sooner than you might have thought. The versions that get posted online, along with that cover art I posted earlier, are not final versions. If you want to contribute to this project in one way or another, feel free to send me an email at james@jamesdarrow.com.

Until next time, it’s best I get cracking. Just when I thought I could have my week-nights back…

Weekend gift.

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A little something for you folks as I take a brief break from this editing work. Once more, I do not proclaim myself a poet of any fashion. I simply get the urge to sometimes throw down some rhythmic phrases.

This piece is about my two main characters for Under a Falling Sky. One style, written with italics, is from the perspective of Ashayl Faeron. The other, written in standard font, is from Tanis Arkay.

—-

A broken home among the winter’s storms
Such memories are all I leave behind
As I wander from cities of all shapes and forms
Trying to preserve all that is Human in my mind

~^~

Some think me the son of a master of war
Others see me as just another link in the chain
But we all see and tend a torn frayed and torn
As rebels within and empires without bring us pain

~^~

I hide these scars of misfortune from all
Trying to find my place in a world of ignorance
Gone are the memories of forgotten homes and halls
Replaced only by the ruthless fist of intolerance

~^~

The rebellious eyes of our people give us hope
Hammered down by the realization of swift defeat
Turning us from proud warriors with honor in our souls
To a subservient people down on bended knee

~^~

A new dawn is coming for one and all
From the lowest home to the grandest hall
As a generation shall come crumbling down
And we try to bury our old ways in the ground

New release: Eyes of Madness.

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Hey folks! Remember a few days ago where I made that absolutely ludicrous promise to release a new short story, for free, as a Christmas gift for you all?

Well, it’s here. In truth, it’s on the Download page as well, but the link goes to the same place.

So what is the story? It’s a brief glimpse at one of my earlier characters, Alec Rho, as he’s being questioned by an official with the FBI. What’s his deal? Well, he had an … “incident” where he wound up with a runic scar on his shoulder, his eyes turned from brown to glowing silver, and he now sees Seraph (angels) and Demons. He’s got a couple other tricks up his sleeves, but in reality, he’s an average guy given a few extra tools and stuck in a horrible situation.

How did I come up with this story? Well, Alec is actually the product of the first full-length novel I’d written, but the book was mothballed before it ever saw the light of day. Pacing was horribly off, I needed to rewrite the thing anyway but nothing was working, ect. So the story and character have sat in storage for some time.

When it came time to pen a new story for this challenge, however, my thoughts drifted back to Alec. There was no where I could conceivably write his origin-story again, not with the limited time frame, but a teaser seemed possible. From there, the story took shape and became what it is.

I had put out a single call for beta readers but nobody responded. Let’s face it, most rational folks are busy doing Christmas-y stuff that would demand their attention, so I most certainly couldn’t blame them.

Instead, I took the liberty of doing what editing work I could, along with formatting. Am I as confident in its quality as if it’d been put through a workshop? No, of course not, but the circumstances demanded it.

That said, give it a read. It’s a free download, it’s only about 3,800 words in totality, and it’s the most recent “finished” product of mine.

I hope you enjoy this story, as well as have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.