A Letter From Alex....

 ....And No, Not That Hack Kurtzman

Hello Ruben

First of all...You had to ask, didn't you !? In your last letter, you asked if the Johanna was still afloat. Well, it's not anymore. While you were writing a letter to Robert Meyer Burnett. she hit a sandbar and snapped like a twig. 

The good news is that we were near an island with people and internet. The bad news is that nobody understand a word these people are saying, so we have no idea where we are. And even if we did, because the Johanna was a tramp freighter, there is no company to come to rescue. So I'm safe, but I'm stranded.

We managed to salvage enough food and water for a couple of days, a couple of books and two laptops. But beyond that, we only have the clothes on our backs. And it's all your fault !! If you hadn't asked...

Alex

Bits and Pieces, Vol. 6

Hi Alex,

To begin with, is the Johanna still afloat ? Send you letters is going to be really hard if it sinks and you end up stranded on some island. And that's the best case scenario. Anyway, I don't have a big story, just small bits and pieces. Starting with....

The Next Bubble

In my last Trek article/letter - about it being in deep trouble - I said that a lot of critics would be gone soon. And that it was a longer story. Turns out it's not that long a story. You see, a while ago, Buzzfeed went public. And it didn't go well. In a matter of days, the stock went from $10 - which isn't that much - to only $5. It also didn't help that the employees couldn't sell their stocks due to some kind of mess-up.

Fast forward a couple of days and BuzzFeed's owner - Polygon - buys up one of its competitors, Voxmedia. Which is bad for the people working there. Whenever there's a merger, layoff's are never far behind. The problem is that two sites making too little, is still too little. Or put another way, two times zero is still zero. If this becomes a trend, the news sites are going to cannibalize one another. So it's not going to be a pop, but more of an implosion. Only time will tell, so moving on to...

Dark Empire

After I posted Chapter 18, I felt I needed a break to recharge the creative battery. Also, things got insanely busy at my day job. Which I why I haven't been writing letters for a while either. Also, what little free time I did have, was being taken by playing the Outer Worlds. (Great game, for the record. It was a bit short at first, but the DLCs fixed that.) 

But now, with Christmas behind us, the dust is settling and I can get back to it. So that is the plan. I want to write Chapter 19 and 20 and then leave it on a cliffhanger. (And nope, I'm not going to tell you what it is going to be.) Today, however, is going to be me finishing Outer Worlds. <G> Finally, I want to talk about...

Writing Letters to RMB

Speaking of things I haven't done recently....I haven't written to The Burnettwork for a while. Simply because I didn't feel like I had anything good to say. It was a case of quality over quantity. But now I want to try to get back into it again. All I need is something to write about/meaningful to say.

And that's all I have for today,

Ruben A. Hilbers (Commander Nash)

An Open Letter to Robert Meyer Burnett and Joseph Mallozzi

A Mini Pitch

Hi Ruben,

Thanks for you letters/blogs. I have landed a job on a tramp freight called the Johanna, so writing back has not been easy. (Surprisingly, WiFi in middle on the oceans is really spotty.) And there isn't really much entertainment on this rust bucket. (Trust me, it's a rust bucket. One sneeze and the Johanna would probably snap in half.) 

To pass the time, I've been working on a mini pitch. Could you please put it up on your blog ? Oh, and why are Hollywood people so crossover phobic ?

I heard that RMB tried to pitch a UFO reboot and Mallozzi tried to pitch a Space: 1999 reboot. So I added one and one and created this.

From the oceans with love,

Alexia "Alex" Mackenzie

Star Trek is in Deep Trouble

And It Is Only Going to Get Worse

Hello Alex,

I have never made a secret of the fact that I am not a fan of Star Trek: Discovery and Star Trek: Picard. For a long, long list of reasons - which I don't want to bore you with - I think they are bad shows. For those of you who do want the dusty details, here's a link to some of them.

Things wrong with Discovery

Anyway, on to....

Deep Trouble 

All you have to do, is go to Rotten Tomatoes or Metacritic, and check the audience scores. I know, I know, people love to complain about how Rotten Tomatoes is....well, Rotten. And that the professional critics are just shills, who don't give their real opinion. Instead, they simply write whatever the studios and the politicians pay them to write. And, you know what, they are right. 

But at the end of the day, the critics don't matter as much as studios and the politicians think they do. Because the critics don't keep the streaming services afloat. Nor provide the DVD sales the studio want. The average Joe's and Jane's do. So forget the "Critics" and their "Opinions." Besides, if the Buzzfeed stock disaster is anything to go by, half of them will be gone soon. (But that's another story for another time.)

Any how, back to the subject at hand. Because the audience scores for Discovery and Picard are only going one way....Down. 

1. They were never that good to begin with. But with 24 percent for Season Four ON RT and 3.0 on Metacritic, things have REALLY gotten bad. And the Discovery's score tend to go down as the seasons goes along. So who knows how far it will fall ?
   
2. Speaking of going down. So are the VIACOM-CBS stocks. The stocks took a major hit halfway through 2021 and have been steadily declining since. Which - if it doesn't turn around - might land the company in the cross-hairs of the FTC. 
3. And the final indicator of CBS' trouble is.....Mark Harmon ? Well, I think he is....now, before you start yelling, just hear me out. It is an open secret that Mark Harmon has been wanting to retire for a while now. But he didn't, because CBS kept saying "You leave, we cancel NCIS." 
4. But now, Harmon is gone and CBS is trying to keep the NCIS franchise afloat (no pun intended). So why this change of direction ? Because while Paramount+ has shows with good ratings, it needs a FRANCHISE to pull the wagon. And I get the impression that the brass at CBS has figured out that Trek is not going to cut. Hence, this new policy.
5. Oeps...almost forget, the head of Secret Hideout's Television division has resigned. This cannot be a good thing.

About number five....I can't blame the lady for walking away. Kurtzman had fracked up the management of Trek and Clarice badly. But his planet sized ego would never allow him to admit that. So who gets all the blame ? She does. (I know, I know, the articles say she left on friendly terms, but I ain't buying it for a second.) Moving on to....

A(nother) Musical Post

Hello Alex,

Taking another stab at the subject of....music. Which is kinda of new - and strange - for me. Like I said last time, this used to be my friend Rick's thing. But, stuff happened, and here we are. So, let's this thing underway. To begin with...

The Picture

When I decided to write this blog, I wanted to add a suitable picture. Which was how ended up with a picture of sheet music. And I picked a song I liked....the Space: 1999 theme song. 

And yes, I know there are two. Starting with the Season Two one, I label it....meh. (Not good, not bad, just...average.) But the Season One opening theme...That is an ear-worm. It just sticks in your head and refuses to let go. A really good version can be heard here.

Piano Version on YouTube

Moving on to....

My First Musical Entry

Called Adding Balance (<--Link), this entry included a Dutch song called "Voor Een Verre Prinses." Which I figured would make for a good song if translated into English. But I didn't provide enough of an explanation about the song. 

The song is about a man who is listening to the radio as he lays in bed. The songs playing stir up his memories of an old love. He regrets not sleeping with her and the end of their relationship. Finally, the moment is broken when the news comes on, followed by the (Dutch) national anthem.

It's a Dutch bluesy song, proving that the US doesn't have the monopoly on that style of music. And it's a good one, in my humble opinion. Of course, you would have to change it some of it to make work in English. But I still think it would be good. Finally, I want to discuss...

The Worst Christmas Song Ever

I could make this a long section, but it's not going to be. Whoever allowed "Last Christmas" by Wham ! to be made, should be charged under the Geneva Convention. That song is a crime against humanity ! I don't care what the experts say, throw them in the slammer !  (It's torture, torture !)

Regards,

Ruben A. Hilbers (Commander Nash)

Serious Science, Vol. 1A

 #1A Extra information on the Abba Americanus

Greeting, fellow Scientists. This episode is an addendum Vol. 1 "Why you should never date American Girls/Women." It provides extra information on dangerous sub-species of the Abba Americanus aka "American Dad." Starting with....

Abba Americanus Centurion

Generally known as the American Military Dad, this subspecies is extra dangerous because it has access to larger amounts of firepower. 

Picture One shows an American Military Dad "Communicating." with a potential mate. 

Abba Americanus Farmus

Found outside the major urban centers of the United States, this sub-species uses lives in a small town or on a farm in the middle of nowhere. This species of American dad is extra dangerous because of their location, which is usually sparsely patrolled by law enforcement. This allows them to "Communicate" with potential mates without fear of reprisals. Furthermore, they are able to dispose of former potential mates by burying that little remains after "communication" in some random field.  

And that concludes today's episode.

Regards,

Ruben Hilbers (Commander Nash)

Bits and Pieces Vol. 5

Hello Alex,

Okay, to begin with, turns out that you are female. As for what you look like, well.....It took some digging, but I found my mental picture of you. (Hidden between grandma Coulson's secret chocolate chip cookies recipe and a pile of The Doctor's old socks. What can I say ? My mind can be messy.) Any how....

You are African-American, with your hair in a short pixie cut. It was dyed blond in the picture, do you still do that ? Not very surprising, you have brown eyes. But what really surprised me, was the Mackenzie Calhoun-like scar on your right cheek. I keep forgetting you have that. Maybe you'll tell me how you got it one day ? For now, however, I think we should move on to....

Why I don't talk about Politics about a lot

Well, because I am simply not a fan of politicians. A lot of my political post are my ranting at Trump. Who was an idiotic president and now is an idiotic ex-president. And I'm not happy about many a Dutch politician either. If I talked about politics, this would be one of those 'old man angry at clouds' type of blog. Which I don't want to be. Besides, there are plenty of those out there already. And we're walking...

Into a Short Dark Empire update

Chapters 16 and 17 are in the can. My day job ate all my energy for a while, but now I am back to working on Chapter 18. And, trust me, it contains a whopper of a surprise. (But I'm not saying. Muhahahahaha !) And that's all, people.

Regards,

Ruben Hilbers (Commander Nash)

Adding Balance

Hello Alex,

Okay, I used to have lots and lots of labels. But a couple years ago, I decided to make it more professional. And one of the things I did as part of that overhaul, was cut down the number of the labels. Only four survived the slaughter: Politics, Writing, TV-shows and Other. 

Now, there was plenty of entries with the label Writing. Counting this one, there are now 75. This is because being a novelist-slash-fan fiction writer I talk about writing...a lot. And I hate talking about politics. Plus, most TV-shows these days are not that good. So my review are few and far between. 

Which only leaves the label Other, which is basically my version of miscellaneous. And so far, there hasn't been all that much to put under this label. So, basically, this blog has been a bit lopsided. Another reason for this, is the simple fact that I am not an expert on music. That would be my friend...

Rick Clogston

Besides being a budding novelist - with a big pile of books cooking in a secret lair - Rick is the lead singer of his own band. Called the Red Hat Band, it has put out a album called They'll Never Shut Us Up. Which I'm sure Google can find for you. And his blog can be found here:

Rick's Blog

So, if you want a pro's opinion, go there. In the meantime, here's my amateur stab at it. Which is my transition to....

Voor Een Verre Prinses

Based on a poem, this song has lyrics written by Willem Wilmink and was sung by Herman van Veen. Ignoring the rights issues, I think it would make for a really good song if ever translated into English. So, what does it sound like...

The Song 

If you want to take a stab at translating it, here are the lyrics...

En voordat ik ging slapen
Was er op de radio
Wat stemmige muziek
Een beetje weemoed voor de vaak
Een beetje heimwee in de maak
Een beetje treurigheid en zo

Toen is mevrouw Herinnering
Met mij op stap gegaan

Helemaal naar jou
En ik dacht wat was het fijn
En ik dacht waar zou ze zijn
Een heel eind hiervandaan
Een speelse jonge hond was jij
Een mooie gekke meid
We waren nog zo jong en dachten er niet aan
Met elkaar naar bed te gaan
En dat spijt me nog altijd

Opeens toen was het uit
En ben ik dood gegaan
Dat wist je zeker niet
Nu ik die late platen hoor
Komt het verleden onzuiver door
'k heb medelij met mezelf

Ach, wat heb ik in het voorjaar
Veel van je gehouden
't lijkt weer zo dicht bij
En daar doen we het maar mee
Want nu volgt het A.N.P
Het Wilhelmus van Nassaue 

And that's all I have folks.

Regards,

Ruben A. Hilbers (Commander Nash)

Bits and Pieces, Vol. 4

Hello Alex,

Yeah, two weeks closer to the end of winter. Which - for the record - I really, really hate. Anyway, moving on to...

Who is Alex ?

Up until now, my posts have started with 'Hello World' or just begun with a cold open. But today, I realized that I wasn't happy with that anymore. Instead, I'm now writing to my make believe friend Alex. And for those of you thinking...~Dude you totally stole that move from Anne Frank.~...you are totally right. But it's a good move, so I don't care. 

As for who exactly Alex is...male ? Female ? Something else ? All of this is still up in the air, so stay tuned. For now, it's time to discuss...

Star Trek: Discovery - Season 4

I tuned out after Season 2. I haven't seen a single episode of Season 3 and intend to keep it that way. I've seen the trailer for Season 4 and here is my prediction....

The gravity anomaly turns out to be the graviton ellipse from Voyager episode "One Small Step". It turns that the "Voyager Barbarians" did something wrong that cause it to grow ginormous. And now Little Captain Perfect - aka Michael Burnham - has to fix the idiots mistake. 

Because that is the level of writing Alex Kurtzman and his team of hacks are operating on. Next slide, please. Which is...

My YouTube Page Update

As part of my google account, I got a YouTube page. I didn't generate it, I didn't ask for it, it's just a default thing you get apparently. For the longest time, I didn't realize I even HAD this. Until a while back, I found it and tried to turn it into....well, something. 

Now, I'm not the kind to put my face on camera. I'm one of those people who hates his own voice when he hears it in recordings. I sound like a male Fran Drescher. (If you don't know who that is, google it.) So I filled the page with playlists of other people's videos instead. 

And one of the lists I made was of songs that I like having in the background while writing. Or working at my day job. (Which I won't bore you with.) The problem was that I kept hear the same songs over and over. Because I would usually finish what I was doing before I reached the newer songs at the bottom of the list. 

So I gave the list an overhaul and added a part two. For the dry details, click the link....

My Corner of YouTube 

And that's all I have for this post, folks 

Regards,

Ruben A. Hilbers (Commander Nash)

P.S. Oh, yeah, that's a thing I need to turn into a regular thing. Adding (Commander Nash) at the end.

January Yet ?

I hate winter ! I hate it, I hate it, I hate it ! Did I say that I hate I winter yet ? Because I do, hate winter, that is. If ever make the rich and famous list, this first ridiculous thing I'm going to buy - because once you're rich and famous, you can buy ridiculous things - is a house in some place where snow and cold are just concepts, not things that ACTUALLY happen. 

Regards,

Ruben A. Hilbers

Update

Hello World,

So, it took a while, but I finished proofreading my friend's novel yesterday. I've send him my copy with my notes and am now waiting for his response. And his notes on Chess Games in Cairo, speaking of which...

Chess Games In Cairo

...the Blurb for that novel is done. Blurb is a fancy, smanchy term for the piece of text on the back of novel. Anyway, the text for Chess Games in Cairo is ready to go now. Between that and the fact that I found a photo for the cover, I am now waiting for the proofread. Once that is done, it'll - hopefully - not be very long before publication. In the meantime, if you're curious about the blurb....

Site Update

....you can find it under the Novels tab. I'm continuing work on my blog, trying to expand it into a proper website. While also trying to keep it up to date and make it a big more professional. As part of that plan, I've tried other themes for this blog. But in the end, I decided that the theme I already was the best choice. 

I'm also trying to not to leave it dormant so much. And adding more varied entries. Hence, the silly piece about why you should never date American women from last week. But for today, this is it, people.

Best Regards,

Ruben A. Hilbers

Updating and Connecting

Hello World,

Keeping it short and Sweet....

It's been a busy day. To begin with, I've begun proofreading a novel for a friend. It'll take a while to complete, but I got a good start in today. Once I managed that, I had to get rid of a pile of bills and a list of chores. This included an earlier blog that had been knocking around my head for a while. But I finally got it all done. Yeah !

Then I had to update several pieces of my internet footprint. My Fanfiction.net profile, my Twitter account, this Blog and even my YouTube page/channel got an update. 

And yes, I have a YouTube page. I've been trying to build it up. But because I don't have time - or the nerve - to make videos, its pretty bare bones. Still, I'm trying it to give it some substance. I've added several playlists and managed to fill in some of the sections.

And that's all for today. Back to proofreading.

Regards,

Ruben A. Hilbers (Commander Nash)

Serious Science Vol. 1

#1 Why you should never date American girls/Women

Well, it is simply a matter of biology. You see, behind every American girl, is an American Dad, the Abba Americanus And as their female off-spring grow, American Dads develop a sixth sense. This sense is known at the Mate Detector. 

This new sense allows the Dad to detect a potential Boy/Girlfriend a mile away. At the same time, the development of this sense affects the subjects' visual cortex. This makes it impossible for the father to see his off-spring as anything other then "Daddy's perfect little princess."

Upon detection of the potential mate, the American dad will immediately proceeded to 'Communicate' with the potential mate. 

Should you survive this stage of the process, you might end up saying the dreaded "I do." In which case, the American Dad and the Mom will immediately mutate into a pair of inhuman, blood thirsty creatures known only as 'In-laws." This raise the question of... 

American Procreation

....how do Americans procreate ? This is the true mystery of the 21st century. One that will likely not be solved for a considerable amount of time. It should be noted that this 'communication' is one of the reasons why Americans as so fond of their guns. Finally, it should be noted that there is one exception to this mystery. Namely, the Americanus Conspiracy Nuttus. 

This subspecies of American had been known to be created by the means of Black Magic. The mamma of the potential ACN burns a pile of old comic books, sacrificing them to the comic book gods Stanicus Lee'us and Jackus Kirbus. This causes the ACN to coalesce fully grown in the middle of their basement. 

And thus ends today's episode.

Regards,

Ruben A. Hilbers (Commander Nash)

NCIS Hawai'i Review

Hi World,

Okay, four episodes in, I am not very impressed with this show. So far, the show feels like filler. Filling the hole left by NCIS: New Orleans - in the franchise - and by Hawaii Five-0, in the studio facility. And frankly, I'm not that invested in the characters either. I liked the New Orleans team, I cared about them and wanted them to be survive. Taking a closer look....

• Tennant: Somebody on the staff is a closeted Doctor Who Fan.
  
• Brooks: Sigh. Waiting for the reason why he left Washington DC. Feels like it's going to be a Grover clone. Some horrible mistake, some horrible disaster.
• Kai: The whole "I don't want to be here, but I have to be for my family." motivation is cloned straight from Danny Williams. Mix in Junior Reigns family problems and you are done.
• Ernie: Cliche, techno guy. Box ticked (To keep the social justice crowd happy.)
  
• Lucy: Mandatory lesbian character. Box ticked. I have no zero issue with lesbian characters. As long as the writers don't use the lesbian part as a get-out-jail free card for sloppy and one-dimensional writing. (For a well written lesbian character, see Tammy G. from NCIS: New Orleans.)

It also doesn't help that the show is trying very hard to deny that it is part of the larger Lenkov/NCIS-verse. It's like a child sitting at an embarrassing Thanksgiving dinner, with it's fingers in it's ears, going "La, la,la, I'm not part of this family, I'm not part of this family, I'm not part of this family !!!" And not fooling anybody. 

How To Fix it

1. Character Development, character development, character development ! If by the end the of Season 1, these characters have not gone from their current raw state to more fleshed out, this show is o...v...e...r. (It'll go the CSI: Cyber route and burn after two seasons. At most.)
   
2. Embrace the fact it is set in the Lenkov/NCIS-verse. Do cameos and guest appearances. And not just from the NCIS shows. Do that Magnum PI crossover. Have Five-0 characters appear. Maybe score some point with MacGyver fans - who are still pissed that their show was cancelled - and have the Phoenix Foundation team appear. 
3. Compensate for the lack of a backdoor pilot by doing a flashback episode to show Tennant arriving/taking charge. And explain what happened to that NCIS Agent Emma Warren. (From Hawaii Five-0 episode 9x06.)
   

Regards,

Ruben A. Hilbers

Curve Ball / Hollywood Strike

Hello World, 

Okay, starting this one with a bit of a wind-up here, people. So, here we go...

About six months ago, something happened. I wrote my first letter to Robert Meyer Burnett, who has a YouTube channel. And she read it on his show. In the months that passed after that, I wrote in more and more letters were read. And - over time - I collected the shows where RMB read my letters into a YouTube playlist.

But recently, I did a review and I was not that happy with my playlist. This is not a reflection on Mister Burnett's replies to my letters. In my opinion, it's the quality of the letters that I think is not up to snuff. Too much silliness, too much filler and not enough philosophy. Only the first one made my cut. 

So I deleted the rest from the list, before sending Mr. Burnett a message that I would not be writing in for a while. Because that was the plan. But then life threw me a curve ball. Namely, the possible Hollywood strike. So here we go. *Crosses fingers and hopes this one will get read*

My Letter for Robservations

Hello Rob and Members of the PGS,

I wasn't expecting to write this letter, but sometimes life throws you a curve ball. I was planning to take a break from letters, because I was not happy with the quality of my letters. Too much silliness, too much filler, not enough philosophy. (Ruben rule's #1: Always be your own harshest critic. Maybe its a dutch-slash-Calvinistic thing, maybe it's just me.) But then the potential IATSE strike appeared on my radar, and I just couldn't help myself.

So, let's move on to the million dollar question....what's your opinion on this potential strike, Rob ?

As for my two cents.....The short version is a sentence Dr. Phil uses whenever he is dealing with a pair of parents in a ugly divorce. The kind with mudslinging and trying to make the children chose sides. "I'm on the side of the children." 

What made me pick this stance is that one of the union members said that she hadn't seen her children in five days. FIVE.....frakking....days !

And as if The Powers That Be wanted to remind me just how important quality time is, I just spend the weekend with three of my sister's bouncing balls of joy. We went to a bookstore, we played games and visited some local dunes. (Just give 'em a ball and a place to kick it around and you have an afternoon of quality entertainment.) 

Which made me wonder......Are the children of that union member getting these kind of experiences ? Nope ! Books ? Sorry, can't afford them. And even if they could somehow scrape together the money, they can forget about mom and dad going along to the bookstore. Because they'll be either be at work or asleep. And should they be awake, they're probably busy recharging for the next insanely long workday.

The point I'm trying to make here, is that these Hollywood jackasses are not just abusing the parents. They're abusing the children. Robbing them of quality time with the most important people in their lives. Once your childhood is gone, it'll never come again. 

And for those stakes, I say....shut it down. Shut it all down. Let Hollywood burn in a Hell of its own making.

Best Regards,

Ruben A. Hilbers

Chess Games in Cairo

A small update on my third novel. I still have to write the Blurb and find an editor. But the good news is that I have found the picture that will grace the front. And here it is. 

And that is all I have for today,

Regards, 

Ruben A. Hilbers

New Chapters....

 ...Ready to Go

Yeah ! So....it took several months, but I've finally finished my update to Stargate: Dark Empire. 

Six months after the return of the Destiny Expedition, Stargate Command finds itself facing a new enemy...

And its a whopper. Five chapters, good for over ten-thousands words. As for why it took so long...well, I've been suffering from dry spell. That, and my computer game spree. Fortunately, now it's over. 

And that's all for today,

Ruben A. Hilbers

How does he do it ? (@Barondestructo)

Hi World,

It's me - Ruben - again. And this week, I realized that we were quickly approaching the end of September. (Or the start of October, if you want to get technical.) And that - once again - my blog had been gathering dust in it's dark, forgotten corner of the internet. (One of these days, I'll figure out it's physical location. But with my luck, it's probably a haunted castle in Romania or something equally spooky.)

As a Stargate fan, I often read Joseph Mallozzi's Blog and he posts every day, which makes me wonder...~How does he do it ?~ Because if I manage to write five entries per month, it's a miracle. And this blog is not the only part of my internet footprint to be often neglected. My Twitter account and YouTube page often go long stretches without attention. 

My Twitter only gets love when I blog or add an new chapter to one Fanfiction.net stories. And seeing an update to my YouTube account is like looking for snow in the Sahara. So, mark the date, people. Because....

A New YouTube Playlist

I had three playlist:  Shameless Self-Promotion, Working Music and Research. But they were all kind of serious. So, today, I added:

Silliness 

Right now, it's only six videos. Some are in Dutch, some are in English. But - who knows - maybe more videos (and languages) will follow. Speaking of follow, was there anything I need to squeeze into this blog. Oh, yes.....

Dark Empire Update

The latest Stargate: Dark Empire chapter you can currently read is number 10. The good news is that Chapters 11 through 14 are ready to go. The bad news is that they have to wait until Chapter 15 is done before I can launch them into the dark bowels of the interweb. So, back to work it is....

Ruben A. Hilbers (aka Commander Nash)

Post 100 !!!!

 Hello World !

So...this is my 100th post. But....euhm....well, not really. You see, this blog is used to be bigger. I used to rant and rave about...well, a lot of stuff. And then I forgot about this blog for a couple of years, before rebooting it as something a LOT more professional. And as part of that reboot, I threw out a dozens of old posts. So it would be fairer to say that this is me getting back to 100. Anyway....

Silence 

My old PC - and when I say old, I mean OLD - has been replaced. After a whopping seven years, it is gone. And with a new computer came new games. So I have been busy playing through The Outer Worlds - which two expansions - and the Mass Effect Trilogy (Legendary Edition). I've also replayed Wolfenstein: The New Colossus and Wolfenstein: Youngblood . So that's why haven't blogged for a while. But now I'm getting back to it. Which brings me to....

Other Stuff I'm Up To

Besides dusting off my blog, I've also written a letter to Robservations. Presented by Robert Meyer Burnett, Robservations is a show about popular culture on YouTube. And one of the features on the show is reading (and responding to) fan letters. So fingers crossed.

And by sharing this blog entry on Twitter, I can begin dusting off my Twitter feed as well. As for Facebook....well.....I tried that for a week once. It drove me nuts, so I quit and I'm never - ever - going back. I also don't have any other social media. Twitter is it for me. I also didn't install it on my phone, on purpose. Only having it on my PC make it easier to ignore.

Finally, I want to get back to writing Stargate: Dark Empire. I'll have to check my notes and read the last few chapters to get back into the zone. But the plan is to get back to it. 

That's it for now, folks,

Ruben A. Hilbers

Experimenting

Hi World,

Still alive and kicking. I'm trying to increase my internet visibility/notoriety. One thing I've been experimenting with is the new Clip function on YouTube. Okay, maybe experimenting is a big word. It's been more trying out and messing around. So far, I've managed to make two smalls clips. And for now, that's all, folks.

Ruben A. Hilbers

Clip 1

Clip 2

Dark Empire (Update)

Hello World,

Don't worry, I am not planning to take over the world. Way too much paperwork. Instead, I've update my Stargate fan-fiction story with FIVE new chapters. Here's the link:

Dark Empire

And that is where the good news end. At least for the Stargate fans. I'd love to continue writing more Dark Empire, but I need to focus on getting Chess Games in Cairo published. I also need to do a serious Public Relations push. Which I will admit, I totally suck at. It's the reason why I have only sold copies of my earlier books to family members so far. On the bright side, I do have a few ideas. 

But that's for another day and another post. For today, I'm outta here. Have a nice day.

Regards,

Ruben A. Hilbers

Dark Empire

Hello World,

My new fan-fiction story Stargate: Dark Empire is now up on Fanfiction.net. Here is the link:

Dark Empire 

So, what is this story about ? Well: 

Six months after the return of the Destiny Expedition, the Milky Way Galaxy has been plenty of changes for the better. But in the Pegasus Galaxy, a new threat is rising. Soon, Colonel Vale and the crew of Spera find themselves heading out to come to the aide of Atlantis and her allies...

And that's all for now,

Regards,

Ruben A. Hilbers

Back at It

 

Hello World,

With Chess Games in Cairo in the edit phase, I have more free time on my hands. Which made me realize that there was something wrong with Stargate Nova Roma. 

I finished the story of Destiny, I wrote new chapters in the story of the Milky Way galaxy. But where was the love for the Pegasus Galaxy ? 

That said, Stargate Universe - of which Nova Roma was a continuation - was supposed to be a five season deal. And Nova Roma was pretty well wrapped up. So I decided to start a new fan-fiction story to deal with the fate of Atlantis and the Pegasus Galaxy. 

That is the good news. The bad news is that I haven't posted anything on Fanfiction.net yet. I'm still working towards a nice cliffhanger to leave the first chunk of story on. Once I get there, I will post SEVERAL chapters and send out an update. 

That's all for now. 

Regards,

Ruben A. Hilbers

Busy with Volume Nr .3

 Hello World,

Okay, I have to admit that I am late. Two days late. The original plan was for this blog to be written on Sunday. But stuff happened and now it's Tuesday. Anyway, this weekend was nice and quiet. Which was fine with me. Because it gave me time to finish typing the last chunk of Chess Games in Cairo.

So, next is finding somebody to double-check the text for typo's, missing words and logic errors. At the same time, I'm looking for a picture for the cover. And finally, there is issue of the title...

Chess Games in Cairo is the working title, so I need to consider if I want to keep it or if I want to replay it. (And if I do, what the new title will be.) I'm also going to have to write the a blurb.

Finally, there is the issue of promotion and sales. Yeah, I'm not going to lie. I stink at promotion part and the sales are practically zero. But for anybody who suggests I should throw in the towel. *Points at picture* Enough said.

Anyway, that's all for today,

Ruben A. Hilbers

A Mini Update to my Blog

Hello World,

Yesterday, I realized something I've totally overlooked for years....my blog has is ninety-nine point nine percent text ! Which made me think...~Well, that's kind of boring.~ 

And at the same time, I needed to clean up my picture folder. So I decided to kill two birds with one stone and added some of the pictures to the blog entries before throwing them out. Which hopefully adds a bit more color to this blog.

And that's all for today, folks,

Ruben Hilbers

Edit: Also, this post puts me at 7 entries for 2021. Which tops the 6 that I wrote in 2020. Who knows ? Maybe one day I will pass the 27 record of 2018. 

Bits and Pieces, Vol .3

 Hello World,

So, it turns out that if you're writing a blog, it's really hard to keep from repeating titles. When I wrote on 18 March, I was pretty sure that Bits and Pieces was the first entry with that title. But when I came to my blog today, I ran into an amount of doubt. So I checked the archives. 

And there was an entry called Bits and Pieces from 2019. Fortunately, renaming is easy. So I turned that ancient post into Vol 1, with the recent ones becoming Vol .2 and Vol .3. Anyhoo, moving on....

Star Trek: Pathfinder

Dude, what's up with the autopsy table ? Well, this is my not so subtle way of saying that poor Pathfinder is dead. 

A Play-by-the-Email RPG based on Trek, Pathfinder has been zapping around the universe for years. Alas, the amount of emails/posts has been going down. 

And now, the decision has been made to pull the plug. So, Goodbye Pathfinder.

Chess Games in Cairo

I finished writing Chess Games in Cairo. With emphasis on writing. I still have to type a chunk of the book into my computer. And after that come the pre-publishing phase: Finding somebody to check it for typos, writing the blurb and creating the cover. 

So it will probably still be a while before it hits stores. But I'm getting closer. And pre-publishing phase gives me time to start researching and cooking up ideas for Vol 4 of the August Smith Adventures. 

Any way, that's it for today.

Regards,

Ruben Hilbers

Bits and Pieces, Vol .2

 

.....Starting with Star Trek: Pathfinder

Alas, things are not going to well for Star Trek: Pathfinder.  An old-fashioned Play-by-E-Mail RPG, this game tells the world about the adventures of the USS Pathfinder: A Vesta-class equipped with transwarp drive zipping around the Milky Way Galaxy in 2404. 

Alas, the amount of post/e-mails was not spectacular and I only have an X-amount of time and creativity to go around. So, after some serious consideration, I decided to quit. And with that, moving on to....

Blog Updates

To begin with, I changed the skin of the Blog to give things a stir. I've also changed the Battlestar Xanthi link so it doesn't just link to the Xanthi stories, but all of my Fanfiction.net work. Speaking of which, I had an NCIS story that was just not happening. So I deleted it. (I'll also have to give my Stargate: Nova Roma blog/site an overhaul some day. But not today.)

So if not NCIS...

....what am I working on ? Besides August novel #3, I'm also trying to rescue my second Space: 2029 episode (Earthbound) from the same fate as my NCIS story. And yes, that means I'm going to kill off Sean Bean (aka Commissioner Simmons) <G> Okay, not really, since it's just a (fan-fiction) story. 

And that's all I have for today,

Ruben Hilbers

Shameless Self-Promotion, Vol #2....

 ...Well, sort of. (Because I'm going to promote my family and friends instead)

When I began writing this, I vaguely remembered writing a post called Shameless Promotion once. So I did a search and found that I had indeed done so. So this because Volume 2. Well, sort of...

Because Ruben's Unwritten Rule NR. 1 is....."Never, ever, say you're a good writer." And never, ever PRESUME it either. Or as we Dutch say it..."Act normal, that's crazy enough." Don't toot your own horn. Because if you do, you're an arrogant schmuck. Case in Point...

Harry Mullisch

...the only writer I know to do that, was Harry Mullisch. And he was IMHO an arrogant schmuck. Why his books are still required reading in school, is beyond me. Reading Harry Mullisch sucks the run out reading like a Wraith Queen sucks the life out of the average Pegasus Galaxy native. So, let's quickly move on to the people I will be promoting. Starting with the...

Dutch Only Titles

Sorry, English people, these books are only available in Dutch. So, maybe press that fast forward button. Or not... ☺Up first....I am not the first Hilbers in my family to write a book. 

My grandfather Arie was a Vicar and wrote two theological books. "Bijbel and Arbeid." (The Bible and Work -1957) and "Een Goddelijk Beroep" (Divine Work -1962)  He passed back in 1990. But he's books are still out there. And I'll give you one guess what the A in Ruben A. Hilbers stands for. Anyway, moving on to....

My sister Rachel Kragt. (That's her married name) Rachel was in a musical called Vet! (Fat!) Aimed at school children, it was about food - healthy and otherwise - allergies, and even sneaking in a lesson or two about bullying. Alas, it been a couple of years. So I couldn't find a link. And finally...

My uncle Roel Steenbergen wrote a book about my cousin Martijn. "Martijn - Kroniek van een Asperger" (Martijn - Chronicle of an Asperger.) I could say a lot about this book, but in suspect that the translation of the title is telling enough. And it's time to get the English folks back onboard by moving on to...

English Only Titles

...the first English link on the list. Which is not to a book, but a CD. 

Made by my friend Richard Clogston, it is called...They'll Never Shut Us Up Beside leading his band, Richard is also an aspiring novelist. He has finished two novels and is cooking up his third - a sci-fi novel - right now. His novels haven't been published yet, but he's working on it. Updates as they occur.

I'm also pretty sure that Ann Montague has a novel out there. Alas, I couldn't find it. So you will have to settle for a link to her LinkedIn page. To wrap this up, I want to say that I met both Richard and Ann playing Star Trek: Pathfinder, a Star Trek Play-by E-mail RPG. 

And that's all I have for tonight,

Ruben A. Hilbers

Slowly Writing the Endgame

 Hello World,

I know it's been a while since I've posted. But in this case, it's actually a good thing. For that last couple of weeks I've been hard at work on Chess Games in Cairo. Which hasn't left me any time to work on the blog. So - like I said - a good thing. 

And when I did a recent page count, I discovered that I'm pretty close to the number of pages I wanted. This means that I'm down to writing the endgame of this chess game. Which means that I'm slowly approaching the editing process. But that's a headache for another time. 😜

What I do want to point out, is that Chess Games in Cairo is the working title. And that it'll probably get the chop. Buried Secrets spent the bulk of the writing process under the title Bullhorn. I've also begun looking for a picture for the cover. Anyhoo....

Shameless Self-Promotion

So I was watching a YouTube by Robert Meyer Burnett. Which inspired me to write him a letter about why I thought Star Trek: Discovery was and still is a bad show. That letter included a big excerpt from A Guy, Two Girls and a Serial Killer. And Mr. Burnett actually read it out loud ! And I want to share it with you all. So here's the link....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z8G7v1q7wTE

And that's all, folks...

Regards,

Ruben Hilbers

What do you mean....

 I have to much free time on my hands ? 

All I did was connect three universes....

Edit/Update: 

Okay, so this blog entry was kinda short. And I had a small update, which is figured was too small for a separate entry of it's own. So I decided to kill two birds with one stone and glue it onto her. Anyway, here we go...

Chess Games In Cairo

So, this project was frozen solid for months. But last Sunday, I spent a day working on the story and finally managed to get some traction again. And today, I've done some basic plotting of scenes. So, tomorrow, I'm going work on turning that skeleton into an actual chunk of story. 

When that it is done, I'll still have to type said chunk into the computer file. (Call me old-fashioned, but I believe writing should be done with pen-and-paper first.) Anyway, forward motion ! Yay !

Ruben A. Hilbers

Starting the New Year....

 ....With Bits and Pieces

Happy New Year Everybody ! 

Hopefully, this year will see things slowly morphing back to normal. (Or close to normal.) 

Meanwhile, I've been backing some stuff up. You see, this is not my only blog. I have another blog where I have a back-up for my Stargate Universe fan-fiction story. Fanfiction.net is a great site, but servers can crash. And the blog allows me to post some notes that Fanfiction.net doesn't. The problem was that said blog was missing a chunk of the story. But now it's all caught up until the end.

On the new story front, the first chapter of Space 2029 - Earthbound is up. Space 2029 is a re-imaging of Space: 1999 in the vein of Ronald D. Moore's re-imaging of Battlestar Galactica. Which brings me to my next subject...namely, this....

https://trekmovie.com/2014/07/29/ron-moore-ponders-possible-future-star-trek-tv-series-recalls-trek-experiences-more-in-reddit-ama/

If you scroll all the way to be bottom, you will see that Mr. Moore wanted to redo Space: 1999, but didn't know how to do it. As for me...

Well, I have an idea. (And a script that can be found at Fanfiction.net as Space 2029 - Breakaway.) But I'm not Ronald D. Moore, I have zero connections in Hollywood. I'm just a Dutch wannabee, who wrote two novels. But I figure that the worst that can happen, is that nothing happens. So I'm going to see if I can poke the bear.

Finally, things over at Star Trek: Pathfinder are looking up again. We ended up with 21 posts in December. We've had busier months, but I'm not complaining. Anyway, that's it for today.

Ruben A. Hilbers