Greetings ! This is my website, where I provide updates on my writing projects. This includes professional work(s) and fan-fiction based on existing franchises.
My third novel, Chess Games in Cairo, has been published. It is now available as an E-book and as a paperback novel. If your internet holds together long enough - are you still stranded on that island ? - you should be able to see that I've posted the links already.
(By the way, it's been ages since I've gotten a letter from you. Are you okay ?)
Like the two novels that came before it, this one is an entry in the August Smith series. With this book out the door, so to speak, I'm going to have to cook up something new. That novel is still peculating, but I have already figured out that it will not be an August Smith book.
How are things going on your tropical island ? Any closer to getting back to civilization ? Sorry that I didn't write for a while, but there hasn't been anything to report. The good news is that I am finally dusting off some stuff. Starting with this blog, duh 😜
I also dusted off my Twitter account, which need some love and attention. Killing two birds with one stone, I clipped two YouTube clips and shared them on Twitter. This not only gave my Twitter the love it needed, but removed some of the centimeters of dust on my YouTube page. Speaking of which...
YouTube Page
Besides the two clips, I also reviewed my playlists and found that some of the videos were no longer valid. So I found replacements and made the lists complete again. And between my previous letter and this one, I also updated my list of research videos. But if I really want to make it a thing, I'd have to record videos of my own. Thing is, yours truly is camera shy. So I'm going to have to think about how to do that. Moving on to...
Writing
It's been a rocky couple of weeks, but I've still managed to scrape together time to put a large chunk my next project on paper. As for what it's about....keeping that under wraps. *Insert evil snicker here* I'm also not labeling this blog post with writing, because I'm continuing to try balancing out my post numbers a bit. And...that's all I have for today,
How are things going on your end ? Things have been wonderfully average here. It is easy to complain about the average-ness of your life, but I am cherishing it right now. No dramas, no major problems and no war. How fragile things are in life. Moving on to...
Robservations
I used to write-in to Robert Meyer Burnett and his Robservations show (on YouTube). But I have decided to stop. Mr. Burnett made some changes that made it impossible for me to watch his shows life. Which turned a fun activity into a chore. (Partially because it locked me out of the chat.) It also ruined the Discord chat for me. So I left and wrote Mr. Burnett a letter saying that I was out. Speaking of writing...
Rewriting
I finished the corrections on Chess Games in Cairo. The good news is that they take as didn't long as I expected. The bad news is that they covered only a third of the novel. So now I'm trying to get my editor to give me notes on the rest of it. (I don't have an official editor, just a friend who did me a favor. So I'm keeping my fingers crossed that he'll have time to read the rest.)
MGM/Amazon Deal
Meanwhile, it turned out that my decision to stop writing Stargate fan-fiction was indeed well-timed. The MGM/Amazon deal was approved by the EU this week and the Federal Trade Commission led the deadline for acting action lapse. The thing is.....they were missing a member.
This is because his appointment is deadlocked in some committee. So they didn't really have a choice. For once, bureaucracy and political infighting actually worked in favor of a fandom. So I am not complaining. Now all the fans - including yours truly - have to do, is poke Amazon into making new Stargate.
It's been a while since I've written a letter. February has been short, but also stormy. And that has been in more ways then one. The Netherlands was hit by three storms in the early days of the month. Fortunately, my apartment came through in one piece. But the current "storm" unfoldingin the Ukraine is far worse and darker. Which brings me to...
My Day Job
I normally don't bore people with my day job. I pay the rent and other bills with euros earned at Cycloon Post. In the morning, I push paper and my afternoon is spent doing work with the sorting team. First I do set-up and then I pitch in. Anyway, we stopped sending packages to Russia and Ukraine this week. And something tells me that this is just the start of the war leaking in...
Fan Fiction and other writing
Tomorrow, I'll start the Chess Games in Cairo rewrite. Today, I'm going to enjoy some down time playing Mass Effect 3.I'm almost done, so I'm hoping that I should be able to finish it today.
On the fan fiction front, I have finished Stargate: Dark Empire and replaced it by Space: 2029 - Earthbound.
But with the rewrite taking up most on my time, this new project will be on the back burner.
Next Letter
And that's all I have for now. I do have some things in the incubator in the back of my mind. They're not ready to discuss yet. But with a bit of luck, it won't be another month before my next letter/entry is written.
A while back, I told you how Star Trek was in major trouble. Guess what, things are not getting better. So, what has been happening on that front ? Well, here is what I can tell you...
Halo Show
The Halo show has begun putting out trailers and if the show is half as good as the trailer(s), the Star Trek: Discovery is in major trouble. Because Halo is SO going to bury Disco when it comes to ratings and reviews. Speaking of trouble....
Quantum Leap
Peacock is not doing well, so NBC needs a big show. And maybe, just maybe that is why they gave approval for a Quantum Leap reboot. Right now, they have only opened the door for a pilot. But if it gets an season order, that's another competitor for Star Trek. Meanwhile, over at the BBC...
Doctor Who
There is an odd rumor going around that David Tennant - aka, the 10th doctor - is going to come back and become the 14th doctor after Jodie Whitaker leaves. I don't think it's going to happen, but it's the first time in ages that Dr. Who has had a positive buzz going on. Which proves that it can still happen. And if Russell T. Davis plays his cards right, Doctor Who is going to be a serious threat to Trek.
The CW/Discovery+
Circling back to streaming services not doing well, this includes the CW and Discovery+. Discovery+ is Warner and the CW is half Warner-and half CBS. This seems like a problem for the Babylon 5 reboot, but it might not be as bad as you think. Because the B5 reboot is still in development.
And because Warner owns the rights, there is nothing to keep them from selling their shares in the CW and then simply putting B5 on HBO Max instead. (As their new Science Fiction heavy hitter.) They could even use the money from selling the shares to pay for Babylon 5 (and its start-up costs).
Also, if I was pushing the buttons at Warner, I would fold Discovery+ into HBO Max to fatten up its catalogue of shows and take everything successful from the CW, while cancelling Naomi and Batwoman. (Which are both suffering horrible ratings and reviews.)
All in all, with the right manager behind the driving wheel, Babylon 5 is far from out of the picture. What is out of the picture, is....
Star Trek: Picard
After Season 3, Picard is done. They make it sound like this was the plan all along, but I'm not buying it. You see, a while back, Netflix sued Secret Hideout for the right to send them packing after Discovery Season 3. They won the lawsuit and did just that.
So CBS had no other choice but to buyback the right to Discovery and move it to Paramount+ But after they did so, they tried to spin it as if it was part of their plans for Paramount+ But it wasn't. They HAD to do that.
Hence, I don't buy this "It was always planned" bit for a second. I think Amazon Prime followed Netflix's example and send them packing. I think they are replacing Trek by either Mass Effect, (new) Stargate or both (at the same time).
It's been a while, but here we are again. So what I've been up to ? Well, here we go, starting with....
Star Trek
Nothing much happening on that front. I left Pathfinder and I've stopped watching Trek. Speaking of which, Rotten Tomatoes has stopped shielding Star Trek: Discovery and it went from 24 percent to 19. Ouch !
So, moving on to...
Writing Novels
Sorry, folks, but.....that is another front where not much is happening. I had a friend take a critical look at Chess Game in Cairo and he gave me some notes that made it clear that I need to do some (possibly major) rewriting. Alas, my inspiration has been in another place, which is my bridge to...
Stargate: Dark Empire
This is where things have been going strong. Currently, Dark Empire has 20 chapters up for reading. And I have 5 more chapters ready to go. I'm working on Chapter 26 and once that is done, Dark Empire is going to get a major update.
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...
