Madness, Space and LinkedIn.....

 ....thrown together.

(Because otherwise this would be a really short blog)

Hello world,

So......I'm updating this blog and getting my brain away from my day job. Because, well...

I'll spare you the boring details, but my day job is the mail/post business. And with Christmas coming up, the craze has REALLY hit home. And with another four working days to go, I really needed to get away from work. And with all this insanity going on, there hasn't been much energy to spare for my writing. But it is not all bad news, because....

There's Space: 2029 and other writings

Episode 1 - Breakaway is done. Further more, the first chapter on Episode 2 - Earthbound - is on Fanfiction.net. On another front, the writing rate of the Star Trek RPG I'm a member off - and tells the adventures of the USS Pathfinder and her crew - had tanked. 

October was a utter disaster with only one mail....November was a slight improvement with four mails and this month has seen ten mails so far. And I get the sense that there are a few left in the pipeline. So, we're on our way to recovery. Yay !

And moving on to...

LinkedIn

...where my profile page has been gathering dust for quite a while now. How come ? Because, frankly, I don't use it. So why do I have it ? It's not like I'm looking for new job. And even if I was, using LinkedIn for that is iffy. So to answer the question. "To look like a professional." And it was nice, free way to increase my internet footprint. 

So, after this blog is done, I am going to update it. Maybe try to knock out an article. And with that, I'll stop booooooriiing all of you. I know, my blog isn't big, spectacular or exciting, just....average and tiny bit dull. But that's life for most people, especially in these Covid-times. On the bright side, that gives me time to continue watching Space 1999 and my ER Season 1 rewatch. Laters !

Ruben A. Hilbers

Dusting this puppy off....

 ...after several months of inactivity

 To begin with.....

 

TRUMP

 

Sanity and loyalty have prevailed in the US. Donald Trump can deny it until he's blue in the face, but he LOST the election and that is that. He's been losing one legal case after the other, simply because all this fraud claim are bogus. 

And that is probably just the beginning of his (legal) troubles. Before he was elected, Trump was at the receiving end of a ton of accusations. Soon, he will no longer have the White House to shield him from these and he will have to deal with them. Sucks to be him. Anyhoo, moving on to....

STARGATE UNIVERSE AND SPACE: 2029

My fan fiction continuation of Stargate Universe is done. And nope....I am not saying what the signal hidden in Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation means. You'll just have to go and read it on Fanfiction.net. As for what is now swallowing up my time....

 

Space 2029 is a reimaging of Space: 1999. I'm not going to redo the whole show, just the pilot - Breakaway - and the first regular episode - Earthbound - with each being an entry/story in the Fanfiction.net database. 

As an experiment, I'm began writing Breakaway in a different format as usual. Instead of using the Play-by E-Mail (RPG) format that I usually use, it is written as a television script. Which IMHO is REALLY  annoying. So for Earthbound, I am going to back to the PbEM format. So, why finish Breakaway in the television format ? Because I'm seriously considering sending it...somewhere, to somebody....

 

(I haven't figured out where/to who that would be, so stay tuned for that....) I figure that the worst (and most likely) thing that could/will happen, is that it ends in somebody's paper shredder. Finally, there is....

Space 2029 Casting

Scarlett Johansson as Commander Joan Koenig

Why a female Commander Koenig ? Simple, I heard behind the scenes stories that Martin Landau was an enormous pain-in-the ass during the making of Space: 1999. The dude had a HUGE EGO. So I was looking for somebody who was the polar opposite of that. And while I was brewing up the idea of Space: 2029 I saw an interview with Scarlett Johansson. Which made me think....yep, that's the kind of actress this project needs.

George Clooney as Captain Alan Carter

Ian McKellen as Doctor Victor Bergman

Hello, we're talking George Clooney and Ian McKellen here. Enough said. And finally....

Sean Bean as Commissioner Simmons

Have a character that you are going kill off ? Maybe in some gruesome fashion ? At or near the start of the series ? Cast Sean Bean. Who else are you going to cast ? And....

 

...That's all I have for now,

Ruben Hilbers

Trump

Hello World,

So, it's been a while since I've posted....and especially about politics. But recent event in the US....well, I can't just sit back and watch. I am not a fan of Donald Trump. In fact, I loath the man. I cannot watch him and wonder....

Is this the America the Founding Father's fought for ? The America that people lost fathers, husbands and brothers for ? And daughters, wives and sisters ? Rode into the hell of war across the centuries ? Wars of independence ? Civil Wars, World Wars ? Korea ? Vietnam ? And the only answer I can come up with is.....No, no, no !

Did the colonist on the Mayflower come over to trade one tyranny for another ? Is this what the thirteen colonies broke away from Great Britain for ? The history of America is a history of struggle, strife and sacrifice. All done to build a nation that was supposed to be fair, that was supposed to be free. 

Is America perfect.....absolutely not. Does American have clean hands.....no. There are some pretty nasty black pages in the American history books. Especially regarding the treatment of the Native Americans. But it deserves better then to be stabbed in the back.

And in my opinion, to vote for Trump is a betrayal. Against America, against the principles it was founded on and against those who gave their last full measure to defend both.

Ruben Hilbers

Still alive and kicking

Hello World,

Let's get this show on the road...

Corona Virus

To begin with, I am very happy to report that so far, I have not gotten sick. Knocks on wood. And my day job is still going strong. Which has helped me keep sane in these crazy times. And the less said about it, the better. So, moving on to....

Chess Games in Cairo

My third novel was stuck for some time. But recently, I was able to get things moving again. And today, I was able to type a large chunk of it. Call me old-fashioned, but I write my story on paper first and then I type it into my computer. I've also create a list of scenes that I want to write next, so with a bit of luck - crosses fingers - I should be able to write the next chunk as well. Speaking of writing, I am also working on....

Stargate Universe

Season Five has begun. I have posted Chapter 1 through 5 a while back. And I'm working on the next big chunk of the story to publish. Which will be Chapters 6 through 10. After that, I intend to go back to publishing one chapter at a time. Until I reach Chapter 15, which will be the mid-season cliffhanger.

I've also figured out what the signal means, but I am not saying. You'll just have to read my fan-fiction to discover the conclusion of Destiny's adventures.

And that's all I have for today.
Stay safe,

Ruben A. Hilbers

Removing dust....

....And Doing Research

Novels

So, my novel has not been going forward for a while. Until now, the only research material I've had was a map of Cairo. So on Monday I went to a local bookstore and got a travel guide on Egypt with a big chapter on Cairo.

And today I dusted off my YouTube account and began gathering documentaries on Cairo. Which also gave me an excuse to upgrade my 'about' page on the site. So I did. Anyhoo, moving on to....

Stargate Nova Roma (Stargate Universe Continuation)

Last week, I ran a poll on Twitter. Stargate Universe was originally meant to be five seasons long. And I have written both Season Three and Season Four. So I asked if I should stick to the original plan or not. Only four people voted, but three of them voted for sticking with the original plan. Hence, sticking with the original plan it is.

And that raised the question....how to wrap things up in one season ? Fortunately, I had some ideas floating around. And today, I anchored all of those on paper. So I am now ready to get to work on write Chapter One of Season Five.

And that's all for today.

Regards,

Ruben Hilbers

New Year, New Post....

And hopefully a fresh batch of inspiration

Hello World,

To begin with....Happy New Year !

Novel

My novel inspiration has been in the pits for the last quarter of 2019, but I did manage to write a few pages. Which I added to the manuscript today. (I know that it's old-fashioned, but I prefer to write pen and paper first and then turn that into a Word file.) So there is forward motion. Not much, but I'll take what I can get. What has been going forward at warp speed, however is....

Stargate Nova Roma (Universe Continuation)

November and December have been really busy of this front. Between the two of them, I have written Chapters 21 through 30. This means that Stargate Universe Season 4 is now complete. So the plan is for Stargate to go on hiatus and see if I can get my novel going again. Speaking of lack of inspiration...

Star Trek Pathfinder

....has not been going that fast as well either. Hopefully, things will pick up soon.

And that's all, folks,

Ruben A. Hilbers