Trophies!

Blog No. 313

I bought a new phone. I’d been on the fence for some months, ogling the latest models until they became the old models and using a phone that (while getting slower and more finicky) was still usable. I probably could have held out longer, but in the world of mobile phone technology, the difference between cutting edge, obsolete, and a third category that I can best describe as what happens when companies put their eggs in the wrong basket, I found something that seemed like a good bet that wouldn’t make getting Christmas gifts for people a stretch. I went with an LG G7 One, which is a phone with mostly last year’s guts and some features that are more cutting edge. It’s considered a mid-range device, but it comes with basically stock Android and comes closest to a modern version of the phone I liked most (the Nexus 5).

All that means nothing, but the mid-range phone still cost a bunch of money and roped me into another two year contract. I’m happy with it so far. It’s new and has some neat and useful features while still feeling a lot like my old phone (but snappier). The only way any of this has anything to do with my writing is that I am telling myself that the new phone with a better camera will be helpful with all the events I do (and possibly be helpful for the social media stuff I hate to do). I have no idea how much of that is true, but not dealing with my old phone’s growing quirks is a treat. And now that some of the events I hope to continue to attend are being announced (like Shock Stock 2019) the imaginary need is stronger that ever.

Speaking of Shock Stock. Since Thinking Machine came out last year just in time for Shock Stock, I’m going to try to release The Neon Heart for this years Shock Stock. It’s a little sooner than I originally wanted, but not too far off the mark. Also, going to a lot of these events yearly without a new book is a guaranteed money loser. While it’s nice to go to these things, breaking even is even nicer. Again, since Shock Stock was the beginning of the cycle for my Novella series, I’m going to use it for my release schedule. That leaves just about five months to edit, design, layout, and print The Neon Heart. Certainly doable and more time than I left myself for The Thinking Machine. (Neon Heart is significantly longer, though).

With a schedule in place (that I am constructing now) I expect to have a trouble free editing experience. I just have to get through the last few weeks of the day job before we get a break for the season. (Since I work at an event facility, the week and a bit between Christmas Eve and New Year Day we are only open for a couple of rentals, so I get an unpaid vacation). I also have to get through next week’s ChiSeries Fundraiser. I still haven’t seen a lot of signups and that makes me a little worried. Christian and I have gone all out to make it a fun night, but if the people aren’t there, we have nothing. I’m at the point where I’m about to strong arm some folks into signing up. Are you going to be there? You should do a reading and possibly win a trophy. As it stands, your odds are amazing!