Life in progress


by 29 Comments

On Printing a Manuscript

I’m so frustrated! All morning I put off printing off my manuscript (the older one, not my new NaNoWriMo project) which is 503 pages long. I’ve been going through WordPress themes, delivering newspapers, eating… generally doing everything I could to procrastinate. Finally, I said, ‘That’s it! I’m going to do it!’ (Yes, I talk to myself when I’m alone.)

So I went into the room where the printer is, and got started. Two hundred and fifty pages and I ran out of ink in an almost brand new cartridge. 250 pages! This thing is going to cost me $70 to print… and that’s just a draft!!

Who knew writing could be so bloody expensive?

So, my novelist buddies out there in WordPress land, and anyone else who prints vast amounts of text for whatever reason, do you take care of your own printing needs on your home printer? Or do you take it to a professional?

And either way, how do you afford to write?
Ugh.

Blog post of December 3rd, in honour of Every Damn Day December. Check it out! It’s not too late to join in!

 


by 51 Comments

New Theme

I’m just trying this out for now. If I decide I like it, I may pay the $30 so I can change the colours and the fonts.

Thoughts? Opinions? Is the darker background and the lighter text easy enough to read?

 

 

 


by 23 Comments

Adventures on my Paper Route – Danger!

So I was walking across the main road that’s on my paper route when I passed over this for the first time:

danger

There I was, standing in the middle of the road, wondering why they would print the word “Danger” on a manhole cover. It’s in the middle of the road! Cars drive over it all the time! So I took this picture.

Luckily, I got out of the way before a car came.

Blog post of December 2nd, in honour of Every Damn Day December. Check it out! It’s not too late to join in!


by 43 Comments

Every Damned Day December

In honour of my new friend, Dylan Dailey, I am going to attempt to write a blog post every day in December. It’s not going to be easy, what with Christmas coming and having the family to take care of, but what the heck. If I can make it through NaNoWriMo, why not EvDaDaDec?

Who else is with me?

You can find Dylan’s blog here : http://treatmentofvisions.com/

Let’s do this thing!


by 28 Comments

Finished!

I just finished NaNoWriMo! 😀

For the record the novel did, indeed, end with a bang. Did everyone die? You’ll have to read it to find out.

*cue evil laughter*

Okay, time for a happy dance!

2013-Winner-Facebook-Cover


by 47 Comments

Na – Nooooooo!

Is it a good sign that I want to blow up everyone in my NaNoWriMo novel? I’m thinking a nice gas explosion would come in handy right about now. Unfortunately that would mean killing off the narrator. I doubt that would go over well in most literary circles.

I think the most creative way I’ve written for anyone to die has to be my story of the unluckiest man alive:

http://neverendingstorydepository.wordpress.com/2013/07/08/unluckiest-man-alive-dies/

What’s yours?


by 4 Comments

My Short Story

In case anyone is interested, and because I promised I’d post it, I thought I’d let you know that the short story I wrote for my course is up on The Community Storyboard.

http://neverendingstorydepository.wordpress.com/2013/11/27/7853/

It’s the story of a man who lives an alternate lifestyle, who is faced with suddenly having to look after his ailing parent.

I received a 26/28 for the unedited version – what you’ll see is the edited version, which I submitted to my professor today for my final mark. Feedback is welcome and appreciated.


by 43 Comments

Constant

Never a dull moment, they say. And here, in my life, it’s true.

I just walked into the room which houses my main household computer to find a hole in the wall. My autistic son has learned not to put his fist through the window, it seems. That was so two years ago. And now there is one more thing to add to the list of repairs on my house.

We’ve been through the behavioural training. I’ve been told over and over again to ignore the behaviour I don’t like and pay attention and praise the behaviour I wish to continue. But I can’t be with him all the time. This is what happens, apparently, when I ignore the yelling. Most of the time it actually works. Once in a while, I pay the consequences.

It’s an ongoing struggle. I’m sad to think that I might not always be able to take care of him on my own, but it’s a fact I have to face. He needs the influence of a man in his life – he’s eighteen years old. I don’t have one for him, and his father not only lives elsewhere, but that elsewhere is now hours away instead of across town where he lived up until this summer.

Sometimes I feel like I do nothing. I can spend hours some days, just writing. Other days I’m completely overwhelmed. Least of all is the stress of not knowing what’s coming next.

Such is life with an autistic child…. adult.


by 5 Comments

Legends of Windemere: Allure of the Gypsies Cover Reveal!

allure-final-cover

Cover art – Jason Pedersen

Book Title–  Legends of Windemere: Allure of the Gypsies

Book Blurb– The epic adventures of Luke Callindor and Nyx continue after their journey down the L’Dandrin River in Legends of Windemere: Prodigy of Rainbow Tower.

Reeling from his failures in their previous adventure, Luke leads his surviving friends to his hometown.  With his mind frayed and his confidence fractured, Luke must face the family and fiancée he left behind.  It is a brief homecoming when the vampire Kalam attacks the village, forcing Luke and Nyx to break into his lair for the key to resurrecting a fallen warrior.  It is a quest that will force both young heroes to reach new heights of strength and power that they never knew they had.

 Can Luke and Nyx escape the lair of Kalam?  And, what role will the orphaned gypsy Sari play in their looming destiny?

Release Date–  December 1st, 2013

Previous Books–

Beginning of a Hero-  http://www.amazon.com/Beginning-Hero-Legends-Windemere-ebook/dp/B00BL9GBU2/

Prodigy of Rainbow Tower-  http://www.amazon.com/Prodigy-Rainbow-Legends-Windemere-ebook/dp/B00E8WUD5S/

Cover Artist Info–  Jason Pedersen http://www.jasonpedersen.com/

Author Bio – Charles Yallowitz was born and raised on Long Island, NY, but he has spent most of his life wandering his own imagination in a blissful haze. Occasionally, he would return from this world for the necessities such as food, showers, and Saturday morning cartoons. One day he returned from his imagination and decided he would share his stories with the world. After his wife decided that she was tired of hearing the same stories repeatedly, she convinced him that it would make more sense to follow his dream of being a fantasy author. So, locked within the house under orders to shut up and get to work, Charles brings you Legends of Windemere. He looks forward to sharing all of his stories with you and his wife is happy he finally has someone else to play with.

Go to Charles Yallowitz’s blog: www.legendsofwindemere.com


by 12 Comments

The Healing Power of Vitamin C

Every once in a while I come across an opinion piece in the newspaper or on the internet, stating the importance of Vitamin C in preventing and even curing illnesses. By far the most astounding account of it is this:

http://www.sott.net/article/256313-Did-Liposomal-Vitamin-C-cure-cancer

in which Vitamin C was apparently proven to cure leukemia in a child. The data is actually quite convincing.

I stumbled across the concept by accident years ago, when I realized that if someone else in the house had a cold, or if I felt the beginnings of one in myself, if I took at least a 1,000mg (1 gram) pill, I could avoid the cold altogether. This didn’t work, however, when we all had H1N1, but then again, according to the article, maybe I just didn’t take enough.

It seems to me that there’s enough evidence that Vitamin C works, that it brings up once again the subject of the big pharmaceutical companies having the monopoly over the market, and that doctors are perpetrating their hold on our wallets.

Nevertheless, I urge anyone who hasn’t already to try taking 500 – 1,500mg per day, in the case of the common cold. You can’t, from what I understand, overdose on Vitamin C, though it is thought best to be taken throughout the day rather than in one large dose, as anything more than is necessary for your weight and size will just go straight through.

It’s cheap and it works. On what, we have to trust the “experts.”