Feliz Año! If I don't include the tilde above the 'n' this post heading would mean 'Happy Anus'.

We're now 17 days into 2020! As noted back in September, I had a bunch of irons in the fire...so what's going on right now? As often happens, I end up doing a bunch of creative stuff so that one or more things fall by the wayside (due to time, mainly). However, I've been full steam ahead with Cardboard Dead Boy the last few months. 

MUSIC

My music isn't on Spotify etc any more because of the cost, but once I've got enough new material I'll be flooding the internet with CDB again YOU'D BETTER BELIEVE IT.

I've mostly been REMIXING. This gives me a) a chance to practice writing jazz beatz and b) brings my music to a new audience. If you'd like to be part of that audience, point your eyes and ears HERE.

WRITING

The main reason I started this blog way back in, I think, 2009(!) was to showcase any and all stories I had published. I haven't had a lot of time in the last few years, for various reasons, to focus on writing, but that doesn't change the fact I've had almost thirty stories published - many in anthologies. Click the Amazon Author link over there --> and you'll find a bunch still available! 

My current plan, and one I've been very steadily working on, is to rewrite/clean up a bunch of my previously published stories that are now out-of-contract, and stick them in a new collection. I don't have a deadline for this, but probably should so it lights a fire under my arse. So let's say...February 29th 2020*. If we're living in a leap year, might as well do something a little weird on that extra day.

One thing that slows me down in this regard is, ironically enough, a writing job I've picked up so as to bring a bit of money in whilst I'm a stay-at-home dad. It's articles, on a variety of subjects, and it is pretty interesting. Just yesterday I looked at the legalization of marijuana, and last week I researched NFL injuries. Two things I couldn't care less about, yet I still found something interesting about them both.

This job entails running articles through various services to check grammar, etc. One of those is Hemingway. I know these kinds of 'writing style' apps have gained more popularity in recent years, but I hate them. They grade your writing on an arbitrary scale that does not take into account your writer's voice, language and grammar differences (and believe me, after teaching English as a foreign language the last few years, there are plenty of differences to take into account).

*the thing that slows me down the most is that I want to include a brand new novella, but it's not finished and may not be for a while. I'm writing it with very little planning, to see what comes out. So far, some really weird stuff and I think it's shaping up nicely. I'm also looking at self-publishing a novel, but I kind of don't want to do this until I can get a solid marketing plan into action.

The other thing to take into account when submitting stories is that it takes a while. Ideally, you should give yourself a full day to research and hit up a bunch of suitable markets. It becomes a full-time job in itself. I'm also aware that, when I started getting things published, I was caught in a perfect storm. I joined a couple of really supportive networks (Cafe Doom and the Library of the Living Dead) and benefited from that immensely. Both those networks technically still exist, but time has done what it must to all things and weathered them away to a shadow of their former selves.

Anyway, before I start getting maudlin, let's have a look at:

GAMES

I haven't worked on any video games since September last year. To be honest, I think I needed to give myself a bit of break from this because I was pouring a ton of time and effort into it that I really should have used on music/writing. 

Again, the aim is still to have an actual game finished and (hopefully) available in various online stores, but I'm going to really take my time with this one. My writing should and will take precedence. 

And that's your lot!

A WHOLE YEAR!?!?!?!

Honestly, I'm as surprised as you are.

I originally started this blog so I had a regular place to talk about all my creative endeavours, especially writing. Over the years, I also talked about music, travel, films...all kinds of things. Since moving to Colombia at the start of 2017 to, quite literally, start a new life, my writing had to take a backseat to my day job (teaching English). I still did it, but not as much (it 'helped', that before Colombia, I was largely unemployed for two years, so time to write was a luxury I had).

Then, last March, I started a different teaching job with substantially more hours. My writing basically dried up, not because I didn't feel creative, but because my creativity was being channeled into making videogames and music - and also trying to find time for writing would have been too much to take on. So writing faded into the background.

BUT NOW! My oh my. I recently had a baby. I mean, I didn't literally pop him out - you can thank my partner for that - but I helped make him. I'm looking at becoming a stay-at-home dad, at least for a bit. This means, for the first time in nearly three years (and somewhat ironically, given that newborn babies are a handful and supposed to take up a lot of your time), I'll have time to spend writing.

I'll still be working on videogames and music, but I'm learning to manage my time with these activities, too. For instance, for the last year or so, I've been hammering away at 'game jams', which are themed competitions (usually just for fun) that are designed to encourage creativity in a short space of time. I really enjoy doing these, but it would be nuts of me to try to keep doing them, so instead I'm going to focus on completing one or two games in order to release them properly (ie. retail, on sites such as Itch and Steam). You can eyeball everything I've done so far HERE! [Cube Road is the main game I'm working on right now].

Music-wise, writing this for games has itself been a fun challenge. I've steadily been working on new Cardboard Dead Boy stuff, which I'd like to release by November but we'll see how that goes. For now, you can stick your eyeballs HERE for new stuff (which there will be sooooooooooooooon).

And now back to the writing. I'm in the process of compiling details of all my publications to date, as well as reviews (of which I've had a very nice amount of positive ones). Before Colombia, I also edited/formatted novels/anthologies, so I'd like to get back into that, too. I'll update this blog soon with details related to this. Fiction-wise, I'm looking at dipping my toes into the murky waters of self-publishing. I mean, I've been self-publishing my music for years, so why not my writing? All my previously published stuff is now out of contract and/or (sadly) some of the publishers no longer exist, so the plan is to take a bunch of these, tweak them (since I now have a much stronger grasp of grammar, thanks to the day job) and include them with new stories. The theme(s) will be smalltown horror/interdimensional apocalypses/collapsing realities. More news on this SOOOOOOOOOOOOOON!!!!

And that's ya lot FOR NOW. If you're a writer and/or interested in hiring me for editing, please email wayne(dot)goodchild(at)virgin(dot)net. Cheers!

"IF YOU'RE A WRITER, WHY HAVE I NEVER HEARD OF YOU?"

Hello, chums.

I recently met a bunch of new people and once they found out I was a writer, they asked “Have you written anything I'd have heard of?”

How the hell do you respond to this?

I've been asked variations of this over the last few years, and I typically end up trying to explain that yes, I am published, no I'm not self-published, yes the books I'm in are widely available, no they're not my books they're anthologies...but I have compiled and edited anthologies and novels. Yes, these are widely available, no you probably haven't heard of the writers/publishers unless you run in those circles. Every conversation ends the same, where I relent to succinct self-promotion and tell them to “Google Wayne Goodchild. I should be the top result, or near the top.”

Likewise, if people ever ask me if I've written/published a novel, I say no, because although I've written a full one (that I shop around every so often and have received legitimate decent feedback on) and I'm actively working on another, the fact remains absolutely anyone in the world can and probably has at some point 'worked on a novel'. You don't need to be an actual writer to have written one. I know a few people who think of themselves as writers (or used to) without ever actually getting published. It's like saying you're an artist but never showing anyone your paintings – maybe you're really good, but if you don't do anything with your work, you're just full of hot air.

Speaking of hot air, I've run out of steam (ooo, nice segue!) in recent years regarding writing. I started taking it seriously in the first place because I found myself unemployed and with a ton of time on my hands. I chose to make productive use of this time by hammering away at stories to, hopefully, sell. Now, six years later I have a sizeable number of publication credits under my belt and, although I won't feel like it until I've had either my own work published or paid pro rates, I'm a professional writer. NAME DROP ALERT: when I attended the book signing for Phobophobia in London at the end of 2011, I told Jonathan Green I didn't feel like a professional writer and couldn't believe my luck that I was in a book alongside such writers as himself, Simon Kurt Unsworth and William Meikle. Jonathan very kindly pointed out that they're classed as professional writers, so if I'm in a book with them, it stands to reason I must be too.

Anyway, I've always had a fear of losing momentum. And I have/did. In communication with other writers, I know this is a common occurrence, and it has less to do with writers block and more to do with life getting in the way. I'm unemployed again and close to getting married, and at this moment in time have no idea what country I'll be living in by the end of this year, so naturally my focus is all shot to pieces. However, I'm taking great pains to use my free time and channel recent experiences/problems into writing. It is and always has been a very cathartic experience for me, as I'm sure it is for other writers/artists/etc. I've always maintained that if I can't create I'll die, metaphysically speaking. It's why you'll likely never find me in an office job (if I can help it).

So what ARE you working on, Wayne? Well, I'm glad you asked. Two main things, right now: an ostensibly 'sci-fi' novel that is actually every single genre at once and a 'sci-fi' novella that starts as an absurd satire before morphing into something a hell of a lot more sinister. The novel is some way references pretty much everything I've had published before, and the novella will be the final story in a short story collection. This collection could be my first attempt at dipping my toes in the murky waters of self-publishing, but only because most of the stories have been previously/legitimately published (by independent presses that have unfortunately folded). All the stories will be in some way tweaked and likely bookended by a few brand new ones. It'll also be presented chronologically, with stories starting in the 1860s and ending in the latter half of this century. Someone pointed out to me that my 'speciality' seems to be 'small town horror', plus unrelentingly bleak endings. The collection will have both of these in abundance. Yippee!

LET'S GET THE FIRST BUS OUTTA HERE

Almost everyone hates their hometown, sometimes because it's a dead-end town, sometimes because it's a case of familiarity breeds contempt. There are other reasons too, but I think those're probably the main ones. Scunthorpe is a cesspit, with the main industry being provided by the steel works. But even this huge complex, that I have a lovely view of from my bedroom since it's less than a mile from my house, is dying. The whole town is dying.

Yet, I don't mind being back here. There's countryside literally at the end of my street, and a massive lake near my house, that used to be a quarry (so it's impossibly deep). Plus, my main group of friends are all here, and I have a cool job in an art gallery. Not to say I intend to spend the rest of my life here; I'm not mentally ill.

I've been considering the "unpublishable story" angle recently. I don't mean something that's controversial or anything like that, but rather a story that's an awkward length (like 9000 words) or combines genres that don't typically go together/aren't popular. Where can these stories find a home? Unless you're lucky enough to find a niche market or open-minded zine: nowhere.

For a while now I've toyed with the idea of putting together a short story collection, with a solid central theme. I don't know how "easy" something like this is to get published - I think it's 50/50 as to whether someone wants it or not...never mind if they actually like the style/genres. Anyway, if I use some of the "unpublishable" stories I've been polishing, I have something that's around 45K words. My aim to have double that word count, with a total of 13 stories, and I think I can do it. Since I'm struggling to get anywhere with my novel (thanks to it being a strange format and 'unpopular' style) I'm going to get this collection sorted and see what happens. It appears my niche is 'small town horror' so that'll be the central theme. Lord knows I've experienced enough of it where I live.

------------

and as a special amendment: can anyone translate this for me: 辛苦了！祝你愈來愈好

I tried to find out what it says and found a blog that, translated, said a load of crazy guff:
http://translate.google.co.uk/translate?hl=en&sl=zh-TW&u=http://heavenfantasy.pixnet.net/blog/post/26496069&ei=b3S_S8agNIaysAbWmNy7BQ&sa=X&oi=translate&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CAoQ7gEwAA&prev=/search%3Fq%3D%25E8%25BE%259B%25E8%258B%25A6%25E4%25BA%2586%25EF%25BC%2581%25E7%25A5%259D%25E4%25BD%25A0%25E6%2584%2588%25E4%25BE%2586%25E6%2584%2588%25E5%25A5%25BD%26hl%3Den%26rls%3Dcom.microsoft:en-gb:IE-SearchBox%26rlz%3D1I7GGIE_en