Rebuilding

I like building things. I used to love metal and wood shop, and my Junior year of high school I built a waterbed frame in wood shop and a wrought cold iron candelabra in metal shop. I just like working with my hands, so I just sit back and create (so to speak) meaning that when I was taking electronic engineering I loved to create all kinds of things. I built an amp for about $80 that is a hell of a lot better than shit you get at the store, and I've built equalizers for the hell of it.

Now, I haven't used my EE degree in about 10 years, and I don't have a shop to work in any more, since I live in an apartment complex. So, all in all, I don't really have anything that I work on with my hands any more. With the nerve damage to my right arm, I can't really use my fingers too well any more, so soldiering is difficult at best, and the vibration of hand tools to work with wood makes my shoulder scream in pain within 20 minutes, and it's not like I can wield a hammer any more.

I fill the empty spot with writing. Now, it may seem like writing is a poor substitute for working with my hands, but it isn't. It's still creation, bringing an image from within the mind into "reality" and being able to share it with other people.

Layout is one of my favorite things. You take unorganized parts, and fit them together like a jigsaw puzzle, until you end up with the finished product, which, depending on what it is, may turn into a thing of beauty and elegance.

Moving back into writing, and doing the odd layout here and there, has really helped my calm. My meds help too, but having projects like the ones I have now really make me feel better. I love writing RPG material, I love writing fiction, and I love doing layout.

Wish I could make a living off of it. Like one writer, who is far more successful than I'll ever be, if it wasn't for food stamps, beginning writers would starve to death. :)

I've been talked into putting together a Year of the Zombie anthology, which is going to be a lot of fun. It won't feature the iconics, well, maybe for one story, but for the most part they'll be one shot stories.

Having looked around the markets, I think I'm going to pick up the "Winter War" series for Shtar. It's high fantasy, and a lot of fun, and hopefully I'll be able to make it fun for the readers too.

The Von Lon Chronicles are slightly on hold. This may sound weird to some people, but I decided to run a couple games in the world with some quickie stats, to see if the setting is robust enough to handle being being roughed up by players. That's one thing, players will point out the holes and problems quicker than any five editors.

So some Year of the Zombie short stories, a Von Lon novella, and a short story/novella for Shtar.

And on that note, it's time to get back to work, a layout gig awaits.