March
Discover more from Worlds And Music
Hello there!
Welcome to the new folks who have joined in the past month!
Thanks to everyone who read and sent feedback on the sneak peek of THE RED SKY. If you haven’t been able to get to it, or just got THE BLACK SKY and don’t want to spoil it, no worries! The sneak peek isn’t going anywhere, so you can always come back and check it out later.
Last month I mentioned having three writing goals for 2022:
Publish THE RED SKY.
Write A New Stand-Alone Novel.
Get a Short Story Published.
THE RED SKY is definitely happening, scheduled for October. The big news is that at the beginning of February I signed a contract to have my first short story published!
It was a challenge to get it published because it’s not written in standard fiction formatting. The story involves a United States Congressional hearing (like you might see on C-SPAN) set in the future and is written in the format of testimony - back and forth question and answers. It will be published at an online quarterly this summer, and I’ll definitely share when it goes live.
Regarding goal two - I’ve been outlining my standalone novel titled SOL OMERTA for the past month. The concept has evolved a bit, but the basic idea is THE EXPANSE via MARTIN SCORSESE - an organized crime novel set on a future, inhabited Mars.
Reminder: if you are interested in music, and music that an author like me might listen to when writing, you’re in luck. Check out THE RED SKY playlist on Spotify, all the music I listened to during the writing of THE RED SKY.
Other goings on’s:
John at the Hypnagogue podcast recently featured some of my music on his show. If you are into chill ambient music, check it out.
You may or may not know that I’ve been the personal assistant to author Kameron Hurley since the start of 2021. She’s been busy writing her next novel as well as prepping a short story collection that will be out this spring. We recently relaunched her monthly podcast Get To Work Hurley with me as an air producer and questioner/instigator. If you want to check it out, you can stream it from her website, as well as places like Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Stitcher.
RECENT READS
THE HUMAN DIVISION by John Scalzi
I’ve been slowly making my way through the OLD MAN’S WAR series, and this was another very entertaining entry. This one dives into more of the politics, conspiracies, and fractured allegiances from the previous books, bringing back some secondary characters to the forefront, which I appreciate as the universe feels more rounded out than just focusing on one or two main protagonists.
My goal was to read two books this month, but the second read is quite long and I’m only halfway through, so hopefully, I’ll get back on track in March.
RECENT TV/MOVIES
PEACEMAKER (S.1, HBOMax) - Unexpected depth paired with hilarious vulgarity and over-the-top violence.
GETTING CURIOUS with JONATHAN VAN NESS (S.1, Netflix) - Infectious fun and learned a few things.
THE BOOK OF BOBA FETT (S.1, Disney+) - Solid if not entirely satisfying as far as making Boba Fett disappear for long stretches.
SECRETS OF GREAT BRITISH CASTLES (S.1, Netflix) - Insightful, educating, and full of good intrigue.
REACHER (S.1, Amazon) - An entertaining action/suspense thriller that leaned into the twists and turns while giving supporting characters time to develop.
THE ISLAND (Hulu) - I couldn’t remember if I had watched this 2005 Michael Bay flick, so I decided to give it a shot. What a weird failure, almost 1/3 of an interesting science-fiction movie undermined by Bay’s need for over-the-top mayhem and illogic.
THE IRISHMAN (Netflix) - Put it off for a long time due to the length, but should not have doubted Scorsese. Every minute is earned, great performances all around.
ETERNTALS (Disney+) - Too many new characters combined with uneven pacing and tone, too much CGI monster mayhem, and you have probably the most uninspired Marvel movie to date. Should have been a Disney+ series exploring the characters with greater depth.
GEOSTORM (HBO Max) - As someone who enjoys Roland Emmerich-style disaster flicks, this one missed the mark by a wide margin. Spoiler - there is no geostorm.
FREE GUY (HBO Max) - TEAR-A-BULL.
MUSIC
Nowhere by Ride (1990)
Inviolate by Steve Vai (2022)
The Last In Line by Dio (1984)
Carpe Diem by Saxon (2022)
Wish by The Cure (1992)
Deathray by Deathray (2000)
1994 by 1994 (1978)
Wild Mood Swings by The Cure (1996)
Lucifer On The Sofa by Spoon (2022)
Great new album from the Austin, Texas band Spoon. Check out the single and creepy video.
A few reminders before you go:
READER REVIEWS! If you read and enjoyed THE BLACK SKY (or any of my books for that matter), I would be grateful if you left a positive review or a rating at Amazon or GoodReads. Reviews help other people find the book.
All previous newsletters are archived. Lots of stuff to check out including a link to the original 2011 screenplay of THE BLACK SKY, hints and helps to get started on the real work easter egg hunt teased at the back of the book, and more!
There’s a “music inspired by” soundtrack written specifically for THE BLACK SKY you can listen to at your favorite streaming sites like Spotify, Apple Music, TIDAL, etc.
For those that have read THE BLACK SKY, you may remember a mention or two of a bar called “The Dank,” the place Tessa worked at in college where she and Bishop met. I created a virtual playlist for this “punk rock bar,” which you can check out on Spotify.
Stay Safe!
Tim
Listen to my 90s music podcast: Dig Me Out