• 9May 13

  Evolving "Woodward"

  In 2005, I started outlining what would potentially be my first novel, called OBrien.  OBrien was complex and heavily clichéd and never was written.  One part of the story had the main character (not named OBrien) have a flashback to a different time and that was the first iteration of what has become Woodward.

              The cabin, the giant black tree and Roanoke were always going to play a big part in the story.  Virginia was the latest character introduced and ironically became the protagonist.  David was originally going to be the main character, but because of story direction changes, he became more of a device.  Further was always going to be this strange person whos a mixture of free spirit, but also has some strange tendencies.  Woodward is a character in the story and is revealed in part 3.

              Once the decision was made to make the story its own entity, it started off as being this comedic modern folk tale.  Because of certain imagery and the narration style I was using, it didnt seem to mix and that idea was thrown away.  Then I started reading Joe Hills Locke & Key and that gave me the idea to change the style to a more gothic-horror light and through someones eyes.

              This, sadly, is the first story Ive been this excited to finish in years.  While I have a game plan for the ending, mostly Ill be figuring things out as yall do.  Also, there will be going back and tweaking of previous parts once more gets written.  I dont plan on doing a lot of parts, but I believe that as the story evolves, it should do so as a whole.  This is all an experiment for me and I hope youll enjoy the journey as much as I do writing it. 

  • Posted May 9, 2013 7:14 pm GMT
  • Category: General
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• 3May 13

  Iron Man 3 Review

               Iron Man 3 is a 180 for Marvels third story in their gonzo epic metallic super hero character study.  Shane Black, who co-wrote and directed, is well known for buddy action flicks such as the Lethal Weapon series and The Last Boy Scout.  What we get as a result is a movie thats different in unexpected ways and makes it damn near impossible to peel your eyes away from the screen for the more than 2 hour run time, not literally of course.

              The story begins with a narration from Tony Stark (Robert Downey, Jr.), talking about his regrets in Sweden circa New Years Eve, 1999.  He turns down then frail scientist Aldrich Killians (Guy Pearce) proposal to join his company in favor of hoping to bed sexy scientist Maya Hensen (Rebecca Hall).  We return to modern day to see Tony struggling with nightmares mixed with a fair share of insomnia while struggling to maintain a peace of mind and his hanging-by-a-thread relationship with Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow).  Oh, and there are attacks on the US by the Mandarin (Ben Kingsley).

              This movie is darker, more intense, and faster moving than the previous two.  It could also be the funniest.  Its a well told story about regrets and consequences and succeeds in brandishing Tony Stark as an anti Bruce Wayne of sorts.  Stark needs to be Iron Man and he uses the obsession to fill the gaping void in his sense of belonging.  While the first two movies told us how much we may need Iron Man, this is a more personal tale of why Tony Stark needs Iron Man.

              There are great action sequences with great CGI, humor and fisticuffs.  Ben Kingsley is great as the Mandarin and the twist on the character made me have a good laugh rather than offending the fan boy in me.  Don Cheadle gets to flex his acting muscle a bit more this time as James Rhodes/ Iron Patriot and his scenes with Downey are among the most fun in the movie.

              In the end, Iron Man 3 is a great super hero movie that launches Marvels stage two successfully and makes me wonder what changes are ahead for Earths Mightiest Heroes.  Though Downeys stepping down as Stark becomes a bit more apparent, its been a pure delight to see him get to the gritty of what makes Tony Stark tick.  Other things that are accomplished in this movie are spoilers, but for those who are fans of the movies, its well worth finding out.

  My Personal Grade: A

  • Posted May 3, 2013 8:21 pm GMT
  • Category: Movies
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• 3May 13

  On Gaming and Depression

  Ive been called out on here with having anxiety and social issues as if that makes my points moot.  Its true, I do struggle socially and have some anxiety issues and depression, but I think that makes my points more poignant, as I make them first hand.  In my life, Ive hardly ever touched drugs, Ive never had a drinking problem and Ive managed to maintain healthy and happy relationships.  In my times of need when I didnt have people to reach out to, or they werent willing to help, video games became my way of escaping this sense of isolation.

              I moved to Massachusetts from Maryland almost ten years ago.  I didnt know anyone here, outside of my mom and her wife, and my exit from where I spent the majority of my life had its fair share of hostility.  So I became that guy who lived in his moms basement.

              Video games have always been in my life, they still are.  As a kid, I remember playing on my dads Atari and him getting my brother and me a NES.  Later I got a Genesis and I remember squealing with delight, I was 10.  Throughout the years, Ive had a number of systems and have spent a large amount of time with each.  This didnt become a problem until I had moved to Massachusetts and fell into my own pit of despair.  Apologies for the cliché.

              My best friend here at the time was a big gamer.  He wanted as many friends as possible getting whatever system he had playing whatever games he wanted to play.  When I met him, he wouldnt shut up about me getting a PC that would play World of Warcraft.  Little did I know that this would take over my waking life and send me in an emotional tail-spin.

              I played that damn game for nearly four years.  I finally stopped after my now fiancée gave me an ultimatum and made me see what damage the game has done.  I skipped work, often shirked plans and would spend my weekend obsessed with doing dungeons, raids and daily quests.  Unfortunately the game missing from my life left a hole that I felt like I needed to fill as soon as possible.

              My spending problems got worse again and my skipping out of work continued.  I horded games and movies and they took over the majority of my attention.  This caused a rift between me and my fiancée and I started therapy and continued to struggle.  Having to learn things the hard way, as I often do, it took both my job and my relationship hanging by a thread to make me realize that I really did need to get my shit together.

              My problems dont stem from video games alone, but from a lifelong miss-lesson that stuff is love.  I believe doing stuff that makes you happy is important in life, but its also the balance of priorities and realizing whats really important that helps.  Im by no means through my issues, but I acknowledge them and am now not ignoring them.  I still enjoy gaming and know what games to avoid.  I dont condone the use of gaming as a tool for healing depression, however.  I believe that too much of one thing can lead to addiction/ emotional dependency, which leads to other kinds of issues and even more depression and instead of lessening the problem, it can expand it in other ways. 

  • Posted May 3, 2013 5:07 am GMT
  • Category: Editorial
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