June of this year included my launch party, but it was dominated by my 9 to 5. My office job took up a significant amount of my energy this month, enough that I fell behind on most of my goals. It happens. We adjust and we move on.

Projects

There are still a number of minor bits for Champion Impact I need to finish, such as getting the PDFs up for sale on my website and finishing the ebooks for the supplements. Things that I should be done with but I keep getting distracted from.

I’m making good progress on The Colonel Lieutenant. Over the last month I started a printed copy of the project so I can re-read what I’ve got and see it from a reader’s perspective. I’ve also worked through several of the plot points. Which is good, though it will require some revisions and re-writes (but what doesn’t?). I also took a stab at some of the maps for the book, though this is a very initial stab. It’ll take several iterations to come up with something I like.

I nipped at a few other projects. There was a pass at Orcfyre, my ever-illusive fantasy novel, which wasn’t ‘this is it!’ but was informative. I want to get some scenes from other projects written soon, if only to get a feel for the story and their characters: and to stretch my creative legs a bit.

July Goals

• Finish at least a good scene guide to The Colonel Lieutenant, if not have a rough draft ready to go.
• Finish a scene guide to Orcfyre
• Knock half of the bullet points of my Champion Bold Remember to finish this list!
• Complete one to-do item for each other project

Books

• War and Peace (, Fiction, Audiobook)
• Without Remorse (Fiction, Re-Read)
• Patriot Games (Fiction, Re-Read)
• Hell to Pay (Non-Fiction)
• The Seven Basic Plots (Research)
• Idiot’s Guide to Game Theory (Research)
• The Elves of Cintra (Fiction)
• Ashen Light (Fiction)

Man, I got into or worked through a lot of books last month.

Re-reading the Ryan-verse (Tom Clancy’s series, Without Remorse and Patriot Games) is fun. It’s the first adult series I read growing up, and I used to read through the books every year. I haven’t touched them in a decade. That means that in this re-read, I’m picking up on things I hadn’t noticed before, because my mind is no longer used to the books. Plus, I’m older and mature enough to notice new things. It’s fantastic.

The Elves of Cintra is okay, but not particularly exciting. I don’t know why, it seems to have all the elements but they’re just not synching as much as I’d like. I’m worried that when I get back to the Shanarra books of my childhood I’ll find them just as out of synch as these books.

I’m enjoying reading through The Seven Basic Plots, one of my research books. It’s a large book I picked up a long time ago and never got around to reading, but it’s helping me think about my stories and how they could be better, or at least more unique. I’m hoping they’ll help me get some of my stalled projects up and running.

Movies and Shows

• Last Kingdom
• Bad Batch

Clearly, I did not make as much of an effort at watching shows as I did at reading. Which is fine.

I’m continuing to re-watch The Last Kingdom in preparation of watching the final movie. I’m still surprised how much of this show I don’t remember. I know I watched through it multiple times years ago, but I guess it just didn’t stick. I’m guessing because the books are still better.

I did start a new show last month: Bad Batch, a Star Wars animated show. I’m only a few episodes in, but I like it. It’s got some interesting characters, and it’s a different sort of Star Wars story than I’ve experienced before. I’m eager to see how it goes.

July Goals

• Finish One Show
• Watch One Best Picture Winner
• Watch One Fix-It Title
• Start New Show

Games

• Space Marine 2
• Horizon Forbidden West
• Last of Us (Replay)
• Stellaris

I got to finish a video game and start a new one last month! Huzzah!

I finished Space Marine 2, a 40K first person shooter. This game was fun, and it really immersed you in the universe. I particularly enjoyed how the between mission sections allowed you to walk around and listen to side conversations and hear about other events. But it wasn’t a great game, on the level of Gears of War or Halo. I haven’t quite put my finger on why; the closest I can say is that it comes off as far too cartoony, and not quite as serious, as the other titles I mentioned.

With a game done, I could start a new one: Horizon Forbidden West, the sequel to Horizon Zero Dawn, which is generally on my list of favorite games of all time. I’m excited to get into the game; the first bit is already just as amazing as I’d expected.

I want to get a PC story game going; I’ll have to consider some options. Probably something strategic or national.

On the RPG front, one of my games is starting to wrap up, which means we’re building characters for the next chapter. That’s always fun. The game I’m running is going well, with the characters getting into the spirit of troll fighting. As I expected, this chapter is a lot easier to plan and execute than the last one.

July Goals

• Advance Horizon Forbidden West
• Start PC Game
• Continue enjoying Stellaris

Coming Up

I don’t have anything planned for now; no conventions or appearanced.

July Goals

• Get a convention or appearance planned.

That’s all for this month. I’ll see you all soon for more blog updates and — hopefully — news of new appearances.