September was weird. I did a lot of work, but didn’t get a lot done. I’m not sure how that happened, but after several months of not getting a lot done, I’m pretty frustrated with myself.

So, I’m trying something new for October: I’ve made a schedule. Every day, I’ve laid out five goals: one for my Inktober challenge, one writing goal, one world building goal, one video goal, and one book/blog goal. Maybe I won’t hit every day, but at least I won’t sit down and think ‘what should I work on’. I’ve already done that.

Projects

My work on the Colonel Lieutenant in September was not for nothing. I’ve worked out some spots that were a mess, and I’m developing my plan for the middle and later sections of the book. I’ve got some thoughts about maps and cover art I need to start considering. But I do need to focus more on writing chapters. Even if they’re not perfect, I need to write.

Same with other projects. I did some good world building for several projects, but there’s something about getting words down that I do miss. If I manage to keep to my schedule for October and get two blog posts, the second one will be about the importance of writing while building the story.

October Goals

• Complete Inktober Challenge
• Advance the Colonel Lieutenant to Chapter 20
• Write one Chapter in Each Project
• Outline for Each Project
• One World Building Item Complete for Each Project
• Two Blog Posts

Books

• Seven Basic Plots (Research)
• The Gypsy Morph (Fiction)
• Bearers of the Black Staff (Fiction)
• The Hunt for Red October (Fiction; Re-read)
• The Cardinal of the Kremlin (Fiction; Re-read)
• War and Peace (Audiobook)

I focused on finishing two books and moving onto the next ones in their series. Red October finished about as I remembered. The Gypsy Morph was an odd book. It went through periods of being really exciting and then periods of being really dull. I mean, real highs and real lows. But I’m done, and onto book 7 of the Shanarra series. I think there are three more until I get to one I’ve read before.

October Goals

• Finish One Fiction Book
• Finish One Non-Fiction Book
• Finish On Research Book

Movies / Shows

• Alien Earth (Season 1)
• Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (Season 3)
• Alien: Romulus

Alien: Earth was a fun show, one that added greatly to the universe of the Alien franchise without changing the xenomorph (which is nigh-on perfect). Overall I liked it, and it surprised me with where it went on a number of levels. There were a few things I’m a bit undecided on, but I’d recommend the show.

I’d rate it a few steps higher than Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 3. Now, I didn’t hate SNW; the lowest I’d rate any episode is a mid to low C. But so many episodes could have been better, except they were hampered by some stupid story-telling decision. And they were all so stupid I just couldn’t understand how it made it past editing. So frustrating. I liked the season, but it seemed like it chose not to be great.

And in the theme of Alien, I watched Alien: Romulus, which I had heard not great things about. I would say: it’s a movie. I didn’t think it was as bad as I’d heard, but it wasn’t great. I’d watch it again, but I’m not in a hurry to.

October Goals

• Finish ‘The Bad Batch’ Season 1
• Finish ‘Foundation’ Season 1
• Watch Two Movies

Games

• Anno 1800
• World of Warships
• This War of Mine
• Last of Us 2 (Replay)
• Madden 26

I continued to play through Last of Us 2 and Madden 26. Didn’t spend too much time playing either, but Madden’s superstar mode allows me to play quickly. And I’m still having fun with both. I didn’t add anything to Forbidden West this month, but that happens.

I decided to step back from Anno 1800; I was getting too focused, and it was not so much about having fun anymore. I’ll come back to it sometime, maybe after my new computer comes in and I can play at a higher capacity. In the meantime, I’ll figure out what I’m doing wrong.

I did start a new PC story game: This War of Mine, which is a simple game with several campaigns I could play through. It’s an intense game about surviving in a war-torn city, and if I only play it for a little bit, it’s because the setting and story might get too much.

What’s Next

I’m on the waitlist for several events this year, and I’m signing up for events next year. When I get confirmations and dates, I’ll start posting them.