Wrap-up for Freeflighting Cycle 1, plus plans for the blog...

“Sandpaper” is somewhat of a misnomer actually, since sandpaper is rather nothing like sand, and in fact, is called so because it reduces other substances to sand, rather than being sand itself. It should be called “sand-making paper,” if one wanted to be completely understandable. But people get into a habit of calling things by the names that were probably given to them by individuals who weren’t thinking, and so we are stuck in a vicious cycle, with terms such as “sandpaper,” and “feather duster,” and “toilet paper.”

The above is an excerpt from something I wrote when I was very angry. I don't remember the exact details. The story was weird, and involved many monologues of this sort, but for some reason I think that it is funny, and though I plan on burning the whole thing eventually, I may release bits and pieces if I am so inclined*. 

Because.

Just Because. 

In other news, I only put that there because this entire post is something of a monologue, and I don't want to get into a habit of that. I want this blog to remain mostly just a place where I put some decent stories and poems**. So I put a little bit of a story here, and justify myself. 

I digress. 

This is mostly to explain what in the world Freeflighting is about and what I plan on doing with it, and what I have planned for SAC over the next few months.

Yes, Freeflighting is a serialized maybe-I-will-finish-this-someday kind of story. I plan on fleshing it out a lot, making sure that the whole thing makes sense, and maybe forcing my friends to give me a few illustrations before the end. I expect the final result to be 30+ chapters, but I really don't know. 

Anyways, the first cycle, which is the first draft of chapters 1-5, is now finished. However, I want every post anyone clicks on here to be a good read, and the first draft of Freeflighting (especially the first three chapters.) aren't what I consider to be a good read. There are going to be a lot of changes in the next drafts, stylistic, plot-wise and character-wise. 

 I'll leave it up for now, but eventually the first draft will be recycled over to my other blog, so that this place doesn't get cluttered. That will happen around the time that I post the next draft, which might be the third draft. (I'll probably keep 2 to myself, so that you get a decent read next time, through every chapter.) 

The system that I am working out, is that each draft I will add five chapters. So first draft= 5 chapters. 2nd draft= 10 chapters. 3rd draft=15 chapters. etc. (I am doing that way because it keeps me motivated more than anything else.)

So if I get a thirty plus chapter book in the end, that would mean I've gone through about six or seven drafts. I might make a couple more drafts after the whole story is finished, just for polish and everything. Hopefully, it will be something worth reading. If I and any sample readers who I might have by then decide that it is worth reading, I'll find some way to make it downloadable as an e-book or something. (Free of course.) 

That pretty much sums up everything about Freeflight. I don't want-right now- to talk about actual content, because it is all very subject to change so early on, but maybe I'll make some commentary or Q&A's eventually if enough people are interested. 

In between now and the next draft I release, I have a bunch of short stories and stuff in mind. Current ideas and early writing include something I mentioned on Facebook (Refried Tortillas) which is in the same vein as my older stories (complaining about how food is out get me. Yes, I know that it is very First World Problem-y. That is why it is funny to me at least,) as well as a tentative war story about a few rugged and battle hardened specialized shock troops. Kind of. ;) 

I also plan adding in a book review that is very long overdue, (I wrote it a long time ago and should have released it,) and may or may not have an essay or two on literary criticism, plus at least one more fun story. 

A lot yeah, but I don't have to get it all done in a month. (Unlike school.) I have as long as I want, though I do plan on increasing the amount of stuff I put up. Two or three posts a month maybe, as long as I am able to juggle my other responsibilities. 

 That's pretty much all I have. Thanks for reading this far, because it shows that you are actually interested in what happens here. That in itself is a pretty awesome thing. The biggest motivation I have for writing is that people other than myself want to read what I put out. Thanks again, to everybody (all four or five of you :D ) who have continued to read my stuff, because what is a story without a reader? Just ink on a page. (or random pixels.)

EDIT: P.S. I should mention the awesome artwork that has been given me by the one and only Olaf Tollefsen, who blogs about Christianity and stuff at Unleavened Ministries with a few other gents. New cover photo here on the blog, and a different one over at the Facebook page. Much thanks to this guy, who always says yes when I ask for drawings(or anything really, he was even willing to try to get me a sword.)

*I will concede that sandpaper and sand both have something of a gritty feel, but otherwise I stand by the statement. 

**Yea right. You aren't getting any poems unless I am feeling very mean someday.