S.E. Ellis's Blog, page 2

Good writing is authentic.  In some ways writing isn’t very different from posing naked.  I’d argue that takes a person who is spiritually strong to voluntarily make themselves that vulnerable to the reader.  They’re inviting the reader into their deepest depths, far below the skin of their naked body.  It’s a complicated relationship.  Sometimes it’s uncomfortable, and the writer remains partially covered, hoping nobody notices the towel wrapped around their bodies.  Maybe even writing in socks.

The root of this authentic artistic expression is spirit.  Writers know when they are in that place between worlds when they become aware the world-spirit is speaking through them.  Spirituality means giving up control and allowing oneself be a conduit for something greater and larger.  The world-spirit expresses itself by being manifested externally through art.  All it asks in return is for the artist to revere and honor it through their art.  Some people go to church.  I write.

That’s not to mean that everything I write is going to either be that good or spiritually relevant!  I just feel that there is a spirituality inherent in authentic writing.  And whatever other people may feel they get out of going to church, that’s what I get out of writing.

Now that is a truly bombastic post title.

As part of “learning the craft” of writing I’ve tried to listen to and read as much as I can by authors, editors, publishers, professors.  And while a lot of it tends to be humble-bragging or self-aggrandizing speeches, I have come across some very valuable insights, advice and new perspectives.

One of the perspectives that resonated with me was writer as warrior; that the vocation of writing is a war of attrition.  For every writer who is made wealthy and famous by their writing, there are thousands that are only able to eke out a living.  For every writer that is able to live off their writing without a second job, there are thousands that must work a second job to make up the difference.  For every writer that is able to make enough money from writing to help pay the bills, there are thousands whose royalties are only enough to upsize their fries at McDonalds from medium to large.  For every writer that receives a royalty check for their writing, there are thousands whose bank accounts have never seen a penny made from a sale.  For every writer who has published a book (traditionally or not), there are thousands who continue to polish their debut manuscript.  For every writer with a finished manuscript, there are thousands with half-finished works, notebooks upon notebooks, shelved until they “get enough time” to come back to.  For every writer whose debut novel is a work-in-progress, there are thousands who walk through life with that “great idea for a novel” in their mind, just waiting for the time to start on it.

Look around.  See the corpses surrounding you on the battlefield?  Those are the writers who have given up; either before they’ve started or have fallen, worn down by the war.  Being a writer means becoming the warrior that not only perseveres, but hones their craft, educates themselves and continues to grow as a writer, each day inching towards their potential.  Winning the war means surviving long enough to be the last one standing.

I know that for me personally, the war has only begun.  My first novel is simply the first battle in a much larger war.  In addition to writing, there’s photography, both for covers and social media, there’s formatting, editing, revisions, plotting, outlining,  there’s advertising, the many different avenues of marketing, visiting schools, and while I’m in the field of battle with the current book, in my mind I’m busy formulating the next one and it’s battle-plans, preparing mentally for that phase of the war.  It never stops.  It’s a battle fought with migraine pills and long walks, all the while dragging 100 lb blocks of dysthymia behind each foot.

 

Now that is a truly bombastic post title.

As part of “learning the craft” of writing I’ve tried to listen to and read as much as I can by authors, editors, publishers, professors.  And while a lot of it tends to be humble-bragging or self-aggrandizing speeches, I have come across some very valuable insights, advice and new perspectives.

One of the perspectives that resonated with me was writer as warrior; that the vocation of writing is a war of attrition.  For every writer who is made wealthy and famous by their writing, there are thousands that are only able to eke out a living.  For every writer that is able to live off their writing without a second job, there are thousands that must work a second job to make up the difference.  For every writer that is able to make enough money from writing to help pay the bills, there are thousands whose royalties are only enough to upsize their fries at McDonalds from medium to large.  For every writer that receives a royalty check for their writing, there are thousands whose bank accounts have never seen a penny made from a sale.  For every writer who has published a book (traditionally or not), there are thousands who continue to polish their debut manuscript.  For every writer with a finished manuscript, there are thousands with half-finished works, notebooks upon notebooks, shelved until they “get enough time” to come back to.  For every writer whose debut novel is a work-in-progress, there are thousands who walk through life with that “great idea for a novel” in their mind, just waiting for the time to start on it.

Look around.  See the corpses surrounding you on the battlefield?  Those are the writers who have given up; either before they’ve started or have fallen, worn down by the war.  Being a writer means becoming the warrior that not only perseveres, but hones their craft, educates themselves and continues to grow as a writer, each day inching towards their potential.  Winning the war means surviving long enough to be the last one standing.

I know that for me personally, the war has only begun.  My first novel is simply the first battle in a much larger war.  In addition to writing, there’s photography, both for covers and social media, there’s formatting, editing, revisions, plotting, outlining,  there’s advertising, the many different avenues of marketing, visiting schools, and while I’m in the field of battle with the current book, in my mind I’m busy formulating the next one and it’s battle-plans, preparing mentally for that phase of the war.  It never stops.  It’s a battle fought with migraine pills and long walks, all the while dragging 100 lb blocks of dysthymia behind each foot.

The spirituality of writing.  In many ways writing isn’t very different from posing naked.  Good writing is authentic.  And it takes a person who is spiritually strong to voluntarily make themselves that vulnerable to the reader.  They’re inviting the reader into their deepest depths, far below the skin of their naked body.  It’s a complicated relationship.  Sometimes it’s uncomfortable, and the writer remains partially covered, hoping nobody notices the towel wrapped around their bodies.  Maybe even writing in socks.

At the root of that authentic artistic expression is one’s spirit.  Writers know when they are in that place between worlds when they become aware the world-spirit is speaking through them.  Spirituality means giving up control and allowing oneself be a conduit for something greater and larger.  This world-spirit enjoys being manifested externally through art.  All it asks in return is for the artist to revere and honor it through their art.  Some people go to church.  I write.

That’s not to mean that everything I write is going to either be that good or spiritually relevant!  I just feel that there is a spirituality inherent in authentic writing.  And whatever other people may feel they get out of going to church, that’s what I get out of writing.

I am looking for beta readers for the sequel to Hestia the Dreamwalker.
If you are interested, please contact me at:
[email protected]

I’m currently writing the second novel. Right now my pace is about 3,000 words a day, and I’m estimating the novel will be around 120,000 words long (1.5 times the length of the first).

Some highlights so far

We learn more about Lupin’s past and how/why he became friends with Medean
Hestia argues with Hekate (to put it mildly!)
Kuross discovers a new area in the Dreamworld
The imperial city deals with the loss of the Shadow and the oracle
The introduction of two new wolves: Thuella and Charley

(the latter based upon a 4th grade student I spoke with)
Diana’s surprising fear…

Under the full 

I had so much fun today!  I visited Centennial Academy of Fine Arts Education this afternoon for a book-signing.  It was so great to see and talk with the 4th graders again!  I brought (what I thought was) 100 bookmarks and about 25 posters.  I ended up running out of both!  The response from the kids was much more than I was expecting.  I feel bad I ran out; I will definitely have to pass along more bookmarks to the 4th grade English teachers and order more posters!

As soon as I walked into the school a few of the kids started waving and shouting, “It’s Mr. S.E. Ellis!  He’s here!”  For thirty minutes I got to feel like a rock star.  I was amazed; the kids were so happy and excited to see me again.  In the classroom I first signed all the books that kids had brought with them, and then I signed the books that kids had bought from me (good thing I brought as many as I did!).  Finished with that, I started handing out posters & bookmarks, both of which the kids wanted me to sign too!  Some of the kids even had me sign their day-planners or just loose pieces of paper, which I honestly have to say I found adorable.

Once I had completed signing everything for the kids, I took questions.  I had some of the usual questions like had I worked with another author for the book, and how did I make the cover.  I also had a question that I really enjoyed:  which do I enjoy more:  drawing or writing?  If they had seen my “notebooks” in high school and college I’m pretty sure they would have immediately thought the answer was drawing…

Speaking with children about writing (and drawing) is so much more fun than playing businessman all day long.  I really need to contact more elementary schools and see if they’d like me to come visit their 4-6th grade classes to talk about writing.

I had so much fun in Kansas City at Planet Comicon!  I’m still processing everything and I’m not sure where to even begin.

Meeting people is the best.  I was so surprised at how diverse an audience I attract!  All across the age & gender spectrum.  I was especially surprised at the teenage boys that bought my book.  In spite of buying my book, they remained obnoxious, in the way only teenagers can.  I had one say after purchasing my novel, “Just letting you know; honest review, I was not taken in by your cover.  Just being honest.”  And another after I (tried to) hand them a free poster, refused to take it and said, “I am not going to hang it up on my wall.”  Now, it may sound like I’m either being mean-spirited or poking fun at them, but I’m honestly not.  I wanted to underscore the fact of how incredibly impressed I am that even your typical “I hate everything” teenage boy is buying my book!  To me, that is a feat in itself!

While I wouldn’t say that my book has any particular target demographic at this point (based upon my readership) the intent when I was writing it was to write a book that a young person would love, especially 10-12 year old girls.  Though I’m sure I went off in a completely different direction, I would have been more than happy to write something that would fit alongside the Warriors series of books.  (I should write a blog post just about the Warriors series and how I think it’s possibly the greatest series of all time).  So when I was able to actually have young girls come to my table and ask me about my book and talk with me about it–that was special.  I had one girl who even asked me to sign her shirt!  And another girl who told me she was so happy to be able to meet the author of a book, and then took a selfie with me!

For 72 hours I got (to pretend) to be a celebrity!  That was the best.

Another story I’d like to share is about my son.  As much fun as it is to have a table at a convention, it’s very constricting—it’s nearly impossible to find time to go to the bathroom or get food.  So, during one of the periods I needed to get up and walk around before I went insane, I gave my son some change and told him, “Here’s change if they buy a book, and if they want to use a credit card, just text me and I’ll rush back.”  I left and spent a few minutes looking for Wonder Woman Pop-figures.

While I was gone a woman came by and asked him, “Are you S.E. Ellis?”  My son, being related to me, said with the utmost sincerity, “Yes I am.”  She was a bit surprised, and said, “Wow!  How old are you?”  Again my son lied to her, “I’m 15”.  He’s actually 14.  “Oh my gosh, that is so awesome!  That is so great that you wrote this book!   Did you have any help?” she asked.  “No, I wrote it all by myself,” my son replied.  She pulled out a $20 bill and gave it to my son, who gave her back change.  “Will you sign your book?” she asked as she picked one up.  “Certainly.  Just print leave your name and your email address here and I’ll add you to my newsletter”.  Getting the book from her, my son opened it up to the title page, grabbed the sharpie that I had been using and then signed her book “S.E. Ellis”.

I let him keep the money from that sale.  He earned it.

I will be at Table # 742 at Planet Comicon this weekend!
Free bookmarks for all,
poster with each book purchased.

Hestia the Dreamwalker
will be $14.99
only $9.05 at Planet Comicon!

I will be at Table #742 at Planet Comicon in Kansas City!

I’m very excited as this will be the first convention that I will have a table at.  I will be signing books, including a poster with each book sold, and giving away free bookmarks.  In addition to learning (the hard way) about writing a novel, about publishing, about marketing, I’m now learning about how to present well at conventions.  None of this has been easy, but I will say that I gain a sense of accomplishment from all of this that makes it more than worthwhile.

I will be sure and take plenty of pictures, so hopefully I’ll be putting some of those up next week.