Let me first set the record straight. Another so-called author from Maine is attempting to steal my thunder, and I’m not having it. Shortly after professing my love for the Hulu show Paradise, a lesser-known novelist up here called Stephen King is jumping on the bandwagon, praising the show and saying it’s the closest thing on TV to Lost. This King guy, always nipping at my heels, trying to throw shade. Either way, if you need his stamp of approval, there you have it. Paradise is a scorcher of a show, brilliant, deep, and inventive.
Are you listening to many Moroccan dosed psychedelic jazz collectives these days? No? Why not? I saw mention of Club d’Elf the other day and thought, Yeah, I’m gonna check them out. So glad I did. They’re Boston-based but otherworldly. A new album releases in a few days, but You Never Know from 2022 can get you started. With a cover like that, c’mon…. This song in particular, wow. That’ll stir up something from the depths.
Have you caught the movie Is This Thing On yet? It’s also on Hulu right now. Laura Dern, Will Arnett, Bradley Cooper. Yeah, solid cast. Though darker, it has a Marvelous Mrs. Maisel sensibility that you might adore. And good to see Mr. Arnett on camera for once.
Books, books, oh yeah, books.
I’m halfway through a re-read of The Untethered Soul. I don’t know where I was mindset-wise last time I read it, maybe a bit overly confident that I’d gleaned all I needed to know about being the silent watcher of my thoughts from The Power of Now, but how wrong I was. You know how a book might not speak to you when you first crack the spine but a few years later it hits you hard? That’s where I am.
The focus of my spiritual journey right now is about spending more time being, sensing, feeling, and far less thinking.
Ask yourself: how much of your awake time do you spend thinking, letting your monkey mind steer your day? The answer might rattle something loose inside.
I want to treat my thinking brain like a tool. Grab it when needed, then toss it back into the toolbox. More on my spiritual journey in a future missive. If you haven’t read the book, it’s seismic.
I’m far ahead of schedule with my WIP and reached the end of the first draft the other day. All the monsters in my head are shaking theirs, thinking: how did we let the little bastard get another book by us? We deployed every evil tool at our disposal to stop him, and yet his resilience is mightier than the Dothraki khalasars…or even the hosts of Mordor.
Ah, to type THE END, the official moment when you’ve brought a messy draft all the way to completion. There is not a much sweeter taste, amigos. It might be a hell of a mess, but I’m sure there’s some gold in there somewhere.
I am writing this book with barely any consideration for what people will think. It’s so freeing to not worry about its outcome, the reception, the reviews, to simply hammer out onto the screen what I see take place in my head.
Readers may loathe the protagonist. They might say I’ve gone too far into the darkness. They might say all the characters are too gray, too flawed. Who knows?
I can only reply that this story existed long before I snatched it with my keyboard. I’m simply a journalist of my imagination. Also, I adore the occasional plunge into the darkness. It makes redemption far sweeter.
Thank God for beta readers, agents, and editors, though, who can point out the spots that need to be washed away with the delete key.
By the way, did you dare zoom in on that photo and try to read the last few paragraphs of my book? Shame!!!!
Back soon to talk Red Mountain and more about the midpoint. I’ll leave you with an old embarrassing photo of me that should never be shared in the history of ever. I best publish this before my wife stops me!
If you feel like it, leave a comment, let me know what you’re listening to, reading, watching. I’d like to get to know you better. Maybe even share a picture of you in long underwear playing the banjo. Then we’ll be even.
Ciao,
boo
Drowning in Words is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
