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Hocus Pocus:

Strange how some days come into focus a lot faster than others. Today is a very "in focus" day and for the first time in weeks, I seem to be able to see forwards very clearly. Nothing specific - simply not foggy. Maybe this comes from "doing" as opposed to "thinking of doing". "Thinking of doing" inevitably results in me "not doing" - and this makes me cross.

That's enough philosophy for now - bear witness to this fantastic Houdini poster whilst I collect my thoughts for your momentary entertainment...

I've had some great ideas this week about some of my major projects. It will mean more work, but it will also make them a lot more fun which means I may spend more time with them.

My first big plan is to take one of my books and propel it forward by giving it away chapter by chapter. The book in question would have to be Carnival of Souls simply because I think it's the sort of thing that should be given away for free. Then I figured it might be much cooler to give it away as a podcast instead. I'm softwared and hardwared up to the hilt with podcasting technology so this would not be hard. In fact, it might work out better - if I give away weekly podcasts of the book, then I'm not actually giving away the book itself and that will then have the potential to have a life of its own afterwards.

I came around to this train of thought yesterday when I was daydreaming about the future. It kind of went something like this: "If I was a published author being paid to write, I'd definitely want to do my own audiobooks and podcasts - it would break up the time spent at a keyboard but it's still working..."

BUT - for the first time ever, it then dawned on me that just because PanMacmillan aren't paying me to write yet, doesn't mean I shouldn't be doing those things anyway. It would be the first thing I would tell somebody else. Do it now and make all your mistakes on your own time - then, when it comes time that somebody wants to pay you to do it, you're not an absolute beginner.

So... sometime this week, I shall be recording Chapter One of Carnival of Souls I: The Stairway to Heaven for a giveaway release. The chapters in Carnival are very short and the progress so far is more disjointed than the entrie six series' of Lost. Cue investigation about how to give stuff away on itunes.

THEN - I had another great idea. This time about Almost Human and how to make it the sort of project I would want to buy into. I won't reveal all my ideas here but they will filter out very quickly into the world over the course of the next few weeks and be stand alone items to play with - the first one might even be today. Thinking about this made me want to start writing songs again - why? Because I was a bloody good songwriter. I'm sure I still am but I am very out of practice and need more hours to myself in the day to propel such an addition.

MEANWHILE - consider this a prelude to me emailing Charlotte and Ian to see where they want to go next with our little graphic projects. Over at myebook, The Fire Sermon has over 6,000 readers. We need to do many more of these small projects to propel the genre - it's a great way of publishing and gathering momentum. Too Hot For Dogs is also gathering some sway out there as well.

BUT THEN - over at the WeBook competition, I find Turn The Lamp Down Low has lost quite a lot of its momentum. Down to 32% this morning but then I looked at the overview of the competition itself and it appears that the more people rate your stuff, the lower your rating becomes. I might have to start a serious ass-kicking campaign if it drops any lower. It deserves to go through at least to the next round - I would know if it didn't. If it didn't, I wouldn't have put it out there.

Currently reading (and obviously too busy to finish): The Owl Killers
Currently listening to: Finger Eleven: Them Vs You Vs Me
Currently wondering how the hell I'm making time for: LOST, Heroes and Supernatural - all of which are approaching the home straight to make room for the mighty HUNTERS (well... it won't be for want of trying).