Year: 2017

Writing from brain to fingers to the keyboard between work and play

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a_complex_mind_by_mcslither-d2yw26k2017 is starting to look like a great new year. I started a new job this week. I am a writer-editor for The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) in Washington, D.C. This is a wonderful opportunity to grow as a writer while, at the same time, being part of the process of helping people find good, affordable housing.

Now that I’ve started work, I’m finding it difficult to find the time to work on my own writing. Whether it’s my blog or my books, I have greatly reduced the amount of time I put into it. It’s hard to transition between a “work-writing” mentality to a “free-thinking” writing mentality because I am trying to learn the style and types of documents I’ll be working on in my new job.

I fear this is a challenge that many fiction writers must deal with at one time or another; at least, maybe not those who write novels as a full-time job. Balance is the key. I need to find that tipping point between work writing and “me-time” writing to keep the creative juices flowing from my brain to my fingers to the keyboard.

I also don’t want to make the mistake of working on my novels or blog while at work. I already made that mistake once in my life and it cost me my last job, so I don’t want to do that again. Word to the wise, don’t save any parts of a manuscript on your work computer. “Big brother” is watching all the time.

It’s not just finding the time to write, but it’s also getting back into that creative mindset to write. After working on public notices, press releases and social media blurbs, it’s a challenge to get my mind back to the world of fantasy that exists in my novels. The best way I know how is to watch and listen to a movie while I write, usually a fantasy movie like Star Wars or one of The Hobbit or Lord of the Rings movies.

This is one of those occasions where some people just don’t understand the difficulties of being a writer. They think we just sit on our posteriors and gently type away at a keyboard with such ease. The words just magically flow from our minds to the paper. We all know that’s not the case at all. I don’t know how many times I’ve sat and stared at the keyboard after writing just one sentence and not knowing where to go next. My train of thought just completely derailed.

I’m not trying to make excuses, rather I want to demonstrate how difficult it can be for many writers who don’t do it as a full-time job. We all want the same success story that Steven King, J.K Rowling and James Patterson had. Unfortunately, it doesn’t work out that way for all of us. It’s all about the balance to keep the dream alive. The dream of being a successful writer.

We all love to write, and we write about what we love. Whether I make a million dollars or .35 cents a book from Kindle, I will continue to write. It’s what I do.

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51nd6H6sATL._SY344_BO1,204,203,200_SKU-000941753Mark Piggott is the author of the Forever Avalon book series. Forever Avalon is available for purchase at Amazon and Barnes and Noble. The Dark Tides is available for purchase at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and iUniverse. The Outlander War can be previewed at Inkitt.

“Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” is the best Star Wars movie since “A New Hope”

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rogueone_onesheeta_1000_309ed8f6Okay, no spoiler disclaimers here because if you haven’t seen Rogue One by now, you need to turn in your lightsaber and your Princess Leia hair extensions. This is the best Star Wars movie since A New Hope and, if you don’t believe me, then you’re a scruffy looking nerf-herder!

There’s only one word to describe this movie and that’s AWESOME. Whenever you see the word AWESOME listed in the dictionary, a picture of this movie will appear next to it. It was that good! I know it’s hard for some people to accept that premise but it’s just that good,,, PERIOD! This movie ties everything from Revenge of the Sith to Star Wars Rebels TV show, and right into A New Hope. Think of this movie as the jelly in a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. This movie is the strawberry jam and Mom bought the good stuff, not the store brand, but I digress.

Just please, for the love of humanity, if you are any kind of a Star Wars fan (and even if you’re not) go see this movie. The battle scenes are spectacular, the touching moments between a father and a daughter are tearful, and the tribute to a beloved princess is heartfelt. I can’t heap enough praises on this cast, they were exceptional and a privilege to watch on the big screen. You would want to see them in more movies but their story ends here, but it’s a doozy.

It is worth every penny to see Rogue One again, and again and again. I saw Star Wars 17 times in the theater as a teenager and I will damn try to outdo that with Rogue One, although I may match that with DVD viewings instead because I know the wife won’t let me.

In any case, this movie was fantastic. It centered around one sentence in the opening crawl George Lucas wrote over 40 years ago… “Rebel spies managed to steal secret plans to the Empire’s ultimate weapon, the Death Star.” This movie is literally a heist movie.

Beyond that, it shows just how close the Rebel Alliance was falling apart before it destroyed the Death Star. I really understand why George Lucas titled Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. Their successful attack on the Imperial Base where the Death Star plans were being held gave them the hope they needed to rally the alliance.

There was also the introduction of a new order, the Ancient Order of the Whills. These were holy men who were deeply connected to the Force. The blind monk Chirrut, played brilliantly by Donnie Yen, showed us a connection to the Force outside the Jedi Order. His chant, “I am one with the Force and the Force is with me.” drives the can-do spirit of the rebels. It adds another dimension to the Star Wars universe. To me, it’s like discovering there are two different groups within the Ancient Order of the Whills: the Jedi as the warrior caste and the Shamen as the religious caste.

Lastly, there is Darth Vader. We see so much more into his life between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope. He has a freaking castle on the same planet where he was nearly killed, Mustafar. As a bonus, we finally get to see the badass Darth Vader Sith Lord we know and love. He literally tears through rebels to try and stop them from getting away with the Death Star plans. It is the best scene in the entire movie and worth the wait.

If I had to say one this bad about the movie, it’s the CGI of Grand Moff Tarkin. I understand the complexity of bringing the late great Peter Cushing back to life in one of his legendary roles. It just wasn’t seamless enough to bring that necessary realism to the film. I would rather they find an actor that looks and sounds like Cushing, similar to the way Josh Brolin played a young Agent K (ala Tommy Lee Jones) in Men In Black III. What they did for Princess Leia was perfect and quite flawless but Tarkin had too much interaction within the movie that made his CGI look fake.

I can’t heap enough praise on this movie. As I said in the beginning, it is the best Star Wars movie since A New Hope, and I mean it. You need to see this movie, again and again. Then, where it’s released on digital download, watch it again. Then, when it is sold on BluRay/DVD, buy it so you can watch it again and again. You won’t get tired of it, I promise.

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51nd6H6sATL._SY344_BO1,204,203,200_SKU-000941753Mark Piggott is the author of the Forever Avalon book series. Forever Avalon is available for purchase at Amazon and Barnes and Noble. The Dark Tides is available for purchase at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and iUniverse. The Outlander War can be previewed at Inkitt.