Issue 023, Archived

Hello Eric,

Welcome to The Newb Files, Issue 023, Archived. Yay, summer!

News

This is a special issue, it being the four-year anniversary of me starting to write. On August 14, 2019, I started writing my short story, Scream and Leapt.

Now, four years later, I am pleased to announce that my book Zombies, a Novel is ready for Beta readers.

If you are interested, please refer to the details below.

Beta Readers

I am actively looking for Beta Readers for Zombies, a Novel

Click the link below if you're interested.

I will, of course, be happy to return the favor. NOTE: I lean more toward Science Fiction, rather than horror. ...

Other News

US Spelling

After issuing 22 newsletters, I have decided to use US spelling, starting with this newsletter. I write in US spelling, my newsletter should match. Damn it.

Random Things on My Office Walls

In my misspent middle-age, I worked as a computer draftsman. For over thirty years. Framed below are the three sets of installation disks for the drafting software AutoCAD^® that I purchased over the years. Starting with AutoCAD^® version 2000, then upgrades for 2002 and 2006. About $8000 CAD, including the two upgrades. Pretty good, considering I made a living of sorts on a contract basis for 23 years. Mainly, of course, not using my own CAD Station. Engineers felt a contract computer draftsman was required to own their own AutoCAD^® license and a computer. Even though I seldom worked from home when I started. That changed with time and at the end, I did often work from home.

Still, it was at the time one of the most over-priced buggy bloated software packages around. A large part of my job, where ever I was working, was knowing the work-around(s) to get what we needed out of the software. To get the job done.

Ahh, middle-age.

Book Reviews

The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger

by Stephen King

I tried one more book by Stephen King. He is so popular I must be missing something. Right?

Wrong.

At my age, if I am not enjoying a book by the time I’m 20-25% into it, I don’t finish it. But, I wanted to review this book, so I kept reading.

At around 52% of The Gunslinger I was so fed up I almost stopped. At 53% it got interesting. Wait? Was that mentioned before? Did I miss important details in the long slog of the first half of the book? Am I that stupid?

No. I’m not.

Despite all that, I kept reading. At 83% percent, I was ready to throw my Kindle through the nearest window. Enough!

I am never again reading anything written by Stephen King.

Not recommended.

Note: I am going to review a couple of books I do like in the next couple newsletters just to get this crap out of my head.

Epiphany

I’ve had way too many of these since I started writing. The most recent one involves a common complaint about my (past) writing. People find it hard to tell who is speaking in my dialogue. In other words, my dialogue is often reversed, so who is talking is only apparent after they speak. ...

I am working on it, and I am getting better.

Well, it turns out I often talk in reverse as well. After over sixty years, I now know at least one reason I’m so bad at communicating.

But that, and a $1.59, will get you a tea from Tim’s (a Canadian reference—not Canadian spelling).

Trivia

I was just rewatching “The Aviator”, the scene where Howard Hughes was single-mindedly watching his movie “Hell's Angels”. Editing and reviewing it over and over.

It struck me because it reminded me of what I have been doing for the last six months.

I did not keep track, but if you count (and you should) the two passes through ProWritingAid I put the 90k+ manuscript through—I have read and edited the whole thing eight or nine times? Ten times? I’m not sure, but as that is pushing almost a million words, I think I have the “crazy” part of being an author down.

F.A.Q.

Q: Why change to US spelling for your newsletter? Why write your novel in US spelling?

A: It can be confusing to use US spelling in Canada. But it's easy to change, if required.

The reason to do this is that the US is the biggest market for Horror, so US spelling it is.

Future newsletters may have Frequently Asked Questions. Send your question(s) to: Eric.

That's all for now!

Thanks,

Eric C Bailey, August 14, 2023

The Newb Files, Science Fiction and Fantasy

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website: ericcbaileyauthor.com email: eric@ericcbaileyauthor.com
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