It's back...

It has been four long and cold months since I last posted. Now that winter is just about over and spring is vastly approaching, I have decided to come out of hibernation and hit hard with the Writer's Revolution.

Over the next few weeks I will be bringing you updates about some of our past guests as we launch into our spring reading series where I will be reviewing and interviewing authors and their books (1 or 2 reviews a month).
(If you are interested in having being interviewed or having your book reviewed, please email inquiries to Iamphoenix13@gmail.com)

Also if you are an avid reader and would like to be part of the reviews please send an email to the above address.

As updates go, I will be kicking it off with an update of my own.

For the last few months I have been working hard at writing my first detective novel which takes place in the Ulster and Dutchess County areas. Stay tuned for more on that in the coming months.

I have also begun the editing process for the follow up to my first novel The Phoenix Blade: Project Justice and have started to create an audio version of the book to place on Audible and iTunes.

Scouting Locations

Next week I'll be on the road back to one of my old stomping grounds; Poughkeepsie, NY.  I will be up there during July 3rd-5th and will be a guest on the Anthony Charles Podcast to promote my new book The Phoenix Blade.  While I'm up there, I will also be scouting areas for the sequel for my detective series.

So I guess the big questions are how do you scout areas and how do you choose the areas to scout?  In my Phoenix Blade series, I could not afford to physically scout all the areas listed in my books.  In that series of books, I used the Internet to scout every location and vehicle.  Thanks to Google and the Internet as a whole for aiding writers with finding generalized details about people, places, and things.

A lot can be said for scouting through the Internet.  However, my personal preference is to view the areas and locations personally.  The Internet can give general details, but you get more intimate details from being there in person.  Minor details can unknowingly impact the feel of your book. 

So how do you choose which areas to scout?

Most of it depends on your story.  First, I would research the area where your story takes place.  This is the most important part of your scouting process.  Without knowledge of the area for your story, there is more room for error; that is unless you are creating a fictional world.  The second thing to do is to use the Internet to find places to scout (this is where the Internet is beneficial).  By searching the web, you can find more locations that you can sort through for your story.  Once you have a handful of locations picked out, you can personally go there to check them out.  Make sure to bring a notepad/notebook, pen, and camera.

When I researched an upcoming book, The Campus Killer, I traveled to the New Paltz/Poughkeepsie areas to look at colleges, towns, and restaurants.  It took my attention to detail to a different level by experiencing the settings first hand.  My writing had creative and general details in the past, but by seeing the areas and taking pictures, I had first had knowledge of how it looked and a reference point to continuously go back to when writing.

Hope this helps.  Stay tuned for more posts coming in the next few weeks.

Poetry, Novels, Movie Scripts pt1

Over the next week I will be talking about the topics of writing poetry, novels, and movie scripts. There are many differences between these three genres of writing.

The first topic I will cover is poetry.  There are many types of poetry (way too many to cover in one post, but I will post a link that covers all of them.) http://www.types-of-poetry.org.uk/
Here are just a few as examples.

• Lyric poetry is a poem that expresses the thoughts and feelings of a poet.  It does not tell a story of characters or actions.  The poet speaks to the reader directly; telling their own state of mind, feelings, and perceptions.
• Haiku poetry is a type of Japanese poem written in three unrhymed lines of five, seven, and five syllables.  It typically reflects on nature or creative images.
• Free verse is a type of poetry that can be either rhymed or unrhymed lines without a pattern.  This allowed poets to break from the typical structure of poetry and express their feelings.

When I first started to write poems, I was always under the impression they needed to rhyme in order for it to be considered a poem.  As I studied at New Paltz, my professor assured me a poem is fueled by the emotion behind it.  A poem is however you decide to write it regardless of its structure or rhymes.  As long as the reader can picture and feel the meaning of the poem in their minds,  it is a successful poem.

Now there are several outlets for poetry writers.  Most Literary Agents and publishers will tell you they do not accept queries based on poetry, and for the most part they don't.  There are a few agents that will accept poetry submissions but they are very rare to find.  There are websites, blogs, and contests where you can have your poetry published; which is the path that most poets take.  There are quite a few that self publish their poetry and sell it online or personally.  These are the best ways to start getting your name out there as a writer for future projects when contacting Literary Agents. 

As I stated this is only part 1 of the topic.  Stay tuned for part 2 where I will cover writing novels.  As always I welcome any thoughts and comments on my posts.  And feel free to check out my interview on the Anthony Charles Podcast: http://soundcloud.com/anthonycharlesofficial/episode-20-andrew-hess-author and follow me on Facebook and Twitter for other updates: https://twitter.com/ThePhoenix1369, http://www.facebook.com/#!/TheRealPhoenix13

Inspiration

I wanted to use tonight to talk about one of the fundamental components to writing or doing anything in a creative artistic field; inspiration.  In my opinion, inspiration is what brings a writer to his/her craft.  It is what we look for in life to bring us the next idea for a future project or something to work on at that moment.  It can be found anywhere; in a movie, a TV show, music, nature, talking to friends and family, and sometimes even when you are at work staring at a door or window. 

You can find inspiration anywhere and in anything.  There are a few places I like to go to create new ideas.  For starters I like to go to the beach.  It doesn't matter if it is day or night, I will go there to sit on the sand and listen to the waves wash up on the shore.  I'll watch the sun or moon light bounce off the water and let the wind relax me.  I have written many poems based off of my time at different beaches.  Another area was the Walk over the Hudson.  It is upstate in Highland/Poughkeepsie area.  It's a long walk to get from one side of the bridge to the other, but well worth it.  I don't get up there that often, but when I have it is amazing to see.  You stand high above the water and watch it flow easily underneath you.  You can watch the cars pass by on the Mid Hudson Bridge.  This has provided ideas for one of my books.

There are so many examples of finding inspiration that I could talk about.  Instead I want to encourage you to use the weekend to enjoy the weekend, relax, and find some inspiration in everything you do.  For me I will be heading back into my old stomping grounds in New Paltz and Poughkeepsie this weekend.  I will also be on the Anthony Charles Podcast taping this weekend which will be available soon.  Stay tuned for details. 

Bonding Friendships Over Videos and Writing

There are many people you meet daily.  Some say hello in passing, others are strangers or customers, and then there are the people that were put in your life for a reason.  When I was younger I kept to the same set of friends and didn't like to welcome change into my life.  That was forced to change several years ago. 

When I lived in New Paltz and Poughkeepsie, I worked in an environment that I was very familiar with; a video store.  I met a lot of interesting people through the years.  Some were related to friends from my past, others I had romantic feelings for, some became my confidants, but a select few became very close to me. 

One in particular was a musician who had great aspirations to make it big and help others along the way.  We bonded over work and that we both watched pro wrestling.  He became one of my favorite people to work with.  We would crack jokes all night as we waited on the horrible and sometimes highly amusing customers of Poughkeepsie.  We talked a lot about my first novel the Phoenix Blade and his music.  Towards the end of my time in that store, he told me about how he wanted to dabble in acting.  I thought this was a great chance for him and could lead to more possibilites. 

When I moved back to Long Island, I lost touch with a lot of people and he was included in that.  It was something I didn't want to happen, but most people know that's what happens when you move away from your friends.  Thanks to social networking and social media, we were able to continue our friendship even from a 2-3 hour drive away. 

Last year he told me about an idea he had.  He met a lot of interesting people over the last couple of years who are musicians, writers, make up artists, actors, and producers that haven't necessarily had a chance to be recognized or have been recognized and wanted to help others who may be interested in taking up a career in that field.  I thought it was a great idea and supported him every step of the way.  He has truly embodied the spirit of being kind to others and shedding light on all types of artists.  For that I applaud you Anthony and am happy our paths run parallel to very similar goals.

Here are a few links to his podcasts.  I strongly recommend you listen.

http://soundcloud.com/anthonycharlesofficial/the-anthony-charles-podcast
http://soundcloud.com/anthonycharlesofficial/episode-5-andrew-hess-writer
http://soundcloud.com/anthonycharlesofficial/episode-16-michael-hamel