Rush Song List Countdown (Full List)

A compilation of all three parts of "The List" previously posted.

Recently on twitter, I was challenged to list my top 10 songs by the band Rush. Rush is, of course, Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, and Neil Peart- three musical geniuses who have kept the same line-up intact for over 40 years. If you're a fan of this band, even a casual one, you know this was not an easy list to compile. This got me to thinking - where would I rank all of their original studio songs?

So, I sat down and listed all of their original studio recordings (no live albums, no cover songs), and proceeded to rank them all. All 19 original albums worth. First, I took the list and graded each from "A+" to "D-". This broke a stellar body of work into more manageable chunks- sort of. C and D-list Rush songs are still better than most others bands A-game, but that's just my opinion. Then I could start my list with "A+" grades - rank those, then move down to "A", "A-", etc.

After much gnashing of teeth, pulling out of hair, and re-listening to much of the catalog in question (I've really suffered to put this post together, heh), here is my list, with selected commentary. As always, your mileage may vary.

Top 165 Rush Songs Of All Time

The Full List

165. "Mystic Rhythms" (D-) -- Nearly 30 years of listening and I just don't dig this song. Sorry, I've tried. 

164. "Witch Hunt" (D) -- This is an auto skip for me.

163. "Tears" (D)

162. "Jacob's Ladder" (D)

161. "Peaceable Kingdom" (C-)

160. "Here Again" (C-)

159. "Rivendell" (C-)

158. "Good News First" (C-)

157. "BU2B2" (C)

156. "Madrigal" (C)

155. "Take A Friend" (C)

154. "Nocturne" (C)

153. "Spindrift" (C)

152. "What You're Doing" (C)

151. "The Weapon" (C)

150. "Sweet Miracle" (C)

149. "Vapor Trail" (C)

148. "Out Of The Cradle" (C)

147. "Armor And Sword" (C)

146. "Bravest Face" (C)

145. "Ceiling Unlimited" (C)

144. "The Stars Look Down" (C) -- As you may have guessed by now, "Vapor Trails" and "Snakes & Arrows" aren't doing too well on this list. Neither of these albums really grabbed me.

143. "The Main Monkey Business" (C)

142. "The Way The Wind Blows" (C)

141. "Tai Shan" (C)

140. "Speed Of Love" (C)

139. "Working Man" (C)

138. "In The End" (C)

137. "Freeze" (C+)

136. "Time And Motion" (C+)

135. "The Necromancer" (B-)

134. "Halo Effect" (B-)

133. "The Garden" (B-)

132. "Malignant Narcissism" (B-)

131. "The Color Of Right" (B-)

130. "Earthshine" (B-)

129. "Half The World" (B-)

128. "Anagram (For Mongo)" (B-) -- Can anyone tell me what this anagram ACTUALLY is?

127. "Chain Lightning" (B-)
126. "Lock And Key" (B-)

125. "Xanadu" (B-) -- Controversial opinion time!! This may upset some of twitter's #Rushfamily, but I think I would like this song more and it would work better (to me) as an instrumental.

124. "Chemistry" (B-)

123. "Before And After" (B-)

122. "A Passage To Bangkok" (B-) 

121. "Bu2B" (B)

120. "We Hold On" (B)

119. "The Larger Bowl" (B)

118. "Carnies" (B)

117. "Hope" (B)

116. "How It Is" (B)

115. "Workin' Them Angels" (B)

114. "Carve Away The Stone" (B)

113. "Neurotica" (B)

112. "Between Sun And Moon" (B)

111. "The Big Wheel" (B)

110. "Secret Touch" (B) 

109. "Heresy" (B)

108. "Face Up" (B)

107. "Need Some Love" (B)

106. "High Water" (B)

105. "Driven" (B)

104. "Bravado" (B)

103. "Emotion Detector" (B)

102. "Afterimage" (B)

101. "Something For Nothing" (B)

100. "One Little Victory" (B)

99. "Scars" (B)

98. "Open Secrets" (B)

97. "Lakeside Park"(B)

96. "The Twilight Zone" (B)

95. "Kid Gloves" (B)

94. "Cut To The Chase" (B)

93. "Resist" (B)

92. "You Bet Your Life" (B)

91. "War Paint" (B)

90. "Second Nature" (B)

89. "The Camera Eye" (B)

88. "Finding My Way" (B)

87. "New World Man" (B)

86. "Digital Man" (B)

85. "Wish Them Well" (B+)

84. "The Wreckers" (B+)

83. "Seven Cities Of Gold" (B+)

82. "The Anarchist" (B+)

81. "Different Strings" (B+)

80. "Entre Nous" (B+) -- I always forget how awesome this song is until I come back and listen to it again. 

79. "Think I'm Going Bald" (B+)

78. "Totem" (B+)

77. "Limbo" (B+)

76. "Red Lenses" (B+)

75. "Circumstances" (B+)

74. "The Fountain Of Lamneth" (B+)

73. "Making Memories" (B+)

72. "Clockwork Angels" (B+)

71. "Ghost Rider" (B+)

70. "Middletown Dreams" (B+)

69. "Grand Designs" (B+)

68. "Ghost Of A Chance" (B+)

67. "The Pass" (B+)

66. "Faithless" (B+)

65. "Animate" (B+)

64. "Hand Over Fist" (B+) -- It took me several years before I really started getting into most of Presto. I remember listening to "Show Don't Tell" then the rest of side one of the cassette, flipping it over to side two (remember that?), and "Superconductor" came on, and thinking "Yes! Finally something that rocks!"

63. "Time Stand Still" (B+)

62. "Nobody's Hero" (B+)

61. "Between The Wheels" (B+)

60. "The Body Electric" (B+)

59. "The Enemy Within" (B+)  -- The highest ranking portion of the four parts of the Trilogy Of Fear. 

58. "Virtuality" (B+)

57. "Dog Years" (B+)
56. "Cold Fire" (B+)

55. Everyday Glory (B+)
54. Headlong Flight (B+)
53. Far Cry (B+)
52. Mission (B+) 
51. In The Mood (B+) - The opening riff on this one just sucked me right in. I have mix tapes on cassette(!) from the 80s with this track on it. Still haven't learned to play it yet.
50. Lessons (B+) - Another one I've always wanted to learn.
49. Turn The Page (B+/A-)
48. Anthem (A-)
47. Best I Can (A-)
46. Alien Shore (A-)
45. Distant Early Warning (A-)
44. Bastille Day (A-)
43. Marathon (A-)
42. Losing It (A-) - For a long time, I didn't care much for this song. It was only years later, after I started writing fiction that I came around to this song. Suddenly it made a lot more sense to me.
41. Double Agent (A-)
40. Test For Echo (A-)
39. Available Light (A-)
38. Red Tide (A-)
37. Force Ten (A-)
36. Cinderella Man (A-)
35. Stick It Out (A-)
34. Superconductor (A-) - I got this album new on cassette. I'd heard 'Show Don't Tell' already, and the rest of side one was... disappointing. I flipped over the tape and this song came on and I clearly remember thinking "Yes! Finally something that ROCKS!". It took me a long time to get into Presto.
33. Presto (A-)
32. Beneath, Between, And Behind (A-)
31. Prime Mover (A-) - I've always liked the lyrics at play here "The point of a journey is not to arrive" and "The point of departure is not to return".
30. Roll The Bones (A-)
29. Tom Sawyer (A-) I think this one scores so low because of ear fatigue. When listening to Moving Pictures in the car, I've been known to skip from somewhere in TS right on to track two, especially along a certain stretch of road...
28. Show Don't Tell (A-)
27. Dreamline (A-) - This is such a great show opener and the very first Rush song I'd ever heard live at a concert.
26. Leave That Thing Alone (A)
25. Where's My Thing? (A) - It just felt natural to pair these two together.
24. Natural Science (A)
23. Red Sector A (A) 
22. Cygnus X1 Bk 1: The Voyage (A) B- Who didn't want to board the Rocinante and go spinning through the galaxies, aside from that whole dying in a black hole bit?
21. 2112 (A)
20. By-tor And The Snow Dog (A)
19. Countdown (A) - I was a fan of the space shuttle growing up, so this was a favorite.
18. A Farewell To Kings (A) - "Scheming demos dressed in kingly guise / Beating down the multitudes and scoffing at the wise". Written in 1976 and very apt for the a portion of the current political climate... Maybe Neil is psychic?
17. Closer To The Heart (A)
16. The Trees (A) - Don't be greedy Oaks or we all get the hatchet, axe,  or saw...
15. Territories (A+)
14. The Big Money (A+) - Rush doesn't really do "quiet' songs to open albums.
13. Vital Signs (A+) - I've always felt this was a peek behind the curtain, of what was coming on Signals. The next way forward.
12. Limelight (A+) - I get it, Neil. I'm right there with you...
11. Freewill (A+)

And now, onto the Top 10...

10. Subdivisions (A+) - No matter what age you are (or admit to),  or where you came from, we can all relate to this one. The intro keyboards are still killer.
9. Fly By Night (A+) - Striking out on your own, in a new direction in life. Try it at least once. This one I CAN play, at least the intro and verses.
8. The Spirit Of Radio (A+) - Anthem. If you don't smile and sing along (especially if it's on the radio) you need to be checked for a heartbeat.
7. Caravan (A+) - After tepid and mediocre albums in Vapor Trails and Snakes & Arrows, this song finally dragged me out of the Dark Times of the hiatus. This one said to me loudly and proudly that Rush. Was. BACK.
6. Manhattan Project (A+) - The trifecta - history, aviation, and the music of Rush came together and just fascinated me. I think my best friend got irritated with me for wanting to hear this song so often.
5. The Analog Kid (A+) - Rush does punk? Hell yes! I've always loved the energy in this song. The two double time hooks right after "the music of the spheres" snagged me and never let go. I'm still looking for that dance with the faun eyes and sun-brown legs...
4. Cygnus X1 Bk 2: Hemispheres (A+) - When I first got into Rush, this was one of the main songs that hooked me. Again, back to the infamous mix-tapes, I had both books leading directly one into the second. Their best one-side, one-song progger. Fight me if you disagree. :D
3. La Villa Strangiato (A+) - Tag-teamed with #4 to blow me away. Wow. What else can I say but Alex needed to have more bad dreams if this was the result.

And now, for the Top 2. Drum-roll please! (Actually, feel free to watch/listen to one of Neil's drum solos. I might suggest a classic at the top of it's game - The Rhythm Method off A Show Of Hands. Go ahead, I'll wait.)
(Worth it, wasn't it?)

2. YYZ (A+) - Another blend of Rush's music with aviation (and I didn't even know the story behind the song at the time). These guys just got me. I've air guitar-ed (and air bass-ed and air drummed) to this one forever it seems like.
1. Red Barchetta (A+) - Wow. The Big Kahuna of them All. This song is just such a cinematic experience. The opening harmonics played by Alex (so easy once I learned it, and still so damned fun to play). The lyrics and the story. All of the dynamics of the shifting sounds and time signatures. It's a complete tale, beginning, middle, and end. It's about flaunting the law and sticking it to The Man. My favorite "as-fast-as-I-dare" driving song (especially paired back-to-back with YYZ). I've made so many Sunday drives over the last few years with this one cranked up enough to rattle my windows. If I ever sat down and made a a soundtrack to a speeding ticket, this is Track 1.

And... that's it, folks. Like I said up top, your mileage may vary. Some songs change positions depending on my mood, but that's my definitive list. For the moment anyway, or until Geddy, Neil, and Alex gift us with another studio album. Thanks for going on this journey with me. If you've read this to the end,

You. Rock.

Rush Song List Countdown (Part 1)

Recapping:
"Recently on twitter, I was challenged to list my top 10 songs by the band Rush. Rush is, of course, Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, and Neil Peart- three musical geniuses who have kept the same line-up intact for over 40 years. If you're a fan of this band, even a casual one, you know this was not an easy list to compile. This got me to thinking - where would I rank all of their original studio songs?

So, I sat down and listed all of their original studio recordings (no live albums, no cover songs), and proceeded to rank them all. All 19 original albums worth. First, I took the list and graded each from "A+" to "D-". This broke a stellar body of work into more manageable chunks- sort of. C and D-list Rush songs are still better than most others bands A-game, but that's just my opinion. Then I could start my list with "A+" grades - rank those, then move down to "A", "A-", etc.

After much gnashing of teeth, pulling out of hair, and re-listening to much of the catalog in question (I've really suffered to put this post together, heh), here is my list, with selected commentary. As always, your mileage may vary."

So, here we are, down to the nitty-gritty,  just the Top 55 songs left on the list. (Just a note: The astute observer will notice this list was released "Part 3", "Part 2", and now "Part 1". It's a cheeky reference to the Trilogy Of Fear, which was also released Parts 3, 2, and then 1. And for some strange reason several years later, Part 4. Maybe I'll do album rankings, or the best live version of each live cut. That might be fun.)

Top 165 Rush Songs Of All Time

(Part 1 of "The List")

55. Everyday Glory (B+)
54. Headlong Flight (B+)
53. Far Cry (B+)
52. Mission (B+) 
51. In The Mood (B+) - The opening riff on this one just sucked me right in. I have mix tapes on cassette(!) from the 80s with this track on it. Still haven't learned to play it yet.
50. Lessons (B+) - Another one I've always wanted to learn.
49. Turn The Page (B+/A-)
48. Anthem (A-)
47. Best I Can (A-)
46. Alien Shore (A-)
45. Distant Early Warning (A-)
44. Bastille Day (A-)
43. Marathon (A-)
42. Losing It (A-) - For a long time, I didn't care much for this song. It was only years later, after I started writing fiction that I came around to this song. Suddenly it made a lot more sense to me.
41. Double Agent (A-)
40. Test For Echo (A-)
39. Available Light (A-)
38. Red Tide (A-)
37. Force Ten (A-)
36. Cinderella Man (A-)
35. Stick It Out (A-)
34. Superconductor (A-) - I got this album new on cassette. I'd heard 'Show Don't Tell' already, and the rest of side one was... disappointing. I flipped over the tape and this song came on and I clearly remember thinking "Yes! Finally something that ROCKS!". It took me a long time to get into Presto.
33. Presto (A-)
32. Beneath, Between, And Behind (A-)
31. Prime Mover (A-) - I've always liked the lyrics at play here "The point of a journey is not to arrive" and "The point of departure is not to return".
30. Roll The Bones (A-)
29. Tom Sawyer (A-) I think this one scores so low because of ear fatigue. When listening to Moving Pictures in the car, I've been known to skip from somewhere in TS right on to track two, especially along a certain stretch of road...
28. Show Don't Tell (A-)
27. Dreamline (A-) - This is such a great show opener and the very first Rush song I'd ever heard live at a concert.
26. Leave That Thing Alone (A)
25. Where's My Thing? (A) - It just felt natural to pair these two together.
24. Natural Science (A)
23. Red Sector A (A) 
22. Cygnus X1 Bk 1: The Voyage (A) B- Who didn't want to board the Rocinante and go spinning through the galaxies, aside from that whole dying in a black hole bit?
21. 2112 (A)
20. By-tor And The Snow Dog (A)
19. Countdown (A) - I was a fan of the space shuttle growing up, so this was a favorite.
18. A Farewell To Kings (A) - "Scheming demos dressed in kingly guise / Beating down the multitudes and scoffing at the wise". Written in 1976 and very apt for the a portion of the current political climate... Maybe Neil is psychic?
17. Closer To The Heart (A)
16. The Trees (A) - Don't be greedy Oaks or we all get the hatchet, axe,  or saw...
15. Territories (A+)
14. The Big Money (A+) - Rush doesn't really do "quiet' songs to open albums.
13. Vital Signs (A+) - I've always felt this was a peek behind the curtain, of what was coming on Signals. The next way forward.
12. Limelight (A+) - I get it, Neil. I'm right there with you...
11. Freewill (A+)

And now, onto the Top 10...

10. Subdivisions (A+) - No matter what age you are (or admit to),  or where you came from, we can all relate to this one. The intro keyboards are still killer.
9. Fly By Night (A+) - Striking out on your own, in a new direction in life. Try it at least once. This one I CAN play, at least the intro and verses.
8. The Spirit Of Radio (A+) - Anthem. If you don't smile and sing along (especially if it's on the radio) you need to be checked for a heartbeat.
7. Caravan (A+) - After tepid and mediocre albums in Vapor Trails and Snakes & Arrows, this song finally dragged me out of the Dark Times of the hiatus. This one said to me loudly and proudly that Rush. Was. BACK.
6. Manhattan Project (A+) - The trifecta - history, aviation, and the music of Rush came together and just fascinated me. I think my best friend got irritated with me for wanting to hear this song so often.
5. The Analog Kid (A+) - Rush does punk? Hell yes! I've always loved the energy in this song. The two double time hooks right after "the music of the spheres" snagged me and never let go. I'm still looking for that dance with the faun eyes and sun-brown legs...
4. Cygnus X1 Bk 2: Hemispheres (A+) - When I first got into Rush, this was one of the main songs that hooked me. Again, back to the infamous mix-tapes, I had both books leading directly one into the second. Their best one-side, one-song progger. Fight me if you disagree. :D
3. La Villa Strangiato (A+) - Tag-teamed with #4 to blow me away. Wow. What else can I say but Alex needed to have more bad dreams if this was the result.

And now, for the Top 2. Drum-roll please! (Actually, feel free to watch/listen to one of Neil's drum solos. I might suggest a classic at the top of it's game - The Rhythm Method off A Show Of Hands. Go ahead, I'll wait.)
(Worth it, wasn't it?)

2. YYZ (A+) - Another blend of Rush's music with aviation (and I didn't even know the story behind the song at the time). These guys just got me. I've air guitar-ed (and air bass-ed and air drummed) to this one forever it seems like.
1. Red Barchetta (A+) - Wow. The Big Kahuna of them All. This song is just such a cinematic experience. The opening harmonics played by Alex (so easy once I learned it, and still so damned fun to play). The lyrics and the story. All of the dynamics of the shifting sounds and time signatures. It's a complete tale, beginning, middle, and end. It's about flaunting the law and sticking it to The Man. My favorite "as-fast-as-I-dare" driving song (especially paired back-to-back with YYZ). I've made so many Sunday drives over the last few years with this one cranked up enough to rattle my windows. If I ever sat down and made a a soundtrack to a speeding ticket, this is Track 1.

And... that's it, folks. Like I said up top, your mileage may vary. Some songs change positions depending on my mood, but that's my definitive list. For the moment anyway, or until Geddy, Neil, and Alex gift us with another studio album. Thanks for going on this journey with me. If you've read this to the end,

You. Rock.

Part 3 of "The List"                                           Part 2 of "The List"

Rush Song List Countdown (Part 2)

Recapping:
"Recently on twitter, I was challenged to list my top 10 songs by the band Rush. Rush is, of course, Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, and Neil Peart- three musical geniuses who have kept the same line-up intact for over 40 years. If you're a fan of this band, even a casual one, you know this was not an easy list to compile. This got me to thinking - where would I rank all of their original studio songs?

So, I sat down and listed all of their original studio recordings (no live albums, no cover songs), and proceeded to rank them all. All 19 original albums worth. First, I took the list and graded each from "A+" to "D-". This broke a stellar body of work into more manageable chunks- sort of. C and D-list Rush songs are still better than most others bands A-game, but that's just my opinion. Then I could start my list with "A+" grades - rank those, then move down to "A", "A-", etc.

After much gnashing of teeth, pulling out of hair, and re-listening to much of the catalog in question (I've really suffered to put this post together, heh), here is my list, with selected commentary. As always, your mileage may vary."

The Top 165 Rush Songs Of All Time

(Part 2 of "The List") 

110. "Secret Touch" (B) 

109. "Heresy" (B)

108. "Face Up" (B)

107. "Need Some Love" (B)

106. "High Water" (B)

105. "Driven" (B)

104. "Bravado" (B)

103. "Emotion Detector" (B)

102. "Afterimage" (B)

101. "Something For Nothing" (B)

100. "One Little Victory" (B)

99. "Scars" (B)

98. "Open Secrets" (B)

97. "Lakeside Park"(B)

96. "The Twilight Zone" (B)

95. "Kid Gloves" (B)

94. "Cut To The Chase" (B)

93. "Resist" (B)

92. "You Bet Your Life" (B)

91. "War Paint" (B)

90. "Second Nature" (B)

89. "The Camera Eye" (B)

88. "Finding My Way" (B)

87. "New World Man" (B)

86. "Digital Man" (B)

85. "Wish Them Well" (B+)

84. "The Wreckers" (B+)

83. "Seven Cities Of Gold" (B+)

82. "The Anarchist" (B+)

81. "Different Strings" (B+)

80. "Entre Nous" (B+) -- I always forget how awesome this song is until I come back and listen to it again. 

79. "Think I'm Going Bald" (B+)

78. "Totem" (B+)

77. "Limbo" (B+)

76. "Red Lenses" (B+)

75. "Circumstances" (B+)

74. "The Fountain Of Lamneth" (B+)

73. "Making Memories" (B+)

72. "Clockwork Angels" (B+)

71. "Ghost Rider" (B+)

70. "Middletown Dreams" (B+)

69. "Grand Designs" (B+)

68. "Ghost Of A Chance" (B+)

67. "The Pass" (B+)

66. "Faithless" (B+)

65. "Animate" (B+)

64. "Hand Over Fist" (B+) -- It took me several years before I really started getting into most of Presto. I remember listening to "Show Don't Tell" then the rest of side one of the cassette, flipping it over to side two (remember that?), and "Superconductor" came on, and thinking "Yes! Finally something that rocks!"

63. "Time Stand Still" (B+)

62. "Nobody's Hero" (B+)

61. "Between The Wheels" (B+)

60. "The Body Electric" (B+)

59. "The Enemy Within" (B+)  -- The highest ranking portion of the four parts of the Trilogy Of Fear. 

58. "Virtuality" (B+)

57. "Dog Years" (B+)
56. "Cold Fire" (B+)

 

Part 3 of "The List"                                                 Part 1 of "The List"

To Be Concluded...

Rush Song List Countdown (Part 3)

Recently on twitter, I was challenged to list my top 10 songs by the band Rush. Rush is, of course, Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, and Neil Peart- three musical geniuses who have kept the same line-up intact for over 40 years. If you're a fan of this band, even a casual one, you know this was not an easy list to compile. This got me to thinking - where would I rank all of their original studio songs?

So, I sat down and listed all of their original studio recordings (no live albums, no cover songs), and proceeded to rank them all. All 19 original albums worth. First, I took the list and graded each from "A+" to "D-". This broke a stellar body of work into more manageable chunks- sort of. C and D-list Rush songs are still better than most others bands A-game, but that's just my opinion. Then I could start my list with "A+" grades - rank those, then move down to "A", "A-", etc.

After much gnashing of teeth, pulling out of hair, and re-listening to much of the catalog in question (I've really suffered to put this post together, heh), here is my list, with selected commentary. As always, your mileage may vary.

The Top 165 Rush Songs Of All Time

(Part 3 of "The List")

165. "Mystic Rhythms" (D-) -- Nearly 30 years of listening and I just don't dig this song. Sorry, I've tried. 

164. "Witch Hunt" (D) -- This is an auto skip for me.

163. "Tears" (D)

162. "Jacob's Ladder" (D)

161. "Peaceable Kingdom" (C-)

160. "Here Again" (C-)

159. "Rivendell" (C-)

158. "Good News First" (C-)

157. "BU2B2" (C)

156. "Madrigal" (C)

155. "Take A Friend" (C)

154. "Nocturne" (C)

153. "Spindrift" (C)

152. "What You're Doing" (C)

151. "The Weapon" (C)

150. "Sweet Miracle" (C)

149. "Vapor Trail" (C)

148. "Out Of The Cradle" (C)

147. "Armor And Sword" (C)

146. "Bravest Face" (C)

145. "Ceiling Unlimited" (C)

144. "The Stars Look Down" (C) -- As you may have guessed by now, "Vapor Trails" and "Snakes & Arrows" aren't doing too well on this list. Neither of these albums really grabbed me.

143. "The Main Monkey Business" (C)

142. "The Way The Wind Blows" (C)

141. "Tai Shan" (C)

140. "Speed Of Love" (C)

139. "Working Man" (C)

138. "In The End" (C)

137. "Freeze" (C+)

136. "Time And Motion" (C+)

135. "The Necromancer" (B-)

134. "Halo Effect" (B-)

133. "The Garden" (B-)

132. "Malignant Narcissism" (B-)

131. "The Color Of Right" (B-)

130. "Earthshine" (B-)

129. "Half The World" (B-)

128. "Anagram (For Mongo)" (B-) -- Can anyone tell me what this anagram ACTUALLY is?

127. "Chain Lightning" (B-)
126. "Lock And Key" (B-)

125. "Xanadu" (B-) -- Controversial opinion time!! This may upset some of twitter's #Rushfamily, but I think I would like this song more and it would work better (to me) as an instrumental.

124. "Chemistry" (B-)

123. "Before And After" (B-)

122. "A Passage To Bangkok" (B-) 

121. "Bu2B" (B)

120. "We Hold On" (B)

119. "The Larger Bowl" (B)

118. "Carnies" (B)

117. "Hope" (B)

116. "How It Is" (B)

115. "Workin' Them Angels" (B)

114. "Carve Away The Stone" (B)

113. "Neurotica" (B)

112. "Between Sun And Moon" (B)

111. "The Big Wheel" (B)

Part 2 of "The List" 

To Be Continued...

Get It Together Blog Hop

Welcome to my little stop on the Get It Together Blog Hop!  

For my post, I thought I'd revisit something I wrote a few years back about self-referencing guides and had originally titled "Your Organization Is Touching My Chaos!" 

Getting It Together (So You Don't Have To Remember It All)

Continuity is a bug-a-boo of mine in a novel series. Be consistent with your history & descriptions of a particular character or place or event. This is something I strive for in my writing, especially in the large series I am working on. If an author chooses to change a character's description, change hair color or the like, I can accept that.- provided there is an explanation for the change in the books. Don't make him sandy blond in one book, and have him dark haired two books later, without giving a reason why.

TV shows and lesser movies often give no thought to continuity. This bothers me, but not nearly as it does in print. I've seen good and bad examples of continuity in published print.

The Bad: I once read a book (which suffered severely from bad editing, or none at all. Really, it was a train wreck) where the dog's name changed completely from one paragraph to the next. Not two dogs. One dog. Two names in two successive paragraphs. I keep this book as an example of what NOT to have printed with my name on the cover.

The Good: The various Star Wars novels that have come out over the last twenty+ years (well over a hundred, closer to two hundred) have shared an amazing consistency, given the fact that they are written by dozens of authors. Added to that are the 6+ movies, the tv series, and the video games the individual units of LucasFilms has released, it becomes an even more impressive feat.

I've seen problems in my own writing. When you've got parts of a dozen different novels (or more, I lost count), plus several short stories floating around that are all in the same shared universe (and across a large span of time) it gets to be too cumbersome to keep everything in your head AND keep it straight. I have one alien species that I kept flip-flopping the ending of the species name from -in to -inian. Planet names that were written -ax in one piece, -axia in another.

I don't have George Lucas' money to hire my own continuity editing staff. Yet. Until then, I have to do it the hard way- myself! To combat this, I started a document to track all the references, characters, ship names, locations, ect that were going into my series. This isn't an entirely new idea, other writers no doubt do the same, with character bibles, three-ring binders, and whatnot. I call mine a compendium, and I went a little more thorough with mine.

I included things like a list of sector names (important because I give a header block for each new chapter giving the location, ship name the characters may be on, ect), a time-line of the major events so I can keep the history straight, and a reference guide for me to remind myself which projects use a given character, or reference. I broke all my references down into alphabetical order for easier searching. Here's an example page from the X-Corps Compendium:

Rhinocerosi

A genetically engineered species. Rhinocerosi were two meters tall, bipedal and weighed approximately one ton each. Jailen Devorax took a rhinoceros DNA sample from ancient Terra, and had the DNA manipulated to grow himself a private body guard force. (RP)

Rowantree, Captain Rosina

Captain of the Starcorp vessel Starcorp Merchant. Barely 1.5 meters tall, with mousy brown hair tied up in an efficient if not exactly inventive bun, Rowantree had been moved over from the Starcorp Accountant fleet to command of the Starcorp Merchant shortly before the ship was raided by the Chorros de Corazón. (TAH)

RP Freight Line­

Render Paxon’s independent freight company. (RP)

- S -

Sánchez, Captain Ramón Juan Álvarez de la Vega

Captain of the privateer ship Chorros de Corazón. He was of Portuguese descent, with a darkly tanned skin that was a genetic gift from his ancient ancestors. He wore a goatee beard and a short pony tail of jet black hair that gave him a rakish, almost piratical air. A practical man, Sánchez operated on the principal that you never ruin that which you can raid again in the future. A stern but fair authority figure, Sánchez played no favorites and accepted no shirkers among his crew. (TAH)

Sanchez, House

Sanchez was the second smallest of the surviving houses to form from DrummondCo. Sanchez was named for Juan Raul Julio Sanchez, the head of the marketing division. House colors were white and orange. During Operation Telegraph the house was one of the major alliance members, pushing their spin-ward border well into former House Merker space, adding several systems to house control. (HSPP1,6,7)

Schwecshheimmer, Fregattenkapitän Fritz “Quicksilver”

Commanding officer of the Merker Navy aerospace fighter squadron Hell Hounds on board the carrier Cerberus during the first two years of the Fourth Border War between Merker and Donov. Fritz was killed in an ambush during a Merker attack on an unmanned border observation post in an uninhabited system. (HSPP1)

I broke it down this way: Entries are alphabetical (by last names for characters). Ship names are alphabetical by the name of the ship, omitting 'The' from a title. The (parenthetical) bit at the end of the entry is my project reference code, so I can track and update references. Some entries appear in more than one project. For example, House Sanchez is mentioned in books 1, 6, and 7 of the Hunt Starfire series.

I started this document for my own self-reference. It's grown into a document over12,000(!) words long at the moment. I'm sure that by the time I get all of these projects written, and hopefully published, the Compendium will be the size of a novel itself!

If you're deep into world building, or are writing a long series, organizing your references is a tremendous help.

Be sure to check out all of today's other Blog Hop authors as well!

Shari Slade --- "Hold On Loosely"

Julia Kelly --- "Getting It Together with Workflowy."

Karen Booth

Rebecca Grace Allen

Jodie Griffin --- "When You’re More Organ-ISH-ed Than Organized"

a Rafflecopter giveaway

How To Successfully Gaine Me As A Follower 3.0

I originally posted this blog back on July 22, 2011, updated on Sept 22, 2011 and it's time to update my list of Do's and Don'ts again.

 

How To Successfully Gain Me As A Follower

I'm noticing an annoying trend on twitter. Maybe it's new, or maybe I've just now noticed it.

New followers who are spectacularly failing to receive my follow back.

Maybe it's you. Sometimes, it's me. I might not see a connection between us that you do. Or the way you tweet is incompatible with my way of doing things. It happens. I'm not saying my way is better than yours (I think it is, otherwise...) What follows is a primer into my "Follow Back " thought process.

This isn't going to be a rant. Think of it as a handy set of guidelines to tweet by. :)

I use Hootsuite to tweet with. On the profile page for a tweeter it gives me the option to look back through the last several tweets you've sent. After your initial profile in 200 characters or less, this is one of the major decision criteria I use for follow/no follow decisions.

It's not hard people. Seriously.

Do:

• Be interesting - If all you tweet about is the ducks you fed at the pond, I'm probably not the follower you want. Ducks can be interesting (And sometimes even tasty!), but if you're just ducks 24/7/365, I'm going to go load my blocking gun. As I'm writing this, @JStevenYork just shared a fascinating youtube video with his followers about the design of the lunar rover, and how it fit into an empty 5ft tall x 5ft wide x 5ft deep wedge-shaped storage space on the lunar lander. THAT is being interesting, folks.

• Be relevant to me - Okay, this one you CAN'T control, but it's really not too hard. I have lots of interests, you'll probably fit in one of them if you try. Just look at my log line for the blog for inspiration.

• Interact with your followers - Put the SOCIAL in Social media. If you aren't talking to people, you're not being interesting to me, and probably less relevant.

Don't:

• Be a spammer - You're just asking to get blocked and reported.

• Be a link whore - You links might be interesting, maybe even useful, but I'm not going to follow you. Obsessive re-tweeters fall into this category too. If all you do is RT, you aren't being "You".

• Fill your tweets with quotes of famous people - If all your tweets consist of these, you're not going to have me following you. 

• Don't have more than half your profile  filled with pictogram symbols. Seriously, I'm not going to spend the time to decipher what you are trying to mean by No.7 or a music note. If I wanted to spend my time deciphering symbols, I'd take up the study of hieroglyphics. Sure, it might mean you like music, but that tells me nothing about what KINDS of music.

• Don't spend over a month on twitter and have only 3 re-tweets to show for it. You aren't being social, which is the point of "Social Media". That's a #TwitterFail to me.

Updated Updates:

• Do share a common language with me. I'm one of those lazy/dumb/ignorant Americans who only speaks/reads one language, English.  If you only tweet in Cyrillic, or Turkish, or Swahili, we have no way to interact and I'm 99.999978% not going to follow you back.

• Don't squat on the soapbox. If all you do is harp on your position on a topic (for or against) all the time, me following you? Yeah, not happening. (See above, related to the Ducks)

See? Simple dos and don'ts. Follow them, and I'm more than likely going to follow you back.

Any tips for separating the wheat from the chaff? Feel free to share them!

Survive & Thrive During NaNoWriMo

Last time out I gave you tips on prepping for NaNoWriMo. This time, I thought I'd share a few things to help survive and thrive during NaNo.

Instant Gratification

Take a chocolate bar (doesn't have to be a chocolate bar,  can be any snack/treat/whatever you want- raisins, grapes, beer-nuts, whatever. I'm using choc bars in this example, and it's transferable to groups of other items) and break the bar up into it's individual pieces. A Hershey's breaks up to 12 pieces. Set a words written goal for each piece, and when you reach that goal, eat one piece. 200 words/piece x 12 pieces = 2400 words written, 1 chocolate bar enjoyed, and almost a day and a half worth of NaNo words done! If you can maintain the discipline, it's amazing how fast your word count will jump up.

Go To War

Don't be scared to go to war with someone. Word war, that is. Word wars are a set time period of concentrated writing, and another great way to increase your production. Word wars might last for 5 or 10 mins, or an hour. These are a staple of write-ins. If you can't get to a write-in, look at the forums. Someone is always looking for a friendly fight. Check out twitter too. There are lots of word war hast tags floating around. #1k1h is a popular one year round.

Note Pads - Your New AMEX Card

In other words - "Don't leave home without it". Plot bunnies can strike at ANY TIME. A sticky note doesn't seem like much, but, according to Twitter's own @RebeccaEnzor you can plot out whole scenes on them.

Blocking Out

Another benefit of word wars is they let your gauge your writing speed. This is a handy piece of information to have when you're trying to schedule writing time. Myself, I'm an 800-1000 word/hr typist, so I know I need to block out about 2 hours to get my 1667 in for a day.
And if you can't sit and write your entire daily word count in one sitting? Don't. Break it up into blocks of time and/or words. @LianaBrooks suggests 800 word sprints. Two of these (and a few sentences more) and you have your 1667 for the day. A third sprint gets you ahead. (remember, hoard words like Smaug does gold!) Liana also suggested plotting out a scene or two, then go write them! Rinse and repeat as needed.

Rock Out

Music helps lots of writers to block out the noisy distractions of daily life. Some use it as mood music for a particular scene/chapter on which they happen to be working. Some writers swear by music, others disdain it as a distraction in and of itself. Experiment. Maybe something will work for you and help you slip into the writing zone. Just don't get caught writing your biker bar fight scene while singing out loud in public along with "Call Me Maybe". #Embarrassing

Quick Characters

The plot bunny ninjas have struck and left you a bleeding mess with a new character to shoehorn into your novel. "But wait!" you cry. "I don't have time to create a new character!" Don't despair. @jroseallister offers up this tip: Do an online birth natal chart and poof! detailed personality traits.

Myself, when writing in a genre with a strong RPG community, I like to use character generation techniques from an appropriate set of game books, and just strip out any game-specific items. If I'm writing up a sci-fi space pilot, I might use Star Wars RPG books to generate a character, and leave out anything to do with The Force, or Alderaan or X-wing fighters, substituting in anything appropriate and specific to my novel's setting.

Miscellaneous Tips

(These may complement/contradict other pieces of advice)
-- Turning off WiFi. (@zombieirishgirl)
-- Lots of tea/coffee/caffeine. (@zombieirishgirl)
-- Writing alone. (@zombieirishgirl)
-- Team up with a writing buddy and cheer/challenge each other onward. (@kitcampbell)
-- Buy a chocolate advent calender and for every day you make goal, you get to have a chocolate. (@clraven)
-- Sit there and gut it out. Don't get up until you finish word count. (@jroseallister)

If you're doing NaNo this year, leave your WriMo id in the comments and add me as a buddy (wrytersblock) and we can push/pull/poke/prod/drag/cajole each other along!

Writing Survival Tips in the Post-October World

It's October. The kids are back in school and Fall is here in the northern Hemisphere. At least, the calenders say it's been Fall for a few weeks. Here in Louisiana we are just now feeling it. Something else is here at the end of the month, just a hop, skip, and a jump across October. No, I'm not talking about November. NaNoWriMo. That's the National Novel Writing Month.

If you're not familiar with NaNoWriMo, or you've maybe heard someone mention it but have no idea what it's about, then this post is for you. It's a month long contest to write a 50,000 word (or more!) novel in the month of November. From scratch. You can plan all year long, but the actual writing has to happen between 12:00am Nov 1st and 11:59pm local time Nov 30th.

Sounds impossible you say? 50,000 just too monolithic a number to comprehend writing in a month's time? Trust me, it's not. I type slow and I've won it. Four times. Broken down, 50K words is 1667 words/day for 30 days. It can easily be done, but you must prepare for it. Here's some tips on how to gird your loins for the 30 day battle with the word beast that is NaNoWriMo!

Stretch First

A couch slug does not simply buy new shoes and run the NYC marathon the next morning. Stretching is involved. If not, the slug will cramp up and be out of the race before the second mile. I know, because it happened to me. Not in the NYC marathon, but in NaNo one year. Had an idea, and 4 wins under my belt, a savvy veteran. I got this, right? Hadn't written all year, and fell flat on my face on day 2.

Work your way up to NaNoWrimo if you have the time by writing just a little bit, say 500 words. Then the next day, write just a little more. 550 on day two. 600 on day 3, and so on. Build yourself up to a NaNo pace (or even more than 1667/day, I'll tell you why in a bit).

Find A Jail Cell

You're going to hear this little voice in your head. It's going to whisper to you, second guessing your every decision. Casting doubts on your ability to write something that isn't complete crap. This is your inner editor. Find the deepest, darkest, dankest dungeon in your mind, and lock that little bastard away in solitary confinement for the month. NaNo isn't about perfection. It's about *WRITING*. Leave the editing for December.

Be A Thief

Steal writing time whenever you can find it. At your desk during lunch hour. While your kids are at swim/soccer/tae-kwon do/whatever practice. While riding the train/bus/carpool to/from work (Okay, not the car pool when it's your turn to drive). Carry a note pad to write on during these hidden minutes. You might only get 50 or 100 or 500 words written, but it's 50 or 100 or 500 more than you had.

Be A Hoarder

During NaNo, words are like gold coins. You need to hoard them like Smaug does treasure. Don't get to your 1667 and then think you have to quit for the day. If the Muse is riding you like a lathered up thoroughbred,  don't stop! The more you can write over the daily word count, the better. You can bank those extra words for day when you might not get to write as much. Or, the days you don't write at all and just want to curl up in a ball while your non-writing world goes to hell around you. Or your in-laws drop in unexpectedly. (Though you might still end up curled up in a ball on the floor)

Ignore Housework...

...Up to a point. When the dirty laundry pile is in danger of collapsing and burying your preteen, it's time to take a break. Stop writing, and start PLOTTING! This is especially good if you're facing a block and can't get passed it. Stop writing and do something else. Wash laundry, do dishes, vacuum, shovel snow off the drive way (if you're afflicted with such - snow, not drive ways). Mundane tasks that you don't have to really think about let your mind work in the background on your writing problems. Plot bunnies like to attack from the least likely corners!

More Stretching

Don't forget to stretch your physical muscles too! 30 days hunched over a laptop is not comfortable (but your chiropractor will laugh all the way to the bank). Remember to stand up and move around once in awhile. Rotational arm exercises to take the hunch out of your shoulders and arms are good too, and can be done in your seat.

Family Matters

Prepare your family for the month. Inform your family that Mom (or dad) isn't crazy because she/he is sitting there talking to him/herself- it's working out dialogue, or plotting. Tell them they may not see you as much for the month, and to be ready to eat lots of leftovers or take out. You'll eventually return, mostly sane. Mostly. Whether you're more sane after NaNo or less so is another discussion (Probably best had with your therapist) entirely!

Get Out

If you've joined a region, pay attention to regional forums. Often someone in your region will post information on something called a "write-in". Write-ins are a chance to meet your fellow WriMos in person, and write with others while socializing. Or socialize while writing. It often goes both ways. It helps to defeat that "I'm alone in the woods" feeling writing can give you, especially during NaNo. If you're not in a region with scheduled write-ins, or you are in an "Elsewhere" region, don't despair! Some Elsewhere regions have a chat room set up, for virtual write-ins. Poke around your forums.

In Conclusion

I could go on, but I'd likely not get this post ready before NaNo - 2014! (Procrastinatia is a monarchy, and it's good to be the king) I hope these tips help you have a successful November - if you write 50,000, 5,000 or even 5 words.

A little green muppet once said "Do, or do not. There is no try." In this case, Yoda is WRONG. There *is* a "try". Failure is always an option!  It's not whether you win or lose at NaNo, it's that you TRIED something you thought you might do "one day", or seemed scary and insurmountable.

That makes you a winner already.

If you're doing NaNo this year, leave your WriMo id in the comments and add me as a buddy (wrytersblock) and we can push/pull/poke/prod/drag/cajole each other along!

I'll be waiting at the finish with the champagne to celebrate with you - in victory or defeat! :)

Chasing The Lost: Book Review

It's not often I get to read a finished book ahead of the publication date. Sure, I've beta read and critiqued for people, but receiving an ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) (even a digital edition) had never happened to me before. Until last week.

On twitter I'd lamented the fact that I always forget to look for Bob Mayer's books whenever I'm in a bookstore. Jen Talty, who is Bob's partner at Cool Gus Publishing, messaged me and asked if I'd like to read and review Bob's newest book, "Chasing the Lost".

Horace Chase is a former special forces soldier and policeman looking for the quiet life. Leaving behind a bad break-up, and an even worse run in with the Russian mafia on a case gone wrong, Chase puts Colorado in his rear-view mirror and moves to the house he inherited from his deceased mother on Hilton Head, South Carolina.

Retired life wants no part of Horace Chase.

In less than an day on the island, Chase is confronted by a contentious neighbor, a damsel in distress over her kidnapped son, more Russian mobsters, and dealing with his gunshot dog, Chelsea.

What follows is a roller-coaster ride of emotions, ghosts from Chase's past and gun battles to rival anything in print. Stitching all this together is a plot with enough twists and turns to leave a champion maze rat lost and drooling in a corner. The shocking ending, with twists right up to the last pages, proves the special forces mantra that Chase knows all too well: Nothing is as it appears.

This was the first book of Bob's I've read, and it's a good jumping in point for sampling his work. Chasing the Lost is a stand alone book told within the frame work of Bob's Green Beret series of books. Finding more of his work the next time I'm in a bookstore is definitely high on my agenda.

*    *    *

Bob Mayer is a NY Times best selling author and retired Green Beret with over 50 books published.

"Chasing The Lost" is available May 7th in both print and e-book formats.

And The Winner Is...

Last week I posted a long diatribe about how I'd failed as a writer in 2012, and my plan for being better this year, and to make this the year of finishing projects. (You can read that drivel here.) At the end of the post was a poll for the readers to vote on my first project to finish for 2013. The poll was open for 6 days and the results are in!

After a massive voter turnout, with a whopping 67% of the votes, the winner is.....

Echo-13: From the Files of the X-Corps - 2
The Dytek Enterprises Field Agent Handbook - 1

Here's a little teaser of what Echo-13 is all about.

Somewhere in the depths of space resides a small band of men. Men who do the impossible. Men who take on the dirty jobs nobody else can or will do. This is their story...

Legends and myths have been passed on from generation to generation throughout time. Missing star fleets of mighty warships. Lost planets of unbelievable wealth. That the home of the human race was a small, undistinguished, third rate, blue-green planet orbiting the star Sol. Some say that these are just children's tales, to be told at bedtime and nothing more. But all myths and legends are somewhere based on truth. Over the past few years a new legend has arisen, about a group of men that run around the galaxy doing the impossible. Most credit these tales to drunken starpilots. But a few believe that the legend is true, that this mysterious group of men is real. You decide.

I"ll post updates as I go here, and on twitter.

January Word Count: 0 / 15,500

And The Horses Are In The Starting Gate

Well, It's Jan 1, 2013. We survived the Mayan doomsday. The world kept turning on Dec 22nd, and the 23rd... Guess they got that one wrong. Since we're all still here, I might as well get traction on this year.

New year. New goals. To that end, I've decided I need to get better at a writing schedule and sticking to it. The vast majority of my new writing last year happened in November. In the first two days. At that point, I really hadn't written anything since Nov '11, and very much at all going back to July before that.

November rolled up, and with it the annual NaNoWriMo - the National Novel Writing Month Challenge. For those who haven't heard of NaNo before, it's a challenge to write a 50,000 (or more!) word novel in the 30 days of November. I'd won this 4 consecutive years, a veteran. I'd hit 50K words in as little as 15 days one year. I figured I'd grab an idea and run with it all month. Been there, done that, I'd have it in the bag. No sweat. I failed spectacularly.

A couch slug does not simply buy brand new sneakers and then run the New York Marathon.

To go from so much inactivity to trying to crank out 1667 words or better a day to keep the NaNo pace just wasn't going to happen. After 12hr door-to-door days at the day job (You know, that thing that pays for life's little niceties, like food and internet), I didn't have the mental energy to write my name much less 1667 words a night.

So, I'm going to stretch this year before running that November marathon. Here's how:
January - 500 words/day for 31 days = 15,500
February through July I intend to add 250 words/day each month, ending up with 2000/day in July.
August I'm dropping back to 1000 words/day, building up again 1750/day in November. Notice, this is ahead of NaNo pace. December I cut myself a break and drop back to 1000/day.

Grand total for this schedule as presented is 464,500 words.

I want to prove to myself I can win this thing with a full time day job, and if I stick to this schedule I'll be in shape to win that marathon. I also want this year to be one not of new beginnings, but of finishes. I have stacks and stacks of projects with notes attached, and maybe a few paragraphs, or  WIPS (Work In Progress) with 5-10K words and a few notes for later. I've even got one WIP that, if I'd had a child when I started it, the kid would turning 21 in July!

The only snafu I have with this whole grand scheme is this: which of my (many) unfinished projects do I work on first? I'm going to let you, the readers decide. I'll post a short synopsis of each contended and let you all vote until Sunday on which I should start on first.

1: Echo-13: From the Files of the X-Corps - the oldest horse in this race. Ultra-deep top secret special forces action with the fate of the galaxy hanging on their next move. Lots of gun battles, space fights and explosions everywhere. I've said for the last several new years that I would finally finish it. Will this be there year?

2: The Dytek Enterprises Field Agent Handbook - Urban Fantasy. One man simply trying to clear his name at work. Oh, he works as a regional field agent for Death.

3: Jameson Hewitt Airship Mysetery - A Steampunk-ish mystery thriller set on an airship crossing the Atlantic at the beginning of a worldwide war.

4: Hunt Starfire Saga - Scifi, chronicling the birth of a mercenary startfighter unit. Book 1 of a planned 6-7 book series.

There they are! Go vote in the comments. I'm looking forward to seeing which horse wins this race.

Fey Lights Review

"Fey Lights" by Liana Brooks

Let me start off right now by telling you there *will* be SPOILERS in this review. I'll do my best alert the reader before-hand, so that those who enjoy their reviews spoiler free may enjoy this one.

"Fey Lights" is a sci-fi novella. Interwoven among it's plot lines is a touch of adventure, a dash of action, a pinch of mystery, and a sprinkling of romance. Stir it all up and let it simmer in the tropical island setting, and you have a receipt for a tasty dish.

I had the chance to beta read this novella. There were few places I could find to poke holes in the story, and the author added some extra seasonings to make the published version of this story twice as nice.

*Here there be SPOILERS*

"Fey Lights" starts not with a bang, but with a crash. Literally. Main character Jeani finds herself shipwrecked on a back-rocket planet in the middle of nowhere, on the trail of a missing colleague, and on the run from a slave dealer. Then Jeani's life gets complicated when ghosts of her past she can barely recall turn up, bearing torches.

Throw in flying jellyfish, a sea creature or two, a few daring escapes, and a head-spinning plot twist, and you have a read that is both enjoyable, and leaves you wanting more.

*Spoilers Finished*

The author offers up a grand universe to explore in just a short novella. Competing empires, competitively cooperating police forces, shape-shifting humanoids, native species with their own colorful local customs. There's enough here for an entire series to explore.  There were mere hints of a larger back story that I hope the author brings to light. I for one would enjoy another outing in the Fey Lights universe. I think most other readers would too.

"Fey Lights" is available now. 

Amazon  B&N  Kobo  Smashwords  Goodreads

Unspun & Bloody Promos

Rachel Firasek stops by to give readers her take on being a newly indie-published author, and to share a little about her new Book "Unspun".

Bloody Promos

As I write this, my fingers are bleeding. It’s the first of 5 million blog posts for the month of July. The world of promoting a new release, especially my first indie-pub release is demanding and extracting of plasma. Yes, I said it, plasma.

Wikipedia’s definition=Blood plasma is the yellow liquid component of blood in which the blood cells in whole blood are normally suspended. It makes up about 55% of the total blood volume.

So, now that I’m weak from plasma and blood loss, I’ll try to humor you fine people on what it’s like in my world right now. There is a reason so many authors’ fight, beg, offer favors of devious intent to find the magical agent that will love their manuscript enough to beg, offer favors…etc. to a New York market.

Once that book is in the hands of a lovely editor in the “big” world of publishing and their marketing department, the author can sit back and relax, right? Wrong. But, it is still better than what those of us less than mid-level authors have to work with. Forging on to find our place in the market, we must sweat, pant, and yes, sometimes bleed for the recognition that will, hopefully, place our books out in the world.

I woke from a sweaty dream last night, no---get your minds out of the gutter---to realize I was sweating over all the months of hard work I’ve put into booking blog spots, chats, vlogs, and now, even a Skype conference with a book club. It’s here and I’ve done so much work finding homes for my lovely words, that I haven’t written my posts! Yikes.

So, night sweats and all, I’m putting on my happy face, and marching on. It’s what I do. For those of you selling a book, start now, not when the book is for sale on Amazon--or worse--on clearance. It will take months of developing treasured relationships, finding people you can trust to share your work with, and finding the right homes for your promo.

I know some of you probably think I’m all over the place and so put together, but the truth is, what you are seeing is half a year of work in the making. I put aside my shy and hiding nature and stuck out my hand/keyboard to introduce myself to other bloggers, writers, and yes…authors. Guess what…they didn’t bite. So, here I am, celebrating my release with you, and writing this hopefully entertaining post on promo. Have a great day! And, now I must go wrap my poor mangled hands in gauze and allow them time to heal before I begin writing my 499,999,999^th post. Happy July everyone!

Here's a little about the book! :)

She gave away her heart…
Giving her heart to a mortal wasn't something the First Fate planned. Losing him nearly shattered her soul. Upon his death, Clotho swore never to love—or weave life—again. Hoping she'll change her mind before it's too late, Zeus commands the spinner of life to take a much needed vacation from her immortal responsibilities.

He had to hide his...
Dane is close to cracking the drug ring he's spent the last two years infiltrating, but needs to perform one last heist to meet the head man and prevent an impending war. An undercover agent, he’s now on the run from drug lords, thieves and with the very woman whose tears make him forget his purpose.

Together they’ll find a way back from the dark.
Chloe will have to put her trust in the man she believes may have killed her fiance, or face an eternity on Earth. Without the desire for life, hope could slip through the cracks of time if he doesn’t love away her sorrow.

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Rachel’s writing career began at the impressionable age of twelve with a poem dedicated to the soldiers of Desert Storm. A dark macabre affair that earned her a publication in an anthology and many raised eyebrows from family and friends, she hid her poetry and artistic style for years…

Tucked away in the heart of Central Texas, with the loving support of her husband and three children, she dusted the cobwebs from her craft. Returning to those twisted regions of her mind, she creates dark urban fantasies and soul-searching paranormal romance.

To learn where love twists the soul and lights the shadows, visit Rachel at http://www.rachelfirasek.com/

Rachel Firasek
True Love Devastates...
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Lucky Day

Well, it's Brain Drippings' 1st blogiversary. Considering my reluctance to begin blogging *at all*, I'd say the blog is lucky enough to have made it this far. So, in the spirit of bon chance (What the French would call good luck or good fortune), I thought I'd tell you about a day I had happen to me once.

Ever have one of those days when things just go right for you? Even when things go wrong, they still turn out right for you? One of those days where Karma decides "Let's let him/her have one today." Happened to me a couple years back.

The gf and I were going out of town to an airshow in San Angelo, Texas. We were leaving DFW and driving west to the part of Texas that, on a colored map, changes over from green to yellow-brown. We stopped at the bank around lunch-time, and I'm sitting there, waiting to get into the parking spot in front of the building. There's a man blocking the open space while he's getting something out of the backseat of his Tahoe. He's a tall black guy, tall enough to look over the top of his Tahoe; could have played guard or forward on a basketball team, he's that tall. Something is on the ground next to his feet, so the gf hops out and tells him about it.

He thanks her, picks it up (looks like a checkbook or something that size), and she goes on into the bank, and he follows a moment later. I pull into the slot and wait. When she comes out, she's holding a bank envelope. (We weren't picking up cash or anything, so this is a little odd) She tells me that the man was waiting for her by the door to the bank with the envelope. He'd thanked her again and handed her the envelope and said "This is for you and your husband. Lunch is on me." She opened the envelope in the truck, and there's $100 in 20s in the envelope! We both looked at each other and I said "Well, there's gas money for the weekend!"

Then we went across the street to Target. She wanted to look at digital cameras, and found one she liked. It was already 30% off. The only one left in stock was the display unit. She asked if anything would be taken off the price because it was the display. They did. She ended up getting a $250 camera for less than half. Our day just kept getting better and better.

We picked up the boy after school, and got out of DFW around 4:30, after fighting some monster traffic on 820 headed west & south around Ft Worth. After we stopped for dinner, and finally made it to San Angelo, (And nearly hitting a deer at night on a 4 lane highway in the middle of nowhere, Texas) we arrived at our hotel at 9:30pm. We'd booked a double with two queen-sized beds on a credit card. This was a price of around $75/night for two nights.

When we got to the hotel, and the gf hopped out to go check us in, it was several minutes before she came back out. She had bad news, and good news. The bad news was that the hotel, at which several of the performers and show personnel were also staying, needed our room and gave it away, since we were so late in checking in. The good news, however, was that since we'd booked it on a credit card, they had to give us another room. The only thing they had available? The $155/night suite over the lobby! King-sized bed, living room with fold out couch, small kitchenette, two tvs and a decent sized closet. And, because we'd booked it on the card, they gave us the suite for the rate of the double we'd originally booked.!

Tell me about your lucky day! Comments are always welcome.

Flight For Control

"Flight for Control" is a new aviation thriller that reads like a mystery by Karlene Pettitt.

Three airliners have crashed in the last year and nobody knows why. After a ten-year leave, Kathryn Jacobs has been invited back to the N.T.S.B to investigate this series of unexplained airline crashes. But her husband, Captain Bill Jacobs, has his concerns. While her twin daughters are off at camp, and Bill is actively campaigning for the Pilot Union Presidency, Kathryn secretly begins her investigation.

What she learns will shock the nation.

Flight For Control is a thriller that reads like a mystery. But to Kathryn, there is no mystery on the condition of the airline industry—it’s broken. Planes are crashing. Pensions are lost. Pilots are financially and emotionally bankrupt due to fatigue, furloughs, and loss of seniority. It’s time that someone takes control before it’s too late—unless it already is

Karlene Petitt is very qualified to write an aviation thriller. She's an International Airline Pilot who is type-rated and has flown and/or Instructed on the B744, B747, B767, B757, B737, B727 and A330. Petitt is a 33-year veteran of flying, and has worked for Coastal Airways, Evergreen, Braniff, Premair, America West, Guyana, Tower Air, Northwest Airlines and currently flies an Airbus for an international airline. She is the mother of three, grandmother of six, and holds MBA and MHS degrees. 

"Flight for Control" is now available at Amazon and B&N.

But wait, there's more!

Just return to the blog and show a proof of purchase in the comments section and be registered into a world-wide drawing for Karlene Petitt to fly to your location and talk to your book club, in person! Not only will she come to speak with your book club, she'll bring five copies of "Flight for Control" for the club as well!

You get a great book, and get the chance to win a really cool prize!" 

A Cry For Help

'Help me Blog Readers. You're my only hope."

I'm at the fork in the road. Actually, I am deciding between 3 choices, so technically this fork is a trident. :D I'm looking at buying a Kindle of some kind (I still love you most paper books!), and I'm trying to decide between the Kindle Keyboard 3G (139.00), the Kindle DX (379.00) and the Kindle Fire (199.00). My problem is, I don't know which to choose. I like the size of the DX, but I like that the Fire is in color. I've seen and used Kindle Keyboards before, but I've heard zip about the DX.

My primary use would as an e-reader first; both for pleasure and for reference when I'm writing- so I don't have to change screens back and forth all the time. Music or videos would be a distant secondary use.

What's been your experience with the gaggle of Kindles available today?

No Tag Backs!

The hash tag. It's a useful tool in spreading content or a message across twitter. If you are building brand and name recognition it can be one of the most powerful marketing tools available. It's fun and heartening to see others re-tweet you, spreading your message, content (or plans for world domination) even further across a hash tag. Communities had sprung up around some hash tags. #MyWANA being a big one that comes to mind.

But do people know how to effectively use hash tags?

Over  and over, I  keep seeing RTs going out to the same tags used in the original tweet. Sure, a RT to the same tags is fine, if a period of time has passed since the original tweet. Not everyone is on twitter at the same time to see the first tweet. But, RTing it immediately to the same tags? Not so much.

Example:

@wrytersblockDH wrote:

 Come read my new blog! #myWANA #Twitter

Then, user @AbcTweeter tweeted 2 tweets in the timeline later:

RT @wrytersblockDH: Come read my new blog! #myWANA #Twitter

Now, do this on a popular/busy hash tag, and the number of RTs can get obnoxious. The RTs mean well, and are sharing something they think is worthy, but there's no need to be beat over the head with it. What you can do instead is to edit the RT first, and change the hash tags. This spreads the tweet further and further, and keeps the hash tags you love from getting really annoyed with you. You can reach other tags that the original tweeter didn't think of, or didn't have room to include.

Think of RTing with hash tags like a game of tag you played as a kid - No Tag Backs!

Motivation and Inspiration

Rock and roll bands. It's not always about amplifiers turned up to 11 and  scoring chicks. Sometimes you get inspirational words to live by. And if there is anyone who understands how life can grind you up and spit you out, it's rock and roll bands. Here are a couple of my favorites.

The first comes from an Atlanta band called Drivin' N' Cryin'. D'N'C' released a 4 song ep in 91 with a cut from their latest album and 3 live tracks. The first live track contained this nugget of wisdom:

...We've been all around, and we've come back home with three very important rules of life. I'm gonna tell you what they are.
Said a toy never played with is not a toy at all
Said a day never lived in is not a day at all
Said a promise never broken is a strange thing indeed...

-- Kevn Kinney of Drivin' N' Cryin' song: "Toy Never Played With"

The second comes from a band out of New Orleans called Cowboy Mouth. CM's mantra is that life is really short, so make every day count. Sounds trite and overused, I know, but this is how their front man Fred LeBlanc puts it:

Sometimes it feels like everybody's against you. Sometimes it feels like the world doesn't care. But what you've got to do is you've got to get up. You've got to find your heart. You've got to find your soul. You've got to find those strengths inside yourself that make you take on the day. That make you take on the world. That make you appreciate what goes on around you. That make you glad to be ALIVE!

-- Fred LeBlanc of Cowboy Mouth song: "Why Ya Wanna Do Me"

Words to live by, no matter if you're a rocker, a roller, a writer, a painter, or just a human being trying to hang onto this spinning hunk of rock we call home.

An Aviation Night Before Christmas

I came across this some years back on a forum, and decided it was too good not to share again. I make no claim that it is original to me. Whomever the author of this piece is, he/she did a bang-up job! And, as tis the season...  enjoy!

'Twas the night before Christmas, and out on the ramp
Not an airplane was stirring, not even a Champ.
The aircraft were fastened to tie downs with care,
in hopes that come morning, all would be there.

The fuel trucks were nestled, all snog in their spots,
With gusts from two-ninety at 55 knots.
I slumped at the fuel desk, now finally caught up,
and settled down comfortably, resting on my butt.

When the radio lit up with a noise and a chatter,
I turned up the volumn to see what was the matter.
A voice clearly heard over static and snow,
called for clearance to land, at the airport below.

He barked his transmission so lively and quick,
I'd sworn right away the call sign said "St. Nick"?
I ran to the panel to turn up the airfield lights,
the better to greet this magical flight.

He called his position, no room for denial,
"St. Nicholas 1, turnin' left base, to final".
And what to my wondering eyes to appear,
But, a Rutan-built sleigh, powered by eight Rotax Reindeer!

With vectors to final, down the glide slope he came,
reporting all the fixes, he called them by name:
"Now Ringo! Now Tolga! Now Trixi! Now reporting Lincoln!!!
On Comet! On Cupid!" What Schnapps was he drinkin'?

The controllers were sittin', and scratchin their heads,
they phoned my office, and I heard it with dread,
they left their message, both urgent and dour:
"When Santa arrives, please have him call the tower".

He landed like silk, with sled skids 'a sparking,
His clearance was given; left on Charley, taxi to parking.
He slowed to a taxi, turned off of three-oh,
then stopped on the ramp with a "Ho, ho-ho-ho...."

He stepped out of the sleigh, but before he could talk,
I ran out to meet him with my best set of chocks.
His helmet and goggles were covered with frost,
and his beard was blackened, from Reindeer exhaust.

His breath smelled of pepperment, gone slightly stale,
He puffed on a pipe, but didn't inhale.
His cheeks were all rosy and jiggled like jelly,
His boots were as black as a cropduster's belly.

He was chubby and plump, in his suit of bright red,
and asked me to "fill it, with 100 low lead".
He came dashing in from the snow-covered pump,
I knew he was anxious for drainin' the sump.

I spoke not a word, went straight to my work,
and filled up the sleigh, but I spilled like a jerk.
He came out of the restroom, a sigh of relief,
then picked up the phone for his Flight Service brief.

And I thought as he silently scribed in his log,
these reindeer could land in an eighth-mile fog.
he completed his pre-flight from front to the rear,
Then put on his headset, I heard him call "clear"!

And laying his finger on his push to talk,
he called up the tower for his clearance and squawk.
"taxi down Charley, the southbound direction,
turn right to three-two-zero, at pilots discretion".

He sped down the runway, the best of the best,
"Your traffic's an RJ, inbound from the west".
I heard him proclaim as he retracted the skids
"Merry Christmas to all! We have traffic in sight".