Author: Allan

Hello everyone. It’s been over a year since I last updated, and in that time, a lot has happened; none of it all that good. I’m not going to wax poetic about the riots, Covid, or the presidential elections. I will, however, choose not to put on a happy go lucky face, like many creators do, and pretend like nothing bad is happening. I considered it. I considered it for a long while. But, in the end, one of the reasons I haven’t updated for so long, is because doing so, in such a way, would have been dishonest, and I can’t stand dishonesty. Again, that doesn’t mean I will talk about it all that much, or that this page is going to become just another political pundit podium. It does mean, however, that I must say this before continuing.

Those of you who voted for Joe Biden will get what you voted for, and whether or not you like what that ends up being, I don’t care.

I have watched the country I loved burned, spit upon, and invaded. I have watched the hatred stirred up by both sides, and the shouting of the ignorant for change they don’t understand. On the internet, everyone’s an expert, so I’m not going to tell you what should be done, what should have happened, or why this is good, and this is bad. If you want to know my opinions on those things, you’ll have to read my books. I guarantee no matter which side of the spectrum you may be on, you’re in for a surprise.

This place is for updates on smaller, happier things. Things about release dates, stories I’m working on, other authors, painting projects, and the occasional discussion about tabletop and video gaming. Those are the opinions I want to put here, and I will do my level best to keep it that way.

So, why now? Why, after over a year of silence have I come back to an audience of practically no one? Am I going to promise more updates? Do I have something special planned? Is book two of “The Last Chronical of Azurden” finally finished? No. I’m not doing any of that this time. I am writing this because I want to. I am writing this because I finally wanted to make a post after over a year of silence. If I make a post tomorrow, or next week, or next month, it will also be because I wanted to. This is how it has to be, because I can’t force myself to be social. I have tried. I have tried numerous times. But I am so anti-social it almost physically hurts to forcefully open myself up to the world. Some might call this laziness, others might call it cowardice, but no matter what you call it, it is just me. It is who I am, and I doubt I am going to change.

Finally, anyone out there who’s interested in the adventures of Renard the fox in book two of “The Last Chronicle of Azurden”, rest assured it is still being worked on. Yes, I realize it’s been four years since book one came out, and that anyone should be able to write a book in four years. In truth, I have written three books, all of which is scrapped material from book two, because it just didn’t work. I understand that, sometimes, you “just have to mark it done, and move on”, that “nothing is going to be perfect,” and that, “having three mediocre books out is better than not having any,” and in every case, you would be right. I can’t stand up and claim, “but my books are different!”, “My books are special!”, because they aren’t. They are the tale of a human turned into a walking fox through dark magic, and though not the most popular of topics, I’m certain someone out there knows of at least ten more stories with a reasonably similar plot. There is nothing new under the sun, as they say. But, despite knowing these things, and despite the shame of it taking so long, there is a cardinal truth I cannot ignore about my writing. Whatever I choose to release, I have to be happy with, even if it’s a rush job, and if I’m not happy with it, then I don’t want my name on it. I know a lot of people won’t understand that. Even author’s have to eat. But, every bit of my writing reflects on me in some way, it contains a part of who I am, and where I’ve been in this journey called life. Yes, even this post. If at any time I don’t feel that to be the case, then I wind up scrapping the part I don’t like, or even the whole thing, and starting again, if at all. Some will call this stupid, a waste of time, and even torture, and I would agree, but, it is still who I am, and who I have always been, and it is the only person that can write the books, and the stories that I do. All I can say then in regards to it’s release, is to please, be patient. It will be done when it is done.

I will beg for you to buy my books on other sites. If you’re interested, I already have a page dedicated to them. Here, I just want to be myself.

Hey Everyone. Just dropping a line to let everyone know I’ve recently gotten a new computer, since Apples are overpriced pieces of junk. This new system uses windows 10, and transferring things over has proven a pain. I’m a little sad, because I did like the Apple operating system, but their hardware isn’t worth the paper all the money I spent for it wasn’t printed on. I suppose I could make a hackintosh, but honestly, Apple has become so proprietary, I don’t really see much of a point.

This time around, as far as writing is concerned, I am also going to give Scrivener a try, instead of Microsoft Word. Microsoft word is okay, but I have never been a fan of the subscription model to software use and I try to avoid it as much as I can. Microsoft still sells an earlier *student* version of their software that doesn’t require a subscription fee, but it likely gets little support, and the licensing is wonky, just like if I were to install one of their old office disks. (Most computers don’t even have an optical drive anymore. I have to buy those separately. We will rue the day we gave up physical ownership of our books, games, and software libraries, but most people only care about the convenience.)

That is where I leave this for now. So far, attempts at weekly updates has been a resounding failure, but I refuse to give up on keeping a website. I just need more stuff to talk about that might interest people… it’s just a matter of finding out what…

*insert repetitive joke about not updating enough here*

Hello Everyone! This Saturday I went back to Otakon with my sister, and spent Sunday practically sleeping it off. We both had fun but didn’t get the best opportunities to snap any pictures, so, unfortunately, I don’t have any to show you. Maybe next convention.

I did, however, get a lot more artwork to add to my collection, and met an old friend from my days in Salisbury named Ashley Bryner. Check out her art at firesighted.com. We chatted a little, and discussed the by gone days of our anime/gaming group back in college called Starnet. So sad it changed when a lot of the older members graduated. Apartment 2E will always hold a fond place in my memory. Anyway, buying art is one of the primary reasons I go to these types of conventions in general, because I like collecting it, and it helps support fellow artists and writers. I also rarely if ever find anything I want in vendor halls, and that’s before the sticker shock. Two or three prints from an artist seems a much more worthwhile use of my money than a cheap mask, hat, or plush toy. (Though I do like those things, they just have to be REALLY  cute, fun, or unique, to catch my attention… which most of the stuff wasn’t, sadly. The price hikes don’t help either.)

Despite the fun we had, however, there was a bit of a sour note. Otakon this year was noticeably… lacking. Last year was my first time, so it was the benchmark by which I based my expectations, and… I have to say, even the smaller con I went to in November, AnimeUSA, seemed a lot more, ‘fleshed out’. The vendors and industry representatives that had posters, swag, and a giant Shenron hanging up from last year were mysteriously absent, and those that were present, such as Nintendo, and Funimation, had significantly cheaper swag and handouts than they had previously.  There was also far less variety in vendors, with very few, if any vendors for Japanese merchandise, and a plethora of  comic book and gaming stores, most of which I could go to anytime outside the convention. They were even running sales in an effort to compete with each other (and were still overpriced). Combined with what felt like overall lower attendance, the place just seemed… less alive, than the year before. Perhaps it’s just me, because this happened when I used to go to Games Workshop Games Days as well, but it has put the prospect of going next year on the bench, instead of being a certainty. Perhaps some of you can tell me what was going on, or if you’ll be attending next year yourselves.

On to website and writing related news. The second book of “The Last Chronicle of Azurden” is moving along slowly, but it IS moving along. I will get the whole series done, eventually. That’s a promise. In the meantime, help support my work by spreading the word to your friends and co-workers. Not to sound shameless, but this will help the writing along as well, because support, both monetary, and via reviews and criticism, do encourage me to throw more creative coal into the fire, and if my anthropomorphic characters are helping me pay the bills, I can spend a lot more time on them. If you don’t  like anthros, also feel free to let me know. I have quite a few stories on the back burner that just need some polish, and quite a few feature the average human. You might also be interested in my other works, also featured on this website.

As for website updates, I will continue posting information relative to my work, and my interests, hopefully at more regular intervals, but I would really like to hear from you as well. Comments help me tailor my content, so I can show you guys the cool stuff I have and am working on that I’ll then know you want to see. I also got a new camera for taking pictures, and a digital sketchpad for drawings, so the skies the limit at this point. If you want more maps of the continent of Enavordin, or want me to cheat and start posting early sketches of Azurden itself, just let me know 😉 And if you don’t want to post a comment on my website for whatever reason, you can also post to my Facebook, or find me on Minds.

That’s all for today. My next update should come sooner this time, so keep checking this space.

A quick update to let everyone know that I’ve finally finished the background and location information of the land of Loringlund. Feel free to go check it out by heading up to the navigation bar in the upper right of my site, mousing over LCA Lore, and selecting, Loringlund. I even introduce one of the series’ main characters.

I’ll be dropping another update shortly concerning the more business end of things, so stay tuned, and don’t forget to hit that Like button if you’re on Facebook, or Follow if you’re on WordPress.