Hello All,
The day is here. I am pleased to announce that I have uploaded the second chapter of The Last Traveler to the website under the WORKS section. And if you look close, there might be a little more for you to explore within ;-). Now, just so you all know, this chapter has been long in development and I wrote it to get it as right as I could. I actually scrapped the chapter months into development and rewrote the entire thing. Alex's journey has become important to me and I find myself caring about him more and more as his story unfolds. There is more to come and I have some other special surprises I'll be putting out at a later date. At the end of this project, I am intending to have multiple media formats and experiences to really try and build the lore and craft of the world, one that is foreign but not so different from our own. For now though, I hope you enjoy the second chapter of The Last Traveler. Drop a comment or send me a message to let me know what you think! Catch me on my Twitter handle @Author_TSSmith. See you all soon and thank you for taking a peak into the world of The Last Traveler! Enjoy! -TS
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The first readers of Chapter 2 have given me some great insight into their understanding of the story so far. Because of this, I need to make some minor adjustments to a certain section in the second chapter. Don't worry, it's a small amount of work but it's very important that I convey the right information to you, the constant reader, so that the story is as good as it can be. Alex's story is a great one and I'm really excited to bring you along for the grand adventure.
The release will happen soon and if you are reading this and are excited about the second section, I would anticipate it within the week. And in an even better piece of news: Chapter 3 isn't so far off either. See you soon. The Last Traveler is really going now. The journey is just beginning... -TS Right now I'm just waiting on the Beta Readers thoughts before I release Chapter Two. It might require some touchups.
But the good news is, Chapter Three isn't far off either. A lot of The Last Traveler stuff is coming soon for those that are following Alex Wilkinson's adventure! -TS Hey All,
So as I still work my way through writing my fantasy novel, I just want to say how much I appreciate you guys. It was a really good year for MKULTRA and for everything in general. And despite missing some deadlines (but for good reason), everything is going well. There have been some challenges. First, is that writing a fantasy overwhelmed me at first. That was something that I did not expect. Developing a world upfront is something I haven't faced before. Prior to this, there has been some groundwork. And whether this pays off in the future, well, time will tell. I am hopeful. I think at minimum, it will be good to get my feet wet. Second, Chapter 2 is going okay and I have it written in entirety (with Chapter 3 as well) but there are things that remain in flux. I am going to rewrite a section, some character motivations, and change some of the tone. In the end, the reason I do this is for you guys. Anyways, here is to a new year! And I hope you guys set some goals and go out and accomplish them this year. There really is no time to get started on what you want to do in life so I recommend just doing it today. Writing goals for this year: 1. Finish and have all sections of the Last Traveler released (if that is what it ends up being called... :-p) 2. Start work and gathering information on how to get into traditional publishing. I feel like indie publishing has gone well, but I need to put in my dues and do this for real. I want to develop stories and music, visuals, art, but the base has to be there. If not, do some queries and get into the process to understand it. 3. Love it for what it is, create something that I will love and that people can enjoy with me. 4. Non-writing goal: Continue to work out and get outside as much as I can, work on connecting with the world, hiking, getting up early, enjoying life. Let me know what you guys are up to in 2019! Reading anything? Writing anything? What kind of goals do you have? @author_tssmith (Twitter) -TS Hey All,
Just a heads up... if you are a Twitter follower of mine and like the pinned tweet on my profile, I'm doing an exclusive giveaway for your copy of MKULTRA. Just visit @author_tssmith, follow, and like the tweet for your chance to win! Lookin' forward to sending out some copies! Happy Thanksgiving All! -TS Hello Everyone,
Now I know I have been neglecting this site, but there are reasons for that. The first of which is that I just don't have that much to talk about right now. I am working on The Last Traveler, hard to believe I know! But the process is slow going, much slower than my three previous books. I have found writing fantasy to be a bit difficult. Not the characters or their drives and motivations, but the world building aspect. When writing fantasy, one does not simply make things up (Thank you Sean Bean ;-) ) Most of the work that I have been doing on the book is actually just background, plotting, and trying to get a sense of the story I am trying to tell. After all, I believe that themes and characters are very important pieces of the overall craft. What is a book without having a theme? Sure, it may be entertaining. But the story should say something. This is intrinsically linked to the development of character, their changes/arcs, and if they get what they desire. The most meaningful stories I have read say something about life, maybe they had a message about friendship, or family, or power, or whatever.. but they said something. A lot goes into writing (even if it is bad writing ha ha) and this what I am working on right now. The process is slow, but it is happening, I can assure you. This morning I made some great progress. To give you guys a sense of how much I have written compared to what is available on this site right now... I have approx. 115 pages of manuscript as my WIP and only released what, maybe 35 pages in Chapter One. But I don't want to release more until I am sure, until the characters are doing what they have to do, and living that adventure that is calling to them. As authors, we all live this adventure with our characters and feel their hurts, pains, joys, and fears. I hope that all the readers can find some enjoyment out of what is coming. Keep your eyes open and your ears listening, darkness creeps but there are those who will stand up to it. Yours Truly, -TS Hey All,
So for the first time again, I feel optimistic when posting on here. It is an interesting thing, the ups and downs that comes with writing, story, and creation in general. Sometimes you think what you're doing is crap, other times you have this little light that flickers on and tells you that you might be onto something. It is not a natural thing for me to do and with life taking up nearly all of my time, it gets put on the back burner. I really love to read and therefore, love contributing to literature. Someday, maybe my grandkids will look at me as a crazy nutcase wondering why I wasted time writing. And to that I tell them (as well as the readers of this post), do what you love. It doesn't matter if it is pointless, if people make fun of you, if you are successful, if you sell millions of whatever you are creating... the bottom line is do it because you love it. It is your life, enjoy it. Destroy it. If you are a business person, be the best business person that there is. Work harder, outwork the challenges, prepare more. And with saying that, I want you all to know that I feel "more" comfortable with the story of Alex so far. I think by getting rid of about 50-60 pages of material that I freed up the story and my locked in thinking of what I wanted it to be. Now the Last Traveler is becoming what it supposed to be. It is a bit like an archeological find, dusting off the bones until you expose the truth of the animal underneath. I'm sure more dusting is to come and more rewrites, but I'm closer to the center now. Stay close, danger lurks beyond. -TS Hey All,
Good to see everyone on here. These past few weeks I have been in and out of writing, but not for lack of desire! I've been preoccupied with being a caretaker to my mom after a pretty intense summer of surgeries, the most recent being last Thursday. But I still have the story of Alex on my mind and I fully intend to get back to the rewrites as soon as possible. Hopefully, I'll be able to break into the story again today. The rewrite progress is slow but I really do want what I put out to push myself as a writer. One of the ways to do this, is to READ. Read often and consistently. Writing and literature was never my number one subject. In fact, it was math which is why I find myself as a professional engineer. But reading some Michael Crichton, I really do believe that scientific professionals can come up with some great stories with some high drama and give a different kind of spin to the fictional world. For me, to write better, I need to study, I need to practice. I need to read. I need to understand sentence structure and pacing and story elements. It's a brave new world but I continue to plunge into it because that is my desire: to create a story great enough that engages you, the constant reader. Looking forward to continuing our evolving relationship, drop me any questions if you are curious. You can contact me through direct message on twitter (@author_tssmith) if you have any questions about the writing process or any suggestions where you think I can be better. As always, thank you to all! -TS |
AuthorT.S. Smith is a mechanical engineer and self-published author. He resides in Southern California where he lives with his family. Archives
August 2020
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