Now, James and I speak on the phone (or Skype or what have you) infrequently, but when we do, we tend to go on for a while. When we talked in the official capacity for this interview, that pattern held. However, the Unmortem Report is intended to be a fifteen to twenty minute podcast, and we gabbed for much longer than that.

Solution? The “edited for time” version of the interview is about twenty five minutes long and can be found at James’ site and in the feed for his podcast. This bonus episode of Sonitotum features the “director’s cut” of the interview — over seventy minutes of conversation!

We get into some fun stuff about my creative process and the creative process in general. I had a blast! You will, too, I think. If you enjoy this episode, please consider subscribing to James Durham’s FETIDUS - The Damned Heir podcast novel and his Unmortem Report, included in the same feed.

Me, I’m celebrating for a few reasons.

First and foremost: J.C. Hutchins is a friend — and I don’t mean just an Internet-friend / see ya on Twitter and Facebook kind of friend, I mean my life is better for his being part of it — and I love to see my friends succeed.

Second: “Personal Effects: Dark Art” is a damn fine book. No, I’m not just saying that because “Hutch” is a buddy. I’d be doing my friend a disservice if I misrepresented my opinion of his work — I’m not his mother; I don’t put everything he does up on the refrigerator door with a gold star. Plus, what good would my own word be if I gave you anything other than my honest opinion? ‘Nuff said.

My Review

I had the privilege of reading a pre-release electronic version of “Personal Effects: Dark Art.” The tale could be shelved in the Mystery / Thriller section, but it gradually turns into… something else. J.C. Hutchins wrote the book, the concept and setting is co-designed by alternate marketing and gaming guru Jordan Weisman… the guy who brought you the “I Believe in Harvey Dent” campaign to promote “The Dark Knight” movie.

“Personal Effects: Dark Art” features art therapist Zach Taylor — he’s a young guy, probably not too long out of whatever schooling one must endure to become an art therapist, and Hutchins depicts Taylor’s relative inexperience and youth with a delicate and sympathetic touch. I got the feeling Zach Taylor wasn’t too far removed from being the one in the shrink’s couch.

Taylor works in a facility that’s not unlike an underground version of Gotham City’s Arkham Asylum minus the green-haired clown: Brinkvale Psychiatric Hospital, otherwise known as the Brink. This is an institute of mental health built into the side of an abandoned quarry — most of the place is actually underground. I’ve visited people in real-world psychiatric hospitals, folks. These places are not fun under the most sunny of circumstances. To build one with no windows takes a creative approach to healing that could only be found in fiction. Thankfully.

After a breakthrough with a patient gets Taylor some publicity, he’s given a new challenge: a blind serial killer. How do you use art to break through someone’s psychosis when the patient can’t even see the canvas? With the pressure on from antagonists in his personal and professional life, Taylor’s got to figure it out.

Naturally, there’s more to the plot of “Personal Effects: Dark Art,” but the idea of an art therapist trying to treat a blind killer several floors below the surface of the earth should be enough to get you going. I mean, seriously… you have to want to know more with a premise like that!

Characters That Live On and Off the Page

The mystery is compelling and thrilling and ultimately disturbing… but none of that stuff works unless you have characters you can care about. Zach Taylor is interesting enough, but Hutchins has taken care to surround him with supporting characters each deserving of their own books. His girlfriend is a hipster computer geek and video game columnist. His brother is a reckless emo-hippie who uses the cityscape as his own personal monkeybars like a skateboarder sans skateboard. Even minor characters like old family friends are defined with selective details that make reading “Personal Effects: Dark Art” an immersive experience I enjoyed a great deal.

An Alternate Reality Experience

Speaking of immersion… the novel is only part of the “Personal Effects: Dark Art” experience. While the text of the book stands on its own, Hutchins and Weisman have created a world that extends beyond the pages and tickles at the edges of our own. The book includes physical documents — “personal effects,” get it? — belonging to the characters. You can hold hospital admission papers, funeral cards, notes and other documents in your hands for a tactile element almost unique in fiction.

It goes beyond that. The book give you opportunities to explore. If a phone number is in the book, try calling it and see what happens. Visit the web sites the characters talk about. Dig around. There’s actually an entire secondary story happening in and around the events of “Personal Effects: Dark Art.” Let youself go far enough down the rabbit hole, and you may end up knowing more than the characters themselves.

Since I read a .pdf edition of the book, I haven’t had a chance to play with the “extra-literary” elements of “Personal Effects: Dark Art.” I’m looking forward to the book showing up in my post office box this week and really going to town.

I want to stress, though: you don’t need to do anything more than read the novel to enjoy “Personal Effects: Dark Art.” The extra stuff is just that — extra. “Personal Effects: Dark Art” is well worth the read, all on its own, and you should go buy it right now.

Video Testimonials

Like me, J.C. Hutchins’ roots are in the world of podcasting… specifically the subset of podcasters who have released their novels and short stories in podcast form. To help promote “Personal Effects: Dark Art,” Hutch recruited many of the “stars” of podcast fiction to record a little video testimonial — a “vlurb” — and I was honored and pleased to be part of that!

Check it out:

Featured in the video are the following authors in order of appearance:

• Philippa Ballantine — Chasing the Bard, Digital Magic, Weather Child
• Scott Sigler — New York Times bestselling author of: Infected, Contagious, Ancestor
• Seth Harwood — Author of: Jack Wakes Up, Jack Palms 2 & 3, Young Junius
• Mark Yoshimoto Nemcoff — Author of: Number One with a Bullet, Shadow Falls, Diary of a Madman
• Christiana Ellis — Author of: Nina Kimberly the Merciless, Space Casey
• Matt Wallace — Parsec Award-winning author of The Next Fix, The Failed Cities Monologues
• James Melzer — Author of: The Zombie Chronicles - Escape
• Stephen Eley — Editor of Escape Pod, and publisher of the horror fiction podcast Pseudopod
• Mark Jeffrey — Author of: The Pocket and the Pendant, The Two Travelers
• Mur Lafferty — Author of: Playing for Keeps, the Heaven series, co-founder of Pseudopod
• Phil Rossi — Author of: Crescent, Tales from the Vault, Eden
• Matthew Wayne Selznick — Author of: Brave Men Run, Hazy Days and Cloudy Nights

Check out all of their work — they’re all incredible talents (even that last guy…) If you want to see more on-screen testimonial from some big-name authors, actors and horror luminaries, you can see a lot more vlurbs on J.C. Hutchins’ website.

Go get “Personal Effects: Dark Art” by J.C. Hutchins and Jordan Weisman!

“Hey Everybody” is also your one-stop infotorium for all things J.C. Hutchins. If you’re not already closely watching this author, new media pioneer and creative hurricane, you really ought to subscribe to “Hey Everybody” and his new podcast fiction project, “Personal Effects: Sword of Blood.”

Enjoy the episode!

The Dead Robots Society is always a fun, loose show! In this episode, Justin, Terry and Ryan allow me to talk about “Hazy Days and Cloudy Nights,” serial fiction, online content, income models and a whole lot of other stuff.

Enjoy the episode, check out “Hazy Days and Cloudy Nights” for free, and subscribe to the Dead Robots Society podcast!

No complete songs in this episode. In my memory, certain songs and bands are connected to some of the folks I talk about in the podcast… I’d appreciate it if you would support these artists:

• Sonic Youth: Sonic Youth EP or download the MP3s
• X: Under the Big Black Sun
  
• Jets To Brazil: Orange Rhyming Dictionary or download the MP3s
  
• John Mellencamp: Scarecrow or download the MP3s

Links

Not too many in this one — but here are some people, places and things that were mentioned:

• Mark Jeffrey
• Facebook
• Tower Records
• Borders
• Define “imply” and “infer”

Promos

I didn’t want to break up the stream-of-consciousness ramble that was my monologue this time around, so the promos are at the end. Please listen all the way through and support these fine folks and their endeavors:

• J.C. Hutchins‘ “Personal Effects: Dark Art”
• Balticon 43
• Adventures in SciFi Publishing

Feedback

Leave a comment right here in the show notes or…

• Voice Mail for comments and to submit a Five Minute Memoir: 1-505-DIY-0FUN (1-505-349-0386)
• Send an E-Mail
• Musicians send CDs, authors send books, filmmakers send DVDs, generous kind-hearted people send gifts and money: MWS Media, PO BOX 402081 Hesperia, CA 92340-2081

Show Your Support

Please consider donating whatever you think this episode was worth, with my heartfelt thanks.

Recommended worth: $5.00

So I give you “Confessions of a Counter-Prolific: Why I Produce So Little; What I’m Doing About It.” I hope you enjoy the episode and subscribe to Writing Thyme!. I’d love to get your opinions on the piece, so I’ve also included the transcript of the essay right here in the hopes that you’ll comment:

Confessions of a Counter-Prolific

Why I Produce So Little; What I’m Doing About It

In late 2005, I released my first book, “Brave Men Run — A Novel of the Sovereign Era.” I’ve also had a handful of short stories published over the last ten years.

As I record this, it’s been four years and two months since “Brave Men Run” was released, and I haven’t published any other book-length works.

This bothers me.

It nags at my conscience, because for four years and two months, several times a week and sometimes several times a day in emails, chats, podcasts, blog posts and in person, people have asked me when my next book is coming out. And I got nothing.

It nags at my confidence, because since “Brave Men Run” was released I’ve seen my friends and peers release at least one more book… at least! And I got nothing.

That’s not exactly true. I’ve got… reasons that I’m not prolific as some. Excuses, if you want to be pejorative.

In fact, reasons and excuses mark me as counter-prolific. If you’re a writer who isn’t writing as much as they’d like, I bet you have lots of reasonable excuses — or excusable reasons — too. Here are some of mine… and what I’m doing to eliminate them.

1. The Weight of Expectation. For me, it’s the “where’s your next book?” question. For you, it might be, “When are you going to do something with your writing?” If you’re a beginning writer, your family and friends might be saying, “When are you going to stop wasting your time with writing?”

   It all amounts to the same thing. Folks expect something from you. You expect something from you. Now, maybe you’re like me and you get a slight tinge of “you can’t make me” when you’re in this position. Consider the possibility that attitude really comes from a fear that you’ll disappoint others or yourself.

   How do you get around it?

   Well, look — why do you write in the first place? Why did you write when no one gave a damn about your success or failure one way or another?

   I bet you wrote because writing feels good. Because it satisfies something in you. Because of that moment that Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi calls flow… when everything around you, all concerns and outside stimuli and even awareness of your own body disappears and all that’s left is the work.

   That’s still there. You can still reach it.

   First, though, you have to push past all the reasons other people want (or don’t want) you to write. Remember that you are the reason you write. It’s not always easy. I’m working on it, though.

2. The Weight of The World. That’s your personal world, or whatever’s going on in it. I dealt with this recently. I was laid off from my job and actually felt guilty about taking the time to write — shouldn’t I be looking for work?

   For me it was gainful employment, but it could be anything that takes you away from writing or convinces you that writing isn’t as important as other responsibilities.

   That’s right. I said “other responsibilities.” Because writing is a responsibility — a responsibility to yourself. If you’re like me, if you’re not writing, you’re not quite yourself. If I’m not doing something creative, I get depressed, irritable and generally no fun to be around. Since I’m also a musician and a web guy, I have the added challenge of narrowing down “be creative” to “write.”

   I recognized that I wasn’t doing myself, or those around me, any favors when I de-prioritized my writing. Now, I find time to write several times a week.

3. I’m Bored. Well, you know what they say. If you’re bored, then you’re boring. If you’re so bored with what you’re writing that you’re no longer writing at all, there are two things you can do:

   First, and perhaps obviously, take a hard look at the source of your boredom. It could be your story idea is strong and the execution is flawed — this happened with me when I first tried to write my fantasy novel “Light of the Outsider.” I had to tear that thing down to bare bones… I even removed some bones… but now it’s a better story and it’s ready to be written.

   Or, it could be that the story itself is messed up. This happened to me with “Pilgrimage,” the second novel in the Sovereign Era cycle and the book people are talking about when they ask, “When’s your next one?” In fact, it happened twice with “Pilgrimage.” People want a book that features characters from “Brave Men Run,” so I tried to force a story on those characters. Twice. It wasn’t genuine. I’m taking a long hard look at that these days.

   Step back from what you’re writing and see if you can discover what it is that’s boring you. Or… what is it that will make it exciting for you again?

   Something else you can do if your current project doesn’t excite you is work on something else. Who says you have to write one thing at a time? The important thing is to write.

   So you’ve got The Novel. Maybe there’s also The Rewrites on a short story. The Planning on another book. The First Draft of another story or novel. The Edits on anything. It’s all writing. It all counts. And while you’re working on something else, The Novel is still there, in your subconscious. Eventually it will call to you. When it does, there’s a good chance it won’t be boring any more.

   Right now, I’m working on the planning and story treatment (think of it as a free-form outline, or what Steve Eley calls “draft zero.” I’m also working on an essay to accompany the chapbook edition of the next release in my short story series. I just finished re-writes and edits on that short story, “Cloak.” I’m writing, and then editing, this essay you’re reading (whoa…) Finally, I’m mentally stirring two other novels and another short story.

   Today, this essay takes priority. Later, the essay for “Cloak” will get looked at. Tomorrow..?

   The important thing is that I’m putting words on paper and my mind is actively engaged. Interested. Not bored.

To keep me writing, I’ve tried public word counts, peer support and arbitrary deadlines. Nothing works for long because some combination of pressure / priorities / boredom eventually derails my momentum. Let’s review these core issues and their solutions:

1. People expect great things from my writing, and so do I. The real great thing about my writing is that I get to write. As much as I love that people appreciate what I do, I do it first and foremost for me.
2. There are a lot of important obligations and responsibilities in my life that take time and energy. Writing is counted among them. I’m happier, more productive and a better person when I’m writing.
3. I get sick and tired of what I’m writing. I can take a step back to make sure the story or execution aren’t the problem, Since I have more than one idea in my head, I can also do something else for a while: first drafts, edits, re-writing, “draft zeros,” notes, brainstorming… it’s all writing, and when one thing loses its shine something else is right there to take its place.

Am I on to something here? That will only be determined by comparing my future productivity to the past. Will these concepts work for you? You tell me. Leave comments in the show notes. Let’s see how we do.

Feel free to pop this promo in your own podcasts… or, you can embed this video on your blogs, Facebook and MySpace pages and so on! Help spread the word, and I’ll see you January 25, 2009 at 3:00 PM Pacific time!

Music

• The Plimsouls: How Long Will It Take (Live) from the album “One Night in America”
• Karmen Michael: Takedown from the album “It’s Possible”
• Telling on Trixie: Dumb Boy from the album “Telling on Trixie”

Promos

• Two Minute Danger Theater
• The Boobcast
• Grizzly’s Growls

Links

• SXSW showcase torrents
• “Reggie vs. Kaiju Storm Chimera Wolf”
• Teen Poetry
• Live virtual house concert
• Web hosting (yes, in the podcast I said “2008″ and “2009″ when I meant “2007″ and “2008.” Oops.)
• Mailing list

Feedback!

I wants it. Leave a comment right here in the show notes or…

• Voice Mail for comments and to submit a Five Minute Memoir: 1-505-DIY-0FUN (1-505-349-0386)
• Send an E-Mail
• Musicians send CDs, authors send books, filmmakers send DVDs, generous kind-hearted people send gifts and money: MWS Media, PO BOX 402081 Hesperia, CA 92340-2081

Show Your Support

Please consider donating whatever you think this episode was worth, with my heartfelt thanks.

Recommended worth: $5.00

The Podcast Academy website sells recordings of the Podcast and New Media Expo and then releases them as free podcasts after a suitable amount of time has passed. This is why you’re getting a panel discussion that happened fifteen months ago… but here it is!

Enjoy!

It’s a bit of a long show — over ninety minutes — but worth the listen, given the changes in my life and some of my new offerings since the numerous interviews I did last summer. Check it out!

And while you’re at it, subscribe to the Tea and Chat podcast!