Will Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power come with free shipping?

 Because Amazon is making it? (Ba-dam-tish!).  

That being said, the teaser looks purdy: 

This is actually an interesting period to look at, given that it's only spoken of in some of the background material, but is actually the vital set up for everything that comes later, in the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings. 

My personal thought is that this is better, then the rumored First Age story. It allows us to touch events that are directly contributing to what we see later, but also isn't quite a... super heroic, as the First Age was. We'll see, and I'm looking forward to it.

Let It Go

 I'm in final edits. And there's always a point where you find a paragraph that you could phrase better. Maybe a better word choice. Something that needs to be checked.

Let it go.

It's a truism that no writer is ever satisfied with their work.  And it is also true that eventually, you will find yourself putting in just as many errors as you will be fixing. There is no perfect book. Never. Ever. 

And that means that at some point you have to kick the book out the front door, fully aware that someone will write you a twenty-page letter about the comma splice you missed. But that's better than the book sitting on your desk, more and more edits piling up until you've essentially written a new book--one you will then proceed to edit again. 

But there's another risk here. 

Some of the best, most famous writers, have books that break the rules, or little quirks of writing that are not fully compliant with the rules of English. But they are part of their tone of writing part of what makes them unusual and grabs the reader's eye. I've seen some stories, both published and fanfic, where the writer has worked hard. Every sentence is perfect. Not a single word out of place...

And it has all the character of a block of cement. Sometimes, the perfect isn't simply the enemy of the good, but the enemy of the memorable. 

So remember: There will come a time when you have to kick your book out the door, and let it sink or swim. Don't spend years trying to create the perfect novel, because that is a beast that simply doesn't exist. 

The Single Most Important Writing Tip

 From President Calvin Coolidge:

“Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan Press On! has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.”

You will find nothing more important. Wonder how that guy who doesn't write nearly as well as others ends up on the top 100? He's probably been ramming his head against the wall until he managed to push through.

Wonder why the guy who can write a page that reads like God himself wrote it hasn't published a thing? Because he didn't push through and is waiting for "Something" to happen to make his writing good enough. And it'll never be good enough. 

Keep pushing. Because only by pushing through will you find success.

 

It's beena while.

 I'm going to blame Covid because well, it's caused a lot of issues at home and work. But hopefully we'll be getting back on track as 2020 comes to an end. 

But for now, take a look at something really neat:

It's a fan production of the original series end script. Really nice and yet another example of just how far the fandom has come in the years since it was accepted that funny books, cartoons and games were "just for kids."

Time to write!

Hi all. I'm Jordan Alex Green and under other names, I've written ad copy, romantic novels (with and without volcanic heat), and even papers explaining to investors why a ten percent drop in value is a good thing. 

So here I am, newly unemployed due to our not-so-friendly virus, starting a new career, writing science fiction, fantasy, and superhero stories. I've already got the first one out! 

The blog is a bit bare right now, but I'll be filling it fairly soon--well, soon and family permitting. (Work from home, they said, it'll be relaxing, they said...)

Joking aside, I hope everyone is staying safe, and keeping healthy!