A Coworker’s Guided Plunge Into Darkness.

Posted by A. R. Schultz on May 10, 2013
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I cannot call myself an avid “Star Trek” fan.  I have loved the franchise since before J.J. Abrams rebooted the series, but I would be lying if I told you that I had entrenched myself in the lore and new the ins-and-outs of the entire universe.  However, I did grow up with “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” and in later years I went back and watched the Star Trek: The Original Series.”  When I found out that my fiancée had not seen anything Star Trek related we went back together and watched “Star Trek: Enterprise” on Netflix to begin at the franchise’s origin (at least chronologically speaking).

Yesterday evening (and into this morning) I had a coworker come over to my place, so that we could watch J.J. Abrams’ reboot, “Star Trek.”  This all came about, because a couple of weeks ago he broached me about the subject wondering, “If I knew anything about Star Trek?” (This is in direct relation to the fact that the sequel to Abrams’ reboot is releasing in a scant two weeks time.)

Funnily enough, the Magic Lantern Theater in Spokane, WA (where I live) is doing a special showing of J.J. Abrams’ “Star Trek” (courtesy of Merlyn’s Sci-fi and Fantasy Shop) on the 14th of May to gear people up for the aforementioned sequel, so I recommend that we try to get together so that he could catch up the new movie series.  Unfortunately, my coworker and I couldn’t both get the night off, so we decided to do an impromptu ‘Star Trek Night’ at my place.

Long story short, we had a blast.

Star Trek Magazine Movie SpecialHowever, my shameless post about my nerdery is far from over.  Some readers may remember that I occasionally work for Titan Publishing/Comics, and coincidentally enough they publish the “Star Trek Magazine” and have just put out a special movie issue for their forty-fifth endeavor.

It is a beautiful printing of everything-and-anything related to “Star Trek Into Darkness,” which releases May 17, 2013.  The magazine has in-depth interviews, stills, and all sorts of nuggets to wet your Star Trek whistle.  It even includes new Star Trek fiction, as well as a chance to win Gold Passes to the official Star Trek convention in Las Vegas, NV.

To say the least, it is awesome.

I already nabbed my copy from Fred Meyer (my day job) and if you live in the States or Canada it is already available wherever magazines are sold.  If you live in the UK the “Star Trek Magazine Movie Special” will be releasing May 16, 2013, so make sure to grab a copy when you can.

If you are interested in more from Titan, or are just curious about the Star Trek Mag, check these sites out:

For more information visit:

http://titanmagazines.com/t/star-trek/us/45/

Connect with Star Trek Magazine:

https://www.facebook.com/StarTrekMagazine

https://twitter.com/StarTrekMag

Now, that I am done plugging my own work as well J.J. Abrams, Netflix, Titan Publishing/Comics, The Magic Lantern, Merlyn’s, and Fred Meyer I have this one obvious caveat and concluding sentiment to provide to you:

“Live Long and Prosper.”

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Reblog: “To Read or Not To Read…Reviews” by Jeremy Robinson

Posted by A. R. Schultz on April 25, 2013
Posted in: Catchall. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , . 7 comments

I am huge fan of the author Jeremy Robinson.  I try to follow his posts and updates through Goodreads, and for the most part I am successful.  This post particularly caught my eye, because the act of critiquing and being critiqued is a hard pill to swallow for anyone especially a writer.  I think that Jeremy Robinson sums it up best in his latest blog entry.

Check out his post, and visit the original at Goodreads.com and his website by clicking the aforementioned links.

To Read or Not To Read…Reviews by Jeremy Robinson

ben-661x1024I’ve seen a good number of blog posts recently from fellow authors focusing on the issue of reviews, which can be, and often are, posted by folks with rude dispositions, grudges, agendas, etc. For a new author, even an honest negative review can be soul crushing. To the experienced author, with thicker skin, negative reviews can be a distraction. So the advice being given is generally this: don’t read reviews for your books. Sounds good on the surface. By not exposing yourself to these negative opinions, you are protecting yourself from the pain delivered by Internet trolls with nothing better to do than harass an author. The troll might be angry after reading the first line of a book sample, or might disagree with the pricing, or might be annoyed that Harriet Klausner gave your book 4 stars, or any number of silly reasons for an anonymous rant. And YES, these people should be ignored. They’ve likely taken to the Internet for attention, because the people in their real lives have begun ignoring their sour mood.

BUT, by ignoring ALL reviews you are also missing out on some well thought-out critique. Many readers, including some die-hard fans who know your books better than you do, take time to offer honest opinions, often based on a lifetime of reading. To discount this suggests a few things that I don’t think are good for any writer, new or experienced:

1) That your writing is flawless, or at least so far advanced that Joe-reader can’t find a flaw.

2) That you can’t learn from your fans, or even from your detractors.

3) That readers are, in a way, the enemy, if they don’t like your book.

4) That you are detached from your fans.

Now, before anyone hates on me for implying authors who ignore reviews are fan-hating ego-maniacs, that’s not what I’m saying. The point is that they’re missing out. On connecting with readers. On improving as authors. On increasing sales (in the long run). As someone who has received his fair share of angry, spiteful and even hateful reviews, I understand the temptation to turn away from reading reviews entirely. A bad review, especially a scathing one that is…accurate…can ruin your day. But they can also make future days brighter, if you pay attention to what is being said.

I didn’t begin my creative career as a writer. I went to art school. And every day, we would draw or paint, carve or shape, pouring ourselves into the creation of an image in the same way that an author does a novel. And at the end of every day, we would line them all up and spend a half hour critiquing. And not always gently. And this is universal to art schools. There is something about visual arts culture that recognizes the best way to improve is through frequent honest critique and listening to that critique. This process became part of my creative experience and still is today. I love critique, because whenever someone takes the time to work out the flaws in my art, or writing (and there will always be flaws), I get better.

A few years ago, after the release of THRESHOLD and before I started writing SECONDWORLD, I went to my editor and said, I’ve done three hardcovers for you now. I want to take things to the next level. Tear me apart. Tell me what I can do better. And he did, but not before saying, with a trace of amazement, “You are the first author to ever ask me to do this,” which surprised me at the time, but I’ve since learned that authors really don’t enjoy being told what’s wrong with their writing, or stories, and maybe their blog posts on the subject. :)  But the result of this critique, and my applying it to SECONDWORLD, was that sales doubled, the book got a lot of press and my audience grew.

As a writer, I began as a self-publisher. Without any connections in the writing world, I had only two sources of honest critique: my wife and my readers. I released five novels on my own (what I now call the Origins Editions), and the improvement from book to book is pretty obvious. Without honest readers, I’d never have improved, and I’d never have signed a deal with Thomas Dunne Books and 47 North, or become a bestselling self-published author.

But why am I still reading reviews? I have an editor. Hell, I have FOUR editors. And an agent. And lots of author pals. Why still read the reviews?

Because I am not writing for my editors, or my agent, or my author pals. I am writing for YOU, the reader, and for ME. While I pick the content most of the time, I listen to my fans. I’ve written and am writing sequels, because of requests from fans. I’m currently writing I AM COWBOY because of how many people expressed their love of the Czech Cowboy from SECONDWORLD. And I’m still reading reviews because I want my future books to be better than they are now. And that’s only going to happen if 1) honest people speak their mind, and 2) I listen.

Last October, I released RAGNAROK, the fourth Jack Sigler book, co-authored with Kane Gilmour. Kane did an amazing job at matching my style, and we worked closely throughout the process, but I knew it would be different than the previous three. That it would feel different. That there would be flaws introduced simply because it was a collaboration and because I’m not perfect, and neither is Kane (and he would agree). So I was very pleased when a few reviewers spotted these flaws that I couldn’t see and pointed them out in reviews. And after reading them, I agreed with many of them and discussed them with Kane. We’re working hard to apply them to OMEGA, which will be an even better book than RAGNAROK, which I should point out was my first Amazon.com bestseller and has a 4.5 star rating after 110 reviews.

So, if you’re an author, buck the trend that says you don’t need to read reviews. Yes, ignore the nut-jobs. Skim the 5 stars if time is short. But pay attention to those 2 – 4 star reviews. Critiques shouldn’t be feared, ignored or undervalued. They’re good for you. Sure, there are tons of people reviewing books, and not all of them are right, but those nuggets of insight from dedicated fans and readers are invaluable. If you really believe that a reader can’t possibly improve a writer, you’re mistaken. My readers, who are awesome, dedicated, intelligent and invested, are the very BEST people to critique my books.

And if you are one of my readers, know that I am listening, that your opinion matters and that I am doing my best to make sure each and every book is better than the last.

– Jeremy Robinson

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“Revolver”

Posted by A. R. Schultz on April 10, 2013
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“Revolver” with Jason Statham, Ray Liotta, Vincent Pastore, Andre Benjamin, Terrence Maynard, and Mark Strong

Directed by Guy Ritchie, Written by Luc Besson (adaptation) & Guy Ritchie

Revolver movie posterGuy Ritchie is easily one of my favorite directors.  After being introduced to “Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels” and “Snatch” in high school by my best friend my cinema sphere increased ever so slightly and (save for “Swept Away”) I have since gone onto to watch all of Guy Ritchie’s films.  The very first time I watched “Revolver” I didn’t get it, and thus I didn’t like it.  (Higher thought at its finest, eh?)

However, the other evening my girlfriend and I sat down and watched it.  It was her first viewing and my second, but with a fresh perspective and several years this viewing was revelatory.  I would also like to mention that I had also just finished the game “Bioshock Infinite,” which touches on topics of a similar nature.  Except, in “Bioshock” the protagonist, Booker DeWitt, faces his own ego in the literal sense–an alternate version of himself, divulged from a single event.  I find this important, because with my mind still reeling from the plot of “Bioshock Infinite,” perhaps my mind was more open to a film concerning the confrontation of one’s ego.

The top layer plot of “Revolver” is fairly straightforward, especially when considering Ritchie’s past films.  It follows Jake Green (Jason Statham) after a seven-year stint in solitary.  During his time in solitary he ‘meets’ the prisoners in the cells on either side of his due to the interception of secretly passed notes via daily book drops.  One of the aforementioned prisoners is a chess master, the other a master con artist.

With the promise of the three of them escaping together, Green shares quite a bit of personal information with the other two cellmates.  Eventually, the chess master and the master con artist escape without Jake, leaving him in solitary for another two-years.  Upon Jake’s release he discovers that all of his money and worthy-belongings have been taken by the two other prisoners and any hint of them is two-years old.

However, he was imparted one gift from them–a working game theory.  Essentially, it is a list of rules that govern the literal and figurative ‘game.’  They can be applied to win chess, poker, or any game of chance, but given the right person they could be used to control events, scenarios, and the outcomes of life.

Some backstory: Jake Green was put away because of Dorothy Macha (Ray Liotta), and after learning the ‘rules’ from the chess master and master con artist, he builds up his own personal wealth again after being released from prison.  After enough time and money has been built, Green decides to enact his revenge against Macha by humiliating him and conning him out of some money.

Revolver 01

Green is successful, but this singularity sets off a chain of events that inevitably pits Macha against Green, involves the unseen Mr. Gold, and includes the mysterious chess player and con artist from Green’s past in a film that not only tells of rival gangsters and loan sharks, but one that pits men against themselves in a battle of wits and ego.

“Revolver” is stunningly shot.  There are some truly superb moment of cinematography that play into Ritchie’s British, gangster-flick wheelhouse perfectly.  However, “Revolver” isn’t your typical gangster film.  The plot isn’t as twisty or grandiose as Ritchie’s past endeavors, but it instead focuses on the more surreal.  The heart of the plot is in Green’s confrontation of his ego and Macha’s embrace of his.  What are the consequences of this, and how can we separate ourselves from our own worst enemy–our ego?

It’s an immense topic to tackle, but Ritchie pulls it off with some clever writing and some amazing cinematography.  If you want something a little trippy and surreal with a crime flavor check out Guy Ritchie’s “Revolver.”

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“(500) Days of Summer” Posters, Stills, & Quotes

Posted by A. R. Schultz on March 18, 2013
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During the composition of my “(500) Days of Summer” review I came a cross a mountain of alternative posters, movie stills, and inspirational quotes tied to the film.  There is an insane amount of material for this movie.  The fan have successfully ‘cultisized’ it, so I decided to do a supplementary post showcasing some of the cool promo pieces that the studio and the fans have come up with–check it out!

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“(500) Days of Summer”

Posted by A. R. Schultz on March 18, 2013
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“(500) Days of Summer” with Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Zooey Deschanel, Geoffrey Arend, Chloe Grace Moretz, Matthew Gray Gubler, and Clark Gregg

Directed by Marc Webb, Written by Scott Neustadter & Michael H. Weber

(500) Days of Summer“(500) Days of Summer” struck me, and not in a good way.  I enjoyed it upon reflection, but not at first.  I felt sad, depressed, and filled with angst immediately following my Valentine’s viewing of “(500) Days of Summer.”  However, like aforementioned, my initial reaction was more based in the circumstance, rather than the actual quality of the film.

“(500) Days of Summer” falls into a sub-genre of the standard romantic comedy–one that I can’t really put my finger on.  I am almost positive that there is a name for it, yet my knowledge of film classifications is most impressive once I strike moot.  At parts “(500) Days of Summer” fit the rom-com bill perfectly; however, on the whole it’s an entirely different beast.  It exists in a subset.  It tries to more deeply explore the idea of love, rather than giving audiences another difficult kindling of a couple not meant to-be/meant to-be.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays, Tom.  I wouldn’t call Tom ‘helplessly romantic,’ but he is definitely more-inclined to romanticism.  He believes in true love and the concept of a soulmate.  His counterpart, Summer played by Zooey Deschanel, feels oppositely.  She possesses that certain kind of ‘x-factor’ and subsequently has been hit on her whole life.

So what would happen if these two met and fell in love?

That is precisely the intent behind screenwriters, Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber’s “(500) Days of Summer.”  The plot is uniquely structured in that it skips around a 500 day period of Tom’s life during which Summer played an influential role.  The two obviously fall in love (after meeting as coworkers), but the real heart of the movie begs the question: Is this the one?

Ringo Starr Quote from (500) Days of SummerAs an audience member we get to see the goofy moments, the fights, the make-ups, and all-of-the other little joys and horrors of life’s relationships.  The story skips around never linearly progressing through the ‘500 days,’ yet the conversations amongst Tom and the rest of the cast compound to create a cohesive and synergetic film.

Funnily enough, the end of the film is quite surprising and poignant in the fact that it doesn’t end in the manner that you would hope or expect it to.  Not only does “(500) Days of Summer” focus on the trials-and-tribulations of relationships, but the gray.  That area between Venn Diagram circles that causes most so much anguish and joy.

I found the acting to superb.  Joseph-Gordon Levitt nails his performance and Zooey Deschanel is excellent company.  They have wonderful onscreen chemistry.  It seems a bit of a different role for her (not the typical Manic Pixie Dream Girl role), but it works.  The supporting cast is small, but their scenes are wonderful.  Tom’s friends and sister, played by Geoffrey Arend, Matthew Gray Gubler, and Chloë Grace Moretz, add to Tom’s personality by creating a funny trio (sometimes quatro) of banter–a type of banter that we have all had with our friends and can easily relate to.  Clark Gregg’s portrayal of Tom’s boss is perfect.  At times, I wish I had such a pragmatic boss!  Talk about rolling with punches and playing to people’s strengths during a time of emotional turmoil.

The nonlinear structure definitely plays to the quality of the cinematography in a very positive manner.  Life is chaotic and doesn’t make sense, until you start to piece it together after the fact.  The cut of the movie accentuates this, which (again) furthers the relatability of the film.

Directing-wise, Marc Webb keeps things in focus when they could easily have gotten off track and into confusing tangents that would have been detrimental to the film.  His skill is definitely praiseworthy and on that note I will leave you with this:

Check out “(500) Days of Summer.”  It’s not your typical romantic comedy.  It’s something more.  Something to be covenanted and something to entertain ideals with in spare moments.  It’s a great film.  Even with my initial reaction I can say this comfortably.

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Stephen King’s “Doctor Sleep” Cover Revealed!

Posted by A. R. Schultz on March 6, 2013
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%22Doctor Sleep%22The hotly anticipated “Doctor Sleep” by Stephen King is the sequel to his immensely popular and famous novel, “The Shining.” The idea has apparently been toying around the horror master’s brain for several years now, but was not confirmed till the audiobook of “The Wind Through the Keyhole’ was released and a prologue to “Doctor Sleep” was included as a bonus. For those interested in a text version of the aforementioned “Doctor Sleep” prologue check out Stephen King and Joe Hill’s joint eBook endeavor, “In The Tall Grass” found on Amazon.com.

“Doctor Sleep” is set to release September of 2013, and until now the cover has been a closely guarded secret amongst the folks at Scribner. However, the cover has finally been released!  While you are gandering at the beautiful cover image up top, check out Cemetery Dance Publications special slipcase edition of “Doctor Sleep” by visiting their homepage and ordering now.

Although, “Doctor Sleep” is being published by Scribner, Cemetery Dance Publications has produced custom-made slipcovers for the past several King novels and has decided to included “Doctor Sleep” within this catalogue. These slipcovers add to an already great product by creating a wonderful talking point amongst friends, family, and bibliophiles.

Here is a synopsis of “Doctor Sleep”:

Stephen King returns to the characters and territory of one of his most popular novels ever, The Shining, in this instantly riveting novel about the now middle-aged Dan Torrance and the very special twelve-year-old girl he must save from a tribe of murderous paranormals.

Haunted by the inhabitants of the Overlook Hotel where he spent one horrific childhood winter, Dan has been drifting for decades, desperate to shed his father’s legacy of despair, alcoholism, and violence. Finally, he settles in a New Hampshire town, an AA community that sustains him, and a job at a nursing home where his remnant “shining” power provides the crucial final comfort to the dying. Aided by a prescient cat, he becomes “Doctor Sleep.”

Then Dan meets the evanescent Abra Stone, and it is her spectacular gift, the brightest shining ever seen, that reignites Dan’s own demons and summons him to a battle for Abra’s soul and survival.

On highways across America, a tribe of people called The True Knot travel in search of sustenance. They look harmless—mostly old, lots of polyester, and married to their RVs. But as Dan Torrance knows, and tween Abra Stone learns, The True Knot are quasi-immortal, living off the “steam” that children with the “shining” produce when they are slowly tortured to death.

This is an epic war between good and evil, a gory, glorious story that will thrill the millions of hyper-devoted readers of The Shining and wildly satisfy anyone new to the territory of this icon in the King canon.

(SOURCE: Stephen King’s “Doctor Sleep Cover Revealed!)

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A KickStarter Campaign to Fund the Self-Publication of my Short Story Anthology, “Human.”

Posted by A. R. Schultz on February 20, 2013
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For the past two years, I have been writing and compiling an anthology of short stories, quotes, and nonfiction interludes in a collection named, “Human.”  At this juncture, I now have enough material to finish my anthology, but now I need backers.  I have decided to self-publish this go-around, because I wanted to get people involved–I want external support to make this a successful project, and with the popularity of KickStarter rising I decided that it would be a good idea to use it to finance the self-publication of “Human.”

I am trying to raise $3,800 to pay for the publishing, marketing, and editing services of Amazon’s CreateSpace, the rewards that the backers will receive, and the fees that KickStarter and AmazonPayments will deduct on a successful campaign.  I want this to be a success; a first of many.

Check out my KickStarter campaign page by clicking the KickStarter logo below and please donate what you can.  $8 will nab you an electronic copy of the anthology and $20 will get you a signed paper back with the rewards only climbing from there.  However, feel free to donate even just a dollar, or at the very least spread the word.  Share this post on your blog or your Facebook/Twitter account–I would greatly appreciate it!

Thank you for reading this post, and I hope you will give this project a chance.  I look forward to reading your name in the ‘Thank You’ section of the short story anthology, “Human.”

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