What do you write with?

I just got this question on Quora:

What are the best pens for everyday writing?

I use a Parker IM Glossy Classic Black Rollerball Pen with a 0.7MM (gold?) medium nib point. Engraved with the Corporation name of my Space Opera Series: TransStellar.

This pen cost me a bit.
These are relatively expensive pens.
Not the most expensive, but known to be “Upper Class”

It is heavy. Writes smooth. I expect it will last for decades.

I will teach my kids to value it. “This is the pen that started every story. This is the pen that paid for your college.”

It makes me feel like a Billionaire when I write longhand (which is what I use it for) or to sign financial documents.

For years, I wrote with SAKURA Pigma Micron 03 Black ink art pens.

 I liked them because they were quick-drying. I am left-handed, so as a kid in school, 40 years ago, BIC pens would stain the right side of my left palm a light blue.


My family often looks at me, and says, “Poor James! Always writing, writing, you work too hard.”

“No. Not poor James. Rich James.”

I feel like it, with this spiffy pen. Every day.

Using Dramatica StoryEngine Today

I've laid out the Characters and their dynamic relationships.

I've blocked out scenes. The plot is very clear now.

Very busy today, multiple cups of coffee, and typing.

The news from America is depressing.

Nothing like a Stimulus check, yet.

Hoping it might arrive on 13 May. A Veteran's website said they might go out in two days. 

It would be very helpful.

Cleaned up the Online Journal / Moxxu Concept finished.

I cleaned up every post here of my Online Journal.  A bit of a job.

This Journal is not perfect. It is Not SEO-optimized. Oh, that guy.

* * *

Still hoping to see a Stimulus check.

They say veterans will get it, but nobody I know has, except my non-veteran mom, and her non-veteran husband.

I have some sort of localized skin infection on the right side of my mouth, a thumbnail-sized subcutaneous lump, that I thought was an abscess in one of the many cavities I need to fix.

But I went to the local Town Hospital. I amazed five dental staff there, that for a foreigner, I speak Thai pretty well.

They kept commenting. it was a fun, happy time. 

They took X-rays. Two dentists confirmed. "This is not an abscess in your tooth. It is not an emergency. We are only actively treating emergencies because of Covid-19. Sorry"

I understood that, and all I wanted was anti-biotics, anyway.  Once I realized that it was just some weird infection.

They sent me back to the regular intake, and they gave me a week's supply of antibiotics and paracetamol.

My son is due any day now.   The back jacket Blurb for Kars Vandor, Merchant of Vision is done.

I got a polish/rewrite for what I wrote myself from an Australian editor named Jessie Cunniffe from Fiverr.

https://www.fiverr.com/jessiecunniffe?up_rollout=true

I was so happy with it.  I drove to McDonald's to treat myself to a double hamburger, and fries. On arrival at "The Arches", I was scanned for forehead temperature, passed with no problem, and had to jot my name, and phone number down in a contact log.

What the hell is that about? The staff did not speak enough English to explain. But it tasted okay.

* * *

I am in daily contact with Dmitry Veseliy on Fiverr about sketches for Moxxu.

He just finished.

Dmitry is a true professional.  The backstory on this:

I had looked for days to find an artist execute my vision of a character.

Initially, we conversed in English, but since I speak Russian, we quickly started conversing in Russian. At that point, he was super-enthusiastic for my project.

I gave him details of the race, homeworld, politics, maps, etc. He is now my go-to guy for Art, as the lead illustrator of the series. I told him to take his time with my concept. Really think it out.

He gave me a series of sketches, daily contacts through chat, and I gave him some feedback, brief notes, small diagrams. He captured the flavor of my Moxxu Felinoid Alien, as a young Taxxu Naval officer, perfectly. 




I have the story, now it is just using "Dragon Naturally Speaking" to crank out 90,000 words, over the next two weeks, for the Draft.

I feel intense pressure to make it.  73,000 Dead in America.   What the hell is next year going to be like?

The news said aides in the White House have Covid-19.

War with China is in the offing, as the White House tries to blame everyone else, and shirk accountability, and responsibility for inaction, and corrupt leadership killing more Americans in 4 months in 2020 than the Viet Cong did over 10 years.

An uncertain time.  At least I know the work ahead of me. I am focussed on that, on getting it done.

The Series Illustrator is from Ukraine.

The Series Illustrator is from Ukraine. We'll get to that.

First, I want to vent about "You get what you pay for on Fiverr.com"

I have been stuck on the Moxxu Character look.

Cat with Rabbit ears?  Lion-like?  Manga style? Cartoon style? Cute? Aggressive?

Oh, damn, I need help with this.

I hate to need help. Sailors are tough. They handle it. 

Yeah, I have been stuck on this for a month. it has been affecting my work.  I am thinking I am losing my focus, here.

Why is it, that I cannot decide on a look for this Catlike alien, Named  "Moxxu"?

Stress?  I saw that I did not understand the look, because I am not an artist concept guy.
I am a Writer, and a Screenwriter, and a Bit Actor, and a Production Assistant, and a Set Decorator, Cartographer, and Space Artist. Yeah, and I used to fix Torpedoes, and Design Tabletop Wargames decades ago.

When you see a movie, there is a complete damn TEAM of people that do a movie.

But people think or expect, (or at least I thought), the Self-Published Author is a Caped Superhero, that does all of this themselves. Okay, maybe you hire a cover artist. But many people do that.

But the lack of money (my father used to call it "Mafunzalow Disease", being broke.)

On top of everything else going on (related to money): 

• Visa about to expire in two weeks, (But I have what I need, I think / pretty sure / hope.)
• My son, Phet (Thai: Diamond)  will be born any day now, literally. 
  The estimated time is in two weeks, but this is the launch window for little Diamond for his mission to Earth, which is now until 1 June 2020.
• Stimulus? What is that?  Don't get me started.  Bah, too late. 

My Mom in Pittsburgh got it.
Her Husband got it.
People in Thailand, other ex-pats, got it. 
People on Twitter got it.

I didn't get it.  More malfeasance by the current administration. Not that I need it, I mean, I can make do.  But it would be a nice parachute during the Covid-19 Re-entry into the world after Quarantine lockdown in Thailand.

TASTY food would be nice.  I got Canned Tuna; I got kilo-bags of rice.  I got boxes of crackers. I got Liters of water. In that way, I know I am lucky.  I am not bitching like "woe is me."

But if Homey-J, the Man in the Oval want to brag his shit, and be like, "Damn, we so winning." Show Me the Mon-ay.