About C. A. Sanders

Hi, everyone. I am a semi-established writer of fiction and non-fiction. I live in Rockland County, NY, where I ply my trade and occasionally get paid for it. You can see my full website, with links to published work and my blog, at www.casanders.net

Promises Promises…Inside Out

Posted on July 16, 2015 by C. A. Sanders

Ok, I swear that I’m going to start adding more source material on NYC History today. I already have something on 19th century slang written (my own notes for Watchmage). I just have to rearrange it for consumption. Right now it’s in a form that only I can understand.

I should organize my files better. One day I’m going to be dead, and people are going to need to find my important files…

Inner Critic: Wow, Craig, that’s freaking morbid.
Neuroses: Yeah, people are gonna think you’re all emo and shit. A 38 year old emo. Good job.
Muse: “Whateva, whateva, I do what I want.”
Brain: Will someone make another pot of coffee…PLEASE?

Anyway, I have to do some more editing, but hopefully I’ll get it up soon…

Id: Hehehehe, you said “get it up.”
Sex Drive: You rang?
Neuroses: You’re ruining your blog with dick jokes!
Id: “Moar dick jokes, moar gooder.”
Neuroses: Now you’re just making obscure references.
Id: “I resemble that remark…”
Neuroses: SEE!!!
Brain: If you get me some damn coffee, I’ll be more original!!!
Stomach: *growls*
Brain: “Quiet, you!”
Neuroses: ENOUGH WITH THE DAMN REFERENCES!!
silence….
Id: “Fatality…Neuroses, wins.”
Brain: *sigh*

Now you’ve seen what goes on in my head. Take that, Disney!

Neuroses: You haven’t even seen the movie, and you’re doing a parody.
Brain: It’s ok, I used to watch Herman’s Head.

To be fair, I heard that Inside Out is very good.

This post really went off the rails.

Brain: This wouldn’t happen if YOU GOT ME SOME GODDAMMED COFFEE!!!

Fin

Like my posts? Follow my website or “Like” my facebook fan page and/or follow me on Twitter. You can also purchase my debut novel, Song of Simon, at any online bookstore or a real one (they both exist). Song of Simon currently has a 4.7/5.0 rating on Amazon, so it’s pretty damn good. If you’re looking for something FREE, you can read my serial (soon to be an expanded series of novels) The Watchmage of Old New York. Though it ended in February, 2014, it remains one of the most popular serials on JukePop OF ALL TIME!

What to do next…

Posted on July 9, 2015 by C. A. Sanders

Watchmage is almost ready. I just sent the final copy off to the proofreader and layout artist. Now the question is: What comes next?

I could do the following:

1) go over the first draft for Watchmage #2: Cold Iron. I think it needs a lot of work (as all first drafts do)

2) Write more short stories. I’d like to do some shorts in the Watchmage world, but not using the main characters, per se. In that case, I should probably do the same for Song of Simon.

3) Start adding more content to this website. I haven’t done much on nyc history yet. I’d also like to add additional content related to Watchmage, like definitions of each Dweller type and how magic works. My editor thinks I should have an appendix for 1855 slang as well.

4) Dick around. No. If i’m not productive, I go a little nuts.

I’m leaning toward 2 or 3, maybe both.

Where am I going, where have I been?

Posted on June 30, 2015 by C. A. Sanders

Sometimes I go through phases where I’m just not moved to post here. I don’t know why. It’s not like I don’t have anything to say. I always have something to say, and I usually say it at length, out loud, and until I piss somebody off. Maybe I’m just tired.

June has been a weird month. It always is. June is the month when my mother died. June is the month where I realized how much I loved Valerie, and always would.

I shouldn’t dwell on either of those, but I always do. Every time I watch a scene in a hospital, I fight back tears.

June also begins The Starving Times for me, and every other teacher. No work, no pay. At least I picked up a couple of big editing jobs. I don’t usually get many editing jobs. I charge union prices, and most people on the internet charge half that. That’s fine, you get what you pay for.

It’s also Michelada time…I’m betting that most of you don’t know what it is. Picture a Bloody Mary, but with beer instead of vodka. It doesn’t get you as messed up, and the carbonation makes it a bit more refreshing. It’s my official drink of the Summer.

I went to the Clearwater Festival on the 20th and 21st. The weather was pretty bad, but if anything, it made things even better. I camped out for the first time, I had good friends there, and made new ones as well. Clearwater is so different from the real world. People actually give a damn about each other. You might write it off as hippie bullshit, but it’s true. I suppose it’s something you have to experience.

The music was pretty damn good too. Check out this amazing band of teenaged brothers called Sleepy Man doing the bluegrass standard Foggy Mountain Breakdown.

I’m inching closer publishing day for The Watchmage of Old New York. I just rewrote one final scene. Now to do a line edit, format it with ToC and acknowledgements, get a proofreader, and get my awesome layout artist to put it all together. I’m still too nervous to set it all up myself. I know I’ll fuck it up somehow. All I really know how to do is write. I’m helpless when it comes to publishing.

I dunno. I’ve been dragging my feet on it. I’m a perfectionist, and I’m afraid of even little errors. Maybe i’m subconsciously making excuses for not publishing. I’m not worried about the actual writing, it’s all the little things that I don’t know how to do that scare me. I’m still aiming for a September or October release, so keep an eye out.

Maybe July will be better.

Watchmage Update, or The Joy of Editing

Posted on June 3, 2015 by C. A. Sanders

On Saturday I got my edits back for The Watchmage of Old New York. There are cross-outs, critiques, and suggestions all over the place, and I couldn’t be happier.

It’s been a very long time since I’ve been sensitive when critiqued. That was knocked out of me by my first writing professor 20 years ago. Since then, I’ve learned to find the most ruthless, nitpicking, evil people to edit my work. I want someone with enough heat in them to burn out all of the impurities. If your editor isn’t ruthless, the product won’t be pure.

So far, Watchmage has been edited as a short story, a serial, and now a novel (each serial story arc gets its own novel. this is the first one). I think these are the last edits…maybe.

I love editing. I love revising. I love looking back at old work and thinking “man, I can do so much better now.” It means that I’ve leveled up, and I have a new xp total to reach.

Never fear your editor. Never get upset or discouraged by the red pen. It doesn’t mean that you’re not good, it means that you have room to get better, and this is how.

Enough with the rah rah philosophy. The update is that Watchmage is coming also smoothly, and I plan to release the first novel, The Watchmage of Old New York, this fall. Oh frabjous day, callooh callay!

Elimination Chamber: Review and Spoilers

Posted on June 1, 2015 by C. A. Sanders

I’m still on a high from last night’s Elimination Chamber. Man, what a show. This was easily the best PPV of the year so far, and it wasn’t even a PPV.

If HHH’s plan is too make the WWE Network necessary for fans, he did it with one incredible event. Because it was only available on the Network, all of the people that usually get PPVs through cable missed out. When they hear from their friends about what they missed…let’s just say that the $9.99 a month is well worth it.

The match of the night was Cena/Owens, most of the matches were high level. Let’s start from the beginning:

Pre-show: Stardust vs Zach Ryder: It bothers me that Stardust (Cody Rhodes) is down to preshow matches, but I enjoyed this one nonetheless. Ryder looks great. He’s been training hard, looks bigger, and is moving well in the ring. Cody is always good, but I think his run as Stardust needs to end. He’s main event potential, but gimmick characters rarely get the big push.

Tag Team Elim Chamber: This one saw all sorts of craziness. We had all of The New Day–who have really grown on me–Calisto hanging from the ceiling, Torito hanging from the ceiling, Titus O’Neil’s head going through the chains, and top notch wrestling all around. Even the Ascension looked good. FEEL THE POWER OF THE NEW DAY!!!

Nikki Bella vs Paige vs Naomi: I expected the title to change hands here, and was disappointed that it didn’t. Naomi has all the heat right now, and she deserves a title run. Some of the moves were sloppy, but there were some great ones as well. Paige proved again that she’s the most talented diva on the roster. If only AJ was still around, the divas division could be fantastic. I can hardly wait until some of the NXT divas come up.

John Cena vs Kevin Owens: There’s nothing I can say that will do this match justice. HHH is all in on Owens, and it showed, because Cena didn’t try to bury him. Owens got a chance to bust out all of his great moves (Go Home Driver, Moonsault, Swanton, Super Scoop Slam Driver, etc) He even teased a Package Powerbomb. Cena got to open up his move set too, and he sold like a real team player. The best part: Owens won clean. Yep, Cena jobbed clean to Kevin Owens. So far, this was the match of the year, and Owens shoot after the match made me stand up and cheer.

Neville vs Bo Dallas: This match was a little too short, and I was expecting more. Still, it was a solid bout between two NXT alum that I expect big things from in the future. Bo is getting better in the ring. His wrestling still doesn’t match up to his mic work, but it’s getting there. I BO-LIEVE in him.

IC Title Elim Chamber: This was not a good match, boring as hell. I was happy to see Mark Henry back (and he looks about 30 pounds lighter), but there were no good spots and Ryback winning was a let down. They also tried this dumb extended spot where Sheamus couldn’t get out of the pod, but he was faking all along. I spent most of this match making dick jokes with my friends and eating ice cream cake.

Rollins vs Ambrose: This was not only a great match, but it had a double swerve for an ending. Rollins and Ambrose have amazing chemistry together. I could watch them wrestle forever and be happy. Still, it was the ending that made this match. The ref gets knocked out (I forget by who, but I think it was Kane). Ambrose hits Dirty Deeds, another ref comes out, and Ambrose wins the belt! Woooo! No one thought that he’d take the belt, and he did. Another unpredictable ending for the EC!

But wait. The first ref wakes up and DQs Rollins for outside interference. Ambrose wins, but by DQ so the championship doesn’t change hands. Bullshit! What a terrible ending! Hashtag CancelWWE, etc.

But wait. Ambrose takes a beatdown, but Roman Reigns comes out and together they clean house. Ambrose takes the belt, and together they leave the arena with it. Rollins is still champ, but Ambrose has the belt. Let’s see how this plays out tonight.

To conclude, it was a great idea for the WWE to put The Elimination Chamber PPV exclusively on the Network. The Network was already worth it, but now it’s necessary. I want more.

10 Observations on DBZ: Battle of Gods

Posted on May 23, 2015 by C. A. Sanders

Thanks to my friend Schmitty, I finally watched the DBZ movie Battle of Gods. It was damn good. I felt that it had more of the lightheartedness from the original Dragonball. I loved Dragonball even more than DBZ, which sometimes took itself too seriously.

Here are some things I noticed: There will be spoilers

1) They all got married and had kids young, like, really young. I know that Goku married Chi Chi early, but all of a sudden, Gohan is married with an unborn baby.

2) They talk about Goku being virtuous, but how virtuous is someone whose main passion in life is to fight people?

3) I love that their humor comes from food. It makes me so hungry.

4) If Buu didn’t eat all the pudding, this movie would’ve been very different

5) Why is Bulma aging, but not Chi Chi? Is Goku’s sperm the fountain (hehehe) of youth?

6) Goten and Trunks are adorable

7) Something interesting came out about Goku. He was disappointed by getting the God power, because he had to rely on friends to reach that level. But he fights along his friends all the time. He’s so driven that he doesn’t even want help. Again, not virtuous.

8) Beerus is pretty cool.

9) I like that Goku actually lost, but he impressed Beerus enough that he spared the Earth. He won by losing.

10) Gohan’s unborn child was able to add his chi to the god circle. Apparently, Saiyin life begins at conception.

Wow. Much Coffee. So Drinking.

Posted on May 11, 2015 by C. A. Sanders

I really like coffee.

Does this count as a blog post? It’s about nine in the morning. I’ve been up for about an hour and a half, and it’s only now that i’m having my coffee. So that means that the actual work time I get from sleep gives me 90 minutes of pep, and the rest comes from a mug.

I turn my morning coffee into a power breakfast (of sorts). Instead of milk or creamer, I add protein shake. My mug is about 20 oz. 10 oz. of coffee, 10 oz. of protein shake, and I have a light breakfast. In an hour or two, I will take a break from working and make a real breakfast.

But right now I’m having a ton of trouble writing. Maybe I’m overworked? Maybe I’m undercoffeed?

Maybe I’m underDoged?

No, I’m definitely not underDoged.

Ok, this is just becoming and excuse to put up Doge memes. I better get back to work.

Book Signing Anxiety

Posted on May 9, 2015 by C. A. Sanders

I’m doing my first book signing a week from today, and I’m starting to get really anxious about it. Getting really anxious is pretty much part of my MO, so it’s not a surprise. It’s still a pain in the ass.

The Poughkeepsie Barnes & Noble has a Local Authors Day twice a year, and this time I was lucky enough to get in. That’s great, wonderful, but I have no idea what to do. How long should my reading be? Do I make a poster with book pricing? I have extra copies of one of the anthologies I’m in. Do I give those away with a sale? Do I bring candy?

As far as pricing goes, I’m thinking 15$ for Song of Simon, 10$ for The Collected Works of Valerie Z. Lewis. Selling Val’s book is more important than selling mine, in my opinion.

So I’m going to brave ahead, and hope that I don’t fall on my face. If I do…there’s an IHOP nearby. I can drown my sorrows in maple syrup.

A Window in Your Heart

Posted on May 4, 2015 by C. A. Sanders

Losing love is like a window in your heart. Everybody sees you’re blown apart. Everybody sees the wind blow –Paul Simon–Graceland

I don’t have a very good excuse for not updating my blog. I guess I haven’t felt like it, I’ve been focused elsewhere.

I don’t usually get personal here either. I try to stay upbeat and post about geek-centric stuff. But I’m feeling personal today.

About a week and a half ago, I broke up with my girlfriend. Why? I couldn’t tell you. I know the reasons, but they’re far too complex to spill out over a blog, and I don’t want to reveal anything that might infringe on her privacy. The only thing I can really say is that we have many differences, and in the end, they were irreconcilable.

I’m 38 and single. Though Val and I were never married, I consider myself a widower. I’m a writer and tutor, which is like saying “if you date me, you’ll be paying for dinner.” I have some serious medical issues. I’m not exactly a catch.

At my age, it’s very hard to break off a relationship. There’s a very real, terrifying feeling that I will end up alone. The dating pool’s pretty shallow at my age.

But I don’t want to sulk. I don’t know what I want to do, actually. For now, I’m going to focus on writing and editing. While The Watchmage of Old New York is at the editor’s, I’m writing a series of short stories for a new (secret) project. Actually two, maybe three projects (I have no idea what’s going on)

I’m not happy with the way the stories are coming out, and I wonder if it’s even worth the effort. Maybe I’m just in a slump.

Maybe the breakup is messing me up inside, and I can’t find my groove. I don’t know. I think I’m just having one of those stretches where I doubt my abilities. I’m hard on myself, and for a reason, but I also have to realize that not everything I write is going to be better than everything before. I wish it was true, but I can’t level up on every quest.

I’m hoping I get my groove back soon. It’s a magical place…like TAHITI.

What? You thought Doge wasn’t gonna show up in this post?

Why I Teach The Walking Dead in My Native Studies Classes

Posted on April 5, 2015 by C. A. Sanders

This is straight up one of the best essays on any subject that I’ve read on a wordpress site.

The Nerds of Color

by Cutcha Risling Baldy

So a friend of mine wrote me a message on Facebook that went a little like this:

Question: how the heck do you get through to someone that thinks natives need to just get over it?

Answer: Shake them? I never advocate shaking people, but maybe something is loose in there. Tell them to take a Native American Studies Course (it ain’t cheap, but it’s worth it).

But if I’m being honest, lately, when this comes up — and isn’t it telling that it comes up often enough that I can begin with “lately” instead of “well the last time, a long time ago, man I can barely remember that time?” — I like to tell them about The Walking Dead.

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