aroslav: Blog

This is number 144 in the blog series, “My Writing Life.” I encourage you to join my Patreon community to support my writing.

I’M DEVON LAYNE and I’m an addict. I admit it. I thought I could just try it a couple of times and see what the fuss was about. Then the opportunity came to just veg out and let my mind wander, so I tried it again. It wasn’t long before I was ‘using’ several times a day and I couldn’t stop!

I’m not talking about drugs or alcohol. This is far more insidious. It’s available twenty-four hours a day right in my own home. And it’s free! I’m talking about short dramas, the video reels that are in my Facebook feed, all over YouTube, on Instagram, and TikTok. And even though they are all essentially the same, there is something strangely captivating about them.

There was a time in my life—some fifty years ago—that I openly laughed at people who had to get home by 3:00 to watch As the World Turns or The Edge of Night or All My Children. Soap operas seemed to rule their lives. Miscellaneous fun fact, prior to As the World Turns in 1954, television serials were all just fifteen minutes long.

Now I understand.

Though today’s short dramas aren’t constrained by a broadcast television schedule, they are every bit as addicting.

So, what is this short drama I’m talking about?

Back in the olden days, if I could scrape together fifty cents to spend an afternoon at the movies, I didn’t get just a double feature of two-hour movies. They started with a cartoon, a newsreel, previews, and even an entertaining short subject—perhaps a Charlie Chaplin silent or another melodrama.

I don’t bring that up to emphasize the rising cost—$12-$18 for a crappy 80 minutes of computer-generated special effects—but rather to point out that the short drama has been around for a very long time. And we’ve all loved them! Think of The Simpsons when it started as a five-minute break on The Tracey Ullman Show thirty-nine years ago this month.

Today, we’ve progressed past television and even streaming podcasts to the mobile internet platform. Since they are made to be viewed on a smartphone, short dramas are recorded in a vertical format. They are episodic in nature with each episode lasting as little as a minute or as long as twenty minutes. And they are often elaborately produced with incredible settings and acting.

Some of the most beautiful performers in the world are known for their short dramas. I’m looking at you, Li Ke Yi. I know she looks twelve, but she’s twenty-four and has starred in nearly thirty short dramas in the past two years. She’ll probably still look twelve twenty years from now.

Short dramas tend to have simple plots and somewhat fewer characters than most big budget dramas. Armies of thousands are depicted by fewer than a dozen armored extras. Even though Chinese short dramas are the most popular (often AI dubbed or subtitled) there are versions in nearly all Asian countries—anime, K-drama, etc.—but it doesn’t end there. They have appeared in American reels, in western European dramas, in Hindi, and in nearly every culture that has a written or recorded entertainment industry.

That includes written serials on several platforms. My friend, MaryEllen Brady, releases some incredible serialized short dramas, even blending fantasy and the Wild West as in her series The Outsider. Addictive!

As I was writing this, I realized I’ve written short serials before. My most recent Halloween stories—The Key to Eve and Alienable Rights—are short serials. Chapters are somewhat shorter than my usual serialized novels, and the entire story is no more than twelve chapters. They both come in at far fewer than 50,000 words. And people liked both of them, even though most readers have a low tolerance for anything that involves politics, even satire.

It was only a matter of time before I tried my hand at deliberately writing a short drama, following the major structure and tropes of Chinese short drama, but set in the US with completely American characters.

Trial Balance is an introspective short drama that follows Cal, a beleaguered accountant whose life seems cursed by bad luck—and by the whims of an author who keeps killing him off and bringing him back. Cal’s journey is a rollercoaster of personal setbacks, from disastrous relationships and health crises to corporate sabotage and murder attempts. As he uncovers financial fraud at a major development firm, Cal’s awareness of his fictional existence adds a layer of humor and existential reflection. Surrounded by a cast of colorful characters—including his ex-wife, her scheming lover, and two strong-willed women who may be his salvation—Cal must navigate betrayal, danger, and the absurdity of his own narrative. Trial Balance delivers dark comedy and a fresh take on the drama genre.

My unedited first draft of this story is now posting three chapters per week as I write it, exclusively for my Sausage Grinder patrons. It will run through May. It’s a great time to be a Sausage Grinder tier patron. SOL readers will get it when it's been rewritten and edited.

The chapters are shorter than my typical works. Each could be read aloud in less than 20 minutes. Each has a complete scene and a bit of tease that will make you impatient to see the next chapter. The chapters have a lot of action, romance, and suspense. I’m working with a comprehensive outline that indicates there will be about twenty-five chapters all told.

Short dramas have a number of tropes that occur in piece after piece. There are some that I won’t touch in this story, and others that I fully embrace.

There will be no martial arts or supernatural abilities—like x-ray vision or prediction of the future or ability to heal. There will be no time travel of modern man into distant past where he uses contemporary science and technology to change the destiny of his character. There will be no ‘system’ that grants benefits based on a game-like program imbedded in his brain. No one will be drugged with an aphrodisiac. There will be no secret CEO pretending to be a beggar while building up their wife’s or husband’s business with his vast fortune. No one is going to get slapped.

There will be a scheming ex-wife who regrets her decision. There will be a rescue that creates bonds between the hero and the heroines. There will be a miraculous recovery from death. A hidden treasure will be revealed. One or more scheming partners or their children will try to take over the company. There will be circumstantial misunderstandings that gradually bring the main characters closer together. There will be a lot of blushing. There will be short term amnesia that changes the storyline when memory is recovered.

A less common theme that I’ll use is the main character’s awareness that he is in a short drama and a struggle for control between the author and the characters!

As the story begins, we look into the mind of the main character who narrates:

I get killed on page 18, but the author says not to worry because I’m alive again in the next chapter.

That’s not the only detail Cal reveals!

I expect serialization of the fully edited story on SOL sometime in July, probably while I’m on the road north, pulling my home behind me.

This is number 143 in the blog series, “My Writing Life.” I encourage you to join my Patreon community to support my writing.

I NEVER ANTICIPATED that I would ever write a book that could be classified as ‘Family Drama.’ Maybe some of my books could be, if you tried hard enough, but certainly none would be.

Then, while drafting a simple time travel story about a man sent back in time to plant a genetic code in descendants, I ended up uncovering an exceptional amount of family drama.

I guess, some of it is my own, though you wouldn’t recognize it.

And today, the drama gets shared on StoriesOnline with the launch of the serial The Inheritance Paradox!

I didn’t have a close relationship with my father, who died of cancer when I was 27, all the way back in 1976. In fact, we occasionally had a what I considered irreconcilable differences. Like the time he tried to teach me to drive a stick shift. When I got that old Ford Falcon station wagon home after an hour of him screaming in my ear, I took off running as hard as I could, never thinking of going back.

I did, of course. But I didn’t want to talk to him—not that I could have after running as hard as I could for two miles, all while screaming at the top of my lungs.

I was in my senior year of college and working as the designer and technical director on our production of King Lear when my father showed up on the stage. I dreaded it, because all through my life, he’d been a domineering person who took control of every project I’d ever worked on. He was strapping his tool belt on as he strode across the stage toward me.

“What do you need me to do?” was all he said. I gave him the project of cutting plywood and building a throne into what would become a rocky wall. I gave him a student assistant, and I was amazed to see how patient he was with the guy. It was the first time I ever felt my father respected me or what I was doing.

He passed away four years later after a long battle with cancer while I was in my first year of grad school.

Fathers and sons. It can be a difficult relationship.

When I have written about fathers in my novels, they are normally patterned after what I wished my father had been to me. My older sister, rest her soul, read my Nathan Everett novel The Volunteer right after it was released in 2013. Her immediate response was, “We must have had different fathers. The father in this book was nothing like mine.”

I had to tell her he was really nothing like mine, either. There was a lot of healing involved in writing about a father I admired, loved, and respected.

The Inheritance Paradox is a tale that blends time travel, historical intrigue, and heartfelt family drama. The story follows Nathaniel Holbrook, a technical writer, as he uncovers the enigmatic past of his father, Eugene, a former minister turned time traveler. Eugene’s journeys across centuries reveal profound connections, moral dilemmas, and a mission to save humanity. These actions ripple through time, leaving behind descendants who unknowingly hold the key to humanity’s survival.

As Nathaniel delves deeper into his father’s secrets, he discovers startling connections to his own life and family, challenging his understanding of identity, morality, and reality. Alongside his sister Megan, a geneticist on the brink of a groundbreaking discovery, Nathaniel pieces together the extraordinary legacy of their family.

Set against vivid historical backdrops like the founding of the Continental Marines and the Great Chicago Fire, the novel explores themes of redemption, love, guilt, and the enduring bonds of family. With a rich tapestry of characters and a narrative that seamlessly weaves past, present, and future, The Inheritance Paradox invites readers to reflect on how the choices of those who came before us shape our lives—and how we, in turn, shape the lives of those who come after.

A thought-provoking journey through time and generations, this novel will resonate deeply with readers, leaving them pondering the profound impact of legacy and love long after the final page.

I have in mind a post on ingrained prejudice and hatred and how it comes out in literature and language. It’s still a little raw, but I think I’ll be ready in a couple of weeks.

Yes, that is the end of Forever Yours, posted this morning. Thank you to everyone for your support and comments. The eBook is still available on ZBookStore and the Signature Edition paperback from my website.

What's next?

March 29, I will begin posting my new story, The Inheritance Paradox.

The Inheritance Paradox is a multi-layered novel that blends elements of science fiction, historical fiction, and family drama. The story revolves around Eugene Holbrook, who embarks on time-traveling adventures to implant a genetic marker that could save humanity from a future catastrophe. Narrated by his son Nathaniel, the novel explores Eugene’s mysterious past, his struggles with guilt, loss, and redemption, and the impact of his actions on his family. The narrative alternates between Eugene’s time-traveling escapades and his family’s present-day efforts to uncover the truth, creating a rich tapestry of interconnected timelines and relationships.

The Inheritance Paradox is an ambitious novel that challenges readers to reflect on their own family histories and the legacies they carry. It is a testament to the enduring power of love, the complexities of human relationships, and the interconnectedness of humanity. This novel is a must-read for fans of time travel stories, family dramas, and speculative fiction that pushes the boundaries of imagination and science.

The Inheritance Paradox will be available for pre-order at ZBookStore this weekend and will release on March 29, 2026. That is also the date it will begin serialization on StoriesOnline.

This is number 142 in the blog series, “My Writing Life.” I encourage you to join my Patreon community to support my writing.

I learned a valuable lesson from the Doobie brothers in 1979: “What a fool believes he sees, no wise man has the power to reason away.” I know Kenny Logins sang it first, but I don’t remember ever hearing his version. It’s one of the reasons I seldom comment on social media posts from friends and relatives I disagree with.

It does bring up a significant issue for writers because what a character believes, sometimes no amount of “proof” to the contrary will change.

I freely admit that assuming I understand Asian culture because I watch a lot of Chinese short dramas would be equivalent to assuming I understand Native American culture because I watch a lot of westerns. Yes, many people have an understanding of one culture or another based on fiction portrayals. We as authors fuel that with everything we release.

But my addiction to ‘short dramas’ has helped me see and identify a significant trope in a lot of fiction, including my own.

I’ll start by saying there are many short dramas that seem to follow the same script. In fact, for many, the script has only changed the actors, location, or names. One script that I see often is the story of a poor common person who runs a food stall, is a courier, is a security guard, or is a janitor who is later revealed to be a billionaire CEO, martial arts god, legendary healer, business genius, or combination of all of the above.

The conflict comes when, in the process of being revealed, a former classmate, family member, ex-spouse, or business rival, will insist the protagonist is not the legendary hero because he “knows” him. This person will have an objection that convinces all the other characters the protagonist is a fraud.

This is in the face of superior characters who identify the protagonist, documents and symbols proving his/her identity, demonstrated martial arts, business, or healing skills, and other incontrovertible evidence. The antagonist will insist the evidence is fake, the documents are forged, the blow was just lucky, the stock price fall was all a coincidence, or the witness is mistaken. Sometimes I look at these people and think, “What idiots!! The evidence is right in front of you!”

I’m thankful to short dramas for being so obvious about some of these storylines. When a plot device is so blatant and is used in story after story, it is easier to begin to spot it in other forms of fiction, like my own writing. For example, the ‘Give me a minute” ploy.

I came across a Dungeons and Dragons meme the other day that took an interesting twist on this ploy. I don’t play the game, but this scenario was obvious enough that I could identify it at once. The monster demon stops the troupe of adventurers and says, “You can’t go forward until you make a deal with me.” The Paladin immediately steps up and says, “This is so sudden. Can you give me five seconds?” The demon laughs and says “Sure.” Five seconds later the Paladin says, “Okay, let us pass.” Everyone is amazed because the Paladin proposed a deal to the demon, “Give me five seconds.” The demon agreed. Five seconds later the deal was completed. The demon watches the party go on.

I think there are fewer gambits that work out so smoothly for the players (characters) in short dramas. In the storyline, the first level offender is defeated and says, “Just you wait. I’m calling my big brother.” He gets on the phone and begs his big brother to save him because he’s being bullied. A minute later, big brother shows up. He gets beaten up and says, “Wait five minutes! The boss will be here.” Five minutes later, the boss and a batch of thugs show up and get beaten up. And so on. It is an ever-escalating battle until the CEO shows up, recognizes the protagonist and apologizes for his underlings’ behavior. Then go back to the ‘Fool believes’ scenario above.

Later, the scenario is reversed. In the big reveal scene, the antagonist shows his ‘proof’ the protagonist is a fraud. The protagonist picks up his cellphone and barks, “Have Joe Smoe here in three minutes.” Joe Smoe is the antagonist’s father or boss and arrives three minutes later to apologize to the protagonist and discipline his son/employee.

Then someone else shows up who backs the opposition and the cycle continues to escalate until all the most powerful families/corporations in town have been wiped out.
Of course, it’s a serial, so in the next episode, some discontented antagonist is going to come back with reinforcements and try to force the issue again.

I’ll keep an eye out for other insights as I entertain myself endlessly with short dramas and the B1G Women’s Basketball Tournament.

This is number 141 in the blog series, “My Writing Life.” I encourage you to join my Patreon community to support my writing.

“DO YOU TAKE THIS…”

Author???

Oops! Wrong kind of engagement. No. I am not getting married. I’m actually responding to a serious question I received from a patron the other day. I answered him directly, but the question was important enough that I thought it merited a more in depth and public response.

“I wanted to ask you about how to encourage a very good author [REDACTED] to get back into the groove. He is the author of the acclaimed [REDACTED] serials and books. I know that a bunch of his Patreon followers have tried to encourage him back, but he has been fallow for almost a year.”

Wow! What a hard question from a real fan who wants to encourage a favorite author. And it merits more of an answer than ‘It depends.’ But it does depend. There is honestly no one size fits all authors response.

I’m personally 76 years old and whenever I hear this about a fellow author, my first thought is “Is he still alive?” I’ve seen all too many cross over in the past few years. I’ve lost editors, fans, reviewers, and fellow authors. And a number of others popped back up a few months or years later as if they’d never been missing. But check on the well-being of your favorites now and then. Some folks thought I’d passed on a while back when it was just two months between the end of one story and the beginning of another. [SPOILER: I’m still alive. The last time I checked. But thanks for asking.]

There are probably as many reasons for an author to have gone silent as there are authors. We never know which it might be. Illness? Depression? New job? New baby? Deported? Burned out? Expatriated to a country that blocks certain kinds of content? Said everything they had to say? Married someone who disapproves of their stories? Married someone who keeps them too busy with other things to write?

That last one, by the way… I started getting up before five o’clock in the morning when I was in seventh grade. It was a habit that continued through high school, college, grad school, and two marriages. I got up early and if I was writing, I could get more written before eight a.m. than I could for the rest of the day. Then, at 39 years old, I got married again and discovered that I no longer wanted to get out of bed in the morning! Imagine that!

Anyway, encouraging an author really depends on their condition and what motivates them. [As I wrote this, an ambulance arrived to take away my next-door neighbor.] There are also almost as many motives for writing as there are authors, so it will depend a little on how well you know them.

I am personally not motivated by money. Not that I don’t need money, but if money was my major interest, I’d be a greeter at Walmart where I’d make about the same amount as I make working around the clock writing. You see, I used to write for a living. I’ve written training manuals, documentation, newsletters, marketing materials, and just about anything else that required words. Except novels. I didn’t have time to write novels, even though that was what I wanted to do.

Since I retired, I’ve published over seventy of those pent-up novels. I didn’t do it for a living! I write to live.

But it is important to some authors and if income falls off, they become discouraged, depressed, and may become silent. I’ll repeat an oft-quoted bit of advice: One of the best things you can do for an author is leave a review of their work wherever it is sold. We all appreciate that, even if we aren’t ‘in it for the money.’

And that brings me to the title of this post: Engagement! It is very hard to encourage an author by means of an intervention. It needs to be done before they go silent. Preferably a long time before. Once an author has shut down, it’s really hard to get him ‘back in the groove.’

There are many kinds of engagement, like leaving a review as mentioned above. Commenting on serials or on forums or on blog posts is a great way to engage the author. Voting for stories. Direct email is a good form of engagement. Checking out their Discord channel is good. And even giving a thumbs up on social media can be considered engagement and encouragement.

I’d only just begun my endeavor to write erotica in 2013. My first short entry was well-received. The second, not so much so. I was still pretty enthused, so I decided to return to the art theme I’d started in the first story. In the Model Student series, I wrote the story of a depressed art student struggling with loneliness and self-doubt at an art school 1500 miles from his home. It was heartfelt. I understood this from my daughter’s experience. But people seemed to flock to the story and at the end of the first part, Mural, I received this email comment:

“My God. I have just read 5 and 6. Now I understand your blog and the forum when you talk about the feedback you've been getting. Your work is amazing! You have a gift. You really don't need hints on where the story should go next, because these characters inside you will tell you exactly what you need to do, and which step to take next. That they are so alive on paper (well, on the screen), means they are living and breathing inside you, and there is no skin between them and the words you write. Oh my god. Thank you for daring to do this, to open your heart like this. I don't know whether these people exist in real life or not, but they for sure exist inside you, and now they live for us. Incredible, and thank you.”

I don’t know how long it took this reader to pen the paragraph above, but it truly held me together for nearly two years! And now, fourteen years later, I still look at it and feel a fresh burst of pride and power to go out and write another. You simply can’t imagine the power readers wield.

Mural and the entire Model Student series are available as eBooks on ZBookstore and in paperback at other online vendors.

It was about that time that I also realized this was what I write for. I hadn’t made a penny off my Devon Layne books yet. I recognized there was probably an opportunity to earn some money there (and I began publishing them for sale), but what I really wanted was to touch readers in such a way that they were moved by my books. I wanted to engage with them.

I also noted that many of my readers were older people on limited income, just as I was. They flocked to the free reading site (SOL). I promised myself and my readers that I would always make all my novels available for free online reading. Stories don’t necessarily make it to all sites at the same time, but specifically, I offer all of them as online serials at StoriesOnline and at DevonLayne. My patrons, for their kindness in supporting me with monetary contributions, get the stories first, both as online serials and as eBooks.

So, kiss an author—if they’re willing. Show your engagement with the stories. Even just say hi when you see him flit across your screen.

By the way, the ambulance left without my neighbor, so either he wasn’t in as bad a shape as they thought, or he couldn’t afford the transport.

Enjoy!