Shinerdrinker: Blog

I'm freaking out a little bit. But it is a freak out of my own making. I am right now writing Chapter 50 of Mayhem in a Pill. Chapter 49 is back from the editors and I am also in the process of going over what my wonderful editors believe need to be changed to make the story at least readable. (I'll be forever indebted to those guys. Once I got them reading the first drafts of each chapter, the story got sooooo much better.)

But now I'm looking at Chapter 50 of Mayhem in a Pill. Fifty chapters... fuck! I can't believe I actually have written something that long.

I got the writing bug when in high school for the school newspaper, I won several awards for my writing and I still have those awards to this day. I was damn proud of them! I won second place in the state journalism contest for sports writing my senior year and also got a fourth-place for an if-I-do-say-so-myself outstanding editorial piece I wrote about homelessness. I found a fellow student who at the time was homeless and I followed him on a normal day. I actually convinced my parents to let him stay with us for a few weeks. I still call him on his birthday cause I'll always think of him as a brother. He's got a wonderful family and a great career up in Dallas.

I also got him to become a visitor of this website to follow my story and he gives me feedback for each chapter. He often reminds me that since I obviously based the character of Tim off his exploits in high school, then I should make him blonde just like him. He has no hair on his scalp any longer, so I told him he had to grow his hair back first, then I'll change it. He sent me a middle finger picture. But I digress.

Chapter 49 of Mayhem in a Pill was incredibly quickly turned over. So I am going to hold it for as long as I possibly can. Maybe a week, probably a little less. I am trying to set up a better posting schedule. I'm shooting for every other week rather than my former whenever the fuck I felt like it schedule. I really liked that one but if I removed the feedback complaining about the posting schedule than I'd lose about 80% of my feedback!

So I'm going for every other week with new chapters and I want to keep them about this length as well. I could easily cut it in half and then the posts would be easier but I like the lengths of the chapters now.

Basically, Chapter 49 of Mayhem in a Pill will post this week. But when I'm not too sure exactly. I am currently in the process of writing Chapter 50 and I hope to send that onto the editors sometime this week as well. Maybe that's how I'll remember to post 49 and do it all at the same time.

Sounds good to me.

Thanks again to the score of fans who do read my story. I hope you appreciate the work that goes into each chapter.

--Shinerdrinker

P.S. One of my editors, WildBSinTX sent a nice note along with the corrected chapter tonight. He said and I quote... "I do believe this is going to be one of your most popular chapters. Who doesn't like a good 'porn starlet seduces teenager' scene?"

He's absolutely right of course! Let's see what the numbers think as well. I'll let y'all know later after posting and waiting a few days for the results!

So what am I talking about this time?

I'm just letting y'all know that Chapter 49 of Mayhem in a Pill is going through the editing process right now. I'm not gonna post for at least another week cause I'm gonna try an every-other-week posting schedule.

It is going to take a LAWT of work on my part. Mainly giving up a lot of my normal TV time. Cause I'm an American and I was raised on TV. It is important to keep my relationship with it alive and full of life. I need it and it needs me. If the magic ever starting falling out of our relationship, I'd be the most giving and energetic partner of all time. We would fix our problems and come out better as a couple afterward.

Oh yeah, my wife too. Probably oughta remember her as well.

Okay, I got some news about my first story on SOL, "Mayhem in a Pill."

When I first started this story, I started a weekly posting schedule. I figured I could at the very least keep that up since I had several chapters in the bag so to speak. But after a couple of chapters, as I've told the full story in previous blogs, I decided to try following both story arcs at the same time under the same story. I was originally going to make two different stories and put them into the same universe. First about the boy who took the pill and his life thereafter. The second about what happened to the man giving the pill and his life thereafter. Anyways, I changed it and put them into the same story. I should have had my head examined.

It was difficult but a great challenge and I enjoy the way it has worked since then. According to the feedback I received, the introduction of the future story was jarring to many readers but they gave me the benefit of the doubt and continued with me. I now find myself thinking just like those fans and become excited at a new chapter. Mind you, some prefer one story arch to another and I of course understand but it's the few who while initially unsure of the two universes in a single-story have now welcomed the story and are following along with both.

That's where I have lost a few and yes, I do listen when people complain. The number one problem pointed out to me is the length of waiting time in-between chapters. Well, situations have changed and I am now able to do something more about the long wait times in between chapters being posted. I have reached a moderate 11,000 to 12,000 downloads of individual chapters. It used to take a full month and usually a week or so longer to get to that number range. I could take my time and be as lazy as I wanted to be. But now that is something I no longer want to worry about. Mainly because I can reach the 11,000 to 12,000 download range in under two weeks per chapter. I can't post that often without getting several chapters ahead and again we hit dead on the number one problem I have and that's my laziness.

So as much as it pains me to say it "Get your ass typing, Shinerdrinker!"

And so I shall. I'm got a wonderful visit from the muse so many writers talk about and/or blame for their lack of updates. I got an amazing push with a few ideas for BOTH universes in "Mayhem in a Pill."

So, the next chapters of "Mayhem" should come rather quickly. I'm going to go ahead and write to them and stash them to post later. But I will not hold them indefinitely. I will post them. I've decided to use an "every other week" posting schedule. Every week would be impossible since I need to eat and shower occasionally. But every other week is fast enough to get people reading the story again. Especially those who've told me they love the story but have decided to wait for several chapters to back up before going into them again. Once again the main reason for having to hold off on reading a new chapter is simply the slow speed of posting.

In fact, it's gonna be rather hard to hold me back from posting them. I have chapter 48 of Mayhem already with editors and they will get them back to me whenever they get them back to me. I told them to take their time, no need for rushing since right now I am a good three weeks ahead of schedule.

So lookout for the next chapter of Mayhem in a Pill coming soon.

Okay. I got that out of the way. But I fell like I'm forgetting to tell you guys something about this next chapter. Something important. It's on the tip of my tongue.

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Oh shit! That's right. Sorry about the upcoming cliffhanger but hey, we are all trying to improve here. Guess the good news in that is the cliffhanger should not hurt as much since Chapter 49 should not take that long to be posted... unless I decided to get all lazy again. And that's totally possible since the NFL will be getting training camp underway and that means pro football returning. Well, pre-season football. I'll try to get along before then.

Like the title says, it certainly can.

My editors are amazing and got the chapter finished in record timing. They say it's because the writing is improving, I say it's because they are too amazing at their jobs.

I have submitted Chapter 47 of Mayhem in a Pill to posting.

Enjoy!

I try to get each chapter out at least in a month from the release of the last one.

But this next chapter will not meet that deadline. But it will only miss it by about a week or so. I have the final page to write tonight and then send it to the editors. They do need a little bit of time to fix my undescribable ramblings into something people can read and understand.

So then I guess in actuality, there is also a bit o' good news in there, too.

--Shinerdrinker