Barnstorming

Dec

2019

Progress Report – Third Quarter 2019 and Fourth Quarter 2019

Progress Report – Third and Fourth Quarter 2019

How excellent were the third quarter 2019 and the fourth quarter 2019 for Star Trek fan fiction?

Posted Works

First of all, on Wattpad, I posted Reflections Down a Corridor. I also posted Entanglements and The Three of Us. So currently I am not posting anywhere else. So as you can see, this report is kind of sparse.

Milestones

See the Stats page for individual read and review counts.

WIP Corner

Nothing! Everything is basically ready. So I’m probably never going to complete These Are the Destinations. And Paradox depends on a co-writer for me to write it. So that is hit or miss. Plus, I will be the first person to admit, it feels … weird.

So what that also means is that this blog may very well be coming to its logical conclusion. After all, once the last of the E² stories shows up in Wattpad, unless I put something on Ad Astra, then there will be no news. So that’s pretty wacky, eh?

But then there’s the Barnstorming series. Perhaps that one will see the light of day on Ad Astra?

I Hate this New Editor with a Passion

So seriously, it’s awful. I never, ever asked for this. It’s like writing for two-year-olds. So if I could go back, I would be a lot happier. Do you hear that, WordPress? Your new editor SUCKS! Yeah, I really and truly mean that.

Prep Work

Once again, nothing! So unless something changes rather drastically, I am done. And as I said above, yeah. It is kind of strange. So be it.

This Month’s Productivity Killers

Work, but that is something which anyone should expect. Because I am done with writing Star Trek fan fiction anyway, the truth is, it kind of does not matter any more.

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Jan

2019

Review – Overtime

Overtime suffered – a lot – from my burnout. It took me years to finish it!

Review – Overtime

For the final wrap-up story in the Barnstorming series, I put it off and put it off forever. Frankly, I had forgotten about it. But then I started to run out of stuff to post on Fanfiction.net, and that meant I needed to finally finish the series already.

Background

Because Rick Daniels has not fully restored the timeline, he needs to run through and change everything – again. With the help of Mack and Marty, and the rest of the gang, the timeline is finally fully restored.

Plot

With incomplete timeline restoration, Rick Daniels has to work with the temporal natives in order to catch a thief/vandal in the act. While the perpetrator is not aware of how damaging her actions are, he cannot tell her the truth. Instead, he confides in Mack to help him catch the perpetrator right before she does her damage.

At the same time, Crita is fretting about getting married as Marty and Mack’s thoughts turn in that very same direction. But there’s only one possible way to marriage for them, and that’s to contest the unfair and ineffective Cousin Marriage Law.

In addition, untied loose ends included Wesley Crusher and his girlfriend, Lakeisha Warren; Future Guy (and Gal); and getting Mack some measure of justice. There was a lot to think about, and to plan.

Furthermore, it was important to me to shout out to various older series because I had (and still have) no idea if I will ever write any more Star Trek fan fiction.

Pressure, much?

Music

The story does not have any appreciable music or musical themes.

Story Postings

Overtime on Wattpad
Overtime on Fanfiction.net

Rating

The story has a K rating.

Upshot

Once I started to push myself to finish in 2018, the pieces started to fall into place. Some nagging plot points slowly resolved themselves. I will admit I spent a lot of time saying goodbye to characters, but that is completely understandable. I do not intend to write any more fan fiction but you never, ever say never, eh?

After all, These Are the Destinations and Paradox are still not finished….

In addition, do you like this page? Tweet it!

Finally, you can find me on Google+, which is going away in April of 2019. Easy come, easy go, eh?

Dec

2018

Progress Report – Fourth Quarter 2018

Fourth quarter 2018 was a productive time for me to not so much write as to wrap things up. So I will explain below. But know that one major story which was hanging over my head has, fortunately, come to its conclusion. Yay!

Posted Works

First of all, on Wattpad, I posted Play and Time Out, and then started Overtime.

And on Fanfiction.net, I finished posting Play and Time Out, and then started Overtime.

Finally, on the G & T Show forums, I posted absolutely nothing. There is nothing there any more!

Milestones

See the Stats page for individual read and review counts.

WIP Corner

At this point in time, I am completely finished with writing Star Trek fan fiction and it is entirely possible that I will never take it up again. Never say never, of course. But right now, I have no plans to tell those stories in someone else’s universe.

Instead, my stories will all be coming directly from my own universes.

Prep Work

I worked on and finally completed Overtime! At this point in time, the only two incomplete drafts are Paradox and These Are the Destinations. In addition, I also was in an anthology about Douglas Adams (42 and Beyond) and it ranked very, very high on Amazon! So that gave me a major mental boost, just when I needed one.

This Quarter’s Productivity Killers

The main things that kept me from writing, understandably, were work and NaNoWriMo, mainly. I honestly expect that to be the case from now, until further notice. Writing Star Trek fan fiction has been an incredible experience for me. It brought me a lot of joy, I made friends, and I got better at writing. And, incredibly enough, I have actually made money on writing!

I am a published author, and I can draw a direct line between the first story, More, More, More! through Reversal to A Long, Long Time Ago to The Three of Us and Everybody Knows This is Nowhere and then to, finally, Overtime. And from there, the line goes to Untrustworthy, The Obolonks Trilogy, The Enigman Cave, The Real Hub of the Universe Trilogy, Mettle, and more.

The sky’s the limit.

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Finally, you can find me on Google+.

Oct

2018

Review – Inside Information

A Nostalgic Review of Inside Information

Inside Information brings the In Between Days Series in line with Star Trek: Discovery.

Background

On the Discovery, a young crewman knows something no one else does. His ancestors have visited him in his dreams, and they have told him there’s a way to get home. And this young crewman is Douglas Malcolm Beckett. But he’s changed his name to Hayes.

Douglas Jay Hayes Beckett (Steven Culp) – image is for educational purposes only

Plot

For the ghosts of Douglas Jay Hayes Beckett and Charlotte Lilienne O’Day Beckett, it’s irresistible. Their descendant is in peril and he’s afraid. So they enter his dream state and they comfort him. But they also let him know that he can get home if all else fails.

For one of the great patriarchs and one of the great matriarchs of an enormous dynasty, the chance to help one of their own will always be on the table. And so Doug and Lili arrive, in mists and clouds and mystery.

Family Tree

Doug the younger is the son of Jay Hayes Beckett. Jay is the son of Joss, who is Doug and Lili’s first born. Doug the younger is also of interest because he’s born on December 3, 2229, giving him the same birthday as Douglas Jay Hayes Beckett. The difference, though, is 127 years.

Doug the younger’s sister, Lilienne Melissa Beckett, is born in 2230. In Fortune, Q shows her to Lili.

But the tree goes on and Doug the younger also connects to Barnstorming. In 2265, he marries Penny Webb. Their son, Steven Hayes, is born in 2270. He marries Lucy Kimura. Steven’s daughter, Lilienne Charlotte Hayes, is born in 2309. During Play, Time Out, and Overtime, Lilienne is one of the thirteen living descendants of Doug the elder.

Barking Up The Muse Tree | jespah | Janet Gershen-Siegel | Lili| Naomi Watts | pregnant-Inside Information

Lili (image of Naomi Watts is for educational purposes only)

Their son, Jay Neil Hayes (born 2307) has a daughter, Sheilagh. She marries Don Porter. Their daughter is Tamsin Jennifer Porter, another of the thirteen.

The Thirteen

Doug the elder’s thirteen living descendants in 2379 are:

Douglas Daniels, born in 2305 (also Lili’s descendant via Malcolm Reed)
Michael Daniels, born in 2341 (also Lili’s descendant via Malcolm Reed)
Lilienne Charlotte Hayes, born in 2309 (also Lili’s descendant)
Ariana LaForge, born in 2337 (also Lili’s descendant, via both Doug and Malcolm)
Edward LaForge, born in 2322 (also Lili’s descendant, via both Doug and Malcolm)
Geordi LaForge, born in 2335(also Lili’s descendant, via both Doug and Malcolm)
Misty Dana MacKenzie, born in 2329 (Melissa Madden‘s descendant)
Martin Douglas Madden, born in 2322 (Melissa Madden’s descendant)
Jay Neil Hayes, born in 2307 (also Lili’s descendant)
Sheilagh Hayes Porter, born in 2331 (also Lili’s descendant)
Tamsin Porter, born in 2354 (also Lili’s descendant)
Tina Reed O’Connor, born in 2291 (also Lili’s descendant via Malcolm Reed)
Kevin Reed, born in 2344 (also Lili’s descendant via Malcolm Reed)

Story Postings

Inside Information on Ad Astra
Inside Information on Fanfiction.net
And Inside Information on Wattpad

Rating

The story has a K rating.

Upshot

Doug the younger even refers to The Human Pioneers of Lafa II, neatly bringing Norri into the fold. It was a quick story, tossed off fast. But it ties the story together even more, and the family lives on, from generation to generation, and from series to series.

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Sep

2018

Review – Time Out

A Pretty Harsh Review of Time Out

With Time Out, I abandoned the sports theme completely and instead did some personal head canon repairs. That is, I had put characters into an alternate temporal scenario and then I needed to get them back to the prime timeline. And I had to do this without destroying the continuity I was creating in the Barnstorming series.

Background

At the time I first wrote this story, I was even more burned out than before. I was absolutely running out of things to say, and so I shuffled the cards, big time. This also rather neatly plugged a hole in the Times of the HG Wells series. Now, that was a hole that only I could see. But I do like to be consistent.

The hole in the Wells timeline had to do with Dana, who hooks up with Rick. Once I realized I would rather she was Marty’s great love, she would have to somehow not fall prey to Rick’s charms.

Plot

Time Out stepped outside of the sports theme entirely for a very new story line. Instead of being a coach, Mack MacKenzie, is now called Dana, and she is the Tactical Officer on the Enterprise-E. As before, Martin Madden is still the First Officer. However, other players are in new places. And it’s all because of the accidental firing of a pulse shot.

At the same time, Marty is investigating an odd phenomenon which seems to directly relate to the O’Day-Hayes-Beckett-Digiorno-Madden-Reed family. New relatives show up, including the exceptionally annoying Tamsin Porter. Much like in the prime timeline for this series, Porter has the hots for Madden, and the radiation band cycling phenomenon still exists. It is one of the drivers of the plot.

Story Postings

Time Out on Wattpad
Time Out on Fanfiction.net

Rating

The story has a K rating.

Upshot

One thing this story did well was show just how hit and miss so many of the time travel missions should have been during the Wells series. It was also a chance to showcase an earlier Rick, one who hasn’t yet met the Becketts. Hence for him, the time frame for the story is pre-Temper.

In addition, it brings up one interesting point. For the temporal and spatial dislocation in Crackerjack, it’s due to the remnants of a pulse shot. Originally, I had wanted it to be a post-Temper leftover of Empress Hoshi‘s doings. But what if it was due to experiments by Szish, the Gorn who built Mack’s ship, the Cookie? With the other references to the Crackerjack dislocation, this could be a way to wrap that up as well. I am currently trying to wrap up the final book in the series, so I might use this insight.

But I was flagging, and it shows.

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Jul

2018

Review – Play

A Brutal Review of Play

With Play, I continued the Barnstorming saga. However, I started to run out of things to say.

Background

To continue the Barnstorming series, I had to give Dana and the rest of the gang something to do. The main invention was a fake Tellarite game called Kreesta. I wanted the most ridiculous kind of a sport imaginable. Hence Kreesta is a cross between competitive eating and table tennis. And yes, it is just as messy and undignified as you are probably thinking.

Plot

Play is the second story in the Star Trek TNG/ENT Crossover series, Barnstorming. The story follows Dana MacKenzie and her traveling sports team, as Martin Madden investigates a mysterious phenomenon. The story, at its end, sets up a crossover with ENT and with the Times of the HG Wells series.

Music

The story does not have any major music or musical themes.

Story Postings

Play on Wattpad
Play on Fanfiction.net

Rating

The story has a K rating.

Upshot

The real problem with this story is the one for the entire series. I was horribly burned out and so the ideas did not come as freely as before. In addition, I was ready to write a lot more wholly original works, full-time. This meant taking time away from truly developing this story line. And then at the end, I copped out in a lot of ways, and dovetailed into the old family.

That is because I essentially grabbed the first canon character I could think of who could work, and I made him the anchor character. Martin Madden is the initial anchor character, but then Rick Daniels becomes the secondary. As a result, the story line got increasingly muddled and weird. And then it took a left turn into time travel, but that did work to fix a hole in the Wells series. So, yay? Maybe?

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Sep

2017

Review – The All-Stars

The All-Stars introduces the Barnstorming series.

Background

First of all, the All-Stars was intended as the kickoff for the Barnstorming series. And that series would also hold Crackerjack and The Future Cat under its umbrella. Hence, I plotted it as a sprawling series. Except it suffered from an excess of plot and subplots and complications, even worse than the Times of the HG Wells series. And I should have known better! Seriously. Because the middle of the Wells series was hard for me to write, and some it drags a bit. Stories I had really thought about got short shrift. And the same ended up being true for Barnstorming.

Plot

It was a time for new beginnings, for a woman who had over half of her adult life stolen and for her cousin, a new job and new challenges. And this promised a new life for a young man with few plans and no real direction. Furthermore, it was a chance for three women to change their lives, and for fifty athletes to do something new. And there was a secret project by Section 31 that threatened to break a treaty and had the potential to open up a portal to another universe while someone out there – whose intentions were unknown – was trying to get in.

Story Postings

Rating

The story is Rated T.

Upshot

While the story resolves itself pretty well and the characters make sense, the story leads to a series which ends up going nowhere. Although I did write the immediate sequel, Play, that story has never been posted anywhere (if I end up really scraping the bottom of the barrel at Wattpad, then maybe I will haul it out; the same might end up as true for Fanfiction.net). And then the following stories never really get off the ground at all. A pity; the concept is a decent one but I just ran out of gas there.

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Sep

2017

Portrait of a Character – The Traveler

The Traveler got me out of some time travel jams.

Eric Menyuk as The Traveler (with Wil Wheaton as Wesley Crusher). Image is provided for educational purposes only.

Origins

While the character exists in canon, the best part about him is he can be a kind of deus ex machina plot device. And unlike Q, the Traveler at least ends up being a fairly nice guy.

Portrayal

As in canon, The Traveler is played by actor Eric Menyuk.

Personality

Wildly intelligent, but a little stiff, the Traveler recognizes that Wesley Crusher has exceptional potential. However, as I write him, he and Wesley are friends and almost collegial. Furthermore, when the Traveler sees Wesley misses his fellow humans, Wesley isn’t forced to stay.

Relationships

The Traveler has no known relationships, and may not even be capable of one.

Mirror Universe

Because this particular character does not seem to be 100% from our universe, I suspect he flits between the two all the time. And he may even go to other universes, such as the 49 centimeter radiation band (home of the best pumpkin pie in the multiverse!).

Quote

“All three of you have learned something. And for that, I am only grateful that I was the catalyst. Your species has much to learn about pain and conflict. You must never forget its horrors. You must never escape into pretend horrors as if they were thrills for your own amusement. [and] You must, sometimes, rise up from your comfortable lives and bring suffering to the forefront. You must remember it so that you do not commit it. [and] You must not forget its true costs.”

Upshot

Finally, this character proved useful for Day of the Dead and Imprecision. I can’t recall, but I may have been planning on adding him to the Barnstorming series as well.

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Sep

2017

Review – Staying

Staying came about because I wanted to showcase the Barnstorming series.

Background

First of all, Staying arose directly out of The All Stars and served as a prompt response. This happened in an effort to get readers interested in the longer story.

Plot

Because I never intended Staying as a stand alone story, the plot ends up being rather thin. Instead, it showcases Mack MacKenzie and Kent Hoberman in an intimate moment which perhaps never should have happened. Since I liked the idea of a traumatized woman crying after sex (I suppose I have a heart of stone; of course I just mean a character), I reused the idea in the wholly original novel, The Polymer Beat.

Furthermore, the intention pushed the narrative along so that Mack would not have trauma with her true love (still not written yet!), canon character Martin Madden.

Story Postings

Staying on Ad Astra

Rating

The story is Rated T.

Upshot

While the story could have served as a decent introduction to the series, the readers really did not pick up on it. Read counts stayed low. And it can be tough to try to maintain and reinvent and continue a series where few if any people bother to read it. Hence the series is on hold and there are stories never even posted anywhere. If I pick it up again, I will need to finish those stories and that seems highly unlikely, given my schedule, my interest, and my desire to save my creativity for wholly original pursuits.

A pity, as I like Mack, Hobie, and Martin and their cohorts. They just came into my universe at the wrong time. Hence they may stay, forever (ish) in limbo. Sorry, characters!

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Finally, you can find me on Google+.

Jan

2017

Review – Eight

Eight was a labor of love.

Background

So this is a mixed bag of stories intended to fill in a few small gaps and inconsistencies or untold stories. And the truth is, I was most likely the only person who ever noticed or gave a damn about these little untold moments or inconsistent bits. No problem. Because it is always important to keep writing. Hence I was able to do so with this small set of exercises. Furthermore, it may serve as an introduction to my work for some people.

Eight

As a gift for the Chanukah holiday (to myself), I decided to write eight little family-centric stories taking place within my various universes. The various characters would interact, or not, but the main idea was for each story to be related to family somehow.

Plot

So even in the future, and regardless of species, it is all about family. Home and hearth abide, even in space.

Hence the stories cover In Between Days, the E² timeline, the Daranaean Emergence series, the Eriecho series, The Times of the HG Wells, Hold Your Dominion, and there is also a second HG Wells story which focuses on Levi Cavendish and Otra D’Angelo. Hence this story brought together a number of somewhat disparate timelines and casts in order to give a reader some perspective on what I write.

Story Postings

Eight on Ad Astra
in addition, Eight on Fanfiction.net (full series)
also, Eight on Wattpad (as part of Later Days)
Eight on Wattpad (full series)

Rating

The story is Rated K.

Upshot

Unfortunately, I am not so sure if anyone can relate to this series of stories as well as I can. Hence maybe they’re more like inside jokes? I don’t know.

These stories. And these worlds. Plus these timelines. And the same number of universes. And in all of them, home and hearth abide.

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Progress Report – Third and Fourth Quarter 2019

Posted Works

Milestones

WIP Corner

I Hate this New Editor with a Passion

Prep Work

This Month’s Productivity Killers

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Review – Overtime

Background

Plot

Music

Story Postings

Rating

Upshot

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Progress Report – Fourth Quarter 2018

Posted Works

Milestones

WIP Corner

Prep Work

This Quarter’s Productivity Killers

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A Nostalgic Review of Inside Information

Background

Plot

Family Tree

The Thirteen

Story Postings

Rating

Upshot

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A Pretty Harsh Review of Time Out

Background

Plot

Story Postings

Rating

Upshot

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A Brutal Review of Play

Background

Plot

Music

Story Postings

Rating

Upshot

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Review – The All-Stars

Background

Plot

Story Postings

Rating

Upshot

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Portrait of a Character – The Traveler

Origins

Portrayal

Personality

Relationships

Mirror Universe

Quote

Upshot

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Review – Staying

Background

Plot

Story Postings

Rating

Upshot

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Review – Eight