JSDuke.com

Website Update

2008-10-09T13:21:04Z

I updated the website on October 5th, but I've been so busy that I've neglected to post anything to livejournal. Oops.

The update included Issue #2 of "Alice" along with some great artwork from Project Alice contributors.

Zach Spivey contriubted a second piece of concept art, and Felito Blanco contributed the very first panel of the webcomic! Great job, guys!

In addition to the second installment of the script and the great artwork, I added new navigation features to the webcomics pages, put up the Contributor's Section, and made a nifty new Alice banner for the site.

Check out all the details here:

jsduke.com

Issue #3 is on schedule for release in the first week of November.

"Alice" has launched!

2008-09-07T01:46:18Z

I've been working on the site all day, and as of just a few minutes ago, I have successfully launched "Alice", Issue #1.

http://jsduke.com/webcomics/alice/alice1/Alice1cover.html

Go check it out.

There are a few more things I'd like to do, but they can be done later. I really want to refine the navigation for the web-comic itself, but other tasks took much longer than I anticipated (I am out of practice). I'll see about upgrading the navigation in the next couple of days.

The next big step is announcing the cover art contest I'm planning. That will take some research, but I plan to make the official announcement within the week. That'll be exciting!

ttfn,

--jeremy

The Stone-Soup Web-comic Project Thing

2008-09-05T03:23:22Z

"Alice" is my first attempt at a collaborative web-comic venture. The idea is that I will post the script to the website and solicit artwork from the audience to "complete" it. Premise is simple, execution a bit trickier. I really like the idea of bringing together a diverse sampling of artwork under one umbrella. I'm placing no restrictions on the media used, so readers might see traditional illustrations alongside photographs, watercolors, digital graphics, flash animation, or sidewalk chalk art for example.

What I'm really anxious to see will no doubt take a while to happen. I am planning to set up the pages in a way that will allow the reader to select which artwork they want to see displayed in any panel that has multiple submissions. That way the audience can create their own personalized version of the comic featuring their favorite artists' submissions. This way the title can become a "living" work, one that will continue to grow and change for so long as people are paying attention to it.

The first step is almost complete: "Alice" will launch by the end of the week. With the script online, I can direct interested participants to the site to learn more about the project and track its progress.

I've begun poking around into online artist communities and was pleased to see that there is no shortage of them. I've also tapped some of my artistically inclined friends, of course, and have gotten a lot of interest from them.

Currently, I'm considering running a "cover-art contest" to generate interest in the project. I'm thinking of offering a modest cash prize for "first place" and maybe t-shirts or something for runners-up. I'll have to check my budget to see what I can put together.

Getting Closer to "Alice"

2008-09-04T06:00:05Z

"Alice" will launch by the end of the week!

Spent most of tonight finishing up the sitework so "Alice" will have a place to call home. Been a while since I've had to do any lengthy construction on the site. Fortunately the essential skills remain intact. Some cut'n'paste, some editting, some tedius fixing, and the structure is in place. Fortunately my stylesheet was sufficiently forward-thinking and not much css work was needed. Next step is to add the content to the pages and "Alice" will be ready to go!

I've also been enjoying the concept art I've received to post with the launch. I'm so very grateful for my talented and generous friends!

I'm so glad I decided to get my website. Working on the site and publishing my work there for all my friends and fans to share has been so very rewarding and satisfying.

Thank you to everyone who has been a part of the process!

--jeremy

"Alice" Launch Info

2008-09-01T18:50:04Z

The webcomic "Alice" that I've been working on for the past month or so is almost ready to launch. Issue #1 is finished, and I've begun constructing the new pages for the site.

The launch will include the script for Issue #1 and a couple pieces of concept art to get things rolling. The art for the actual panels will be supplied by the audience in a stone-soup webcomic project. I'll talk more about that later, but it's pretty exciting.

In addition to working on "Alice" issue #2, and finding artwork for Issue #1, I am currently taking a good look at hypertext stories, and the unique opportunities they offer for fiction writing. I'm working on a couple of models and developing some story ideas. My first forays into that area will probably be small and experimental, but I'm excited to see where it leads.

Stay tuned for the official "Alice" launch announcement!

New story, "This House of Dust" posted to jsduke.com

2008-08-23T06:02:17Z

I took a break from working on "Alice" tonight to finish up an old short story called, "This House of Dust". It's a short one, only about 1.2k words, and I rather like it. Hope you do too.

This House of Dust

enjoy

--jeremy

More About Alice

2008-08-02T04:04:31Z

From my brainstorming session for the title, "Alice".

You want something fresh, something wicked and delightful. Of course you do. Who doesn’t? Monsters are nice, and heroes to contend with them. A hero then, or two. Say a young girl, pretty and neat to the eyes, but inside the shell: a rotting horror. Maybe her name is Alice. That’s a nice name for a nice girl. It’ll make a nice lie. Eleven, or maybe twelve, slim and small with neat blonde hair, fine as corn silk, put back with a ribbon. A lace of yellow bangs to frame her pretty face. A nice dress with puffy sleeves and laced hem, blue on white (are you getting the picture?). Fine white shoes with shiny black buckles, not too big, and stocking legs. Yes, a pretty girl, a fine heroine, but what else? A doctor’s bag that recalls the haunted echoing cobblestones of some faraway 18^th century metropolis where the walls lean to close to the road. Black and big and heavy, but she carries it effortlessly, with great familiarity.

She’ll need a companion, of course. Someone to tell another side of the story. A counterpoint, to set off her finer points. The Boogeyman naturally comes to mind, doesn’t it? A fine hero we’ll make of him. He’s tall, of course, that’s the first thing you notice. A very tall man at first glance. But after, if you let your gaze linger a while, you begin to notice something odd about his proportions. The arms are too long, the fingers too crooked, bent once too many times by an extra set of knuckles. His eyes are too big, and they see too much. And his mouth, oh grandma! What a large mouth he has and lots and lots of teeth to fill it. He’ll wear blue jeans, of course, and fine black boots that stomp when he steps. A belt and flannel shirt and a long brown duster that fills out his too-thin frame. And a nice hat, an old fedora let’s say, something like Freddy Krueger or Indiana Jones.

And here are our heroes: Alice and the Boogeyman. What’s their story?

Monsters, of course.

And a boy.

The Long Awaited Update

2008-08-01T01:37:31Z

I have just updated my site for the first time in nearly four months.

What the hell?

I never intended to go so long between updates, but, ya know, I kind of suck.

However, as I posted on the site, I have recently overcome two of the most frustrating obstacles I faced regarding the maintenance of my site. I have relocated, reducing my daily commute from two hours down to ten minutes. I also now have high speed internet in my home. Which means I now have more time to write, and better access to the tools I need to publish my writing to the site.

Now. Don't think that just because I haven't been updating that I haven't been writing. I've been writing my ass off. Here is a short list of the projects I've been working on and their current status:

Four new short stories in various forms of completion. I'd like to say these will be on the site soon, but my attentions have been distracted by...

Two new web-comics. Yes, two(2).

The first is a maxi-series with the working title "Class of '32". This one is a dramatic, thriller-esque story featuring teenage super-powered mutants. The story is twelve "issues" long, and the framework is pretty much in place. Characters are developed, conflicts are clearly defined, the major movements are known quantities. At this point I'm fine-tuning the issue-to-issue story development, smoothing out story arcs and story transitions, and making sure that everything is in its place, and belongs where it is. I have begun writing the first issue, and plan to have Issue #1 on the site by the end of August. However, this one constantly surprises me with how much story it has to yield, and each new twist provides a number of new questions that need answering. I've been working on this one for months, now, and it just keeps getting deeper. Further delays may be inevitable, but i think the story is firm enough now that I can finish Issue #1 in the next month, and figure out the rest as I go.

The second web-comic is called "Alice", and is still very fresh in development. My work developing "Class of '32" turned out to be more demanding and intricate than i originally anticipated, a fact which I hope means that the story will be just as intricate and satisfying. However, "Class of '32" is rather... grand... in scope. It's quite huge and sophisticated. Frankly I needed a break, something to work on that would provide practice as well as diversion. The result was "Alice". This is a mini-series, only four to six issues long, dealing with a strange kind of heroine. The story germ that began the title was really just an image and a strange scene that seemed to have legs. Picture Alice, from Alice in Wonderland. Pretty petite girl, cute dress all puffy sleeves and lacy hems, fine blonde hair held back with a bright blue ribbon, and carrying a nineteenth century doctor's back which she carries with uncanny ease and familiarity. She's also, well, a little bit mad.

The comics are where most of my creative energy has been going lately, but I think all the work is nearing its pay-off as both projects near completion at roughly the same time and will be going up on the site soon.

I have a ton of other stuff, but I'll get to that later.

ttfn

Not Going to Clarion

2008-04-06T17:02:04Z

On March 31st I received a polite email from the Clarion folks informing me that I have not been selected for admission to the Clarion Writers Workshop this year. I'm disappointed, naturally, but not surprised. I will be applying again next year.

In other news, I have recently purchased some recording equipment and am working on creating audio versions of the fiction currently on the site. "Recording equipment" makes it sound fancy and professional. I bought a mic and some recording software, but I expect that will do.

I am going to start with Roadkill, since it's short and there is no dialog so it should be pretty simple. We'll see how it goes. I've been meaning to put text and print downloads on the site as well, but have not gotten around to it. I should do that soon as well.

Clarion Applied

2008-03-06T22:11:27Z

I sent in my Clarion appliation last Thursday. Wish me luck!

I should know by the end of April if I am accepted for this years workshop. I'll let you know as soon as I find out.

The two stories I sent in are Coffee Girls and Roadkill, which are both now on my site.

Writing for Clarion

2008-02-20T04:12:39Z

I've spent most of the last month preparing my application for the Clarion Writers Workshop this summer. Which is to say I've been spending all my writing time working on the two stories I will be submitting with my application. I have a short list of stories that I am considering for my submissions, though I still haven't narrowed it down to just two.

I'm kind of stressing over the stories. Although I've gotten a lot of positive feedback, and some very helpful critiques, I have to admit that I feel my chances of being accepted are slim. I think I write well, and I believe that I am continuing to get better, but am I good enough to be one of the 18 people selected for Clarion '08?

Honestly, I'm not sure. But I'll be applying no matter what. Even if my chances are slim, I'm going to take my chance. And if I don't go this year, I'll be looking forward to the opportunity to apply again next year. The opportunity is simply too good to pass up.

Complicating the process is the unending flood of ideas I am having. I have an ever-growing list of excellent stories just waiting to be written. I can't write fast enough to keep up. And every time I finish a new story, I think, "Maybe I should submit this one." I keep having to rein myself in and focus on the "short list".

In any case, the incentive of acceptance at Clarion and the deadline for the application have urged me to write more than I would have ordinarily. Once I have sent off my application, I will have several new stories to publish on my site.

Hey. That's what we call a win-win!

New Site Design Is Up

2008-02-07T23:00:28Z

I finally got around to uploading the new site design. It looks pretty good, I think. At least, it's much improved over the "stuart" site.

jsduke.com

There are still a few bugs to work out, but this design will be much easier for me to work.

And now that I've crossed that off my to-do list, I can get back to actual writing. Hurrah!

JSDuke.com v2.0 coming soon

2008-02-03T23:39:38Z

I manage my own website which has been an exciting and rewarding experience so far, but has it's own accompanying perils. For example, I do all my own code by hand, so there's no one to blame if something doesn't work.

Like the current site design.

It's kinda awful. I think I knew it was awful when I made it, but I had just spent the better part of a month learning how to develop and publish a website, and well, I was over-eager. I kind of think of the current design as my "Stewart" site, after the Mad TV character. You know, "look what I can do!" It's messy, over-busy, and poorly structured.

Fortunately, I know a guy. And my guy pretty much rocks. He took the time to give me the benefit of his experience and expertise, which I am (gradually) putting to use developing a new site design.

The new design is actually about 99% done, and has been for more than a week now, but I am prone to distraction and so have not completed the renovations just yet. The new design is simpler, cleaner, and more concise. I think it is a tremendous improvement, and fully intend to have it up and running by the end of the week.

To be honest, I think I might be more excited about the renovations than the actual launch itself. Is that weird?

Welcome to my wwworld

2008-02-03T23:21:33Z

I've been writing for most of my life, and recently put up a website, jsduke.com , where I post all of my fiction for free. I write horror, sci-fi, fantasy, speculative fiction, a little bit of humor, and other things that don't easily fall into any one category.

I'm going to be using this livejournal account as my "writer's blog". I'll talk about the projects I'm working on, things I'm doing with my site, and anything else of interest to me (so long as it's writing/fiction related). The site is still young, but will be growing with time. I have a long list of short stories, serialized novels, and web comics that will be added to the site as they are completed. I also have some interesting "experimental fiction" projects working in my lab that should be a lot of fun.

It's a pretty exciting time for me. I hope you find something worthwhile in my pile of stuff.