Shaun Meeks's Blog - Posts Tagged "stephen-king"
Year's End
So, the year is almost over and it's been a wild ride for sure. In 2011, I only had one thing published, All Things End Terminal in a magazine called Haunted Path. In 2012, my luck took a much need turn and I was published in Dark Eclipse, A Feast of Frights from the Horror Zine, Zombies Gone Wild, A Six Pack of Stories, The Original Van Gogh's Ear and Fresh Grounds, plus I released my own collection, At the Gates of Madness. All of these were great experiences with good reviews and I met some great editors, writers and fans of horror. I have been lucky this year too have so many amazing people supporting me and backing me up through the whole process. Without the help of family, friends helping to get the word out, reading and reviewing some of my earlier stuff, I don't think I would have as many people reading my stories as I have. Thank you to everyone that has supported me in this adventure and those that will come along soon enough.
With 2013 just around the corner, I have no plans on slowing down. As busy as 2012 was, this new year will be even crazier. I have already sold stories that will be appearing in Zippered Flesh 2, the next Horror Zine anthology, Dark Light 3 and Van Gogh's ear Volume 8. I have 3 more that I am still waiting for a response on (50 Shades of Decay, Splatterlands and Dread Time Stories). I will also be releasing Brother's Ilk with my brother, Jamie Meeks early in 2013, and my novel, Shutdown in the spring of 2013. I also have plans on a second collection called Dark Reaches in the fall and another new novel, Maymon, in the winter of 2013. I will also be in a few more magazines and anthologies as the year goes on, so all in all it looks to be an exciting year and I can't wait to see what everyone thinks about these new stories.
This year hasn't all been about what I am doing though. I have also had some great times with my family and friends, gone on some wild rides with my partner, Mina LaFleur and found some great movies and great books. Some of my movie highlights have been Cabin in the Woods, Looper, The Dark Knight Rises, The Woman in Black, Sinister and V/H/S. Some of the books I have read and loved this year have not all been new, but are Stephen King's 11/22/63, Joe Hill's Horns, Joe R. Lansdale's Edge of Dark Water, Brian Keene's Conqueror Worms, Wrath James White's Population Zero, David Wong's John Dies at the End and Tim Lebbon's Berserk. I have read a ton of books this year, these are just some highlights.
I also had some great fun, including going to the Royal Winter Fair, seeing Mina perform is always up there too, getting VIP tickets to Heavy T.O. and it was topped off with seeing Alexisonfire in Toronto for their farewell tour. All these things, help inspire and motivate the writing I do.
And to everyone that takes their time to read these blogs about my work or just rambling, thank you so much. There will be more musing of a madman in the new year as well and don't worry, they won't be totally self indulgent. I hope to see you all there on the other side of 2012.
With 2013 just around the corner, I have no plans on slowing down. As busy as 2012 was, this new year will be even crazier. I have already sold stories that will be appearing in Zippered Flesh 2, the next Horror Zine anthology, Dark Light 3 and Van Gogh's ear Volume 8. I have 3 more that I am still waiting for a response on (50 Shades of Decay, Splatterlands and Dread Time Stories). I will also be releasing Brother's Ilk with my brother, Jamie Meeks early in 2013, and my novel, Shutdown in the spring of 2013. I also have plans on a second collection called Dark Reaches in the fall and another new novel, Maymon, in the winter of 2013. I will also be in a few more magazines and anthologies as the year goes on, so all in all it looks to be an exciting year and I can't wait to see what everyone thinks about these new stories.
This year hasn't all been about what I am doing though. I have also had some great times with my family and friends, gone on some wild rides with my partner, Mina LaFleur and found some great movies and great books. Some of my movie highlights have been Cabin in the Woods, Looper, The Dark Knight Rises, The Woman in Black, Sinister and V/H/S. Some of the books I have read and loved this year have not all been new, but are Stephen King's 11/22/63, Joe Hill's Horns, Joe R. Lansdale's Edge of Dark Water, Brian Keene's Conqueror Worms, Wrath James White's Population Zero, David Wong's John Dies at the End and Tim Lebbon's Berserk. I have read a ton of books this year, these are just some highlights.
I also had some great fun, including going to the Royal Winter Fair, seeing Mina perform is always up there too, getting VIP tickets to Heavy T.O. and it was topped off with seeing Alexisonfire in Toronto for their farewell tour. All these things, help inspire and motivate the writing I do.
And to everyone that takes their time to read these blogs about my work or just rambling, thank you so much. There will be more musing of a madman in the new year as well and don't worry, they won't be totally self indulgent. I hope to see you all there on the other side of 2012.
Digital vs Print copies
So, recently I picked up a fancy phone that can do so many tricks, my dog is out of work. One of the apps I have for it is a Kindle reader. The phone screen is large enough that it makes reading easy, but now that I have downloaded quite a few books to it, I began wondering about digital copies verse physical ones.
What do I like about the Kindle? Well, there is something to be said about the convenience in being able to carry around a large amount of books in your pocket. Right now I have about fifty and that would normally take up quite a bit of room. There is also the fact that quite a few of the books I have are very hard to find anywhere as they are out of print and to get a copy requires a fair amount of hunting or a hefty cost. The cost of many of the books I have range from free to $5.99 which is a steal and being a bit of a cheapo due to my "struggling writer" status, cheap is good.
As for print copies, where do I start. I love books. I own somewhere in the range of 300, though I once had closer to 800, but lost many of them during a bad experience. There is nothing quite like holding a book, getting lost in the pages and smelling them as you turn them. Old books and second hand book stores are my Mecca. I have always loved walking into one, never knowing what I am going to find and coming out with a bag or two of treasures. I love standing in front of my bookcase, looking at the rows and rows of books while trying to decide what to read next.
For me, print books will always win over a Kindle. I can share a physical book with a friend, my print copies never run out of battery life and if I happen to drop a paperback in the toilet (a man's favorite place to read), it's not $100+ down the drain (pun intended). And as a writer, nothing gives me more joy that to see one of my books, or a book I am featured in, sitting on a bookshelf or in a store among people I consider heroes of mine. When I first went into my local library and saw At the Gates of Madness on display with Stephen King, Elmore Leonard and others, it was one of the best days in my writing life.
If the world as a whole moves toward the digital books, I wonder what will happen to libraries and the bookshops I love. I think of all those years spent in both, looking for new adventures to go on, the experience of looking and hunting was just as great as the book itself. I personally think we would do future generations a disservice to move all in on the digital format. It's fine to move forward, but sometimes you have to turn back a few pages to see what you might have missed.
What do I like about the Kindle? Well, there is something to be said about the convenience in being able to carry around a large amount of books in your pocket. Right now I have about fifty and that would normally take up quite a bit of room. There is also the fact that quite a few of the books I have are very hard to find anywhere as they are out of print and to get a copy requires a fair amount of hunting or a hefty cost. The cost of many of the books I have range from free to $5.99 which is a steal and being a bit of a cheapo due to my "struggling writer" status, cheap is good.
As for print copies, where do I start. I love books. I own somewhere in the range of 300, though I once had closer to 800, but lost many of them during a bad experience. There is nothing quite like holding a book, getting lost in the pages and smelling them as you turn them. Old books and second hand book stores are my Mecca. I have always loved walking into one, never knowing what I am going to find and coming out with a bag or two of treasures. I love standing in front of my bookcase, looking at the rows and rows of books while trying to decide what to read next.
For me, print books will always win over a Kindle. I can share a physical book with a friend, my print copies never run out of battery life and if I happen to drop a paperback in the toilet (a man's favorite place to read), it's not $100+ down the drain (pun intended). And as a writer, nothing gives me more joy that to see one of my books, or a book I am featured in, sitting on a bookshelf or in a store among people I consider heroes of mine. When I first went into my local library and saw At the Gates of Madness on display with Stephen King, Elmore Leonard and others, it was one of the best days in my writing life.
If the world as a whole moves toward the digital books, I wonder what will happen to libraries and the bookshops I love. I think of all those years spent in both, looking for new adventures to go on, the experience of looking and hunting was just as great as the book itself. I personally think we would do future generations a disservice to move all in on the digital format. It's fine to move forward, but sometimes you have to turn back a few pages to see what you might have missed.
