State of the Dread: Draft Week Edition

It’s the NFL Draft this week, which is relevant because tomorrow’s “Movie Monday” video is connected to that. Here’s to better days, when the Colts actually won on a regular basis.

WRITING

I’m a contributor at UpstreamReviews, I post weekly updates at CrackerStack, and I pick at a novel in between illustrations.

I finished posting THE KORBADELL JOB on the Stack. Didn’t make much time for other writing, most of my evening creative time was for drawing.

READING

Go subscribe to the CrackerStack for my weekly reading updates. If you become a paid subscriber, you’re helping me support my book habit. Thanks!

Latest update is on the Stack. I’m reading more of SHOGUN and knocking out at least one more book.

DRAWING

I’m an illustrator and I post on my Instagram account. Follow me there and I will update more regularly.

Didn’t completely finish a digital piece, but I made great progress with which I am satisfied. The labor of another night should put it over the top.

VIDEO

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Modest week on the channel, with one random video that apparently made some nerds mad, but whateeeeeevvvvvvvvvvvvvs. Subscribe and tell everyone they’re wrong to disagree with me.

FITNESS

Weight’s back up. Whatever, I signed up for a shred course, this is ridiculous and has gone on far too long. I’m gonna get down to 190 by my birthday.

Get back to work.

State of the Dread: The Ides of April Edition

Whatever, it’s only the 14th.

I met this dude a few times, now my kids are reading his books. Kinda cool.

WRITING

I’m a contributor at UpstreamReviews, I post weekly updates at CrackerStack, and I pick at a novel in between illustrations.

Took a break from writing because of other obligations. My main focus this week is to update a bunch of old Upstream articles that have some formatting errors.

READING

Go subscribe to the CrackerStack for my weekly reading updates. If you become a paid subscriber, you’re helping me support my book habit. Thanks!

The Stack has the details, last week was heavy on comics. This week I’m powering through that indie sequel I needed to read, and then starting SHOGUN.

DRAWING

I’m an illustrator and I post on my Instagram account. Follow me there and I will update more regularly.

Most of this week was about catching up on videos (see below). However I formatted one of last week’s pen drawings for an in-world ad from HOWLING WILDERNESS.

This week I want to get another digital piece finished.

VIDEO

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Very busy week on the channel. Once again, my highest-viewed video was from Trucker Tuesday? Boy that activates the almonds…

FITNESS

Holding the line at 213. Now I’m debating whether to buy a six-week shred course so I can get back under 200 by June. Talk me into it. Then get back to work.

State of the Dread: Holy Crap It’s April

Swords are a big deal in Spain.

WRITING

I’m a contributor at UpstreamReviews, I post weekly updates at CrackerStack, and I pick at a novel in between illustrations.

I’m way behind schedule on an Upstream post, but I can do a writeup for both TD Hunter books I think. On the plus side I added another thousand words to my current WiP. Some of them aren’t useful but for the most part it’s constructive stuff, and I enjoy the process. On nights when I don’t have enough time to really get into the flow of drawing, I just need to sit down and hammer some words.

READING

Go subscribe to the CrackerStack for my weekly reading updates. If you become a paid subscriber, you’re helping me support my book habit. Thanks!

Decent reading this week including a book about the eclipse, which hits Oklahoma tomorrow. I’m not in the totality, but I still might get a slight glimpse of it. I’m a little bit closer than I was in 2017 when I lived in Salt Lake.

(My brother’s in Cleveland, I’m jealous.)

DRAWING

I’m an illustrator and I post on my Instagram account. Follow me there and I will update more regularly.

Got a lot done this week once I started hand-drawing some of the simpler pieces for HW. The more “important” pieces will get the digital treatment.

VIDEO

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Yes, we just crossed the 2,700 sub threshold this week, it feels great! And my Trucker Tuesday video went bonkers, it got 1,000 views in just a few days, furthering my theory that I have no clue what the Internet actually wants from me.

The bigger issue is that YouTube has, for the third time in a month, limited ad revenue on one of my videos as soon as I posted it and I don’t know why. I’ve submitted each limitation for a manual review and each time it’s been approved, and I don’t know what the consistent factor is.

Anyway, the most important video I made was this one, go watch it to give it a boost. It’s been “approved” for full ads or whatever.

FITNESS

I had a couple of nights where I actually slept and my weight dropped down to 213, could this possibly be a Life Hack??? I shall have to conduct more research.

Get back to work.

State of the Dread: March 24-30

Back when I was in the business of both having AND bleaching my hair

WRITING

I’m a contributor at UpstreamReviews, I post weekly updates at CrackerStack, and I pick at a novel in between illustrations.

Another week without chapters on the Stack. I’ll post three for this week.

Other than that I’m not writing. I’m putting all production time into drawing, and to a much lesser extent, video editing. I’ll be working sixties for the next three months. Once summer hits I can probably commit some time elsewhere, that’s just the reality of it.

READING

Go subscribe to the CrackerStack for my weekly reading updates. If you become a paid subscriber, you’re helping me support my book habit. Thanks!

I’m really enjoying the comics I’m following. Video coming soon.

DRAWING

I’m an illustrator and I post on my Instagram account. Follow me there and I will update more regularly.

Finished another piece this week. The bigger story is that I re-evaluated the drawings I’m going to do for this book so that I have a better shot of getting it out in the next few months. I really want to knock this beast out.

VIDEO

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Pretty productive week on the channel, this week’s main goal is to get a Forgotten Warrior video drafted and published. I’ve kicked that can down the road for a while now.

I am also going to set a reminder to publish my videos on Rumble, the sync function hasn’t been working and I need to overcome that. YouTube isn’t becoming less Draconian and Rumble is only becoming more popular. More on that as it develops.

FITNESS

Work has wrecked my schedule for the second week in a row, but I’m still holding strong on my weight (and even clocked in just under 214 this week…) so things are going okay. This week instead of trying to commit to a full workout session in the shop, my goal is to do light sessions with three focal exercises, since this is the year of Lats & Abs & Such. Tues/Thurs/Sat is the idea.

Get back to work.

State of the Dread: March 10-16

The ultimate defender of his own virginity

READING

Go subscribe to the CrackerStack for my weekly reading updates. If you become a paid subscriber, you’re helping me support my book habit. Thanks!

This coming week I have a book to read on the Skunkworks at Lockheed Martin, then a pseudo-LitRPG and another book I can’t remember. I also got caught up on the comics I’ve bought recently and I’ve got to say, as cool as the Energon Universe books have been, I never would have thought I’d enjoy Void Rivals over Transformers. But there’s more story from issue to issue, while the last 2-3 issues of Transformers have been kind of repetitive.

WRITING

I’m a contributor at UpstreamReviews, I post weekly updates at CrackerStack, and I pick at a novel in between illustrations.

I didn’t post any Korbadell Job segments on the Stack last week, that one got away from me. This week there will be five segments to make up for it, one chapter per day.

DRAWING

I’m an illustrator and I post on my Instagram account. Follow me there and I will update more regularly.

Finished another piece for Howling Wilderness! Sixth overall. And this week I will finish a seventh.

VIDEO

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I got a new mic and the pickup is pretty good. Recording in the car just got a lot better. I started two new segments, namely Movie Monday and Trucker Tuesday. That’ll free up my production schedule for books in the latter half of the week.

FITNESS

Two straight weeks of clean eating. I did grab breakfast at a truck stop on Saturday because I had to cross OKC early in the morning and I was under a tight schedule. But I wasn’t at work for that, which is a big leap for me. This week my focus is on counting calories of what I eat, because clearly I need to rein that in. I’m also going to do at least one three-set circuit in the shop.

Get back to work.

State of the Dread: Feb 25-Mar 2

This used to be “really good” for me, I’ve gotten better…

WRITING

I’m a contributor at UpstreamReviews, I post weekly updates at CrackerStack, and I pick at a novel in between illustrations.

Very pleased to announce I wrote a thousand words on my next manuscript, which you can read over at the CrackerStack if you’re a premium supporter.

READING

Go subscribe to the CrackerStack for my weekly reading updates. If you become a paid subscriber, you’re helping me support my book habit. Thanks!

I really only finished one book, which was SERVANTS OF WAR. Video coming soon on that one. Tomorrow I’ll finish TOUR OF THE PRAIRIES by Washington Irving.

DRAWING

I’m an illustrator and I post on my Instagram account. Follow me there and I will update more regularly.

Finished a piece! I think my method for this book is “I’ll touch up the backgrounds when I’m all done.” Because they’ll need it, and I can do that in batches, but for now I need to get the individual pieces ready.

VIDEO

I have over 2,500 subscribers on YouTube. Are you one?

Big week for the channel, I’ve posted consistently since Monday. I’d like to keep that up. My biggest video was the one with Current Week buzzwords, which I kind of hate, but I had something relevant to say about it, so I regret nothing.

FITNESS

Got my weight back down to 215. I took a look at some food options and I’m committing hard to zero junk this week, no excuses. I need five days of clean eating. This is a test of wills. I’m setting aside Tuesday and Friday nights as exercise nights in the shop, too. Nothing fancy, just setting that time aside to do some iso for a few sets. Gotta get consistent. I’m losing the progress from PectoCracker last year.

Get back to work.

State of the Dread: Feb 18-24

Find a girl who looks at you the way my wife looks at God’s Mightiest Trucker.

WRITING

I’m a contributor at UpstreamReviews, I post weekly updates at CrackerStack, and I pick at a novel in between illustrations.

Last week my review of THE VINLAND SAGA #1 went live on Upstream. I posted a chapter on the Stack, and also posted my reading update. This week I’m setting aside time (late Friday night) to knock out a thousand words on a manuscript for next year, one that I’m tremendously excited about. I will also write a video script for the channel (TBD).

READING

Go subscribe to the CrackerStack for my weekly reading updates. If you become a paid subscriber, you’re helping me support my book habit. Thanks!

I have a few review books to read, I’m behind on those, but first I’m going to reread a fantasy from last year. I should be able to knock out four titles this week. Generally I can read a book in a day (trucker, audiobooks, etc) but I’m also following a few podcasts and streaming shows, I like to vary it up.

DRAWING

I’m an illustrator and I post on my Instagram account. Follow me there and I will update more regularly.

Didn’t get as far as I wanted on this week’s piece, but here’s my progress so far.

I’ll finish this and start another one. With a few long nights I can increase production.

VIDEO

I have over 2,500 subscribers on YouTube. Are you one?

If Rumble’s mobile interface was better, I would upload to that one regularly as well, but right now I don’t have the time to worry about it. I need them to improve their tech so I can post videos from my phone without delays.

Solid week on the channel, knocked out a video every weekday and I have a few audio files that just need video put to them. Very pleased with that. My best video was a recap of the “Year of Sanderson” novels.

FITNESS

Gained some weight back and only did the AbWheel once. I am deeply ashamed. Judge me for my fatness, and also for my weakness. This week I shall repent of both.

Get back to work.