Writer, Agilist, Elder Geek
Steven Savage Hello everyone, just a few quick updates.
– Steven Savage
http://www.musehack.com/
http://www.informotron.com/
http://www.seventhsanctum.com/
I often analyze media, how it works, and what it means – which any regular reader knows. This isn’t just my generally obsessive and analytical nature; media is something many of us create from the instructional (yours truly) to fiction (like my friend Serdar). Right now if you’re here you’re probably interested in media creation, and possibly even doing it – so you’re bang alongside reading yet Another Crazy Steve Theory*.
But there’s another reason to analyze media beyond making it – and that’s to understand how it affects you and others. As we’re always consuming media (even unconsciously) in this wired age, understanding how it affects us is vital to being functional. Anyone who’s ever watched someone get a crazy and dysfunctional idea from a story or a biased newscast knows the importance of understanding media.
Lately I’ve been wondering how media influences people and how they take messages from it. In addition I’ve wondered how people can “read so much” into a piece of media that doesn’t seem to mean what they say. In time, I began to see media has three different sides to it.
Here’s my theory – that media has three components.
Bit of a weird, slow, fast, week. I had a lot going on at work, family visiting, so it’s all been more than a bit nuts.
This is on hold for a month. My co-author was in a car accident (involving a car problem and a curb) and got banged up a bit. She’s fine, but while she cleans up after the accident and recovers, we decided a break is in order for her – and we’re at the stage where we’ve got to team up to analyze the data now that we’re at our midpoint. So I figure this lets us jump back into it fresh, with no pressure.
So at this rate I still don’t see the book done until next summer. But then again you never know – I’ve never done a book in partnership on media impacts, so most of my estimates are extrapolations. Of course who says this is the last book I do like this . . .
The book is roughly formatted, and I’ve done some editing – and then just decided to switch over to the old print-and-edit method. It’s not like it’s not done, it’s just that the book needs to be edited. So I’ve got piles of papers marked up so I can start entering changes. A few sections are probably getting extensive rewrites.
I also am debating splitting it into two, but right now just can’t bring myself to do it – it’s roughly a mix of direct advice and worldbuilding approach and philosophy so I could split it but it just doesn’t seem right.
Oh, and I’ve got some lighter sequels/spinoffs/extras in mind, but you won’t see that until it’s out . . .
The Plot Twist Generator definitely is behind after the busy week and weekend and I plan to return to it. It’s pretty straightforward actually, almost refreshing – less crazy-making than the Writing Prompt Generator.
I’m merging my work at MuseHack into my press site, The Informotron! There you’ll get both my published writing, free stuff, and blog entries and speculations. It’ll probably double up with some of my work at Seventh Sanctum, but will be mostly original stuff – and I plan to package up and make a lot of my past writing more accessible.
You know when I get time . . .
Respectfully,
– Steven Savage
http://www.musehack.com/
http://www.informotron.com/
http://www.seventhsanctum.com/