The Awesome-verse!

Welcome, dear reader, to the Awesome-verse! Below is a list of superhero (and villain)-type characters whom I have created (They're MINE! You can't have them! But you can enjoy their adventures!) and you, no doubt, are dying to read about! Script excerpt featuring one of them to follow on the next blog!
        A
Angelfire
Archer
Avant-Garde
Armory
Arcane
Antediluvian
Anarchist
Amok
Allure
Animator
Analyst
Axis
Amp
Alchemist
     B
Blowtorch
Baron Power
Barrage
Burn
Blockade
Brute
Breakdown
Blindside
Bloodshed
     C
Captain Intrepid
Coral
Cosmic Knight
COBALT
Cross
Crusader
Cadaver
Calibre
Contagion
Crypt
Cordite
Coldsnap
Condor
Cyberhawk
Chrome
Coldshot
     D
Dynamo
Dreamwalker
Dreadnought
Doctor Sun
Dr. Macabre
Dirge
Duplicator
Dragonfire
     E
Eclipse
     F
Fade
Fenris
Firefly
Forecast
Frostbite
Firebomb
Flatline
Firecracker
                       G
Granite
Goldwing
Glacier
Gravitar
Gadgeteer
Gaia’s Avatar
     H
Haze
Hellfire
Heavy Artillery
Hyena
       I
Impact
Illusionist
Ivory
      J
Jinx
Jury
Jotunheim
     K
Kodiak
Kid Mercury
      L
Lady Victory
Lotus
Lightning Avenger
Labyrinth
Lit
Lore
Le Sabre
Lumina
Lord Neutron
     M
Magistrate
Mr. Magnetic
Mastodon
Menagerie
Malevolence
Master Dark
Meltdown
Maser
     N
Night’s Shade
     O
Outback
Overload
      P
Paragon
Psionic
Prophet
Powerplay
Pulsar
Prometheus
Pursuit
Pantheon
Peacekeeper
Python
Purge
Pagan
     R
Regent
Rampart
Radiant
Raptor
Rocket Girl
Reaper
Redwood
Riptide
Redwolf
Revenant
Rott
          S
Stormbringer
Singularity
Sandstorm
Spin Doctor
Sprite
Spartan
Storm King
Solaria
Shyft
Synapse
Slash
Shatter
Siege
Slag
Sidestep
     T
Tidalwave
Titan
Thornn
Torrent
Thesaurus Jones
Thunderhawk
Timeline
Tremor
Tekhead
Threshold
Tigerclaw
Tsunami
Thunderstorm
     U
Umbra
     V
Vanguard
Venture
Vigilance
Vibrax
Vector
     W
Watchman
Warhammer
Warfare
      Z
Zephyr

Na Na Na Na Na Na Nahh...Batman!

And since we're on the topic of old blog entries...here is the infamous "Batman" blog that some have heard about...

i'm batman dammit!!

31/05/2006 2:31:43 AM

Ok so i have a wel-conceived half-ass drunken plan. When i get the Chevette (that's right its so damn cool it gets a capital "c", that and its a proper name so it should... english classes pays off so me talk good still) up and running again (around the turn of next centurty by the time i can afford it) i'm gonna deck it out jusyt like the new batmobile aka "the tumbler" (swear to god isnt that what u call a glasss u drink out of? alcoholic me? never...) oh and as u can see "the tumbler" doesnt get a capital cause its a gay name (lmao glen and his "gay" stuff thats funny shit) and NO i have nothing against gay people, its just a word... i'm all for gay marriages too, homosexuals should have the same right to lose half theior shit to a psycho just like i did. i'm totally for EQUAL rights, not many folks are though cause that means they'd actually get treated just like everyone else. back to the Chevette-mobile.... Ya so i'm gonna deck it out, grab some black spray paint and go nuts with it, find me some massive 13 inch tires (lmao a little CT auto parts humor there, fuck u, its funny!! ) and install some wicked-ass rocket launchers and other gizmos. Then i'll dye my duster black, grab a skimask and sew on (ok, get my mom to sew on) little ear thingys and run around beating up near-do wells or whatever the hellthat phrase is (punk-ass bitches that are jaywalkin and the like) screaming "i'm the Batman dammit!" that'll be sweet

The Batman (aka THE DREW, shh.. its a secret identity)

An Oldie But Goodie

I was re-reading some old blog entries from my previous blog and came across this one...I found it funny. Enjoy!

Aren't You Lucky For Knowing Me?

18/06/2006 8:59:19 PM

Howdy there boys and girls, it's time for another literary masterpiece from yours truly, The Drew! Don't you feel blessed to be reading this? I'm sure you do. Well those who know me, know i like to have a drink or two sometimes (ok, ok so it's more like a case or two, but that's neither here nor there...) so last night me and my bud Joe decided to kill a few beers. Don't worry their deaths were more or less painless and served a greater purpose. Namely getting me drunk. You should all be as fortunate as those beers were to have gone out of their way to get me drunk. A lesson to be learned here, get me drunk and your life will be more fulfilling and richer for doing so. So as always, we got into the phone or text messaging and hilairty and half-recalled conversations ensued. This, of course, is your obligation, and PRIVELAGE, for knowing me... drunken phone calls at all hours from me, the One and Only DREW. Feel free to express your thanks in form of alcohol, cash donations, or sexual favors (women only on this last one PLEASE!!!). I, being a humble and benevolant god, will graciously accept your offerings. Human sacrifice is not neccessary, but god knows (that's me don't forget) that there are people out there who should not be around to reproduce or use up valuable resources (oxygen, land, food... mmm...cheeseburgers...) and in these cases there is no alternative. It's ok. But check with me first, to make sure said sacrifice qualifies.

As i was saying... So Joe and i ended up talking to some ladies with which a friend of ours (go Sarah, you rock!!!) was partying with and Joe decided to be "the man" (he gets only a little "m" because everyone knows The Drew is the Man dammit!!) and started chattin' it up with the ladies. I must say he did well, all due to learning from me, naturally. Yes, i was quite impressed with his performance, but I, being The Drew and all, of course could not be beat as some young lady passed along her phone # to me. Not bad for just talking (well texting actually) for maybe an hour, huh? And this is why YOU can benefit from knowing (and worshipping) ME, THE DREW.

Well, my friends and followers i'll be heading out now, but never fear little ones, your hero and leader will return.

Yours (if only for an hour at a time), The Drew

Should You Choose To Accept This Mission...

     Or at least I believe that was how that old tv show Mission Impossible started (let's not get started on the whole Tom Cruise movie thing...Tom you are an idiot if you think you can play Jack Reacher..he's a WHOLE FOOT TALLER than your scrawny self...but I digress). Hopefully though the mission I have chosen to accept is NOT an impossible one. Difficult? Yes, without a doubt. Impossible? Nah... Oh! What IS this mission, you ask? Glad you did because I was more than happy to rant about how much Tom Cruise sucks (Katie Holmes was mine you bastard! At least before she got all super skinny and weird looking, have at'r Tom.) but I suppose we should get around to the mission. The Mission. That looks better, sounds more important too. Ok so the mission, oops, The Mission, is as follows:
     
      TO WRITE AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE THIS YEAR. AND IN A CONSITANT AND ORGANIZED MANNER. No half-assing, incomplete, brilliant-yet-unfinished ideas, or at least as few of those as possible.
    
    To achieve this mission, certain criteria/goals must be met. What are they? Wow you really are a bunch of nosy bastards, but that's ok, questions are good! Sometimes. Usually. Depends on what they're about. But anyway... The goals for this year are as follows:
    
     A.  One blog entry per week on the Captain Awesome's Realm of Awesomeness blog. If you don't know what that is...either you're an idiot or just completely missed the title of the blog. Either way keep reading, idiots and blind people welcome! No Romulans though! Creepy pointy-eared wannabe Spocks...
    
     B. One chapter of a novel per week, most likely from the Steven Kincaid mystery series that I've been trying to get into the groove on for...well the better part of a decade. Don't laugh. Or I shall smite thee! Luckily, this past Novemeber saw a HUGE breakthrough for me in terms of that series when I participated in NaNoWriMo (aka National Novel Writing Month). The goal of NaNoWriMo is to begin and FINISH a novel of approximately 50,000 words in the space of the month of... Novemeber! That's right! Man, people who read this blog ARE smart! I knew it! So anyhow, one chapter per week is the keypart here.
    
     C. Is for Comic Book scripts! Originally the plan was to do TWO a month. That plan has since changed. After finishing the first issue of Legacy (with a whopping 26 page count) in essentially one night, I realized that although two in a month would be awesome, and do-able, I still have alot of background stuff to hammer out for most of the stories and one is more realistic. For now. It will become more, probably by the spring when I've finished the world building that I've been doing for the last year and a bit. It'll be great, trust me!

     D. To participate and FINISH the aforementioned NaNoWriMo contest thing. I made it to about a third of the way before too many real world things got in the way. AND I made the mistake of going back and reading what I wrote. BIG mistake there. You start over thinking things you already wrote instead of creating new stuff and before you know it, you're frustrated and give up. Not this time.

     So far that's pretty much all I've got, though I'm pretty happy with it since it's WAY more than previous years. Seriously if you look at the entirety of my writing/creating in the last 2 years compared to the previous decade, it's pretty damn good. And we're just beginning... Samples of scripts and chapters are going to be popping up on here on a monthly basis, in addition to the usual ranting about the writing itself as well as the blog covering topics beyond my awesomeness. What? Why would I do that? Why not?

     Originally the blog was going to be about whatever random thought crossed my mind but it's kind of turned into "hey this is what my writing is" instead. Not a bad thing, mind you, but no doubt all of you loyal readers out there want to know what Captain Awesome has to say/what he thinks about a variety of topics! Why limit it to just one thing? Captain Awesome will be giving you his insights into many things, so that you can use his words wisdom in your every day life! If there's a topic you want covered, by all means, leave a comment saying what you'd like to see!

                                                       Stay Awesome,   
                                                               Captain Awesome

Crunch time!

Ok, so here we are, less than 20 hours away from my first script deadline. Where's it at? About halfway. Luckily the majority of the rest of it is action, something that I hope won't be too hard to get through. "Paragon punches bad guy in this panel", next! I've already been (generously) granted an extension, due to the holidays and maybe some sucking up on my part, by the wonderful and talented (still sucking up) Shannon who has agreed to be my editor, but now this is it. No more excuses, no more extensions, no more words that start with ex...like expeditious. No idea if I spelt that right. Who cares! I'm not the editor! I just write the stuff! And write I shall this evening, essentially HALF of what is needed to be done by tomorrow is still unfinished. Strangely, I couldn't be happier about it. I've always enjoyed performing under pressure, it's so much more satisfying (for me, anyhow) when you beat the odds and snatch victory from the jaws of failure. I never admit defeat. So, tonight after I get home and eat some leftover pizza (yum!) I will switch off my phone, block my Internet with a handy program I came across, and sit and write, Rockstar Mocha in hand, until it is done. I can't wait. It's going to be fun. 
                                                              Yours truly,
                                                                         Captain Awesome  

Merry Christmas!

      Well it's that time of year again, specifically, Christmas Day. No doubt you got that from the title of the post, or the time stamp on when it was done, but either way, Merry Christmas! I've always like the abbreviated styl of X-Mas because it looks close to X-Men and as we all know, anything comics-related is a good thing.

     The boys were up at a semi-resonable time today, just before 7, and managed to take their time opening their presents (although I've learnt to throw lots of little stuff at them or they'll be done in SECONDS) and seemed more or less pleased with what they got. I myself was the receipient of my very first pair of New Balance running shoes (SWEET! though I don't RUN, they will be awesome for walking) and a surprisingly cool Boston Bruins gnome. He looks like my kinda gnome. If I had a kind. Which I guess he is.

     It's always been an interesting time of year for me, giving gifts, amazingly, has always been my favourite part. I know alot of people SAY that but for me it's true. I like the challenge of finding something that they'd never thought of getting themselves or never knew was out there. It's fun. The kid in me though still likes to play at guessing what I'm getting though and, once again, I managed to predict at least one of my presents just by looking at the box (woo! After 8 chocolates! Mmmm...) and using my Captain Awesome psychic present-detecting powers.

     The part I liked the most this year though was having been able to spend time with some close friends during the hustle and bustle of the season. Good friends that made the time to see me and spend time enjoying each other's company. That, by far, was the best present I could have hoped for. Thank you to them for making the time.

     That's what this season is supposed to be about right? Spending time with people that matter to us? Not just the gifts. Actually... The gift of oneself, of friendship and love, is really the gift that matters. Think about it for a second. If someone stranger walked up and gave you a Ferrari that'd be pretty cool, right? But would that be AS COOL as your best friend handing you the keys to the blue and white 1957 four door Chevy Bel Air that you've wanted since junior high? (By the way anyone reading this that wants to buy me said car, I've since switched to wanting a '55 black and white 2 door hardtop Bel Air, thanks) A gift from someone who knows you and puts that effort of themselves into it is always the best. Because they cared. And that's the best thing of all.               

     Stay awesome my friends, and Merry Christmas.

Stuck! AKA Stuck Between a Block and a Hardcase

     If you have ever gotten into writing, at one point or another, unless you're some crazy-ass writing machine like Isaac Asimov was (read his stuff, it ROCKS), you've managed to find yourself at a dead end. Maybe you didn't plan ahead and wrote yourself into a corner or maybe you just lost steam and interest, either way it happens. That is where I have found myself for the past week. Difficult as it may be to accept, even I am sometimes at a loss for words. Or at least at a loss of words that make sense. Gibberish is always easy to come out with but people tend to expect better than that if they're going to spend their valuable time reading whatever it is that you wrote. (Ha! Joke's on you, you're reading THIS! But please, keep reading, I do have a point. Or something like that. It gets better anyhow. At least not AS bad. Please keep reading!)

     Ok, so as I established in the last paragraph, all of thirty seconds ago, unless your hooked on phonics course never paid off, I am in a bit of a writing rut. Writing rut. Say it out loud, it sounds funny. Yes, I am odd. SO WHAT? Where was I...oh yes! The rut! The last bit, say two weeks more or less, I have been working on a new comic script, this one being titled The Revenant. I started off well, had written up the character concept last year, sometime in October I think it was, and finally got around to plotting out what the initial story featuring him/her/it would be not that long ago. So here we are, pen to paper time. I immediately had a scene in mind, lifted from an ironically similar situation, story that I started years ago. We open on an alleyway at night time in a major city. It is dark, dirty and scary. A man, Japanese in ethnic origin, is running down the alley full-tilt, as though his life depends on it. It does. We see him glance up and over his shoulder to the rooftops above, searching desperately for something. He is terrified, with a capital T. His eyes widen, his fear increasing, as he spots the reason behind his fleeing. A shadowy figure with glowing red eyes jumps across the alley back and forth between the rooftops, stalking him. With the distance it covers with each leap it obviously is anything BUT human. It crisscrosses with each jump, seeming effortlessly and in no rush. Think a jungle cat chasing down it's prey. Graceful, powerful, confident in the inevitability of the result of its hunt.

     Sounds interesting so far? Sure hope so! I do have more to it but that's all I'm going to share detail-wise at the moment. For the purposes of this blog though, I will say that have the ending to that scene, the scene after that and one or two more. What I do NOT have though, is the scenes that come after those two or three others. So...no middle and no ending. Do I have any idea what I want them to be? Sort of... Kinda. Ok I have a VAGUE idea for an ending. Now normally I wouldn't be TOO concerned about that. I've written myself into dead ends, corners, back tracked, flipped it around and done the standard, when in doubt add ninjas, kinda thing. But. I have never been on a deadline and had this happen. And therein, we come to the title for the blog. I hesitate to call it writer's block but I'm stuck and have yet to see any results of my slam-head-into-wall solution that usually works out well for him. As for the hardcase part, I now have an editor, one that not only has agreed to peruse my writings and critque them but to help me become (as close as I can get to being) more professional in my approach to my writing. That means deadlines. Deadlines that she harasses me about. Which is excellent, that's one of the many things an editor does. What they DON'T do, however, is tell you what to write. They may make suggestions, but at the end of the day it is the WRITER'S job to write, no one else's. 

    Now that we've established who's job is who's, how do I go about doing mine? And on time? Easy! You plead the holidays and say that you'll be a bit late! Wait. That doesn't work. It may buy you some much needed time but it doesn't get it done. In this case I decided to take some time out and write this. It's like talking out a problem to yourself, though this way it's in print and your cat or the guy across from you on the bus doesn't look at you like you're nuts. For the record, Captain Awesome does NOT take the bus. That's what the Awesome-mobile is for. I changed the format of the plot too. Instead of a one page summary/overview, I started taking the scenes I had in mind and on paper, and broke them down into page by page guides. Not the the point of each panel, just a quick draft to get the pacing down. It turned out I had alot more done than I thought I did and suddenly the mountain I had ahead of me to write is...well it's still a mountain but not quite as big. I'll keep you posted on my progress. Until then... Stay awesome, my friends!