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Sunday, October 7, 2012

The "Almighty" Cloud

I am deeply concerned about the direction of technology these days.  We've seen a lot of positive advances in the field, many of which have been very beneficial for authors in particular.  But there's a word which has been growing in popularity that has made me increasingly nervous.

I'm talking about the "cloud."

For those not familiar, the cloud is a term used to describe offsite data storage.  The promotional idea behind it is the simple fact that you would no longer need to worry about storage space, data backup, and physical media.  Everything from your saved documents to your video games to your music and movies would be stored on a server somewhere else, giving you virtually limitless data storage and media access.

That's how companies like Microsoft and Apple want you to see it, anyway.

I see a far different reality in the not-so-distant future.

Several years back, Microsoft introduced Xbox Live.  While not the first online gaming service for home consoles, it was certainly the most complete package available at that time.  With it came promises of eventual downloadable content (or DLC) that could extend the life of your games with patches, new levels, additional characters, and much more - for a price.  DLC didn't really take off until the Xbox 360 was released.

When it started, DLC was in no way a requirement.  Games were shipped complete, and any DLC available was simple; they'd provide a new horse for your in-game character or maybe a novelty arena for a hockey game.  DLC cost money, but anyone not interested in paying for it didn't really miss out on anything significant.

Fast forward to today.  DLC has become more and more prevalent and, in some cases, almost necessary.  You can get additional characters for Street Fighter.  There are additional missions for Mass Effect.  New multiplayer maps are frequently released for most popular shooters.  Some DLC is only available by pre-ordering your game at one retailer as opposed to another.  Buy that shooter at Best Buy?  Then you can get a specific in-game weapon that people who purchased at GameStop won't ever have access to.  Buy at Walmart?  You can get an additional character download that other retailers won't provide.

But here's where things are starting to get dirty.  First off, companies are releasing game discs with DLC data ON THE DISC.  You can't have access to it, of course, until you pay for the content online.  But the data is there on the disc you've already paid for.  It's a sneaky and immoral way for companies to try to squeeze more money out of players.  Second, downloaded content is becoming more and more important to the multiplayer aspect of games.  Shooters, especially, have new maps coming out seemingly every week (exaggeration, but you get the point), and since so many players fork over the cash, those who haven't purchased DLC have more trouble finding games.  Or, in the case of games like Call of Duty, you can get a game, but your lack of DLC restricts EVERY player to only the multiplayer maps you have.  And, as you might imagine, that will often earn you an expletive laden verbal assault from other players who don't want to play the "same old maps" over and over.


So what does all of this have to do with the cloud?

Well, as DLC popularity has risen, so have the prices.  A pack of 3-4 new multiplayer maps for Call of Duty will typically cost you $15.  Fifteen bucks for a couple of maps.  That's a quarter of the price of a brand new game!  The makers of Street Fighter release a pack of four new characters and a couple of interface adjustments and calls it a whole new game, charging players another $30 to access it.  Keep in mind that players already pay $50 a year for Xbox Live to begin with in addition to the cost of the console and the original game itself.

Worse yet, sadly to say, my former favorite developer - Square Enix - has finally delivered the ultimate slap in the face.  Their latest release, Final Fantasy XIII-2, ends with a "To Be Continued" message.  When questioned, director Motomu Toriyama stated that the ending is leaving room for DLC and the game's multiple "Paradox Endings."  In other words, you shell out $60 for a game, play through to the end, and get told to pay more in order to finish it.  It suggests what I've feared all along:  Our living rooms, bedrooms, family rooms, and everywhere else are being turned into home arcades.  Plunk down your money to play, get through a few levels, then be forced to pay more to continue.  Sure, it's not that bad yet, but I could easily see the industry reaching that point within ten years.

And I have the same concerns regarding the "cloud."

Right now, we have - for the most part - control over our media.  We can download music from iTunes and save it to our computers to be either burned to CD or shifted to an MP3 player.  We can still get hard copies of games and movies and music in stores.  And we can save our files on hard drives built into our computers or external backups.  The data is ours to do with as we please (legally, of course), and we never have to pay for it again.

But the cloud has already appeared in some ways.  Netflix, for example, is a cloud-based movie service.  You have access to all kinds of TV shows and movies storied on Netflix's servers, and for a fee, you can access them.  Likewise, there's a game service called OnLive that does the same thing for video games.  For a monthly fee plus the price of the game, you get online access to any games they offer.  All information is stored on their databases; you don't need a fancy computer or the latest game console.  Just money.  Every month.  But if you don't pay every month, you don't have access to anything, no matter how much you've already paid.

See where this is going?

If the cloud becomes universally accepted by the technology world just as DLC was accepted by the gaming world, we could find ourselves paying monthly fees for everything and anything.  Movies, music, games, and even data storage could all come with access fees because, after all, those companies need money to maintain the servers and data backups.  As time goes on, physical media will become a thing of the past because it's easier to just click a button to download a purchase.  Need storage space?  Pay a subscription fee, click a button, pay a product fee, and you'll have terabytes at your disposal.  Want the latest Batman movie?  Pay a subscription fee, click a button, pay a product fee, and be watching within minutes.  The ease of use will be the main marketing point, but inwardly, these corporate executives will be laughing all the way to the bank.  EVERY month.  But if you cancel your subscription, you lose access to everything you've already paid for.

Do you know why companies like Best Buy and Staples push services plans on technological purchases?  Because services are considered pure profit.  It is one of the few ways that you can take a customers money without handing them a physical product in return.  Digital media will be viewed the same way.  In fact, it already is.  When iTunes tries to sell you a digital download of XYZ Band's latest album, they may as well be saying, "Would you like to purchase a warranty plan?" There's no CD, no case, no physical product of any kind changing hands.

Without a physical product in the customer's hands, the power is ALL in the developer's hands.  Fees will be small to start, but as physical media fades away and the cloud becomes king, our society will be trapped in a system that gives all the financial control to businesses and other organizations that have one simple demand: Every dollar in our wallets.  Next thing you know, access fees begin to rise.  Then, "processing" fees will be instituted.  Online purchase taxes.  Pretty soon, purchasing a copy of a movie will entail a $9.99 per month subscription to a service, $20 purchase fee for the movie itself, $2.50 online purchase tax, standard sales tax, and whatever else the developers and distributors want to tack on.  Worse, because we will have allowed ourselves to be forced into this system, there will be no way out.

Additionally, if this sort of technology extends beyond entertainment and into standard computer use as Microsoft and Apple and others are pushing for (the cloud is already a part of Apple's latest iOS), we'll soon find ourselves buying computers with minimal hard drive space because we'll be able to store as much data as we need on the cloud.  Once that becomes standard, Microsoft could decide to charge monthly for access to the cloud.  Suddenly, that book you're writing, that assignment you're working on, that presentation you need for work, they could all be held ransom each month by the providers of the cloud until you pay access fees.  People will grumble just as they do about the prices of Microsoft Office.  But people will pay just as they do to purchase Microsoft Office.

Is any of this going to happen for absolute certain?  I have no idea.  But if DLC has taught us anything, it's that we need to be very careful which powers we entrust to the powers that distribute digital data.  Gamers have allowed themselves to take the bait, and now game developers are reeling in more dollars every day.  If we don't want to see that happen to all aspects of media, society needs to reject the cloud as a whole.

Spread the word.

God bless,
Kevin

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

Pointless Sex

Now that I have your attention...

Laura had me watch "Water for Elephants" the other night.  It wasn't a bad movie, but it wasn't exactly one I'd rush out to buy, either.  It's about a guy who is set to graduate from school and get his license in veterinary medicine.  His parents die in a car accident, their assets are seized due to debts, and he suddenly finds himself homeless.  With nowhere to go, he winds up with a traveling circus taking care of the animals.

Three-quarters of the way through the story, there is a sex scene.  Nothing graphic or over-the-top, just your regular could-be-aired-on-TV sex scene.  While it was playing, I started thinking about sex scenes as a storytelling tool.  And I've come to a conclusion:  I don't understand them.

Whether in books, movies, TV shows, or video games, I just don't see the purpose.  From a storyline perspective, they don't accomplish anything.  It's not like sex means anything to the average person anymore.  What was once the most intimate expression of love between a husband and wife is now just as commonplace as shaking hands.  So I'm not sure what purpose these scenes serve.

Watching this one, I looked at Laura and asked, "Is this supposed to mean that they're passionately in love?  Because this is the same exact premise of '16 and Pregnant,' and we all know how those stories turn out."  A sex scene in a movie doesn't do anything to emphasize or define or characterize love between two people because - let's face it - the amount of people who have sex out of honest-to-God love is minimal these days.  Our entertainment, our media, and our society all glorify sex so much that it has lost any and all of the significance it once held.  It's an everyday thing now, an activity that takes place between two willing participants (That's really teh only requirement these days.  They don't need to be married or in love - they don't even need to like each other!).

So how is a sex scene supposed to have any impact on the story when it is something teenagers do simply to shed the dreaded "virgin" title?  When college students use it as a recreational activity?  When companies use it to sell products?  When girls have babies simply because they're lonely?  When men carry the number of women they've slept with as a badge of honor?

On the flip side, a story that emphasizes an actual emotional connection can accomplish wonders that sex scenes simply can't.  I become far more invested in characters who interact well, can play off one another's individual characteristics, and who always find their way to each other no matter what obstacles or circumstances stand between them.  At that point, there's no need for a sex scene because it would add nothing to the already established relationship.  Characters should be about character, not what goes on behind closed doors.

I realize that I don't speak for everyone.  But as someone who loves a good storyline, I can't think of a single instance where a sex scene has added anything to the depth or strength of a story that wasn't already there.  They feel like filler scenes to me - a chance to refill my soda, skip ahead a few pages, or change the channel.  You don't have to agree; I'm sure there are plenty of people out there who could do without a fantasy sword duel or sci-fi space battle.  Everyone's got their own thing.

The sex scene ain't mine.

God bless,
Kevin

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

The Publishing "Deal"

Last year, I was approached by someone claiming to be a representative from a publishing company.  A quick look at his facebook page made me immediately skeptical (his only "Likes" just so happened to be the same as mine, and the publishing company he claimed to represent didn't publish sci-fi/fantasy material) but I played along with it just to see what would happen.  He claimed his company was interested in publishing my Fourth Dimension series and asked if I'd like to know more.  Know more?  Of course.  Reach a deal?  That I wasn't so sure about.

It turned out to be a hoax as expected, but the situation raised some interesting questions.  If I was given the chance to publish my books through a traditional publishing house, would I take that opportunity?  Years ago, the answer would've been a resounding "YES!"  But what about now?

In December of 2007, the first draft of Eye of the Tornado was completed.  I was very happy with the story I'd created and was excited to share it with the world.  I spent the first couple of months of 2008 editing and revising each of the three Fourth Dimension books before sending submissions to various publishers and agents.

I spent the rest of 2008 like so many other writers:  Coming home from work to find various letters and postcards telling me that my work wasn't what they were looking for at that time.

I had been trying to get published for years.  My earliest attempt was back in 2004.  I read through all kinds of different websites and books for advice on the subject.  I looked at other people's sample query letters and read interviews with published authors on how they got into the business.  Everything I found lead me to believe that talented authors with quality products will get published while mediocre authors with less-than-polished work will be rejected.  Seems obvious enough, right?  So, with my books being constantly rejected, I assumed that I needed to hone my craft a bit more.  If the quality of my work improved, then my chances of being published would increase as a result.

But a nagging voice of logic in the back of my head was telling me something different.

Whenever I received a rejection letter, I automatically told myself that it was because my work wasn't good enough.  I didn't pay too much attention to any other possible factors until I decided to go ahead and self-publish in 2010.   When I received my first review - a 5-star review on Key to the Stars - I stopped for a minute and said, "Wait a minute.  Someone likes my writing?"  Over time, more positive feedback started coming in.  I actually had people emailing me asking when I'd be releasing more books.  I was completely blown away.  The self-depreciating mindset instilled in me by the publishing industry's responses had led me to assume that there was no way I'd be able to attract an audience.

They were wrong.

And so was I.

This forced me to look at the other factors relating to publishing rejections, and I realized for the first time that the traditional publishing houses base their publishing selections on many more factors than just quality of work.  And these factors keep many hard-working authors from reaching readers not because their books aren't good enough, but because the publisher doesn't consider them marketable for a variety of reasons. 

For the sake of argument, let's just say that you're a talented author with the potential to be an award-winning best-seller one day.  And you're trying to publish your first novel.

First and foremost, it is important to note that the majority of publishers only release a handful of books each year.  With thousands of manuscript submissions coming in every month, the odds of yours being selected for publication are slim-to-none.  Obviously, a well-written book will have better chances, but there's no way I'm going to believe that out of thousands of manuscript submissions received, the three-to-five books released by a publisher in a given year are the only bookstore-worthy titles.  Even if only twenty of those books were fantastic pieces of work, fifteen talented writers would be sent the same rejection letters that the less-than-polished authors received. 

Then there's subject matter.  In my case, it's no secret that sci-fi and fantasy are crowded genres.  There are a lot of us out here writing tales of swords and sorcery and adventures amongst the stars.  With so many trying to make it, the odds of being chosen for publication automatically drop.  Of those five books the publisher releases, how many will be fantasy books?  One?  Two, perhaps?  Cut another three authors from the list for no other reason than their chosen genre.

Now we're down to two open spots.  And guess what!  One of those spots automatically goes to the publisher's big name author who is releasing a new novel that year.  So now there's only one spot open for you.  Out of all of your genre's submissions that the publishing house received throughout the course of the year, you're all vying for the single open slot.  Of those top twenty hard-working authors, nineteen are about to be sent home because there's only one opening.  Not because their books aren't well-written.  Not because they couldn't attract an audience.  Not because they aren't talented.  There's simply one spot left.

"Wait, what's that?  Snooki wants to put out a book!?  GET EVERY EDITOR WE HAVE ON THAT AND MAKE SURE WE GET THAT OUT TO BOOKSTORES IMMEDIATELY!"

Yep. You just lost your spot to Snooki.

And just like that, you've lost your opportunity to be published based on factors that have absolutely nothing to do with the quality of your book.  The odds are heavily stacked against you - even if you're a previously published author.  You can try to get an agent as many authors do, but when it comes down to it, the obstacles in securing a literary agent are quite similar to those in securing a publishing deal.  Each agent has their own genres they handle, and like publishers, they can only accept so many clients before their workload is full.  And, just like publishers, they'd rather take a Snooki than a Joe Schmoe because - let's face it - Snooki's book provides a better guarantee of a financial return.

Now, with a more complete understanding of how the publishing industry works and how a well-written book isn't all it takes to be selected for publication, I don't feel quite so bad about all of those rejection letters.

On the flip side, self-publishing through ebooks has given millions of authors the opportunity to find their own audiences.  Where publishing houses were once the gatekeepers of the literary world, ebooks have blown those gates wide open, knocking down the barriers between authors and readers.  Now, authors are free to write what they want, how they want, and when they want without having to listen to a publisher tell them which subjects are marketable or which characters are likable.  No longer do authors need to worry about hot topics and market trends.  With ebooks, the creative control is 100% where it belongs: In the hands of the author.

Likewise, self-published ebooks have benefited readers in a variety of ways.  No longer do they have to let publishing houses tell them which books are good, which books are bad, which genres are hot, which trends are old, or anything else about what they should be reading.  Not only that, lower prices and free content are abundant within the indie author scene, a stark contrast to the works released by traditional houses.

With five books published on all major ebook platforms and readers from a number of countries around the world, I find myself in a position I never could've reached through traditional publishing.  I am able to share my art with people around the world.  And the response has been both humbling and heart-warming.

I haven't submitted my work to any traditional publishers since 2008, and as of now, I have no plans to.  Perhaps, one day, if the situation is right and the return is worth the investment, I might consider it.  But right now, I'm going to continue to enjoy the opportunities I've been given with the doors that have been opened to me.

God bless,
Kevin

Saturday, April 7, 2012

The Need to Create

Picture this, if you will.

A teenage Jim walks into the kitchen one morning carrying a stuffed frog.  He proceeds to dance the frog around while singing a song in a silly voice, pretending that the frog is putting on a show for his mother.  And when he finishes, he looks at his mother and says, "I'm going to dedicate my life to doing this."

What do you think she said?  How did she react?

Now put yourself in that position.  However, change the dancing frog to whatever your passion may be.  Playing guitar, writing books, dancing, acting, painting, wrestling - whatever you enjoy doing.  You enter a room of family and friends and proceed to perform your chosen interest.  For the sake of this example, let's say you've written a short story and you want to read it to them.  When you're finished, you say to them, "I'm going to dedicate my life to doing this."

What do you think they'd say?  How would they react?

Perhaps they'll cheer you on.  Perhaps they'll throw their full support behind your dream.  I've been lucky enough to have some supporters of my own goals.  But from my experience, there may be others who don't have as much faith in you.  There may be skepticism.  Criticism.  Flat-out discouragement.  After all: "It's nearly impossible to break into that field."  And: "You'll have to fight against all the competition out there.  Professional competition."  Or the cliche response: "You'll never make any money doing that."

Or worse yet, as someone close to me once said, "You'll never get published."

How would you react to that?  What would you do?

Let's say, for the sake of argument, that Jim's mother says something like that in response to his dancing frog routine.  And Jim listens.  Instead of pursuing a career as a puppeteer, Jim decides to start a business career, and years later, he gets a high-level executive job.  The pay is good.  The benefits are good.  Life is good.  But Jim is miserable.  He's stuck in a corporate suit promoting someone else's product and contributing nothing of his own interests and creations to society.  And worse yet, the world has been deprived of a piece of entertainment history that would've captivated the hearts of children and adults for decades to come.

The world has been deprived of The Muppets.

Now, as a disclaimer, let me just say that I have no idea how Jim Henson first told his parents of his interest in being a puppeteer nor do I know how they reacted.  I used the above scenario as an example to illustrate the potential consequences of allowing naysayers to stop us from pursuing our goal.

I realize the fact that for every one person deemed a commercial success, there are thousands, tens of thousands, and even millions who fail to reach that level. I get that.  I don't expect to be a millionaire author (though I'm not opposed to it!) and I'm not counting on it.  But that doesn't mean I'm going to give up doing what I love.  It doesn't mean I'm going to abandon all hope and get a job I don't want just because it's a rough road.  I only get to live once, and I'll be damned if I'm going to find myself lying on my deathbed one day going, "What if I'd just tried harder?"

I can tell you this:  I can't imagine a scenario where I'd be lying on my deathbed saying, "I wish I'd spent more time at the office."

But let me make it clear:  If working in the business environment is your thing, more power to you.  If that's what makes you happy, if that's what fulfills your need to contribute something of yourself to the world, and if that's what you truly have a passion for, then pursue that path and never look back.  The things I say about the business world and the "corporate suit" apply to me and only me.  It's not my thing, and I won't be motivated to do something when my heart isn't in it.

So how about the rest of you?  What do you have to contribute to the world that is you and only you?  Do you like to sing?  Tell stories?  Have you come up with an invention?  Do you have a talent for sculpting things out of glass?  Stone?  Do you love a sport?  Are you passionate about government and leadership?

Whatever it is, whatever your dreams, whatever your passions, I urge you:  Do NOT let anyone or anything stop you from pursuing them.  Even with zero support from others, if you feel the overpowering and relentless need to create, go out there and do it.  Everyone must choose their own path in life.  We can't let others dictate our roles in the world or what contributions we can or cannot make to society.  Every piece of the puzzle is important.  Everyone from carpenters to comedians have their place, and each serves a purpose whether it be to put a roof over someone's head or put joy into their heart.  It will be tough; I'm not saying that it won't.  It will require dedication, sacrifice, struggle, heartache, perseverance, and above all else, passion.  But if the need to create is there, the rest will come so long as you don't allow anyone or anything to stand in your way.

If Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird had allowed anyone to dissuade them from self-publishing their comic book (originally a parody of Marvel Comic's The New Mutants), the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles may have never existed.  If NBC told Jerry Seinfeld that a show with no character development or "moral moments" wouldn't succeed, the hit sitcom Seinfeld may have never existed.

If Jim Henson had spent his life working with puppets and was never a commercial success, do you think he'd wish he had gotten the corporate job?  I don't know the answer for sure, but I have to ask myself this: Is it better to fail doing something you love or succeed doing something you hate?

I don't know if I'll ever be a "commercial" success.  But then again, I don't know that I need to be.  Of course, like most writers, I'd love to be able to pay my bills with my writing alone - and I'm going to continue to work toward that goal.  But writing is what makes me happy regardless of whether or not I'm the next J.K. Rowling.  It satisfies that endless need to create, that overflowing fountain of imagination that just cannot be contained within the confines of my own head.  I do this because I love it, because it's fulfilling, and because it's the unique thing that I have to contribute to the world.  My imagination, my emotions, my characters, my stories - they are what I have to give that no one else can.  And that mere fact provides a sense of completion and fulfillment that a corporate suit can never give me.

Maybe the business world works for some people.  If it does, that's great.  But not me.  I'll forever drift amongst the stars within my own imagination, and it's a place I never want to leave.  I may never be a J.K. Rowling or Robert Jordan, and I'm OK with that.  That's not to say that it wouldn't be cool to walk into Toys R' Us and see a section of Fourth Dimension action figures, but as long as I can continue to share my work with you and explore the distant corners of the galaxies in my head, I'll be happy.

After all, I'd rather fail doing something I love than succeed doing something I hate.

Tear down the walls.  Follow your dreams.

"Life's like a movie.  Write your own ending." - Kermit the Frog

God bless,
Kevin

Saturday, February 25, 2012

Building Blocks - Sample

This is a snippet from Building Blocks, my free Christian novel. Enjoy!

God bless,
Kevin

Building Blocks - Kevin Domenic
Available for download at e-Retailers Everywhere

"So," Doc continued, "which memory have we come to see today?"

"I don't know," I admitted. "I mean, I remember the day, but only in brief images. I don't know if anything special happened on this particular date or not."

"What made you choose this day?"

I thought about it for a moment. "I wanted an average day. I mean, every day here was special. So that's what I wanted. A typical day."

I couldn't see him, but I could tell from his tone of voice that he had that warm smile on his face. "You lead the way. I'll stay close by at all times; don't worry about me. Just explore as you wish."

My eyes were fixed on the cabin. "Can we go inside?"

"If that's what you'd like to do."

Bravery has never been one of my strongest points. "I don't know. Do you think we'll be discovered? Maybe we'd better not."

"It's alright, Herbert." I felt his hand on my shoulder. "I won't put you in any situation I don't have complete control over."

That didn't exactly calm my nerves. But at the same time, what kind of fool would I be to turn down an opportunity like this? How many people get the chance to see loved ones that have died long ago? "Okay, let's go. We can get in through the back door."

As usual, Grandpa had forgotten to lock up. That saved me from having to remember the passcode. A flood of aromas filled my nose when I inched the door open. Everyone's house has a smell of some kind. Most people just overload on whatever air freshener they like the best. Some smell like fabric softener. Then there are some that smell like whatever food they cook most often. Grandpa's cabin fell into that category. The smell?

Bacon and coffee.

And maybe butter.

It was a combination of flavors that brought back memories of summer mornings when Grandpa would be making breakfast while I played with my toys in the living room. I could almost hear Grandpa telling me stories about the big fish he had caught on his latest adventure on the lake.

No, I really was hearing it.

Doc and I stepped through the door to the rear den. I could hear voices from the other room along with the sizzling of breakfast on the griddle. The den was just as I remembered it. All of Grandpa's biggest fish were mounted on the walls. His favorite old couch was there. Even his fishing gear was piled in the corner, presumably where he left it after a recent trip. The fireplace and wicker chair where he used to read, the wooden coffee table he carved—it was all just as I had remembered it.

"Breakfast is served!" a voice boomed from the other room. There was no mistaking it. That was Grandpa!

Even knowing what I was about to face, the sight that greeted me when I stepped into the living room stopped me dead in my tracks. There he was, Grandpa Joe, standing at the little table near the far wall with a plate full of bacon and pancakes in one hand and a pitcher of orange juice in the other. At this point in my life, he had to have been around seventy years old, but he didn't look the part whatsoever. He took good care of his body—the temple, he called it—with routine exercise and plenty of vitamins. And though his temple was routinely bombarded by bacon, that was likely his one and only vice.

"Come and get it, Herbert!" he said.

There's no real way to accurately describe what it is like to look upon your childhood reflection. A part of me wanted to cry. I was staring at the innocent little boy whose outlook upon the world had yet to be corrupted. Yet another part of me wanted to go and punch that child in the face for being so naïve to the nature of the society around him.

 Building Blocks
Kevin Domenic