Granted I may not be the most experienced writer, but when I first started putting pen to paper five years ago, I thought the process would come to me more easily. The truth is, I was naive. I’ve gotten better at my craft, no question. I have a much more fine tuned barometer on the quality of ideas and the decision-making that goes into supercharging the emotional core of a story. But, what I don’t have is the ability to remain so steadfast in my craft as to never get held up.
I write bad shit sometimes. And on those days when it’s nothing but bad shit, I sink deeper and deeper into my chair. I begin to question whether I’ll ever unravel the scene or the concept which happens to be taking a severe lead in the race against me. I get the feeling that, to some degree, that will never go away. What I have learned—and recently at that—is that I can divert some of that anxiety by taking a different approach to my reaction. I’m convinced that, yes, sometimes wrestling with something that’s kicking your ass, in doses, can be good for you. Makes you tough. But, sometimes you just need to know when returns have diminished enough to warrant a pivot. That doesn’t mean give up.
Reposition yourself.
My go-to’s? Take a walk—a moment to meditate and allow everything related to the story that’s stumping you to fuck off for a little bit. My first step is to switch over to another ongoing project and try to stay productive, but sometimes writing is just out of the question. When the time permits, I might try to watch or read something new to get me excited and thinking about stories in a meaningful way. Sometimes I’ll just set myself on an unrelated task for an hour just to refresh my brain.
Regardless, what I’m getting at here is indulging in the fear of halted momentum and stewing in it is always going to compromise you. There’s a difference between a challenge and an uphill battle, and the more you put yourself behind the stick, the better you’ll differentiate the two. Good luck and keep writing.
THAT’S RIGHT! San Diego Comic Con is in the sights! Ryan and I will be back in our humble abode within the SMALL PRESS section of the show at table P-11. This year a handful of artists involved with my work will be attending SDCC, and they’ve even agreed to make appearances at the Pocket Watch Press table to do signings across the weekend!
Ryan Best - Artist of RISE & HEAVY
Fabi Marques - Colorist of RISE #1
Ryan Shunate - Cover (E) Artist of RISE
Juan Castro - Inker of HEAVY Cover (D)
On Tuesday, July 7th, we’re going live with the pre-order campaign for our signature series’ fifth issue with the latest chapter of RISE. Issue #5 brings Jon face to face with his mistakes in a confrontation that pits him against against himself and against nature. The strongest man on the planet has to reckon with the prison he's built for himself!
For those of you who are new here and need to be brought up to speed, RISE isn’t a story about saving the world. It’s about surviving the performance. It’s a superhero story told for a new generation that’s more anxious, self-aware, and justice-skeptical than ever. RISE sets out to confront one man’s relationship with his own masculinity, the burdens of guilt, questioning his responsibility to the world around him and the role that he plays within it.
Last week, we revealed Caanan White’s variant cover for RISE #5, and at present, we’re only 5 away from 150 project followers, which means 5 away from the reveal of Francesco Tomaselli’s cover!
My goal is to get over 200 pre-launch followers before we hit the ground running tomorrow, and if we do, I’ll show off this stunning new wraparound by our series artist. Here’s a tease:
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