What I Learned From Dungeons and Dragons

In my high school days I used to play D&D (big surprise, huh). The best part of that game for me was creating your character.They had pre-formatted character sheets and you got to assign skill points to different things.  Basically you made up the history of your character.

When writing a story I find it very helpful to create a character sheet for the major characters.  It helps me get to know them better, what their strengths and weaknesses are, etc.  I even use an adapted format from my D&D days.

On an unrelated note, I put the finishing touches on my first picture book, The Sand Ogres of Stig, and I sent it to a carefully hand-picked agent today.  To celebrate I am including below the character sheet for its main character.  Please to enjoy the letters and numbers that are Saradig:

NAME:  Saradig	AGE:  6	CLASS:  Adventurer	RACE:  Ogre
HEIGHT:  3’6”	WEIGHT:  65lbs	GENDER:  Female	AFFILIATIONS:  The Sand Ogres of Stig
STR:  5	BACKGROUND:  Saradig is the twin of Aradig and the oldest of the sand ogres (she beat Aradig by five minutes).  She leads the sand ogres of Stig but sometimes she lets Aradig pretend to be in charge.  It was Saradig’s idea to form the sand ogres of Stig.
CON:  6
DEX:  6
INT:  8
WIS:  8
CHA:  7
APPEARANCE:  Saradig is short and squat with pig-like features and green tinted skin.  She has two tusks that jut up from her lower jaw and long floppy ears with pink bows tied to the end of each one.
MANNERISMS:  Saradig is smart and quick witted with a very competitive side.    She is slow to make decisions because she likes to analyze all her options and weigh the pros and cons of each.  She has an especially hard time when it comes to choosing which flavor of ice cream she wants.  That’s why the sand ogres always make sure they have a quart of neapolitan in the freezer just for her.

Welcome to my Lair

So after a short vacation I am back and ready to work.  And since I needed a reason to clean up my office a bit (God forbid I actually clean it for no reason at all) I decided to share my work space with you, the interwebs.  So here it is in all its glory:

That's right, two, count them... TWO monitors.  (cue evil genius laugh)

Although my name is not Simon, I like to do drawings.

So there you have it.  And if it doesn't look that clean to you, then remember, it is all relative.  You didn't see what it looked like before.  Nor can you see what it looks like in the corner where I shoved everything so I could pretend like I cleaned.  Oops, did I just type that down?  Disregard.

They See Me Rollin'... Critique'n

It begins.  I have a couple of stories written.  So far the wife and kids approve, but something tells me they might be a little bit biased.  So the search is on for a good critique group (or two).

I have found one site that is pretty helpful on this end, Scribophile.  It is a community of writers who critique each others work for "Karma" points.  Once enough points are acquired you can spend them to post one of your stories and have it critique by others (yes, this appeals to the gamer in me).  It is a great community, but the downside is because it is for all writers of every format and genre, there are only a handful of members who are specifically interested in writing and critiquing children's picture books.

Which leads me in search of a more targeted and tighter knit group.  I joined the Children's Book Insider, as they advertised online critique groups, however after many requests to be placed in a group, I was finally messaged that the groups were being reorganized and new members would not be placed until the end of August.  Also based on the forums there and such, the members don't seem to be particularly active.

So, I think for now I will have to work on putting together my own group.  I have one member so far and we have just begun trading stories.  I critique one of his, he critiques one of mine.  If anyone else is interested, please feel free to comment on this post and let me know.

Between this small group (can you call two people a group?) and the critiques I have received from Scribophile, I am getting my first book, The Many Transformations of Tiny Tina Taylor, prepared to shop around.  Wish me luck.

This is Only a Test

If this had been a real post, the title would have been followed by some bit of insightful information about my pursuit to become a children's book author.  It would be peppered with some witty commentary, maybe a concept sketch or two, and most definitely an anecdote so poignant and profound that you would want to share it with all of your friends.  Probably you would find it so intriguing you would have no choice but to follow the blog.

But fortunately for us all, this is only a test.