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AGoodReed

"I'm a human being, I exist!"
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Since I'm not that active here lately, here's where else I am online:


https://mewe.com/i/reedbenson1


https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/6194247-reed-benson


https://letterboxd.com/A_Good_Reed/


https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkhS6LK8HU-25plAkVlFFdg


And if Parler ever gets going again, I'll link you to there, too.

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The new story is called "Make Her Eyes Blue (First Draft)." I'm working on the second draft and will probably have it up as early as today. It depends on if I can get the climax revised during my daughter's afternoon nap or not.


The second draft is looking to change a lot of the dialogue during the climax. It also adds a bit more to the main characters' joint backstory and spreads the exposition out a bit. I hope everything flows better this time around.


The second draft will be the one I share with my friends at the Christian Geek Central forums in hopes that they will give me good feedback that will help me revise it even further to make it the best it can be. Ideally, I'd like to get it read on The Untold Podcast (which is on hiatus right now), or perhaps publish it somewhere outside of dA.


After I post the second draft, I'm going to also post a couple pictures of the main characters. Hope you like them.

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I am finally close to finishing my first short story since "Standoff." It features all-new characters. It's a werewolf story (as I hinted at in one of my Inktober 2020 pictures), but this werewolf has a new twist that I haven't explored before. I hope to write more with her after this. I also hope to write more from the "Standoff" universe, too. And someday, I'll get a new Carmen story.


But one thing at a time.

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I've not been posting much recently. One would think that, given the lockdown situation, I'd be home with nothing to do, so I'd be trying to draw or write more. If I were childless, maybe that's what would be happening. But then again, maybe I'd just be filling all the time I spend with my kid with video games and movies instead.


The thing is, I'm not swamped with work. I'm not juggling my daughter and my job. I've got plenty of time for both. I'm just not filling my down time with art. I get my computer in front of me and start to write, but then I get overly conscious about how what I'm writing is not good enough to sell, and it therefore must not be worth doing. I get a pencil and paper and draw a pair of eyes, surround them with a face and head, and then get discouraged by how boring it all is and how I just draw the same things over and over, rarely liking how they look (especially the wolves). So I give up and just fantasize about how I want my art to look.


My big realization through my constant stop-start writing process is that I like coming up with character ideas, but I don't do well with actually putting them in interesting stories. I really like Carmen, Chaz, Celeste, Ariadne, Dettrigan, and even Sasha, but I just can't fit them into narratives that I think people will actually enjoy. Maybe it's because I'm too afraid of changing them. I want them each to stay the way they are (except for maybe Sasha). Or maybe it's because I'm not good at conveying emotion and tension, and those are necessary for good stories.


I've been reading a lot of children's books recently, what with the toddler and all. I'm toying with the idea of writing Carmen's story in the style of a children's book. Then maybe I won't feel the pressure of not making it tense or evocative enough. And it won't take so much effort that I'll feel like I wasted time if it doesn't turn out well.


I might even be able to draw pictures to support the words.

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Speedslide, the fellow who made that lovely picture of Carmen's dual natures, is running a 25% off commission sale until November 15th, in case you're looking for someone to draw you something.



I might consider getting another one if my PayPal wasn't being so silly right now...

$6 Dual Headshot Ink Commission - Carmen
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Featured

A New Story on the Way! by AGoodReed, journal

Commissioned Carmen Headshots by AGoodReed, journal

Scrap Pile by AGoodReed, journal

New Short Story Coming Slowly by AGoodReed, journal

New Sketches by AGoodReed, journal