Just Bought A Book...Eve Nicholson's "The Tripartite Soul!"

We got the news a few months ago--our friend Eve Nicholson published her book, The Tripartite Soul. You can pick up your own copy: HERE. We bought it, or I should say, my wife bought it. And what I mean by that is, technically we bought it, but it ended up on my wife's Kindle.

I thought, "no big deal--I'll just read it when I get a chance...you know, like on Sundays when I have access to her Kindle."

The problem was, I never picked it up and began reading. So today I decided to buy my own copy and download it on my own device.

Eve has been best friends with my wife forever. And if they lived closer, I would like to think the Taylors and the Nicholsons would party more than the once-per-decade schedule we've been keeping. Maybe one day we'll rectify that issue, but as our kids grow and need some stability in their lives, living far apart will just have to do.

Personally, I'm very excited to start reading this book. I've got a crazy week coming up, but I'm hoping life calms down in September (I really hate typing this because of the "jinx factor" that's naturally built in when one says such things...). Oh well--I'll risk it.

Completing a novel is tough. I've been trying to crank out a presentable one for many years. It is no small task. I mean, the hours just getting the words down is tough, not to mention the bouts of soul-crushing doubt and feelings of inadequacy. I don't know an author who hasn't at one time or another, believes he or she is a complete fraud.

But I digress. Congratulations Eve on your amazing accomplishment! I look forward to getting lost in your words.

Salt Lake Comic Con 2016...Stephen King's "On Writing" Panel

On Friday, September 2, 2016 at 8pm, guests and panelists will gather in Room 253A of the Salt Palace Convention Center to discuss a little book written by Stephen King. 

It's called, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft.

Here are the panelists scheduled to attend: 

Richard Paul Evans

Cindy Grigg

JP Roth

Jonathan Ryan

J. Scott Savage

Callie Stoker

And me, Scott Taylor

As you can see, there's a lot of knowledge and experience in this group. I finished King's book the first time a few months ago. I was so impressed with it, I suggested this panel, and the Salt Lake Comic Con scheduling gurus blessed me with a killer line-up. I know several of the authors personally, others I'm excited to meet. If you Google any of these people, you'll be blown away by their accomplishments. I feel both honored and humbled to be a part of this team.

My goal was to gather authors who both write full-time and those (like me...) who do what we can while working another job. I believe we'll have that. If you're attending this year's Salt Lake Comic Con, check us out. You'll not only receive great writing counsel from one of the most successful writers of our time, but hear from others who love the art of writing.

Remember, Friday, September 2, at 8pm in Room 253A. We'd love to see you there!

The House On The Hill...Is Again For Sale

There's a house on the hill, just up from ours. In 2003 the first owners moved in. Since then the building's sheltered three families, and soon, it'll shelter a fourth.

Before the land was prepared and a street put in, an orchard of fruit trees stood where the house is now. The trees were planted back in the early 1970s and they remained until the early twenty-first century. We used to pick the fruit, can it, and put it away in my mom's basement. I think a lot of the fruit we harvested decades earlier was thrown out when we sold my mother's house and the new owners moved in.

The house on the hill is a great house--a unique one to be sure. The entire upper floor is the master suite. And from the master bedroom you can look through that incredible wall of windows and see the valley below, Antelope Island, and what's left of the Great Salt Lake east of Antelope Island. The views are spectacular.

And now, another individual or family will call it home. They'll say to themselves as they approach, "Boy--that's a long driveway!" And it is. They'll wonder just how big a job it will be to shovel snow in the winter, and if they don't have a 4x4 vehicle, they'll consider getting one if they end up buying the home.

But any worries of the long driveway will disappear once they step inside. That is, of course, if this is the house for them. They'll learn that the lot is 1 1/4 acre big, and that because the land above their lot is National Forest land, no one will ever build above them. They'll be told that they have a private trail that allows them access to the rest of the mountain.

And they'll consider what life will be like living there, where they'll put their furniture, or will they buy all new stuff. If they have kids, they'll imagine them playing on the hill, or in the basement theater room . They may even envision having a twenty foot Christmas tree (if they observe the holiday...) rising skyward in the home's main room.

They'll see all these things.

And they'll buy it.

And we'll be neighbors.

And another chapter in the building's history will begin.

Public Displays Of...Art

Several years ago came the announcement that light rail train service would soon criss-cross the Salt Lake Valley. I don't know who ultimately gave the "thumbs up" on the decision, but approved and built it was.

And at each light rail stop someone (most likely the same people responsible for giving the project the green light, but maybe not...) said, or thought: There should be art at each stop and we should make that art different, as each stop is different.

And it became so.

The other day I took the Green light rail line so I could catch another train home. And as I had time to kill, I looked around a bit. And behold--there was art right in front of me, art I had not mostly likely seen, but did not ever before acknowledge.

The art at the 1900 West North Temple stop is called Spacial Perception, an example of Shawn O. Porter's artwork. Hopefully, you can read the write up that sits on a plaque adjacent to the artwork on the platform. 

Many people ride the train. I take public transportation almost everyday to and from work. Yet, last week I noticed this commissioned piece of art. I wonder how many people have noticed what Mr. Porter produced. I hope it's more than me.

Salt Lake Comic Con 2016...Navigating Critique Groups: Getting the Most out of Your Writing Panel

I received word that I will be part of another panel at this year's Salt Lake Comic Con. It's a great panel, especially if you're a writer! 

It's a panel on writing groups.

How cool is that?

The answer--pretty cool!

Here's who else was invited to be on the panel:

M. Todd Gallowglas

LJ Hachmeister

Lehua Parker

Aaron Michael Ritchey

E.B. Wheeler

I know Todd, Lahua, and Aaron. The others I'm excited to meet and discuss the topic.

Being part of a good writing group is like having a set of excellent knives if you're a chef. You can get by with substandard knives, but the right equipment helps so much. Being a part of a successful and effective writing group is invaluable to your writing success, at least, that's how I look at it.

This week alone I went to one writing group last night and another tonight. In the next week I'll try and get a hold of these authors and collaborate a little so that the experience will be the best possible for the guests.

So if you're going to this year's SLCC, after the Mark Hamill panel, head on back to the Salt Palace and find us in Room 150G from 1pm to 2pm on Thursday, September 1. We'd love to see you there!

Right Place...Right Time

Yesterday I had a fifteen minute wait for the train to take me out of the city.

So, what did I do?

I took out my camera and snapped a video.

I saw the northbound train pull in and I've really enjoyed utilizing my iPhone's camera features. One I especially like is the one I used yesterday--the Time Lapse feature. I positioned myself against the wall of a shelter on the platform and began filming as the train pulled up.

I expected to get people scurrying about on their way to work or pleasure, their actions sped up to give the illusion of chaos. What I didn't expect to happen is to film about twenty LDS missionaries step off the train and form an assemblage of people and luggage.

As I filmed, I watched the mostly teenagers get organized, make sure everyone was accounted for, then haul all the earthly belongings they'll have for the next eighteen to twenty-four months and make their way to the Green Line. Soon they'd be waiting in more lines and finally sitting in a big plane to transport them to all places north, south, east, and west.

I was excited to see the result and I was happy with how it turned out. So much so, I had to send it out on various social media sites. Of course, had I a tripod to stabilize the shot, it would be cleaner, especially when that guy walked within inches of my phone. But that's a small thing. I captured life--though sped up--as it existed on a train platform on an August morning in Salt Lake City. As it turned out, I was in the right place, at the right time.

My Trip To Provo...With Yodeling

About twice a year the team I'm on at work meets with another team to discuss work, places to improve, and other work-related stuff. Today we held that meeting and we traveled to Provo, Utah to do it.

For those of you unfamiliar with Provo, it's on the southern end of a one-hundred or so mile area that constitutes the most populated area in the state. It's famous for many things--the most Republican county in the nation, and it's home of Brigham Young University. Perhaps you've heard of it.

Provo gets a bad wrap, especially from certain people living north, south, east, and west of the city. It's an easy target, actually--because it is a different place to live. It's got some of the most spectacular scenery in the nation and some of the nicest people you will ever meet live within its city limits.

At work we had the first half of our meeting then broke for lunch. I called a friend, Dave, and we went for Indian food. We talked shop (writing and publishing) and it was great just hanging out with him.

In the second half of our meeting I learned that it was my previous boss's birthday (happy 51, Darren!) and that my current boss can yodel. That's right--yodel! In fact, he's very good. He says he doesn't do social media so I'm hoping he doesn't find out I'm adding this. But I want to because I think it's excellent.

After the meeting we boarded our train. It brought us from Central Utah County to home. Yes, I spent the day in Provo. And even though I'm one of the ones who knock it from time to time, it's really a beautiful place.