Audiobook Update

"The Cormorant" by Abigail Hilton is the largest audio project I've ever taken on.  Unfortunately, I've fallen behind (I've pretty much been behind the whole month of March), and will probably only be halfway done by the first of April (the deadline was March 11th).

We all have tasks that become daunting and start to feel overwhelming.  We have to pace ourselves, and do what we can to avoid getting burned out.  Something that I've done recently is open a second audio project at the same time as "Cormorant" (such as an Outcast episode or one of my own stories) and alternate the work between them--a five minute segment from one, then a five minute segment from the other.  It's not a perfect system, but I'm able to sit for an hour or so without screaming, and that's something.

She has already started releasing the audiobook on her Patreon feed (you can check out the first chapter RIGHT HERE), so that gives me a second ticking clock, which I probably need, to be frank.

I want to write, I want to publish, and I want to start doing the "Delusions of Grandeur" podcast again, but man, I really only have time to record, and edit, and re-record, and look up pictures of the sister in the SHAZAM! movie.  So, I'm going to keep pressing on, and maybe, just maybe, one day I'll look up and there will be light up ahead.  I'll let you know.

I Speak With Abigail Hilton About "Arcove's Bright Side" (Spoiler Edition)

The third and final interview with Abbie Hilton went up on her Patreon, and she's made it available for anyone to hear.  It's basically an hour and a half of us talking about her book, my work on the audiobook, and areas that were difficult.  We do veer off into conversation about my "Lara and the Witch" series, which Abbie has always been the head cheerleader for.*

Anyway, she edited it, and doing that nice turn, I thought I'd mention it here.  Check out the interview AT THIS LINK.  And feel free to support her and her work--it actually does trickle down.

*She's cheer captain and I'm on the bleachers.

Rish Outcast 242: Abigail's Bright Side

In this episode, I sit down with Abigail Hilton to talk about the audiobook I recently narrated, "Arcove's Bright Side."  

Previously, I appeared on Abbie's podcast in the October 19th episode (LINK HERE), and when she is through posting the entire audiobook for her Patreon supporters, she will drop a third interview, with a lot more spoilers about the book's content.

To download the episode, just Right-Click HERE.

To become a much-appreciated Patreon supporter, click HERE.

Logo by Gino "Wellington's Bright Side" Moretto.

I Talk With Abbie Hilton About "Arcove's Bright Side"

Over on Abbie's Patreon, she's posted the first of two interviews with me about the production of her "Hunter's Unlucky" novel, "Arcove's Bright Side."  This first interview is pretty spoiler-free, and the secon one (which is coming next year) will talk about the plot and reveals and such.  Ms. Hilton and I tend to have interesting and fun talks when we record together, and best of all, I don't have to edit the ones over at her Patreon.

Check it out HERE!

Blog 8-5

8-5

I'm at the library now, not to write, but to burn copies of my uncle's funeral onto CDs.  Each one takes approximately six minutes to burn . . . so I might as well write something, no?

A super old guy just walked past with a book about Iwo Jima in his hands.  My first inclination was to tell him that I was there, and that I still remembered the moment the island came into vie--

No, wait, that was a movie.

It was my Uncle Len's birthday, and a bunch of people got together to remember him (apparently, he had expressed hope that he could have a big birthday get-together, complete with a Mariachi band, when he was hospitalized last year), and somebody paid a Mariachi band to play to our little group.  It was really strange, but hey, it was neat to get together with family members, especially those that drove all the way down from Las Vegas.

Sorry, this is another of those days where I simply don't want to be here.  I keep putting in CDs, getting an error (that they are damaged or unwriteable), then I take them out, put them back in, and they burn fine.  But it's a lengthy process of about six minutes each, once they start to burn.  It's not a big deal, but I sat here for an hour and a half, and wrote a couple hundred words (turned out it was 853), and I think that's what I'll stick with.  Maybe tonight I can record a chapter or two.

I was determined for "Arcove's Bright Side" to be my absolute best work, and for listeners to be positively orgasmic (figuratively or literally) over my performance.  Of course, that's setting myself up for disaster, but hey, you do you.

I actually did some serious recording on the book, but found that, unlike a professional audiobook narrator, who probably puts in six to ten hours in a day*, my voice was absolutely, completely, and totally shot halfway through the third chapter.  Despite having "rehearsed" the book so it could go faster, there was one character who I simply couldn't figure out how to voice, and decided to just mark his lines in yellow and go back to them once I remember the way I'd done it before (my notes were "has a Northern accent, from back of the throat," which SHOULD have been enough).  The character of Arcove has been fun and easy to voice in the past, but I found myself coughing after practically every one of his lines, which means I might have to redo those too.  And you think Abbie's a perfectionist . . .

Audiobook or Writing or Exercise: Audiobook & Writing

*Of course, I have no idea.  It may be far less than that, as we are dealing with human beings here.

I Perform "Lullaby" by Abigail Hilton

Recently, I got to narrate a novella from her "Hunters Unlucky" series, called "Lullaby."

Actually, "Lullaby" is the name of the collection she just put out, which includes the title story, as well as two shorter stories, "Awake" and "Water in the Desert," both narrated by the same guy.

Her work is very well-thought-out, clever, and multi-faceted, with a unique world her characters live in.  And I'd like to think the guy doing the voicework is pretty alright as well.

You can pick up the audiobook from Abbie's website AT THIS LINK.

Also, you can pick up all of her "Hunters Unlucky" items HERE.

Rish Outcast 163: Flawed Protagonists (Abigail Hilton Interview)

In this episode, I sit down with Abigail Hilton and talk about her writing, intending to talk about flawed protagonists, but barely getting around to it.

To download the episode, Right-Click HERE.

To support me on Patreon--wow, thanks!--Left-Click HERE.

To support Abbie, Left-Click HERE.

Logo by Gino "Flawless Victory" Moretto.

Rish Outcast 160: 12 Goals For 2020

So, it's a new year (according to some, a new decade), and I thought I'd make a list of five goals for 2020.  Then that list became ten.  And here is an episode where I talk about my even dozen goals for the year.

I'm putting them out here so people will hold me to them.  Perhaps there's entertainment value there too.



To download the episode, Right-Click HERE.

Logo by Gino "The 13th Goal" Moretto.

Again, I'd really appreciate it if you'd support me on Patreon (even for a dollar an episode).  They got a much longer version of the episode, with a short "Lara & the Witch" vignette at the end.

I Perform "Water in the Desert" by Abigail Hilton

Sometimes I feel like one of those actors who were blacklisted during the McCarthy era, once riding promising careers, now professionally untouchable.  But Abigail Hilton is like Kirk Douglas to my Dalton Trumbo., keeping food on my table till this administration gets replaced.  Hopefully, like Douglas, she also lives to be a hundred and two.

The most recently-published Hilton piece I have narrated is called "Water in the Desert."

Set in the same universe as "Hunters Unlucky," WIND takes place seven years later, with the characters of Sauny and Valla now grown and having an adventure on their own.  Because I had voiced those characters as children, I pretty much got to come up with new voices for everyone in this story, which is fun.

Hopefully, the story (and my reading) is fun too.

Check it out, if you're of a mind to.  Here's the link, over on Audible.

Rish Outcast 108: Around the Block A Time Or Two

Okay, I'm going to try to get these episodes published again on a semi-regular basis.  Starting now.

In this episode, I ride around on my bike again, and talk about my attitude at the time, my measure as a podcaster, and whether I should keep on keepin' on.

Also, Fake Ahnold tries to get Fake Sean to feel the beat (of the rhythm [of the night]).

Note: As of press time, "Water in the Desert" is currently only available for Abigail Hilton's Patreon supporters.  I'd procrastinated putting this show out there long enough, and need to get back on schedule, but I'll insert a link here when it's up for purchase.



If you're up for downloading this episode, please Right-Click HERE.

If you're up for supporting Rish's creative endeavors, check out his Patreon HERE.

If you want to support Abbie's Patreon instead (you monster), check it out HERE.

And thanks to Gino "The Winged Spider" Moretto for the Outcast logo.

Eve & Malachi Complete Series Available Over At Audible

Abigail Hilton, ever the workhorse, has finished her seven-volume "Eve & Malachi" children's book series.  Rish Outfield, ever the darkhorse, finished the narrations, and they're available on Audible, dieTunes, and wherever fine audio is sold.

Starting in "Feeding Malachi," these books are about the unlikely friendship of a rat and a boa constrictor, who have adventures and meet interesting new characters on their travels.  Abbie once told me that each book is actually about something, which boggles the mind of a fledgling author like myself.

But here's the rub: If you want to buy them separately . . . you have to wait until later for the individual releases (beyond Books 1 - 3), as she plans to release them along with the always-impressive art.

You can find it right here at this Audible link.

Once again, I don't get diddly if you buy this.  But Abbie does, and hey, somebody ought to reward her for her fine taste in narrators.