Summer of Yellowstone and late books

Hello everyone! A.L.Exley here, and I am finally back with a long awaited update. With this blog post is an accompanying video that I've been meaning to make for a long time, but (like everything else this summer) it kept getting procrastinated. I finally did it!

So first off, the most important bit of news: Runestone Guardians Book II is not yet out. It's release was planned for a couple days ago on August 1rst, but it's just not ready (as in, I haven't even made it to the second draft yet). I'm pretty bummed about it. When I first started the book after Book 1's release (Spring of 2020) I thought the pace was going well, but I didn't work on it as much as I thought I would have.

Sitting at your desk, at a computer all day (my college classes were all online) kind of sucked. It was hard to work. This past year, things had started off good. In the spring I was coming along at a steady pace. After classes ended, I thought a would right even more thanks to all my free-time - and at first I did - but suddenly, you blink and it's August and the book's not done. So, I'm bummed, I really want to finish this story and get it to you all. But, I also want to give you all a good product. I'm writing this, I'm editing, formatting, etc. And since I'm not an expert in self-publishing, it's not gonna be the best, but I'm still going to put in the effort to make it the best it can be.

Unfortunately I don't have an updated release date, because as of right now my schedule is too uncertain. I haven't been writing at all in the past months. I hope when I get back to school and my schedule becomes more structured, I'll get back into the habit of writing everyday, but I don't know how much time I'll be able to commit.

I think my problem was I committed a grave writing sin: waiting for inspiration. If you don't feel like writing everyday, and just wait for the days when you absolutely have to write something, you're not going to get a lot done. Inspiration can be especially hard to find under the stress of a pandemic and the laziness of never having to leave home or even get dressed. If all you rely on is inspiration to write - it can fail you. What you should do instead is make writing (and reading) a habit. Something you do every day, even if it's just a paragraph. Once you turn something into a habit, it's a lot harder to loose, because habits are hard to break once they become automatic.

I don't really have much of a routine these days. I wake up whenever, eat whenever, and only get dressed (in something besides my sweats) if I have to go somewhere. I think this is the thing a lot of people struggled with over the past year, especially students with online classes. As that one commercial said - a body in rest tends to stay in rest. If you get too use to resting everyday, it's going to make getting work done a whole lot harder.

Long story short: I don't have a planned release date for Book II, and I'm not sure when I will. When I do have a plan, I will post it on my website.

This summer was... interesting. I finished classes, applied to a bunch of different wildlife jobs, and didn't get any. I didn't even get any of the unpaid internships??? So, I had a lot of spare time on my hands, but, because my days didn't have a schedule, it was hard to get anything done. I planned to do more videos, about books reviews, movie reviews and reactions, and just talking about stuff, but man... making those videos is hard work!

I did get to do a couple of cool things: the Duluth trips, the birthday fishing trip up north, and of course, Yellowstone!

It was kind of a... disaster. Maybe I'm being overdramatic, but it definitely didn't turn out how we hoped. The weeks leading up to the trip, I was studying maps, planning all the routes and stops, crunching times and fees all to make sure our trip from Minnesota to Wyoming (about 20hrs) was gonna go as smoothly as possible and that we made all our reservations. I had everything perfectly planned out. I felt so prepared and confident. But, as I'm sure some of you know, with road trips, things happen, and if they are bad enough, they can throw everything off the rails. That is exactly what happened to us.

We left Minnesota and drove through Sioux Falls and then around Rapid City into Wyoming. After a day of driving, we stopped in Buffalo, a little town in Wyoming just east of Bighorn National Forest. We woke up on time, got packed up, checked out of the hotel, and then our car wouldn't start. I called my Triple A to come get us, but because we were in a small town in the middle of tourist season, all five of the town's auto repair shops were booked, and we had to get towed an hour back east to Gillett. Between Gillett and Buffalo, there is absolutely nothing besides some pretty scenery. The tow was a few hundred dollars which my insurance didn't cover (in Wyoming, 5 free miles does not get you far). The actual repair cost a few hundred dollars too. It was pretty straight forward, but the car wasn't ready until the next day. So, not only did we have to spend extra money on repairs and a hotel stay, we were a whole day behind my oh-so-carefully-planned-out schedule. But, we had already come so far, so we might as well finish the trip.

Outside of Bighorn National Park on our way to Yellowstone.

We should just at least drive through Yellowstone, and that was all we got to do. We got to Yellowstone just before dark, and didn't have time to stop anywhere besides stopping for gas. Still, we got to see some cool things. Even if all you can do is drive through Yellowstone, odds are you'll see neat things. It was disappointing that we didn't get to walk around anywhere, or see any of the cool sights we marked (the Lower Loop, Old Faithful), but we at least got to see some wildlife. We drove by a large heard of elk on the side of the road, we saw a bull bison, and a moose and some pronghorn. I even saw a ring-necked pheasant, which I didn't even know lived in that area.

Yellowstone Lake.

Just before dark we made it to our reserved cabin at Grand Teton climbers ranch, which is nestled right under the mountains.

But there was one more surprise waiting for us: none of the beds had mattresses on them! It was just the plywood frames. When the email said 'bring your own bedding', I thought they meant blankets and pillows, not the actual bed. None of us even had sleeping bags. So, we spent the night sleeping on tables.

It was a little nerve-racking also to sleep in a creaky cabin without a good lock on the door in the middle of bear territory. When we checked in, the office had gone over the rules of the cabin regarding bear safety - keep food in bear-safe containers and throw it away in a specific location. They also had bear-spray for rent! That was the point where I thought I sure hope we don't encounter a bear, because I am not prepared! But all was well, we were safe, and we didn't even end up seeing a bear the whole trip.

We tried to wait up early the next morning so we could do something, but we had to be back in Sioux Falls before dark, so we ended up not really stopping anywhere (not that we could stop - all the restaurants in the area were packed!)

I advise everyone wanted to go on a Yellowstone trip to plan as far ahead as possible, make your reservations a year in advanced if you can. If you're driving, bring a cooler with your own food, and read the campsite rules carefully. After all, it is Yellowstone - thousands of people visit every year. We were lucky with the times we drove - the late evening and early morning did not have a lot of traffic. I imagine the middle of the day is a bit busier, so leave some wiggle-room in your schedule. If you're driving through Wyoming, consider upgrading your Roadside Assistance to save money on an emergency tow, and have a few hundred dollars in emergency cash as well! Personally, the next time I go to Yellowstone, I'm either flying, or driving in a vehicle guaranteed not to break down (but of course, how possible is that?)

Besides from the trips, I also took up acting over the summer. It's something I've always wanted to do but never really got the chance until now. There were opportunities in high school school, but... you know how high school's can be. Mine wasn't too click-y, but still, it was always the same popular kids getting the roles in all the plays. In the world outside high school, the playing field is a bit more level, and I actually booked some of the parts I auditioned for. In a few weekends, I will be going down to Iowa for a paid independent film product, and I have an audition coming up for another independent product based off of Skyrim. It's pretty exciting! Acting is basically a way of telling a story, and I am a story-teller at heart. I have been ever since I was a little kid and acted out my favorite movies and books with my hundreds of stuffed animals and dolls. Painting, writing, designing, sketching, embroidery, acting, etc., are all just different mediums of art.

Speaking of art, I do have a few new projects I've been working on - and by working, I mean thinking about then and maybe putting down a few general ideas. One is a collaboration project for a Robinhood web comic. My friend loves the Robinhood stories, but they feel like it is never done right. Versions like the Prince of Thieves and the new own that came out a few years ago try to tell a single story, or explore the deeper side of the characters. But Robinhood is the perfect kind of content for a series of episodic stories with maybe a few overarching plot points. The characters themselves are all just simple tropes - which writers try to avoid, which maybe why no one has been brave enough to write it like this. I'm excited for it, but a little intimidated at the notion of creating a web comic. The first time I tried doing one turned out to be an exhausting disaster, but now that I have a plan of attack, and some help, I may be able to get this done. It's way too early for any more details, but I'll keep everyone posted!

That is all I have for this update. I'm sorry I don't have a lot of material for you all, but I promise I will update again as soon as I do! In the meantime, I want to take a moment to remind you all to give some appreciation to all the artists and creators out there who have worked through this pandemic. Everyone has been effected in some way. Some have benefited from working from home and getting lots of free time and flexible hours, and some (like me) have really struggled to get themselves to work on projects. But I know a lot of artists out there have managed to keep working and keep finishing projects. Some may make it look easy, but I guarantee it is hard work, and I think they all deserve a pat on the back. You don't have to buy products to show your support if you can't afford it, but maybe send them a message or a comment saying "Hey, I really love what you do! I can't wait to see what else you'll make!" A little message can go a long way. Also, remember to be respectful and don't steal or pirate work. Large corporations like Disney aren't affected too bad, but small-time creators who's livelihood depend on the money they make from their craft can really be hurt by people pirating and reposting their work. If your unsure, ask. And if a creator asked you to take something of theirs down, respect that.

My personal shoutout to all the creators and artists: hang in there! There's people out there who love your work and want to see more! But remember: you should be doing this for yourself, because it makes you happy. You're mental and physical health always comes first. If you do create something simply because it gives your joy, then no one can ever take that joy away. It belongs only to you!

That's all for today, folks. I'm not sure when the next update will be, but it'll be posted right here on my website.

Ha det bra!