An update

Greetings fellow readers! I bet you forgot you were still on this subscription list.

Well, I have an update for you. As someone who is always looking for a reason to hit Unsubscribe, I hope I will give you a good reason to stay or cut this particular one out. First, let me reiterate what this subscription was even about.

*Cue the magical wand wave of a flashback*

I see myself as a writer, first and foremost. And I have learned that if one is going to get published, agents and publishers look at email lists. The people who are your audience. I have spoken to enough of you that you showed interest. And for that I am forever grateful. However!

I quickly got the idea of starting a newsletter that would be a monthly update. This is a tall order for someone who is: looking for a job (the market stinks to keep it kid-friendly), learning how to make video games (oh yeah! I’m a game dev now, can you believe that?!), and dealing with burnout.

Too many plates were spinning, and I was in burnout last year. This took a while to admit to myself, and to admit I needed to cut a few things out. Plus, constantly designing a newsletter just isn’t my thing. Maybe if it was every once in a while…

All that to say: I will no longer be providing the newsletter. I need to put less pressure on myself, not more. So what does that mean?

Well, I have something else planned in the works. And I am not jumping into this idea without giving it some serious thought. On top of that, I am not going to be in a void trying to create something “perfect” a week before my own deadline. Other people will be involved.

So wha't’s this next idea going to be about?

I’m currently writing on Substack (for free mind you) about influences for my different stories. There won’t be any attempt at migrating you over to there unless you REALLY want to, because again: I don’t believe in an abundance of email subscriptions. Some of that will eventually make it's way onto the Sweeney Lens site, but until then, we are not rushing anything.

There is a plan to make some videos that cover the book influences, too. And I am speaking to several people about that. Time will tell. But the book still needs attention in the meantime.

This is already long enough, and I hope I have answered any questions about my digital absence. Burnout is a lot to work through. C’est la vie!

Where can you find me, if not here?

I cannot emphasize this enough, if this subscription isn’t doing anything for you, please unsubscribe. Nothing personally will be taken.

If you are interested in following my reading journey in Substack, please feel free to copy this into the search bar: aroacewriter. I talk about themes there.

I will pick up the email chain another time. I want to earn your attention. But until then: I hope you are doing well.

Shenaneries | November 2024

Here is Issue #6!

Entertainment I’m consuming lately:

Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer

The Art of Game Design 3rd edition, by Jesse Schell

Ultimate Spider-Man (2024) by writer Jonathan Hickman and artist Marco Checchetto

Caper in the Castro (video game from 1989)

Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott

Greetings writers and readers!

There’s so much going on lately, and I think it’s affecting how I write. I mean this in both positive and negative ways. Listening to more music, figuring out the themes of my book, reading other books to study for my own – all positive things.

Then there’s the negative (don’t worry, I promise I’m not info dumping here): lots of external news going on, a job search that’s lasted forever, surviving the SF Bay Area monsoon season. And you have your own stuff going on!

I’ve spoken with everyone here behind the scenes of this newsletter (Me, my Self, AND I) and we came to the consensus that some of the past issues could have had more focus. A tough ask considering how bad the ADHD is at HQ! But we want to share stories and focus on writing tools for your own toolkit. Whether you are writing fiction or a technical manual, there is always something we can learn to help improve ourselves.

We want to encourage you to try things that will work for you through trial and error, like I have been.

The following pages contain Flash Fiction you can read during this holiday season. There will not be an issue for December so you can focus on your own community and family

Happy Holidays!

Shenaneries | October 2024

October is here! And so is an actual issue of my newsletter, Shenaneries.

Newsletter Issue 5

Last month I had to take a break from practically everything. And boy-howdy was that needed. This month, however, I’m back.

The biggest thing is a story that happened to me in October 14th. That was only a couple of weeks ago. And I’m trying out both the written word and video. And sure, you could read it HERE. Or you could read it on my Tumblr page. Or watch me read it out loud in nature (below).

I also wanted to make a video about my burnout, which you can optionally check out below.

Thank you once again for being patient with me and my burnout. I am getting back to writing and hope to create some content just for you (dear reader) whenever this comes out. And I hope to experiment more with this digital platform and what a zine can do as far as entertainment and relaying information to an audience.

Please be safe today! For next month, please join me in national novel writing month*. I’ve created a new outline (said every writer ever) and will be playing catchup on my goal of 90K words.

* This is not going to be abbreviated to NaNoWriMo except for here, and for this explanation. The company that began the novel writing month competition has been a dumpster fire since last year and I don’t want to create any sort of relation to them.

In-N-Out 2024 Experience

The In-N-Out in Alameda, CA is like no other restaurant I have ever been to. Tonight (October 14, 2024) has me wondering what I saw.

I live with a coop and had just cleaned up a community event called Queer Bedtime Stories. It was nice and quiet and had me hungry after the fact. So I did what any neurodivergent going through burnout would do: go to a fast food restaurant. Even if it took the same amount of minutes to drive and order than to actually cook something. Fast food restaurants have something going for it that at-home meals don't: driving. You can drive and put some distance between you and the day you just had.

The parking lot was pretty quiet once I arrived. There was a group of people outside. Not a crazy thing to see on a Thursday, but still noticeable.

I walked into the building and then the Noise happened. There was a group of high schoolers in front of me wearing cheap suits. One of them had a green hat that said "Cena approved."

They take a while to order. This gives me time to look around and see that the entire place is filled with high schoolers. I could count the number of people over 20 on my hand. And most of them were working behind the counter.

The girl behind the counter has this thousand yard stare that fast food cashiers learn early on. I was once among those ranks, and can spot that look a mile away. Or is it a thousand. I'm too tired to make puns.

She starts the casual "Hey how're you" business, to which I respond. I'm careful with it because I once came in and said something stupid like "You look as tired as I feel." I don't know where that came from and I feel bad every time I see this lady so I try never to hold an actual conversation with her. My predictable burger orders are the safe confines of my guilt and I dare not stray.

I give my order: A number two. No onions. For here, yes. I confirm my order and thank her and leave for the drink machine.

There is no order here. There is only chaos with body oder. There is... some kid in a cheesy Daphne costume with a neon green tie (she doesn't wear one... why?) is hanging out with at least a dozen other people taking over the booths in the center of the restaurant like a bunch of "cool kids."

Next in the line from hell I see several people with I can only describe (and rather poorly) are bald caps. One of them has hand-drawn a blue arrow on the top of it and her arms.

"Oh no," I exclaim. "They're the Avatar..."

I've sat down. The only seat available to me is next to the drink machine. It had someone in a red skirt and black top sitting there, but she disappeared like a ghost.

Maybe the realm between the living and the dead have already thinned. After all, there's a super moon out tonight. I think it's called the Hunter Moon...

The people in bald caps slap each other one by one like it's a form of greeting. They continue to do this as they wait in line. The girl who took my order now has a two thousand yard stare. An impressive feat, truly.

My order is finally called out, alongside five other dine-in and to-go orders. We almost can't see the difference. It's a sea of fries in all the chaos.

As I bite into my burger I decide to put in my noise cancelling headphones and listen to a podcast. But that thought is stopped when the cool kids start clapping and applauding. Several phones are out. Daphne with a tie has a shit eating grin as a friend proclaims, "He's coming out! He's coming out! Everybody!"

I stare in horror and second-hand embarrassment as my stomach growls at me to keep eating.

The discount Avatar group has sat down behind me and decides now is the time to wish someone happy birthday. It is midnight, after all. Gotta get in the well-wishes early I suppose. After that, they keep themselves busy by shouting out the four elements and reminding themselves that they're all the Avatar.

I look over at the line. It's finally dying down. I see more suits. These look like there was a little more money put into them. I see pin stripe. I decide to leave when I see a young lady with voluminous frizzy black hair, a smiling round face sitting on top of a white shirt and blazer that looks pretty good with her pin stripe pants. It just feels like a full circle moment for some reason.

My burger was fine but the fries left a lot to be desired. That's fine, I just need to leave because the stomach is no longer yelling at me. The screaming, hooping, and hollering has yet to stop, though.

I look up at the counter one last time and see that the lady who took my order is no longer there.

It's 12:15am. I get up.

Someone in a dog costume walks past me. I get a refill next ot the hand-drawn Avatar lady. And I step through the double door of the Alameda In-N-Out.

And the noise is contained. It does not escape. I am alone, starting to get cold, looking up at the Hunters Moon. It's a little bit closer to Halloween, but the costumes and shenanigans are already here.

I just survived a fast food restaurant in the middle of the night during the full moon of October.

Shenaneries | September 2024

Letter from the (burned out) editor

Greetings!

I want to open this by thanking you for your continued interest in this weird little zine-like experiment. The act of creation is a beautifully chaotic thing that comes in many different platforms. And I set out to write about and better understand this process, at least for myself.

That being said, this month I have been dealing with burnout. As a result, all of the plans I had queued up simply have not gotten done. Writing my book, any film projects, and even this newsletter. It’s all paused until I can work through the Burnout of 2024™️.

As a writer, this is a bummer. This lack of ability to write and draw and tell stories isn’t a great feeling. But the last thing I want to do is give up on this. I’m generally an optimistic person.

So I’ve made the decision to continue my self care and continue this newsletter and writing in due time. I’ve put down the Emotional Armor™️ and will go into Burnout Recovery Mode (that one doesn’t get a ™️ because I want a better title).

So while I’m working on my Self Care, let me encourage you to do something creative in your own life. Whether it’s coding something cool, photographing a sunset, or reading a cozy mystery novel, it’s something that enriches your brain and keeps you thinking.

See you next month!

Stuff I’m enjoying

To end this on a positive note, let’s list off a few things that are bringing me joy. I hope you can vibe with anything from this list.

It’s Fall y’all! Check out this playlist for the autumn vibes: Witchy Fall Vibes.

I’be been reading A Theory of Fun. Both because I’m getting into coding, but also… it’s just fun!

One of my best friends and certified Writing Buddy™️ has gotten me to play Pokemon Mystery Dungeon Rescue Team. There’s an emulator on the Switch that has Red version. And I absolutely love this game! I’m about to finish this one and want to get the DX version next.

Shenaneries | August 2024

Newsletter

Letter from the editor

Things don’t always go as planned. And that’s exactly what happened this month toward the end.

I had all kinds of things to talk about, but that all came to a crashing halt when I tried a new piece of software. Looking back it all seems to good to be true. Affinity Publisher and the two other pieces of software they have are on a 6 month trial basis. Which sounds great except for a bug.

This bug won’t allow me to save my file. And if I try to Save As, regardless of folder location, nothing happens. So Affinity Publisher is useless to me.

I was two days into creating the third issue of my newsletter when all of this occurred. So only a couple of things were really written down.

This issue is a testament to how frustrating life gets sometimes, and how we persevere and move on. There’s a couple of things in this issue, one of which is a short non-fiction story recounting a film gig that took up three weekends of my life.

The act of creation is sometimes fickle. Other times it’s generous as hell. I’ll have another issue next month, with some writing advice and other things carried over. Until then, please enjoy a thin version of this one.

Shenaneries | July 2024

Welcome to Issue 2 of Shenaneries!

I have more this month to offer. But if all you want is to read and see what else I’ve cobbled together, the newsletter is below. Otherwise, see what else I have below.

In the rest of the blog post I have: a copy of my newsletter, a first draft (be warned) of a short film screenplay, a couple of experimental videos, and credits.

The Newsletter!

I’ve been working on this script for a little while now. It’s something I developed earlier this year. I should really start talking about it in a future issue, but right now the big idea is that it focuses on grief. First drafts have always been a source of anxiety for me for many reasons. But I’m putting my work out there day one now. There’s no better way to become a better writer than to ask for feedback – though as you know from the newsletter, I’m trying to be more specific now.

Grief, a short film | version 1.0

One of two videos in this little experiment. Nothing too exciting this time around. But maybe next time...

credits

In the newsletter I mention several people. But I cannot provide links within the PDF (not yet, anyway). So below is the list of people who provided ideas or photos.

Maggie Stiefvater, writer | website

Vanessa Parham | Instagram

Percival Kish, writer | coined the term Character Blender

Shenaneries | June 2024

Shenaneries Issue 1!

Greetings!

Thank you for taking a chance with this new idea of mine.

I am an aspiring writer who is trying to get their name and work out into the world. I have seen many newsletters, and personally stick with the ones that have variety. That's what this one intends to do.

Here are the expectations I hope to set:

* The first issue gives an introduction to the world that most of my stories will inhabit. Updates will follow each subsequent issue.

* My updates will be surrounded by other personal works; poetry, short stories, comics, doodles, photography. We're going for zine vibes.

* Dissections of books and other forms of entertainment. If I'm going to become a better writer, I need to know how other writers and influences do their craft well.

In this overly minimalistic world, we ought to celebrate the works-in-progress, the corrections, and the down right silly stuff we come up with while creating works of art.

Thanks for taking the time to read this and the newsletter itself. You are the start of an amazing community of readers and thinkers. Now go and enjoy the craziness!

--Josie Sweeney