Tag Archives: InDesign

Episode #30: What’s a Writer’s Internship? (with K.T. Bryski)

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Our intern from the Great White North, ForeWord-nominated author, Katie Bryski, has reached the end of her February internship. The mics are hot and we ask our intern the tough questions

00:00 — Introduction

  • Show #30 — we have been good this year with our regular posting, and Tee’s got some new drop-in’s!!!
  • This is the end of February, and Katie Bryski is hanging in there with her internship at Casa de Morris!
  •  Foreshadowing what’s coming up with this episode…
  • Pip channels her inner-Chole and goes into what she’s been working on…
    • Weather Child — the layout continues with the recent proof
    • Immortal Progeny — After checking with the Book of George (R.R. Martin), the novel is taking shape.
    • We’re looking overseas with our indie books and our agent of awesome.
  • What Katie has been up to since the last show…
    • Apply a few gold medals and Canuck gets cocky!
    • Notes are back from her Stonecoast Mentor.
    • “Research” for her day job…which means she’s drinking beer.
    • Apparently, when it comes to giving us a bit of feedback on how hard Tee & Pip work her, silence is golden.
  • What has Tee been up to?
    • Reworking Wolf in the Fold
    • The Billibub Kickstarter is starting to make some headway after one week. 31%. Not bad.
    • The blog machine rolls on with the Endless Possibilities Blog Tour and on TeeMorris.com!
    • Tee’s drinking beer with Katie. Good times!!!
    • And the job hunt rolls on, but Tee’s considering options…

10:15 — What’s a Writer’s Internship? 

  • How did this whole idea of Katie becoming our intern actually happen?
  • What does an intern for a writer do?
    • There’s a fine line between intern and stalker.
    • Pip takes a guess as to what you’re supposed to do during an internship?
  • What Katie wanted to learn right off the bat: Survival Techniques for Indie Authors
    • Working with Adobe Photoshop
      • It’s all about the image.
      • Mac Boy Vs. PC Girl
      • Getting our digital hands dirty with layers.
      • DepositPhoto.com — Pip’s new friend. And now, Katie’s
    • Working with InDesign
      • Katie LOVES this program…and templates are her friend!
      • There’s still some terms she needs to get familiar with.
      • Giving books personality with InDesign.
      • Pip and Katie share the story behind Weather Child and how Katie went on a journey with the podcast…and now she’s laying out the book in print.
    • K.T. Bryski, editor
      • Taking the red pen in hand.
      • It’s a big step in editing another person’s work, but Stonecoast’s lessons were applied.
  • Katie was learning stuff from how Pip and Tee were dealing with writers in everyday life. (Yikes!)
  • Pip has a pupil in her School of Love and & Despair.
  • But Mighty Mur comes to save the day! (Love ya, Mur!!!)
  • How our intern helped us out
    • Networking us with other podcasts and blogs like 3 Geeks in a Pod
    • Katie drops her contact info — contact (at) ministry of peculiar occurrences (dot) com
  • Katie wants to come back for eBook layout classes
    • A constantly changing technology
    • Barnes & Noble Nook #FAIL
  • Other stuff we did with Katie
  • Katie is leaving….but she’s not leaving.
  • What did the Intern teach the Mentors?
    • Katie is an impressive student, picking up new tools in audio and video.
    • We learned that our Intern is very possessive.
    • Writers don’t have set hours.
    • Just having assistance in setting up the calendar — awesome!
  • The Intern’s First Assignment when she gets home: The Most Canadian Steampunk EVAR!
  • Jack Mangan, the gauntlet has been thrown!

36:21 — Writers Off the Clock: Talking True Detective

  • #DropInFAIL with both of the girls talking over the bumper…
  • Setting the tone for this segment with “Far From Any Road” from The Handsome Family
  • THE. BEST. TELEVISION. SHOW. EVAR. True Detective, on HBO.
  • What is it about True Detective and the appeal of Southern Gothic to geeks?
  • Some critics thought the show was slow, but that’s because they were watching it on Thursday…
  • You have to pay attention with this show.
  • Matthew McConaughey is stepping up as an actor.
  • The characters of this show is like Louisiana — broken.
  • True Detective from a film buff’s perspective.
  • Katie’s perspective from a show “she would never watch.”
  • The gothic science fiction touches throughout True Detective
  • The good news for Katie: She found a source for the last two episodes!
  • Talking about the writing of Nic Pizzolatto, the Executive Producer, Writer, and Creator of True Detective
  • The relationship between Chole and Hart….played seamlessly by Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson
  • A comparison between True Detective and Homicide: Life on the Street

53:47 — The Wrap-Up

  • Pip Ballantine just ignores the music cue. Shocker that.
  • The rise of the anthology? Is it happening?
  • Katie learned stuff with us…but we still have stuff to be teaching her!
  • Pip and Tee turn to the Intern one last time for what’s coming up…
  • Where to contact everybody…
    • Podcasters, bloggers, and media folks, if you want to book Tee & Pip, send a line to contact (at) ministryofpeculiaroccurrences (dot) com
    • Drop Tee and Pip a voicemail at 703.791.1701, or drop us a comment here or in email.
    • SHOW #35 ANNOUNCED AS OUR NEXT VOICEMAIL SHOW!!!
  • How do you say goodbye? Giant freaking robots beating up monsters!
  • Drop-in by request…
  • …and Katie breaks out in to spontaneous song.
  • Tee stumbles though the Creative Commons tag on account of teh feelz.

1:01:07 — The Outtake

cover art by J.R. Blackwell 

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Find us on Twitter at either Tee’s or Pip’s account,
leave us a voicemail or question for the show at 703.791.1701,
or leave us a comment here at the blog.
Enjoy the ride
and we’ll catch you later.

 

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Episode #23: A Writer’s Kit and Giveaway Swag

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Newly acquired drop-in’s. A flashback to the days of The Survival Guide. A movie review, and Pip’s bunk moment with Idris Elba. Get ready for another episode of The Shared Desk where Tee and Pip go into convention and book signing preparation. What do you carry with you from appearance to appearance?

00:00 — Introduction

  • Holy Moses, two episodes in one month?!
  • Pip’s having a ‘Driis Moment….
  • Three weeks have gone by…
    • Katie and Heather have come and gone…
    • Pip’s on a blog tour…
    • Book release on book release from Fort Kickass!
    • Tee’s switching gears with Kindle Worlds and writing for Bloodshot.
    • Kickstarter anthology is now in layout phase…
    • …and we’d better get the look of the eBook right, otherwise we bring the wrath of Lou Anders!
  • Busy, busy three weeks!

8:20 — The Writer’s Kit and Freebies for Fans

  • Stepping back into the (too-loud) T.A.R.D.I.S. to journey back to the days of The Survival Guide to Writing Fantasy
  • How do we pack for a trip? (Following the advice of Chuck Wendig…)
  • A quick tangent for Johnny Depp and his focused crazy in Bat Country.
  • What are you keeping your kit in? Here’s ours…
    photo
  • What is in our Kit?
    • The Square (Oh how Tee loves the Square…)
    • Starting cash and change (roughly $30)
    • Pens, pens, and pens…and a Sharpie.
    • A stylus for the Square
    • Lucky Charms (not the cereal, but the mascots that travel with you…)
    • Lanyard 101
    • Hand sanitizer
    • Carmex. Best — lip balm — EVAR!
    • Wisps. Just in case you indulge in the garlic hummus in the Green Room right before your signing…
  • What’s your giveaway swag?
    • Your swag may vary, but put some thought into your giveaway items.
    • Book cover buttons
    • Bookmarks
    • Business cards, and making the most of the design
    • Post It notes
    • Postcards for friends of the Ministry
  • Where and when do you take your kit?
  • Prioritizing your freebies (with approval from the kitteh) — What do you get first, and how much do you invest?
  • Clever swag vs. bad swag vs. “You spent how much on that?!”

31:44 — Writers Off the Clock

  • Pip needs to remember what our bumpers sound like…
  • Here comes the spoilers and the geekgasm that is…
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  • Tee demanded giant robots kicking the crap out of robots, and del Toro delivers.
  • Kick back for some love from us for the ‘Dris.
  • Why IMAX 3-D really works for Pacific Rim
  • The plot summary…
  • PIP RAGE: Mako is a STRONG FEMALE CHARACTER…and enjoying a memory of ‘Dris.
  • Chuck Wendig’s review of Pacific Rim — a nice sum-up.
  • Comparing Armageddon and the redeux of Godzilla against Pacific Rim
  • Applying attention to the details
  • del Toro made this film a fun homage to Godzilla and anime.
  • Jack Mangan: Best Pacific Rim review EVAR!

46:22 — The Wrap-Up

RELATED LINKS
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Find us on Twitter at either Tee’s or Pip’s account,
leave us a voicemail or question for the show at 703.791.1701,
or leave us a comment here at the blog.
Enjoy the ride
and we’ll catch you later.

 

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