A weekly status update from everyone’s favourite caffeinated weirdo.

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Welcome back to Whatcha Up To! Coffee here, and here’s to the end of another week.

OK, yes, it’s been a minute since the last update nearly four months ago. Long story short – busy season at work, suffered a third-life crisis around my birthday, got super depressed and unmotivated to write, got over myself and slogged through an epic critique, published a freakin’ story in a freakin’ book (!!!) and came out of all of that smelling like freshly ground coffee. For the most part.

I won’t bore you with specifics on what happened since mid-July. Instead, here’s what’s been going on this week.

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Whatcha Playin’, Coffee?

I’ve been playing a LOT of Pokémon games between this month and last. I only started picking up on Pokémon for two reasons: One, my son and daughter have started getting into the TV series and are obsessed with it (naturally). And two, I found that indulging in my nostalgia around Pokémon helped make September more bearable for me. I hate September for a lot of reasons, but Pokémon was a bright spot when it premiered on this month back in 1998. The series reminded me both of the unbridled optimism of the 90s and the friends we made around it.

I’ve bounced between Pokémon Yellow and Pokémon Crystal before settling on Pokémon Fire Red. All played on my Miyoo Mini + handheld emulator. Fire Red hits all of the right spots for me. It’s a remake of the original games using the modern mechanics of the 3rd Gen – arguably my favourite generation of the series. So far, I’ve nabbed 6 of the 8 badges with a team consisting of Charizard, Gyarados, Nidoking, Raichu, Marrowak (False Swipe FTW!) and Dragonair. I’m on my way to getting the 7th on Cinnabar Island.

Aside from Pokémon, I’ve also played an awesome old-school JRPG called 8-Bit Adventures 2, of which I wrote a review for on The Pixels. To keep it short, we need, need, need more RPGs with wholesome, character driven stories. This and CrossCode are two games I would happily return to at any given time. Likely, I’ll replay those once my backlog has been managed.

On the backlog front, I’ve spent the last couple of months trying out a bunch of games on my list. I gave each about a half-hour or an hour of my time before marking them as ongoing or retired. Suffice it to say, I’ve whittled down my list extensively. I realize that bullet hell shooters aren’t really my thing and most of the games I really do want to play are either RPGs, adventure games or platformers. I now have about 74 games on the go, including The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom and Final Fantasy VII Rebirth. I’m playing the former, but as for the latter…

Whatcha Writin’, Coffee?

I’m not playing Final Fantasy VII Rebirth because it will be my reward for finishing Book 2 of Mobius VII. Remember that story? Yep, I’m still going at it. The past few months gave me some time to go over the outline, review the timelines and refine a few aspects of the story. Overcoming the demons of your past is a big theme in Book 2. Several key characters will face said demons in various ways and I’ve spent the past few weeks, in fact, getting those details right. It may not matter to the tens of readers that will eventually get to the book (or read the first one for that matter), but it matters to me both as a novelist and someone who prioritizes leaving as little plot holes as possible. Status-wise, I’m still on Chapter 25, but I’m now making progress into things. The latter half of the story has finally taken shape and I’m happy to get back into it!

In other, more important and non-fanfiction related news, I HAVE A STORY PUBLISHED IN A PHYSICAL BOOK! WOOOOOO!

My story, The Fall of Vrandaska, is featured in The Major Arcana: a short-story anthology book edited by the wonderful Katherine Shaw. In it, a prince relies on the help of both his mind-altering Gift and his mysterious lover to reclaim the throne from his soon-to-be-coronated younger sister. It is, I think, an amazing story if I do say so myself. The book features other dark fantasy stories by writers many times more talented than I am, so if you do get this book, I encourage you to read the other entries. My personal favourites are The Runner by Amanda Shortman and The Rage of the Empress and The Devil and The Department Store, both by Craig Rathbone.

Finally, the Final Fantasy VII Remake critique is finished! I’m extremely proud of my deep dive into this highly-anticipated title. I mean, I haven’t shut up about it since I announced I was writing it all those months ago. Go check it out!

Whatcha Readin’, Coffee?

Aside from The Major Arcana, I did a re-read of The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett. Reading a physical hardcover copy of the book is way better than the digital. Always has, always will be. I also read through the Ocarina of Time manga by Akira Himekawa and Console Wars by Blake J. Harris. Both great books, by the way.

How’s Trainin’, Coffee?

I’ve been working out intermittently from the last entry. I do see and feel the results of my hard work – I’m more mobile and I feel way more stronger than I have in any other point in my life. I do need to work more on flexibility as my hamstrings seize up more often than not. I also have rehabilitation exercises to do as my Achilles tendonitis has flared up once more. Otherwise, the journey continues.

That’s it for what’s been happening recently. Anything new on your end? Let me know below. Otherwise, I’ll talk to you next week!

~Coffee

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