Getting Invested

The Story Ark

Education • Books • Writing

Hey Y'all. This is a place for story lovers. Whether you create stories, or you just love to experience them, come join us as we write and talk about the tales which inspire us.

Interested? Want to learn more about the community?

Show me more content first

Sheldon@TaleTold

August 18, 2025

Getting Invested

How are the WIPs going?

I got some work done on my dragon hunters story this last week. It wasn't as much as I wanted, but it was better than the week before. I was hoping I would break 10,000 words, but that didn't happen; however, I'm only a few thousand away, so, God willing, I'll pass that first milestone soon.

I picked up The Scarlet Gospels by Clive Barker this last week. Made it a little more than half-way through. To be honest, it was getting close to a "Did not finish" for me. I love Barker's work. The Hellbound Heart was instrumental when I was getting through my depression, and I remember the Abarat books fondly. That being said, I found the Books of Blood maudlin nonsense with maybe one redeeming story within its pages and a whole lot of "ew."

There was a whole lot of "suck" at the beginning of The Scarlet Gospel, but yesterday, the book finally drew me in. I was talking with my mom, trying to figure out why I went from, "I can't care less about what's happening," to "I gotta know." Then, as I described the point where I started caring, I realized what the answer was, and so did my mom, who vocalized it before I could.

While trying not to give away any spoilers, The Scarlet Gospels became interesting at the point where the heroes sacrificed themselves for another. It still has all the problems of the earlier parts of the book, namely that the characters are passively thrown into situations they can't hope to survive only for some deus ex machina to pull the rug out from under the stakes at the last moment. Yet, once the heroes choose to face these horrors for the sake of someone they all love dearly (and Barker impresses the humanity of this fictional character on the reader) the rest of their passivity and the eye rolling series of Hail Marys that moves the plot forward cease to be a problem.

I also watched an old movie called The Stone Tape this last week. It was very good, and if you love crafting horror and sci-fi together, you'll probably love this Lovecraftian nightmare. However, I found myself losing my investment a bit when the monster came on screen. By the nature of the story, a lot of aspects of the imagined haunting had to be left unexplored as the characters were only looking for things they could exploit. This created a wonderful background tapestry of unanswered questions that anyone who wasn't such a bastard as Peter Brock would have been interested in. Yet, this vagueness handicapped the monster's reveal as I found myself more confused than afraid. Still, a wonderful story with a sort of vague ending that works, even though I'd personally like a few more answers. I'd also like to see Brock get hit a few more times.

Anyway, this last week was still more about recharging for me. I made myself focus more on taking in stories, either reading or watching, instead of making my own. Also, trying to make sure I actually sleep, which hasn't been easy.

Alright, there's my last week. Let me know what your thoughts are on audience investment. What have you been working on? Have you ever seen The Stone Tape? What are your thoughts on Clive Barker's work?

Interested? Want to learn more about the community?

Show me more content first

What else you may like…

Videos

Podcasts

Posts

Articles

Sheldon@TaleTold

June 17, 2024

Proof Copy of Post Mortem

A little, sneak-preview, if anyone's interested, in my novella. Still waiting for the cover as patiently as I can. (The artist isn't late or anything; I've been going crazy since I placed the order.)

Are you publishing/self-publishing anything?
Would you, maybe, want a copy of my story?
Would anybody want to read my story?

00:01:30

Sheldon@TaleTold

February 14, 2022

Welcome to The Story Ark community

00:03:42

Sheldon@TaleTold

October 28, 2022

The Right Hand of Doom by Robert E. Howard

A little something to enjoy before Halloween.

Sheldon@TaleTold

April 22, 2022

קהלת | Ecclesiastes 1:1-11

So, I tried my hand at writing my own translation of one of my favorite passages in the Bible.

1 The words of the Preacher, son of David, King in Jerusalem.
2 Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher. Vanity of vanities; the whole is vain.
3 What is left over for man in all his toil in which he toils under the sun?
4 A generation comes and a generation goes; but the earth remains forever.
5 And the sun rises, and the sun goes [down]; And to his place, there he strives to rise.
6 Going to the South, returning to the North—turning, turning, the wind goes; And over its turning, the wind returns.
7 All the rivers run into the sea, but the sea is not full.
[From] the place where the rivers run, there they return to run.
8 All these words are tiresome. Man cannot utter [it].
The eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled by hearing.
9 That which is is that which will be, and that which is done is that which will be done; and there is nothing wholly new under the sun.
10 Where is...

Sheldon@TaleTold

April 15, 2022

The Wind and the Trees

More Chesterton today. Another short one. Please enjoy.

Sheldon@TaleTold

September 30, 2025

Eclectic Updates | Poetry and the Divine

How are the WIPs going everyone?

I'm still working on my Dragon Hunters story. The chapter I'm on just keeps getting longer and longer. I'll probably divide it into two once I get to the end, but I'm just not sure yet where the best place for that division lies; it's hard to judge until I have the ending set.

I've also nearly memorized "The Raven" by Edgar Allen Poe. I say 'nearly' because, though I'm seemingly able to recite any one verse, trying to do the whole thing in one go is still a bit of a challenge, and the latter verses, which I haven't spent as much time on, are still a little rough. However, now I'm also working on memorizing "Ode on a Grecian Urn" by Keats.

I think more people should memorize poetry. It's like eating something. Once you get the words in your mind, they get digested and become a part of you more so than from reading it. It's also fun to recite poems, now and again, even if you're only doing it for yourself. The first poem I ever memorized was "Stopping ...

Sheldon@TaleTold

September 22, 2025

Shy of Perfection

How are the WIPs going?

I was hoping to break 20k last week in my Dragon Hunters Story. Got close, 19k rounding up. So, God willing, I'll pass that and more this week. It's a lot of fun writing this one. It's getting a bit longer than I expected it to get. I was thinking it would be divided into three sections each about 20k words long for a neat little package of about 60k. It's looking more like this first section might reach 30k. Oh well, if the book expands too much, I'll just divide it into a series of short novellas instead.

In other writing news, I'm slowly working through my draft for Eden's fourth part with a red pen in hand and a depressing playlist in ear. Make of that what you will. There are some really moving parts to The Crimes of Rick, but if I can't write part five, I don't think I'll publish this; I wouldn't want to leave the series on the same note as Mostly Harmless, the trilogy's fifth installment, left The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Let the reader understand....

Sheldon@TaleTold

September 15, 2025

Distractions?

How are the WIPs going?

I admit, I let the news about Charlie Kirk become a sort of time sink for me that ate into everything, including my writing time. I did write a little, but always incredibly distractedly. I couldn't think about anything else. So, I focused on revisions and polishing.

Strange thing is, I was never a Charlie Kirk fan. I'd heard of him, vaguely knew he was a conservative, and that was about it. Still, the death of this complete stranger has gripped me in a way I can't explain. I don't think I had ever watched a single video of him until now.

In less depressing news: I almost have the cover locked in on Storm of Monsters. Another proof should be arriving tomorrow, and I'm hoping I can give it the go ahead. Also, while skimming through a copy of While the Elephants Danced, I found more typos. How they keep appearing, I don't know. I have hired editors. I have read through these pages more times than I know. Still, I always miss something. It's very frustrating....

Sheldon@TaleTold

May 19, 2025

A Bit of My Writing Process

How I Outline

How are the WIPs going?

I have, over the past few weeks, been working on a pair of short stories I hope to submit to a horror podcast, The Other Stories. They want cosmic horror. On a day off, I wrote one in a single sitting, but felt there was another story there. When I saw that authors were allowed to contribute two stories per theme, I thought I would bide my time and see if I could write the other, more ethereal story that I sensed was there.

Now that I have written this second story, at least the better part of it—it wants a stronger ending—I feel there is still more to be written. A series of these short stories might make an interesting read, perhaps even amount to a novella. Who knows? However, now and again, as regards my posts here, I sometimes think it would be a good idea to share some of my own writing/outlining methods.

One of the things I do when I see a project developing like this is to ascertain what patterns are showing themselves. Very often, when I'm writing poetry, there is some line or couplet that appears to me, and the rest of the poem pours out of that initial inspiration. I study what I have been given and ask myself: What are the patterns inherent in this and where is it going?

So, if I were to do that with this pair of stories I find a few patterns/themes:

Horror stories revolving around one POV
Retrospective
Themes of Love + Death
Themes of Chesterton's God, the gods, the philosophers, and the demons
1. God: Padre C
  Believes in a purity of original uncreated/being
2. The gods: Giovanni
  Paradoxically believing in everything and nothing
3. The Philosophers: The Doctor
  Believes in Death
4. The Demons: Jasper
  Hail Satan
Nyarlathotep vs Hastur :: Satan vs Death
1. Order vs Chaos
  1. Nyarlathotep's schemes vs Hastur's madness
  2. Nyarlathotep's temple vs Hastur's decay
2. Weakened will (seduction) vs blackmail (threats)
3. Contract vs Betrayal
4. Human sacrifice vs suicide

Anyway, That's just a quick riff. I don't always write these things out; often, I just think them through. The next question would be where the meta story is going, that is, what is its endpoint/cathartic moment. Now, I have one hint as to the next step, to follow the doctor character, who seems somewhat suspicious, and also to fill in the Chesterton pattern. As such, two more stories appear, one following the doctor and one following Jasper.

So, that's just a little insight into how my thinking process works. I don't know if I'll pursue this possible story or not. Either way, let me know what you think, what you're working on, and what your writing process looks like.

Keep writing.

Read full Article

Sheldon@TaleTold

October 24, 2023

Writing Prompt: Lovecraft

After my disappointment with The Lovecraft Investigations, I thought it would be a good idea to write our own Lovecraft inspired work.

Read full Article

Sheldon@TaleTold

August 07, 2023

My (Insane?) Plans

I saw an interesting question posed on twitter: Would you write an entire book series and not publish a single book until it's all done? Now, that is precisely what I've been doing, or, perhaps I should say, what I've been planning. Right now, I've somewhat given up on traditional publishing, partially as it seems like traditional publishers want me to do the marketing as well as the writing, and partially because it seems like most forms I fill out ask me how well I've self-published my own work so far.

So, I started to consider whether to self-publish the book I have written, and it seemed to me that since I had already organized it into three major sections, each about the length of a short novel, it would make sense to self-publish it in those organic pieces. As my original outline extended beyond this book, I figured I ought to finish writing to the end of my outline. That should make a fourth part. Furthermore, when I finished that outline, I jotted down a few notes for a continuation of the story. I've been working on a new outline, off and on (mostly off), and hope to finish it and add it to this possible series, thereby reaching a total of either five or six parts.

Now, why do I want to chop up my story like this? For one, I think these breaks in the story make sense. Also, one piece of advice I've heard about self-publishing is to keep a steady flow of work coming out. So, before I self-publish, I want have a ready well of titles to publish at regular intervals. My overarching plan is to, over the next two to three years, get ten titles ready, half or so consisting of this series and the other half based on a few short outlines I've jotted down here and there throughout the years. Then, take the leap and self-publish.

Am I being stupid?
Would you try something like this?
Have you written any series?

Read full Article

Available on mobile and TV devices