Hello and welcome, my name is Jonathan Hop. I run a blog about the Chinese game of Go, but I thought I would create a second blog where I could talk exclusively about writing. Since this blog is just now getting off the ground I'll take a moment to introduce myself and why it is I've chosen writing as a full time profession. I've always been a writer. It's a blessing and a curse in many ways. I used to write short stories when I was eight years old on my mother's word processor. I miss that thing. It had real soul. Old school word processors could function as typewriters, so as a kid I could enjoy the sound of the keys hitting the paper. I used to write one to two page short stories about a variety of things, and it usually impressed my teachers when I went in to school with a writing assignment double the length of the one they had assigned. I would always get inspired by a story I had just read and often tried to write books of my own. I actually accomplished a "Choose Your Own Adventure" tale once by writing in a journal my mother had bought me. I did it after the style of another CYOA book called "Lone Wolf." I had the entire series and hunted them down in any bookstore where they might be.
The reason I call this blog "World of Alterone" is because it's basically going to be the culmination of my many scraps of writing over the years. Alterone was a mythical city I invented in my head when I was 16 and working as a cashier at a grocery store. The job was okay, but I often found myself wandering away in my own head and created characters, plots, and worlds to pass the time. I was also an avid Dungeons and Dragons player, as group storytelling was also rewarding. College turned writing into a job though, as graduate students have to churn out page after page after page of research. I've written so much about the Meiji restoration, Modernism and Japan, and Feudal Japanese warlords that I sometimes felt I was turning into a Japanese person myself. Well, I've gotten away from that and have found my sea legs again and want to write for the joy of it.
I'm also a big Go player, which is why I wrote some books on Go. I wanted more people to play Go so that there could be more competition. It's a fun game and it never gets boring, I just think because of its complexity and because it takes awhile before you can really become good at it that people shy away from it. I have been pretty successful so far as I've found a good formula for teaching people Go so they feel like they're having fun and might, you know, play one of these days. They've sold pretty well, but I haven't done a whole lot to promote them outside of my blog. They were my first three books ever, and I had this glow that I'm sure every writer gets when they get their proof in the mail, unwrap the packaging, and lovingly thumb through the pages to see a part of their mind in the physical world. I love that exhilaration and that's why I want to really push to improve my craft.
My next project is a novelization of a Dungeons and Dragons campaign my friends and I played over the course of a year and a half in high school. We all lived far apart so we played online using mIRC. We'd actually play once a day during the summer for 3-5 hours a go, so we had a really long, thought out, exciting campaign, and I wanted to start from there for my first actual novel. Also it'd be great to talk about something other than Go :P So far I'm going at a good clip. I finished a book on my year as an ESL teacher in Korea. However, I find that writing is a highly emotional pursuit and I have to take great care to stay in an energetic mood to write for long periods of time. I even write in my head while walking to the grocery store, where I'll play out scenes or think of witty dialogue. It's really an engrossing, all day process.
So what can you expect to read from this blog? Well, I think writers should write, so I like to do quick writing exercises to test my ability to perform certain tasks, and will share them with you in hopes that they are useful to you if you are on the long journey of becoming a writer. I used to write a lot of fan fiction (yes I'm a guy), but not the kind where you pair two characters and put them on a date. I usually tried to either continue or rewrite stories. I'd keep characterization, mood, and style as best I could, but offered fresh ideas or plot re-sequencing for video games and anime I enjoyed. Each fan fic was like a writing exercise, in that there was always a challenge and therefore a way to make my writing better and to improve my style. I'll pose little writing challenges from time to time, just something to get your juices flowing and your mind whirring.
Aside from that, I'll also post some things to help writers, and share whatever knowledge I have on the craft with anyone willing to read. I have done a lot of freelance writing for non profits, for marketers, and just for fun, so hopefully I have some knowledge that will be of use to you. Also, if you're looking for a cover illustrator or a book editor that's within your budget, I know of several people who've done so much in helping me get my stuff off the ground, and I'm sure they'd be happy in making your dream come true.
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