Joshua P. Simon - The Accidental Author

Here’s what I’ve been up to as of late.

1. Trial and Glory: Book Three in the Blood and Tears Trilogy – Got this back from all of my beta-readers with very little comments. Everyone loved it. I made one more pass through the manuscript and then sent it off to my editor a few weeks early. Unfortunately, he’s had a few unforeseen shifts in his schedule and he may not be able to start work on it until around March 17th rather than March 6th as originally planned. If this happens, I probably won’t get it published until the end of April rather than early April as I originally hoped.

2. Book 1 of new series – I wrote and made a couple of passes over what I thought was going to be the first book in my new series. However, it is only 59K+, about 20K shorter than what I was going for. I was hoping to write shorter books with this series in order to release them faster but this is pretty short for a fantasy novel. Also, the ending is a little unique from what I’ve written before. So, I had my wife read the book. She liked it a lot, but agreed that the ending might either need to be reworked a bit or it might make more sense to combine the first and the second book into one. Unfortunately, this could mean a much longer first book than I wanted to write.

Anyway, I’ll know for sure what to do (including whether to rework the ending of Book 1) after writing what was originally proposed to be Book 2.

3. Book 2 of new series – In light of the above, I’m about 21K+ along in my first draft. Since it is still really rough and evolving as I write it, I can’t say much about it other than it’s moving forward. Since I’ll be juggling edits on Trial and Glory as well as a couple of writing projects, I might not be able to get this ready for Leah to read until May.

I guess we’ll see.

4. Sorta secret project – I hinted I had something going on I wasn’t quite ready to talk about a month and a half ago. I’m still not there yet. However, I will say that progress is moving along and I hope to announce it in more detail on my blog at some point in the next few weeks.

I’ve had a few hiccups as of late with work (taking on new responsibilities as well as someone under me leaving) and health (flare up with my Crohn’s) that have made writing more difficult. However, I don’t believe any of them will cause progress to halt completely on the above.

That’s it for now. If you’re a writer, hopefully your projects are moving along as well.

I’ve already done a post about good cover songs (something that doesn’t happen often). Below are examples of bad covers, in my opinion. What makes these more disappointing is that the four videos below are some of my favorite bands/artists. I’m sure I can think of a lot more than what I’ve listed, but this is a good place to start.

Judas Priest – Johnny B. Goode


Motorhead – Louie Louie


Megadeth – No More Mr. Nice Guy


Elvis Presley – Tutti Frutti


Any suggestions to add to the above?

After a long, tiring, stress-filled week, I need something to laugh at. So behold, The Swedish Chef!

My wife and I were watching these with our kids the other day, cracking up more than they were. Oddly enough, my 14 month old was more into the videos (giggling a good bit), than my 3 year old who mostly asked A LOT of questions. “What is he saying? “What is he doing?” “Why is he shaking that tree?”

Those with kids know what I’m talking about.





twh the

There are several gems on Judas Priest’s first album that many forget about. The title track is actually one of my 3 year old son’s favorite songs. (Woot!)

Rocka Rolla (title track)


…And my favorite on the album

Cheater (A song like this really makes wish Priest would make a bluesy/hard rock album.)

Since my wife and I both dislike Valentine’s Day, you won’t be reading some over the top mushy post today about our awesome marriage (which it is, BTW). No. Instead, I present to you a picture of a Shetland pony.



Why a Shetland pony? Because I have ADD and that is the first thing that popped into my head. Crazy how my mind works, huh?

Danzig is such a great band. Heavy, bluesy, and dark. What’s not to like about that? Though the first album is the most famous because the song Mother is on it, I think both Danzig II and III are stronger releases. Still, Danzig I was where it started. Below are my favorite tracks from the album.

Am I Demon


Twist of Cain


Soul of Fire


Mother (Live)

This past Saturday, Leah and I watched the documentary by Dave Grohl about the famous Sound City Studios, the unique mixing console at the studio, and the bands who used them both. Johnny Cash, Nirvana, Neil Young, Metallica, Tom Petty, Rage Against the Machine, and Rick Springfield are just a few of the many musicians who are featured in the movie.

The documentary really is a must watch for any music fan. Even if you aren’t a music a fan, it's well put together—filled with interesting facts and a bunch of fun moments. Some of my favorite parts involve the recording of the documentary’s soundtrack. Several big name artists all got together to write new music using Sound City's old equipment. Really awesome watching the creative process of these people. It also made me want to figure out a way to start playing my guitar again (sadly, I just don’t see that happening right now).

The documentary is also further proof of just how awesome Dave Grohl is. \m/

You can find details on where to see the movie or how to download it at http://buy.soundcitymovie.com/. It's also on Amazon (click here).

Or Tunes Tuesday...

I’ve mentioned previously that I like to listen to instrumental music on Pandora while writing as anything with lyrics becomes too distracting. Most of this music ends up being soundtracks or classical pieces. However, I’ve also grown to enjoy certain piano based songs. My favorite of these composers is Philip Wesley as it has a very dark undertone to the music. Below are my two favorite songs by him. Really beautiful stuff.

The Approaching Night


Dark Night of the Soul