Archive for August, 2013

The Quiet Game: My First Amazon Review

Posted: August 11, 2013 in Review, short story, Writing
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It finally happened, ladies and gentlebloggers! The Quiet Game: Five Tales To Chill Your Bones finally got a review on Amazon. As most authors know, especially self-published authors, reviews are a major component, along with word-of-mouth, for getting your book out there and getting people to buy or download copies of your book. So now that I finally have a review on Amazon, I’m very happy!

And guess who gave the review? My dear mother, Rabbi Wendy Ungar. Now wait, before you judge and say something like, “She probably gave a positive review because it’s her son”, let me remind you that this is my mother we’re talking about. She introduced me to most of my influences, she’s honest when it comes to a book she’s recently read and she voices her opinion on it, and she knows I like it when she gives me a sincere opinion.

So what review did she give me? A 4-star review, with these notes to go with:

“I thought these stories would be scarier than they were, but it was a great read and a good effort from the first time author. These stories were more in the genre of creepy rather than scary, but what I really liked was that it made you think of them long after the book ended. The themes of addiction, of sweet innocence gone bad, and of the sins of the fathers being visited on their descendants were very well dealt with, and caused the reader to think of them even after finishing the book. I’m looking forward to more from this new author!”
If you didn’t know we were related, you’d think she was talking about someone she didn’t know. But still, coming from my mother this means a lot to me. My mother is one of my biggest fans and I’m always happy when she gives me her thoughts on the book. So thanks Ima. I always appreciate it when you tell me your thoughts on something I’ve written.
If you haven’t read The Quiet Game yet but you’re interested in checking it out, you can check out the Short Story Collections page, or you can check it out on Amazon and Smashwords.
Also, expect another post on The Quiet Game soon. I got interviewed not too long ago, and the interviewers finally sent me the transcripts for my blog. Check it out when it comes out.

An Open Letter to Stephen Moffat

Posted: August 9, 2013 in ideas, Living and Life, Writing
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(For all you non-nerds out there, Stephen Moffat is a writer and current show-runner for my latest obsession, Doctor Who. You may skip this entire post if you would like. I understand that not everyone is a fan of the show. Though if you are interested in checking out the show and want to know what the heck I’m talking about, please check out the show. It is mind-blowing.)

Stephen Moffat, current showrunner of Doctor Who.

Dear Mr. Moffat,

First off, congratulations on the selection of a new Doctor. Peter Capaldi, although not the actor I thought would play the Doctor, seems like a good choice and will do well with the part as long as he doesn’t wear the Master’s beard in the role.

Second, I’d like to suggest some ideas for future stories or story arcs for the upcoming series of Doctor Who. Now I know you are a busy man, and that you have enough on your plate and enough talented writers with much more experience than I do when it comes to Doctor Who. But I have plenty of ideas that I can’t just keep stuck in my head, so I thought I’d share them on my blog. If ever this letter goes viral and you stumble upon it, I hope you at the very least take a look at them, just to see what you think of them.

Okay, here’s some stuff I think could be interesting to use in Series 8 and 9:

A new villain. Yes, I know every story in DW has a villain of some sort, whether it be Vespiform, Sontaran, or Martian water virus. But I’m thinking more about an iconic villain, something on par with the Daleks or the Cybermen. With the Master dead and the Daleks and Cybermen being the most used (and therefore most easily defeated) villains, I’m thinking a new villain that will challenge the Doctor and come back several times to haunt him. Some suggestions include:

Imagine Peter Capaldi against this femme fatale.

—The Rani: A Time Lady full of evil and a love of freaky experiments, it would be a great throwback to the classic series if the Rani returned to menace the Doctor and Earth. And I know that all the Time Lords are supposed to be dead, but if the Master could survive the Time War, why can’t the Rani?
—An anti-UNIT organization: UNIT protects the world from alien invasions and works for the good of humanity. But what if there were people who collected alien technology and monitored their movements just to take over the world? It’d be Torchwood meets the Master, in a sense, with a bit of James Bond SPECTRE mixed in. It would certainly be a change of pace for the Doctor, considering he likes to see the good in all people and here he’s seeing the worst of humanity with the worst of alien tech.
—Something from the Time War: The Doctor mentions in The End of Time that the last few days of the war were hell, with “the Skaro Degradations, the Horde of Travesties, the Nightmare Child, the Could-Have-Been King with his army of Meanwhiles and Never-Weres”. What would happen if something from that era made an appearance in the Doctor’s current time? The Doctor would have to confront some really dark memories and defeat an impossible enemy that would wreak all sorts of destruction like in the Time War.
—Something from before the Universe: In DW and its spin-offs, there have been villains who are said to have come from before Time itself (ex. The Impossible Planet/The Satan Pit, End of Days, Secrets of the Stars). What if there was an arc where the Doctor encounters several different creatures and forces that existed before the Universe, and none of them being exactly good or evil? Sounds like a lot of fun, if you ask me.
—The Valeyard: An enemy of the Sixth Doctor, the Valeyard is supposed to be an amalgamation of the Doctor’s dark sides from every previous incarnation that shows up between his twelfth and final incarnations (between Peter Capaldi and whoever comes after him, in other words). Evil and scary, he could be brought into being through some wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey trick and cause all sorts of havoc, the kind the Master never could create. I’d love to see that!

Who would work best with our new 12th Doctor?

New companions. I’m not saying you should get rid of Clara Oswald. I like her, and now that the mystery of her appearance in other eras has been solved, we can delve a bit deeper into who she is as a person, which to me is a pretty big mystery in itself. I’m thinking a companion to go with her, or to come after Jenna Louise Coleman decides to retire. And here are my suggestions for that:
—Luke Smith and K-9: Last seen at the end of The Sarah Jane Adventures, Sarah Jane Smith’s alien/human hybrid son Luke had just gone off to college with mechanical K-9 in tow. Now that Sarah Jane’s actress Elizabeth Sladen is dead, I’m wondering what happened to Luke afterwards? Perhaps he and K-9 could meet up with the Doctor and go for some rides on the TARDIS, reminisce about his dear old mum, and maybe even form a father-son bond. If you ask me, Luke’s like a younger version of the Doctor in some respects, so they’d probably hit it off as mentor and protege. And I know there may be copyrights issues with bringing K-9 on, seeing as he has his own show in Australia, but it’d still be fun to have him along.
—Someone more enigmatic than the Doctor: In some books and movies, you get a character that’s so mysterious, that’s always keeping a secret hidden, who always seems to know more than you do. They don’t lie, but their words are so wrapped up in riddles that you have to really figure through their words to understand them. Pair that with the Doctor, who always is keeping secrets even when you think you have him figured out, and it could make for some interesting conversations.
—Jenny: The Doctor gained a daughter through some weird technological bio-genetic processes in Series 3. He thinks she’s dead, but she’s still alive. What would happen if she popped back in for a visit?
—A grade schooler: I know, the Doctor doesn’t usually take anyone younger than 14 onto the TARDIS, and when he does usually it’s at the behest of one of his companions. But imagine if the Doctor was forced to take a child onto the TARDIS with him, perhaps one that has been displaced in time and space, and take care of said child for a story or two? The Doctor hasn’t had any parenting experience for a while, so at the very least he’ll be able to give us a few laughs and one or two heartwarming scenes.

New Stories. Yes, every series has new stories with new aliens and new villains and whatnot. But here’s my ideas for some new stories:
—A Visit To Earth’s First City: The Doctor stops at a Mesopotamian city that has been forgotten by history. There, he encounters aliens trying to pass themselves off as gods, and not the benevolent kind.
—The Big Race: When setting the TARDIS on random, the Doctor lands at a space port where every year there’s a space race. When the Doctor’s companion(s) are held for ransom as prizes, the Doctor has to use his wits to win the race and save the day with the TARDIS.
—TARDIS-Hunters: The Doctor encounters a group of aliens who hunt down TARDISes and their pilots. Why are they hunting TARDISes? And what do they plan to do with the Doctor’s TARDIS?
—The Convention Center: Landing in 21st century Los Angeles, the Doctor finds himself at a convention for a TV show that bears a remarkable similarity to his own life. Why does such a thing exist? And who is behind it? Or what?

Well, that’s really all I have to say in terms of what you should do for the upcoming series. I hope you like these ideas, should you ever read them. And if you want me to, I’d be happy to write some of these ideas into episodes. I’d literally hop across the pond on one foot, if that’s what it took.

I wish you luck with the upcoming episodes of Doctor Who and I hope for at least another 5-10 years of the Doctor at least.

Hoping you are well,

Rami Ungar

PS Before I forget, can you do a spin-off of Doctor Who featuring Vashtra, Jenny Flint, and Strax, aka the Paternoster Gang? Torchwood‘s on hiatus for nearly two years, The Sarah Jane Adventures has ended, and the K-9 TV series is not really a Doctor Who property, so a show revolving around Vashtra and the gang would be great entertainment, especially if they clash with Torchwood sometimes.

We Haven’t Eliminated Racism Yet

Posted: August 7, 2013 in Politics and Leadership, Reflections, Social Activism
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I may or may not have mentioned it before, but I’m a fan of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart (or these days, The Daily Show with John Oliver, seeing as Jon Stewart is in the Middle East directing a drama). The show makes digesting politics a bit easier for me, the way they lampoon everything that’s happening in our broken political system. No subject is safe or free from exploration, and that can sometimes lead to some very interesting epiphanies on our society in general.

Last night I had one of those epiphanies. The show’s two women correspondents (and considering that every correspondent has at least a dozen different correspondent titles, from tax reform to royal family to fishing and wildlife to weird news, they really are the women correspondents for the show), Samantha Bee and Jessica Williams, did a segment on how people are afraid to talk about race and racism in this country, and how far we are from eliminating it. If I am successful, the video should appear below. If not, I apologize and I advise you to follow this link.

Although very funny, this video shows some incredibly thought-provoking things. For one thing, those who don’t experience racism on a day-to-day racism in New York–those with white privilege, in other words–feel that because of President Obama and other factors, racism is on its way to being eliminated. However those who experience racism on a daily basis–the members of the black panel–have a much more cynical view. And why shouldn’t they? They face discrimination, profiling, problems getting good jobs, and utter cluelessness on the parts of certain members of the white panel. I mean talking about race exacerbates the problem? Black people should be interested in your fashion-related job?

First off, does talking about the things in your life that can cause you depression exacerbate the problem? Therapists don’t believe so, and they’d advise you to discuss it rather than not talk about it. And as for black people not being interested in your job despite the job being fashion, does it seem a little stereotypical that you think that they should be? I mean, there’s more to white people than the clothes they wear, so why can’t it be the same for minorities.

And like the one panelist said, this affects more than just black people. Hispanics face the stop-and-frisk policy too, and crooked police will use this policy to intimidate, hurt, and deport Hispanics unfairly and on bulls**t charges. Muslims, particularly Arab Muslims, face a constant PR campaign to let the world know that only a tiny minority of Muslims actually have radical leanings, let alone terrorist ties or inclinations. And in many areas of the country, the LGBT community has to struggle not just for marriage rights, but for the right to housing, jobs, insurance, security, and other rights that their straight neighbors taking for granted.

And finally, to the fashionista in the white panel, even if an issue doesn’t affect you, you should still take part in it! Why? Because it’s the right thing to do. I’m pretty sure that the genocide in Eastern Europe during the 1940s didn’t affect mainstream Americans, but still it became a part of the war effort to stop Germany. And for a more modern example, though the tsunami in Indonesia, the earthquakes in Haiti and Japan, and the ongoing genocide in Darfur (yes, it’s still happening, and rapes over in that area have skyrocketed with it), we still intervene, even though it doesn’t directly affect us. Why? Because we have a moral imperative to do so.

So even if you’re not directly affected by the plight of minorities because of your race, your religion, your nationality, your ethnicity, your gender, your sexual orientation, or any other factor, you should still try to help. Otherwise, when you’re affected by an issue and nobody’s speaking up for you, you’ll feel pretty ashamed that you didn’t do a single thing to help others out in their time of need.

So let’s start that discussion about race. Here’s a start: racism is still a long way from being eliminated in the United States, no matter what race you belong to or where you’re from. What is something you can do in your community to fight against racism and foster equality?

The Quiet Game: Three Weeks Since Publication

Posted: August 7, 2013 in short story, Writing
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I swear, I’ll stop doing these update posts once we get past the 1-month marker. Then I’ll do it once a month.

It’s been three weeks since my collection of short stories, The Quiet Game: Five Tales To Chill Your Bones, was published. So far, 22 print copies have been sold and 9 electronic copies have been downloaded. several friends and family members have also said they’re going to buy copies, but do to either time, money issues, or poor memories haven’t gotten around to it. Not that I can blame them: in this crazy world, getting a book by a friend off of Amazon or Smashwords isn’t always first on anyone’s list of priorities.

I also haven’t recieved any reviews yet, but I know they’re on the way. My mother said that the next time she’s on Amazon, she’ll write a review for The Quiet Game the next time she’s on Amazon, and my friends Angela Misri and Matthew Williams said they’ll review it too. I’m looking forward to hearing what they have to say. Heck, I’m looking forward to what everyone has to say. It’s always good to get feedback on my writing, good or bad. It’s how I’ve grown and gotten better at writing fiction.

Until I get those reviews, I’m still working hard. I’m just about ready to resume writing two books at once, having had a nice past two days to relax, meditate, read, and watch Doctor Who spin-offs on DVD. Now I’d just like to get back to work, maybe write another article or two for Self-Published Authors Helping Other Authors. We’ll see what happens.

Until then, expect a few blog posts from me. I’ve done some thinking over the past few days on fiction writing and on life and what-not, and I  want to share them with you.

See you later.

Taking A Break For Today

Posted: August 5, 2013 in Living and Life, Writing
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I love writing. It’s my passion, it’s my dream, and it’s what I’m good at and getting better all the time at. But it’s also consuming, not just in time and energy, but in creative steam, that wondrous element to a writer that allows us to continue writing book after book, chapter after chapter, page after page, sentence after sentence, word after word.

That’ll be me after work today, mark my words.

Between Video Rage and Laura Horn, I’ve written fourteen chapters total, almost non-stop. Each book is challenging in its own way, and writing both at the same time, even though I’m switching between books every time I finish a chapter, is a lot of work. It’s like this: I immerse myself in the world of the Hydras and I’m writing about how they’re narrowly avoiding a drone or encountering someone from their past at a diner north of Denver, I write anywhere between five-hundred and four-thousand words, I finish and save the chapter, then I find myself in Washington DC about four years from now right before the 2017 Presidential Inauguration, getting into the complex thoughts of a teenager who has never properly dealt with her trauma, and writing about how she reacts to the world (and this is all before she gets wrapped up in the main plot of the story, which will be in about two or three chapters from now), write anywhere from five-hundred to twenty-five hundred words, and then finish and save that chapter!

Frankly, it’s a lot of work, and I need a bit of a break or I’ll suffer burnout and not want to write another words for days or weeks or even months at a time. So for today, and hopefully only for today, I’m taking a break from writing. By that, I mean any sort of writing. I’m only writing this blog post because I wanted to announce the darn break.

And instead of writing, I’m going to spend the day reading several graphic novels from the library and catching up on my shows. Hopefully tomorrow I’ll be able to resume writing at some point, but for now I just need to relax and take a personal day. I’d like to go to a spa and get pampered with a massage or maybe go to a video arcade and play some games, but I don’t have the time or money for that, so I’ll just read, watch TV, and maybe fit a walk in if I can. By the time I’m done, I’ll be at full writing capacity again.

See you after my break!

Rami Ungar The Writer’s Second Birthday

Posted: August 2, 2013 in Living and Life, Progress Report
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Happy Birthday to the blog

Happy Birthday to the blog

Happy Birthday to the blog

Happy Birthday to the blog

Two years ago, at my local library branch, I signed onto WordPress for the first time and wrote a little post saying what I wanted to do with this blog I was writing. A year ago, I wrote a post during my lunch break at work about how a year had passed and what had changed for my blog (you can read it here if you’d like). And today, I am happy to announce that Rami Ungar the Writer is now two years old (I’m seriously hoping blogs don’t have terrible twos). It’s been an amazing journey these past two years, filled with meeting new friends, plenty of fun and new experiences, and even a published collection of short stories! Let me tell you, it’s been fun.

As my blog currently stands, I’ve written 527 posts and 4 pages, which has led to the blog being viewed a total number of 14,231 times at the time of posting. It has also been commented on 1,110 times, and has garnered 328 followers. And to all who’ve been following me and supporting me up to this point, I would like to thank you kindly for your help. It means a lot to me that you would continue to follow me after all this time, giving me your support and your love, and even occasionally reading or even buying my published writings.

Today I’ll be working hard to continue bringing awesome horror fiction to the world. I’m going to start Chapter Seven of Video Rage later today and hopefully finish it by the time the Sabbath comes in. And while I’m writing it, I’ll keep in mind all of you, you who have helped me, read my work, and supported me these past two years.

Have a lovely day, everybody!

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