Jason Haskins

Heroes and idols--whether they are parents or friends, celebrities or famous people--hold special places in the hearts of those looking up to them. Sam Shepard was not only someone who stylistically left an impression on me, but a man who entertained me as well. Shepard passed away last month. It's odd, as I climb the stairs of life, to watch so many people who I've idolized or looked up to pass on to their next journey. It's an inevitable part of the journey, yes, but one wh

In an effort to continue to find ways to reach audiences in an often convoluted social media stratosphere, I am going to experiment with sending out a monthly newsletter via email. Over the past few months, I have sporadically been writing a newsletter on my blog website. That newsletter usually involved what I'm currently watching, listening to, and reading. The newsletter I'm thinking of doing will partially contain those above mentioned things with a sprinkle of the monthl

The summer is winding down and writing seems to be amping up as temperatures hover around triple digits. A year ago I was beating the heat and the dog days of summer...by traveling to Las Vegas and enjoying temperatures even hotter. August is only a few days young and despite the heat am already feeling accomplished. The completion of the first draft of The Blue Gem happened and the process of typing it all up/editing has begun. The 1st draft took nearly three years to comple

There will be more on this next week, but late last week I finished the first draft of The Blue Gem. It took nearly three years--and it's still not finished being typed--but a handwritten version does officially exist. The Blue Gem takes place approximately 30 years after the events of The Dragon Princess. The story follows the travels of the Druid Stelart and a collection of characters from the first book, plus a handful of new characters. Stelart must team with these charac

Back in January, I posted a list of ten goals I wanted to accomplish before the year was out. Seeing as we are now standing at the halfway point of 2017, it's as good a time as anyway to give way to an update. The summer months can sometimes present a challenge in keeping focused on writing. The days are longer. The sun is shining (most of the time). Picnics, parties, swimming, baseball, and much more are presented as distractions. The trick is finding the balance and the tim

Barriers. Bridges. Blurriness. All are part of the above photo and all are not only a part of writing, but a part of life as well. The month of May has flown by, making it seem like only yesterday I was writing of getting back to fundamentals. Time flies when you're staring down at a notepad or a computer screen. Okay. It's not as a desperate or lonely as writing that seems. There is a certain amount of isolation involved as a writer, needing the time and space to be alone to

In setting a goal for myself at the start of the year to provide--at the very least--monthly updates, I let one thing escape my mind. Writing these updates may happen much quicker than actual projects, acceptances, and shows might occur. And here we are again. Submitting plays, screenplays, and emails to agents is a waiting game, often with a lot of down time from submission to rejection. (Or, in some cases, the ever-coveted acceptance). The time spent in the interim is focus

Sitting back, reflecting on the previous month, I see the words have been written. New projects, continuing projects and even the occasional jotting of an idea on a scrap piece of paper have all had words applied to them. While there is no real news to speak of in regards to writing--like last month's news about my one act play One Night Stand--I still find success in the fact I keep writing. Simple? No. Self-congratulatory? You betcha. I think everyone needs a dash of that i

Sitting down and (sometimes) forcing words out is a good thing. The sentences, paragraphs, or dialogue don't have to be perfect the first time around. That's what an edit is for. Sometimes I wish I could listen to my own advice. Gray skies are high above and rain pours down as we continue to thaw out from winter. Under most circumstances, these types of days are my most productive when it comes to writing. Rainy days are a favorite to begin with so writing naturally follows s

The winter of discontent has not only been prevalent in the earth's atmosphere, but has been present among the people of the United States. A political atmosphere--in turn religious and moral ones as well--has dominated the national airwaves for the first month of 2017. My thoughts about that are documented elsewhere and the option to hop over there is all yours. Today is about briefly providing an update on the world of writing, acting, and general tomfoolery I'm involved in

Onward and upward, as the say, is the goal. It can be with a job, in life, or even in fun. No matter the case, striving to move is all part of the journey. A journey that brings us to the monthly update. After The Totalitarians, a play I assistant directed, closed about a month ago, I found my nights free to concentrate on some neglected projects. Plays in need of edits, novels to finish, and works to promote and submit had mostly gathered dust. It was time to focus again. Th

Work continues on The Blue Gem, the follow-up novel to The Dragon Princess. As it is, I continue to promote The Dragon Princess, reaching out to literary agents and publishing houses across the United States. Tonight, I want to share an exercpt from The Dragon Princess. Continue to check back here and over at my blog page for updates (and other musings on life, movies, pop culture, and sports). Enjoy! Riyana tried in vain to figure out where to go. She didn’t even know her e