Weekly Update 75

Welcome back to Seth Oberlender’s corner of the internet. This is where I, Seth Oberlender, keep those interested updated on my journey to becoming an author.

I have yet to hear back from an agent, but not from lack of trying. I am still submitting queries and not giving up. Despite how hard it gets.

In my personal life, I have been playing more VR games. Years ago, I bought a Valve Index and loved it, but I moved a lot and with every move it became a hassle to set it up. Since I am more permanently settled than before I decided to set it up and it has been a blast. I hope that VR becomes more available in the future because the experience is amazing, but also very limited. There aren’t enough VR titles yet which makes the experience limited to only a few… experiences.

School starts this week. Technically I don’t get students until next week, but I am a teacher again starting today. I am ready, but I am still upset at losing summer.

Ok, time to get back. See you all next week!

Weekly Update 74

HELLO! Sorry, I hope that didn’t scare you away. I was just excited to see you again. I had to miss the last two weeks because I have been focused on moving. Yes it is finally done and I am loving it.

First: no. No agents. I got another rejection so that was nice.

My new house is great! It is perfectly “Me” sized and Winry loves it. When we first moved, I loved the novelty of her walking into other rooms. At my old apartment she was locked to the ground floor because she wasn’t shown how to climb stairs. I decided to not show her at the time because she was a puppy and chewed everything. Seeing her pop into a room I am in is just so cute! The rest of the house is wonderful: it is bigger, cheaper, and closer to school. I am excited to wake up here and I feel accomplished when I complete a chore.

Aside from unpacking and setting up, I have been playing video games and attending meetings for school. The Steam Summer Sale has come and gone by now, but I was able to snag Hitman: World of Assassination for a fraction of the cost. Now, some of you might be aware of the nasty tactics IO Interactive took when marketing the sale. It is also a little hard to describe… and super interesting to me.

Hitman is a game genre that has been around since 2000. As a “gamer” from the early 2010s I first played Hitman: Absolution in 2012. Like most of the games in the series players control a contract killer named 47. The game play revolves around infiltrating secure compounds and assassinating a target. This formula has altered slightly every game. For example: Absolution boasted manufactured accidents to kill targets. The games also had linear levels that were gone the second the player moved onto the next level. Fun but slightly aged. This all changed in 2016.

In 2016 IO released Hitman. Hitman (2016) is a reimagining of the entire franchise. It looks sleeker, more modern, and with a new game design impetus (I feel the need to specify I am not a games journalist). I used to play Hitman (2016) a lot when I was in high school and it was so much fun! Now, all levels had multiple avenues to kill the target(s) and really motivated players to replay them. Any location has twenty to thirty challenges that give the player experience points if they pull off the challenge and extract safely. This means a player can play the Paris level many, many times and still get rewarded to trying new things. With enough experience points the players increase their “location mastery” which awards new places to start the level, new places to hide tools, and more tools that can be used in other levels. So, I loved Hitman (2016). What about Hitman: World of Assassination?

That’s the thing! IO released two sequels to Hitman (2016): Hitman 2 and Hitman 3: World of Assassination. With every new installment, IO added more story missions and locations… but they never got rid of the old ones! I paid for “Hitman 3,” but I also got the full content for Hitman (2016) and Hitman 2, a game I totally missed. I got three games for the reduced price of one! I have been replaying missions from Hitman (2016) and I am having a blast. If you like games like early Assassin’s Creed games or even modern rogue likes like Hades then I recommend Hitman: World of Assassination.

Now, what about those nasty marketing tactics? Well, on the Steam Summer Sale page, Hitman: The World of Assassination was listed as 90% off. This was partially true. IO decided to dissect the game into chunks (a move that many game developers have done and that I don’t have the time or experience to talk about here) and only one of those chunks was 90% off for the sale. That one chunk was effectively 20% of the base game. This was also elevated by the fact many people were upset that the Steam Summer Sale didn’t have a lot of good sales like years past. A lot of people paid for 20% of a game expecting 100% of it. Personally I think the problem lies in how modern video game developers and publishers market and butcher their own games in order to milk them dry for profit… but you didn’t come here for that.

Well now I want to play more Hitman. So, see you next week! Please stay safe and enjoy your summer!

Weekly Update 73

Well, hello again! It has been one whole week, and what a week it was.

Not in the sense of my writing career. Still no agents. Still looking…

My family vacation took place in Branson Missouri. We got an AirBnB near Table Rock Lake and we all had a blast. We swam in the pool, we took a go cart tour of a near by resort, we went to the Titanic Museum and a small zoo, and we went shopping. The best part was being with my family, but on Friday I had to say goodbye. My family went back home while I went to Kansas City to see an old friend!

This second smaller vacation was also very fun! We played games, went to the Nelson Atkins Museum of Art, watched movies, and got crepes. I decided to drive myself and stay in Missouri because this friend and I had tickets to see Aaron West and the Roaring Twenties in St. Louis. That was so, so cool! That makes three concerts I have been too and I am so excited to go to more. The band was amazing and if you don’t know who they are I recommend looking them up and The Wonder Years, the lead singer and founder’s first band.

This is the last update I am writing in my current apartment. A solid year of living here, writing here, and changing here. What can I say about it? I expected to write more. I expected to get an agent here and finish an entire second book… instead I became a teacher, made new friends, got a dog, and started several more projects. I am thankful I found this place when I did, but I don’t know how fondly I will look back on it. I am more excited to see what I will do in my new quadplex.

Ok. See you next week after I move and get things settled. I hope you have had a year of growth, and I hope you can stick with me as I become an author. Who knows how much longer I have to wait.

Weekly Update 72

Hey there! If you are reading this, I am on vacation. Well, I guess I am on vacation even if you are not reading this. The difference this time is I am not writing this for the week it is designed to be covering but instead as a preemptive measure. So, what do we talk about?

Well, let’s talk about me.

I am a writer. I sometimes forget the purpose of this little project; to introduce myself to prospective agents that stumble upon my website from my query letter. I need to remind myself sometimes that I must be more professional here in case one agent does read this, but I have no way of knowing if they do. So, let’s assume that the person reading this is an agent.

Hello! I hope that introduction wasn’t too strong, I am just very glad you are here. Please make yourself comfortable while I tell you a bit about myself.

I am a writer. I write for multiple reasons, but I think the most important and most prevalent one is inspiration. I am constantly inspired by the world around me. It is very common for me to be in a mundane environment enjoying a simple or provincial activity to be suddenly submerged in deep thought. Thoughts about robots and aliens, thoughts about wizards and dragons. It doesn’t matter what starts these thoughts, only that I am left with a burning desire to explore this new idea. I let them germinate in my brain for hours, sometimes years, before daring to put them on page.

I am an incubator. When I was in second grade my teacher told us we would be hatching live chicks in the classroom. She explained we would need a special device to make sure the chicks would hatch, a device known as an incubator. This large white cabinet showed up in the room one day, bigger than any of us second graders with a thick clear lid that protected a mesh floor. We got eggs and weeks later gross, wet birds were in the classroom. That’s me. I’m the big white machine, and my ideas are wet sickly-looking chicks, eyes wide and scanning. Several of my ideas still need more time to “cook,” but a few are ready to be hatched. So far one has been able to grow from its sliminess. It has thin little legs and a scrawny body, but it can walk, it can chirp. Now, all it needs is someone to help it fly.

As corny as the metaphor got, I am still proud of this chick. We have been waiting for awhile now for someone to help it fly. Maybe that person will arrive soon.

I am working on hatching other chicks, though the work has become more tedious since the first one hatched. I am also playing Destiny 2 and Baldur’s Gate 3 more and more as the summer progresses. I am almost halfway through Becky Chambers’ The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet and I am loving it!

That is all. Please excuse any cringe present in this update, you are very brave to have read this far. See you all next week!

Weekly Update 71

What a journey we have been on. Sure, the journey has been a little boring compared to other journeys, but this one is mine.

Still no agents despite my efforts. I have nothing more to say on that.

I was able to see The Fellowship of the Ring in a movie theater with my dad and my sister’s girlfriend! It was magical. I explained to my sister’s girlfriend that as I get older Lord of the Rings means more and more to me. As a kid it was boring and scary… but now I almost cried multiple times finally seeing the story on the big screen.

For those curious it was the extended edition, a form that I prefer but I do not recommend to first time viewers. Don’t you worry fellow nerds: I warned my sister’s girlfriend (who hadn’t seen any of the films before) that starting with the extended editions is a bad idea but we didn’t want to miss the opportunity to see it in theaters. I am very thankful we went!

Ok, I’m going to go. Time to query more agents! See you next week.

Weekly Update 70

And like that a new week comes. Hey! I am Seth Oberlender. I am a writer on his journey to becoming an author.

This weekly update used to be a place for me to update people on my progress writing my first book: The Void Full of Starlight. This was the case until I finished the book and started to query agents. I have been querying agents for more than a year now. The journey has been more than long. It has been humbling, it has been disheartening. Yet still I persist.

I am still querying to this day, and I have plans to make the likely hood of being traditionally published higher. I will let you know about that plan once it has taken more shape. For now, keep your eyes and ears peeled for news here.

Destiny 2’s latest expansion comes out TOMORROW! This means next update will be full of my opinions on the end of this grand story. As I write this update I am six hours and forty minutes into a ten hour video on the entire ten year story by a wonderful youtuber and Destiny fan “My Name is Byf.” I am overflowing with reverence and nostalgia at the idea of this story I have been experiencing coming to an end. Memories from most of the story (I never really played the raids and missed several seasonal story lines) are coming back to me in waves. I spent ten years of my life on this game, and it is shocking to realize that makes almost half my life impacted by Destiny. I have been a guardian since the beginning, and I am so excited to be there for the climax.

Sadly, I must wait one more day. And you must wait one more week to hear from me. See you next week, and if you happen to be a fellow guardian of the last safe city on Earth: Eyes up, guardian.

P.S. My father wanted a shout out, so this is it! Love you buddy.

Weekly Update 69

Nice.

Anyway, hello again! Been awhile, like, a whole week. And today marks the beginning of my summer vacation (if you don’t count the weekends)! So far so good. I am excited to take a break and come back to teaching with new energy and some experience. I am not only a teacher on his first summer vacation; I am also a writer trying to become a published author.

So far I have yet to receive an offer of representation. Still going, still going… like Forest Gump. That’s me. Still running.

Summer has been good to me so far and I have spent that time playing Destiny. I am going to try and take a break this week because of the upcoming DLC. The next update will be right before The Final Shape releases, how exciting! I plan on enjoying Alan Wake, Persona 5, ROOT, and DOTA 2 this summer as well.

I am also reading The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers. I mentioned this to you a long time ago and I am pleased to say I have come back to it after a long break. It is such a fun story, and I am only fifty-five pages in. The characters are extremely well written, and the world building is well thought out. So far, I recommend it if you like science fiction and aliens.

I am going to try writing more this week than ever before. Stay tuned for how that will work…

Ok! Time to get back to work (and by that I mean not work), see you next week!

Weekly Update 68

…so, you might have noticed that the number of these updates is getting larger. Yes, obvious observation. Some might have also noticed that the number is getting close to a certain number that some people might find “funny.” I will in no way be encouraging these people. Be warned.

This week I have not received a positive response to a query. That sucks, but I can move on. A wise character once said, “Just keep swimming, just keep swimming…” a shame the voice actor is a little problematic now.

In my personal life, work is… working. I have one more week which means by next update I will be a free man! Well, a man on summer vacation. I am trudging to this finish line, weighed by the stress of to-do lists and negative coworkers. I can do it, but it sure won’t be easy.

I have also been playing more Destiny which has been fun and oddly refreshing despite the grinding I have been doing. For those who don’t know, in video game terms “grinding” means doing something repeatedly, usually to get some item or reward. Destiny is all grinding. That gets tiring quickly but right now it doesn’t feel that bad.

Now, if you have been reading the past few updates, I have been hinting at a few new writing projects. I have decided to shift my newest idea and pursue it more during the summer. If I in any way enticed you in the other updates please be assured something is coming soon.

Ok! Time to get back to life. See you all next week! Summer, here I come…

Weekly Update 67

…and that’s it! It’s been one whole week! Welcome back to Seth Oberlender’s weekly update blog where I, Seth Oberlender, keep you up to date on my journey to become an author.

So far, I have only received rejections. No agent yet, and I will be honest; I have been more focused on the end of my first school year. I am still looking for agents, but most of my energy has been going into teaching. Which isn’t going well. A lot of parents are mad at me. So, that feels great.

I have been playing more and more DOTA 2 as well as writing, and I am sad to say that is it. Life has become so busy as the year closes, and my free time has been appreciated but short. I am a little excited about a new idea, but I am so focused on teaching and agents that my writing has been neglected. That will change soon; only two weeks from now.

Sorry for the dower tone, I will be back next week with more updates! Still looking forward to good news.

Weekly Update 66

Hello and welcome to Seth Oberlender’s weekly update blog! My name is Seth Oberlender, and I am a writer on a quest to become a traditionally published author. I have worked hard on my first novel, The Void Full of Starlight, and have been on the hunt for representation for a year now. The search has been longer than expected, but still, I march on.

…and the march continues again this week. No bites as of yet, and despite the tone of the first paragraph, the rejections are getting to me. I find myself focusing more and more on other potential projects to self-publish as a vehicle for my name and a source of inspiration. If I can get a book I wrote on shelves or in people’s hands, I think I might die from excitement.

In my personal life, I have been reading and playing more video games. Work is becoming more and more stressful as the school year comes to a close, so I have been trying to find catharsis in art. I am about seventy-five percent through Spiderman 2 on the PS5 and the game is still just as good as the day I took a break from it. I also have been tinkering with a city builder/survival sim named Frostpunk. It is fun but a little too stressful for my life at the moment. I had an odd hankering for a top-down strategy game and Frostpunk was on sale at the time. If you enjoy games like Sim City or the Tycoon series, you will enjoy Frostpunk. It also reminds me of the board game Scythe.

I also just got done reading Maneater by Emily Antoinette. Look, we don’t talk about book recommendations a lot here, but if you like romance you have to get this book. It is a fantasy romance that is very steamy (I found this on book Tok. That should give you an idea). It is about a shy male which who saves a confident succubus from a group of other witches. It is so adorable and fun, and the biggest theme of it is consent which I found refreshing. Not for the faint of heart though, I kind of hope my parents skip this part of the update… you should totally get it though!

I plan on doing a lot more reading and writing over the summer, so if you have any book recommendations feel free to leave a comment on this blog post. Look at me, asking for you to leave a comment. I must be growing more confident!

Ok, time to get back to work. Two more weeks of school and then I can relax. See you all next week!

Weekly Update 65

Welcome one and all to my weekly update blog where I keep you up to date on my journey to becoming a published author! This is Seth Oberlender, but you probably already know that.

I have not yet received representation from any agents for my debut novel The Void Full of Starlight. I am still working, still moving forward.

In my free time I have continued to work on the same unnamed project I mentioned in the last update. We will see how far I will go with this one while looking for agents.

Hey, speaking about staying with things, I am pleased to say I have decided to try out DOTA 2. It is a video game that is a big part of electronic entertainment history. It is also very complicated and dense… so I am taking my time with the tutorials both in the game and online. So far it is very fun, though I don’t think I can say if it is more fun than League of Legends, a game I have played a good few hours in. I will update you on my journey with DOTA moving forward.

Ok! Time to get back at it. One more week of testing at work. Wish me luck and see you all next week!

Weekly Update 64

Welcome one and all to Seth Oberlender’s weekly update! This is the part of the internet where I (Seth Oberlender) update you on my journey to becoming a traditionally published author.

I have not become a traditionally published author… yet. I am still querying, don’t worry about that. One of these days.

In my personal life, work is work, and work is ending. 21 days until summer. I can feel every one of them now. It isn’t really anticipation, more like a content acceptance of inevitability.

I have a great announcement: I got a new keyboard! It is the Aula F75, and it is so smooth. I am writing this on it now. It sounds “poppy” rather than “clicky.” It reminds me of light rain on glass and I am in love. The TikTok that got my attention said it sounded like butter and I think they were right. I can’t wait to start Writing on it!

Speaking of Writing, I have been doing that. It is a new project. You might be shocked I am announcing it so quietly and with no “chalance.” That is because I am a little trepidatious about this one. I don’t want to give you too many details right now because I am so early in the process. Just know that I am very into this idea and that I have been working on it for years, almost as long as The Void Full of Starlight. One day, we will see if this will be in bookstores with that one.

Ok! Time to get some rest. We have some things to do before the end of school. You are probably busy too. Stay safe, keep up the good work, and don’t forget to do something nice for yourself. See you next week!

Weekly Update 63

Welcome back to Seth Oberlender’s corner of the world wide web. This is where I update those who are curious on my journey to becoming an author. Yes, a book weaver, a story sewer, a tale maker!

It isn’t going well. No “yes” yet. No agent. I am still, surprisingly, querying. Still trying. Still going.

In my personal life, I have been submerged in the  toxic sledge of live service games. Yes, I am talking about Destiny 2. I am having fun now, but I don’t know how I will feel in a few months when the next expansion releases. I am tired of spending money. I hope one day Bungie can fix this issue and just make it free to play not free to try… one can dream.

I have not been writing as much as I like. I don’t know why; I wish I did. I plan on getting back on that horse soon, and the time is quickly coming. State testing starts next week, and my life will become a lot freer in May. Who knows what will happen by then.

Ok. Time to get back to it. See you all next week!

Weekly Update 62

Welcome one and all to Seth Oberlender’s weekly blog! This week was full of love, laughter, and joy… but no agents. Yes, I know. How could this be a week of love, laughter, and joy when I didn’t get an agent? Well, that is because my brother got married this Saturday!

The brother in question is the oldest of my two stepbrothers, and someone I look up to despite the fact we met later in my life. The wedding was held at a beautiful venue nestled between the rolling hills of central Oklahoma. We had a wonderful plan to hold the ceremony outside, but April showers changed that last minute. The bride (my new sister-in-law) was rightfully upset, and we were forced to move the wedding inside the main building we originally planned for the reception. With some creative fishing line tying and manpower from some very nice guests we were able to get the space ready for a marvelous ceremony officiated by my father. It was a fun and dare I say magical evening. I am very pleased to see my family grow in such a way.

Work is work, and work is ending! Summer is fast approaching, and I cannot wait to enjoy it as a teacher. We have just over a month before the end of my first year teaching and I have learned a lot. If I am brave, I might put some sort of retrospective up on here for you all, but all I care about now is the state test coming up at the end of the month.

That’s it. The track I walk down stretches before me, its unknowable length becomes more and more daunting and otherworldly as I progress. And yet, I progress. Step by step, query by query. See you all at the finish line.

Weekly Update 61

Why hello there! My name is Seth Oberlender, and this is my website. Here is where I give you updates on my quest to become an author. My book, The Void Full of Starlight is a sci-fi adventure about bounty hunters in space.

So far, I have not gained an agent… yet. I am still searching and won’t stop for awhile now. Well, I hope I can stop soon.

In my personal life I have been reading, playing video games, and working. I recently picked up Helldivers II and ROOT on Steam. Helldivers is just as fun as they say, and that surprised me. It is quick and addictive, and very rewarding. I might go into more detail in a different place and way, but for now just know I recommend whole heartedly. ROOT is a boardgame I have heard about for years, and I was stoked to get the video game version on Steam for only $8.00. The video game is nice for me because I can play with the computer and not have to worry about checking the rules every two seconds.

I also started reading The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers. I am only a few pages in, but I can tell I will like it. It is a sci-fi story that Barnes and Noble said was “like Firefly.” I love Firefly.

Ok everyone, time to go query again. See you all next week!

Weekly Update 60

Hello everyone and welcome to my website! I hope you had a wonderful week and have been safe.

I have yet to receive any representation. Yeah, it sucks. I am still here though.

I am writing this on Saturday, and I just got back from a weekend trip with my friend to visit my other friend in Arkansas. It was super fun and very relaxing, I can’t wait to see them again!

On the trip we went to a wonderful art museum called “Crystal Bridges.” It was extravagant and extremely cool. There was a temporary exhibit called “Exquisite Creatures” by Christopher Marley we saw and it was just spectacular.

The Crystal Bridges website calls it a “dialogue with art, nature, and science that asks the question: what is it about the natural world that calls to us?” In execution it was an impressive collection of ethically sourced dead insects, birds, reptiles, and fish arranged in expressive mosaics and patterns.

Acquired from crystalbridges.org. Christopher Marley, Continuum II, 2022, Coleoptera spp, Scutelleridae spp, Lepidoptera spp. 40 in. x 40 in. © 2024 Christopher Marley | exquisitecreatures.org

For those who don’t know, I am a self-diagnosed insectophobe. So, I like to say that this was the first form of art to get a visceral reaction from me. I was entranced and repulsed in the best way. Marley really demonstrated a great respect for and understanding of nature, shown in the small blurbs of his motivation around the exhibit. If you have the chance I think you should experience “Exquisite Creatures” in person since the pictures you can find don’t do it justice.

Acquired from crystalbridges.org. Christopher Marley, Convocation, 2020, Monitor lizards, tegu lizard, 48 in. x 68 in. © 2024 Christopher Marley | exquisitecreatures.org

Ok, time to get back to the search. I have officially sent 100 distinct queries and have received 93 negative replies (a combination of straight rejections and rejections from time). The batting average is sad, but I can’t help but feel humbled by my journey so far. When you read next week’s update, I will have sent 101 queries. What a number.

Weekly Update 59

Welcome back everyone! I am very pleased to see you here.

Sadly, I have not received any representation for my book yet. Still going, still writing.

Spring break has arrived! This is my first spring break in years, especially one without working. I am spending it with friends and family, and with myself. I plan to do some more writing this week… I hope.

I got a new book thanks to a gift card from a student. It is Assistant to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer. I just started it but it seems right up my alley: fantasy romance with a hint of comedy. I will let you know how it goes!

Well, time to go and enjoy my break! Take care of yourselves, see you all next week!

Weekly Update 58

Hello everyone! Welcome back to my website. This is it. Hello.

I have not had an agent say they will represent me yet, unfortunately.

In my private life, I have been playing video games and watching videos… none of this should be news.

It is hard. I have been trying to achieve something for a long time and it hurts to realize that I haven’t been trying hard enough. That is the only way I can see it now; I have not been putting enough effort into being published. This is going to change.

I am going to start implementing a new regimen in my life. I don’t know if it will stick (many habits I once tried died off fast) but regardless it will start. I need more consistency in life right now anyway and I think having a stricter schedule will help with that.

Thank you for continuing to read, see you all next week!

Weekly Update 57

Well, well, well… if it isn’t you. Back for more, eh?

That beginning won’t make sense if this is your first time here. This is my weekly update blog where I keep people up to date on my journey to “authorship.”

No agents. Still looking. Still difficult.

I had the wonderful opportunity to attend a bachelor party for my oldest brother on Friday and boy was it fun. How much fun? So fun I was still dealing with the “aftermath” several days later (this is a reference to being hungover). It was still fun though! I got to see people I hadn’t seen in a while and meet someone new on top of that.

Other than the party and the lack of representation for my work, life is still the same. Waiting for that one person to say “yes” has taken longer than I hoped, but not as long as some. I persist.

See you all next week. Maybe I will have better news!

Weekly Update 56

Hey there everyone and welcome back to my website. I am excited to announce… I am uploading on time! What? Thought I might say something else instead? Yeah, me too.

This week was way too short and way too long. I spent most of it failing to teach ten- and eleven-year-olds how to write essays. Some are getting it, but others are struggling. Hard. They never warned me about that feeling of failure when I was in school to become a teacher. “Teacher School,” if you will. I am so passionate about writing, yet I can’t teach it. It is frustrating for both me and the kids.

This weekend I did something crazy: nothing. Absolutely nothing. I watched Howl’s Moving Castle, and that was the height of my activity. What a movie. Top five for my life I assure you. If you haven’t seen it, I recommend you find a copy, light a candle, and sip on something warm while you do. It is the epitome of comfort movies for me. For most people, actually.

I haven’t played a video game in awhile now, and I feel a little guilty. I spent most of my time on Tik Tok today and I am trying to convince myself it wasn’t an entire waste. It was. The sun is gone, my dog needs to be walked, and I haven’t eaten dinner. After all of that I am going to read though. Read and pretend that time stops for me. Just a little.

Ok, back to work doing nothing. See you on the other side adventurers.