#sixtostart

checking the airwaves...

Runners, put on your headsets and make sure they're tuned into the right frequency. from the heights: five letters from life after death will be available on all streaming platforms on Thursday, Oct. 30 at 12:00 am EST.

Presave or pre-order on my linktree. The EP will be available on your streaming platform of choice, but bandcamp is always best for artists :)

Hmmm

Here, I’m sorry it’s bad, I never finished/fixed it because I couldn’t be satisfied at the time, but I don’t have anything newer because I haven’t run in a while! 🫠

Did an app ever change your life? Did an app ever make you laugh, cry, yell - while making you healthier? Did an app ever get you so caught up in a story that you forgot the world around you while listening to it? The app “Zombies, Run!” does all of those things for me on a weekly basis.

Seeing how my favorite app ever is currently celebrating its fifth anniversary, I thought I would tell you once again just why you should try “Zombies, Run!”

I have been running on and off for ten years. Back in early 2007, I think, I began because I wanted to lose weight. It did help. And I did get in much better shape. But I never really made it past 5 km runs. I got bored.

Soon to be three years ago, in May 2014, I saw a Tumblr post describing an app in which you ran from zombies while being a part of an awesome story line. Having been more off than on running for a couple of years at the time, I decided to give it a try.

I have never regretted it.

I remember it vividly. The first time I played “Zombies, Run!”. It was May 29, 2014, at 10.06 AM. I pressed that “Start mission” button, and then I wasn’t in Copenhagen anymore. I was on a helicopter, making my way over an apocalyptic England towards a small settlement called Abel Township.

Only before I reached the township, my helicopter was shot down by an unknown party. Having survived the crash, I had to run through a zombie-infested area to get to safety, with a stranger named Sam talking to me in my headset, guiding my way. “I’m gonna call you Runner 5,” he told me. I have been Runner 5 ever since. And now I have even managed to finish a 25 km run. That’s quite a bit more than the 5 km ones I began with.

The glory of this app is that YOU are Runner 5, and Runner 5 can be ANYONE. The characters talk to you, but they never indicate gender, age, or looks. It also doesn’t matter whether you go on short or long runs, or even whether you run or not - you can also walk the missions, if you want. What the characters do tell you, however, is how important you are to Abel Township. That what you do matter. You become a hero.

As you run, you make your way through an amazing story line: Each mission is an episode in a season, as if you’re running a tv show. There are currently five seasons. The writers are working on a sixth. I am continuously amazed at the twist and turns of the story, the character development, the “ohfuckingshitthatdidnotjusthappen” moments … And that’s saying something, because I can be a picky skeptic.

You can use your own music playlist for your runs. Every mission has music breaks between the sound clips. During these breaks, you also pick up items to expand your base in the app. And (if you choose to put that setting on) you can get zombie chases - which means that when the app tells you that zombies are approaching, you have to speed up to get away from them. It’s great for interval training, and it’s completely optional; you can turn it on and off.

All in all, I want to recommend this app to anyone who needs motivation to get out there and move your body - or to anyone who wants to listen to a well-written and exciting post-apocalypse story with zombies and lovable people. And if you’re just starting out and would like a training program to follow, you can also check out their “Zombies, Run! 5k” app, which guides you through eight weeks of training, from couch to 5 km runs. The story line is not as “on the edge of your seat” as the original app, but still very captivating.

I’ve been using Zombies Run! for almost 2 months now. I hate running, but I’ve loved this app, and it’s really motivated me.

I did the same route today as I did the very first time I ran with the app (minus 0.20km apparently) and compared it to the stats in my first run.

I wanted to ask about fanfiction. I've really been thinking about that post you made about how a lot of fanfiction can be just used as a form of escapism, and not in a good way like Tolkien described it, but as a 'I hate life so I'm gonna read and write extensively about fictional characters rather than working hard/trying to improve my own life' Which I really want to avoid and not do. In the past I've certainly fallen into that trap- I would get so caught up in writing Marvel or Percy Jackson or Harry Potter fanfiction (not to toot my own horn, but was objectively good and I do think grew my skills a lot as a writer and character analyzer) that I would spend every free moment and many of ones when I really should've been working on school or chores or spending time with my actual family reading and writing it. I was probably doing that 5-8 hours a day when I was 11/12. (Yikes) Thankfully, my parents smacked some sense into me lol. It really just goes to show you how, for lack of a better term, soul-consuming, that these kind of fantasy pursuits can really be. Thankfully, I don't do that any more. I actively limit myself to a max of 3 hours of reading and writing fanfiction over the course of a week, which is a big improvement.

So yay! Now I have a definte separation from writing fanfiction to improve my writing and writing it to waste time because all of my energy is focused on it to the point where it is in my every thought. Good! Growth!

But now my new thing is this- I want to make sure that any and all fanfiction I write has a definite point. I want it to point to good things and have clear messages and blue flowers and point to Jesus, even if it isn't specifically a 'Christian' fanfiction.

For example, let's just point at that Voice in the Dark one shot I wrote, which is one of, if not the, best singular fiction piece that I've written. I think the reasons why it was so good was that A) I expanded on the story in a way that was intriguing, and got inside my characters heads and accurately depicted their thought processes through it B) Made it pleasant to read with details and action and emotion and everything, C) set everything up for a part 2 conclusion of Sam and Five really connecting and talking about what they both said/thought, and becoming friends (which after procrastinating for months, I'm finally working on), but most importantly, D) Had clear themes of hope, perseverance, connection, trust, and encouragement. Which is really what I think made it so much more excellent than other fanfiction pieces I've written. I had a clear point and intention going into it that was more than just 'Have it be something I love and just for my entertainment' although that was one of the reasons I did decide to write it I will say- you do have to love what you want to write in order to write it well after all. But this is absolutely what I want the point of all my fanfiction writing to be like from here on out, being morally great, as well as well-written.

So now, because I really enjoy ZR and its really is kinda perfect for a fanfiction format, I want to turn it into more of an ongoing piece with my favorite missions and Five's relationships with the characters. But how do I go about this trying to intentionally bring in blue flowers and good messages and beautiful themes, and not just only write it for my entertainment because its a piece of media I love? How to I make sure to firstly know what themes I can bring in, and then do it in such a way that's well-written, while also being able to have those fun moments and situations that are both in the game and I've thought up?

And finally, last thing, is I'm wrestling through if I should continue writing fanfiction to 'fix' a story (which is why I started a Percy Jackson and Marvel fanfictions, I wanted to take the parts of each story I didn't like and were poorly done and make them better) rather than make my own point with it. For most of the fanfiction writing I've ever done, my goal was to improve it, to act like a ghostwriting editor the author hired to fix their fundamentally flawed story. But now I'm realizing that I was spending so much time and effort (which don't get me wrong, I do not fully regret, I really do think that I've gotten far better at fiction writing through this) and I didn't even add any more goodness or morals to the story in a way that made it more soul-sustaining and truly good. I wanted to add a lot of bits that made be as a reader squeal and get happy over which... I don't think is bad per say, but its not what I want my fanfiction to be like any more. With my writing, I absolutely do want to improve on the source material, yes, but I also want to figure out what sort of themes and goodness I'm going for with it. So should I continue writing these large projects (cause each piece covers several books/movies) for improvement and also try to expand on the good ideas and themes the authors had, even bringing in my own, or should I just set it aside as that was great, but now I need to focus on making writing morally good and not just for entertainment?

I know a big part of this is wisdom and descretion- things that God has blessed me with but I know I always can pursue more of. So I know a absolute perfect answer to this question will require time and experience. But after sorting through my word-vomiting (sorry lol), what would you say to all of this? Thank you!! <3

Hey! First of all, I love getting questions from you, and I especially love it because you take enough time to read the previous things I say that we can have a very level conversation, and a deep back-and-forth, which is not always the case with everybody who sends me questions (I like those questions too, I’m just saying.) So thanks for typing all that up!

Second of all, I’m no expert on fanfiction writing. You’ve read what I have to say about making sure the “Tone & Style” and “Themes” of any “Continued Work” stay true to their source material when it comes to like, sequels and expansions? Well, I guess I would apply that philosophy, generally, to fanfiction, too.

But the point of my “second of all” is actually, there are better people to ask about this than me. I can answer you in a broad “here’s how I apply my storytelling philosophy to this hypothetical scenario” sense, but other people have more experience actually doing what you’re talking about with fanfiction. Specifically, @doverstar, who, if you don’t follow her or read her stuff, I seriously think you’re missing out.

So in summary, talk to Doverstar. She’ll answer this better. But if I had to try and succinctly respond, I’d say: “Intentionality is always better than doing something by accident. But if you genuinely value goodness, beauty, and truth, in your own personal worldview, in a way that is genuine, and you cultivate that…it’ll come out in your writing on accident.” So in a way, even when you’re being intentional, as long as you remember that, you don’t have to be too militant whether you’re writing fanfiction or fiction.

(That’s a thought I’m still learning to put into practice, myself. I err on the side of “control everything to a T, outline everything, everything has to have a tie-in to the theme—if it doesn’t you’re failing—“ and I don’t recommend that mindset 😅) That’s the “short” answer to your ask. I’ve got a deep-dive below the cut if you’re interested, though.

I like “Waiting” by The Morning Of for Sam and Five!