Musings from the basement...

MUSIC: walls of sound, noise, and me

April 10, 2011 0 Comments

For most people, my m2 music project is an unlistenable collection of self-indulgent wankery. They might be right. I can’t claim it’s particularly musical or tuneful. For me, though, it’s very personal. It’s something I’ve been doing for a long time, but only recently for others to hear. For years I’ve recorded music like this for me and me alone. There is something very cathartic about getting lost in a wall of sound. I’d been doing it since I got my first guitar in 1992 or so. Most of the time I never even recorded it. I’d just plug in and let wail. It was ear-splittingly ugly — and I loved it. The first recording I can remember was a 45-minute piece made up of…
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Music, Works by Eric

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Stuff Every Husband Should Know reviews are in

April 8, 2011 0 Comments

Stuff Every Husband Should Know

While I enjoy receiving feedback on my work, both good and bad — criticism can be helpful — I don’t generally make it a point to seek out reviews. However, some reviews of Stuff Every Husband Should Know have been sent my way, so I thought I’d share them. Phillyburbs.com called it a “must-have guide” featuring “priceless practical wisdom that all wives hope their husbands possess.” Mom Central called it “the rulebook to the game that husbands have been playing for thousands of years.” A husband and wife duo from the Ledger-Enquirer bickered (playfully) over some of the tips in one chapter. And a quirky blogger said the book is “the perfect gift for the man new to wed or this upcoming Fathers Day.” My…
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Works by Eric, Writing

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My new book, STUFF EVERY HUSBAND SHOULD KNOW, is out today

April 5, 2011 0 Comments

I’ve blogged on and off about the project I tackled last spring, and am pleased to announce that my second book, Stuff Every Husband Should Know (Quirk Books 2011), is out in stores TODAY. Hooray! “Husband” is a fun, pocket-sized book that will make a great gift. It’s filled with all sorts of great stuff my wife wishes I actually did. 🙂 The book is available at Amazon (including a Kindle edition), Barnes & Noble (including a Nook edition), Target, Borders, Booksamillion, and fine bookstores and gift shops everywhere. Hey reddit!

Works by Eric, Writing

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BEER: Founder’s KBS (Kentucky Breakfast Stout)

April 1, 2011 0 Comments

I don’t intend to use this blog to talk about beer all that often, but sometimes you’ve got to speak up and say, “My god, this stuff is amazing!” And yes indeed, the beer at the focus of this post, Founder’s Kentucky Breakfast Stout, aka KBS, is amazing. Hard to find because the once-a-year brew sells out so fast, but well worth the trouble of tracking it down. There is a reason why Ratebeer rates it a world class beer and ranks it as one of the top 10 beers in the world based on thousands of reviews. It’s quite simply one of the most complex, rich, and flavorful beers you’ll ever have. Folks who have only experienced the usual Bud-Miller-Coors style beers are probably…
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Craft Beer

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WRITING: When authors have crazy meltdowns

March 29, 2011 3 Comments

I’ve posted before about authors having total meltdowns, temper tantrums, and tearing apart readers/reviewers. It’s just not a good practice. It’s petty, it makes you look insecure, and most of all it’s highly unprofessional. On Tuesday, my friend Chris brought this amateur author meltdown to my attention. It’s a doozy. The review wasn’t particularly harsh, praising the story but noting that the book was full of errors that distracted from the work. This is an all too common problem with self-published work. (Despite multiple sets of eyes and multiple edits, even Pitched did not escape without typos.) Push a book out without the benefit of an editor and proofreaders and this is to be expected. The author, however, one Jacqueline Howett, was having none of…
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Writing

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