Eric R. Asher

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The 2017 eclipse outside St. Louis, Missouri

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We came ready this year. Glasses, check, solar telescope filter, check, exceeding amount of patience for setup (mostly check). In 2017 we were lucky enough to be in the path of totality, and it was something to behold. I didn’t realize just how dark it would get, and it was absolutely magical how the shadows turned into crescents, the bats came out, and the crickets burst into life. I took a lot of photos, and compiled them into this GIF. It lost some resolution of course, but you can still see the sunspots, and I’m quite happy with it for my first outing trying to photograph this event.

Water Dragon: Or How Dictation Saved My Productivity in the Flood of 2017

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I’m going to give you a brief summary on why I’ve become a superfan of Dragon NaturallySpeaking, and then run down the exact setup I’ve used to optimize it for me.

My Dragon experiment with writing has been going on for close to a month now. I’ve been very happy with the results, and encourage anyone who has the resources to give it a try. It’s not for everyone, but if it’s for you, it can have a pretty amazing impact.

I’m a 1,000 word per day writer on average when I’m using a keyboard, which usually takes about two hours per day. I’m also a creature of habit, so if my routine gets derailed, my productivity often does too.

A flood cutting us off from our house for five days probably qualifies as a derailed routine. Not only did we have to worry about whether or not the basement would stay dry, but traffic was a nightmare. Enter my trusty Sony ICD-UX533 Voice Recorder. I clipped on a mic, pressed record, and dictated through my daily commutes.

After six days, I had 240 minutes of dictation that equaled over 10,000 words, handily transcribed by Dragon directly into my manuscript. And yes, thanks to Dragon, I averaged over 2,000 words per hour while my routine was stuck beneath Missouri’s swollen rivers. I’m still shocked by this, and every time I see Dragon finish transcribing an audio file, I assume I made a mistake. I must have accidentally loaded the same file twice. Something! But no, Dragon saved my deadline, and probably my sanity.

Huge thanks to Damon Suede for tipping me off about Dragon the last time I saw him at Coastal Magic Convention 2017.

You’ll find the breakdown of the gear I’m using below, along with links to their listings on Amazon.

Equipment on the go:
Sony ICD-UX533 Voice Recorder

Sony ECMCS3 Clip style Omnidirectional Stereo Microphone

WS10n Universal Furry Outdoor Microphone Windscreen

 

Equipment at my desk:
Dragon NaturallySpeaking Premium 13.0, English – You need to get a Premium version or better in order to get the transcription functionality (where you can load an audio file from a voice recorder).

Blue Yeti USB Microphone – I get the best accuracy out of my Yeti. It’s worth the price if you’ll be doing a lot of dictation at your desk.

Dell Inspiron 5558 Signature Edition i5 processor with 16GB RAM – less RAM will work, but Dragon works significantly faster with more RAM. The jump from 8GB to 16GB made a noticeable difference.

 

Alternative Mics / Headsets
While I don’t use these on a daily basis, I’ve had good testing results with the equipment below. I still favor the Blue Yeti microphone for the best accuracy at the desk.

Blue Snowball iCE Condenser Microphone, Cardioid

Andrea (NC-181VM) On-Ear Monaural PC Headset

Koss CS100 Speech Recognition Computer Headset

 

But what if I already have XLR microphones from podcasting or recording music? Use them! Get this wonderful adapter and save yourself the cost of a new microphone:

Blue Icicle XLR to USB Mic Converter/Mic Preamp

 

Want to read up on training Dragon and getting the most out of your setup?
You can’t beat The Writer’s Guide to Training Your Dragon by Scott Baker. I’d also recommend the following titles for really digging into some fantastic methods for dictating your novel:

Dictate Your Book: How To Write Your Book Faster, Better, and Smarter by Monica Leonelle

5,000 Words Per Hour: Write Faster, Write Smarter by Chris Fox

 

Dictation may not feel natural at first, and I found speaking punctuation awkward as all get out the first week, but you get used to it. Dragon becomes another tool for getting words on the page, and in my case, getting words on the page at a much faster rate.

Mason Dixon: Monster Hunter – Episode One Available Now

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MASON DIXON: MONSTER HUNTER

EPISODE ONE

NOW AVAILABLE

A NEW NOVELLA SERIES FROM FALSTAFF BOOKS

Amazon, iBooks, B&N, and Kobo

“Out,” I said. “Get out of the pit. Safeties off.” I raised the stock to my shoulder and swept the area around us again.

Emma slipped and crashed into the pit, sending a cascade of stained white bones over the edge to clatter down into the limestone depression. We waited, and I could hear my own heartbeat pounding in my ears.

Boom.

We both froze. I don’t care how many times you’ve encountered something in the wild, you still freeze for a split second.

Boom.

“Move!” I hissed, backpedaling while keeping my tranquilizer aimed around Emma. She was almost out. We could get back on the ATVs and come back with bigger guns. 10cc darts? I should have brought the 50cc cannon. This was a mistake. The old man wasn’t crazy at all.

Boom. Boom. Boom. BoomBoomBoom.

The gowrow erupted from its lair like it had been spit forth by an angry god. Its stubby, bulbous body might have been humorous paired with its long scaly neck if not for the tusks fit for a mammoth gleaming in the dying sun. It would take that creature zero effort to kill us in one charge.

Its movements seemed awkward, but its attacks were practiced. The gowrow swiped at Emma with a four-toed webbed foot, a lethal claw extending from each digit. She fell backwards and rolled away, barely avoiding the attack.

Any doubt this gowrow was a maneater fled in a heartbeat.

I cranked the air pressure as high as it would go on the tranquilizer gun and fired. The dart rose slightly in a wind disturbance created by the massive creature and pinged harmlessly off the field of spiky scales lining its back. I cursed, flipped the butt of the rifle open, and loaded another dart.

Available Now

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Mason Dixon: Monster Hunter, a new series begins

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MASON DIXON: MONSTER HUNTER

EPISODE ONE

COMING APRIL 2017

A NEW NOVELLA SERIES FROM FALSTAFF BOOKS

Pre-Order today on Amazon, iBooks, B&N, and Kobo

“Mason, I’d really rather not go to lockup tonight.”

The gowrows squawked agreeably from the back seat.

“Put your harness on,” I said.

“Mason?” Emma asked hesitantly as she pulled the racing harness over her shoulders.

I did the same, awkwardly buckling the crotch piece with one hand. “Drop a couple apples on the floor board. I want the gowrows as low as they can get.”

She pulled two out of the glove box and tossed them into the back. My seat bounced forward when the first gowrow dove for the nearest apple.

“Alright kid, let’s see what you got me.” I pushed the power button on the radio and held it down. Three seconds later, a panel slid out with a series of very much not factory approved features.

“What the hell are we doing?” Emma asked.

I floored the accelerator. We hit 60 pretty fast, at which point I said, “Nitrous,” and hit the big blue button. The engine screamed as the injection hit, and rocketed us up to 110 miles per hour, which is a really stupid thing to do on a country highway.

“Oh shit oh shit oh shit,” Emma said as the force of the acceleration smashed us into our seats. The gowrows squealed in the back, their necks stretched over the seat, and jaws widened like they were screaming. I ground my teeth together. It felt like we were leaving the earth as we crested the small hills, and the tires screamed around gentle turns that were barely turns at all.

In the end, it would only buy us a few seconds against the helicopter, but that might be enough. We soared through another two miles, and I crushed the brakes when I saw the turn off for Swinging Bridges Road in the distance. Smoke and screeches and the squeals of the gowrows filled the early morning air.

I wrenched the wheel and bounced off the highway as fast as I dared in the old truck.

“Gravel!” Emma shouted. “Why are there still gravel roads out here!”

“Wait until you see the bridge.”

Pre-order Today!

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Steamborn Book One, Now Available in Audio!

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The Steamborn Book One audiobook is now available at Audible, iTunes, and Amazon. Narrated by the fabulous Saskia Maarleveld.

Jacob, a tinker’s apprentice, has never backed down from an adventure, but when a swarm of Deadlands creatures shatters the peace of Ancora, he’ll face trials the likes of which he has never imagined. Forced out of the Lowlands, Jacob and his friends seek shelter behind the towering walls of the Highlands, only to uncover a terrible darkness at the heart of their city.<

“A steampunk Starship Troopers! Filled with action, adventure and intrigue. A captivating story for readers both young and old.” – Mari Mancusi, award winning author of the Scorched trilogy.

Rattle the Bones is Live!

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Rattle the Bones, the sixth Vesik book, is now available at Amazon, iBooks, B&N, and Kobo. Damian is back with old friends, new allies, and, well, food.

Much has been lost in the conflict with the Fae king and his allies, a conflict we hadn’t known we were in until one of our own fell at his hand. And while a great Seal between realms may have been rebuilt, dark things slipped through in the chaos, creatures who would overrun this world. Our allies are many. Our enemies are terrible. And someone ate my last chimichanga despite the fact I had clearly marked it with a note that said it was mine.

I hope you all enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. It’s my favorite in the series so far.

Rattle the Bones by Eric R Asher