Process, process, process. That’s all writing really is. It’s all about process. Yes, you need good ideas. Yes, you need to execute on them. But the process underlying your execution is what determines whether you finish your story or not. Whether you shop it around or not. Whether you publish it or not. Without a solid process, you might as well continue dreaming about your success.

This is one reason why we here at the Calamity are constantly working to improve our processes. From iterating over our task and content management tools to developing custom bits of software, we hope to one day bring you the most interesting attractions in development here, Backstage, in as expedient a manner as possible; and the highest quality attractions in general. It is our desire to invite you to be entertained in such a way as to bring the most sourest of expressions to your face. Consensually, of course.

And by “we,” I mean “I,” Mad Alex. This is, after all, a one-man show. Hence the emphasis on process, process, process!

Anyway, we invite you Backstage this edition to enjoy another series of installment in A Vampire’s Vengeance, House, and Bus Driver. Our vampires are certainly making headway in their discovery of events while they were slumbering; the bus driver is about to realize his nightmares are not nearly as awful as they could be; and one gets the feeling our resident dreamwalker may soon be dreaming his final dream.

Let’s get into it →

What is currently under construction? Oh, I don’t know, something in the range of 11 to 15 stories now, three plugins, a theming utility, and a host of other nefarious tools and ideas all conspiring to elevate the notoriety of the Calamity. However, let us address what our focus was on this week!

We continue to raise foundational content for The Conglomerate, the CANOPY Consortium. Or just CANOPY for short. It’s primary method of communication is a complex system wrangling a number of protocols known as the HERMES-THOTH Secure Relay. Our current endeavor is to complete the technical documents of the Relay alongside a wealth of accompanying material. Why are we so pressed to have this completed and opened to the public when there are innumerable other attractions to be finished? Why because it will be pivotal in providing the background for Last Resort, the book that will follow Bus Driver in this duology. Also, this lays the groundwork to spawn an entire collection of additional stories and books. We hope you’ll stay tuned for what comes, because it’s going to be exciting!

More infrastructure work. Many of the attractions in development require an unhealthy amount of research, and this challenge has been partly solved by the creation of what we call context libraries. In assisting with the management of these localized libraries, we have continued the development of a cartographer plugin for Obsidian; it maps a metric fuck ton of data (very technical, as you can see) regarding the content available in each library, making its contents easier to organize and consume. Remember that whole bit about process at the very beginning of this edition? This is exactly what we’re talking about.

And now, without further ado, we leave you to enjoy our regularly scheduled programming.