Tag: reading
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Types of Rockets
Like my posts in May and June about orbits and remote sensing respectively, this is a 100-level overview on the different kinds of rockets and how they can be used in sci-fi writing. Note that I’m only going to go through the four primary methods for a rocket to get out of a gravity well,…
Ryan Patrick
author, books, indie author, indie books, nasa, news, publishing, reading, rockets, science, scifi, self-pub, self-publishing, space, spacex, writing -
End of June 2024 Wrap-Up
It’s been a weird, busy month and I’m honestly glad it’s over – it was both a marathon and a sprint. Reading This month, I read: Started some others (mainly a few that I mentioned in my beginning-of-month post) but haven’t finished them yet. Goodreads says I’m still on track for 100 books by the…
Ryan Patrick
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June 2024 Goals
I didn’t quite meet my writing or reading goals in May, so I need to pick up the pace in June! Since my last blog post, I did finish Mongol Moon (great book, 5 stars, recommend to anyone who likes Tom Clancy) but I didn’t get Extinction done. For reading, I want to finish: In…
Ryan Patrick
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End of May Update
It’s been a month! I finally outprocessed from the military and joined Blue Origin as a senior engineer. Most of my time has been spent getting back up to speed on the program I worked on January through March, in addition to helping my wife finish her semester of grad school at UVA and my…
Ryan Patrick
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Orbits for Sci-Fi Writers
When I alpha or beta read, or when I see published works involving topics that I am well-versed in from my professional life – astrodynamics, space-to-ground communications, orbits, etc – I often cringe. Most authors at least try to get the high-level stuff right, but get lost in the details, while others simply don’t understand…
Ryan Patrick
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Alpha, Beta, and ARC Reading
I have a little more free time this week and I need a bit of a break from my current WIPs…so I decided to write a post about alpha, beta, and ARC reading and why they’re different. Alpha Reading Alpha reading for a less-polished work. It can be a first draft, but is generally a…
Ryan Patrick
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May 2024 Plans
May is going to be a big month for me. I’m starting my new job and hopefully getting back on track in terms of reading and writing. For reading, here’s what I want to finish this month: It’s a lot, but I also have already started the first two. We’ll see how I’m able to…
Ryan Patrick
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End of April Wrapup!
Well, that was a month! I’m still in the outprocessing stage, but the end is in sight for my active-duty Space Force career. I start with Blue Origin on Monday, and am super excited for that next phase of my life. However, my reading and writing really suffered as a result of a lack of…
Ryan Patrick
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Writing for 12 Years – 12 Things I’ve Learned
Since I’m a little burned out with writing and editing this week…decided to put together some lessons learned over the last 12 (!) years of my writing experience. Without further ado, here’s my list. 12 Things I’ve Learned in 12 Years of Writing 1. Don’t write in a vacuum – get feedback For the first…
Ryan Patrick
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Beginning of April Post
Not much has happened since the post last week. I’ve interviewed for a full-time position and am waiting to hear back as I continue my outprocessing from active duty. For April, my reading goals are: In terms of writing, I’m hoping I have a little more time than I did last month. I’d like to…
Ryan M. Patrick 