Brush Fire and How I Finished My First Novella

Brush Fire is the first of many stories that I hope to write.

Photo by Patrick Fore on Unsplash

Some years ago, in 2015 I attended the NJ Comic Expo. I was covering it for this site, to gain experience and get my feet wet covering events since it was something I knew I wanted to do for my freelance work. Writing is something I never thought I would get into, but I fell into it through my love for martial arts, reading, and film. It's why I made this site, so I can write about the things I love.

By looking for things to write about, I found that my love for reading balances out with my love of writing. Usually, I do one, then the other but a lot of the writing I do is inspired by the work I do for combat sports. I don't want to be a one-trick pony. I want to evolve my writing and I'm always looking for ways to get better. 

Some of my favorite stories in various mediums come from Stephen King. So, when I went looking for instruction on how he writes, I found his book "On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft" and learned that you can turn your own life, and the things around you into fiction. 

Reading about how he came up with "Carrie", while he worked in a high school as a teacher and janitor before he hit it big, let me start looking at my own experiences and how I could turn them into something entertaining. Then, when I went to the Comic Expo, Todd Dezago lit a fire under me about writing what I wanted, regardless of who would publish or read it. "Fuck em'" he told the audience on his panel, "fuck em if they don't want to read or publish your stuff. Just do it yourself!" His panel was on self-publishing your work and what it can do for you as a writer.

His advice stuck with me, and I started writing Brush Fire. Two characters started growing in my mind to the point that I was like, "I want to do more of these" before I finished the first one. Max Flecha and Boudreaux Campeon started to take up a life of their own as I was writing Brush Fire. It took me forever to finish it because I spent so much time writing about combat sports, that I needed to find a way to put work in on writing fiction. Then came Kindle Vella and I started posting what I had written there. It got to the point I found myself writing the story again and finally getting to the end.

If you don't know what Kindle Vella is, it's episodic storytelling. I was able to publish the pieces I had written and when I got caught up I kept writing. If you are a writer that is struggling to finish something I can tell you that doing an episodic story might help you get there. It did for me, then brought me to realize I can finally publish this thing. 

Using the Vella platform requires you to wait 30 days before turning your episodic story into a book. So I waited, forgot about it then remembered when there was a lull in the fight business to focus on my story again. So, here it is:

If you have Amazon Prime you likely have Kindle Unlimited and you can read it for free. Check it out here. Please review it, feedback only helps me grow and I have already begun the second book of what I hope becomes a series. 

I hope you like it. 

Elite Sports Core Yellow BJJ Gi Review

If your New Year’s resolution includes starting Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, Elite Sports Core gi might be what you need in 2024.

When I started Brazilian Jiu-jitsu in 2005, there were only a few options out there. Atama, Howard Combat Kimonos, and Koral. Or, you could just use a Judo gi but the grips your opponent can get on you will have you being controlled a lot, which can diminish your goal to learn this fantastic martial art.

Thankfully, the sport has grown so much since then and the options for training gear are now more plentiful and affordable. This is where Elite Sports comes in. 

In August, Elite Sports sent me one of their gi’s to try out and review. They were cool about me telling them I would be honest about it and would need time to roll (train) in it and see how it washes, hangs, and handles heavy sessions of all the pushing, pulling, and grabbing a gi goes through. I’m happy to say, I was sold on the gi after wearing it and finally was able to give it an honest review:

I rolled about 10 times in it with washes in between and it held up really well. It’s also super light so for the competitors that weigh in with the gi this is definitely one you want to include in your rotation. I would add that because of how light it was, it made me feel “fast” if that makes any sense to you.

One of the bonuses in my opinion is the free white belt it comes with. Most gi manufacturers will give you a bag to carry it in that you probably won’t use for that since most folks use a gym bag. It’s old school, but it makes sense to include the belt. After all, it is the most important belt you’ll put on as long as you stick with it.

Pick one up on Amazon.

Buy direct from Elite Sports here.

Also, check out their Born Tough brand here.

Elite Sports BJJ and MMA Gear

We're excited to be working with Elite Sports and Born Tough to try out their products!

We will come up with a review post once the product testing is done

Keep an eye out for these updates. The first review will be on the following product:

Some of the folks I train with have already been using these products and they seem to be holding up well for them. I'm looking forward to seeing it for myself. 

Check them out here:

https://www.elitesports.com/collections/brazilian-jiu-jitsu-bjj-gis

https://www.borntough.com/collections/mens-workout-shorts

Be sure to check the full review on our YouTube channel and podcast once I get it on the mats.

Winnie-The-Pooh: Blood and Honey / 2022 Official Trailer is Out

Who wants to see a horror movie based on Winnie The Pooh?

Well, after seeing the trailer, I do.

At first, when I saw images of the horror film being made about the beloved children's character, I was like "How?" But leave it to the folks at Jagged Edge Productions to figure out a way to make a horror film out of something that was popular on Disney as a kid. 

From what the trailer shows, it looks like Pooh is a little mad about Christopher Robin leaving him to fend for himself. When Robin returns to seemingly make amends, it's too little too late. Have a look at it here:

Seems dumb, right? But after seeing the trailer I'm really interested to see where this goes. Winnie the Pooh was created by A.A. Milne and Disney has done much with the character since the bear first appeared in 1966. Generally, when Disney gets their hands on something they milk money out of it for generations and it seems like 

Luckily for horror fans, the rights to the character have been through enough changes that this film could be made. "Winnie The Pooh: Blood and Honey" is due soon on DVD and Video on Demand and you can expect a full review for when it does come out.