Nothing is True. Everything is Connected.
Category: <span>Sylum Information</span>

Random Post for a Random Wednesday

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Random Post of Random

Renner #7

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This is one of those posts that has a bit of everything!  

Make sure to scroll through the whole thing!

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For those participating make sure final draft of your story and the banner created is in my inbox by end of the weekend.

I’m spending a portion of my Thanksgiving break scheduling Advent and would like to get a large chunk of it set before the 1st.

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Thank You to those who Volunteered for the Book Project

I’ve got a list of Timestamps to work on after Advent.

If you’re still interested in helping Promote the book – Click Here.

The more volunteers the more Timestamps – win/win!

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If you’re looking for that book to read while traveling to visit family this Thanksgiving.

Or need a distraction from the family

You can get Conversation in Real Time for the bargain price of .99 Cents

Barnes & Noble

Kobo

Itunes/Ibooks

Smashwords

Note: For those who have Kindle – you can find Mobi Format at Smashwords.

You can also find PDF format if need a standard format.

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Needed Volunteers for Nicholas J. Finch Project

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Book Project

I need some volunteers to help promote Conversations in Real Time!!

If you want to help, please fill out the below Contract Form!

What do you get for helping?

Once you’ve completed the task, you can send me the name of any character that is in the wiki, and I’ll write a short Timestamp for them.  These Timestamps will be posted throughout next year, on top of the normal events (of course unless the Timestamp turned into a massive fic – which is win win for everyone)

So the more who help and complete the task, the more Timestamps!!

Go back

Your message has been sent

Warning
Warning
Have You Read Conversations in Real Time(required)

Warning
Are You Planning on Reading It?(required)

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Once Read - Are You Willing To Leave A Review?(required)

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Are You Willing To Help Promote The Book? For Ex: Tweet a link to the book, or Post it on Facebook or Tumblr, etc...(required)

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Warning

Warning.

Sylum Blog: 1000th Post

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Sylum Blog – 1000th Post

 

So this will be the Blog’s 1000th Post!   I’m not sure yet if I should be horrified or not!!

1000 Posts.

1000!!

(EDIT: It’s now officially the 1001st … but hey the sentiment is there!)

Advent is likely the biggest contributor to the Blog Posts 🙂

And now for some interesting facts:

Subscribers: 702

First Post: July 29, 2012

Most Posts in a Month: 38 (December 2015)

Most Visitors in a Day: 741 (December 5th 2015)

Total Comments Made: 3525

Home Page has been viewed: 86,628

Top Page: Sylum Events & Sylum Adoption Center – 1325 Views

Top Posts: Coffee House Friday – 1122 Views

Most used search term to bring guest to the blog: coffee

Most interesting term search to bring guest to the blog: what+goes+on+inside+of+sylum+manor+new+orleans

Google Searches led to Sylum Blog: 6258

Most links referred from Sylum Blog (basically links people on the blog clicked):

4215 – sylumclan.com (Variations of links w/in the main website)

665 – Security Yahoo Group

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I have to admit finding some of this information has been fascinating, there’s something about stats and figures that make things fun and interesting.

So basically it’s been 5 Years since the blog started.

1000 Posts later.

I still have no idea what Bob is up to half the time!!

 

 

 

 

 

A Note from Bj Jones

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I had tried to get this attached to the Sylum Update Post, but technology failed and worked all the same time.  So the original Post went out to email and Social Media, but didn’t add the new part.   But the blog posted the new part.  Seriously I don’t know.  I think even the technology is having a WTF moment today.

So now I’m adding this as a separate post.

It likely needs to be one.

I’m pretty sure we’re all in shock this morning.   Many of us don’t know where to go or how to handle what the fuck just happened.  I don’t normally get political and I’m not actually going to now, but I wanted to take a moment to say a few things.

Sylum isn’t going to go away.

If there is a moment in time when Sylum is need.  It is now.

I can’t do anything to change what has happened, but I can make a welcoming place for all.

Sylum has always been about family.  Everyone on this blog is family.  You are welcome here.

I will continue writing Sylum.  I will continuing making a world we’re we can hope and dream in.

Today of all days I wish there was a Sylum Clan.  Wish for a Nicolaus Meridius.  Wish for Jed Bartlett.  For a Pius XVII.  For Ernesto.  And I think we all could use Ezio right about now.

But if all I can give you is a place of safety, security, and something to make you smile and your day hopefully a bit brighter.

That is what I’ll do.

So in Conclusion.

Sylum is Here.  We’re here to stay.

Advent is around the corner and we have a fun idea brewing for it.

Sincerely,

Bj Jones

Sylum Update: Clarification … Please Read

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Sylum Update

 

We’ve gotten some questions concerning 10th Anniversary Clan War … basically – how many more chapters?  And when will it be done?

We figured it would be easiest to post an update of where we’re at in the Grand Scheme of Sylum.

Lets be honest.

It will be done when it’s done.

Sylum as much as it feels like a full time job – isn’t actually our job.  There are moments in RL that nothing for Sylum gets done, because of work, family and social commitments.  We work hard on Sylum, but there is only so much we can work on.

Speaking of – Sylum Advent is bearing down on us, which is taking a HUGE portion of our time.

The 10th Anniversary Edition of Clan War is being worked on and it’s getting done – at this moment the chapter Clan War (not to be too confusing :D) is about 3/4 finished.   We hit a plot wall half way through it, which led to the previously announced canon changes.

Which led to edits – a time suck of epic proportions.

Family and Evolution both ended up with rough edits … just enough to update the series concerning the major canon changes mentioned. Specifically – Sam Winchester having the soul of Theo instead of Meridia.

When we finish Clan War *sends prayers up to Saint Roberto – Patron Saint of Plot Bunnies* we will fully edit Family and Evolution, along with Side Stories that will need to come inline with changes made in Clan War and the Wiki.

Do not worry.  We’ll posts announcements when we finish editing any story.  Dudes there will likely be fireworks, parties, and alcohol  involved with each successful update!

As for how many chapters are left in Clan War … normally I would point out how many chapters there were in the Original.  But with the way Bob has been working – I can say this:  as previously stated Clan War is 3/4 finished, Aftermath is the next chapter … These are guaranteed to be part of Clan War.   The rest will play out as we go.  Bob is and will always be an evil bastard.

Before the screeching begins.  No we’re not taking out Nick’s ‘Grave Danger’ moment … it’s likely to become it’s own story.  Why? Because if you noticed in the CSI Anthology series and what’s been published so far with 10th Anniversary Edition – there are a lot more connections and vampires running around Vegas … which will make that particular story more complicated.

So in conclusion.

Thank You for your continued support and sticking with us.

Please be patient with us as we can only do one thing at a time.

It will get done.

It will dammit!

As there is so much more to come.

In the meantime hold on to your hats and glasses cause wait till you see what’s coming for Advent!

The General

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*moved post script to separate post

Happy Birthday to the General

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So today is my Birthday!

*tosses confetti*

I’m not going to mention years, though if you subtract 2016 from 432 …. you’ll get an estimate!

What do I want for my birthday?  Besides World Peace, Sylum Manor, and a really really good Flat White?

I would like to hit 100 sales from my book, right now I’m at 58.  That means I need 42 more sales.

There are 701 of you on this blog.

You’re here because you found Sylum at some point and went oohh I like that, lets see what happens next.   Some of you are new and have wandered in via POI Afternoon Fic and probably wondering what you stumbled into!

Help a General out on their Birthday!

Buy my book.   It’s a novella and it’s only 99 cents.  I would love to hit 100 sales by the end of the year.

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Conversations in Real Time by Nicholas J. Finch

Beginning with a series of emails sent back and forth between the UK and the USA, this novella is the story of how two men, one a Los Angeles detective and the other an Oxford research student, find themselves drawn to each other despite leading very different lives on opposite sides of the world.

Their relationship starts with a professional offer of assistance and through instant messaging, texting and phone calls they invade each others’ lonely and yet busy days, learning about themselves and slowly falling in love as they discover they both need something from the other until they finally get a meeting face to face and can get up close and personal.

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Format: Epub, Mobi, PDF, Ibook … etc

Price: .99 cents

Where:

Barnes & Noble

Kobo

Itunes/Ibooks

Smashwords (If you have Kindle and need Mobi Format, you can get it at Smashwords)

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For those who’ve bought the book.  Thank You!  So what can you get the General for their birthday?? Leave a Review at the following places, even if it’s just giving it a star rating.  I’m trying to generate interest, and the more reviews the better.

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And for my gift to you … a small snippet of a Timestamp I’m working on for Advent!

 

 

As dawn approached, siblings Jacob and Evy Frye made their way across the last of the rooftops, towards their home. They were tired, worn out, drained, and exhausted. They had been chasing down a small group of Rogues, who had decided it would be bloody fun to Feed on teenagers and leave their bodies in back allies.

After the third body, the press whipped the locals into a frenzy declaring the death’s to be ‘Ripper’ style murders, which instantly got Abberline’s attention. Once it was realized that the victim’s blood had been drained from their bodies, with no visible mark, the press went overdrive and started calling the potential killer ‘Dracula’.

Neither situation was good, and no one wanted Ripper in London.

With the MacManus’s occupied at Saint Michael’s Mount, Abberline approached the other set of twins. If there was anyone, who knew London, it was them. He gave them the information, and figured it was best that they dealt with the situation, instead of the local bobbies getting in over their head.

Jake really didn’t have much faith in the local police. It didn’t matter what time period, most were corrupt bastards, especially in the East End. If they weren’t corrupt, they were too few of them to make a difference.

They hunted the bastards down for three days.

Relentlessly.

Until every single one of them was a pile of dust, swept away by the dustman as they picked up the garbage.

By the time they headed back to their home, the adrenaline was dropping, the aches were settling in, and neither were fully awake.

Jake’s landing onto the street blow, may have been a bit off.   Actually he landed perfectly, an trained Assassin, especially one who had their assed kicked by Nicolaus and Altair at one point in time, could land perfectly with one knee down, hand on ground in their sleep. Jake just kinda tilted slightly.

Evy landed behind him, a bit more graceful. She kicked his ass, sending him into the gutter, chuckling as she stepped over him, barely avoiding tripping herself and entered the building.

“Fuck you, woman.” Jake pushed himself off the ground, and followed her inside. They dragged themselves up the stairs, and into their loft.

Gear. Clothes. Weapons.

All landed on the floor, a direct path to their individual bedrooms. Jake’s top hat landed on the lamp, on the nightstand just as he face-planted into his bed. A small part of his brain thought he should take shower, but he had no energy left to even contemplate it.

Just as his eyes shut, and he was on the verge of blessed sleep …

A high pierced alarm shot through his head, waking him up.

New Fic by Bj Jones: Dissociation

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New Fanfic by Bj Jones

This is a quick announcement that there is a new Person of Interest Story in The General’s Office – click on the Fanfic Banner.

Fic: Dissociation
Summary: John’s eyes drifted closed, taking Harold’s promise with him.  His last thoughts were if this was a simulation may he never wake up from it.

While you’re there you might want to check out other POI Stories: Dragons of Interest and Desperation.

 

From the General’s Desk

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This my desk at the moment.

Besides working on Sylum, I’ve started research on the next book.

At the moment I have a 100 page outline.   It wasn’t the story I was actually planning on doing next!!

The next idea was an Anthology of stories, but this one kind of popped up and said – Hello.

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I’ve got a lot of research to do.   There’s a big difference between ‘what you think you know they do’ vs ‘what they actually do’.  So, need to start pulling together reading material, websites, books, basically anything I can get my hands on.

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Now that I’m starting on this new endeavor I’m going to work on posting updates, research, and even teasers over the course of this new adventure.

What is this new book?  Well I can give you the title:

The President and The Suit

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If you want to read my first book  Conversations in Real Time  you can find it here:

Barnes & Noble

Kobo

Itunes/Ibooks

Smashwords (Note: For those who have Kindle – you can find Mobi Format at Smashwords)

For those who have bought and read the book, please leave a review at where you bought it.  This would be helpful to spread the word and get others to buy it.

Again – the support you guys have given as been great, and hopefully you’ll keep following me on this endeavor!!

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You can follow Nicholas J. Finch on Facebook or Tumblr

Sylum Manor: The Garages

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Sylum Garage

 

There are four garages at the Sylum Manor.  Filled with vehicles that are used by the Manor, individual cars for various Clan Members, and historical ones that have been restored over the years.

The above picture is Nico with his GTO.

Below is Tony’s Stingray and Speed’s Shelby.

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Sylum Manor Stables

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The Sylum Manor Stables has room for twenty horses.

Though over the years horses have come and gone, there is always a certain set of horses that will always have a home in the stables

This is Honey.

She’s a Palomino Quarter Horse, and belongs to James Hickok.

Jimmy always has a Palomino, always and usually a Quarter, and they are always named blonde, honey, sugar, brandy … something sweet and lightly colored.

Sylum: Social Media

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Sylum: Social Media

 

With the recent problems with the Blog not sending out notifications or publicizing posts to the social media accounts we do have, I figured it was a good time to remind people of that we do have some presence on Social Media.

Sylum Twitter: To keep up to date on posts, new items for the Sylum Vault, and random thoughts from the Sylum Creators follow us Twitter.  If you have a twitter account it would be a good idea to follow – it’s here I’ll make posts about maintenance for the blog or updates when things go wrong.

Sylum Tumblr:  It’s not really Sylum, it’s my personal tumblr.  But if you want fun posts showcasing fandoms from Sylum or photos of Sylum Locations or snippets of stories I’m working on … even sneak peeks of upcoming Sylum stories.

Sylum Vault Tumblr:  It’s where we post our inspiration and showcase collections on the vault.

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Nicholas J. Finch Tumblr:  This is still a work in progress I have to admit.  But I’ll be posting more updates about my next book, inspiration, and randomness.  You can also find links to where my books are being sold.

Nicholas J. Finch Facebook: Also a work in progress, at the moment what gets posted on the Tumblr goes to the Facebook as I work out how to utilize it the most.  So if you have a Facebook, you can follow what I’m working on there.

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This would likely be your one and only time to suggest other Social Media options or ideas.  What platform would like to see Sylum on?  What would you like to see beyond the Blog & Twitter?

Sylum Recap: What’s Been Happening This Past Week!

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Maintenance/Plug-in From Hell

 

Since last Thursday, after one of our plug-ins was updated, all notifications stopped.  Subscribers weren’t getting emails, and posts weren’t being sent to Twitter or Tumblr.

Nothing.  Natta.  Zippo.

I started personally posting it to Twitter & Tumblr hoping that would help, while researching and waiting to see what the problem was.  Come to find out the Developers of that plug-in were on vacation and wasn’t back until this Monday.

So I waited.

Waited.

*checks watch*

Posts still not going through, start noticing the message boards going crazy with the same problem.  Finally get enough info to send it to the developers directly.

So I waited.

Waited.

*checks watch*

Yeah that kinda week.

Anyway, long story short (too late) they finally got back to me and said oh it’s because the plug-in is timing out.  It times out if your website doesn’t respond in 5 seconds, you need to talk to your hosting company as it takes 20 seconds for your site to come up.

Me: Bullshit, my hosting server has always been slow it wasn’t until you updated this shit started happening.   And points to message boards I’m not the only one … you upgraded when didn’t really need to and broke something and instead of rolling it back or finding a solution you’re blaming ‘internet speed’ … yeah fuck you.

So I did what I normally do figure this out on my own.   In the end I cleared at Cache’s, got rid of the Forums … no one was using it .. and if you’re sitting there going ‘what forums?’ my point was made!  Then … wait for it.  I deactivated the plug-in counted to ten and plugged back in.  I’m not kidding.

It worked.

Well I’m hoping it truly worked we’ll see if this post gets sent out publicly.  Sends quick prayer to St. Isadore of Seville!  Note if you do get this via email, click via tumblr or twitter … leave a reply just so I know it’s working again.

A Few Things:

The ability to Like a post has been taken off, cause it doesn’t want to play with others.

As stated the Forums are gone.  I’m hoping we can get more discussions going in the RP and Coffee House Fridays.

What You’ve Missed:

As no one was getting emails and it wasn’t being publicized here’s a few highlights of Posts you may have missed:

Throwback Thursday: Demons & Angels by Timothy Quinn

Due to the recent Sylum headcanon changes concerning Sam Winchester now being Theo … no longer Meridia … both these stories needed to be looked at.  They were already on the ‘need to look at’ list considering changes in Canon from the 10th Anniversary Clan War Edition.

Secondary Note: Roads Untraveled is being worked on at the moment

Sylum: Quiet on the Set

You get to choose one scene from the Sylum Universe to be filmed.

Which scene would you choose?

Sylum Advent 2016: Check In

If you’re working on a story or artwork let me know how it’s going!!

Throwback Thursday: The Black Queen by Gil Grissom

Hotchner and his team go to Seattle to recruit a hacker and Aaron gets far more than he bargained for.

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Please for the love of my sanity – let this work!

Sylum Maintenance: Test

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We’re having issues with getting things sent via email or posted to Twitter/Tumblr.

We’re going to be digging around in the wires, pulling things and plugging it back in.

So if things blip that would be why!