Sunday, May 5, 2024

They Eyes Have It! Simon Bishop

 For a long time I've been writing a story called The Dream Stealer. It became so entailed that I was thrown off and it didn't help that each year I was doing NaNoWriMo with a new story. Once I stopped doing NaNo, I was able to better focus but I also had several drafts of very good work to constantly snag my attention. But The Dream Stealer is still something I'm very attached to, honestly, I think I fell in love with the main character, Simon Bishop. 

Over the years, I had this image of Simon and even searched through images online to find someone even remotely like him. Toby Stevens one of the people that strongly resembled him. Unfortunately, he's too fair. Simon is dark haired and his skin tones are less pink. The resemblance to the image in my head is close but no cigar.

Recently, I was researching some things regarding AI and ran across a site that would create an image for you. So, since I knew what he looked like and there was a box to describe him, I decided to see what AI could make of it. I wasn't completely disappointed. 

Simon Bishop: The Dream Stealer
& Where Dreams Begin
This would be the closest I think I can get to the main character of Simon. The only thing is the eyes are the wrong color. I mean dramatically wrong. Simon has sapphire blue eyes. 

👈🏼 I rather like the image to the left. The image below would be the right color eyes but the hair is all wrong.  

However, those sapphire eyes are the trait that sets him apart. 

Then, there are the other images I've rounded up. They're equally good. Similar in type, I think, but I don't really want the facial hair shown in the #4. 

They're also a bit younger or I'm old and they look like kids. That's probably it. 

In the Dream Stealer, Simon is around 40. He has a grown child. So this third handsome gent would be a younger version of Simon. 

And the  final version is below. He's a bit older because I ask it to age it a bit but I don't think AI has quite got the hang of it. Or I really am old. 

Still, these all bear striking resemblance to the Simon in my head. The first and third ones are the closest to what I see.

 But the eyes in the second and 4th are closest to Simon's eyes, with #3 being nearest. 









And then there are the non-contenders AI tossed at me. I've put them below. Not that they're terrible, but they don't strike a cord in my head. The middle guy, that's actually the eyes. But he scares me! LOL













Thursday, April 18, 2024

How It Goes

The struggle is real. I managed to work a few hours this week on The Long Summer Run. It just hit me that I wanted ... no needed to write. I have so many ideas that run through my head and have not even felt the urge. I've been sick for months with some sort of respiratory issue and my RA has really not been behaving well. 

I suspect the inflammation has been so high because of the compound issues. I've been on antibiotics and steroids within a single month. It took that long for the sinus infection to clear up, at least the worst of it. I am still having issues with drainage that cause coughing fits. I get embarrassed to go out. Today, I'm revisiting my RA doctor to see if we can get this mess to back off.

However, I had a sudden urge to write. So I did. I worked for several hours. The plan was to come back the next day. Unfortunately, plumbing issues arose and Sarah started her job and school. Sarah is my 17yr old granddaughter who has returned home to live with me after several years away. If you read my other blogs, or are on my Facebook page, you'll have run into references of her growing up. 

Anyway, with all this going on, I didn't get back to the novel. 

(✿◡‿◡)

And as of today, 14 days have passed. Yep. That's how it goes. I didn't get back to the novel. My doctor did nothing but tell me she was retiring. And I'm still struggling with pain, fatigue, and the congestion problems. 

However, last night that urge reappeared, and I worked for a bit on a segment of The Dream Stealer. I don't know why I bother with anything. Something else always interferes. And I know that we're supposed to prioritize our writing. Unfortunately, when you have doctor's appointments, children to get where they need to go, family who also rely on your help, church, running your legs off to find supplies because these days it seems there's not enough of the necessities at any one store. Anyway, by the end of the day, I'm wiped out. Fibromyalgia is a hag.

I enjoyed writing and today I woke with a better mindset and took the time available and do it. And I promptly began working on something for one of my blogs and got distracted searching for information I needed. 

ㄟ( ▔, ▔ )ㄏ

That folks, is the story of my life. When I realized I was caught in a spiral, I shut down the browser for everything but this post. I've got too many irons in the writing inferno. Three blogs, all different. I've considered consolidating a couple, but there are problems with that idea. So I plod along.

For now, I'm going to end here because, let's face it, it is two weeks overdue! I wish you a beautiful day, a wonderful weekend, and many blessings. 

Write any way, anywhere, anytime you are able. 

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