And now for action!

You heard me

Mike ruminates on what’s to be done next.

A few years ago I discovered an entire community of YouTubers pushing back against message fiction in movies, television, and comics. They criticized the deplorable storytelling, lack of positive characterization, and total destruction of once loved franchises.

At first this discovery left me excited. I realized I wasn’t alone! The pendulum finally started to swing in my direction. Unfortunately, after about six weeks I turned off my subscriptions to many of these channels. Mostly because I knew exactly what they were all going to say about the state of popular culture the next week: “It sucks!”

I’m not opposed to YouTubers monetizing their disdain for the corruption of what used to be great brands. It just wasn’t enough for me to sit around complaining that everything sucked all the time. I realized I needed to get my hands out of my pockets and do something.

But what to do? How do I impact the world about me? Would it make a difference?

Hat tip, Lee Allred.

In my twenty-six years in the Marine Corps I often remarked to my younger Marines not to become too frustrated with the “Corps” as it was an impersonal institutional beast that often did not live up to the idealized notion of what it should be. In boot camp, my senior drill instructor even warned me, “Be careful, not everyone has bought in to the band of brothers BS.” However, I always reminded my Marines that each of them had a sphere of influence in which they could make the Corps what it should be. Some of us had a greater sphere than others, but we each had a place where we could make an impact.

(An aside from Chris, “I learned along the way that it’s good to love the Air Force, but never, ever fall IN LOVE WITH the Air Force.”)

Remembering that later, I realized this still held true. That’s when I became truly serious about writing.

Now, two or three years later and I’m an author and editor with Raconteur Press. I’ve some seventeen short stories published and one children’s book! Once, Larry Correia even bought me a sandwich!

During that time, I’ve seen several articles and posts bemoaning the state of the industry. “Target’s shelves carry no men’s fiction! There’s a dearth of boy’s adventure reading! No one’s telling great stories like they did in the good ol’ days!”

The thing is, yes there are, and not just Raconteur Press. Indie authors like M.C.A. Hogarth have taken on giants like Games Workshop and given us back our space marines. Others, like David Badurina, are the very definition of a rising tide author. Jumpmaster Press, Cannon Publishing, 3 Ravens, Pilum Press, Mistcreek Publishing, Cirsova, DMR Books, are all breaking their backs to bring good stories to light. Not to mention the likes of Larry Correia and Rick Partlow who have been in the trenches for decades. All of these have identified the problem and are taking action.

“If the problem you're facing can be solved with action, then you don't have a problem.” ~ Mel Robbins

It’s time to stop admiring the problem and get busy. If you, like me, want to impact the culture, do something. Take a risk on an indie author or a small publisher and talk about it. It really doesn’t matter who. Type up your own bit of short fiction and submit it. We are out there! It’s time to take a stand.

We all remember fondly the stories of our youth. They often set the course for the rest of our lives. If you long for the days of high adventure, where the good guys defied the forces of evil, where heroes firmly placed themselves between the hazard and the helpless, then it’s time to come home.

We’re here. It’s time to come home. Take a stand with Raconteur Press.