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In this this week’s episode, I touch on a few updates - The newest episode of The Thirteenth Hour universe expansion rpg using the homebrew DnD system my brother and I are testing is out.  In it, Capital City detective Lester Lefoe and his sidekick, Claudia, prepare to leave for a diplomatic mission for a Tartec territory with not-so-great relations with King Darian IV's country.  We test out the battle system and finish off on a cliffhanger with a large sea creature about to ?attack their boat. A sketch (unfinished) of Lester getting whacked by a sparring dummy.   And this is the creature we will find out more about in episode 3 ... Watch part 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_3ep80UBNE&t=5595s And here is part 2: https://youtu.be/m2L-KTwDrTs?si=W5lTLOfrWS1KlYPw I have also been working on figures for some of the characters for the sequels.  I found the perfect figure for Rigg Hassen, the Aulurwen soldier that is sent to capture or kill Logan (but doesn't).  He is in all black and almost exactly how I originally pictured/drew him.  Even the facial expression is pretty close! https://13thhr.wpcomstaging.com/2026/11/09/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-587-the-case-of-the-troubled-territory-part-2-and-thirteenth-hour-action-figure-updates/ This is another find of a 1:18 scale highly articulated figure (I think maybe from Gundam Wing) that would be great for customization. This GI Joe Lady Jaye figure is similar in size and also would be good for Aurora, with some changes. I ended up swapping the legs since I think the one of the left will work better for Logan and the one on the right, Aurora. More next week! ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Once Upon a Dream, the second Thirteenth Hour soundtrack, is now out in digital form!   It is out on most major streaming services such as Bandcamp, Spotify, and YouTube Music.  (If you have no preference, I recommend Bandcamp since there is a bonus track there and you will eventually be able to find tapes, CDs, and special editions of the album there as well.) -Check out the pixelart music videos that are out so far from the album: -->Logan's Sunrise Workout: www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7SM1RgsLiM -->Forward: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9VgILr1TDc -->Nightsky Stargazing: www.youtube.com/watch?v=2S0p3jKRTBo -->Aurora's Rainy Day Mix: https://youtu.be/zwqPmypBysk ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞  Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at Thirteenth Hour Arts on Patreon or adding to my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Join the Thirteenth Hour Arts Group over on Facebook, a growing community of creative people.Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify,  iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify.  Join the mailing list for a digital free copy.  You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book?  Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

This week’s episode touches on something that travel writers inherently know - in order to mentally transport a reader to a different place, you have to include descriptions of the culture, food, smells, sounds, and sights of the locale you want them to imagine.  If they have never been there before, your words may be their first introduction and the very thing that may convince them that they want to travel there in real life.  In a way, fantasy writers are essentially travel writers - it's just that the locale a fantasy writer is describing doesn't actually exist in real life.  One way to sell that it does, however, even if it's just in the world of one's imagination, is to include things we see in our world - different cultures, different accents, different languages, different foods, and different customs that incite curiosity and perhaps put up roadblocks the characters have to work around.  As long as it helps advance the plot or deepen the depiction of the characters, I'd say, have fun creating your world!  It's basically the imaginary sandbox you have created for your characters to play in.  What kind of play session do you want to give them?  A lot of that will depend largely on the toys you provide.  It doesn't have to make sense in our world.  It just has to make in yours! I did the picture below on a plane, actually.  It shows Aurora and her grandfather, her one ally in the new world she finds herself in.  They are in his study, and he is showing her (with the aide of an enchanted set of calipers) where they currently are in relation to where her home was - 5,619 miles away!  It's no wonder she has a dismayed look on her face as she imagines how will she ever possibly get back home from this land where so much is different.   https://13thhr.wpcomstaging.com/2026/11/02/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-586-thirteenth-hour-sequel-update-29-wordbuilding-in-fantasy-by-adding-some-travel-realism-from-our-world/ More next week! ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Once Upon a Dream, the second Thirteenth Hour soundtrack, is now out in digital form!   It is out on most major streaming services such as Bandcamp, Spotify, and YouTube Music.  (If you have no preference, I recommend Bandcamp since there is a bonus track there and you will eventually be able to find tapes, CDs, and special editions of the album there as well.) -Check out the pixelart music videos that are out so far from the album: -->Logan's Sunrise Workout: www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7SM1RgsLiM -->Forward: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9VgILr1TDc -->Nightsky Stargazing: www.youtube.com/watch?v=2S0p3jKRTBo -->Aurora's Rainy Day Mix: https://youtu.be/zwqPmypBysk ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞  Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at Thirteenth Hour Arts on Patreon or adding to my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Join the Thirteenth Hour Arts Group over on Facebook, a growing community of creative people.Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify,  iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify.  Join the mailing list for a digital free copy.  You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book?  Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

In this week's episode, I talk about a bit of lore I came up with years ago for the section of The Thirteenth Hour sequel I'm only now just writing.   It concerns a children's fairy tale called "The Tale of the Rainbow Rider and the Midnight Phoenix," about how two mysterious creatures (birds, maybe?) end up joining forces.  The midnight phoenix comes out at night and is surrounded by fire; the rainbow rider lives in the day and leaves a rainbow trail behind it, and together, they bring hope and safety to a land ravaged by war and poverty.  Logan and Aurora, the star-crossed lovers separated by circumstance in the sequel, end up adopting those very roles (Logan, the rainbow rider since he rides on a magical hoverboard that produces rainbow exhaust and Aurora, the midnight phoenix after she unwittingly saves a citizen with magical fire and then vanishes in the night).  I actually wrote musical pieces to go along with these ideas years ago:  https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/track/mourn-of-the-midnight-phoenix https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/track/there-is-magic-inside The upshot of all this is that I'm finally knitting together ideas that emerged in fragments years ago.  For me, the music, pictures, and so forth have been all ways of developing the story. I am curious how other authors keep track of their ideas.  Do you write things down?  Draw graphs?  Make one of those bulletin boards with pins and string connecting the different pieces that they always show serial killers using on TV?   More next week! ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Once Upon a Dream, the second Thirteenth Hour soundtrack, is now out in digital form!   It is out on most major streaming services such as Bandcamp, Spotify, and YouTube Music.  (If you have no preference, I recommend Bandcamp since there is a bonus track there and you will eventually be able to find tapes, CDs, and special editions of the album there as well.) -Check out the pixelart music videos that are out so far from the album: -->Logan's Sunrise Workout: www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7SM1RgsLiM -->Forward: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9VgILr1TDc -->Nightsky Stargazing: www.youtube.com/watch?v=2S0p3jKRTBo -->Aurora's Rainy Day Mix: https://youtu.be/zwqPmypBysk ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞  Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at Thirteenth Hour Arts on Patreon or adding to my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Join the Thirteenth Hour Arts Group over on Facebook, a growing community of creative people.Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify,  iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify.  Join the mailing list for a digital free copy.  You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book?  Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

This week’s episode builds on last week's episode where I talk about a character called Captain Rigg Hassen, of the Aulurwen military, who was tasked to find and either capture or eliminate Logan and his party by the people who captured Aurora and brought her back to the country of Aulurwen.  So I initially intended him to be "the bad guy" and then last week, I was thinking he should go from bad guy to samurai-like warrior about to commit hara kiri to, this week, someone who not only lives and is able to make a life for himself but someone who helps advance the plot by helping Logan and his party get access to the country where Aurora was taken.  I figured - why kill him off and make for a sad scene when it could be a hopeful one instead?   A partially finished illustration showing the Wayfarer, Captain Hassen, and Haylee: https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2026/10/19/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-584-thirteenth-hour-sequel-update-27-course-changes-in-editing/ More next week! ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Once Upon a Dream, the second Thirteenth Hour soundtrack, is now out in digital form!   It is out on most major streaming services such as Bandcamp, Spotify, and YouTube Music.  (If you have no preference, I recommend Bandcamp since there is a bonus track there and you will eventually be able to find tapes, CDs, and special editions of the album there as well.) -Check out the pixelart music videos that are out so far from the album: -->Logan's Sunrise Workout: www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7SM1RgsLiM -->Forward: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9VgILr1TDc -->Nightsky Stargazing: www.youtube.com/watch?v=2S0p3jKRTBo -->Aurora's Rainy Day Mix: https://youtu.be/zwqPmypBysk ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞  Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at Thirteenth Hour Arts on Patreon or adding to my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Join the Thirteenth Hour Arts Group over on Facebook, a growing community of creative people.Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify,  iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify.  Join the mailing list for a digital free copy.  You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book?  Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

This week’s episode was inspired by the weather at the time I was recording this episode - kind of cold and wet. In those situations, if you are outside, especially in a larger group, it can grate on people’s nerves. So this episode is about one of the underlying themes in Logan's part in The Thirteenth Hour sequel - group dynamics - and some of the factors that cause a group to coalesce together.  Logan becomes the leader of the small party that goes in search of Aurora, a role he probably would not have chosen if he had any other choice but one he comes to accept when he finds himself in the position. An illustration showing Logan’s party on the road: https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2026/10/12/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-583-thirteenth-hour-sequel-update-26-group-dynamics-in-the-thirteenth-hour-books/ More next week! ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Once Upon a Dream, the second Thirteenth Hour soundtrack, is now out in digital form!   It is out on most major streaming services such as Bandcamp, Spotify, and YouTube Music.  (If you have no preference, I recommend Bandcamp since there is a bonus track there and you will eventually be able to find tapes, CDs, and special editions of the album there as well.) -Check out the pixelart music videos that are out so far from the album: -->Logan's Sunrise Workout: www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7SM1RgsLiM -->Forward: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9VgILr1TDc -->Nightsky Stargazing: www.youtube.com/watch?v=2S0p3jKRTBo -->Aurora's Rainy Day Mix: https://youtu.be/zwqPmypBysk ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞  Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at Thirteenth Hour Arts on Patreon or adding to my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Join the Thirteenth Hour Arts Group over on Facebook, a growing community of creative people.Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify,  iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify.  Join the mailing list for a digital free copy.  You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book?  Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

This week's episode is a follow up to last week's since my brother and I started a new Thirteenth Hour DnD campaign using the rules of the Infinite Stories system Jeremy created (detailed in episode 551), and I wanted to also include those adventures in the timeline since they take place in the nebulous time frame between the events of The Thirteenth Hour and the sequel.  That said, as more events start to fill that period, it starts to get less nebulous! -After the events of The Thirteenth Hour, when Logan and Aurora leave the Capital City of their country, Tartec, for the island later discussed more in the sequel, we actually learn more about the Capital City itself as well as some new protagonists, detective Lester LeFoe and his assistant, Claudia Copperhoof, who are involved with The Case of the Almost Assassination (saving King Darian IV from a would be assassin, events that are actually referenced in the short story, Falling Leaves Don't Weep.  -Some time after this, we are introduced to the character of the half-elf freedom fighter, the Wayfarer, who features heavily in the sequel.  His story nearly ends when he takes on King Darian IV's army, but in events not explained until the sequel, he does not exactly die, but rather escapes and finds his way eventually to the island where Logan and Aurora now reside, as that island is a haven for half elves.    This story is detailed in The Wayfarer's Escape Parts 1, 2, and 3. -Before the Wayfarer actually gets to the safety of said island, however, he ends up in dungeon crawl territory, detailed in episodes 418 and 419, The Wayfarer's Dungeon Crawl.   -Around this time, Lester and Claudia take us back to Aquaria, the sleepy village that Logan and Aurora grow up in.  The ghost of Mrs. Hortense Brunscomb, a character mentioned briefly in The Thirteenth Hour, and the woman who essentially raised Logan and Aurora, comes back from the afterlife to try to make things right in the orphanage she ran for so long.  This is told in The Case of the Grandmotherly Ghost.  -Not long after, we meet the grizzled character of Axel, one of the Imperial Explorers, when he sets out on a series of adventures to remote corners of Tartec to investigate strange happenings involving otherworldly creatures.  Those stories are detailed in a woodland adventure (episodes 467 and 468) and a trip to the frigid northern Tartec territories in a two part adventure called, Into the Rift (episodes 531 and 532). -After Axel returns from his last adventure, we return back to the going-on of Lester and Claudia, in The Case of the Troubled Territory.  This is the adventure we most recently started, which, in the world of The Thirteenth Hour, takes place about a year and a half after the events of Lester and Claudia's last big adventure, The Case of the Grandmotherly Ghost (in in real-life years, it has been almost 8 years!)  Axel, the Imperial Ranger Esmerelda Millicent, William the Wizard, Wander the Wizard, King Darian IV, and a number of other characters from previous adventures return.  It was a lot of fun to revisit these characters, kind of like catching up with old friends, and I'm very lucky to have a brother who takes such an interest this world that mostly occupies a lot of rent-free space in my noggin!  Jeremy recorded the playthrough, and it's available on Youtube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_3ep80UBNE&t=725s&pp=0gcJCS4MAYcqIYzv -I imagined that the main events of Dare, The Thirteenth Hour sequel, would begin some years after all this, as they take place about ten years after The Thirteenth Hour ends.  More next week! ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞  Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at Thirteenth Hour Arts on Patreon or adding to my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Join the Thirteenth Hour Arts Group over on Facebook, a growing community of creative people.

This week's episode is trying to create a timeline of events in The Thirteenth Hour since the sequel takes place about ten years after the events in the first book.  I wanted to make sure the events were as consistent as possible.  So I went back and tried to reconstruct a timeline based on the dates and seasons that I did include.  Here's what I found: -At the start of The Thirteenth Hour, in January, there is military recruitment sign calling for males over 18.  Logan is 17 then, but in the spring he'll be 18. -Mid to late March = Logan’s birthday -In June, the recruiter comes, and Logan leaves the Aquarian orphanage.  Aurora, two years older, is about 20.  -Logan's basic training is a month -Basic training finishes in July, and since Logan saves Wally the wizard, he is picked to be an Imperial Ranger.  He reluctantly accepts, starting about a year and change of Imperial Ranger training.  King Darian IV wanted the Rangers to be trained in under a year, but it takes about 1.5 due to delays, additional training, and practice missions. -Logan finishes his Ranger at age ~19.5.  He starts the quest in January with the new year. -It takes four months to sail up the Blue River, meaning by the time his ship is attacked, the rest of the crew is lost, and he is gifted Lightning, it is May,  He is now age 20. -He and Aurora find each other again in the razed town of Cordel - it is May.  It is northern enough that there is still snow on the ground.  Logan is 20; Aurora around 22. -The rest of the quest and the delay caused by Klax’s imprisonment takes almost a year.  Logan and Aurora do not come back to the Capital City until the following April (he is age 21; Aurora is around 23).    -Logan and Aurora stay in the Capital city x 2 months until June, making preparations in secret as they scout out the location of the island of their (literal) dreams.  They leave for their island at King Darian IV's eternal life celebration but make a detour first to get married in Fairy Country. -The book ends with them having partially built their house as the weather is getting colder, meaning they got to the island that summer, found a place to make their home, and worked on it all the summer and into the fall, hoping to finish much of it prior to winter setting in.   At this time, Logan is 21, Aurora 23. -The events of the early part of Dare occur in the intervening years, about ten years time.  A lot of the events occurring during that time is told through flashbacks and memories.  When the events of Dare begin in full, Aurora is 33, and Logan has just turned 31.  There is a snow that occurs in late spring on their island, and I was thinking this would be just after his birthday.  -Logan organizes a small party to find Aurora after she is kidnapped by her family that spring, and much of the events of the book take place as he tries to find her over the course of that summer and fall.  I imagined that the events of Dare would take place over about a year. More next week! ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞  Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at Thirteenth Hour Arts on Patreon or adding to my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Join the Thirteenth Hour Arts Group over on Facebook, a growing community of creative people. More: https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2026/09/28/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-581-thirteenth-hour-sequel-update-24-working-on-a-thirteenth-hour-timeline/

On this week’s show, we’re taking a little departure from sculpting, 80s movies, and sequel writing to go back to a topic I’ve talked about on here before (eps 450, 456)- exercise, specifically creating a solo training exercise plan that you can do in a few minutes a day.   This episode serves as a summary for folks who attended Whistlekick’s Free Training Day MidAtlantic on 9/19/26.  But even if you weren’t at the event and/or don’t do martial arts, this topic may still be of interest, as many people want to exercise but are not sure how or where to find the time.   A number of years ago, I realized that I’d been working in a job that required large amounts of sitting at a desk and in the car.  Even though I was still working out afterwards and on weekends, it was hard to neutralize 8-10 hrs of sitting with few breaks in between.  At the end of the day, I was tired, and my body felt tight.  I lost a significant amount of flexibility, especially in my hips, hamstrings, and lower back.  It was not long before I started racking up muscular injuries, mostly in my upper and lower back, and my body started to hurt all the time, not just after a long day.  I lost about an inch of height as muscle tightness and scarring from the muscle pulls yanked my spine out of alignment.  I knew it was time for a change.  A number of years prior, I’d started doing some martial arts to kick off the day.   But I’d never been a morning person, so I didn't keep it up long term, preferring to do it in the evening instead.  But at the time, Whistlekick's founder, Jeremy Lesniak, was doing a 6:30 AM EST podcast that had a live component, and I wanted to be up for it to participate.  That turned out to be just the right incentive I needed to get up in the AM.  I figured while I was listening, I would exercise.  I didn't want it to be super intense, since I knew I would find excuses to not do it, so I started very low key.  Basic warmup, some stretching, some punches, some kicks, some conditioning ... initially it was probably about ten minutes.  But I felt better after and noticed that unlike other times when I worked out in the morning before, it didn't leave me feeling exhausted.  In contrary, I felt energized.      Fast forward a number of years.  That morning exercise routine is something I do every day.  It takes about 15-20 minutes and is not super intense (my heart rate for most of it is in zone 2, sometimes 3, i.e. moderate exercise).  On days when I can't do anything else, at least I have done that.  I sit a whole less less for extended periods.  If I need to be at the computer, I usually stand.  My body hurts less.  I have regained a lot of the flexibility I lost.  It's helpful enough to me that I even do it when I'm sick.  I can't think of a time when I felt worse off having done it.  So I wanted to share it with you.  Maybe you can do something similar in your own life. There are some different components (in reality, most of these actually fulfill more than one component): 1.) warming up the joints (neck, shoulders, wrists, hips, knees, ankles) 2.)  resistance exercises (e.g. squats, pushups, crunches, etc) 3.) flexibility/suppleness (e.g. static and dynamic stratching)  4.) technique practice (for me, martial arts, though it could be anything - both techniques I want to maintain and ones I do not know well yet) 5.) meditation / visualization (not all things can be done solo, but may be visualized for at least some component of mental practice)   I put many of these ideas in The Thirteenth Hour Workout Deck I made back in 2024.  You can download the sample exercises and print them out here: https://www.patreon.com/13thhr/posts/thirteenth-hour-111697530?utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=postshare_creator&utm_content=join_link More next week! ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2026/09/21/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-580-creating-a-solo-training-regimen-for-yourself/

In this week's episode, I'm making the silicone mold for the new Aurora minifigure and then testing to see if it worked by doing the first few resin casts. Here she is, in a paper cup, about to get siliconed.  I added these sticks to parts I was concerned would not fill.  These sticks will serve as airvents, allowing the air to escape and the resin to replace the air.  I glued the sprues that serve as the vents at the points on the figure that are protruding the most.  To the left you can see a batch of Smooth On Mold Star 30, the epoxy silicone I'm using. There is no way to avoid all the bubbles, but when I pout the silicone over Aurora, I will let it pour from a high height so the air has some time to escape.  Here is the mold after it has cured. Flipped over, the mold will have Aurora's feet in the air - those serve as the pour spouts of the liquid resin, which has a cure time of about 60-90 seconds.  You can see the foot on the right has just cured (solid white) and the one of the left is in the process of curing. Two different resins - on the left, Smooth Cast 57D as semi rigid (flexible) resin that cures translucent and on the right, Smooth Cast 300, a harder, more brittle resin that cures solid and shows details better. Pretty happy with how the fine details came out!  All pictures are here: https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2026/09/14/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-579-making-a-mold-and-resin-casting-the-new-aurora-minifigure-for-dare/ More next week! ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Once Upon a Dream, the second Thirteenth Hour soundtrack, is now out in digital form!   It is out on most major streaming services such as Bandcamp, Spotify, and YouTube Music.  (If you have no preference, I recommend Bandcamp since there is a bonus track there and you will eventually be able to find tapes, CDs, and special editions of the album there as well.) -Check out the pixelart music videos that are out so far from the album: -->Logan's Sunrise Workout: www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7SM1RgsLiM -->Forward: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9VgILr1TDc -->Nightsky Stargazing: www.youtube.com/watch?v=2S0p3jKRTBo -->Aurora's Rainy Day Mix: https://youtu.be/zwqPmypBysk ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞  Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at Thirteenth Hour Arts on Patreon or adding to my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Join the Thirteenth Hour Arts Group over on Facebook, a growing community of creative people.Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify,  iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify.  Join the mailing list for a digital free copy.  You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book?  Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

In this week's episode, I'm experimenting with two substances to make a mini bow for the new minifigure of Aurora in the Thirteenth Hour sequel - Dare.  I have talked about Instamorph before here and made a bow out of that, and on the episode, I am trying out Green Stuff, an epoxy putty that can be used for molds but also small items, like this bow.  I wanted the bow to look like the one in this sketch / watercolor: https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2026/09/07/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-578-working-on-a-bow-the-new-aurora-minifigure-for-dare/ Here is Green Stuff on a template I made: This is what the figure looks like at this point: Next to the two bows: More next week! ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Once Upon a Dream, the second Thirteenth Hour soundtrack, is now out in digital form!   It is out on most major streaming services such as Bandcamp, Spotify, and YouTube Music.  (If you have no preference, I recommend Bandcamp since there is a bonus track there and you will eventually be able to find tapes, CDs, and special editions of the album there as well.) -Check out the pixelart music videos that are out so far from the album: -->Logan's Sunrise Workout: www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7SM1RgsLiM -->Forward: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9VgILr1TDc -->Nightsky Stargazing: www.youtube.com/watch?v=2S0p3jKRTBo -->Aurora's Rainy Day Mix: https://youtu.be/zwqPmypBysk ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞  Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at Thirteenth Hour Arts on Patreon or adding to my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Join the Thirteenth Hour Arts Group over on Facebook, a growing community of creative people.Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify,  iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify.  Join the mailing list for a digital free copy.  You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book?  Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

Welcome to the 40th anniversary reunion podcast for the 1986 film, Spacecamp, a film, which arguably, changed my life. There are many more details and visuals to go along with this episode, too many to fit here but all available at https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2026/08/31/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-577-the-spacecamp-1986-40th-anniversary-reunion-podcast/ For everyone who was involved in this film - from the smallest part to the most comprehensive - this is for you.  It's a testament to your work that the film is still beloved 40 years later.  Featured in this episode are: -Harry Winer: director of the film.  Harry was the first person I approached and was immediately supportive.  Listen for some great insights he provided on the creative process.  This was, I believe, his first feature film, and from hearing him discuss it, was extraordinarily difficult to make, but you'd never know it by looking at the film! -Mark Stetson: who worked in special effects, specifically with Jinx the robot -Scott Holcomb: “Hideo Takamini” in the film, Spacecamp counselor and planetarium staff, previously on episode 510 of this show -Brad Roberts: one of the campers in the film who grew up near Huntsville and has since returned to the entertainment industry after a number of years working n software development -Paul Shanley: a long time Spacecamp counselor and current ISS/SLS/Artemis/HLS engineer in Huntsville (Marshall Space Flight Center) who worked in press promotion at the film's world premiere in New Orleans  -Larry B Scott: “Rudy Tyler” in the film, also known for his roles in Revenge of the Nerds, Karate Kid, and Iron Eagle.  -Tate Donovan: “Kevin Donaldson” in the film, also known for his roles in Argo, Love Potion No 9, and Hercules.  -Clifford Green: film writer (under the pseudonym W. W. Wicket), unable to attend but sent in a letter with his thoughts I have included (see link above) -Wendy Bailey: producer of the film, previously a researcher/producer for the early 80s show, That's Incredible.  Unable to attend but provided many details and photos.  It's actually because of Wendy that there is a movie at all, since she suggested to her husband, Patrick, that Spacecamp in Huntsville, Alabama (which had just opened) would be worth doing as a segment forThat's Incredible.  They eventually got the rights to film a movie based around the camp.  She and Patrick were the stunt doubles in Kathryn's biplane that landed in the Spacecamp parking lot. ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞  Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at Thirteenth Hour Arts on Patreon or adding to my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Join the Thirteenth Hour Arts Group over on Facebook, a growing community of creative people.Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify,  iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify.  Join the mailing list for a digital free copy.  You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book?  Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

In this week's episode, I'm starting to make a new clay minifigure of what Aurora looks like in The Thirteenth Hour sequel - Dare.  I have made an armature for the figurine and am applying the epoxy clay during the episode.  I have a quick sketch / watercolor I did for a reference position here: https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2026/08/24/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-576-starting-a-new-aurora-minifigure-for-dare/ The bow and arrow will be too thin/delicate to be worth casting.   I have learned that lesson the hard way!  I'll make those later and attach them to each figurine. Here's the armature: More next week! ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Once Upon a Dream, the second Thirteenth Hour soundtrack, is now out in digital form!   It is out on most major streaming services such as Bandcamp, Spotify, and YouTube Music.  (If you have no preference, I recommend Bandcamp since there is a bonus track there and you will eventually be able to find tapes, CDs, and special editions of the album there as well.) -Check out the pixelart music videos that are out so far from the album: -->Logan's Sunrise Workout: www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7SM1RgsLiM -->Forward: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9VgILr1TDc -->Nightsky Stargazing: www.youtube.com/watch?v=2S0p3jKRTBo -->Aurora's Rainy Day Mix: https://youtu.be/zwqPmypBysk ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞  Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at Thirteenth Hour Arts on Patreon or adding to my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Join the Thirteenth Hour Arts Group over on Facebook, a growing community of creative people.Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify,  iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify.  Join the mailing list for a digital free copy.  You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book?  Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

This week, game developer and musician, Paul Korman, and my brother, Jeremy, rejoins for another game developer chat (we have not recorded all of these but the last one we put on this show were eps 555 and 556).  This was a fun discussion that went on for quite awhile before we started recording, so by the time I hit “record,” we had already covered a fair amount of ground.  A lot of the recorded discussion centered on the appeal of old school analog forms of social gaming like Dungeons and Dragons and similar games in an age of hyper connectivity and the constant stimulation of screens but in many ways, that was superficial to the underlying theme of the discussion - making friends as an adult is not easy, trying new things and being a beginner especially as an adult, is also not easy, but if we want to help the next generation maintain our humanity, these are things that are within our power to do, since the younger generations are watching.  I leave you with one of my favorite pieces of fantasy art ever - Daniel Horne's "Saving the Best for Last." https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2026/08/17/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-575-welcome-back-paul-korman-and-jeremy-blum-for-another-game-development-chat/   More on Paul and The Phantom Fellows  "The Ghost Game That Isn't About Death" (a making of mini documentary about Paul made by oneshorteye) Check out Jeremy's work over at Pixel Grotto, CBR.com, and Classic Batman Panels on IG. If you are of the DnD persuasion, his articles on DnD Beyond may be right up your alley, and you can view his entire portfolio here.  You can also check out his latest book, where he is a co-author: Pathfinder Adventure Path: No Breath to Cry, the ecology and exploration TTRPG with Three Sail Studios, Mappa Mundi, and their most recent game, Gallows Corner: A Peasants' Revolt RPG.  Thanks, Jeremy and Paul, for coming on the show!  Look for us in a few months. ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Once Upon a Dream, the second Thirteenth Hour soundtrack, is now out in digital form!   It is out on most major streaming services such as Bandcamp, Spotify, and YouTube Music.  (If you have no preference, I recommend Bandcamp since there is a bonus track there and you will eventually be able to find tapes, CDs, and special editions of the album there as well.) -Check out the pixelart music videos that are out so far from the album: -->Logan's Sunrise Workout: www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7SM1RgsLiM -->Forward: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9VgILr1TDc -->Nightsky Stargazing: www.youtube.com/watch?v=2S0p3jKRTBo -->Aurora's Rainy Day Mix: https://youtu.be/zwqPmypBysk ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞  Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at Thirteenth Hour Arts on Patreon or adding to my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Join the Thirteenth Hour Arts Group over on Facebook, a growing community of creative people.Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify,  iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify.  Join the mailing list for a digital free copy.  You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book?  Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

This week's episode is a little about the family of Aurora, the main protagonist of The Thirteenth Hour sequel - Dare.  In many ways, the whole book is about family, but Aurora, who grew up in an orphanage on a different continent, never really knew her family and had no recollection of where she was originally from.   But she gets to know all about it this book, though not by choice.  In The Thirteenth Hour, there are hints that Aurora comes from a family of powerful magic users, but I left that plot thread intentionally hanging to explore one day in a future sequel. When Aurora is kidnapped, she is brought to a technologically advanced city (Aulurwen City, the capital) that looks something like this.  The black castle is where Aurora is brought and study magic and fulfill her family destiny. Aurora's parents are from neighboring countries.  They are both from Guardian families - these are the magic users of their world who channel, guard, and provide the magic their world runs on. Aurora's father when he was about three.  Marshall is Aurora's grandfather and also comes from a Guardian family, as does his wife, though he leaves that life when she gets sick.   Aurora's maternal family - her grandparents are sort of the opposite of her paternal family in look and personality.  They are outwardly cold, rigid, very thin, and very image and duty focused.   They believe their work as Guardians and maintaining a proper family blood line are most important.  Demetria is Aurora's teenage cousin and wants the position that Aurora is brought back for.  She views Aurora as a barbarian and is not shy about expressing her views. The castle where Aurora finds herself essentially captive has a color palate of whites, greys, and blacks - smooth, cold, minimalist, with sharp lines - a direct contrast to the natural environment of Aurora's home.  This is a sketch of the room where she is to stay (actually her mother's room as a child).  She is a bit overwhelmed by it, though later comes to appreciate some of the modern conveniences this world has.  Aurora's arc literally and figuratively has to do with figuring out what parts of this world and her heritage she wants to keep and which parts she does not want, similar to what all of grapple with as adults.     More next week! ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Once Upon a Dream, the second Thirteenth Hour soundtrack, is now out in digital form!   It is out on most major streaming services such as Bandcamp, Spotify, and YouTube Music.  (If you have no preference, I recommend Bandcamp since there is a bonus track there and you will eventually be able to find tapes, CDs, and special editions of the album there as well.) -Check out the pixelart music videos that are out so far from the album: -->Logan's Sunrise Workout: www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7SM1RgsLiM -->Forward: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9VgILr1TDc -->Nightsky Stargazing: www.youtube.com/watch?v=2S0p3jKRTBo -->Aurora's Rainy Day Mix: https://youtu.be/zwqPmypBysk ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞  Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at Thirteenth Hour Arts on Patreon or adding to my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Join the Thirteenth Hour Arts Group over on Facebook, a growing community of creative people.

I have finally come up with a title for The Thirteenth Hour sequel - Dare.  In many ways, that's what the book is about. There are a number of characters that accompany Logan on his journey to find Aurora after she is spirited away: -Tinder: an full blooded eleven youth from a well- off family who has chosen to distance himself from the family business (and a a life of privilege) by making his living as a nomadic minstrel.  Well educated and an experienced competitive fencer ... -Haylee: a middle aged researcher and professor of linguistics at the National Wild Land University who comes from humble beginnings (her father was a shepherd) and has worked hard to distance herself from poverty.  The trade off is she has had little time for developing other interests, friendships, and romantic partnerships ... Kayla: a mute half elf woman who, like Tinder, has lived a nomadic life, but unlike him, not by choice.  A naturally gentle person, she also has an understated, fierce independence stemming from being able to trust few others besides herself. ... The Wayfarer: a giant, nonmute half elf who is somewhat of a rebel without a cause.  His main life’s mission was to help his people regain their (in his words) rightful land (the Dark Forest) that was taken by King Darian IV.  Due to a series of events that was apparently not supposed to happen, he was killed in a battle with the Imperial Army and is resurrected when the Dreamweaver, the Overseer of the Land of Dreams,  realizes the error ... Logan: the protagonist of The Thirteenth is now about ten years older.  He is living a hardy but pleasant, self sustaining existence on the Isle of Misfits with his wife, Aurora, and the half elf refugee community on the other side of the island.  That changes when mysterious strangers arrive from Aurora’s supposed homeland summoning her back for fulfill her family destiny.  When he wakes up one day and Aurora is missing, he fears the worst and decides to go looking for her, though he knows the chances of success are slim and it will take him far from his beloved island community ... Full descriptions at: https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2026/08/03/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-573-thirteenth-hour-sequel-update-22-title-reveal-and-logans-party/ More next week! ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞  Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at Thirteenth Hour Arts on Patreon or adding to my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Join the Thirteenth Hour Arts Group over on Facebook, a growing community of creative people.Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify,  iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify.  Join the mailing list for a digital free copy.  You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book?  Just email me at [email protected] for more details!