Tee Morris

Writer, podcaster. and streamer

Tee Morris

Tales of a Shock Jockey: 6 Misconceptions about Electric Vehicles (and Those who Drive Them)

EV-carsI tend to get a lot of playful (and in some instances, not-so-playful) ribbing about investing in an electric car.  Potshots range from my overreaction to the state of planetary resources to my tree-hugging, liberal opinions. The joke of the night at my last family gathering was “The problem with Tee’s new car is the plug doesn’t reach all the way from D.C. to Richmond.”

That’s my brother. He’ll be here all week. Don’t forget to tip the wait staff. Try the veal.

My sister-in-law and teenage nephew, however, were asking legitimate questions about the range of the LEAF, how running other systems like climate control or the entertainment system affected the drive, and what I needed to recharge an electric car. These were questions that I really hadn’t considered when deciding to drive green. It wasn’t until I read this article about misconceptions around electric cars that I started to pay closer attention to what people were asking me, and started to notice the same questions and statements coming up, all centered around similar assumptions. [Read more…] about Tales of a Shock Jockey: 6 Misconceptions about Electric Vehicles (and Those who Drive Them)

The End of a Beautiful Friendship: Lessons Learned from a Kickstarter

BB1_front_Aug108_wallWhat a ride! Over $11,500 raised, reaching 77% of the Billi Kickstarter. I even had three $500 backers and one $1000 backer.

Wow! Just… wow! Above and beyond what I expected.

Before people start pounding my Comments with all the things I did wrong, it might be better if I just share some popular thoughts people have already shared on this Kickstarter. It may seem hard to believe, but there was a plan here. Now is a good time and place to review the strategy behind what I did, how I did it, and why I’m okay with the way how all this played out over the weekend. [Read more…] about The End of a Beautiful Friendship: Lessons Learned from a Kickstarter

Much Ado About Nothing: The Brouhaha over #AmtrakResidency’s Terms of Service

bildeYou may have heard, if you’re friends with writers, that Amtrak, inspired by an exchange on Twitter, has come up with a really cool program called #AmtrakResidency where writers can catch a cross-country train (with Amtrak picking up the fare) and trek across the states while working on their next big novel. Truth be told, there is something very cool about writing while on a train. The world is your television, and seeing the country rush by you—given the atmosphere of riding the train across our majestic landscape—is nothing short of inspiring.

No, “rush by” is not the right description. From the window of your Amtrak observation desk or sleeper car, a cross-country odyssey unfolds all around you.

It all sound very poetic, which is why some crusaders of truth, justice, and “Your Content is YOURS” did a massive deep-dive into the terms of the #AmtrakResidency Program and  speculate there is trouble at mill when it comes to your content. Nuzzled within the terms of giving you, the author, free train fare in exchange for this opportunity to write, Amtrak reserves “the absolute, worldwide, and irrevocable right to use, modify, publish, publicly display, distribute, and copy the name, image, and/or likeness of Applicant and the names of any such persons identified in the Application for any purpose, including, but not limited to, advertising and marketing. (taken from #6. Grant of Rights of #AmtrakResidency Program)”

This sent some in the writing community into a right tizzy. New York Times Bestseller Diane Duanne warns on her blog “Never sell anyone world rights to any of your writing. Ever. Ever. Because who knows if that one piece of writing is the one that would have made you famous worldwide and rich beyond the dreams of avarice? Or more to the point, what if they later do something with your writing that is absolutely opposite to your intentions and which you find harmful or offensive? You’d have no recourse there either.”

She used bold AND italics. Wow. This must be serious. [Read more…] about Much Ado About Nothing: The Brouhaha over #AmtrakResidency’s Terms of Service

Endless Possibilities Blog Tour 2014: Stacia D. Kelly on Setting Stages and Creating Worlds

If you are new to my blog, having discovered me following my Post Mortem on True Detective, welcome. You have a lot to read here, especially as I’m in the final week of the Endless Possibilities Blog Tour. This is the final week of featuring exciting, new voices in and out of this genre, all of whom are located here in Prince William County. Last week, you met my buddy, Nick Kelly…

Now, meet his better half.

Stacia Kelly is very much like Nick, and you’ve already met her if you’re a listener to The Shared Desk. She is a bodybuilder, a health advocate and consultant, and a talented writer. Tonight, Stacia bring to you all her take on world building and setting the stage for your characters.

SDK_DarkHair_Jan2010Thank you, Tee, for letting me come share my love of world building with your readers. I write Urban Fantasy with my husband, Nick Kelly, and Paranormal Romance with the voices in my head. It can get a little crowded unless I get the words on the page.

It’s very rare I set my characters in a familiar environment; instead, I take delight in creating my own realms. I think that’s what really drew me to sci-fi/fantasy when I was a kid. You can lose yourself in the creation of a world all your own. I get to create the mountains, the valleys, oceans, and everything in between. Of course it took me years to understand that I had to include the laws of physics for my realms. Yes, I can include two moons I just have to make sure the explanation is accurate or plausible for the reader. And, as we learned during a brainstorming session with my 10-year-old son on his screenplay if we’re going to explode the Sun we can’t go to Jupiter as a new home, physics requires we jump solar systems. [Read more…] about Endless Possibilities Blog Tour 2014: Stacia D. Kelly on Setting Stages and Creating Worlds

Post Mortem: Closing the Case on True Detective

true-detectiveFirst, if you think there will be spoilers here, this will be as close to a spoiler-free review as I can manage. There will be a few series insights on the series and its characters on a whole, but no major spoilers. You can still watch the finale and be amazed.

Second, if you are looking for a trashing or thrashing of this series, you have found the wrong review. Last night, the finest writing to ever grace television concluded and I was left in awe.

Welcome to my post-mortem of True Detective.

[Read more…] about Post Mortem: Closing the Case on True Detective

Endless Possibilities Blog Tour 2014: Nick Kelly on Crossing the Line and How Far to Cross It

Today on the blog, I host the kind of writer that is truly metal. No, really—he is metal. He’s a musician. He’s a security expert. He’s a health professional. AND…he’s a writer. If you’re a listener to The Shared Desk, you recognize the name: Nick Kelly. Fellow comic book geek. Fellow movie buff. Fellow cybersecurity believer. As he and I have shared opinions on just how far to go in your writing, I encouraged him to share his thoughts with you on the boundaries and just how far you can push them.

Nick, welcome to my blog. The stage is yours.

IMG_4643“Remember, honey, these aren’t your normal readers. Tone down the gore.”

Words of wisdom from my blushing bride and co-author, Stacia D. Kelly. I don’t remember the first time she told me this, but she’s repeated that comment several times while we were writing Ichi together. Our shared story is an urban fantasy featuring a 1,000 year old samurai demon hunter and a D.C. homicide cop.

When I’m not collaborating with her, I write a series of dystopian cyberpunk featuring a hitman and lots and lots of psychotic robots. I may have a contest among my readers to see who can most accurately report the body count.

That raises the ultimate question – How much is too much? [Read more…] about Endless Possibilities Blog Tour 2014: Nick Kelly on Crossing the Line and How Far to Cross It