The Journal, Monday, December 18

Hey Folks, Mostly I’m posting today to pass along some stuff in “Of Interest” below. But as long as I’m here, I’ll give you an update on my personal writing stuff as well. My December’s slipping by with not a word of fiction so far. How weird is that? In a way, knowing I could start writing today and have a new novel finished by the end of the year is a liability. In a way. But that probably won’t happen, and it’s all right. I’m allowing everything else in my life to take precedence right now. But that’s by … Read more

The Journal, Saturday, December 16

Hey Folks, Okay, I’ve figuratively traveled some twisted, warped subterranean depths over the past month or so. In that time, I’ve tended to (or dealt with) a lot of tasks that have little if anything to do with writing in any specific way. In fact, they touch writing only in that they added to my general overall experience. I won’t bore you with details. Suffice it to say some of them are tasks that are common in the human experience. There also were a few that I’m glad are not common in the human experience, at least where my friends … Read more

The Journal, Monday, December 11,

Hey Folks, Well, before I even think about returning to my own fiction, I’ve decided to power-through the first half of my latest copyedit to get it finished. The author of the novel and I have agreed that I’ll finish the prepaid first half, then bow out of the project. It’s just too rough. In related news, I’ve recently added several “new” inappropriate tag line verbs to my list. I’ll be publishing those in a topic here soon, and in my ProWriters blog in the future. Not sure when this Journal will go “daily” again, if ever. But I do … Read more

The Journal, Friday, December 8,

Hey Folks, Just some important info for you today, mostly in the first listing below. Via The Passive Voice, see Passive Guy’s comments toward the end of “The Contributions of Publishing’s Conference Contrarians” at http://www.thepassivevoice.com/2017/12/the-contributions-of-publishings-conference-contrarians/. Very informative and heartening. Also of possible interest, see “Astronauts Get Writer’s Block, Too” at http://www.thepassivevoice.com/2017/12/astronauts-get-writers-block-too/. Imagine what Astronaut Scott Kelly could write if only he had learned to trust his subconscious and write off into the dark. Sigh. (Frankly, I’m kind’a ticked off that Margaret Lazarus Dean felt a need to stick that comma in before “too” in the title of the article. Ten … Read more

The Journal, Tuesday, December 5,

Hey Folks, A few days ago, a friend sent me an email: “You think too much.” I could only respond with a smiley face. I do understand why “you think too much” would appear to readers of this Journal to be true. After all, the point of the Journal is to bare the most intimate details and thought processes of my writing life, with the ultimate goal of maybe cutting the learning curve a bit for you, the subscribers. But I assure you, I only think “too much” here, in this Journal. And really, I don’t know that I’m thinking … Read more

The Journal, Saturday, December 2

Hey Folks, I didn’t plan to post again this soon. With my return feeling imminent, though, I figure what harm could it do. A friend wrote to me privately. In his email, he mentioned the desk, said he’d like to see it and wondered whether maybe it has magic powers. Actually, it might have. I thought I’d share my expanded response to him with you. My Desk As I mentioned yesterday, my desk is walnut, stained naturally in a warm medium brown. The finish on the leading edge of the large surface shows some wear, primarily in four places: where … Read more

The Journal, Friday, December 1

Hey Folks, An Accounting of Days I closed out this Journal on November 18. I didn’t want the unnecessary pressure of that daily deadline while I was working out whatever problem derailed my writing. That was only twelve days ago, but it seems as if months have passed. Anyway, for whatever it’s worth, it worked. Or more specifically, it’s working. Sometime in the last few days, I realized there is no specific one thing that “derailed” my writing habit. Instead, I seem to have reached a merging of life events and factors. I also realized that convergence has been building … Read more