Daily Journal

In Today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Yesterday’s Post * On Using Challenges for Growth * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “Find out who you are and do it on purpose. And do it with purpose.” Dolly Parton Yesterday’s Post In case you missed it, the article I published in yesterday’s post is a must read for pretty much any fiction writer, but especially for those who are locked down or frozen by unreasoning fear. For those reasons, I’ve added it permanently as a separate article to the Journal website. You can read the … Read more

In Today’s Journal * Quotes of the Day * In Writing, the Critical Mind… * Of Interest * The Numbers Quotes of the Day “Write your own books, trust them, find the typos, and publish it. Then write the next one and keep learning how to be a better crafts person and storyteller as you go along.” Dean Wesley Smith “Those who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by night.” Edgar Allan Poe in “Elenora” In Writing, the Critical Mind Is Not Your Friend So Don’t Bargain With It Granted, your conscious … Read more

In Today’s Journal * Quotes of the Day * The TNDJ Challenges Report * On Writing Fiction, and Stereotypes * What’s in 1440? * Of Interest * The Numbers Quotes of the Day “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.” Martin Luther King, Jr. #metoo The TNDJ Challenges Report Participating in any challenge is a great way to have fun and grow as a writer. There is no cost. Feel free to … Read more

In Today’s Journal * A New Short Story * Yesterday * Today * Of Interest * The Numbers A New Short Story “How Hard the Ground” will go live today at 10 a.m. on my Stanbrough Writes Substack. Go check it out. It’s free. As far as I can remember this is the only short story for which I got the title from a friend. Dan Baldwin said something profound (see the epigram for the story) that contained the phrase ‘how hard the ground.’ It stuck with me and eventually became the title of this story. If you enjoy the … Read more

In Today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * If You Want It Enough * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “Unless you learn how to be in your head, you’ll never learn how to create.” Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda If You Want It Enough An accomplished writer friend recently posted a Substack in which he posited that DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) programs are stopping some ‘white males’ from publishing. In a nod to Scott Adams’ Reframe Your Brain, a book about ‘reframing’ your choices and decisions, I want to peel back one layer here to … Read more

In Today’s Journal * Just a Thought * The Basics * Of Interest * The Numbers Just a Thought Since long before I started writing fiction in earnest, I’ve been compiling my own satirical dictionary. My dictionary is kind of a mix between those of Samuel Johnson and Ambrose Bierce, irreverent and highly opinionated. Here’s my most recent entry: unalived, adj. [Frown. What?] Um, killed. Usage note: If you regularly use non-words like ‘unalived’ in any way other than in satire or comedy, you’ve been in school too long. Your brain’s filled beyond capacity. You’re overqualified for life in a … Read more

In Today’s Journal * I Get Enticing Emails * Of Interest * The Numbers I Get Enticing Emails I hadn’t planned to post anything today, but ss I was going through my inbox this morning deleting old stuff I don’t need anymore, I came across this: Back on 29 October 2025, I received the following email through my Stanbrough Writes direct email address: hi harvey, really enjoyed the set-piece in your recent post. the focus and the hit scenes were tight and instructive, srsly. i dont mean a cameo riff, more like a dedicated piece that unpacks technique from someone … Read more

In Today’s Journal * The TNDJ Challenges Report * On ‘Rules’ of Writing Fiction * Subscription News * Of Interest * The Numbers The TNDJ Challenges Report Participating in any challenge is a great way to have fun and grow as a writer. There is no cost. Feel free to jump in at any time. To do so, email me at harveystanbrough@gmail.com with your results anytime before TNDJ goes live on any Monday. Bradbury Challenge The requirement is to write at least one short story or short-short story per week. During the past week, the following writers wrote these new … Read more

In Today’s Journal * A New Short Story * Blogging * Of Interest * The Numbers A New Short Story “Family” went live yesterday at 10 a.m. on my Stanbrough Writes Substack. Go check it out. It’s free. If you enjoy the story, please click Like. Comments are welcome too. Both help with my Substack algorithms. Then tell Everyone else. Gracias. Blogging A couple of days ago, a writer mentioned how difficult blogging can be. The context was her apparent wonder that I’ve been able to post a blog so often over such a long period of time. My response … Read more

In Today’s Journal * Doing Nothing and Loving It * Of Interest * The Numbers Doing Nothing and Loving It I’ve never been good before at doing nothing. But recently, I’m getting in some practice. And I’m finding out it isn’t a horrible gig. I’m not stuck in a malaise of any kind, and when I do write fiction I write ‘into the dark’—which only means I run through the characters’ story with them as it unfolds and write down what happens—so for me the so-called ‘writer’s block’ can’t (and doesn’t) exist. I’m just not writing fiction at the moment. … Read more