Daily Journal

The Journal, Tuesday, 10/3

Hey Folks, Rolled out on time this morning and went through my usual routine, albeit in 47 degree weather. It wouldn’t be bad, but there was a light breeze. Brrr. For my first sojourn outside this morning I was in sweatpants, a long-sleeved thermal shirt, and a thick, hooded zip-up sweat shirt. (grin) It wasn’t pretty, but it was dark, so…. And to think when I was living in Indiana I was running around outside without even a t-shirt on in 30 degree weather. Of course, I was wearing pants ’cause the cops get picky over stuff like that. After … Read more

The Journal, Monday, 10/2

Hey Folks, First and foremost, my heart goes out to the victims of the shooting in Las Vegas, and my unbridled rage to the shooter. Damn him. Rolled out way late this morning. Almost 5 a.m. That’s a couple of hours late for me. Partly though it was a choice. As I work toward snapping off my cigar-smoking habit at the end of this week, the later I get up the easier it will be to smoke fewer cigars per day so my current stash will last through Friday. I can’t say I’ll be sorry to see the little monsters … Read more

The Journal, Sunday, 10/1

Hey Folks, Hmmm. Strange things going on with the Internet lately. Sites that have been fine for years suddenly not working. Then a few minutes later, they’re fine again. I’ve encountered problems with some of the plugins on my own site, DWS has encountered several problems recently, and other sites I visit regularly have experienced glitches of various levels of severity. Just wondering, is anyone else seeing these problems? At this point, I’m only hoping I can access hestanbrough.com (The Daily Journal) when it’s time to post today’s edition. It’s already blanked out on me three times this morning. (grin) … Read more

The Journal, Saturday, 9/30

Hey Folks, Rolled out slightly after 3 this morning and went straight to email and then Facebook. As a result of one article in one of the several e-newsletters I receive each morning, I found a topic. My reading and then writing the topic below formed the start for the day. We have a trip planned to Sierra Vista a little later this morning. Between now and then, I hope to write a bit of fiction. Topic: Try And vs. Try To First, a disclaimer — When people are speaking in real life (or characters in dialogue in a fiction) … Read more

The Journal, Friday, 9/29

Hey Folks, Looks like I updated my website to include a page dedicated to bundles just in time. A new bundle started today. I only have a short story in this one but still. (grin) Well, I signed up this morning to support the restart of Pulphouse Fiction Magazine. There are some really cool “rewards” for pledging to the Kickstarter campaign. I won’t tell you which one I pledged, but I do encourage you to at least go take a look at the various offerings. You can find those at https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/403649867/pulphouse-fiction-magazine. *** On a day when I could as easily … Read more

The Journal, Thursday, 9/28

Hey Folks, Well, I can recommend about 2/3 of James Scott Bell’s book on “dazzling dialogue.” I picked up a couple of things from it. If you buy it, I strongly recommend you don’t read the section on punctuation. Sorry to have to say, but the guy has no idea what he’s talking about in that regard. None. Much of what he writes in the last segment of that book (from the bit on punctuation to the end) is actually harmful. The section rekindled within me the desire to update Punctuation for Writers and publish a new edition. I’ll be … Read more

The Journal, Wednesday, 9/27

Hey Folks, First, for any veterans out there, beginning on November 11, 2017, the online Exchange System (PX) is open to all veterans who served honorably regardless of length of service. Note that this is only the ONLINE exchange. Still, they lists tons of stuff, and it isn’t all high-ticket merchandise. Great discounts. To qualify, visit https://www.shopmyexchange.com/veterans. Again, you don’t have to have a current ID card, and you don’t have to have retired. *** Also too important to be shuffled down to the “Of Interest” section… Much as I (and other amateur photogs) like to think we can always … Read more

The Journal, Tuesday, 9/26

Hey Folks, Well, I expected this to be a nonwriting day, frankly. But the subconscious mind is an amazing thing. I knew I’d spend much of the day in Tucson today, so my characters woke me up early. I spent some time doing nothing, then moved to the novel at 4 a.m. Quick Update: I posted this at about 8 a.m. this morning. Been to Tucson, where we thought the doc would schedule me for surgery to replace my pacemaker. Found out I don’t expire (okay, my PM battery doesn’t expire) for about another year. So SCORE! (grin) This morning … Read more

The Journal, Monday, 9/25

Hey Folks, “Many would-be novelists never get around to writing a novel for the same reason nobody ever gets around to eating an elephant. “Wrong focus. To eat an elephant, you have to take one bite at a time. Focus on the bite. “It seems impossible to write a whole novel, but you can write a scene. So just write a scene. Then write another scene. Then write another one. Forget about writing a ‘novel.’ Lather, rinse, repeat.” I posted that to FB this morning, spurred by my 15 year old granddaughter’s complaint (via email) that her teacher had assigned … Read more

The Journal, Sunday, 9/24

Hey Folks, Rolled out on time this morning, spent some time waking up, then hammered out around 1500 words by about 7:30. Some time off for family stuff now, and back to the novel later in the day. Around 10, back to the novel. Another break around 11, then some baseball and back to the novel. Turned out to be a pretty good day, especially for a Sunday. Back tomorrow. Of Interest More comments on Dean’s Sacred Cows post at http://www.deanwesleysmith.com/killing-the-sacred-cows-of-publishing-beta-readers-help-you/#comments. To see the new stuff, scroll down to K. Vale Nagle. Via The Passive Voice, see “7 Free Online … Read more