The Journal: Focusing Down

In today’s Journal * Quotes of the Day * Topic: Focusing Down * The current novel * Of Interest * The Numbers Quotes of the Day “There is no Idea Dump, no Story Central, no Island of the Buried Bestsellers; good story ideas seem to come quite literally from nowhere, sailing at you right out of the empty sky: two previously unrelated ideas come together and make something new under the sun. Your job isn’t to find these ideas but to recognize them when they show up.” Stephen King on where to get ideas “[Q]uite quickly this technique of the … Read more

The Journal: A Cat Picture

In today’s Journal * Quotes of the Day * A Little More on Censorship * A Breath of Fresh Air (and Cat Shoulders) * Of Interest * The Numbers Quotes of the Day “Sometimes you have to go on when you don’t feel like it, and sometimes you’re doing good work when it feels like all you’re managing is to shovel sh*t from a sitting position.” Stephen King “I wish that future novelists would reject the pressure to write for the betterment of society. Art is not media. … We need characters in novels to be bree to range into … Read more

The Journal: On Censorship and Cancel Culture

In today’s Journal * Quotes of the Day * Topic: On Censorship and Cancel Culture * Patreon * Of Interest * The Numbers Quotes of the Day “The job boils down to two things: paying attention to how the real people around you behave and then telling the truth about what you see.” Stephen King “Authors are now being successfully pressured to remove lines from published books that are deemed objectionable by some readers. … The point of cancel campaigns is to create a chilling effect for academics, writers, editors, and others.” Jonathan Turley, author of the first item listed … Read more

The Journal: A Non-Productive Personal Day

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * A Non-Productive Personal Day * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “It’s dialogue that gives your cast their voices, and is crucial in defining their characters.” Stephen King A Non-Productive Personal Day Hey there. I did a lot yesterday, but almost no writing. Just over 1000 words. I’m mentioning all of the following because my schedule might be up in the air for a few days while I figure out my new routine and get started with it. This is more important than writing on my current story, … Read more

The Journal: A Short Post Today

In today’s Journal * Quotes of the Day * A Short Post Today * Of Interest * The Numbers Quotes of the Day “I distrust plot for two reasons: first, because our lives are largely plotless, even when you add in all our reasonable precautions and careful planning; and second, because I believe plotting and the spontaneity of real creation aren’t compatible.” Stephen King “I started trying to write a short story for Amanda [Palmer] … about what it was like to be me when I was 7, and it just kept going. And it turned into a book called … Read more

The Journal: There Are Five Physical Senses

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Topic: There Are Five Physical Senses * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “When you find a writer who really is saying something to you, read everything that writer has written and you will get more education and depth of understanding out of that than reading a scrap here and a scrap there and elsewhere.” Joseph Campbell Topic: There Are Five Physical Senses Not one. Five. One of the most obvious signs of a beginning writer is that in description, the writer focuses on Sight as the dominant, … Read more

The Journal: A Short Post Today

In today’s Journal * A Short Post Today * Of Interest * The Numbers A Short Post Today and I guess it’s a little negative. Well, not negative so much as indifferent. First, if you’re interested at all, see “Where Gender-Neutral Pronouns Come From” at https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2021/06/gender-neutral-pronouns-arent-new/619092/. I was going to write a bit about this, but then I realized I don’t really care. People have a right to call themselves whatever they want. How someone else “identifies” doesn’t affect my bottom line or my time off, so what do I care? By and large, aside from a few family members … Read more

The Journal: Alison Naomi Holt and Robert J. Sadler

In today’s Journal * Thanks for the input * Alison Naomi Holt * Robert J. Sadler * Yesterday * Of Interest * The Numbers Thanks to everyone who gave me input re my fairly recent announcement that I was considering writing nonfiction books on all my mentoring subtopics. I even thought about doing a Kickstarter for the series. I appreciate the input, but I’ve decided against doing that, at least for now, and at least as a series. It would take too much time away from my fiction, and really, that’s where I live and breathe. Besides, the mentorships, personalized … Read more

The Journal: A Day Off and Writing Sales Copy

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * A Day Off * Search the Journal * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “The less promise and potency in the self, the more imperative is the need for pride. The core of pride is self-rejection.” Bruce Lee Self-esteem is at the core of the ability to trust yourself and write into the dark. Yesterday I mostly blew off the day. I had to get labs (fasting) at 7 a.m. so I had no coffee etc. until after that. It’s only pure luck that yesterday’s Journal was coherent. … Read more

The Journal: The Novel Finished

In today’s Journal * Welcome * How to Write Fiction Sales Copy * More Boring Talk About My Own Writing * Of Interest * The Numbers Welcome to Kelley and Anitha and any others who have joined our little community lately. If I can ever do anything to help with your writing, please don’t hesitate to contact me. You know those writers you meet at writers’ conferences who deliver their lecture or class and then disappear into their room in the hotel for the duration? Yeah, that’s not me. I was the guy hanging out in the lobby or the … Read more