In Today’s Journal * Discover and Reveal Your Innermost Demons * Of Interest * The Numbers Discover and Reveal Your Innermost Demons Hey, I’ve got another challenge for you. This isn’t something you will report to me. I don’t want to know. This is intimate, just for you, and strictly between you and yourself. And as always, it’s something you should do only if you want to pick it up. Various masters have advised over the years to write what frightens you (at least S. King and Bradbury). One famous writer (I forget who, but maybe also Bradbury) advocated making … Read more

In Today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * On Focus in Pacing * The Numbers Quote of the Day “I just this moment finished the latest novel, a political thriller based on certain events in Dallas a few decades ago. As you know… whew! Time to take a long break to rest up, recuperate and build energy for the next one. I probably won’t start until after lunch.” Dan Baldwin, in a typical email to me at around 8 a.m. one morning, poking fun at those who have to take a long break after finishing a novel (grin) On … Read more

In Today’s Journal * My Quote of the Day * Are Characters Real, or Are They Only Reflections? * Of Interest * The Numbers My Quote of the Day “As the writer, you’re an observer of the story, not an influencer.” Harvey Are Characters Real, or Are They Only Reflections? Questions are always welcome via email (harveystanbrough@gmail.com) or in comments on posts. A writer friend emailed me. Here’s our exchange: Writer I want to believe the characters I write about are real. … My issue is that I can see myself or pieces of myself in pretty much all of … Read more

In Today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Use the Wright Werd! * The Numbers Quote of the Day “The beautiful thing about learning is nobody can take it away from you.” BB King “Use the Wright Werd!” a guest post by Dan Baldwin I am justifiably critical of AI narration errors, such as, Lucille Ball was married to Daisey Arnez. The motorcyclist daredevil wasn’t named Evel Needle. The Good, The Bad and The Ugly was filmed in the dessert. The film L.A. Confidential read as Louisiana Confidential That said, writers and editors in print media have made their … Read more

In Today’s Journal * The TNDJ Challenges Report * Roberta Jean Bryant’s “7 Laws of Writing” * Where to Submit, Revisited * Update on the True Pulp Anthology * Of Interest * The Numbers The TNDJ Challenges Report In a way this feels like a new beginning, and I’ve been looking forward all week to posting this. I’m excited to host and report on three separate challenges now. The potential for writers breaking free and having fun writing is excellent. And yes, you may participate in more than one challenge at a time. TNDJ has over 220 subscribers now, and … Read more

In Today’s Journal * Opening A WooCommerce Store on My WordPress Website * Of Interest * The Numbers Opening A WooCommerce Store on My WordPress Website a guest post by Sylvia Auclair I decided that I wanted to start selling my work myself rather than depending solely on Amazon. I have only published my short stories, individually and in small collections, and I felt that the price I had to charge for them on Amazon was just too high. Would you pay $2.99 for a short story? I needed to get my work someplace where I felt it could be … Read more

In Today’s Journal * A New Short Story * TNDJ Contests Reminder * Where to Submit Your Short Stories * Of Interest * The Numbers A New Short Story “Focus, a Hit, and an Egress” 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. TNDJ Contests Reminder Today is Saturday. Just a reminder to get info about your various TNDJ Challenge results in to me before the Journal goes live … Read more

In Today’s Journal * Learning Pacing from Film * My Personal Take on “Fictional” Characters * Of Interest * The Numbers Learning Pacing from Film I was recently blessed to read “How Goodfellas Reinvented the Gangster Film”, as published by BBC In History, a weekly newsletter I receive. As I’ve said many times before, even when genres don’t overlap, techniques that are valid in one genre are almost always valid in others. That includes the literary genres—essay, short story, novella, novel, stage plays, and screenplays (film)—as well as the commercial genres: thriller, mystery, romance, SF, and so on. If you … Read more

In Today’s Journal * Focusing Down * About Lawrence Block * On Personas and Pseudonyms * Genre Envy, Part 2 * Of Interest * The Numbers This is a long post, but all of it’s tied together. Focusing Down I’ve talked at some length before about the value of focusing down with your description. Focusing down on some details is an excellent way to pull the readers more deeply into the story. It’s a way to put the reader in the story with the characters. Chapter 3 of Nightfall, almost the whole chapter, is an excellent example of what I … Read more

In Today’s Journal * Quotes of the Day * The NEW TNDJ Challenges * Of Interest * The Numbers Quotes of the Day “Readers will return again and again to richly immersive worlds.” Kailee Pedersen (see Of Interest) “Details can lend authenticity to the setting, but can also be used to set up plot twists, foreshadowing, or simply as imagery to additionally convey mood, tone, and characterization.” Kailee Pedersen (see Of Interest) The NEW TNDJ Challenges Since I’ll be reporting every Monday on both the Bradbury and Stephen King challenges, I’ll combine them under The TNDJ Challenges. I’ve also revised … Read more