In Today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * The Novel Wrapped * The Value of Averages * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “I have to write to be happy whether I get paid for it or not. But it is a hell of a disease to be born with. I like to do it. Which is even worse. That makes it from a disease into a vice. Then I want to do it better than anybody has ever done it which makes it into an obsession.” Ernest Hemingway, in a letter to Charles Scribner, dateline … Read more

In Today’s Journal * Welp * Writing Longhand? * Ongoing Offers * Of Interest * The Numbers Welp The novel didn’t wrap yesterday, but the characters handed me the ending. So it will wrap today. Oh, and on the admin side the Stanbrough Writes Substack is populated with short stories out through the end of February 2026. I plan to finish at least out through December 2026. After that we’ll see. Writing Longhand? A writer emailed me, “I’m out of town this week and next and my schedule has been completely thrown off course. … I’ve been writing on my … Read more

In Today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Awhile Back, a Young Writer * My Best Advice for Fiction Writers * The Numbers Quote of the Day “They who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by night.” From Edgar Allan Poe’s “Eleonora” Awhile Back, a Young Writer emailed to ask whether I would copyedit a short story collection for him. Initially I said I would. Then I read one of his stories via his Substack. It was a good story, but the presentation dragged it down: I was not invited into … Read more

In Today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * The TNDJ Challenges * The Writing * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “You really have a way with words, but being a prolific fiction writer, you would have to be good with words. Anyone can put words on paper, but it takes a true writer to make another person feel what the author is feeling.” Anonymous reader in a review I appreciated this sentiment, but the facts are backward. Anyone with a passion for writing fiction can become a ‘true writer.’ Being good with words doesn’t make … Read more

In Today’s Journal * How NASA Plans to… * The Stanbrough Writes Substack * Of Interest * The Numbers How NASA Plans to… In The 13-Month Turn, one of my SF novels, the characters lived and worked in a fully developed settlement on the surface of the moon. The ‘world-building’ happened generically as the story unfolded. In fact, the protagonist and his wife were transported to Luna (with a lot of other people) so he could work as part of an established crew on further developing and expanding the settlement. The setting alone makes the story one of my personal … Read more

In Today’s Journal * A New Short Story * TNDJ Contests Reminder * Of Interest * The Numbers A New Short Story “Instant Replay” went live yesterday at 10 a.m. on my Stanbrough Writes Substack. Go check it out. It’s free. The story is in the Blackwell Ops world, but it’s pure romance. In fact, I’m not sure whether this one is also part of a novel. If you enjoy the story, please click Like. Comments are welcome too. Both help with my Substack algorithms. Then tell Everyone else. Gracias. TNDJ Contests Reminder Today is Saturday. Just a reminder to … Read more

In Today’s Journal * Quotes of the Day * About Writing Fiction Into the Dark * Of Interest * The Numbers Quotes of the Day “Writing is like driving at night. You can see only as far as the headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.” E.L. Doctorow, in James McInerney, “Author, Author: An Interview with Doctorow,” in Vogue magazine (Nov. 1984) “You don’t have to see where you’re going, you don’t have to see your destination or everything you will pass along the way. You just have to see two or three feet ahead of you. … Read more

In Today’s Journal * Quotes of the Day * Of Interest * The Numbers I wasn’t going to put TNDJ out today, but this stuff is too important to let slide. Quotes of the Day “Getting a reader to spend money for a book comes in four steps: Cover and author name. Branded name and cover branded to a genre. Sales copy. Opening that makes a reader want to buy. Ending, validation that make readers want to look up more work by the same author. (The endings also includes back matter.)” from Dean Wesley Smith (see Of Interest) Note: Both … Read more

In Today’s Journal * First Day of October * Characters * Of Interest * The Numbers First Day of October Today’s the first day of October and, maybe more significantly for goal-oriented writers, the first day of the final quarter of the calendar year. I hope you’ve already revisited and reset your goals if necessary. And if you haven’t, it’s never too late. I also hope this will be a great month for all of us. My own September was dismal with only 44,000 words of fiction. I’d like to at least double that for October, but we’ll see. Characters … Read more

In Today’s Journal * About Your Morning Serial (Grrr!) * A Short Take * From Dave Chesson * Of Interest * The Numbers About Your Morning Serial (Grrr!) Welp, I tried to send installments of Nightfall only twice a week, on Monday and Wednesday. But that left a 4-day gap before the next installment the following Monday. That gap was too long. Even I had trouble finding my place and keeping up with the story, and I wrote the stupid thing. So yesterday morning, after the installment containing Chapters 14 and 15 posted, I opened Your Morning Serial to reschedule … Read more