In Today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Away from the Hovel * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “If we could dare to write as ill as we can, we should write better than we do.” Essayist William Hazlitt (1778–1830) Meaning of the Quote (according to AI) Hazlitt’s quote suggests that overthinking, trying too hard to be “good,” or striving for a perfect and literary style can stifle a writer’s authentic voice. By allowing themselves to write with less self-consciousness—or as “ill as we can”—they might produce something more honest, fresh, and ultimately more effective. … Read more

In Today’s Journal * The Darling Members Club * The Bradbury Challenge * And Now…. * Of Interest * The Numbers The Darling Members Club Like a few of you, I’m subscribed to Your Morning Serial, mostly so I can verify that each edition actually posts. But I’m also enjoying reading over my previous work each morning at 5 a.m. when it appears in my inbox. However, reading over previous work can get interesting, and interesting isn’t always a good thing. As I was reading yesterday’s post I found what I believe is a major glitch. I’ll even tell you … Read more

In Today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * My Quote of the Day * The whole point * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “Every character in the world exists in all of us.” Steven Van Zandt, musician (E Street Band) and actor (The Sopranos, etc.) See Of Interest. My Quote of the Day “This whole discussion draws close to supporting the ridiculous notion that writing fiction is some sort of an elevated calling, like the priesthood. It isn’t. “Why do I write? (Shrug.) Why does a carpenter build? Why does a mechanic repair engines? “I … Read more

In Today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * A New Short Story * Bradbury Reminder * Help a Brother (and Yourself) Out * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “There’s a hell of a distance between wise-cracking and wit. Wit has truth in it; wise-cracking is simply calisthenics with words.” Dorothy Parker A New Short Story “What Mothers Do” went live yesterday at 10 a.m. on my Stanbrough Writes Substack. Go check it out. It’s free. This story is quiet and soft and borders on magic realism. It might also be the opening for my next … Read more

In Today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * An Ounce of Description * If You’d Like an Example * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “The art of writing pulp is the art of writing sentences that do more than one thing at a time.” Raymond Chandler An Ounce of Description Recently, as part of an enticement for a Kickstarter, a writer offered a special stretch goal that consisted of four short stories by two writers. As part of the promotion for one of the stories (or maybe of the collection itself, I forget), he mentioned … Read more

In Today’s Journal * My Quote of the Day * The Best-Kept Secret in Indie Publishing * A Sampler of Definitions * Of Interest * The Numbers My Quote of the Day “Far too many take up fiction writing because they believe it’s some sort of elevated ‘calling.’ Frankly, if you need a reason to write fiction beyond just telling a good story, you probably aren’t a fiction writer.” Yer Uncle Harv The Best-Kept Secret in Indie Publishing I suspect the best-kept secret in indie publishing is Draft2Digital’s The Indie Advantage newsletter. It’s free, and offers “Tools & Tips to … Read more

In Today’s Journal * DWS Adult Back to School Sale * The Writing * Of Interest * The Numbers I wasn’t going to post anything today, but I had to pass this along. DWS Adult Back to School Sale Dean Wesley Smith and Kristine Kathryn Rusch are offering everything on Teachable for 60% off for the next few days and 50% off after that until Labor Day. Especially if you’re just starting out as a fiction writer (Stage 1 through Stage 2) I strongly recommend taking advantage of this sale. They don’t have them very often. I most strongly personally … Read more

In Today’s Journal * Horrible, Terrible, Exhaustingly Sucky Quote of the Day * A Brief Rant from Yer Uncle Harv * Here’s What’s Possible * Of Interest * The Numbers Horrible, Terrible, Exhaustingly Sucky Quote of the Day “To think about this from a writing perspective, there is only so far you can take a story without help.” Jenny Hansen Yes, I edited the quote. I replaced an unnecessary ellipsis with a comma. A Brief Rant from Yer Uncle Harv Despite the alluring title, I knew this article wouldn’t go into “Of Interest” as soon as I saw the graphic … Read more

In Today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * The Bradbury Challenge * Write Your Book This Morning!… * Final Updated List of Books for Sale * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “To live is to choose. But to choose well, you must know who you are and what you stand for, where you want to go and why you want to get there.” Kofi Annan, former UN Secretary-General The Bradbury Challenge As I told one writer this morning, Bradbury’s original advice to writers about writing short fiction was this: “Write a new short story every … Read more

In Today’s Journal * The Purpose of TNDJ * Occasionally in TNDJ * Of Interest * The Numbers The Purpose of TNDJ The whole purpose of TNDJ is to teach fiction writers it’s all right to believe in themselves. That you don’t need (or want, actually) critical input from critique groups or beta readers, and that you shouldn’t revise or rewrite as a result of any critical input you inadvertently receive. If you’re compelled to rewrite on advice of a beta reader or critique group member, then you should also rewrite every time a general reader points out something s/he … Read more