In Today’s Journal * More on Replacing “It” * A New ‘Down in the Weeds’ Newsletter? * About ‘Down in the Weeds’ * ‘Down in the Weeds’ Is Not a Done Deal. * Of Interest * The Numbers More on Replacing “It” A writer asked whether you should also guard against repetition when you replace vague pronouns (that is, pronouns whose antecedents are vague) with a noun or proper name. The answer is Maybe. It depends. (Yes, an example is coming.) The writer also reminded me that although I recommend AGAINST conscious-mind ‘revising,’ ‘rewriting,’ and ‘editing,’ I also hold that … Read more

In Today’s Journal * Quotes of the Day * A New Short Story * Over a Million Consumable Words * The Darling Members Club * The Writing * Of Interest * The Numbers Quotes of the Day “We don’t stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.” George Bernard Shaw “November, n. The eleventh twelfth of a weariness.” Ambrose Bierce in The Devil’s Dictionary A New Short Story “The Breath Formed” went live yesterday at 10 a.m. on my Stanbrough Writes Substack. Go check it out. Bring tissues. A note on the writing—If you want … Read more

In Today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * First, a Caution * Welcome to November, and an Update * Writing Better Fiction * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “No big challenge has ever been solved, and no lasting improvement has ever been achieved, unless people dare to try something different.” Tim Cook, Apple CEO Note that Mr. Cook didn’t say ‘something hard.’ He said ‘something different.’ If you want to solve the challenge of writing fiction, dare to try writing into the dark. Just sayin’. First, a Serious Caution About the November Challenges As a … Read more

In Today’s Journal * Quotes of the Day * Being Too Vague Is Not Good * Another Reminder * Of Interest * The Numbers Quotes of the Day “Once we realize we are all members of humanity, we will want to compete in the spirit of love.” Muhammad Ali “You must learn to be still in the midst of activity and to be vibrantly alive in repose.” Indira Gandhi Being Too Vague Is Not Good I’ve said many times that a good fiction writer is continually learning more about the craft of fiction writing. Despite the proliferation of how-to books … Read more

In Today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * A Very Short Post * Just a Reminder * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “I’ve been making it my goal to write everyday, and get 7,000 words a week. The only way to learn any craft is to exercise it! There were some rough patches getting started (old fears coming back into play etc.) but I’m glad to say Ive been pretty consistent over the last few months, and many times I end up exceeding my goal. I feel myself learning more about myself as a writer … Read more

In Today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Free Nonfiction Books: A Reminder * Priorities * When You Buy a Used Laptop * The Writing * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “[As I was jogging in place while watching a video,] I heard a voice say, ‘You didn’t say anything about why I set up the display in the first place. Are you interested?’ Of course I was interested, and now I’ve added another 156 words to a story I thought was finished. So the lesson—listen to that quiet voice that has such impact. It … Read more

In today’s Journal * November Challenge Expanded * The Bradbury Challenge Writers Reporting * Writers Write * The Writing * KKR’s Reading Program * Of Interest * The Numbers November Challenge Expanded Owing to a friend reminding me that November is also National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo, and see below), I’ve expanded the upcoming November challenge. On October 26 I announced the Stephen King Challenge (see below): 1000 words per day, or 30,000 words for the month. I’m adding a second challenge for anyone who’s intrigued with the NaNo goal of writing a 50,000 word novel in a month. The … Read more

In today’s Journal * An Essential Dialogue Tip * An Essential Narrative Tip * A Minor Digression and a Sale * The Numbers An Essential Dialogue Tip When a tag line or brief descriptive narrative is necessary to let the reader know which character is speaking, always, always, ALWAYS put it ahead of the dialogue, not after the dialogue. This is especially true when more than two characters are involved in a scene. Putting the tag line or descriptive narrative after the dialogue is a kind of reverse construction, and reverse constructions are almost always detrimental to a reading experience. … Read more

In today’s Journal * New Short Story * November Is Coming * What Is a First Reader? * Wow! Great Response! * The Writing * The Numbers New Short Story “Brain Food” went live yesterday at 10 a.m. on my Stanbrough Writes Substack. Go check it out. I think of this one as being a kind of magic realism that happens in the reader’s mind rather than on the page. As always, if you enjoy it, please tell Everyone. If you don’t, shhh! (grin) November Is Coming Hey guys, November is fast approaching and it’s a 30-day month. Several of … Read more

In today’s Journal * My New Adjusted Goal * Want to Collaborate? * Of Interest * The Numbers About My New Adjusted Goal On October 12, I posted a new adjusted goal for the year. At the beginning of the year, I’d planned to write 24 novels. That’s basically it. Since I typically turn out a novel in 14 or 15 days, that was not an ‘easy’ goal, but it was do-able. It would require me to experience very few non-writing days, forced or voluntary. But as of October 12, with only 14 novels published this calendar year and only … Read more