In today’s Journal
* Quotes of the Day
* Welcome
* Remain Vigilant
* Fan Fiction Writer or Reader?
* The Writing
* Of Interest
* The Numbers
Quotes of the Day
“Stephen King writes on Christmas because why not? If we eat and sleep and brush our teeth how is this different?” George Kordonis (So good I decided to repeat it.)
“As usual, personal conversations from those at the tables filled the air. The din was so thick you could almost walk across it. But you would have to take care not to stumble over a chuckle or be knocked aside by a sudden outburst of laughter.” Soleada Tarea describing the cantina in Agua Rocosa in Blackwell Ops 16: Tarea-Garcia
Remain Vigilant
Always be vigilant for the critical voice to seep in.
I mentioned in the two previous posts that I decided to take a day off from writing fiction completely on December 23, and then to leave early on December 24, missing my daily goal by a mere 229 words (for me, about 15 minutes).
Both were perfectly valid decisions. I don’t regret either of them.
But even as much as I’ve written (see numbers below), and even though I write fiction almost every day of the year, yesterday as I turned from this business computer to my writing ‘puter, my very first thought was
“It wouldn’t hurt anything at all to take today off too. After all, it’s Christmas.”
That despite the fact it was almost 3 a.m. and most of the rest of my world is asleep. (grin) It was nothing but pure critical mind trying to shove its way in.
So even when you’ve shoved the critical voice away enough that it seldom visits, it will still crop up now and then. And when it does, it will stop you from writing. It’s stopped many of us this year, hasn’t it?
Fortunately, I recognized it for what it was, laughed it off, then turned back to the business computer and wrote this little bit.
And now I’m going to put some new words into the novel.
Because as George Kordonis reported to me when he submittied his story information for the Bradbury Challenge on Christmas Eve, “Stephen King writes on Christmas because why not? If we eat and sleep and brush our teeth how is this different?”
That is easily one of the wisest and most profound quotes about writing fiction I’ve ever heard.
Fan Fiction Writer or Reader?
I’m repeating this from yesterday and adding a little info.
If you are a fanfic writer or reader, check out Archive of Our Own. Thanks to Matt G P for the info.
And it isn’t only short stories and novels. Browse the site. You might be pleasantly surprised.
The Writing
To see my goals for 2024 and two new mentorships I’m considering offering, read this post. If the mentorhips interest you, email me at harveystanbrough@gmail.com to let me know that. Just gauging level of interest. You aren’t committing to anything by emailing me.
Well, the novel didn’t wrap yesterday as I thought it would. I think it would have if I hadn’t forced myself to stop writing to go eat lunch. I wrote a couple hundred words after that, but I’d lost the momentum.
I expect it to wrap today unless the characters throw me a distinctly different curve ball.
Also, in a late chapter yesterday the characters hinted that this novel is probably another Blackwell Ops novel instead of the beginning of a new series.
Which is fine if that’s how it turns out. I can only keep doing what I do if I remain unattached to outcome.
I never focus on outcome. I focus only on the process. Putting new words on the page and letting the story be what it will.
While I’m on the topic, the Wes Crowley books aren’t really a series. They comprise a saga, one continuing story that spans 21 or 22 novels. The characters age. That’s also the way of The Journey Home SF saga.
But Blackwell Ops is not a saga. It’s a series. It can have a new POV character in each book, so they don’t age. They come onstage, tell their story, and exit. It could go on forever.
Of Interest
Nada
The Numbers
The Journal……………………………… 700
Writing of Tarea-Garcia 1
Day 1…… 4968 words. To date…… 4968
Day 2…… 3677 words. To date…… 8645
Day 3…… 3307 words. To date…… 11952
Day 4…… 4467 words. To date…… 16419
Day 5…… 4193 words. To date…… 20612
Day 6…… 2061 words. To date…… 22673
Day 7…… 3250 words. To date…… 25923
Day 8…… 2036 words. To date…… 27959
Day 9…… 3789 words. To date…… 31748
Day 10…. 4093 words. To date…… 35841
Day 11…. 3771 words. To date…… 39612
Day 12…. 4366 words. To date…… 43437
Writing of “The Love of Soleada”
Day 1…… 1079 words. To date…… 1079
Day 2…… 1444 words. To date…… 2523
Day 3…… 0225 words. To date…… 2748
Day 4…… 0747 words. To date…… 3495
Fiction for December…………………… 97785
Fiction for 2023…………………………. 498619
Fiction since August 1………………… 383395
Nonfiction for December……………… 20180
Nonfiction for the year……………… 275760
Annual consumable words………… 770872
2023 Novels to Date……………………… 10
2023 Novellas to Date…………………… 0
2023 Short Stories to Date……………… 8
Novels (since Oct 19, 2014)…………… 81
Novellas (since Nov 1, 2015)…………… 9
Short stories (since Apr 15, 2014)…… 236
Short story collections…………………… 31
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Disclaimer: I am a prolific professional fiction writer. On this blog I teach Writing Into the Dark and adherence to Heinlein’s Rules. Unreasoning fear and the myths of writing will slow your progress as a writer or stop you cold. I will never teach the myths on this blog.