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The Journal: What Makes for Good Writing

In today’s Journal * Quotes of the Day * Even though * Topic: What Makes for Good Writing? * Adios for a While * Of Interest * The Numbers Quotes of the Day “I can repeat Mr. Heinlein’s advice to writers. If you pay attention to his dictums, you don’t need to know much else.” Dr. Jerry Pournelle, upon being asked his advice to new writers “The only opinion that counts of your story is whether or not someone will pay you money for it.” Dr. Jerry Pournelle Even though I haven’t written anything for almost two months, I still … Read more

The Daily Journal, Saturday, March 23

In today’s Journal ▪ With respect to the OP… ▪ Topic: On Being a “Hybrid” Writer ▪ Daily diary ▪ Of Interest (a boatload of links) ▪ The numbers With respect to the OP mentioned about Microsoft Word in “Of Interest,” you can still view (free) my blog series “Microsoft Word for Writers” at http://harveystanbrough.com/microsoft-word-for-writers/. Just sayin’. *** Topic: On Being a “Hybrid” Writer Part 1: Statement, History and Rationale At 66 years old, with 40-some novels and almost 200 short stories under my belt, I’ve decided to go hybrid. My work has been traditionally published before. I’ve had articles, … Read more

The Journal, Wednesday, August 1

Hey Folks, Well, yesterday’s trip to Tucson was mostly a waste of time. The upshot was I have to go back in early September for another test. In retrospect, that is the test I should have had yesterday. But as with all things, it will be what it will be. Nothing to worry about. Just little annoyances, the largest of which is the putrid, festering intrusion of insurance company mandates into what should be purely medical decisions. Today, writing will be even more of a joyful escape than usual. *** The “first-page critique” offered by the Kill Zone blog has … Read more

The Journal, Thursday, June 14

Hey Folks, Well, I think I’m taking off a few days. I just had a new copyedit come in, so I’m going to work on that. In the meantime, D.R.E.A.D. can rest while I decide whether to shoot it or hook it up to a resuscitation machine. When I return to it, probably I’ll backtrack to see whether I can find where it took a wrong turn. I’ve done that once already and didn’t see a place where it went wrong, so maybe I’ll have to set it aside for awhile and move on to something else. Hey, stuff happens. … Read more

The Journal, Tuesday, June 12

Hey Folks, I almost didn’t post a Journal entry today. Nothing in “Of Interest” today, and I didn’t write any new fiction. But I wanted to share with you. Wow. What a great day! Already! (It’s about noon as I write this.) It isn’t a great day writing-wise, at least not yet. And if it ends either way, that’ll be fine too. But it’s a great day in the realm of serendipity. Now understand, I’m in the middle (well, the first quarter or third) of a novel. The D.R.E.A.D. thing. Only I already know I’m going to change one character … Read more

The Journal, Friday, 6/23

Hey Folks, Well, here we are back at HEStanbrough.com. Yep, I’ve moved the Journal back over here. Much more on that in the topic below. *** Thirty-three years ago today Mona found out I’m a much better judge of women than she is of men. That’s when we tied the knot, and she hasn’t figured out how to untie it yet. (grin) *** The first gem I took from Dean’s current post (see “Of Interest”) when I started reading was this: “Challenges get me focused for short bursts of time on writing.” There you go. That’s the reason to establish … Read more