Dean Wesley Smith

The Journal, Friday, 9/15

Hey Folks, Welp, I started the day closer to my usual time. I read a lot (see “Of Interest”) and then checked Dean’s site. Much of his post for today is a rehash of the previous couple of days, so it didn’t make “Of Interest,” but parts of it keyed something in me. So I wrote the topic for today. Actually, I also wrote the topic for tomorrow (I won’t count those words until tomorrow). I had so much fun with the latter, I decided to cross post that one to the main blog where it will appear on September … Read more

The Journal, Thursday, 9/14

Hey Folks, Man, I hate outsmarting myself. And I’ve done that twice recently. The most recent was yesterday, when I planned to watch the historic Cleveland Indians’ game against Detroit. Cleveland won and extended their streak to 21 games. But I didn’t get to watch it. When MLB Network advertised they would show the game live at “noon Eastern,” I counted the hours the wrong way. I expected it at 4, when actually it came on at 9. Sigh. And a couple weeks ago, I decided to take down my 10-volume Wes Crowley saga from Smashwords and D2D. The series … Read more

The Journal, Wednesday, 9/13

Hey Folks, Not a lot other than reading and writing (very little arithmetic) going on at the old homestead today. It feels like a do-nothing day, but I don’t want one. Besides, I need that like I need a cliché in my head. I finally broke down and took my lawn mower in to a repair shop. That and surrounding details and sidetracks ate up the first two working hours of the day. I started playing at the novel right at 10:30. It’s now almost 1:30 (I’ve done some other little stuff too) and I’ve written barely over 1000 new … Read more

The Journal, Tuesday, 9/12

Hey Folks, Okay, I mentioned a couple of times a workshop I’m taking with Dean. It ended this morning, so here’s my report. On the Online Workshops tab of his website, the title (if you want to read about it) is officially “Writing Mysteries.” If you’re interested, I encourage you to read the writeup there. First, I found that the actual workshop more than nailed the description on the website. This is an actual writing workshop. He teaches you how to write mysteries in the ten most popular subgenres. Plus there are extensive notes on writing Thrillers (used to be … Read more

The Journal, Monday, 9/11

Hey Folks, Well, have you guys heard me whine enough? The thing is, I’m either a writer or I’m not. For awhile now, I haven’t been. Not really. So I’ll see about cutting down on the whining, and instead go back to tending to business. I am somewhat heartened, because in the original essay in which Robert Heinlein laid out his Business Habits for Writers, he mentioned that he himself had violated his own rules on occasion. *** Today in “Of Interest” you’ll see that Dean’s going to offer his services as a first reader again in two challenges, short … Read more

The Journal, Saturday, 9/9

Hey Folks, Well, I didn’t take the recliner back yesterday. If it doesn’t rain today, I’ll probably do that today. It did rain what seemed like all night last night, but less than 1/10 of an inch in the gauge this morning. Left about 8:30 for Sierra Vista. Back around 12. Not sure what else I’ll get done today. My WIP is kind’a weird. I mean, I keep hearing that all books write differently, and my experience has shown that’s true. In this one, not only will it (probably) be presented in “Parts,” but I’m getting the feeling I need … Read more

The Journal, Wednesday, 9/6

Hey Folks, Now I know what the kids mean when they write OMG. Via The Passive Voice from yesterday, there was this wonderful gem: “What begins as a raindrop on our heads turns into a cloudburst of rain. If we deny its messages, it becomes a thunderstorm. Still not listening? Look out for a hurricane, a tornado and an accompanying tsunami.” Are you kidding me? Talk about mixing metaphors. And even mixing them WITHIN a metaphor. This is supposed to be a serious post about what might happen if we “fail or refuse to learn the lessons we are supposed … Read more

The Journal, Tuesday, 9/5

Hey Folks, I rolled out a little early today. I spent the first half-hour or so on a little bit of Internet stuff. Then I listened to Week 5 of my online workshop with DWS. The main topic this week was the primary reason I took this workshop, especially when combined with the main topic in Week 4. So I went back and reviewed a couple of videos from Week 4 as well and enhanced my notes for Week 5. The topics in Weeks 1 – 3 weren’t really of interest to me, but I listened to them anyway because … Read more

The Journal, Monday, 9/4

Hey Folks, I told my wife last night I needed to get back in the office and publish “The Tarp.” I didn’t. So after most of my Internet stuff this morning, I did that. I’m rusty there too, so it took a little longer than usual. Anyway, I’ll be emailing it to donors shortly. Actually, I ended up emailing the last three stories to donors. I might have sent the first two before, but I don’t think so. I sent them “Going Home,” a war story about a sniper who encounters some unusual circumstances; “Pancho and Lefty: An Alternate Ending,” … Read more

The Journal, Sunday, 9/3

Hey Folks, I read the story I just finished to my wife yesterday, but she didn’t quite get the ending. I said, “Would it help if I had mentioned perfume” in a particular place in the story? She said it would. That was the one clue that was missing. This was an interesting story for me. It appears to be very convoluted, but really there are only two major scenes. And you can tell I’ve been reading a lot of Hemingway recently. This story is very detailed and very strange. (grin) So I added the bit about perfume this morning. … Read more