Jane Friedman

The Journal: A Rare Occasion of Looking Backward

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Koontz not Kuntz * Topic: A Rare Occasion of Looking Backward * Today * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “The whole idea is to put yourself in a position to be recognized for your work so opportunities increase. False humility or even laziness could prevent that.” Actor Bryan Cranston In yesterday’s post I misspelled Dean Koontz’ name as “Kuntz.” Senior moment. Mea culpa. I’ve corrected it. When you write as many words per day as I do, I guess you can expect to make a phonetic mistake … Read more

The Journal: The Value of an Opening

In today’s Journal * Quotes of the Day * Affinity * Yesterday * Today * Topic: The Value of an Opening * Today redux * Of Interest * The Numbers Quotes of the Day “Reacher has remained a loner and a drifter, which allows Child the freedom to put his protagonist in virtually any role and in any setting and still continue the series.” Rick Pullen in an interview with Lee Child (see “Of Interest” below) “Advice to Writers: Ignore all advice because you’ve got to imagine here’s your book and that book is going to be competing with several … Read more

The Journal: Finished the Novel

In today’s Journal * Yesterday * Last Day of the Sale * Today * Of Interest * The Numbers Yesterday in several small sessions I wrote a little over 3100 words (see Day 21 below). Some of that was cycling to carry through the early few-sentence addition I made to the alien’s speech. So it seemed like a slow day, but it worked out all right. Also I’m pretty sure I’ll finish the thing today, which is good since today is the deadline. (grin) But the ending is in sight now, so I only have to write to it. Probably … Read more

The Journal: On Having “Enough” Inventory, Supporting Readers, and Other Things

In today’s Journal * Quotes of the Day * Yesterday * Topic: On Having “Enough” Inventory, Supporting Readers, and Other Things * Today * Of Interest * The Numbers Quotes of the Day “But the truth is, that pushing yourself often yields great results. If you push yourself and fail, at the very least you’ve exercised your writing muscles.” David Farland I expected yesterday to be a really big day, but it wasn’t. I diverted my efforts to helping my wife clear the yard of piles and piles of saltbush and mesquite tree trimmings. We transported four pickup-bed loads to … Read more

The Journal: Special Limited Time Discount

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Special Limited Time Discount * In the spirit * Writing with Depth and Advanced Depth * Yesterday and Today * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “Literature is a textually transmitted disease, normally contracted in childhood.” Jane Yolen (via The Passive Voice) Special Limited Time Discount In the spirit of helping readers pass the time and helping writers learn something new, I’ve just discounted all of my titles—nonfiction books, novels, novellas, short stories, and short story collections—by 50% at Smashwords. This sale ends on March 31, 2020. To … Read more

The Journal: My Advice for Writers re CoVID-19

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Topic: My Advice for Writers re CoVID-19 * Today * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “For some people, curiosity will lead to greater stress, and that stress will cripple their creativity. Instead of focusing on their novels, they’ll be focusing on the spectacle.” David Farland Topic: My Advice for Writers re CoVID-19 Since everyone else seems to be handing out advice, I thought I’d take a shot at it too. This advice, naturally, is for writers. First, here’s the all-but-mandatory disclaimer: I am not, have never been, … Read more

The Journal: Recognizing Life Rolls

In today’s Journal * I felt a little disjointed * Today * Of Interest * The Numbers I felt a little disjointed yesterday, a little out of sorts. I was fatigued, felt less than interested in the novel I’m writing, etc. I wanted only to go sit on my recliner and watch reruns of old Twilight Zone episodes. (The writing in most of those is excellent, though the dialogue often leaves a lot to be desired.) So that’s what I did. I barely got my 3000 words yesterday, and as soon as I did, I retired to the house. But … Read more

The Journal: This is Important

In today’s Journal * Topic: This is Important: What I Offer * Today * Of Interest * The Numbers Topic: This is Important: What I Offer Today I’m tooting my own horn, letting you know what you can learn from me and the various ways you can learn from me. I realized this morning I’ve never enumerated the various ways I teach. In case you didn’t know or as a gentle reminder, first I write this Journal almost every day. In it, I often post a topic that I believe will help someone out there. Sometimes some readers see my … Read more

The Journal: Writer Fear

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Topic: Writer Fear * Today * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “A good story is a good story no matter how you classify it.” Claire Langley-Hawthorne Topic: Writer Fear By now, anyone who follows this blog regularly or even irregularly knows I advocate Heinlein’s Rules and a technique called Writing Into the Dark (WITD). This is not original to me, nor is it original to Dean Wesley Smith, from whom I learned it. Nor was it original to whomever taught it to him. WITD is all about … Read more

The Journal: All About Challenges

In today’s Journal * All About Challenges * Today * Of Interest * The Numbers In the first “Of Interest” link today, DWS talks about and clarifies his Great Challenges (Publishing, Novel Writing, and Short Story Writing). If you want to jump-start your writing, I can’t recommend them strongly enough. In fact, if I had the funds, I’d jump into all three, and at least two (Publishing and either of the others). But with my current level of production, I’d also feel like I was cheating. After all, to satisfy the requirements of the Publishing challenge, you have to publish … Read more