The Journal: When You Outline a Novel

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Topic: When You Outline a Novel * Of Interest Quote of the Day One more note for Memorial Day: “… If you could hear, at every jolt, the blood Come gargling from the froth-corrupted lungs, Obscene as cancer, bitter as the cud Of vile, incurable sores on innocent tongues,— My friend, you would not tell with such high zest To children ardent for some desperate glory, The old Lie: Dulce et decorum est Pro patria mori.” from “Dulce et Decorum Est” by Wilfred Owen, a poet and British soldier who was … Read more

The Journal: Two Very Important Posts

In today’s Journal * Quotes of the Day * Important Post 1 * Important Post 2 * Of Interest * The Numbers Quotes of the Day “There are nearly 20 million titles available for delivery tomorrow in today’s world; there were certainly well under a million available 20 years ago. And with most customers not reached through inventory in stores, it is usually not relevant where a potential customer is: in your country or someplace else.” Mike Shatzkin “[T]here really are only two companies that define the book business today. … Amazon and Ingram comprise the global infrastructure of the … Read more

The Journal: A Recommendation and the New Mentorships

In today’s Journal * Quotes of the Day * Worked a full day * A Recommendation * The New Mentorships Are Live! * Of Interest * The Numbers Quotes of the Day “You don’t win elections by solving problems.” Jeff, commenter on TPG blog posthttps://www.thepassivevoice.com/prh-opens-the-conversation-to-sustain-antiracist-engagement/#comment-453479 My commentary and response: “You win elections by creating problems and then promising to solve them.” Wow. For the first time since I don’t remember  (probably a couple of months), I actually worked a full day yesterday. It felt good. I spent most of the morning polishing the mentorship information, putting the web pages together, … Read more

The Journal: Licensing and Everything Else

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Topic: Licensing and Everything Else * Today * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “I’m thankful there are people out there who read what I write and who like what I make. I’m very lucky, and I know it.” Neil Gaiman Topic: Licensing and Everything Else DWS has said many times that licensing is a process, one that takes time. It has occurred to me that how long it takes from concept to actual production seems even longer when compared to the ability of today’s writers to write … Read more

The Daily Journal, Thursday, July 25

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Correction * Topic: A Reminder of What It Takes… * Daily diary * Of Interest * The numbers Quote of the Day “[M]y creative voice is barely verbal. Maybe two [years old]. … [S]he whined, ‘I don’t wanna spend the rest of my life doing stinky licensing.’” (grin) Kristine Kathryn Rusch Correction While putting together my novel and novella inventory, I found what I thought was an error. I seemed to be missing a novel. But I added every new thing I wrote to my New Fiction spreadsheet as I finished … Read more

The Daily Journal, Monday, July 15

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Topic: 12 Ways to Make a Critique Group Work * Update * Daily diary * Of Interest * The numbers Quote of the Day “I don’t think in terms of genres. I think in terms of story.” David Gerrold Topic: 12 Ways to Make a Critique Group Work Versions of this article have been posted on my writer site in August 2013 and September 2017. Everyone here knows I don’t participate in critique groups. Nor do I recommend doing so. After all, I constantly battle to keep my own conscious, critical … Read more

The Daily Journal, Sunday, July 14

In today’s Journal * Quotes of the Day * According to my friend Phillip McCollum * The Journal is on a diet * Update: We’ve learned tons * Daily diary * Of Interest * The numbers Quotes of the Day “If it weren’t for received ideas, the publishing industry wouldn’t have any ideas at all.” Donald E. Westlake “The most frightening monsters are the ones who do not look like monsters at all, not until it is too late.” Kali Wallace *** According to my friend Phillip McCollum, it’s now possible to use Apple’s proprietary publishing program Vellum on a … Read more

The Daily Journal, Wednesday, May 29

In today’s Journal * Before I get started * Quote of the Day * Topic: On Licensing * On a side note * Daily diary * Of Interest * The numbers Before I really get started today, I want to welcome a new subscriber, Andrea, to the Journal. Glad you could join us. If you’d like to see the entire book I’m writing on how to quiet the critical voice, scroll down a couple of posts and you’ll see a list of links to all those posts. *** Quote of the Day “Live as if you were to die tomorrow. … Read more