Pro Writers Writing

The Daily Journal, Friday, July 19

In today’s Journal * Ridiculous Quote of the Day * Update * Daily diary * Of Interest * The numbers Ridiculous Quote of the Day Via the Kill Zone blog, “Writing a book is a horrible, exhausting struggle, like a long bout of some painful illness. One would never undertake such a thing if one were not driven on by some demon whom one can neither resist or understand.” – George Orwell LOL. Poor guy. Did nobody ever tell him writing is an elective process? He should’ve found something fun to do. (grin) Update First, today’s “Of Interest” is a … Read more

The Daily Journal, Thursday, July 18

In today’s Journal * Update * Topic: On Writing “Fast” * Daily diary * Of Interest * The numbers Update I got most of what I wanted to tranfer to Mona done yesterday (files, URLs, etc.). I say “most” because I’m sure other things will crop up later. This is a major mind-shift for me too, just because I won’t have to think as much about things I used to have to think about. Like pricing, genre placement, and distribution. Like classes on business and negotiations. I’ll keep my hand in the publishing side only as the prep guy. I’ll … Read more

The Daily Journal, Wednesday, July 17

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Update * Topic: Be Very Careful… * Daily diary * Of Interest * The numbers Quote of the Day “If I write a novel in 15 or 20 days, how does that directly affect the guy who is on his fifth rewite seven years into one novel? “Writing is no different than any other religion. To those who spend all their time trying to convince ‘fast’ writers we’re doing it wrong: We understand that you’re going to heaven and we aren’t ’cause you’re doing it ‘right’ and we aren’t. “The ting … Read more

The Daily Journal, Tuesday, July 16

In today’s Journal * Update * Topic: A Tale of Two Businesses * Don’t miss * Daily diary * Of Interest * The numbers Update Light day yesterday. I watched/listened to one of the Pop-Ups I received through a Kickstarter reward (writing stuff). I also decided to invest in a second set of speakers for my computers. I’ll keep one set in the Hovel for those times when I’m studying writers’ stuff and one in the house for when my wife and I are listening to publishing and marketing and licensing stuff. Topic: A Tale of Two Businesses First and … 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, Saturday, July 13

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * More on Licensing * According to Reedsy * Ebook aggregator PublishDrive * Daily diary * Of Interest * The numbers Quote of the Day “From my close observation of writers… they fall into two groups: 1) those who bleed copiously and visibly at any bad review, and 2) those who bleed copiously and secretly at any bad review. Isaac Asimov Which is why I generally don’t read reviews at all and recommend against it. What a reader thinks of your book is none of your business. *** Kris Rusch has just … Read more

The Daily Journal, Friday, July 12

In today’s Journal * Quotes of the Day * The second quote of the day * Update: My publisher and I * European ebook aggregators * Daily diary * Of Interest * The numbers Quotes of the Day “PG says there is nothing like a collection of first-world complaints to make you realize that life in modern America is a totally hellish experience. Lovecraftian to the max.” The Passive Guy “Left to myself, I’d be like you. I have a horror story and a gritty urban general fiction in me right now. BUT. I spent 15 years trying to be … Read more

The Daily Journal, Thursday, July 11

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Update * A major new resource * Topic: A Toast to New Beginnings * Daily diary * Of Interest * The numbers Quote of the Day “The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge.” Daniel J. Boorstin *** Yesterday, I moved the large monitor for my business computer back up to the house since that’s where we’ll be doing most of our learning. (See the topic below) My new partner and I also started some preliminaries: setting up a new web-based email address for the … Read more

The Daily Journal, Wednesday, July 10

In today’s Journal * Two topics today * Topic: Add-On Software * Topic: Ebooks and Print Books—A Comparison (reprint) * Daily diary * Of Interest * The numbers In a rare occurrence, we have two topics to cover today. The first is a little shorter, but important. The second is a little longer, but still important. So get your favorite beverage and settle in. Here we go. Topic: Add-On Software Add-on software, to my mind, is just silly. Why would any writer want extra distractions? A reader of this Journal directed me to Aeon Timeline, a company that makes Visual … Read more

The Daily Journal, Monday, July 8

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * If you’re a short story writer * Topic: Thinking About Intellectual Property (IP) * Daily diary * Of Interest * The numbers Quote of the Day “I enjoy self-publishing and sending publishers rejection letters. They’re like, ‘Who is this guy?’ And I’m like, ‘the end of your industry.’” Ryan Lilly *** If you’re a short story writer, I just received this from AuthorsPublish: Announcing the release of our latest book: 182 Short Fiction Publishers. The book guides you through the publishing process – and details dozens of publishers seeking short stories … Read more