Space.com

The Journal: Just Checking In

In today’s Journal * Just Checking In * Corona Model 3 Folding Typewriter * Of Interest * The Numbers ​​​ I’m not back, but I thought I’d check in. Hope this finds all of you well and writing your fingers to the bone. I’m showing up at the desk every day, hitting all my usual blogs, etc. and attempting to open the right valves to let the fiction flow. So I’m here. If any of you need anything, email me. When I’ve put enough time in the chair to know it isn’t going to happen for at least one more … Read more

The Journal: One Writing Process

In today’s Journal * Quotes of the Day * Topic: One Writing Process * Of Interest * The Numbers Quotes of the Day “I always tell people to just let a story or a book be what it wants to be. Sometimes I even forget my own lessons.” Dean Wesley Smith “Most of the ‘wisdom’ from members feels like advice we’ve all heard over the years presented as inviolable rules. Those of you who have hung around TKZ for a while know my opinion on the rules of writing: There aren’t any. Fiction writers need only to entertain their audience. … Read more

The Journal: Marketing and Promotion

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Thanks * Topic: Marketing and Promotion * There’s also a link * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “I believe it was Shakespeare, or possibly Howard Cosell, who first observed that marriage is very much like a birthday candle, in that ‘the flames of passion burn brightest when the wick of intimacy is first ignited by the disposable butane lighter of physical attraction, but sooner or later the heat of familiarity causes the wax of boredom to drip all over the vanilla frosting of novelty and the shredded … Read more

The Journal: The Novel Wrapped, But

In today’s Journal * The Novel Wrapped, But * Of Interest * The Numbers Well, the first Wes Crowley gap novel, Assignment: Brownsville, wrapped as a short novel at 36,000 words. Per usual, I ran a spell check and sent it off to my first readers. The thing is (as I keep saying), every novel writes differently. No more than maybe five minutes after I sent this one out to my first readers I experienced the overpowering urge to pull it back and add a chapter (late in the story) in which the POV switches to the bad guy down … Read more

The Journal: The Novel Finished

In today’s Journal * Welcome * How to Write Fiction Sales Copy * More Boring Talk About My Own Writing * Of Interest * The Numbers Welcome to Kelley and Anitha and any others who have joined our little community lately. If I can ever do anything to help with your writing, please don’t hesitate to contact me. You know those writers you meet at writers’ conferences who deliver their lecture or class and then disappear into their room in the hotel for the duration? Yeah, that’s not me. I was the guy hanging out in the lobby or the … Read more

The Journal: David Farland and Dan Baldwin

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * David Farland * Dan Baldwin * The end of the novel * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “It’s been my belief from the beginning that there is virtually nothing an author can do to significantly impact sales. The best way for an author to sell books is to write more books.” John Gilstrap David Farland I’ve been linking to a series of posts by David Farland in “Of Interest.” So far he’s posted ten lessons. There might be more. I don’t agree with everything Farland says about … Read more

The Journal: Pulp Speed Revisited

In today’s Journal * Quotes of the Day * Today * Pulp Speed Revisited * Of Interest * The Numbers Quotes of the Day “My novels are what is known as popular and sell very well, but I am not a critic’s favorite; indeed I am generally dismissed with a sneer as a bestseller and not reviewed at all.” Daphne du Maurier “Sometimes I wonder what the difference is between being cautious and being dead.” Sue Grafton “When fiction writing isn’t fun, you are doing something wrong. And that is usually a myth or critical voice….” Dean Wesley Smith “The … Read more

The Journal: Conscious Mind

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Conscious Mind * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “We can’t solve poverty or hunger, but we’re going to solve global warming. Think about that.” Anonymous, from a meme Well, sometime or other I slipped from thinking it would be nice personally to finish 6 novels in the first quarter of the year to “trying” to make it happen. That’s conscious mind crap. And as a result, I had a non-writing day yesterday, the second one for this novel. I actually wrote probably 5,000 words yesterday in fits … Read more

The Journal: The Internet, blah blah blah

In today’s Journal * The Internet, blah blah blah * I won’t be trashing * The Numbers My internet was down earlier today. Add to that the fact that I was under the weather last night and didn’t wake up until after 5 this morning, and I’m just not in a good mood. But the internet—well, the wind blew a little, and it rained a little (less than a half-inch spread out over 8 or 10 hours). Of course, neither wind nor rain have anything whatsoever to do with electricity and the signals it carries as long as the latter … Read more

The Journal: I’m a Fortunate Guy

In today’s Journal * Quotes of the Day * Topic: I’m a Fortunate Guy * If you haven’t pulled the trigger * The Numbers Quotes of the Day “You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.” Maya Angelou “In writing, the critical voice always makes the wrong decision. Readers don’t read safe, easy, dull books. Just like no one watches the perfectly behaved child walking beside their parent and doing nothing. Nope, people watch with laughter or shock or stunned amazement or horror the out-of-control funny child. Your book needs to be that child, not … Read more