The Passive Voice

The Journal: Translation, and the POV Character’s Opinion

In today’s Journal * Quotes of the Day * Translation * Topic: The POV Character’s Opinion * Today * Of Interest * The Numbers Quotes of the Day “If the character had more of a colorful opinion, I might see the reason for the description-to … give insight into the character.” Jordan Dane, the Kill Zone blog “Translating from one language to another is the most delicate of intellectual exercises; compared to translation, all other puzzles, from bridge to crosswords, seem trivial and vulgar. To take a piece of Greek and put it in English without spilling a drop; what … Read more

The Journal: Trusting the Process

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Today * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “Have you ever blown an entire morning noodling with a single paragraph or, worse, a solitary sentence? Resistance has outfoxed you. You have hung up an entire battalion trying to capture an outhouse.” Steven Pressfield Had a good writing day today. This is a really twisted novel, but the disparate parts are starting to come together. Folks, this is the truly great thrill of writing into the dark: to just write the next sentence and let the story unfold as … Read more

The Journal: More on Rejections

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Definition of the Day * Today * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “[K]eep rejections, print them off when electronic, for tax purposes. Just a friendly reminder.” Dean Wesley Smith Definition of the Day (for fun) I enjoy writing definitions. They’re usually snide, ironic, or otherwise sideways. So sue me. (grin) cliché … n. a word, phrase or clause that’s been around so long it’s built up an unusual, unnatural level of gravity, which in turn causes it to Suck. Perpetuation or repetition of a cliché has the … Read more

The Journal: Requesting Your Recommendations

In today’s Journal * Quotes of the Day * Topic: Requesting Your Recommendations * Today * Of Interest * The Numbers Quotes of the Day “Readers don’t buy books, they buy stories by voices that resonate with them. The more distinct your voice, the more likely your signal stands out from the rest of the noise.” Russell Blake “We all think we live in an exceptional time, and this is the big show, and all else was preamble. Wrong. This is only our show, and we are tomorrow’s preamble, so lighten up and have fun with whatever you’re doing, and … Read more

The Journal: Yesterday and Thoughts on Burnout

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Topic: Yesterday and Thoughts on Burnout * Today * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “I may never become a millionaire through my writing, but it makes me richer every time I put fingers to keyboard.” Adela Crandell Durkee Topic: Yesterday and Thoughts on Burnout No writing yesterday as it turned out. I did a few chores, went to the grocery and the post office, and on my return my little girl cat wanted me to spend some time with her. So I did. Writing fiction is important, … Read more

The Journal: A Note From My Mother, and Naysayers

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Sorry… but * Topic: A Note From My Mother * Bonus Topic: Don’t Listen to the Naysayers (and Don’t Be One) * Today * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “Importance is the worst thing you can put on any kind of creativity. As soon as you think it’s important, you’re dead.” Jerry Seinfeld Topic: A Note From My Mother if I had one with me as I appear before you again, would read, “Please excuse Harvey’s recent absence. But just so you know, he is untenable so … Read more

The Journal: Kris Rusch, A New WIP, and Today

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Topic: Kris Rusch’s Patreon Page * Smashwords is patening new technology * Today * I’ve also had a few questions * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day Via my friend Bob Calverley, “Bad books on writing tell you to ‘WRITE WHAT YOU KNOW’, a solemn and totally false adage that is the reason there exist so many mediocre novels about English professors contemplating adultery.” Joe Haldeman, author of The Forever War and Vietnam vet Topic: Kris Rusch’s Patreon Page Because of the way the world is today, I’ll … Read more

The Journal: Learning Never Stops

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Topic: The Learning Never Stops * Today * A Note in Passing * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “The key to all story endings is to give the audience what it wants, but not the way it expects.” William Goldman Topic: The Learning Never Stops Seriously. And if you pursue knowledge of any particular topic, then mull over that knowledge, realizations come quickly and often. This will be a thought-process post. A little insight into what goes on in my head during pretty much every waking moment. … Read more

The Journal: Happy Gathering Day and “On Platitudes”

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Happy Gathering Day * Topic: on Platitudes and “Just write the next sentence” * Today * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “Any day that starts with you seein’ the sunrise and ends with you seein’ the sunset is a pretty good day. If what happens in between ain’t big enough to interfere with those two events, it’ll wear off.” Wes Crowley Here in the States it’s Thanksgiving Day, a major holiday. Ostensibly, it’s a day set aside to count our blessings and express our gratitude for those … Read more

The Journal: More on Shared Worlds

In today’s Journal * Quotes of the Day * Topic: More on Shared Worlds * Today * Of Interest * The Numbers Quotes of the Day “The toughest thing we do as artists is trust our own vision. If we don’t, we will not end up with a long career. … What good writers do is make familiar stories new, so new in fact that they seem breathtakingly original.” — Kristine Kathryn Rusch And for those of you who write in series, this one really struck me: “When you’re writing in your own world, you don’t go for the details … Read more