The Passive Voice

The Daily Journal, Thursday, June 6

In today’s Journal * Welcome * Quote of the Day * Topic: On Stereotypes and … * Daily diary * Of Interest * The numbers Sometimes I get behind, or for some reason don’t think to welcome new subscribers. But I do appreciate each of you. Welcome to Steven D, Maggie K, and Lynn, and to any others I missed along the way. I hope you will find the Journal of value. Quote of the Day On letting your characters tell their own story— Over lunch in New York, Lee Child’s agent look at him across the table, and mentioned … Read more

The Daily Journal, Wednesday, June 5

In today’s Journal * Quotes of the Day * Thanks * Topic: A Review of PublishDrive… * Daily diary * Of Interest * The numbers Quotes of the Day “The breath of disappointment is drawn from the air of expectation.” Michael Grant in The Black Book Investigation Series by Robert J. Sadler “Sometimes things just don’t line up right. That’s why they make tomorrows.” Wes Crowley in the Wes Crowley saga *** Thanks to those of you who have downloaded the 10-novel Wes Crowley saga from Smashwords. If you haven’t jumped aboard yet, there’s still time. Visit https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/599718 and during … Read more

The Daily Journal, Tuesday, June 4

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * I learned today * A value too good to pass up * In honor of a promise * Daily diary * Of Interest * The numbers Quote of the Day “Nothing stinks like a pile of unpublished writing.” Sylvia Plath Harvey’s addendum: “Yes. And ‘A writer is the worst judge of his own work’ is as valid for work you think is horrible as it is for work you think is good. So don’t prejudge for your readers. Follow Heinlein’s Rule 4, publish it and let the readers decide whether it … Read more

The Daily Journal, Saturday, June 1

In today’s Journal * Thanks for the comments * By the way, Blackwell Ops 6 * By the way (again) * By the way, Part 3 * It’s already June 1 * Topic: Quieting the Critical Mind (Chapter 11) * Daily diary * Of Interest * The numbers Thanks for the comments, Diane and Karen. They not only encouraged me (see what you did?), but they also help the Journal’s visibility on search engines. Interesting to me that Diane Darcy is a USA Today bestselling author and that Karen Riggs is a relative beginner. Yet neither is willing to accept … 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

The Daily Journal, Tuesday, May 28

In today’s Journal * Quotes of the day * What I posted to Facebook yesterday * I’ll get back * Topic: What? Most Scenes Don’t Lend Themselves Visually? * On a side note * Daily diary * Of Interest * The numbers Quotes of the Day “There is a vitality, a life force, an energy, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one of you in all of time, this expression is unique. And if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium and it will be lost. The world … Read more

The Daily Journal, Monday, May 27

In today’s Journal * Does anyone ever * According to Dean * Once again, I wasn’t going to write * Topic: How to Quiet the Critical Voice (Chapter 10) * Daily diary * Of Interest * The numbers Does anyone ever come up to you and open a conversation with “Still writing?” If so, how do you respond? I finally decided to have fun with it. A year or so ago when I went to see my “primary care” doctor, he smiled. “So, are you still writing?” I smiled back. “Yes. But how about you? Still patching people up?” We … Read more

The Daily Journal, Sunday, May 26

In today’s Journal * If you haven’t yet taken part * I wasn’t going to write * Topic: How to Quiet the Critical Voice (new Intro) * Topic: How to Quiet the Critical Voice (Chapter 9) * Daily diary * Of Interest * The numbers If you haven’t yet taken part in Kris Rusch’s Kickstarter, why not? Anyway, now is the time to jump in. For as little as $5.00 (five dollars) you will get around $500.00 (five hundred dollars) worth of books, lectures, workshops, etc. Just sayin’. Today, Kris’ Kickstarter campaign hit the 4th stretch goal. So everybody who … Read more

The Daily Journal, Saturday, May 25

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Dude, where’s my royalties * Topic: How to Quiet the Critical Voice (Chapter 8) * Daily diary * Of Interest * The numbers Quote of the Day: “There’s many a bestseller that could have been prevented by a good teacher.” Flannery O’Connor *** In “Of Interest” you’ll see “Dude, Where’s My Royalties?” When I’d read the article, a quick scene popped into my head: Me tapping him on the shoulder. “Um, pardon me.” He turns around, smiling, his eyebrows arched. “Yes?” I try to maintain a polite smile and fail. “Why … Read more

The Daily Journal, Wednesday, May 22

In today’s Journal * Subscriptions to the Journal * In light of that * Topic: How to Quiet the Critical Voice (Chapter 4) * Daily diary * Of Interest * The numbers Subscriptions to the Journal might be changing soon. The thing is, I’m not some big marketing master. I’m just a writer who wants to share my experiences with other writers. Via Linda Mae Adams, see David Gaughran’s “Time To Ditch Mailchimp?” at https://davidgaughran.com/2019/05/16/mailchimp-alternatives-criticism-changes-pricing-plans/. I’ve been aware of this for a week or so and have read MailChimp’s new Terms of Use. If you don’t personally use MailChimp, no … Read more