The Passive Voice

The Journal, Thursday, 9/14

Hey Folks, Man, I hate outsmarting myself. And I’ve done that twice recently. The most recent was yesterday, when I planned to watch the historic Cleveland Indians’ game against Detroit. Cleveland won and extended their streak to 21 games. But I didn’t get to watch it. When MLB Network advertised they would show the game live at “noon Eastern,” I counted the hours the wrong way. I expected it at 4, when actually it came on at 9. Sigh. And a couple weeks ago, I decided to take down my 10-volume Wes Crowley saga from Smashwords and D2D. The series … Read more

The Journal, Wednesday, 9/13

Hey Folks, Not a lot other than reading and writing (very little arithmetic) going on at the old homestead today. It feels like a do-nothing day, but I don’t want one. Besides, I need that like I need a cliché in my head. I finally broke down and took my lawn mower in to a repair shop. That and surrounding details and sidetracks ate up the first two working hours of the day. I started playing at the novel right at 10:30. It’s now almost 1:30 (I’ve done some other little stuff too) and I’ve written barely over 1000 new … Read more

The Journal, Tuesday, 9/12

Hey Folks, Okay, I mentioned a couple of times a workshop I’m taking with Dean. It ended this morning, so here’s my report. On the Online Workshops tab of his website, the title (if you want to read about it) is officially “Writing Mysteries.” If you’re interested, I encourage you to read the writeup there. First, I found that the actual workshop more than nailed the description on the website. This is an actual writing workshop. He teaches you how to write mysteries in the ten most popular subgenres. Plus there are extensive notes on writing Thrillers (used to be … Read more

The Journal, Monday, 9/11

Hey Folks, Well, have you guys heard me whine enough? The thing is, I’m either a writer or I’m not. For awhile now, I haven’t been. Not really. So I’ll see about cutting down on the whining, and instead go back to tending to business. I am somewhat heartened, because in the original essay in which Robert Heinlein laid out his Business Habits for Writers, he mentioned that he himself had violated his own rules on occasion. *** Today in “Of Interest” you’ll see that Dean’s going to offer his services as a first reader again in two challenges, short … Read more

The Journal, Friday, 9/8

Hey Folks, Especially if you’re a writer of science fiction or science fantasy, check out Science Alert at http://www.sciencealert.com/. Bear in mind, though, it’s a good idea for writers to absorb knowledge on all sorts of topics, not only those that are genre specific. I saw articles and photos on Science Alert today that would easily lend themselves to ideas (and stories) in Mystery, Psychological Suspense, Noir, Romance and other genres. So pretty much everything. *** I rolled out late, then spent part of the morning updating my website and redesigning the sidebars. If you go looking for stuff on … Read more

The Journal, Thursday, 9/7

Hey Folks, Rolled out a little early at 2:20. My recliner came in yesterday. And it’s So Big my feet dangle when I’m sitting in it. Makes me feel like I’m five again. The seat is too deep too, front to back. (We ordered it online.) And honestly, in hindsight I also wish both my wife and I could sit on it at the same time. That’s how sappy I am. (This thing would fit my friend Robert Sadler just about perfectly. But, you know, he’s in Dallas holding down the southeastern front.) So this morning I told my wife … Read more

The Journal, Wednesday, 9/6

Hey Folks, Now I know what the kids mean when they write OMG. Via The Passive Voice from yesterday, there was this wonderful gem: “What begins as a raindrop on our heads turns into a cloudburst of rain. If we deny its messages, it becomes a thunderstorm. Still not listening? Look out for a hurricane, a tornado and an accompanying tsunami.” Are you kidding me? Talk about mixing metaphors. And even mixing them WITHIN a metaphor. This is supposed to be a serious post about what might happen if we “fail or refuse to learn the lessons we are supposed … Read more

The Journal, Friday, 9/1

Hey Folks, Welp, happy Labor Day. Time for me to get to laboring again. (grin) More Adjustments Getting three hours per day to write (and writing during that time) shouldn’t be a problem even if it’s in snippets on some days. But it would be better if the time were blocked off. With the coming cooler weather, I can walk a little later in the day, so that helps. As long as the temp isn’t over about 85 I’m good for a couple of miles. My previous early rising seems to work out fairly well, so I’ll probably stick with … Read more

The Journal, Saturday, 8/26

Hey Folks, Well, a Saturday. The sun is still a couple hours from coming up as I write this. I’ve done my daily rounds of the Internet, made my usual stops. If you enjoy a bit of history along with really great photos and some personal insights, check Linda Maye Adams’ blog at http://lindamayeadams.com/2017/08/26/a-veteranwriter-looks-at-history-leesylvania-state-park/. Over the past few days I’ve started several bits of fiction. Each time I let them go. I’m not sure whether they weren’t working or it was just that I wasn’t in the mood. Probably the latter. I mean, you don’t have to be in the … Read more

The Journal, Friday, 8/25

Hey Folks, Well, we take our fame where we find it, don’t we? As I posted to Facebook this morning, Hey, who knew I was still so unpopular along the gulf coast of Texas? I mean it was only the one night of drunken debauchery, pillaging, etc. In the Corps I was “Taz.” Now I’m upgraded to a hurricane? And anyway, shouldn’t that be a himmicane? *** I started the day by adding universal links to each of my collection covers on my 10-story and 5-story collection pages on my website. Each of my novels has its own page but … Read more