the writing life

The Journal, Thursday, 8/10

Hey Folks, I don’t remember whether I’ve mentioned this before, but if anyone would like to read “The Fiction Factory” (being the Experience of a Writer who, for Twenty-two Years, has kept a Story-mill Grinding Successfully) by John Milton Edwards, send me an email and I’ll send you a PDF copy. Very interesting stuff. Chock full of gems. Part of my recent problem (“problem” is too harsh a word) is that my brain is trying to shut down to allow for the new knowledge I’ll absorb during the workshop I’m currently taking from Dean. Of course, that’s absurd. Nothing I’ve … Read more

The Journal, Wednesday, 8/9

Hey Folks, Well, I guess I’m taking a full-blown hiatus for a week or so. No writing today. No worries and no reason for concern. I think I’m just a little tired. Doing a lot of non-writing things right now, mixed in with a lot of reading, sitting and nothing. I think I’m gonna slack off on The Journal a bit too. It had served its purpose on this end awhile back, and I’ve heard from some of you that it’s been a boon on that end. I’ll keep it going, but maybe not every day. The “streak” aspect of … Read more

The Journal, Tuesday, 8/8

Hey Folks, Well, I got a good night’s rest last night. Still not feeling up to par, but a little better maybe. I decided to offer the ebook edition of The Rise of a Warrior to users of Facebook (and you) free of charge. You can read a description of the book at http://harveystanbrough.com/the-rise-of-a-warrior/. The Rise of a Warrior is a stand-alone book, but it’s also chronologically the first book of the Wes Crowley series. All you have to do is email me to let me know whether you want Kindle, .epub or .pdf. Thus far (about 6 hours into … Read more

The Journal, Monday, 8/7

Hey Folks, A little under the weather today. Nothing serious, just blah. Not sure how much writing I’ll get done, if any. Feels like a day of doing zip. I added my most recent novel, a whodunit mystery, to the website. You can see it at http://harveystanbrough.com/the-implications/. Topic: Ebook Editors (actually, formatting programs) This stuff was going to go into “Of Interest” but it’s too important. Especially for those who are new to ebook publishing or thinking about ebook publishing. If you fit either of those categories, or if you are frustrated with your current formatting process or software, here … Read more

The Journal, Sunday, 8/6

Hey Folks, Not sure what the day will hold, but at least I got some writing done and finished the story. Today, and Writing I rose way early, a little before 2, so the girls could spend some time outside before the kids and grandkids get up. (My babies spend all their time under my bed when anyone’s visiting.) I started writing at 4. Did a lot of cycling back to add in small details (verisimilitude, that) and wrote a little over 1400 words to finish the story. Probably no more writing today, and that’s fine. After the visit I’ll … Read more

The Journal, Saturday, 8/5

Hey Folks, Well, not a lot going on today. One of my sons and his family are visiting, so the day will flow as it’s supposed to. Today, and Writing Rose early, finally started writing at around 5, got around 800 words done before visiting started. I’ll get back to it later, depending on what the children decide to do. Well, not gonna get anymore writing done today. I’m a little annoyed with myself that I wasn’t able to find the end of the story today. Maybe tomorrow morning. See you then. Of Interest Nothing again that I saw unless … Read more

The Journal, Friday, 8/4

Hey Folks, Back in June when I was writing a short story every day, I had a few I wanted to turn into novels. I’m going to glance back over those today. If I find something that runs with me, I’ll write it. If I don’t, I’ll start writing a short story every day again (beginning today) until I hit on an idea that wants to be a novel. (grin) TOPIC: ISBNs, Copyright, etc. I’m astounded by the general lack of knowledge of writers about the writing business as evidenced by some of the questions I receive. This morning a … Read more

The Journal, Thursday, 8/3

Hey Folks, Well, the curator giveth and the curator taketh away. One of the bundles my work was going to be in was deleted by the curator. I think maybe he scheduled it too soon (August 15). Anyway… Topic: Creating .epub and .mobi Files… Uh, No In “Of Interest” today, Nate Hoffelder (The Digital Reader) mentions that Amazon has released a Kindle Create file creation tool as an add-in for Microsoft Word. He goes on awhile too about creating .epub files, for which there are various programs. Maybe I’m missing something, but I just don’t understand why this would matter, … Read more

The Journal, Wednesday, 8/2

Hey Folks, There is a LOT of good information in “Of Interest” below. Be sure to check it out. A couple of days ago I announced here (to my friends) that I had another request for one of my books for a bundle. It happened again yesterday after I filed the Journal for the day. Too cool! And then today, I received requests to include three more of my books in bundles. WAY cool! (grin) By February, I’ll have books in Dystopia (current, A Rough New World); Guns of the West (current, No Kind’a Time and “A Turning Point for … Read more

The Journal, Tuesday, 8/1

Hey Folks, Well, five are signed up for the writing intensive now. Three slots left, and one more would-be attendee is thinking about it. Today I’ll endeavor to finish my July novel. (grin) Whenever I finish, I’ll have 8 novels or novellas at the beginning of the 8th month of the year. With my annual goal of 15 novels or novellas on the year, I’m going to plan to write two novels per month for August, September and October. Absolutely no reason I shouldn’t be able to do that. During August also I’m prepping for and teaching the intensive, and … Read more