the writing life

The Daily Journal, Sunday, March 24

In today’s Journal ▪ I was really surprised… ▪ Daily diary ▪ Of Interest ▪ The numbers I was surprised not to find a slew of comments on my Journal post from yesterday. Nobody saying “No! Don’t do that!” or “Yeah, I’ve been shopping a manuscript around tradpubs for awhile” or “It’ll be interesting to see what happens.” Instead, crickets. (grin) UPDATE: I did get one comment after I wrote this. I suspect that’s because the results will affect only me, at least directly, and that’s fine. I don’t want to think it’s because the topic was simply not interesting, … Read more

The Daily Journal, Saturday, March 23

In today’s Journal ▪ With respect to the OP… ▪ Topic: On Being a “Hybrid” Writer ▪ Daily diary ▪ Of Interest (a boatload of links) ▪ The numbers With respect to the OP mentioned about Microsoft Word in “Of Interest,” you can still view (free) my blog series “Microsoft Word for Writers” at http://harveystanbrough.com/microsoft-word-for-writers/. Just sayin’. *** Topic: On Being a “Hybrid” Writer Part 1: Statement, History and Rationale At 66 years old, with 40-some novels and almost 200 short stories under my belt, I’ve decided to go hybrid. My work has been traditionally published before. I’ve had articles, … Read more

The Daily Journal, Friday, March 22

In today’s Journal ▪ I got a new coffee mug ▪ Topic: Turning a “Story Prompt”… ▪ Daily diary ▪ Of Interest (a boatload of links) ▪ The numbers I got a new coffee mug from Zazzle (https://zazzle.com). My new mug reads I’M A FICTION WRITER. Yes, I’m poor. No, I don’t wish I wrote “__________.” Yes, I’m aware that no one reads anymore. No, I’m not drunk. Just thought I’d share. (grin) *** Topic: Turning a “Story Prompt” into a Story Idea From Reedsy’s Writing Prompts newsletter, “You’re a professional cleaner and the beginning of spring is always your … Read more

The Daily Journal, Thursday, March 21

In today’s Journal ▪ More on tutoring ▪ Daily diary ▪ Of Interest ▪ The numbers Yesterday I announced that I’m willing to tutor a few writers. I wanted to give you guys the first shot before I announce it over on the big blog since I can only take on a few writers. But it was a confusing announcement at best. So I’ll clarify. This is to benefit you, so your writing will be the focus. I’ll provide instructions, examples ad nauseam, and exercises as necessary. We can work on one or more areas of your actual writing: punctuation, … Read more

The Daily Journal, Wednesday, March 20

In today’s Journal ▪ I’m still offering ▪ I’m also considering ▪ I’ve listed the first few ▪ The famous novelist suffering ▪ Topic: On the Need for Authenticity… ▪ Daily diary ▪ Of Interest (a boatload of links) ▪ The numbers I’m still offering a free first-page critique, say up to 500 words or so. Send what you have as a .doc, .docx or .rtf attachment via email to harveystanbrough@gmail.com. *** I’m also considering serving as a personal writing tutor for up to three writers/students. We’ll work our way through Your manuscript, focusing on Your writing problems or weaknesses … Read more

The Daily Journal, Tuesday, March 19

In today’s Journal ▪ Dean Wesley Smith ▪ Mea culpa ▪ Catching up ▪ Daily diary ▪ Of Interest (a boatload of links) ▪ The numbers If you missed it, do yourself a valuable favor and watch the half-hour video at https://selfpublishingadviceconference.com/how-to-write-a-novel/. Dean basically presents a masters class on writing fiction. I recommend you take notes. I did, and I also watched and listened to the video twice. It is incredible. I added this in several categories to my Writers Resources page. And for one of the most excellent and shortest posts I’ve ever seen, see “A Reminder” at https://phillipmccollum.com/a-reminder/. … Read more

The Daily Journal, Sunday, March 17

In today’s Journal ▪ I’m on the road ▪ Topic: Critical Reading Plus ▪ Of Interest Today I’m somewhere in southwest New Mexico braving the absolute beauty of nature. I’m probably poised some 500 feet above the roaring Gila River in the Lower Gila Box Wilderness. The makeshift campsite is around 20 miles as the hawk flies north-northwest of Lordsburg and there’s a probably 10,000 year old pueblocito about a half-minute walk from the camp. I wish all of you could see it, especially if you write westerns or SF. I even placed one detective/crime novel there, and my friend … Read more

The Daily Journal, Saturday, March 16

In today’s Journal ▪ Repeating a reminder… ProWritersWriting blog ▪ Topic: On Character and Setting ▪ Daily diary ▪ Of Interest ▪ The numbers I thought I’d repeat this reminder… the PWW blog goes live on March 18. I believe this will be a valuable new resource. If you subscribed to http://prowriterswriting.com through a “form” on the website in the early days, you need to subscribe again. I got rid of the form and that subscription service. Now you only have to click a link in the menu at the website. If you want to subscribe via RSS, you can … Read more

The Daily Journal, Friday, March 15

In today’s Journal ▪ New release and this morning ▪ Just a reminder… ProWritersWriting blog ▪ Daily diary ▪ Of Interest ▪ The numbers Blackwell Ops 2: Charles Claymore Task released this morning, so I uploaded it to BundleRabbit. This morning I’ll put together a few blog posts for Sunday through Tuesday (just in case). Then while I’m gone it will be just like I’m here except the fiction numbers below won’t change over those 2 or 3 days. But they should take a nice leap when I get back. *** Just a reminder… the PWW blog goes live on … Read more

The Daily Journal, Thursday, March 14

In today’s Journal ▪ Quote of the day ▪ Update on admin stuff ▪ Topic: Four Harsh Truths ▪ Daily diary ▪ Of Interest ▪ The numbers “You only fail if you stop writing.” Ray Bradbury *** Well, I got my main author website up to date yesterday. And I got Blackwell Ops 4: Melanie Sloan uploaded for advance orders. It will release officially on April 15. The universal link is https://books2read.com/u/4NZxYz, but it’s currently available only in a few stores. (It takes a few days to get into all the stores.) The publisher website is going to take a … Read more