Topic

The Journal: Dual Days and Making Your Goals Public

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Dual Days * Topic: Making Your Goals Public * Today * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “The only unacceptable short story is one that misses the deadline. A bad story is OK as long as it’s turned in – write a better one next week. No one cares about your bad story – and next week you [w]on’t have time to care about it. Read the bad story later and it probably turns out it’s not as heinous as you thought – besides, no one cares what … Read more

The Journal: Picking Up Again and Censorship

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Topic: Picking Up Again and Censorship * Today * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “Writing into the Dark isn’t just putting down random happenings and letting your characters wander about blindly.” Terry Odell She’s right, it isn’t. WITD is trusting your subconscious to use the knowledge it’s absorbed over the years. It’s the writer allowing the characters to tell the story that they, not the writer, are living. Topic: Picking Up Again and Censorship Usually when I return to a story, even after a few days away … Read more

The Journal: A Cautionary Tale

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Topic: A Cautionary Tale * Today * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “[I]t’s equally important to put the book aside and write another.” Mark Alpert Topic: A Cautionary Tale Author Mark Alpert, in the Kill Zone blog today, posted what he calls the “Lesson of the Decade.” Please go read it now. The first three paragraphs have to do with nostalgia rather than writing. That’s fine. But those and the lesson he imparts in paragraph four (see “Quote of the Day” above) are the best parts of … Read more

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: An Excellent Opportunity

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Topic: An Excellent Opportunity * Today * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “I have always followed one bit of advice that echoes in my head, and it’s that as a writer … your number one job description is to communicate properly your idea. Being self-indulgent is for fine artists.” world-famous writer and cartoonist Bob Eckstein Topic: An Excellent Opportunity For anyone out there who wants to make money with your stories or the story bits that I call “internal IP” (settings, characters, items, gadgets, etc.), Dean Wesley … 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: Writing Sales Copy (Book Descriptions)

In today’s Journal * Topic: Some Stuff on Writing Sales Copy * Today * Of Interest * The Numbers Topic: Some Stuff on Writing Sales Copy To clarify, when I say “sales copy,” I’m talking about the book description that goes on the cover of your print book and/or that accompanies your cover on Amazon, B&N, Kobo, Smashwords and anyplace else where your book is for sale. A few days ago, a mentoring student and I talked in some depth about sales copy for her new novel. Later, she sent me two options to look over. I made very few … Read more

The Journal: The Ornery Little Comma

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Topic: The Ornery Little Comma * Today * Of Interest * The Numbers Quote of the Day “The euphoria of self-publishing has worn off. … eBook Publishing, in general, seems to have stabilized.” Emily Harstone for AuthorsPublish. This is good news for those of us for whom writing and self-publishing is part of a business plan instead of a get-rich-quick scheme to make a quick buck. Topic: The Ornery Little Comma Note: I wrote this topic to fill a rotation slot in the PWW blog later this month, but I thought … 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