In today’s Journal
* BookExpo is no more (!)
* Mentorships and first readers
* Call for topics
* Another really good day
* Of Interest
* The Numbers
Back in the late 1990s or early 2000s, my Writing Realistic Dialogue & Flash Fiction won fifth place (1st Honorable Mention) for the Book of the Year Award in the Education Category at BookExpo New York. Not too shabby, given that there were well over 25,000 entries in that category, including dozens from the “Big Five” publishers.
Today, BookExpo is no more. See the first item in “Of Interest.”
I haven’t mentioned for a while the professional mentorships I offer. All of them cost considerably less than you’d pay for most good writing courses, and I can pretty well guarantee I will provide more information than you can find elsewhere.
And did I mention the craft mentorships are one-on-one, tailored to your own writing? These aren’t one size fits all video or audio lectures. They’re you and me talking in real time via email and/or telephone.
To see the mentorships I offer on the craft of writing, see https://harveystanbrough.com/the-writing-craft-mentorships/.
To see the pre- or post-writing mentorships (Clearing Out the Myths, Inventory and Sales, and Licensing), visit https://harveystanbrough.com/non-writing-mentorships/.
Especially during this very prolific time, I’m issuing another call for first readers. Mostly because I don’t want my current first readers, who are excellent, to feel overwhelmed.
If you’d like to read my stories free, I’m always looking for first readers, especially females. Not because I want to be politically correct (it’s much easier to just be honest), but because I want to get input from female readers as well as male readers.
If you’re interested, email me at harveystanbrough@gmail.com. In my response, I’ll explain what I need from a first reader and we’ll go from there. Those selected as first readers for a series will receive all the books in the series free, including those for which they did not serve as first readers.
It’s also been a while since I’ve issued a call for topics. I can’t know what you need or want to learn unless you tell me.
I know a lot about writing really good fiction. If there are certain aspects of storytelling that stump or puzzle you, or aspects with which you’re having difficulty, email me and suggest a topic (or topics) at harveystanbrough@gmail.com.
Or just ask me a question about writing. I’ll respond personally, and if I believe your question would interest others, I’ll turn it into a topic in this Journal. Without mentioning your name, of course, unless you give me permission.
I had another really good day of writing yesterday and set a new personal best. I wrote until I was beginning to enter a mental fog and was unable to continue. I was exhausted when I went to the house, but it was a very good exhaustion. (grin)
Talk with you again soon.
Of Interest
See “BookExpo and BookCon Are No More” at https://www.thepassivevoice.com/bookexpo-and-bookcon-are-no-more/. This is incredibly bad news, but it runs hand in hand with recent news of traditional publishing eating itself. And see PG’s take.
See “North American Booksellers Join Pubeasy in Record Numbers” at https://www.thepassivevoice.com/north-american-booksellers-join-pubeasy-in-record-numbers/. You and I, as independent publishers, are North American booksellers. Something to think about. I haven’t made application yet, but I will. If the cost isn’t prohibitive, this might be the spark I need to put my backlist in paper.
The Numbers
The Journal…………………………………… 570 words
Writing of The Journey Home: Part 2 (novel)
Day 1…… 4955 words. Total words to date…… 4955
Day 2…… 5068 words. Total words to date…… 10023
Day 3…… 6513 words. Total words to date…… 16536
Total fiction words for December……… 6512
Total fiction words for the year………… 459044
Total nonfiction words for December… 970
Total nonfiction words for the year…… 186180
Total words for the year (fiction and this blog)…… 645224
Calendar Year 2020 Novels to Date…………………… 7
Calendar Year 2020 Novellas to Date……………… X
Calendar Year 2020 Short Stories to Date… 13
Novels (since Oct 19, 2014)…………………………………… 52
Novellas (since Nov 1, 2015)………………………………… 8
Short stories (since Apr 15, 2014)………………… 214
Short story collections……………………………………………… 31