The Journal: Catching Up

In today’s Journal

* Quotes of the Day
* Last night
* More astute readers
* Just a thought
* Merry Christmas
* The Numbers

Quotes of the Day

“It is inaccurate to say that I hate everything. I am strongly in favor of common sense, common honesty, and common decency. This makes me forever ineligible for public office.” H. L. Mencken

Last night, one sister-in-law and one son from Indiana flew in to Las Vegas and then drove from there for a visit. We are fortunate that they will be with us during Christmas and as we begin the new year. With any luck, nobody will tell the cops.

More astute readers will notice there was no new edition of the Journal posted yesterday. I had nothing new to say and nothing old much worth repeating, and I saw no items for the “Of Interest” section.

I didn’t write fiction yesterday either. That’s two full days lost on this novel alone, and I feel (and regret) both of them deeply. But I was a little under the weather. Whaddaya gonna do? I will write today and, if there’s still anything left to write, tomorrow. It would be interesting to finish a novel on Christmas eve or Christmas day.

Then I might take a day or two “off” (i.e., deny myself the pleasure of indulging in starting yet another novel) to apply first reader comments, create covers, and publish or set for pre-release The Journey Home: Parts 1 and 2.

Just a thought — even those 5 lost months (May – September) were important to me as a writer. They taught me what I can do as a writer even in a much-compressed amount to time.

Now that I know I can completely skip almost 5 months of writing in a year and still turn out 9 novels and over a dozen short stories, I might even take the risk of tackling that major project I talked about a while back. I figure if I do it right, that will take a couple of weeks to a month to set up. And if I can’t do it right, I won’t do it at all.

I’m getting behind in publishing (falling off Heinlein’s Rule 4), which is both normal for me and all right. It’s a great deal more fun writing the stories than attempting to foist them on unsuspecting readers.

Anyway, here’s wishing you and yours a very merry Christmas or whatever other holiday or religious or non-religious remembrance or rite you celebrate, and a happy new year. I hope with newly non-repressive federal and state governments who choose to obey the Constitution, though I’m pretty sure that ship has sailed and fallen off the face of the earth.

But I suppose there’s good in everything. It’s all what you make it, within what you’re allowed to make it. For example, I already know the thread of my next non-FOH (my current series) novel, though I fear that one will be pure fantasy. In that world, everyone will take responsibility (or be held responsible) for their own actions and receive what they earn by their own efforts, good or bad. See why I fear it will be a fantasy?

Talk with you again soon.

Of Interest

See “Your Reader’s Alter Ego” at https://mystorydoctor.com/david-farlands-writing-tips-your-readers-alter-ego/.

See “Why I Do Smith’s Monthly?” at https://www.deanwesleysmith.com/why-i-do-smiths-monthly/.

See “The Past, Miss Piggy, the Present” at https://www.suecoletta.com/the-past-miss-piggy-present/.

The Numbers

The Journal…………………………………… 570 words

Writing of The Journey Home: Part 3 (novel)

Day 1…… 1568 words. Total words to date…… 1568
Day 2…… 2963 words. Total words to date…… 4531
Day 3…… 4652 words. Total words to date…… 9183
Day 4…… 5506 words. Total words to date…… 14689
Day 5…… 4107 words. Total words to date…… 18796
Day 6…… 5001 words. Total words to date…… 23797
Day 7…… 4256 words. Total words to date…… 28053
Day 8…… 6480 words. Total words to date…… 34533
Day 9…… 3072 words. Total words to date…… 38505
Day 10… 5190 words. Total words to date…… 43695

Total fiction words for December……… 87028
Total fiction words for the year………… 539559
Total nonfiction words for December… 17120
Total nonfiction words for the year…… 202330
Total words for the year (fiction and this blog)…… 741889

Calendar Year 2020 Novels to Date…………………… 8
Calendar Year 2020 Novellas to Date……………… X
Calendar Year 2020 Short Stories to Date… 13
Novels (since Oct 19, 2014)…………………………………… 53
Novellas (since Nov 1, 2015)………………………………… 8
Short stories (since Apr 15, 2014)………………… 214
Short story collections……………………………………………… 31