The Journal: Dare to Be Bad and a Lot More

In today’s Journal

* Quotes of the Day
* There’s a link
* If you hadn’t noticed
* I have a really cool problem.
* Of Interest
* The Numbers

Quotes of the Day

“[T]here are no real repercussions of mailing a story that fails. No editor reads anything that doesn’t work and no editor will remember your name if your story doesn’t work. … The reality is that no one notices, which I suppose for some people is worse. But there are no real risks.” Dean Wesley Smith

“I would also turn every story in to a workshop [critique group] after I had mailed it to an editor. The workshop, of course, would back up my fear that the story sucked beyond words and I needed to fix a hundred different things about it. Then I would sell the story and be very, very glad I didn’t listen to the workshop or my own fear.” Dean Wesley Smith

“[F]or seven years my fixing and polishing had gotten few stories written and finished and no sales. Mailing first drafts got me a career.” Dean Wesley Smith

There’s a link to a GREAT reprised and updated article from Dean Wesley Smith in today’s “Of Interest.” I might resemble item number 3 in his post with my novel starts lately. I’ll have to think about that, give them another shove, and see what happens. And that’s with 50 novels already published.

If you hadn’t noticed, I usually avoid “pandemic” stuff in this Journal. I assume we’re all bombarded with more than enough about that — I know I certainly am.

But I included a link to one article in “Of Interest” today strictly as food for thought and because the article is replete with story ideas. Just in case you want to write something about a viral disease. I don’t.

Nor do I necessarily agree with the author of the article. (Whether I agree or not doesn’t really matter; whatever’s going to happen will happen with or without my input.)

I have a really cool problem. Day before yesterday I started a short story called “An Inch and Three-Sixteenths.” And then yesterday, I started another one called “Turnaround.”

Thing is, I’d already forgotten all about the first one before I started writing the second one. Who does that? (grin) I usually forget about a story after it’s finished and published, but I hadn’t even put that one on my spreadsheet yet.

Anyway, I’ll read over it today to be sure it’s finished and then I’ll finish “Turnaround.” So today is Day 2 for both of those. And who knows what’s next. I just hope they keep coming. I’m having a ball. (grin)

Talk with you again when I can.

Of Interest

See “Dare To Be Bad” at https://www.deanwesleysmith.com/dare-to-be-bad/.

See “What if Earth had rings?” at https://www.space.com/what-if-earth-had-rings.html.

See “Literary Themes” at https://killzoneblog.com/2020/09/literary-themes.html.

See “Here’s How the Pandemic Finally Ends” at https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/09/25/how-covid-19-pandemic-ends-421122.

See “26 Short Story Publishers Seeking Submissions of Horror Stories” at https://www.authorspublish.com/26-horror-fiction-markets-open-now/. (I’m lookin’ at you, Chris.)

See “I Am An Author But Not Who You Think I Am!” at http://booksbywomen.org/i-am-an-author-but-not-who-you-think-i-am/.

See “Writing Humor to Heal Mind and Body” at https://www.thepassivevoice.com/writing-humor-to-heal-mind-and-body/.

The Numbers

The Journal…………………………………… 530 words

Writing of “Turnaround” (short story)

Day 1…… 1092 words. Total words to date…… 1092 Day 2…… XXXX words. Total words to date…… XXXX (done)

Writing of “An Inch and Three-Sixteenths” (short story)

Day 1…… 1481 words. Total words to date…… 1481 (done)

Writing of Body on the Beach (novel, working title)

Day 1…… 1135 words. Total words to date…… 1135
Day 1…… 1409 words. Total words to date…… 2544

Total fiction words for the month……… 19735
Total fiction words for the year………… 335018
Total nonfiction words for the month… 11910
Total nonfiction words for the year…… 149480
Total words for the year (fiction and this blog)…… 484498

Calendar Year 2020 Novels to Date…………………… 5
Calendar Year 2020 Novellas to Date……………… X
Calendar Year 2020 Short Stories to Date… 12
Novels (since Oct 19, 2014)…………………………………… 50
Novellas (since Nov 1, 2015)………………………………… 8
Short stories (since Apr 15, 2014)………………… 213
Short story collections……………………………………………… 31