The Journal, Monday, May 7

Hey Folks,

The “Of Interest” section is huge today, and filled to the brim.

Rolled out a little late this morning, but not too bad. After my experience yesterday with writing a short story at what amounted to megaspeed for me, I look forward to what might happen today.

I started the day with a half-ton of reading. Everything in “Of Interest” plus a few similar items and side articles. Fascinating stuff.

The thing is, everything goes into the subconscious. Even if you don’t write crime/detective/mystery novels, bits of what you read in these articles will bubble to the surface as you need it.

What I mean is, don’t automatically skip the items in today’s “Of Interest” just because you don’t write tomes about murder.

That would be as silly as the statement of the writer who said she would never read (yeah, read!) Heinlein’s Rules because she doesn’t write science fiction.

I think I’ll never forget that. Ignorance, whether intentional or unintentional, is still ignorance.

Oddly, I’ve found myself a little in arrears with regard to writing the “intermissions” that frame the the short stories that make up roughly four-fifths or so of the novel.

But I’ve already written the final “intermission” (so the epilogue). So at this point, I suspect I’ll continue writing the remaining short stories. I would like to write four more for the novel. Then go I’ll back and write the remaining intermissions to tie the stories together and lead to the epilogue.

Thus far this has been a very fun experience.

***

Out to the Hovel at 8, where I began by fleshing out a bit of this Journal entry. When I sat in the chair, I had zero idea what I would write today. No clue.

My bride called a little after 8. She had a minor emergency I had to go help her with. Then I did a few other necessities around the house, then finally returned to the Hovel around 9:30.

A title occurred to me this time: “Strappings of the Raggamuffin Man.” We’ll see where it goes. I’m expecing a short day today. My buddy plans to stop by shortly after noon for a visit.

By 10:15 I’d written the first 850 words and headed up to the house for a break and more ice water.

Well, more to do at the house than I remembered, so I didn’t get back to the Hovel until 11.

The story is almost finished, not quite, but I cut the day off a little.

See you soon. ​

Of Interest

See Sue Coletta’s “Where Do You Find Inspiration?” (and be prepared to hear an eerie, very troubling tale) at https://killzoneblog.com/2018/05/where-do-you-find-inspiration.html.

As an aside, see the first three-fourths of “Serial Killer Families: The Family Who Kills Together…” at https://www.suecoletta.com/serial-killer-families/.

As a second aside, see “Serial Killer Couples: Madness Shared by Two” at https://www.suecoletta.com/serial-killer-couples/.

As a THIRD aside, see “The Killing Fields Hold The Darkest Secrets” at https://www.suecoletta.com/killing-fields/.

See James Scott Bell’s “My Kind of Thriller” at https://killzoneblog.com/2018/05/my-kind-of-thriller.html.

Any steamy-romance writers out there? See “Cockygate: Faleena Hopkins Has Registered a Trademark…” at https://the-digital-reader.com/2018/05/05/cockygate-faleena-hopkins-has-registered-a-trademark-on-cocky-and-is-using-it-to-threaten-other-romance-authors/. This is also a mini-crash course on trademark.

Via The Passive Voice, please see “Contract Red Flag Alert: Perpetual License for Derivative Rights” at https://accrispin.blogspot.ca/2018/05/contract-red-flag-alert-perpetual.html.

Fiction Words: 2817
Nonfiction Words: 540 (Journal)
So total words for the day: 3357

Writing of Two Old Gringos Waiting for a Train
Brought forward………………………………………………………………… 23877

Day 10… 1108 words. Total words to date…… 24985
Day 11… 6073 words. Total words to date…… 31058
Day 12… 3857 words. Total words to date…… 34915
Day 13… 3767 words. Total words to date…… 38682
Day 14… 3338 words. Total words to date…… 42020
Day 15… 2817 words. Total words to date…… 44837

Total fiction words for the month……… 19852
Total fiction words for the year………… 181138
Total nonfiction words for the month… 1830
Total nonfiction words for the year…… 51300
Total words for the year (fiction and this blog)…… 232168

Calendar Year 2018 Novels to Date………………………… 3
Calenday Year 2018 Novellas to Date…………………… 1
Calendar Year 2018 Short Stories to Date……… 0
Novels (since Oct 19, 2014)………………………………………… 30
Novellas (since Nov 1, 2015)……………………………………… 5
Short stories (since Apr 15, 2014)……………………………… 182