Hey Folks,
Long post today. Good “Of Interest” section too.
Well, another night of very little sleep for me. About 5 hours, waking up every hour to clear allergy symptoms. But every time I lay down again, the symptoms built up. Eventually I figured I might as well give up and head out to the Hovel to get some writing done.
So out to the Hovel at 2 a.m. I spent about an hour doing nothing, then added around 800 words to the story I started yesterday.
(I started another story two days ago, but it didn’t feel right so I moved it to the end and started another one yesterday. Oddly enough, this one feels like a novel start too. That makes two so far.)
Up to the house for a break at 4.
After the break, I added another few hundred words before my brain locked up.
Topic: A Few Grains of Salt
I often advise writers to learn all they can from valid sources. Those, most often, are multi-published authors, ideally authors who write in your chosen genre.
I’m probably an odd bug because I write in several genres. So I count myself doubly fortunate that I stumbled across Dean Wesley Smith as my primary mentor.
But just as often, I also advise writers to take their lessons with a grain of salt. Don’t believe something is right (or right for you) just because a well-published author does things a certain way or hands out certain kinds of advice.
Today I found a perfect case in point. A professional writer named Mark Alpert posted on the Kill Zone blog a list of 9 things you can do to make yourself a professional writer.
I agreed with many of his points. But I also disagreed with some of them. And some I strongly disagreed with, meaning I see them as not only too personal to his own process, but actually harmful.
A link to the original post is in the “Of Interest” section. What follows are a few grains of salt from yours truly.
Because he used bullet points instead of a numbered list, I reference his bullet points below with a keyword from each point:
Goals
No disagreement here, but consider figuring out how many words you can write in an hour and then how many hours you can write per day and per week. Establishing a goal for a week at a time makes it easier to fudge.
Advice and Instruction
I disagree vehemently with his advice to get constructive criticism of a work in progress from peers. If you want criticism, try to find someone who’s much farther along the road than you are. Otherwise the blind leading the blind thing applies.
I fully agree with his advice to take courses (again, from knowledgeable, proven instructors) and to read the kind of thing you want to write.
Change Course
I agree with the basic premise, but again, not the critique group stuff. Nine times out of ten, other writers who are novices will tell you something isn’t working strictly because it isn’t the way they would have done it (though they won’t say that’s the reason).
Be Polite but Persistent
Well, yeah. And don’t be afraid to take the bull by the horns and self-publish.
Network
Some good advice. Business cards? Not for novelists, but if you’re freelancing articles or ghostwriting, sure. Business cards advertise your business. If you’re a novelist or short story writer and insist on having business cards, I recommend you use them to advertise your website where the reader can learn about your books.
Writers conferences are a great place for peer discussions (not critiques) and a general sharing of knowledge.
Sweat the Details
Yep. “The reader will know what I mean” is nothing but a cop-out. Mr. Alpert writes, “A professional writer has respect for the language.” I add, “And the reader.”
Keep Promises
Yep, and to yourself too. Set your goals, then meet them.
Prepare for the Future
Good advice. The “platform” means a website, an Amazon author page, social media (maybe), a Goodreads account, etc. If you’re self-published, create a website for your publisher too.
I was particularly interested in Mr. Alpert’s upcoming trip to OKC to teach at the OWFI conference there. Back when I was teaching at a lot of conferences, OWFI was one of my regular invitations. Sigh.
See you tomorrow.
Of Interest
See “A Three Story Day!” at https://www.deanwesleysmith.com/a-three-story-day/.
See Mark Alpert’s “How To Become A Professional Writer…” at https://killzoneblog.com/2018/04/how-to-become-a-professional-writer-in-nine-not-so-easy-steps.html.
Fiction Words: 1108
Nonfiction Words: 760 (Journal)
So total words for the day: 1868
Writing of The Storytellers
Brought forward………………………………………………………………… 1304
Day 2…… 2966 words. Total words to date…… 4270
Day 3…… 4475 words. Total words to date…… 8745
Day 4…… 1718 words. Total words to date…… 10463
Day 5…… 3825 words. Total words to date…… 14228
Day 6…… 3328 words. Total words to date…… 17556
Day 7…… 3899 words. Total words to date…… 21455
Day 8…… 1227 words. Total words to date…… 22682
Day 9…… 1135 words. Total words to date…… 23817
Day 10… 1108 words. Total words to date…… 24925
Total fiction words for the month……… 47745
Total fiction words for the year………… 161286
Total nonfiction words for the month… 14840
Total nonfiction words for the year…… 48600
Total words for the year (fiction and this blog)…… 251666
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