In today’s Journal
* Welcome
* Topic: What Are You Writing?
* Today
* Of Interest
* The Numbers
Welcome to Patrick D. It’s good to have you aboard! I hope you find the Journal useful and informative.
I hope my recent new subscribers will also browse my author site at HarveyStanbrough.com. . There you will find a ton of writer resources, including
Free Downloads (check this first)
Other Resources for Writers (links)
My Audio Lecture Series on Writing
My Books on Writing (links to StoneThreadPublishing.com)
and soon a free short story of the week.
In coming months, either my author site or my publisher site will also include a shared world I’m putting together: a world I created but one in which I will invite other authors to write. (grin) The basis for the shared world is in my novels In the Siberian Fields and its sequel, The Claim.
Don’t subscribe to the blog on my author site, though. In February it will transition to a blog for readers. (grin)
Of course, my author site also contains a link to StoneThread Publishing, where you can find all of my novels, novellas, short story collections and poetry collections.
Again, welcome to all. If you find the Journal of value, please share our electronic address with your writer friends and acquaintances. Thanks!
Topic: What Are You Writing?
In addition to my day-to-day rambling, the topics I write here a few to several times each week on writing and publishing, and the links I post in the “Of Interest” section, I share my goals and numbers (below in “The Numbers” — duh). And I also share my failures.
As I’ve said before, sharing my goals and numbers serves a dual purpose. In full disclosure, first I do so selfishly to keep myself accountable to all of you. In other words, sharing my goals and numbers helps me achieve them. See how that works? (grin)
But I also share to give back, to help others cut the learning curve on writing and publishing. And I share so you can see what’s possible when you follow the most basic and difficult of all writing processes: Heinlein’s Rules.
Today, I’m encouraging you to do the same. Share with us all by leaving a comment on the site at https://hestanbrough.com, or share with me privately by emailing me at harveystanbrough@gmail.com.
Why? Because when you share, you WILL help someone else in their journey. If you share with me privately and I think it would be of interest to others, I might use it for a topic but I’ll maintain your anonymity.
Of course, you can share as much or as little as you want. We (or I) will celebrate your striving and your successes, and we (or I) will commiserate with you when you temporarily fall short.
A couple of thoughts on goals and goal-setting:
* If you don’t occasionally fall short, your goal isn’t set high enough.
* When you DO fall short of a goal you set, you’ve failed to success. Look at what you achieved even though you fell short. How many words would you have written, how many short stories or novels would you have published if you hadn’t set a goal at all?
So let us (or me) hear from you. Here are some possible categories:
* Daily, weekly, or monthly writing and/or publishing goals
* What are you writing right now? (Be as vague or as specific as you like.)
* How’s it going? What problems are you encountering (if any)? How can we (or I) help?
* What did you achieve in 2019?
* Anything else you want to comment or email me about
Hope to hear from a lot of you soon.
Today got away from me, so I ended up with only two writing sessions and a little over 2000 words. So I missed my daily word-count goal. That’s all right. It resets to 0 tomorrow. Still, that’s 2000 words I wouldn’t have had if I didn’t have the goal to drive me to the computer. (grin)
The novel isn’t in the end game yet, but I can feel it getting close. Probably another 2 to 4 good writing days and this one should be finished.
Talk with you again soon.
Of Interest
See “Las Vegas Workshops” at https://www.deanwesleysmith.com/las-vegas-workshops/.
See “12 Tips for New Public Speakers” at https://killzoneblog.com/2020/01/12-tips-for-new-public-speakers.html.
See the “Graphic Tools for Indie Authors” series at http://forsengfiction.com/.
See “Writing Sales Copy (Book Descriptions)” at https://harveystanbrough.com/pro-writers/writing-sales-copy-book-descriptions/ (for a refresher or for any who might have missed it here in the Journal earlier).
Fora GREAT and informative discussion, see the comments on “The 2010s were supposed to bring the ebook revolution. It never quite came.” at https://www.thepassivevoice.com/the-2010s-were-supposed-to-bring-the-ebook-revolution-it-never-quite-came/.
The Numbers
Fiction words today…………………… 2186
Nonfiction words today…………… 770 (Journal)
Writing of The Cazadores Lounge and Lonely Place (novel)
Day 11… 3663 words. Total words to date…… 28768
Day 12… 2186 words. Total words to date…… 30954
Writing of “” (short story)
Day 1…… XXXX words. Total words to date…… XXXXX
Total fiction words for the month……… 34102
Total fiction words for the year………… 34102
Total nonfiction words for the month… 13990
Total nonfiction words for the year…… 13990
Total words for the year (fiction and this blog)…… 48092
Calendar Year 2020 Novels to Date…………………… X
Calendar Year 2020 Novellas to Date……………… X
Calendar Year 2020 Short Stories to Date… 1
Novels (since Oct 19, 2014)…………………………………… 45
Novellas (since Nov 1, 2015)………………………………… 8
Short stories (since Apr 15, 2014)………………… 198
Short story collections……………………………………………… 31
Thanks for all the free resources. Very generous and helpful.
My 3000 word daily writing goal is falling short so far, but I’m keeping at it, getting between 2000 and 2500 words a day. Still feeling good, and hoping to build momentum. (Still unedited though. I’ve got to change that. Must cycle! Just want to write! Lol.)
I just started a course from Bryan Cohan called The 5 day Amazon Ad profit challenge. Come and join in! It just started.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/2230194167089012/?ref=share
I’m learning to do AMS ads. Again. Lol. Here is a great (beta) resource he mentioned if you’re interested in tracking your Amazon sales. I hadn’t heard of it. https://kdpreports.amazon.com/royalties
I’ll tackle Facebook ads next. I have the book by Mal Cooper, Help! My Facebook ads suck. I’ve heard it’s a great resource.
I’m working on the 3rd book in my Knight’s Tale series. A Dark and Stormy Knight. That critical voice is a killer, but I have a few mantras running through my head such as That you write, not What you write. And trust your characters and just write the next sentence. (I found these in your book/blog posts Quite the Critical Voice.) Those phrases are taped to my wall.
I’m also reminding myself this book isn’t important. The first two in the series are favorites and have sold many copies. I’ve made this one very important and very unwritten because of it. But the book is coming along great, characters continually surprise me, and I’m having fun with it!
I’m rereading your book- Quite the Critical Voice. There are just gems in it and your common sense combined with confidence calms me down. This is my 4th or 5th read through.
2019 was my worst year in Indie publishing sales-wise. Funnily enough, writing-wise too. Lol. I also dealt with a health issue which is thankfully over. So glad 2020 is here. I have a lot to do and am determined to have fun doing it!!
Diane, thanks for that in-depth report on your writing, mention of Bryan Cohan’s class, and the rest. Very cool!
Re your “missing” your writing goal, it’s more something to reach for than a destination anyway. Keep that in mind and you’ll be happily surprised when you shoot past it and not so disappointed when you miss it. (grin) Come to think of it, that’s probably the definition of a good goal.
Case in point: Since I started my WIP on December 31, I’ve gone over my 3000 wpd goal 6 days and fallen short on 6 days. So my average on Day 12 is 2579 wpd. (grin) And if I ever get to the point where I’m hitting 3000 constantly, I’ll up my goal to 3500 or 4000 wpd.