In today’s Journal
* Quotes of the Day
* What’s Going On
* L. Ron Hubbard’s Writers of the Future
* Of Interest
* The Numbers
Quotes of the Day
“What a good thing Adam had. When he said a good thing he knew nobody had said it before.” Mark Twain
“A metaphor, to be judicious, needs to support the tone of the scene or the tone of the action it is describing.” Jessi Rita Hoffman
What’s Going On
Reading Gaiman’s post from a day or two ago gave me the idea that I’m being a slacker. I set out to share a writer’s life with you all, including the life rolls and warts. Yet I haven’t talked a lot about my current, self-inflicted life roll. Here’s the nutshell:
I’m not ill, but I am incapacitated mentally. Fortunately, I do sense that I’m getting better little by little. But no, knowing that this state will (probably) eventually end doesn’t make it any better.
The clock keeps ticking, and the minutes and hours keep slipping into the past. And what’s worse, they’re passing by unladen with so much as a word of my fiction.
That probably sounds over the top to some of you, but I’ve lived most of my life and I’ve accomplished most of what I’m going to accomplish. Writing is what I have left. It’s the one thing I love to do, and I neither have nor want any other interests.
So that’s what’s going on.
If you haven’t checked out L. Ron Hubbard’s Writers of the Future site yet, do yourself a favor and stop by https://www.writersofthefuture.com/. I suggest browsing the tabs. The site offers a free intermediate-level workshop (see “Of Interest” below), a blog, podcasts, etc. And no, this has nothing to do with Scientology or whatever.
Talk with you again soon.
Of Interest
See “Killing Critical Voice Workshop” at https://www.deanwesleysmith.com/killing-critical-voice-workshop/.
See “Hoping To Finish Book” at https://www.deanwesleysmith.com/hoping-to-finish-book/.
See “L. Ron Hubbard’s Writers of the Future Online Workshop” (FREE) at https://www.writersofthefuture.com/register/online-workshop/.
See “…The Problem of Self-Conscious Writing” at https://www.janefriedman.com/do-you-torture-your-metaphors-the-problem-of-self-conscious-writing/.
See “Active Imagination” at https://prowriterswriting.com/active-imagination/.
See “What Happens to Your Body When You Die in Space?” at https://getpocket.com/explore/item/what-happens-to-your-body-when-you-die-in-spaceb.
See “Most Difficult Accents for Actors” at https://www.thepassivevoice.com/most-difficult-accents-for-actors/.
See “Wish Fulfillment” at https://mystorydoctor.com/david-farlands-writing-tips-wish-fulfillment/.
The Numbers
Fiction words yesterday…………………… XXXX
Nonfiction words today…………… 370 (Journal)
Writing of (novel)
Day 1…… XXXX words. Total words to date…… XXXXX
Total fiction words for the month……… 30061
Total fiction words for the year………… 309655
Total nonfiction words for the month… 12160
Total nonfiction words for the year…… 115270
Total words for the year (fiction and this blog)…… 424925
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)………………… 208
Short story collections……………………………………………… 31
(The clock keeps ticking, and the minutes and hours keep slipping into the past. And what’s worse, they’re passing by unladen with so much as a word of my fiction.)
Actually, it does not seem over the top to me. I know exactly what you mean. With a book on pre-order I’ve had to work through fear-based emotional issues (I didn’t know were there) to get it done. Through it all, it’s felt like time just slips away, every minute not family or writing, wasted.
Hope you’re back at it soon. I admire your work ethic.
Thanks, Diane. I hope so too.