In today’s Journal
* Quotes of the Day
* If you missed
* Value of IP
* First Readers
* Of Interest
Quotes of the Day
“Curiosity is the essence of human existence.” Eugene Cernan (a once-famous US astronaut)
“A person should set his goals as early as he can and devote all his energy and talent to getting there.” Walt Disney
If you missed yesterday’s post
and if you’re interested in Dean Wesley Smith’s workshop sales, go back and read it.
I mention this because only 16 people viewed yesterday’s post.
Value of IP
I moved this post by Dean up here from “Of Interest” because it’s that important. It’s the first of a series of posts that will form a primer on ways to value your IP. Extremely important. See “Value of IP” at https://deanwesleysmith.com/value-of-ip/.
First Readers
Generally, I don’t recommend asking any writer to be the first reader for another writer’s work. Why? Because as a first reader, your job is to
- read strictly for pleasure,
- not “look for” anything,
- after the fact, point out any errors or inconscistencies that pop out at you as you read, and
- if you are shoved out of the story, let the writer know that, where it happened, and why (if you know).
That’s it. But look up there at #2 again. A good first reader doesn’t “look for” anything. Nor does the first reader tell the writer how s/he would have written it, give the writer tips on craft, edit, recommend craft books, etc. That isn’t the first reader’s job.
Yet as Mark Twain famously wrote, “There is no urge so great as for one [writer] to edit another [writer]’s work.”
Again, the first reader’s job is to read, for pleasure, period, and then report back on what pops-out at him/her as s/he’s reading.
And the fact is, a writer (you) CAN be a great first reader—IF you remember that in your capacity as a first reader you’re a READER, not a writer.
So, I thought I’d toss out an experiment here.
If any of you are interested in serving as a first reader for other writers (not me), please take a moment to send me your name, email address, and which genre(s) and/or subgenre(s) you’re interested in reading.
If I get any responses at all, l will compile a searchable, downloadable PDF list and will more than likely even include it in the Journal archives in a separate file. In other words it will be available to anyone who visits the Journal website at https://hestanbrough.com.
I look forward to seeing how this turns out.
And if anyone can think of any other ways writers can help other writers (including each others’ books in bundles, mentioning real titles and real author names in your fiction as if your character is reading them, etc.) let me know.
FYI, I do currently have one writer who is looking for a first reader in the SF Horror and Splatterpunk genres. If you’re interested, let me know via email and I’ll put the two of you in touch.
Talk with you again soon.
Of Interest
See “The 103 Best Book Covers of 2022” at https://lithub.com/the-103-best-book-covers-of-2022/. I wonder whether the judging was blind. I think probably not.
See “Artificial womb: Video shows what pregnancy may be like in the future” at https://interestingengineering.com/innovation/artificial-womb-facility-30000-babies-a-year. S-T-O-R-Y ideas.
See “Facts About the 500-Year-Old Incan Ice Mummies That Are Both Haunting and Fascinating” at https://hasanjasim.online/facts-about-the-500-year-old-incan-ice-mummies-that-are-both-haunting-and-fascinating/. Story ideas.
The Numbers
The Journal…………………………………… 570 words
Writing of WCG 7 Santa Fe 2 (novel tentative title)
Day 1…… 2190 words. Total words to date…… 2190
Day 2…… 3049 words. Total words to date…… 5239
Day 3…… 2588 words. Total words to date…… 7827
Day 4…… 3373 words. Total words to date…… 11200
Day 5…… 3317 words. Total words to date…… 14517
Day 6…… 3771 words. Total words to date…… 18288
Day 7…… 3102 words. Total words to date…… 21390
Total fiction words for December……… 37804
Total fiction words for the year………… 252778
Total nonfiction words for December… 11840
Total nonfiction words for the year…… 209920
Total words for the year (fiction and this blog)…… 462698
Calendar Year 2022 Novels to Date…………………… 4
Calendar Year 2022 Novellas to Date……………… 0
Calendar Year 2022 Short Stories to Date… 0
Novels (since Oct 19, 2014)…………………………………… 70
Novellas (since Nov 1, 2015)………………………………… 8
Short stories (since Apr 15, 2014)………………… 217
Short story collections……………………………………………… 31
Disclaimer: I am a prolific professional fiction writer. Because It Makes Sense, I trust my characters to tell the story that they, not I, are living. This greatly increases my productivity and provides the fastest possible ascension along the learning curve of Craft because I get a great deal more practice at actually writing. It will do the same for you if only you trust it.