• Challenge,  On Writing,  publishing

    Some New Goals

    New Goals… I am back at writing and exercise with new goals on both. Writing Goal My big goal is to get back up to pulp speed (million words a year fiction) and hold it for all of 2017, which would include staying on time until issue #50 of Smith’s Monthly. Now that’s an impossible goal to wrap my head around, so I am going to break it down into a shorter time frame to start with. Between now and the end of the year I want to write a number of novels, with luck at least three or four done between now and the end of the year. And at least eight short stories. That…

  • Challenge,  On Writing,  publishing,  workshops

    Thanks for the Comments

    Thanks… I really appreciate the comments about the two workshops the last two days. Seems the copyright workshop might be worthwhile if it focused on how to use copyright to make more money with your fiction. So Kris and I will give it some thought. And I’m having fun moving over the lectures to a new place easier to use for everyone. I have seven of the lectures moved so check it out. I think they look pretty good. http://wmg-publishing-workshops-and-lectures.teachable.com Tomorrow back to running and to writing. Got a fun new running plan to talk about which should also work for some of you with writing and goal setting. Stay…

  • Challenge,  On Writing,  publishing

    Keeping Track of Books Published

    Keeping Track of Books Published… Now most writers don’t have an issue with this. Seems I am not one of the most writers. I have a horrid issue keeping track of what I have published and always have. Why? Because once I have finished writing a story or novel, it’s done and I am moving on to the next one. I never look back. And thus this minor problem. Just yesterday I was dinging along looking for a short story file on my old writing computer and ran across a novel I had written and that was published and that I had forgotten about and hadn’t counted. So in traditional,…

  • Challenge,  On Writing,  publishing,  Smiths Monthly

    Putting Together Smith’s Monthly Issues

    Putting Together Smith’s Monthly… As I keep making changes to this site and get going on year four of my magazine, I thought it would be fun to sort of let you all follow along with putting these issues together. You have been watching me write stuff here for three years, so why not the next step for the next year? So over on the right side I have listed the next three issues of Smith’s Monthly and what I have ready for them now. The assigned stories are there at the moment, but might change out if I write some new ones. I like to lead off each issue…

  • Challenge,  On Writing,  publishing,  workshops

    Ten December Online Workshops

    Ten December Online Workshops… Instead of constantly having the workshop schedule listed in every post and on the side of this blog, I’m just going to do instead an occasional post about the upcoming online workshops. Feel free to forward these workshop posts to anyone you think might be interested. Online workshops are geared to any writer working on the craft and business of their writing. As the next three months go on, we will be moving the workshops to a more friendly and less “clunky” place. Teachable.com. So I will announce that as they get moved, starting with the lectures first. And even though not yet listed, we will be…

  • Challenge,  On Writing,  publishing,  Smiths Monthly

    Three Years of Smith’s Monthly

    Three Years of Smith’s Monthly That’s right. In three years I have filled a 60,000 to 80,000 word magazine with novels and short stories every month. All my own writing. I wrote every word. For 36 issues. (Issue #36 is going out to subscribers electronically and will be posted to Patreon tomorrow.) 36 novels. Over 170 short stories. And you have all watched me do it right here, right out in public, every day for the last three years. Through the ups and downs.  I also wrote a bunch of nonfiction books at the same time, but they were mostly not around Smith’s Monthly. I want to thank the subscribers…

  • Challenge,  On Writing,  publishing,  Recommended Reading

    Some History About a Thriller

    Some History! The Pulse Pounder Thriller bundle only has two days left before it vanishes. The book I have in the thriller bundle is called An Easy Shot: A Golf Thriller. Yes, it is possible to write a golf thriller. This book has an interesting history. This book, as many of my books do, started suddenly when I got a call from an editor who needed a book quickly to help start a new line of books. He had the first twelve books purchased, but the company sales force seemed to be having issues selling the idea of the line, so he needed a first book to help them. He needed…

  • Challenge,  publishing,  Recommended Reading,  Topic of the Night

    Massive Numbers of Writing Things To Do

    Way Too Much To Do An amazing thing has happened to writers in this new world of publishing. We are all busy. Extremely busy, with to-do lists that stretch beyond any reality at times. I love this new aspect of writing and publishing. Completely love it. Why? Because it means I am in control. I have the control over all aspects of my writing and publishing. And I have accepted that control. (Amazing how many writers don’t accept the control.) Have you ever noticed in the real world that the person in control of something is usually the busiest person? I personally would rather be the person in control of…

  • Challenge,  On Writing,  publishing,  workshops

    November Workshops Update

    November Workshop Update All letters have been sent out to those signed up for the November Online workshops. So if you think you are signed up for a November workshop, or would like to be, fire me a letter. Lots of room in all of them. And also at the moment the Coast Anthology workshop group list is starting up. The workshop starts February 25th and because the list has started, we have had a few drop out, so there are some spots open. If interested, write me. The coast workshops are for those writers really powering toward making a living with their fiction in one fashion or another. It…

  • Challenge,  On Writing,  publishing

    Not Much Sleep

    Not Much Sleep So this post will be a placeholder mostly here on this crazy Friday. There are lots and lots of good things with living on the west coast and having a normal schedule that doesn’t have me going to bed until 5 or 6 a.m. Very quiet at night and as I get back to solidly writing in the next day or so, that really quite time from midnight to 6 a.m. is very nice. But occasionally, I have to work, on deadline (not a publishing project) with someone in New York who goes to work at 8:30 a.m. So today I was up to my normal time, then…