• Challenge,  On Writing,  publishing,  workshops

    Moving Forward Again…

    The Election in the States is Over… So finally, after four long and lost days of far too much junk food and watching television, this election is finally over and we all can get started forward again. So a couple of the classes that we pretty much stopped this summer will be firing back up shortly. Let me list them here, while it is still possible to jump into them at half price for a few more days. The Decade Ahead… All four quarters… When Covid hit, we tried to do a duel course on this for a short time, one writing with Covid and one after Covid, but as…

  • Challenge,  On Writing,  publishing,  workshops

    Stay Safe!!

    Covid is Spiking Everywhere… So I really hope that all of you reading this are not taking an chances, staying safe, wearing masks, watching distance and all that. Right now Covid is worse than it has been, and I see no sign of easing up. So focus on the writing, focus on the learning of publishing and writing. Tough to get Covid when sitting alone at your computer writing. We are trying to help once again to keep you learning and in and safe with the half-price sale on the workshops that will be doing until Tuesday night. If you have any questions on anything, write me. Here is the…

  • Challenge,  On Writing,  publishing

    From Too Many Chips to Too Much Exercise…

    Not Wednesday… No, the exercise is planned for Thursday. A very long walk/run. I figure after two days of eating far too much and too much stupid stress, I needed to do something. So going out for a half-marathon distance (13.1 miles), see how it goes, what my time is, what I feel like when done. So could be interesting. I’ll report tomorrow on how it went. But tonight I want to warn you all that this is the last day, the last few hours, actually of the BIG TIME STORYBUNDLE. Basically an entire bundle of time travel books and stories, some of the best I have read. And you…

  • Challenge,  On Writing,  publishing,  workshops

    November Workshops Started

    Including the Two Special Ones… And I am still reading the stories from the October special workshops, so give me a few more days on that. A lot of them are very good. So with the sale it is possible to sign up for November and December workshops. I started all the November workshops tonight because I am taking tomorrow off to watch the election. So the last two blogs have a lot of information about the half-price sale of workshops. And if you have any questions, write me. And if you live in the States and have not voted, go do so now. There are no excuses this time…

  • Challenge,  On Writing,  publishing,  workshops

    Workshop Things To Note…

    Especially with the Half-Price Sale Going On… — There is a page that I did two months ago with the curriculum of workshops and lectures and pop-ups with suggested order and sorting to try to make sense of all the workshops we offer. I have not included the last two months of stuff yet, but will. You can find the link on the right side of this page in the sidebar.  Workshop Curriculum link… — The special three-week workshops that are given with Kickstarter campaigns are not offered anywhere. They can only be gotten through the original Kickstarter. And right now we have a special workshop offered in our Holiday…

  • Challenge,  On Writing,  publishing

    Some Fun Thoughts…

    And A Warning… As many of you know, or might have guessed, I spend a great deal of time reading news and information about the industry, both the traditional side and what can be found among all the promotion myths on the indie side. Some of it I pass along, some of it Kris and I talk about, some of it I just file away as information to see trends and so on. I consider this part of my job. Not for you folks, but because this is how I make my living and if I am not aware of my industry, I will make mistakes. Now some of you…

  • Challenge,  On Writing,  publishing

    Making a Fortune

    An Old Belief or Myth… I had two people repeat a bad myth to me today. The myth is that writing is NOT the fastest way to make a buck. I suppose over the very short term, that is true… sort of. Say you want to be a lawyer. Your first buck will come in around year eight. Doctor around year nine. Plumber, after some training, as an apprentice, maybe the first year. Architect, year six. Being a waiter or tending bar, or a janitor, or any other hourly job, you get paid in two weeks after you start, so I suppose those are the quickest way to making a…

  • Challenge,  On Writing,  publishing

    IP Earnings

    Cash Streams Most Don’t Know About… Kris and I try to help writers understand IP, in one way or another, through blogs, through workshops, and many other ways over the years. But two things happened today that just made me shake my head. First off, I read an article on Facebook that I now can’t find (but I am sure Google will help you) on how much actors make from residuals of old shows like Mash, Cheers, Friends, and so on. The amount for those who signed good contracts is staggering. Sometimes up to 20 million a year. That’s right, for work they did years ago. (see where this is…

  • Challenge,  Kickstarter Campaign,  On Writing,  publishing

    Time Travel Bundle

    Great Fun!! Anyone who reads this blog regularly knows I love time travel, and all the different aspects of it. And my Thunder Mountain series is my favorite series to write. Right now I am in a time travel Storybundle with my novel Warm Springs. And there are some great novels in there, as well as a couple collections and three books that are exclusive only to the bundle. Only 10 days left, so don’t miss this one. You can get a bunch of books for very little cash and help a great charity in the process. Storybundle Time Travel Bundle And you want to see how I handle depth,…

  • Challenge,  On Writing

    Lifetime Original Christmas Movies

    They Have Started… And yes, I watch them. And yes, I know the plots are all the same. Duh, they are romance, people. Happy Ever After and all that. But honestly, if you can manage to get your nose out of the air and watch a few dozen of them, you can learn a ton about plotting and character and teams and depth and sometimes even dialog, depending… And right now in Covid land, these movies are a perfect antidote. I watch Lifetime Christmas Movies, not Hallmark. Honestly, they vary less on Lifetime and I honestly like that. I find it interesting that the elements of the plot are timed…