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Mentoring and Workshops
First of the Year is Here… Four things tonight to make sure you all know about if interested. First… I have one spot open for anyone interested in having me be a mentor this year. I had one person drop out due to a nasty health issue that does not sound like a good way to start a year. So one spot open. I am just starting to get going with the other two in this program. All the details are in the post here. Second… I have decided to do the challenge again. You can write either three novels in three months or thirty short stories in two months.…
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Public Domain Day
I Know… Copyright!… But hang on, it’s interesting, honest, because for the first time in a lot of years, major works are entering the public domain. Now granted, for some countries, this is a normal thing. For example, in Canada, any author who died in 1968 has works entering the public domain now because of life plus 50 year rule. But the United States has had some pretty messed up copyright laws since it was founded and copyright was put in the Constitution. Now finally, everything from 1923 has dropped into public domain and that will continue to move forward each year, one year at a time, until it catches…
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Sixth Pop-Up Launching
Writing Mysteries into the Dark… This is the sixth and last one for this year, of course. I will be announcing two or three more in a week or so. We will do at least two or more per month, and they are only up for two weeks at a time. Details of all of them are below. However, you can still get the earlier ones in the bundles. We have three bundles available. The first five, the second five, and the first ten. As of today there are six Pop-Ups available in the bundles. Information about them is below. But again, the first three are only available in the…
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Looking at Gaining Energy
I Actually Have Two Challenges That Will Help… As I have detailed out before here, my two challenges are to lose about 25 more pounds and write ten novels. All in 100 days. I was talking with Kris about the two elephants, working on how to carve three hours for writing and three hours for exercise out of every day for 100 days. I have done as we teach, looked and written down my schedule, and if I remain focused, the six hours are there, no issue. But just thinking about it made me tired. (You know, elephants.) Then I found myself saying that once I got the writing going…
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Soaking Up Story
I Have No Idea What For… I know I will be really picking up speed with the writing over the next few days before the first of the year so that by the first I will be at full speed. (Doing the same with exercising and reducing food intake.) Watched most of two movies tonight and a good episode of The Rookie. Not a clue why I am watching and reading so much. Also finally finishing up the last stories from the challenge and will be getting everyone feedback once my notes are typed into an email. So story, story, story. No idea why more than normal right now, but…
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Last Hours On Two Things.
And Some Fun Stuff… Very short time left on both of the Christmas Boxes from WMG. They end at NOON on Wednesday, the 19th, West Coast Standard Time. So if you get this after noon, never mind. (grin) Second, I have three in the Mentor Program for 2019, but I will take just one more. Kris and I have decided I can handle four without a problem and it will be more fun, actually. Write me if interested in the last spot. Details in a post a ways back. Do, if you get a chance, read that post from Steven Barnes I put up yesterday. Amazing. And if you want…
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A Post Very Much Worth Reading
From Steven Barnes… Steve put up this great post on Facebook talking about how a writer can kill his own joy and purpose in writing. Sadly, I know exactly who he is talking about. I met the person he talks about a number of times and it was exactly as Steve said. I even got that same card and was just as disturbed by it. I constantly tell people to not write to market, to write what they love, that doing anything else is a quick path to the end of your writing. So if you don’t listen to me on this, listen to Steve. He says it so much…
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New Pop-Up Available
The New Year is Coming… How to set goals and challenges and streaks and habits and so much more for the new year is in the 5th Pop-Up now available on Teachable. It is called “Remaining Focused” and has all sorts of things that can help you hit your writing goals in 2019. Plus it will be there for you for the entire year on your dashboard to review if you remember. — Also, a spot still open in the Mentor Program I am doing for a few writers for the entire year of 2019. Information a few posts back if you are interested. — Another thing on this late…
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Various Stuff
Got A 5K Run In The Morning… So some quick stuff tonight. First off, still a spot, maybe two, in the mentor program. I might be convinced to go to four, but no more and right now there are two who are in. So still open. Write me if you want information. Information two posts back and it will be a lot of fun and learning, I can promise. Second, the January Regular Online Workshops are now on Teachable. Here is the list. Note they start on the 1st and 2nd. Class #1… Jan 1st … Depth #3: Research Class #2… Jan 1st … Author Voice Class #3… Jan 1st … Dialog…
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How to Think About a Challenge
New Year Is Coming… And many writers, me included, are starting to set up challenges to help us reach goals with our writing. But the question is how to make the goals large enough to be challenging and yet not set up for failure. So let me tell you how I do it, since I have started and backed off a challenge twice now that I will be starting for the third time on January 1st. I do not consider the two first false starts as failure. Not in the slightest, actually. They were learning. So that is point one… Never think about failure. Just think positive about the challenge…