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Time and Writing
TIME AND WRITING I have noticed this in the past, but just remembered it once again. When planning on returning from writing after a vacation or a sickness, or both in my case at the moment, the time you think you will return is never the actual time it takes you to manage to return. As I have always said, starting writing is far, far harder than just writing every day. ——- THE DAY Made it to the WMG offices around 1 p.m. and worked there until five p.m. I got all kinds of things moving, such as Smith’s Monthly, moved some shelves, and had great conversations on different…
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A Week of Different Posts: Last Day
Post Seven of Seven Days I’m finally back to work this evening, doing assignments and answering e-mails that got missed and things like that. So tomorrow night I’ll be back doing these regular blogs. Stay tuned. ——– February Online Workshops All of the February Online Workshops marked below have openings. Click the workshop tab above for description and sign-up or go to www.wmgpublishingworkshops.com. Each regular workshop is six weeks long and takes about 3-4 hours per week to do at your own pace and your own time. All workshops have openings. Class #11… Feb 1st … Advanced Depth Class #12… Feb 1st … Character Voice/Setting Class #13… Feb 1st … Adding Suspense to Your Writing Class #14……
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A Week of Different Posts: Day Six
Post Six of Seven Days Fun day. It’s been a fun week. Back at normal tomorrow night. Actually looking forward to normal again. ANTHOLOGY WORKSHOP WRITERS!!!! If any of you turned in a story on some screwy e-mail provider such as Verizon or Microsoft or Comcast, I got the story fine but could not tell you I got it. Sorry. I’ll try to get one of my other e-mail providers who can talk to such providers to respond tomorrow. I won’t send the stories to the editors until tomorrow night (Monday night) to make sure I got everything. Second, new assignment will be sent out tomorrow night. So please don’t…
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A Week of Different Posts: Day Five
Post Five of Seven Days Still having far too much fun with old friends. Today watched football and just left a late dinner about thirty minutes ago. It’s four a.m. I’m still around here just fine, just not focused on the daily stuff at the moment. But answering e-mail and stuff without a problem I hope. (grin) ———- February Online Workshops All of the February Online Workshops marked below have openings. Click the workshop tab above for description and sign-up or go to www.wmgpublishingworkshops.com. Each regular workshop is six weeks long and takes about 3-4 hours per week to do at your own pace and your own time. All workshops have openings. Class…
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A Week of Different Posts: Day Four
Post Four of Seven Days Seems I needed rest more than writing short stories at the moment. I’m not going to do the daily details. I will return to that in a week. Hope everyone had a nice Friday night. I sure did. ———- February Online Workshops All of the February Online Workshops marked below have openings. Click the workshop tab above for description and sign-up or go to www.wmgpublishingworkshops.com. Each regular workshop is six weeks long and takes about 3-4 hours per week to do at your own pace and your own time. All workshops have openings. Class #11… Feb 1st … Advanced Depth Class #12… Feb 1st … Character Voice/Setting Class #13… Feb 1st…
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A Week of Different Posts: Day Three
Post Three of Seven Days The week of hanging around with friends from a previous life and focusing only on short fiction is going on and I’m enjoying the time in a different routine. Always a good idea to break out at times. So for one week I’m not going to do the daily details. I will return to that in a week. Story and Words Done This Week I managed, after two naps (resting is hard work) to actually get 1,100 words done on the story I started yesterday. I think I am getting rested so might finish the story tomorrow. No idea where it’s going but I…
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A Week of Different Posts: Day Two
Post Two of Seven Days I’m going to be spending a week hanging around with friends from a previous life and focusing only on short fiction. So for one week I’m not going to do the daily details. I will return to that in a week. Came up with a cool title for a story that I worked on for a time today between conversations with friends and far too much great food. “No One is From Here” Should be able to finish it tomorrow. Story and Words Done This Week Story #1… (not done yet) About 1,200 words so far. ———- February Online Workshops All of the February Online Workshops…
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A Week of Different Posts: Post One
Post One of Seven Days I’m going to be spending a week hanging around with friends from a previous life and focusing only on short fiction. So for one week I’m not going to do the daily details. I will return to that in a week. I might or might do some topic of the night posts. I’ll see how that goes as well. I just wanted to break up things and take a break after this last few weeks of craziness. But my focus will be old friends and when they are not around, working on short stories and recharging from all the publishing craziness and year-end stuff…
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Topic of the Night: Lawrence Block’s New Writing Book
Last night I went on about how writers need to focus on writing, but not forget about learning. One great way to learn is read how-to-write books and books about the industry. When learning, always go to learn from those a long ways ahead of you on the road you want to walk. Simple rule. And with publishing and writing books, you read it and take what makes sense to you and ignore the rest. Every writing book should be treated that way, including the ones I have written. Take what makes sense and leave the rest, but don’t give the book away. Put it on your shelf and in a year or…
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Topic of the Night: Learning in the New Year
At the professional writer lunch today, a lot of the conversation on writing turned to how the industry is changing, bookstores, and so much more about the future. Great conversation. And tonight on a nifty program on the Travel Channel, I learned a little about how books were sold door-to-door after the Civil War and up into the last century. It was a major way books were distributed, and publishing company sales forces were basically door-to-door salesmen. When I came into the business in the early 1970s, the major publishing sales force had morphed into selling to bookstores, and only encyclopedias were sold door-to-door. Wow, has publishing changed. (grin) Now…