• Challenge,  On Writing

    Reaction to Failure

    Maybe One of the Best Quotes from The Voice Ever… On Tuesday, while talking to and encouraging a young woman who didn’t get a chair to turn, Adam Levine said to her out of nowhere, and I quote, “It’s your reaction to your failures that make your success.” As many things on The Voice, this applies directly to writing as well. Directly. Now this young girl just failed in front of millions of people, but she had the courage to try out and to walk up there on that stage and give it a shot. Total success. She got to sing in front of millions and that is a bunch…

  • Challenge

    Reminder on the New Lectures

    These Three Lectures Are Special…  In fact, they will only be offered once each this fall and never again. Kris and I have been working on these for some time and finally decided to do them this fall. Very limited to the Lecture Lifetime Subscribers and ten more. I have zero doubt, from all the questions Kris and get constantly on this topic from writers, that these lectures will fill very, very quickly. So can you imagine one day the phone rings and it is someone you don’t know wondering if your movie rights are available??? Happens all the time. What do you do? And one day it will happen…

  • Challenge,  On Writing,  publishing

    Planning Ahead in Writing Time

    Knowing the Reality… I got this great question from a writer asking me how I managed to remain so calm while getting behind on this challenge and having so much get in the way. I would say the answer is one simple word… Awareness. I was aware starting into this challenge that I had this last trip, and the workshop next month, and a ton of stuff to do that fell early on that had to be done and would take time away from the writing. I also knew I had to build brand new writing habits here in my new home, and that would take some time. But I…

  • Challenge

    Home Again

    This was a Very Quick Trip… And a very busy one. And fun. I will know in the morning how well my holding my eating and weight under control worked. Tonight, Kris and I walked around the block a few times right after I got in around 11:30 so I could keep my 10,000 step streak going. Did a bunch of writing in the Alaska Airline lounge at the Portland airport, but only a little on the plane because I got into a conversation with a very nice man who ran a major solar power plant outside of Vegas. Science fiction stuff in reality. My first novel on my challenge…

  • Challenge

    Headed Home

    Going to Be Writing… Getting to the airport early, writing for a few hours, then writing for a few hours on the plane. I won’t have the first novel of the challenge done yet, but I am gaining speed with the writing and honestly that feels great. So I will be back in Vegas tomorrow evening (Sunday) and maybe even do some more writing tomorrow evening as well. So a fun trip. Great food with friends, great stuff at the stores and business. And a few hours of poker paid for most of it. And got a bunch of writing done. So far, a great short trip.

  • Challenge,  On Writing,  publishing

    Great Fun Today

    Taking a Very Short Trip... In fact, only a few days. Back in Vegas this weekend. I am flying first class and so got to go into the lounge area for the airline. Wow, nice, with all kinds of free food and comfortable tables and places to work. So since I had gotten to the airport early, I managed 1,300 words on the challenge novel in the lounge. Then on the two hour flight, my writing was only interrupted by them serving me dinner. (Yeah, tough life flying first class, but I can do that because flights in and out of Vegas are stunningly cheap if you know how to…

  • Challenge,  On Writing,  publishing

    Pulp Speed Challenge Update

    Slow Start… Actually, I think that is an understatement. I should, if I was on schedule, be finishing the first novel tomorrow, September 18th. Nope, not even close. I knew going in that this last week was going to be a ton of work on the business and other stuff, but turned out to be even more than I had planned. I supposed I should have planned for that as well. (grin) But I have a saving out. My plan was to finish this first novel in ten days tomorrow, then take four days away from the challenge because of a trip back up to the coast. Going to have…

  • Challenge,  Fiction River,  On Writing

    Twelve Hours Left on the Subscription Drive

    We Hit the Sixth Stretch Goal… Lots of extra books to every supporter. This subscription drive has until 4 p.m. West Coast Time Monday (TODAY!). And then it will be all done and I will go back to reporting on my challenge and stirring up trouble. (grin) Give it a look if you haven’t so far. It has some pretty nifty awards and other things. Click Here. For example, we have an award where you get two writing books, a lecture, a subscription, and a chance to submit a story if you want to a volume of Fiction River in February. Here are the details for one last time. Pledge…

  • Fiction River,  On Writing

    24 Hours To Go

    Fiction River Subscription Drive Kickstarter… A nifty award that also allows you to send a story to try to be in a Fiction River volume, fantastic discounts on workshops (remember, with every regular workshop credit through the Kickstarter, you get a free Classic Workshop credit as well.) And if you want to see what Fiction River is all about, and all the nifty volumes that have already been done, go to FictionRiver.com and click on previous volumes. It’s a stunner. Don’t miss out on this one.

  • On Writing,  publishing

    Kickstarter Hit Third Stretch Goal

    Only Has Two Days Left… We are within $500 of hitting the fourth stretch goal and doing great so far. If we hit that 4th goal, everyone supporting the subscription drive will not only get the subscription and their chosen reward, but at least five extra books. Five. And with more if we can go farther. Those of you workshop people, there are deals on workshops on this subscription drive. For $250 you get a $300 workshop plus a $150 classic workshop. So $450 in value for $250. There is also a $750 level where you can get three credits for workshops (to take at any time you want going…