In the opening to Day 17, Stackpole writes of this exercise, “Limit yourself to three lines to describe each step of the above process for a problem for each character. The paragraphs should sketch out scenes to be written in the story.” It would have worked better for me if he’d written, “Limit yourself to [...]
Just a little bit from my most recent writing session. Out of context, unedited, but it has some lines I like: Fear, hope, anger, dismay, horror, loss, shame. All these flashed across Gorm’s face, leaving despair in their wake. His big body slumped. He closed his brown eyes and sighed, resigned, as if expecting what [...]
As I was reminded recently, I haven’t posted in far too long. But I have been working. Not as much as I hoped. Not as frequently, but behind the silence I’ve click-clicked on my keyboard. Actually that’s a fib. I’ve scrib-scribbled with my new fountain pen, a type of pen to which I’m new. I’ve [...]
I’ve put in about 12-18 hours since last time I posted…which was a long time ago.
Not too long ago, I sat around my home wishing I was a writer and glaring at the stacks upon stacks of self-help writing books I had collected over the years. I’m not an aspiring writer, I thought, I’m a collector of self-help writing books! And really, just how many books on crafting characters did [...]
Some interesting research by a fellow named Robert Boise came to my attention. It concerns the results of experiments aimed at coaxing academic writers into writing more articles. Here’s the distillation a friend sent me. During the course of a year: Folks who made no change in their writing style (binge and busted model of [...]
I’m shifting the entire focus of the course away from — ssscccrrrrrreeeeet Wait! What Was Wrong with the Old Idea? The old idea centered on creating, revising, and improving a ‘learn to write fiction course’ from the most popular and/or thorough ‘teach yourself about write fiction’ books available at your corner bookstore. It depended on [...]
If you take the time to download this, watch it and reflect on it, then I do not think you will be quite the same person afterwards. Your energy levels, your excitement, and your creative productivity will most certainly take a big jump. How to Be Creative is inspirational, motivational, and free. Hugh MaCleod – [...]
1. Write and Don’t Look Back: “When writing, if you learn or think something new, do not stop and rewrite what came before.” Ever. Instead, make a note in the margins and continue writing from that point forward as if your new thought had always been present. For example, if during a scene in chapter [...]
Orson Scott Card stands tall as one of my literary heroes — not simply because is the only author thus far to win both the Hugo and the Nebula Awards for best novel two years in a row — but because once upon a time, he sucked rocks [...]
Current Project Word Count: 23,242 words 
YTD: 236.5 hrs at the page
This Past Week: 4 hrs at the page 
Atomic Array
Future Tense
Iron GM
Kerlak Publishing
Locus Online
Pen Parentis
Perseid Publishing
Steven Belledin Gallery
Stormwolf
The Wine-Dark Seas
Zippy Studio