Well, January is basically over. I'm getting in the mode to review things a bit. Though I've made progress over all with staying in focus and getting work done, there is still room from improvement. My publishing company won the war of time this month. All told, we got five products out to readers and have every intention of getting five more out in February. I'm being very proactive as a publisher.
Writing, the focus above all else on this blog and in my writing life, went okay, but there were still several gaps in the flow where I just didn't get new words down. I have to work on that part going into February. I will do better. Just have to remember the maxim about having fun with it and not stressing out over what I can't control.
This whole year is about finding more balance in my life and making sure that writing and publishing get a share of the pie. I'll be exploring that process, as I said before, and that'll sure been fun all in itself.
One of my big focuses in the writing going forward is developing my skills with short fiction. That being said, I'm currently working on what I believe is a novel so there has to be room for some play concerning the project workload.
Short stories are intriguing to me. I've written several--some of which are available electronically--and I enjoy putting them together. It's a challenge for me. Short of announcing a formal challenge with a number I need to hit by year's end, I'll say that I do plan to do a lot of short fiction writing.
I have four novel started and am piecing on them when I can and hope to finish them all this year too.
I'm going to keep myself busy and do my best to get a lot good stories out to my readers.
Saturday, January 31, 2015
Tuesday, January 27, 2015
Writing In 2015: Week Four
The month didn't go according to plan. That's the gist of it. I also didn't get back to you last week so I'll waive the notion of regular, weekly postings. Regular postings at all on my progress through this new year should be good enough. I'm sure I'll continue to tweak that as I keep moving forward.
Despite the lost of several writing days due to various factors, I've not thrown in the towel on my new approach for the new years. As of yesterday I'm back to fiction. I've even got words in for the day too, though I might add more later.
I've thought about conducting a writing streak but am afraid my schedule would foul that up before it had a chance to get off the ground. You could say I've started a streak though. I'm on my second day with fiction writing included. I'll have to see if I can keep it going tomorrow. At this stage, I'm not going to be concerned about meeting certain word quotas of pages. The only goal is to write every day. I am not giving up on this one so bear with me as these updates continue. You'll get a glimpse of my successes and failures alike.
I've been busy with other business duties this month quite apart from any actual writing. That arena has its own goals that I won't elaborate on here, but I'm excited about what I'm developing and how it might shape the year too.
Still, the first duty I have is to write something, finish it, and get it to readers somehow. I'll have more to say later. There are some topics I'd like to cover.
Despite the lost of several writing days due to various factors, I've not thrown in the towel on my new approach for the new years. As of yesterday I'm back to fiction. I've even got words in for the day too, though I might add more later.
I've thought about conducting a writing streak but am afraid my schedule would foul that up before it had a chance to get off the ground. You could say I've started a streak though. I'm on my second day with fiction writing included. I'll have to see if I can keep it going tomorrow. At this stage, I'm not going to be concerned about meeting certain word quotas of pages. The only goal is to write every day. I am not giving up on this one so bear with me as these updates continue. You'll get a glimpse of my successes and failures alike.
I've been busy with other business duties this month quite apart from any actual writing. That arena has its own goals that I won't elaborate on here, but I'm excited about what I'm developing and how it might shape the year too.
Still, the first duty I have is to write something, finish it, and get it to readers somehow. I'll have more to say later. There are some topics I'd like to cover.
Monday, January 12, 2015
Writing In 2015: Week Two
I'm writing this post for the second full week of writing in 2015. I'm not sure if I'll be writing weekly updates for the duration of the year, but I might give it a shot. It could be good to keep a closer eye on progress and share here. When it comes to the writing life, there are things I definitely want to do differently this year. I've mentioned them in previous posts. At the top of the list, is simply this: I WANT TO WRITE MORE.
Yes, very simple, and I am writing more frequently than I was during most of 2014. That frequency needs to increase though. Like any skill, with more you practice writing the better you become. Practice means spend a lot more time putting down new words in fiction, completing more stories and novels, and, yes, I could include writing here more frequently than I have in the past.
What do I mean by writing more? Well, I mean just devoting more time to it. I also mean writing everyday, if possible. I've thought about carrying on a writing streak to see how long I could keep it up. It sounds like a challenge. I think I need to challenge myself this year. The trick is knowing what is reasonable for me and also where I can stretch myself to grow as a writer too. It's tough to figure sometimes, but I might give it a shot too.
I've thought about keeping an open door on my writing process like Dean Wesley Smith does. But that way is hard path since Dean's done so to dispel some really nasty myths that afflict writers, especially beginning writers. I'm not interesting in taking the sort of flak associated with that sort of myth-busting. I don't intent to set myself up as an expert in anything. I am just trying to be a career write--and one that makes money telling stories and selling them to readers. Those are the logistics here.
I suppose I'll need to clarify from time to time if I intend to write blogs more often. It's easy to fall into certain poor habits. I'll try to avoid some of those familiar pitfalls as the year moves along.
Yes, very simple, and I am writing more frequently than I was during most of 2014. That frequency needs to increase though. Like any skill, with more you practice writing the better you become. Practice means spend a lot more time putting down new words in fiction, completing more stories and novels, and, yes, I could include writing here more frequently than I have in the past.
What do I mean by writing more? Well, I mean just devoting more time to it. I also mean writing everyday, if possible. I've thought about carrying on a writing streak to see how long I could keep it up. It sounds like a challenge. I think I need to challenge myself this year. The trick is knowing what is reasonable for me and also where I can stretch myself to grow as a writer too. It's tough to figure sometimes, but I might give it a shot too.
I've thought about keeping an open door on my writing process like Dean Wesley Smith does. But that way is hard path since Dean's done so to dispel some really nasty myths that afflict writers, especially beginning writers. I'm not interesting in taking the sort of flak associated with that sort of myth-busting. I don't intent to set myself up as an expert in anything. I am just trying to be a career write--and one that makes money telling stories and selling them to readers. Those are the logistics here.
I suppose I'll need to clarify from time to time if I intend to write blogs more often. It's easy to fall into certain poor habits. I'll try to avoid some of those familiar pitfalls as the year moves along.
Monday, January 5, 2015
Writing In 2015: Five Days In
A new week's started, the first full one of the year, and I'm anxious to fill it with writing. The trick will be to keep things realistic with myself as I slowly build up my writing practice. I have a tendency to go overboard in my thinking or what I think I can do, or worse I get caught up in counterproductive and critical views of my writing and the business of writing which zap whatever creative impulses that may be quietly gestating.
This approach to a new year, if it has a chance at all, must be based on some accountability. Ideally, I'd love to have somebody, a fellow writer maybe, to be accountable to help me stay on target. Sadly, though I'd love to help another scribe out with beta reading and proofreading and vice versa, I haven't found a partner yet.
Thus, I must be accountable to myself. I need to think really hard about the sort of goals I want to have as I move deeper into 2015. I'm already musing on how many books I'd like to write over the course of the year. I'm trying to aim for a reasonable starting point for my daily word counts. A quota remains a good basic practice as I learn more about various aspects of craft.
As I go, I'll be refining and making various adjustments to what it is that I want.
I can say that I'm writing again and trying very hard to make it a low-stress occupation. I've also been submitting stories to magazines again--a practice I will be expanding on quite a bit in the coming weeks as I complete more stories. (I'm determined to try harder to get short fiction published--then make that another aspect of my business.)
So this is kind of an update. Not sure, but it could be a series.
This approach to a new year, if it has a chance at all, must be based on some accountability. Ideally, I'd love to have somebody, a fellow writer maybe, to be accountable to help me stay on target. Sadly, though I'd love to help another scribe out with beta reading and proofreading and vice versa, I haven't found a partner yet.
Thus, I must be accountable to myself. I need to think really hard about the sort of goals I want to have as I move deeper into 2015. I'm already musing on how many books I'd like to write over the course of the year. I'm trying to aim for a reasonable starting point for my daily word counts. A quota remains a good basic practice as I learn more about various aspects of craft.
As I go, I'll be refining and making various adjustments to what it is that I want.
I can say that I'm writing again and trying very hard to make it a low-stress occupation. I've also been submitting stories to magazines again--a practice I will be expanding on quite a bit in the coming weeks as I complete more stories. (I'm determined to try harder to get short fiction published--then make that another aspect of my business.)
So this is kind of an update. Not sure, but it could be a series.
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