I gave myself a writing challenge this year: in addition to a second (and maybe third) draft on a novel, work on another novel, and producing 76 podcasts -- I decided 12 short stories over the year was in order. With occasional overtime at work and … [Continue reading]
One of the best ways to begin a new week is by reading Jack Cheng letters distributed through his newsletter. I love the way he looks at things and, even more, how he puts his thoughts and experiences to words. I have yet to read a weak letter, … [Continue reading]
The short story I mentioned in the last entry? You can listen to it right here (or click on the image at the end of this post for a 20-second sample). (It's about a woman who lands her dream job as a writer, but gets much more than she bargained for … [Continue reading]
I can't remember the last time I finished a short story. In recent years, it's been all about finishing novels. That changed yesterday. I Think I Remember How to Do This While I have a decent backlog of short stories for the Not About … [Continue reading]
Yesterday, I listened to this interview with Bud Smith. (The interview starts at the 30 minute mark if you're interested.) Bud is a writer, and his attitude about it all is quite refreshing. The quick version of Bud's outlook on writing: Just make … [Continue reading]
Earlier this month, I talked about how much I like winter because it's dark and quiet. At the same time, there's a brightness under it all when a new year rolls around. I suppose it's natural to kick off a new year with enthusiasm. Plans are made, … [Continue reading]
First: credit where it's due. This post was totally inspired by this post by Andrew Conti. Andrew's views on art and other things makes his blog one of my faves out there. (If you don't feel like reading Andrew's post, the gist is he doesn't get … [Continue reading]
Writers, take your marks. Ready. Set. Go! And they're off! (Well, depending who they are...) If you're George R. R. Martin, you're told you write too slowly. (GRRM's announcement that he's missed a deadline; some fans are not pleased.) If … [Continue reading]
A friend at work shared this on Twitter yesterday: Friends, over the next few days I'll write an article called "top 10 things I learned in 2015." Will you write your own? I want to read it! — Ken Tabor (@KenTabor) December 29, 2015 So what … [Continue reading]
I sometimes have those days when I think about easy. I think about an old series I started, that rough draft of a second novel tucked away that feels like something I jettisoned that could now come in handy. It's comforting thinking about how -- … [Continue reading]
Last week I launched the first episode of the new podcast. So far, people seem to like it. I pushed the release up a bit because the story, in its own little way, is a vague Thanksgiving story. If you're in the states and traveling this week … [Continue reading]
As I work on finalizing the release of Not about Lumberjacks later this month, my mind has drifted to short stories. It's strange after being focused on nothing but novel-length fiction in recent years. I've mentioned before that I used to write … [Continue reading]
I mentioned that the September social media break was not as much of a break as I planned. October, however, was what I needed in September. I locked out the noise of social media and got a lot of things done. So what did I get done? The things … [Continue reading]