The Journal, Tuesday, 1/31

Hey Folks, Yay! The last day of Janumary! Beginning tomorrow, the Total Fiction Words for the Year will actually be larger than the Total Fiction Words for the Month! Fingers crossed. (grin) It’s like sending up a rocket and watching as the booster falls away. Now I’m hoping for huge ignition on Stage 2. (grin) I have the daily word count goal in place to help me achieve it, and I have a great cast of … Read more

Restarting After a Layoff

Hi Folks, Sometimes we begin a new project with the best of intentions and then we set it aside for one reason or another. Maybe a life event rears its ugly head (death in the family or some other unforeseen event). Or maybe, in the case of my own recent restart, another story intervenes. As I noted below, I started The Marshal of Agua Perlado (the sequel to the Wes Crowley trilogy I originally wrote) back … Read more

The Journal, Monday, 1/30

Hey Folks, Almost. The month is almost over. Yay. I’m tired of seeing the number in Total for the Year matching Total for the Month. It’s like nothing’s moving. Today begins the GED course of instruction for my grandson. The plan is to write this morning, then begin his schooling later today. Well, during a brief break I looked over the GED course materials. There’s not a lot for me to do at first beyond basic … Read more

The Journal, Sunday, 1/29

Hey Folks, Well, Sunday. Sunday mornin’ comin’ down. And I got a late start, thanks to waking up with mind twisted up and wrapped around a ball of crap. The “Today and Writing” segment is still below, but I won’t belabor you with an hourly accounting today. Or probably any day in the future unless something important happens that I think might be of interest. Just know that I’m now firmly trained to write while I’m … Read more

The Journal, Saturday, 1/28

Hey Folks, Today, and Writing Rolled out at 2:30 again, but the kitten let me sleep uninterrupted. Apparently she didn’t feel the need to knead on my bicep to soften it up before she lay down. (grin) Normal early routine, then out to the Hovel by 3. I had Internet from the house (weird, but good). I remembered I hadn’t sent the new story to a new donor so I did that, then updated the Short … Read more

The Journal, Friday, 1/27

Hey Folks, After yesterday’s sob session, a few very nice people sent me story ideas. 🙂 Thank you. I really appreciate it, but frankly I wouldn’t know what to do with any of them. That doesn’t mean they weren’t good ideas, only that they didn’t grab me in particular. But again, thanks so much for taking the time to send them. That means a lot to me. Regarding some of the comments on Deans’ stuff, maybe … Read more

The Popper

Folks, this will be the last regular short story of the week. In the future, when I write one I’ll post it here, but those won’t be every week. You can always find the latest by clicking A Free Short Story in the menu. Thanks, Harvey The first one popped the day before the Sturgis Metal Run. Me and Ronny and a few others were revvin’ the dream, hittin’ 90 in a 75. In the fast … Read more

The Journal, Thursday, 1/26

Hey Folks, Boy am I embarrassed. I had a great start on a new novel yesterday, even with only a half-day. I wrote more on it this morning (only a little over 1600 halting words) before I suddenly realized at about 8 a.m. that as I was writing my conscious mind was searching for pre-established facts. Uh-oh. There are no pre-established facts when writing off into the dark. And that led me to realize that my … Read more

The Journal, Wednesday, 1/25

Hey Folks, Wow. New day, new story, new attitude. Frankly, I hope it will be another novel. After-hours yesterday I created a new cover for The Claim. That’s it on the left if I remember to put it in here. (grin) I’m falling behind, drastically, on my free story of the week. And I don’t really care. Which leads me to today’s topic. Topic: Goals and Reality First, for those who haven’t “heard” me say this … Read more

The Journal, Tuesday, 1/24

Hey Folks, Today the novel will end. And it did. There won’t be a sequel, at least with these characters. If they’re successful in what they’re doing, there won’t be anymore conflict. Good for the world, bad for novelists. (grin) Today, and Writing Rolled out right at 3 and promptly wasted the first hour of the day. The second went much the same way, but I began the third, at 5 a.m., in the Hovel. Cycling … Read more