The Journal, Monday, 5/1

Hey Folks,

Hey, a new month and a new week! Does it get any better than that? I don’t think so.

After I finished here yesterday, I set up my formulas for my May spreadsheet, then went in to cook supper.

***

May I just say I don’t like people who are ignorant?

I’m not talking about intellectual capacity or the lack thereof. I’m talking about a willingness to assert assumptions despite a complete lack of knowledge of the subject matter.

What’s truly annoying is that such assumptions are most often delivered via snide remarks or innuendo. The whole thing conjures, in my mind, a crystal clear image of a braying jackass.

By their very nature, assumptions are almost always wrong. For that reason, they serve to further illustrate, rather than conceal, the ignorance of those who assert them.

Unfortunately, assumptions are also the lightest form of slander and may, in extreme cases, even lead to character assassination.

Time is far too precious to spend any of it on them.

Fortunately, during a brief back and forth on this very topic on Facebook this morning, I also did something useful and productive. I proofed a digital copy of The Right Cut, the 10th book in the Crowley series.

I had to ask the layout person to tweak a couple of alignment issues, but otherwise it was perfect. So in another day or two the entire series will be available in print.

Feel free to assume I’m thrilled about that. (grin)

Topic: A Forthcoming New Challenge

Dean’s blog is supposed to be a version of “writing in public.” So is this one, as it’s an unabashed look at the day-to-day of writing and other stuff.

But let’s face it. Neither blog is really writing in public. Both are more like reporting in public. They still serve a purpose (I suppose) because they let others see what can be accomplished while doing all the other “life” things that happen.

Dean admits he got that term or the idea for it from Harlan Ellison, who at one point set up a desk and a typewriter in a storefront display window.

Harlan wrote several short stories, one page after the other. As he finished a page of a short story, he would get up and tape it to the window.

So the folks who gathered on the sidewalk could read the story, page by page, as he wrote it.

How’s that for confidence in writing into the dark? (grin)

That was truly writing in public.

And it’s a really intriguing idea.

I did a watered-down version of that once, sort of, when I was writing a short story every week and then posting it to my website. That lasted quite awhile. Around 70 consecutive weeks, I think.

But now I’m thinking about truly writing in public. I just have to figure out how to do it.

Probably I’ll write a new short story every day for a month. (Sound familiar?) But I really like writing novels, and novels sell better.

Or maybe I’ll write a series character. Whether in short stories, novellas or novels, all the work will rotate around that character.

Probably I’ll create a new website just to hold that insanity, whatever it is, so those daily posts won’t add further clutter to the current website.

In any case, I’ll post my WIP every day for all the world to see. Folks will even be able to subscribe to it (free) if they want.

Note that this will NOT necessarily be the finished product. Viewers will see the day’s fiction production, raw, as it comes off the computer, misspellings, inconsistencies, warts and all.

This challenge will have the added benefit of increasing my productivity.

One caveat: I won’t allow anyone into my work as it’s progressing (that’s a sure way to kill impetus), so I won’t allow comments on those posts.

I admit, part of the reason for this is to do something even DWS hasn’t done. (grin) Kind of a “go where angels fear to tread” sort of thing.

I’m not sure yet when this will start. Probably June 1 or July 1. That will give me some lead time to clear the decks. Plus this month I already have several days scheduled when I’ll be on the road for an unwelcome trip. I might have another trip in June too, but we’ll see.

So what do you, as a writer or reader, think of this challenge? Great idea? Insanity? If it had dynamite for brains it couldn’t blow its nose?

Let me know in the comments below. Or if you want, email me privately. I’d really like your input.

***

Whatever I end up doing for the future challenge above, I have a new one starting today. It’s simple, really. I want to get back to my 3000 words-per-day average.

I’d also like to turn out two novels this month. I plan to take one day off between novels and zero days off (that aren’t forced) during novels.

The goal is to get ahead of the curve on my annual goal before I start whatever I’m going to do with the future challenge.

Today, and Writing

Rolled out way late at 4:30. Ugh. I was awake around 3:15, but I just didn’t get up. Mea culpa, but I’m paying for it. Lethargy rules the day.

I set the water on the yard, did some other stuff online and up at the house, and eventually moved to the hovel around 10. Then I wrote most of the stuff above this.

Now it’s 11:40 and I’m headed for the house for a break. I will write fiction today, though at the moment I’m not sure what or when.

Wow. That turned into a whole thing. I copyedited a couple pages for a friend, answered a couple of emails, reset the water on the yard, and it’s 12:30 already. Better look around for something to write. (grin)

Okay, I started a new novel, probably SF. Not too bad a day, considering I started way late.

Back tomorrow.

Of Interest

See “Challenge Hit!! 30 Stories in 30 Days” at http://www.deanwesleysmith.com/challenge-hit-30-stories-in-30-days/. Nothing really meaty, but still pretty cool.

Fiction Words: 3227
Nonfiction Words: 1020 (Journal)
So total words for the day: 4247

Writing of The Storm (tentative title, novel)

Day 1…… 3227 words. Total words to date…… 3227

Total fiction words for the month……… 3227
Total fiction words for the year………… 250821
Total nonfiction words for the month… 1020
Total nonfiction words for the year…… 75710

Total words for the year (fiction and this blog)…… 326531

The Daily Journal blog streak……………………………………… 523 days
Calendar Year 2017 Novel Goal (15 novels)………………… 4 novels
Novels (since Oct 19, 2014)………………………………………… 24
Novellas (since Nov 1, 2015)……………………………………… 3
Short stories (since Apr 15, 2014)……………………………… 167

2 thoughts on “The Journal, Monday, 5/1”

  1. Your challenge sounds absolutely crazy, in a good way! I’m just wondering whether it could be something that could mess with your productivity, by making your writing “important”? And then making you want to “polish” your writing more since people will read it immediately? I guess you have to try, just leave yourself a way out if that’s the case.

    Good luck with the challenge anyway!

    • Thanks, Gnondpom. Writing everyday will be important (as with this Journal), but not the writing itself. So it should affect my productivity in a good way. And trust me, I definitely won’t polish anything I write.

      I was thinking, though, novels are sometimes so convoluted I might have to cycle back to chapter 2 to insert something the protagonist shows me in chapter 12. How would I show that in a daily posting? Well, I couldn’t. So probably I’ll go with short stories.

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