Hey Folks,
I’ve learned a great deal about writing over the past three years. It’s also been a long time since I last taught a seminar. That was in September, 2014.
A month after that, I taught an actual writing workshop based on Writing Into the Dark.
But then, other than bits and blurbs in emails or the occasional edit or brief presentation, I stopped teaching. I devoted myself to my own writing.
Now, nearing 30 novels and around 170 short stories later, I’m almost ready to teach again.
Why? Because I’m settled in my writing.
From this point forward, I’ll keep learning and improving, but not by the leaps and bounds I’ve known over the past few years.
And I want to pass along what I’ve learned now that I’ve made it my own, put my own stamp on it.
As I first mentioned here awhile back, I’m developing a way to do that.
It might well develop into an online thing, but first I’ll deliver it as a combination seminar and workshop.
Probably this will happen sometime between October of this year and April of 2018, inclusive. (It’s slightly cooler here in the desert during those months.)
The seminar portion will consist of a one- or two-day intensive. And I do mean intensive.
The workshop portion will be more leisurely. It will consist of a critique, by me via email, of at least two assignments. (This is a small part of what I’ve been practicing in my most recent edit.)
When I have the final structure of the intensive laid out, of course I’ll announce it here and in the big blog.
For now, I just wanted you to know where I am in the thought process.
Today, and Writing
Rolled out a little after 3. Spent the first couple hour with email, FB, newsletters and at Dean’s place.
Then I wrote the stuff above and a lot more as I brainstormed the seminar/workshop. Basically, as has become my habit, I’ve frittered away much of the morning.
Now, about 4 hours after I first got up, to the edit. Later today, back to writing. (Yay!) You know, probably.
Well, I finished the edit about an hour ago (about 10:30) and got it sent off.
Instead of writing more fiction today, though, I think I’ll spend the balance of the day putting together a cover for The Pyramid Killer, proofing it, and getting it published.
Kind of resting. Editing is work, and it drains me.
Proofing my own stories (I read them aloud) and creating covers and publishing them is fun, though not as much fun as writing.
I’m also gonna check out a new source for cover art. Even though I’m using Cover to Upload (http://covertoupload.com) for interior layout and paper covers now, I still like designing my own ebook covers.
Back tomorrow.
Of Interest
Over at Dean’s today, he announces a new coast workshop: The Great Bundle Workshop. See http://www.deanwesleysmith.com/the-great-bundle-workshop-brand-new-coast-workshop/.
I hung around awhile, hoping for another chapter in his Magic Bakery book, but no dice yet. (grin)
Fiction Words: XXXX
Nonfiction Words: 520 (Journal)
So total words for the day: 520
Writing of
Day 1…… XXXX words. Total words to date…… XXXX
Total fiction words for the month……… 7189
Total fiction words for the year………… 215745
Total nonfiction words for the month… 2990
Total nonfiction words for the year…… 60330
Total words for the year (fiction and nonfiction)…… 276075