It's something almost every writer does, simply because if we're really doing it for a living, it's generally the thing at the top of our mind. But that made me think about what really makes me who I am online.
Tag Archives: plans
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
Writing to a schedule can be the mother of invention. It can also be the mother of a whole lot of panic.
Let's start with what happens when your cush time vanishes into the ether and what to do about it.
- Plan well.
When you first give yourself a crazy deadline (they are all crazy), make sure you can meet it. Be realistic about how long it takes to create the amount of material you're promising. - Leave cush.
In this case, I got started and ready to go with ten days cush. That's generally more than enough for me considering I'm aiming for a little over 1,000 words per Wednesday update. - Don't freak out.
Life happens. Sometimes, cush time becomes nonexistent due to unavoidable circumstances. Breathe deeply. - Make a decision.
Quality or quantity. Always be punctual or always provide the best quality you know you have in you (or better). Personally, I prefer quality. So does my beta. - Live with that decision.
That all said, Summerlight will be updated sometime this week, but not today. Remarkably, I'm okay with that.
Something Old, Something New
So I'm taking the month of November to scribble. Yes, scribble. Not nano, not expect, not create perfection and masterpieces, just remember why it was I always loved to scribble.
Something Old
A long time ago, I wrote a drabble entitled, "City of Glass." It's now on submission at The Journal of Compressed Creative Arts. I loved this little story, but drabbles traditionally aren't very marketable, so I shelved it in the dusty electronic bins of someday stories. Today, I dusted it off and sent it. We hope.
Something New
I love short fiction, but finding whole magazines that publish the kind I'm interested in reading—and writing—was always difficult for me. I don't know how I missed this resource: Duotrope Digest. It's a search engine for writers to submit their material. I'm using it to discover new havens for both.
Something Special
So I've been reading Just a Whim, linked on the sidebar. A lovely little gem. It's the characters that make this story awesome. Thyme is the feistiest, most determined and creative girl. Her brother, Theo, is just funny. He tends to go with the flow, try and be opportunistic and greedy, but he's loyal and interesting and never quite succeeds at being taken seriously. Whim is still trying to figure out who he is, and he's the one who the story centers around.
Whim has finally walked away from his egotistical, gloating, and sadistic father, who has the power to grant a person's greatest wish or fear. Whim is the product of such a wish and has a similar power, but no social intelligence at all. Thankfully for him, he meets Thyme who undertakes to teach him the basics of being human, of living in this messy world that doesn't play by the rules that have undergirded his entire life, and of falling in love.
It's an enjoyable, generally light read with some serious moments as well. A nice reminder that life is always what we make of it.
[Note: I said I'd post this review at B&N, but the website has decided to do nothing if I click on the submit button, so I posted it over at Amazon instead.]
Something Blue
The illustration for "Crossing the Barrier" has been ordered and I should be able to show you something pretty soon. And it will have blue!
Posted in Journal, Publishing
Tagged jocelyn aitkin, on submission, plans, reading
Comments Off on Something Old, Something New
The Little Things
Finding somebody that actually understands what you're going for and, without fail, helps you to bring it out in your fiction is rare. I have found somebody like that for writing in this universe.
Right now, she is helping me pull together Summerlight, which I will begin posting soon on a weekly basis. I'd like to go ahead and get a few installments right before beginning, but my track record for sitting on new fiction is not good. We'll see... :eyes self suspiciously:
Also, found beautiful artist, ephemere, that will be illustrating "Crossing the Barrier," starting work somewhere around the end of the month. (Gotta pay her and all that.) You can check out her work here.
