Cartoon=life

http://www.gocomics.com/garfield

Could be about writing

UGGGGH!!!

  Now RL has intervened in something that isn't writing.  Me and my wife were planning a trip soon, but someone stopped it because she is projecting onto us her bad experience with vacations. And she isn't listening when we try to explain that she is wrong. Of course I didn't use the words you're wrong but the examples and
explanation I tried to give showed she was. But she is just going by her experiences.

UGGGHHH!

Don't know

Now I don't rather I should start a story with "An arm reached out of a shallow pile of dirt and debris." Or "His arm reached out from the shallow pile of dirt and debris".


Nor do I know if I ever will know or if it's worth knowing.


Makes me want to just go to a free site where I don't have to worry about how editors think

OK

Got to finish the story I'm working on. It's way longer than I wanted it to be but I guess it will do, I'll just send it to F&SF.

But now I want to start on that other idea, finally a SF idea but it would be a novel not a short story. want that laptop I need to be blessed with.

L. E.

Trying to turn lead into Gold

Need Good News

I really could use some good news about my writing. I said that for most of last year and still nothing. Well, that was a couple of small happenings that could be small good news. One small online market waited until the last round before rejecting my story. I have no idea how many rounds they have but it's something at least.

Way too little but still better than a sharp stick in the eye as the used to say.

Goals for '10

I was reading a blog by a pro -he has 90 books published- he posted a ten part series on motivation. Part of that had to do with setting writing goals. His idea is
(This is just a short paraphrase of some of what he said about setting goals.)

Find Your Dream. Something big like being on a top best seller list for forty weeks.

Figure a Smaller Five Year Dream.  Something like publishing five books in five years. According to him that is out of your control since an editor has to buy those books, but something to work toward.

Set Your Yearly Goal.  This is in your control completely. Set how many words you want to write and plan on how many per day that you would have to write to make that number. Part of that is planning on not writing every day, since things come up. maybe only three fourths of the number of days in the year.

Set Your Weekly Writing, Mailing, and Learning Goals. This is your focus, every one week or better yet every day. Set up what you want to do every day plan it around family and work etc. And remember that every week is a fresh start. Be realistic but at the same time push yourself. Figure in time for learning the storytelling craft but do not include that in your writing time. he says that if you can do three pages a day or six pages half of the days in a year you can do three novels in one year. That would be a whole lot of short stories. Don't think that much about your big dream and focus on each week.

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I haven't thought out my complete goals yet since I have to decide on what I can realistic do in a day. But I have already completed one goal for '10. I started a writing blog of my own.

Right now my big dream goal is to write a novel that someone can't put down. I am reading two like that right now and I want readers to feel that way about one of mine. An aside here but one of those two is by a writer with only three books out. His writing, never bad, has significantly improved with each novel. I think he's going to be up there with the greats if he keeps going as he is. On top of that he is in a band.

This goal is under my control for I can practice and at the same time do what I can to learn the writing craft thereby working toward that goal. I may have to set aside certain days to just work on novels though. I used to have enough time to work on both novels and short stories but my wife is now working on her online craft business, she has joined an online craft group also. But I can use the time she is online to read writing books,  plus some chores around the house.

That makes it hard to set a certain number of word or pages though.  Bu if I did that it could help me fight procrastination when I don't feel like writing.
I haven't thought out my complete goals yet since I have to decide on what I can realistic do in a day. But I have already completed one goal for '10. I started a writing blog of my own.

Right now my big dream goal is to write a novel that someone can't put down. I am reading two like that right now and I want readers to feel that way about one of mine. An aside here but one of those two is by a writer with only three books out. His writing, never bad, has significantly improved with each novel. I think he's going to be up there with the greats if he keeps going as he is. On top of that he is in a band.

This goal is under my control for I can practice and at the same time do what I can to learn the writing craft thereby working toward that goal. I may have to set aside certain days to just work on novels though. I used to have enough time to work on both novels and short stories but my wife is now working on her online craft business, she has joined an online craft group also. But I can use the time she is online to read writing books,  plus some chores around the house.

That makes it hard to set a certain number of word or pages though.  But if I did that it could help me fight procrastination when I don't feel like writing.                                                              Trying to turn lead into Gold  LD                                                                                                                                                        

Glimmer Train

Don't know why I keep sending them stories. My improved writing doesn't impress them either.

So much for improvement.

L. E.

Trying to turn lead into Gold

Ideas

well, well I came up with two ideas today, which for me isn't unusual.

The first one is a story I was working on at work. A space opera story where a third officer has to take over a warship to escape a tarp. Today I thought that would make a good novel, so I might use that story as the proloque. The third officer is now an admiral in a war that has been going on for twenty years with three breaks. A 14 month break, a 4 year break and a 5 year and 5 month break. All of that is subject to change.

Second idea is another urban fantasy Originally I was thinking of a guy sort of, kinda like Wren in Gilman's series but maybe I will make him a normal human who is working with two-brother sister- fantasy beings. Not vampires not werewolves but two of another kind that I haven't seen used as a main character like this. He is their go between or the one who deals with other humans for them as well as friend and co-adventurer. Maybe they are secret because humans don't know about their kind or they are known but are on the fringe or they separate themselves from humans living in their own areas. Except for certain ones, including this brother and sister. Of course they have some powers. As before this is subject to change if I ever get to writing a novel about them.

L. E.
Trying to turn lead into Gold

WotF 2

I've been sending in stuff to WotF for few years. Back When God blessed me with the one sale, I also got a story in the Honorable Mentions at WotF and I've gotten two more since but none for a while.

L. E.

Trying to turn lead into Gold

WotF

For those who don't know, if any of those are reading this. WotF is Writers Of The Future. I have a link to their web site on the side.

Gotten three Honorable Mentions over the years but looks like That's it. Even when my writing is supposedly better and my story has been gone over by people who know something about writing I can't get even that far anymore.

On the rejection they say they hope I send in another story.  With my writing, Yeah right. I know its a form letter and they're trying to be nice but come on.

I will send in another but I don't know why. I just can't write anymore

L. E.

Trying to turn lead into Gold

Second Post

I forgot to say that I will also be posting news about writing. That includes sites or magazines that teach writing.

My first story published is "A Taste Of Spam" in Strange New Worlds Ten. I say that it is the fourth best story in the book.

Lastly for this post: At times I will be adding some comments about the water war going in the Central Valley of Calif. Farmers and farm workers are having a very bad time because the federal government is restricting water to protect a two inch fish that is not endangered, that you can get by the bucket load in other states, that nine other "stressors" are killing more of than the Fed pumps.

L. E.

Trying to turn lead into Gold

Howdy

I'm a writer with one short story published. I tend to want to vent when writing and getting published isn't going well. I also post writing good news. I'm fifty plus years old with a wife and daughter.

Links and such will be upcoming.

L. E.

Trying to turn lead into Gold