A Little Something...

Over at Agent Suzie Townsend's blog, there is a contest. I enjoy these kinds of contests as they test story and revision. 

I submitted my entry, which started out around 200 words before being whittled down to a scant 100. 

Check out the contest:  http://confessionsofawanderingheart.blogspot.com/2014/04/you-asked-for-it.html

When you only have 100 words, every single word has a job. It really makes you consider what you want versus what you need.

The last few words to cut are the hardest. 

Here's my entry:

The new leaf unfurled as it steeped. She poured the tea into a bone china cup engirdled with magnolia.

“The best brew is with loose leaves. Maintains all the flavor. Tea bags contain dust, the death of a good cup.”

She scanned the face of the gagged man.

“I could make this swift,” she said, running a finger along the cup handle.

“But, suffering enhances the flavor.”

She sipped.

“Once I am done with you, I will grind you to dust, stuff you into tea bags, and sell you to herbalists in Chinatown. Quality ingredients are hard to come by.”

First Story

I'm pretty excited to see my story "My Blues-Eyed Girl" up at Shotgun Honey, especially since I'm a fan of the site. I really enjoy writing flash fiction pieces because a lot of story has to fit into a really small box. In this case, a 700 word box. 

The process of paring down text from a draft twice that length is challenging, but forces me to consider each word. There's always what you want to tell the reader, but it really comes down to what they need to know (and what they can figure out for themselves). 

Flash fiction becomes an exercise in editing, which is where I feel I do my best work. 

Drafting is certainly a challenge because the editor wants to kick in...sadly, the editor is usually a pessimistic downer, so he tends to inhibit the first draft process. 

Word Breeder

There are days when it's nearly impossible to wring any words from my hands. Most of it is the inner editor who smirks and laughs and taunts. 

The best I can do is realize that words breed words. Once they're on the page, they make more of themselves as thought leads to thought.

Sometimes, you just have to lose yourself in the words. Let them wash over you and take you somewhere else, like some big, muddy river. 

I can't see where I'm going, but I figure it out when I get there.

The Writer's High

It was this, or a runner with legs like Chewbacca.

I'm not a runner. Just thinking about running gives me heart palpitations. But, my wife runs. When she first started, it was difficult, but she started to break through to the fabled "runner's high," so I'm familiar with the idea. 

For me, writing is the same way. I have deep, deep dread when opening a document, especially one I've been working on. I try not to go back into the previous material unless I'm looking for information for connections. If I start reading, I'll become depressed that it's not good enough. 

My best writing is done when rewriting. It's where my strength is, from my own point of view. But I can't edit something that's not there.

Sometimes, this dread keeps me from writing at all. All the joy is sapped from the story. I'm concerned that maybe I'll screw up what good I've done or that what I've written is such trash that thinking of myself as any kind of writer is laughable at best.

Then, I try to remember the writer's high. That euphoric feeling one gets when one has written. I try to use that to push me forward. I stick in my headphones, drown out the world, and go to work carving out large chunks, saving the fine carving and sanding for later. 

I have to start somewhere or not start at all. 

It reminds me of the quote, attributed to Dorothy Parker (but, who knows, it's the internet): “I hate writing, I love having written.” 

A Plague on Both Your Houses

A Plague developed at the day job, which then traveled home. I have never been this sick before and was out for four of five workdays (the one day I was there was only part of the day). I have never used that much sick time ever in my life, and I've had colds and flus.

This flu, though, was devastating, and I was vaccinated.  Luckily, the kids seemed to get through it rather quickly (good that they didn't suffer much). 

My wife and I, on the other hand, have been wrecked. We're still recovering after a week in. There is a possibility, from our research and info from the CDC, that this was H1N1. It was a fairly virulent strain that swept through my colleagues and took out most of our department. 

The one day I was in, the place was like a ghost ship. Those who weren't down with illness warned off the rest of us with Lysol, or were holed up somewhere hoping that isolation would save them.

Needless to say, very little writing done this week. For the entire week, I logged 639, down from nearly 4,000 the week before. 

This illness was one bad motherfucker. 

Daily Words

I completed my penance for not writing much this week by banging out 2722 words on a story that I was expecting to finish, but, as with all stories, other things came up in the way of plot.

So, almost to the end, but not quite there. 

Low Motivation Week

Oh, man, has this been a low motivation week. The last few weeks at the day job have been really busy. I've been pushing myself to do some words, but have hit a big, fat zero for three days straight after a streak of 17 days. 

Have to get back on the [insert animal to be ridden here]. 

Will push for a word count to day in absolution. 

In the meantime, I suggest the following motivational posts:

From Chuck Wendig's blog: 
http://terribleminds.com/ramble/2014/01/22/on-persistence-and-the-long-con-of-being-a-successful-writer/


and another from John Scalzi:

http://whatever.scalzi.com/2014/01/20/a-season-in-the-show/

Daily Words

Not many words today. Finished with 207, but I'm going to call "first draft" on "Half Life," which is a hefty 8800 words. 

Looking forward to doing the second draft in a few weeks and whittle it down to a more manageable 5000 or less. That was certainly the upper tier for what I was expecting for this story. 

Most importantly, I finished the story. There are rough areas and a few scenes that are only sketched, but I may cut them anyway. But it's done. 

Now, onward!

(Not So) Daily Words

The Day Job has ramped up this week, so I've been a little crunched for time in daily words reporting. 

On the bright side, I have been getting some words in this week. 

I'm currently at a six day streak. 

So far, since Sunday, 1/5 I have gotten in 1933 words. It's nothing stellar, but I am writing every day.

Sunday: 52 words
Monday: 373 words
Tuesday: 503 words
Wednesday: 894 words
Thursday: 111 

All of these words have been on "Half Life," which is now a bloated 8600 words with still a bit to go. This one has gotten out of hand. I'm looking forward to putting it away for a few weeks so that I can come back to it with a fresh eye to trim it down. 

But I vow to finish it. This is the Year of Finishing. 

Daily Words

No words yesterday, breaking my short streak.

Will have to start again.

Today, did 670 words on "Half Life."

"Half Life"

Starting: 5997
Ending: 6667

Freebie Friday -- A One-Minute Crime

Rated R for Violence, Language, and a Subtle Twist at the End

by Richard Sturgis 

John was sick and tired of finding bodies in the dumpster behind the movie theater.

Surely, an usher’s job was thankless, but this was ridiculous. 

Sometimes, John said to himself, “Hey, John, what’s up with all these bodies?” Usually, his own voice answered, “Man, you just got shit poor luck.”

Other times a voice whispered, Assholes.

What really pissed off John wasn’t the bodies or the job. What really pissed him off were those assholes who talked through the whole movie on their cell phones.

Those kinds of people should die. 

Daily Words

Got 1353 words on "Half Life" today. Very productive half hour. Looks like I'll hit close to 7000 on this story, but I'm thinking it'll be 3000-4000 when I'm done. Still, not a bad go. 


Worked on "Half Life" for 30 minutes.

Starting: 4633
Ending: 5997

This gives me an 8-day writing streak. 

Daily Words

Today did 547 words on "Half Life." Nearing the end.

"Half Life"
Starting: 4097
Ending 4644

Daily Words

Worked on "Half Life." 

Starting wordcount: 3760
Ending wordcount: 4097

337 words written today.

2014 is the Year for Finishing

2014 will be the year of finishing.

I'm not very good at New Year's resolutions. I tend to break them rather quickly. Sure, I'd love to eat better and exercise more. I'm thinking that there will be some weeks where I believe myself. 

But, this year I am focusing on finishing things. 

1. When I start a story, I will finish it, no matter how terrible.
2. I will finish a novel that I start. 
3. I will submit polished materials. 
4. I will eat better and exercise. 

Okay, well, that last one may or may not happen on a regular basis. But, I'll keep it in mind. I really mean the first things, though. 

I will finish. I will submit. I will publish. 

Daily Words

My goal is to try to put words down every day, no matter how few. Today, I got a measly 5 words on "Half Life." Although, I did do another 41 words in notes for another story. 

Okay, so it's a pathetic count, but words went on the page. 

The Best Writing Advice I've Ever Received Was From a Dead Man

There are a few pieces of writing advice that I keep around me whenever I'm writing. This is one of the best.

The inner editor is my own personal demon. He gnaws on my creative bones and sucks out the marrow. He sits back on his haunches and picks at the meat of my story. He mocks my prose. He does a very good job of trying to stop me from writing. 

I repeat this phrase all the way through a first draft. I'm a great starter, but a terrible finisher in pretty much all projects. My hard drive is littered with the bodies of formerly good ideas, shot down by the inner editor until I'm too paralyzed to start again. 

So, I recite this mantra as I write, whispered out on my creative Japa Mala. 


It seems to help. Mostly, to keep my vision looking forward. One of these days, I'll drag my inner editor into an alley and leave his body in a dumpster.

In the meantime, I would really like to find someone with cross stitching skills who could make me a nice little Hemingway with that quote up there. 

.

Daily Words

Today got 753 words on "Half Life" in 15 minutes (used the Google Timer). Up to 3755 on this story.

Will probably hit my original prediction of about 5000. Most likely I'll revise it down to 3500. I think that's a good space for this one. So looking forward to revision.

In other news, waiting for any notes or material on my Shotgun Honey acceptance. Pretty excited to be accepted. It's a fun read. I'm a huge fan fiction of 1000 words or less. I like the confines of the space. When you pare a story down to 100-1000 words, you have make some really hard choices and really think about how much you can pack into a single word.

Every noun and verb really has to pull its weight. It's lean. It's snappy (thinking of Tom Hanks in That Thing You Do.)

Daily Words

Good times, bad times. 161 words on "Half Life."

Daily Words

872 words on "Half Life." Aiming to get into a groove of 1000 a day.