Today I was hiking in my own back yard on a trail that provides mileage without driving. It’s keeps me in shape for carrying the camera and backpack on mountain hikes. It’s also quiet, except for birds, and the rustling of leaves and grasses. It’s rare I meet more than 1-2 people on this trail. I find hiking rejuvenating for both my spirit and mind, so when I return to my office the writing flows a little better. Nothing beats a 3-mile hike to clear out the cobwebs.
I did it! I actually wrote 50,000+ words in 30 days. To be exact, I crossed the finish line on day twenty. Best of all, I learned something about myself. If I set a schedule and write on that schedule 3,000 words a day is a cake walk. I can easily surpass that schedule. I have now scheduled time every day to write
Stand alone flash fiction.
*****
Downing his drink, he took the book out of his breast pocket and placed it on the bar. When he tapped the bar with the empty glass, the bartender refilled the scotch without a word. He placed his hand on the book; surprised the action was comforting. He sipped this one; getting drunk would not be of value no matter how much it appealed to him.
Just as I finished the 2015 fifty book reading challenge (pause for applause), I saw this post from Writerish Ramblings, Let’s Talk NaNoWriMo. I had heard a little about National Novel Writing Month last November but didn’t pay much attention. This time I did. The premiss is that you write every day starting November 1st with the goal of having 50K words written in your novel by November 30th, that translates to 1,667 words a day. Continue reading “Read 50 Books, Write 50,000 Words”
Every once in a while I have to step back and admire the view from where I currently stand. Today is such a day. After years of writing and keeping those words – and worlds – safely hidden, I find it somewhat surprising that I am announcing my second full length novel is available. It’s a good feeling to continue to follow this dream, and best of all, my hobby is paying for itself. Don’t get me wrong. No other author will tremble in fear that my book will shoot past them on the charts, but a hobby that pays for itself is a wonderful thing. Besides, I would be writing anyway. It’s what I do.
Enthralled, Farseen Chronicles Book 2, is available digitally at Amazon. The paperback copy will be available November 2015.
It’s time for an update on Writing Leaves No Time For Reading. I realized a while back I had not been reading. Between the day job and writing and occasionally talking to my family, there just wasn’t time. I missed it. I truly enjoy reading and I joined the 2015 Reading Challenge. Since I love organization, my first step was to create a spreadsheet of the types of books I needed to read and identify which books I would read. For those who don’t want to check out the web site, it’s a fifty book challenge. You pick the books as long as they fall into the prescribed categories.
On the open road or hiking the forest, a map is a useful thing. The same can be said for blogs. What do I want this blog to be? I have two main goals.
No matter what you want to accomplish in life, educate yourself. I’m not talking elementary education or college, although both are worthy – might I say needed – to accomplish many personal goals. No, I’m talking about learning all you can when you try something new.
“I am convinced that the act of thinking logically cannot possibly be natural to the human mind. If it were, then mathematics would be everybody’s easiest course at school and our species would not have taken several millennia to figure out the scientific method.”
Neil deGrasse Tyson
N. R. Tucker 