Daily Update: Back on Track
I set a goal and I intend to keep it. It took some extra writing, but I’m now just slightly ahead of my goal (1 day ahead, but ahead nonetheless). Over the past few days I averaged just under 2000 words a day. Now that I know I can do 2000 a day, I am going to try and keep that pace for a while and see where it takes me. Obviously I need to get some editing time in there and I will manage that as well.
So with all that writing going on, I did mange to knock out My Teacher is a Zombie. It came in at 11,500 words. It’s the right length for the story that’s told and I may go back and add a little here, remove a little there. It’s still a first draft, but it’s done! Completing a work is awesome. Very happy with how the story turned out and I’ll be releasing it on my daughter to see how she likes it. I already sent off a cover idea to Dan Dan the Art man. I’m not ready for cover art just yet. But when I am, look out 🙂
The lost boy returned home. I’m very happy about that. I still have no news. I will likely have a special update later today.
Other than my arm being sore from throwing a volleyball around for the past few days, I got nothing. Keeping it short today.
Unless you want to hear about a dream I had? You do? Okay then.
In my dream I was a middle-aged man (not a big stretch there) and I had a family much like my own with a wife, one daughter, and two dogs (this was scarily close to reality). Only in my dream I was retired. But from what?
I got a call from my old team mates. They wanted to get together for one last adventure. I tried to inform them that I wasn’t in my prime anymore and I probably didn’t even fit into my suit. They said they didn’t care. It was TIME TO RIDE!
That was all I needed to hear. I suited up in my silver suit, put on my helmet and went to the basement. The entire house, on rollers, moved aside so I could launch my weird falcon/eagle/bird looking ship and head off for the moon. Some evil-doers had gotten up there and was causing a ruckus and it was up to my team (a name never formulated in my brain) to stop him.
As it is in dreams, it was fun. It was fast. It was over before it was over. I woke up before we got to the moon. It did stick in my brain though and I might have to write this one some day. Might be a fun short.
And that was my dream. I wish is had been more exciting. Perhaps you can take this as a writing prompt of your own. If you do, let me know. I’d love to hear how the story ends.
Until Tomorrow!
WOO WOO!
Lost Boy Update.
For those who saw my post about the lost Chula Vista boy, he is home now. I have no details at this time and will post as soon as I know what happened.
Daily Update: Oh yes I did!
The past couple of days I’ve written over 3000 words. What does that mean? It means I’m now caught up to my annual target. Well, I’m not caught up for today, but once I write today’s words I’ll be on target once again.
What does this mean?
It means I’m going to keep pushing and try to get AHEAD of my target so I don’t let this happen again. My favorite daughter has a tournament next weekend and I need to be ahead for those days. So I’m going to keep pushing today and this week to get ahead.
So where did all those words go? A good chunk went here, of course, and into My Teacher is a Zombie. I’m over 10000 words on that story now and pushing ahead nicely. I’m into the final battle scene (you knew there had to be a zombie battle scene, right?) and then I’ll wrap up a conclusion. This was a very fun story to write.
My next work will also be a short piece. I can’t wait to dig in. I’ve done my research and the work will be under 5000 words. Can’t wait do write it up. I can’t say what it is just yet, but trust me, I’ll be yelling at the top of my lungs once I can.
This afternoon I’ll be recording my Action Pack piece. Then I’ll be bugging Mr. Roche for his part. I also need to record my part for the promo. Today will be a lighter writing day and a heavier recording day. My favorite daughter has practice for at least 3 hours today. That’ll give me some time.
Now that I’m caught up with my writing I’ll be splitting my writing time between writing and editing Jack Kane. Yes, I’ve been slow on those edits, but once I dig in, it’ll go quickly. I find it fun to switch hats and when I do it between works, it’s even more fun. I’ll change the Jack Kane progress meter from word count to page edits soon.
Short update today. There is a lot to do and I’ve better get at it. So…
Until Tomorrow!
WOO WOO!
Unorthodox Writing Tips 16: Doing what’s hard
Let’s be honest with each other for a minute, shall we?
It’s far easier to eat a pint of ice cream than it is to write 1000 words.
Here’s the difficulty though. I can eat a pint of ice cream. I enjoy it from the first spoon to the last. My favorite is Cherry Garcia. I love to sit and eat ice cream and watch TV. It’s easy to do. Requires little effort. When I’m done, though, I feel full and lethargic and also feel bad that I didn’t accomplish anything. Sure I enjoyed my ice cream, but where did that get me?
I also have an issue with my weight so now I feel even worse because I’ve just eaten far more calories than I should have. It’s a snowball that builds and builds quickly and to fend off those bad feelings, I’ll eat more to make me feel better. Why do I do that?
It’s quite simple. Feeling full gives me a feeling of bliss. It triggers my brain to say that it was a pleasurable experience. Sure I’ll feel worse later, but for the moment I feel good. That’s what matters, right?
Let’s look at this from another direction. I love to write. Writing 1000 words is difficult. It takes a long time. I don’t always feel better when I’m done writing because I haven’t finished what I’m working on. I’m only somewhere in the middle after that 1000 words. I know I’ll have to write ANOTHER 1000 words later. I can find any number of things that’ll make me feel good NOW! Why should I wait?
Simple, the feeling of accomplishment when you’re done with a manuscript feels incredible. It’s far better than eating a pint of ice cream. It’s something that lasts also and doesn’t make me feel worse later. I can honestly say that having written many books and finished a large number of short stories, I still feel good about what I’ve accomplished. Sure I don’t have a book deal, but I know that’s my fault, not the fault of anyone else. I felt so good about getting done that I didn’t follow through to the next step because that’s also hard.
It’s hard to submit a completed work to a publisher or agent. Before I can do that I need to do edits and re-writes. Again, I need to look at the long term results. How will I feel when someone does finally pick up one of my books or short stories for publication? I have a feeling this will be an even bigger elation than completing that work. It will be the final validation of what I started. Yes it’s a very long, very hard road, but it’s a road that must be traversed.
Where am I going with this? It’s about short term feelings, and long term feelings. I can feel good for a moment. I can feel good today. Or I can work toward a long term goal, fight, struggle, claw, and fight my way to ‘The End’ and feel good for a very long time. When I tell people I’ve written 10+ novels, the look they give me is one of incredulity. They don’t believe it. Sure it’s taken me nearly 20 years to write those books and I’ve had many stops and starts, but I’ve got many more in the hopper and with each I’ve written, the next comes that much easier. The same goes with short stories. It’s something that I will always have. Ice Cream is here today, gone tomorrow and I don’t feel better about myself.
Take a look at where you want to be. Write down what you hope to accomplish with your writing. Make a commitment to yourself and write. It doesn’t have to be a lot every day. It will be a difficult road to follow. Trust in the fact that many people have gone before you and it is possible. Forgo the easy path to feeling better which we all know only leads to feeling worse in the long run and take that path that will lead to long term happiness. You can do it. Let me know how your progress goes. I’d love to hear from you.
Until Next Time!
WOO WOO!
Daily Update: And so much more
Yesterday was a good day. For me.
Let me start with the bad news just to get it out of my head.
A friend of my wife’s (and co-worker) had her son disappear. At this point they’re not sure if he ran away or was kidnapped. He was on his way home from school yesterday and was last seen at a local park. If you’re local to San Diego/Chula Vista and would like more information, e-mail me and I’ll send you what information I have. It has the wife very shaken up.
On to the happier news.
My favorite daughter and I practiced volleyball for about an hour and a half yesterday and my arm is a little stiff this morning. I plan on getting her a jump rope today and we’ll be jump roping 15-20 minutes a day to help with her jumping. She needs to improve her vertical leap and another one of the player’s moms told me jumping rope will help. She has practice today and tomorrow so I think my arm will be getting a little rest. That kid is keeping the wife and I hopping.
On the writing front. I got a lengthy update post yesterday (you read that? It was kinda long). I also wrote a guest post for my cover artist Dan Dan the Art Man about my TV experience. That was a fun write. Beyond that I also got a good chunk of My Teacher is a Zombie written. Yesterday saw over 3000 words get written. I’ll be doing some writing in the little spots I find here and there over the weekend. That’s what I did yesterday.
Usually I fill these little snippets of time with getting caught up on reading blogs, playing angry birds, or playing around on twitter. It’s easy to say “I don’t have enough time to really get going” but I’ve discovered that even if I have a few minutes I can bash out a hundred words here or two hundred words there. I may not always do this, but two things are driving me. 1) I’m behind on my annual word count and I don’t want to get further behind and 2) I’m at an exciting part in the story I’m writing. Another thing that’s driving me at this point is the fact that I’ve made commitments to other people for work and I need to finish one before moving on to another. So far it’s fun being driven and pushing myself more than I ever have.
Will I suffer from burnout? If I do, then I don’t think I have the chops to be a full time writer. Even writing part time shouldn’t be as much of a pain as I’m making it. I’m just not taking full advantage of the time I have available. I know I can do better. Even though I wrote 3000 words yesterday, I still don’t feel I’m putting out as much as I can. I still feel like I’m not moving quickly enough.
I had a conversation with someone earlier in the week. As I put it, it’s like working out. You need to walk before you can run. When I started working out I was walking too quickly, then jogging too soon and I injured myself. I know I need to start walking about, but one thing I also noticed was that my word could was up and down but on a general upward trend. I was writting a little more over time. So I’m not going to go out on a limb and say I’ll be writing at Nathan Lowell levels any time soon, but as long as I’m steady and consistent I’ll be able to get a lot of work done this year.
Speaking of getting a lot of work done…
Until Tomorrow!
WOO WOO!
Daily Update: Some actual updates
Shin Splints: The front of my legs still hurts after I exert myself doing activities such as helping out at volleyball, wandering around the grocery store, helping out at volleyball, walking to my truck too quickly (I park in the street away from the living quarters), helping out at volleyball, going up and down the stairs too many times, helping out at volleyball. The plus side is it only hurts for a short time afterwards and not into the day after like it had been. This is making me happy though I’m not ready to try out my ‘land legs’ any time soon. I still have yet to get up to the gym at our complex, but I intend to start going very soon. Hopefully this weekend.
Sputtery Truck: The check engine light is still on. The registration is due, but I don’t have to smog it this year. I know why the light is on and it’s nothing critical that cannot wait at this point. I’m happy that each time I go out I can start it up and it doesn’t look like Spy Hunter with a billowing cloud of smoke pouring out the back end. This was usually followed up with it overheating and that hasn’t happened either. I’ve kept an eye on the fluid levels and all looks good. It’s on the road to recovery.
Action Pack: Currently I have Mike Plested’s audio. I’m waiting on Scott Roche’s and I need to record my own. I’ll be recording the promo as soon as I get the audio from Mike. We have the cover art for the ebook edition of the stories that will be available at Flying Island Press. I’m waiting on my friend who shall be known as Mike Lafayette to produce music for me. He will be out after the 25th and assures me that I’ll have music before then. This will be just in time to drop the first episode on the 29th. Nothing like cutting it close, eh?
Writing: I’ve been going at it slower than I’d like, but I am catching up to my annual goal. At one point I was 5000 words behind. I’m now less than 3000 and gaining ground with every word I type. I’m having fun with both my research and my writing. If I wasn’t having fun, I’d be putting projects aside. It’s great to see my word counts going up.
Getting Caught up with Friends: I hadn’t spoken with Kimi Alexandre or Jack Mangan in some time. Sure we’ve exchanged emails, but it’s nice to get on skype and just chat with online friends that you don’t get face time with. Online chatting will keep you caught up with some goings on, but there’s nothing like hearing another person’s voice to get caught up on everything.
My Favorite Daughter: If you haven’t guessed, it’s been a lot of volleyball. I’ve been helping out at practices and it’s really great to see how the team is starting to really mesh and play as a unit as opposed to individuals. All I can say is my kid rocks 🙂 but I may be biased.
Jack Kane: Edits are progressing on book 1 and plotting is progressing on book 2. Mike and I have been using Google Docs crazy and the more I use it, the more I like it. I’m sure there are a lot more features in there that we aren’t using, and as we find them, we’ll use them.
Scriviner: I’ve been using scriviner to edit Jack Kane. I’m really liking the interface and I can see now why so many writers rave about it. As soon as I’m able I’ll be buying a license for it and I’ll be moving all my works into the tools. I’ll also use any notes I put into scriviner up onto the wiki page I created and am currently not using. I do have every intention of getting everything up and in there.
MixZing: I’m still liking this music app on my tablet. I haven’t run into any issues and the ads only come up when I open the app and I can live with that. I have the widget on my homescreen and it works great for a shuffle and for playing entire albums. So far, no complaints other than the EQ will cause the tablet to lock up so I just don’t use it.
Work: Work is going GREAT! Frickin love my job. I’ve been doing a big mix of paperwork and documentation and a little bit of coding and I think this is what’s been slowing down my daily writing output, but the job does come first. It’s been a great start to the year with only a couple of unexpected bumps along the way, but nothing we can’t get past.
Sorry this is such a long post today.
Until Tomorrow!
WOO WOO!
Daily Update: Uncle Bob
Everyone has that one crazy uncle. Some uncles are more crazy than others and some are literally crazy. I’ve got Uncle Bob.
For several years my dad was legal caretaker of Uncle Bob. My dad would tell me stories and some I may share here at some point. The reason Bob is on my mind today is because I read a study about paranoid schizophrenia. My uncle falls into this category.
I remember the first time I met Uncle Bob was at my Uncle Ray’s funeral. My Uncle Ray had been murdered. He was a newsman in Duluth and a small time actor looking to make it big. He had gotten sprayed with mace and as he chocked to death, someone had robbed him. I was only six or seven at the time and I had never met any of my uncles so it had almost no impact on my emotionally.
*note: It wasn’t until after my father’s death that I began having any contact with his side of the family outside of Uncle Bob.
After the funeral, my mom, brother, dad and his new wife at the time, and Uncle Bob all sat down to lunch. This was the first funeral I had gone to and I honestly don’t remember anything about the funeral service. What I remember is this skinny gentleman with greasy, bleach-blond hair shaking my hand. His voice was rough and strained and his skin much darker than my father’s.
*note: My father was 5/8th Native American
We ate lunch and little conversation was had. My mother and father, though divorced, were still very much friends. For me it wasn’t awkward and I was happy to see my dad. He lived in the cities and I lived up in Northern Minnesota. I have gone to the wedding and it was nice to see his wife again (I never called her mom even though I lived with my dad and his wife as a teenager).
By the time I was eating a piece of pie for dinner, Uncle Bob decided it was time to dispense some age old wisdom to my brother and I. I know he told us several stories, but only one really stands out in my mind.
“Have you ever seen the Incredible Hulk? It’s a great show, you know. If you don’t watch it, you should. You can learn a lot from the Incredible Hulk. But I need to tell you something about that show. It’s not real. Do you know how I know it’s not a real show? I’ll tell you. You know when David Banner wakes up on a park bench and his hair is perfect and he’s clean shaven? I’ve been there before boys. It doesn’t work like that. That’s only on television.”
I think it was at this point my father decided that lunch was over. I wouldn’t see Uncle Bob again until I was sixteen. When my brother and I moved to live with my dad, he told us many stories of his childhood and some of the things he had to struggle through growing up. Does it surprise me that I never met his side of the family? No. It saddens me that I never got to know them. I’ve only ever met Uncle Bob even though my father was the youngest of 7 (I think). Oh the stories of Uncle Bob off his medication.
I could fill a book with stories I’ve been told about Uncle Bob over the years. I barely know him, but I love him all the same. I hope to share more about him in future posts.
Until Tomorrow!
WOO WOO!
Daily Update: Things happen when you’re not looking
I now have two secret projects I cannot talk about yet. There is a lot going on behind the scenes that once I can talk about them, you’ll be just as excited as I am about them. Even though I won’t always post about everything I’m doing (or I’ll repeat myself from time to time) doesn’t mean new things aren’t happening.
Writing: Didn’t happen much last night. Okay, happened very little in fact. I intend to correct that tonight. My favorite daughter had volleyball practice last night so that ate into my writing time. I also spent some time with the wife because it was, after all, Valentine’s. The rest of my writing time was eaten up by discussing a certain project that will come to light in the near future.
Action Pack: Mike Plested has written up the promo. Now it’s just a matter of recording and producing it. All three of us will have parts and from the initial ideas we had, it’s going to be awesome. Heck, from what I’ve read from the other two stories, the entire Action Pack will be filled with awesome! I hope you’ll be there to join us. I’ve been bugging Dan Dan the Art Man and he assures me I’ll have my cover graphic tonight. I should have my page up over on the web site tomorrow.
More Writing: I’m going to try for a few days in a row of 2000 words of fiction. Why? I need to get caught up and/or ahead of my writing goal and I have a couple very hot projects that I need to get under way. I’ve been way too lax with my writing (in my own opinion) and even though I’ve been blogging daily, I haven’t been writing fiction daily. I need to correct that.
Jack Kane: Edits are under way and plotting of the second book are also under way. This is a fun story and the sequel is mapping out to also be a lot of fun to write. Jack, Betsy, Felonious and his minions, are all great characters and just easy to write. Mike Plested and I are having too much fun and I can’t wait until this falls into the hands of readers.
Distractions: I’ve been distracted by Ancient Aliens and not because I subscribe to their belief, but because I find their point of view fascinating. It doesn’t matter what you believe in, it’s easy to poke holes in any theory, faith, belief. I never try to argue with what another person believes because faith and belief are personal. I just like to observe and from that observation, a billion story ideas come bursting forth. *note, I used to argue with people’s faith but once someone says “I believe…” the argument is over because facts no longer play a part in the argument. #justsaying. I find it best to listen, insert comments, and avoid confrontation. It never ends pretty.
More Distractions: I’m not a big TV watcher. There are a few shows I love. Big Bang Theory, Two and a Half Men (not so much with the loss of Charlie), Gold Rush (what? You’re not watching this show?), Storage Wars, Shipping Wars, and that’s about it. I’m not big on any on going series and will usually pick up a show once it’s run its life. Like the aforementioned Ancient Aliens. I used to watch any Sci Fi shows on TV, but got frustrated with half a season or one open ended season and then nothing. So I stopped putting effort into anything else TV has to offer. For now, I’m directing that energy back into writing.
Speaking of writing.
Until Tomorrow!
WOO WOO!
Daily Update: I’m not Jake
To those that know me online, I’m J.R. Murdock. To those that know me in the real world, I’m Jay. I’m not Jake though I’ve been called James, Jim, Jake, John, Jason… Think of a name that starts with J and I’ve been called it.
Does it surprise me when people get my name confused? No. People get used to hearing a full name and when they get one letter, it’s easy to extrapolate and add on letters you think you heard that aren’t really there.
What’s funny is when someone is on a podcast talking about you and they start calling you someone else’s name, then asks you about it after the fact. It’s even funnier when you’re working on a colaborative effort with someone for a few weeks.
Yes, my good friend Scott Roche was on the Dead Robots Society podcast and… well, let’s just say I’m not Jake. He got a little confused and mixed me up with Jake Bible (a fellow author and worth your time to read). Hop on over to the DRS Podcast (not always work safe) and check it out. Scott had some great things to say and he’s doing 52 weeks of Indie where he’s giving away a book a week and one winner will ‘win them all’.
Got a lot of writing done yesterday. I’m not quite on track with my yearly writing goal, but I’m getting caught up. One of the things I forgot about when writing a lot is that I come up with more ideas than I can possibly write. I have another fun idea and should I find the time I’ll start getting it out there. I know I have a lot of projects, but this one could be fun to work in there.
Speaking of getting it out there. I’m slow. I know this. Kance Encounter is coming. My favorite daughter has practice again tonight and I’ll be working on that while I wait for her. Got edits back from Scott and Mike on my Action Pack Story now title Golden West. As soon as I have the cover art in my hot little hands from Dan Dan the Art Man I’ll get my page up over there. The podcast is coming together nicely and it’s interesting working on a collaborative effort in this manner. I’m not working alone on two of my multiple projects which is making keeping on track a little easier.
Speaking of making it easier…
Until Tomorrow!
WOO WOO!
Unorthodox Writing Tips 15: Know When to Say When
When I was in the Navy I hung out with a bunch of guys and we all liked to drink. Not just your casual drinking, mind you. Heavy drinking. Drinking to excess. Drinking until a fight broke out, someone passed out (usually me) or the police showed up to stop the party before the sun came up. There were many times I’d wake up back in my barracks with someone else laughing about my antics the night before.
There was this time with flaming shots where I light my face on fire, but that’s a story for another day.
Suffice to say I didn’t know when to stop. I’ve matured over the years, as a person is wont to do, and I’ve learned my limit. I normally stop at two or I don’t drink at all if I’m driving.
When I first discovered podcasting I dove in with both feet. I subscribed to all 100 podcasts and listened to every back episode I could get my hands on (in most cases this was 10 or 11). Yes, I was lucky enough to discover podcasts early on and I’ve seen it evolve and I drank deeply from that cup as well.
I got burned out and eventually I stopped listening all together several times but would still go back and get caught up from time to time. Now I have a set few that I listen to each and every week and I’ve pretty much cut out everything else. I’m still subscribed and have over 50 Gigs of podcasts I haven’t listened to, but some day I’ll clear those out and just keep what I feel I need.
Which podcasts do I listen to? I’m not going to name names here, but someday I’ll put up my play list. Most of what I listen to are writing podcasts and I don’t even listen to them for the writing advice, but for the conversation.
What does any of this have to do with your writing?
Easy. Learn to know when you’ve had enough.
I could talk to you all day about writing and even longer if you’d let me. I’d burn your ear off with standard advice, editing tips, dialogue dos and don’t, talking about other authors I’ve talked with about writing and story ideas until I turn blue in the face. But what does that get you?
In the end, nothing. It also doesn’t get me anything either. Talking about doing something is fun. It’s easy. It’s great to be social. It’s great to get out there and talk with people who have done what you really want to do. You know what’s hard? WRITING!
Writing is not easy. It requires a lot of hours of sitting by yourself and typing. If all you ever do is listen to other people talk about what they’ve done and this gives you a sense of accomplishment, great. There’s no better feeling than feeling like you’ve accomplished something and living vicariously through someone else can help you achieve that.
Want to know a secret? Getting to ‘The End’ yourself is a high you’ll never forget. Do you want to know something else? Knowing that someone is listening to you talk about writing is having the same sense of accomplishment is an even higher high. But the best high of all when it comes to writing; having someone you don’t know, have never had any contact with, and could have just as easily ignored you and your work send you an email, a tweet, a facebook post to say they read what you wrote, loved it, and wants more. I’m here to tell you there is nothing like that.
So I’m going to end here. What I want you to do is to decided when you’ve had enough input and start generating output. Put down those books on writing. Put down that newsletter. Stop that podcast and sit down at your keyboard wherever it makes you comfortable and start typing. When you reach ‘The End’ come and tell me how you feel. Don’t do things that are easy to get your sense of satisfaction, do the things that are hard and that sense of satisfaction will be tenfold.
Until Next Time!
WOO WOO!
J.R. Murdock 