J.R. Murdock

Hey Crew,

Looks like I broke my daily blogging streak yesterday. Darn it. I knew I should have checked. I did get my writing done and in my brain, I was done for the day because my writing was completed.

Guess I start the daily blogging streak over. Ah well.

Yesterday wasn’t a normal day. I got up early. The Mrs. went to do her workout. My Favorite Daughter is off camping. So, I wrote. I got around 2300 words yesterday before I had to get ready and leave.

Needed to meet my niece at the Microsoft store. She was having issues with her laptop’s version of office and I couldn’t fix it after a few hours. The gentleman at the store listened as I explained what I’d done and what I thought the issue was. There they have a special key that will remove all traces of Office and re-install is fresh (which is what I thought the issue was). After a little more than an hour, done. Everything worked as it should.

Got back home and was going to get in another writing session, but watched a bit of the Dead Robots Society live video cast instead. The Mrs. was ready and we were back out the door.

We took my father-in-law to Mexico. He needed to see the foot doctor. We took care of that, go some Pan Dulce (Mexican Sweet Bread) and headed on back. Spent the rest of the day at my father-in-law’s house, not getting home until rather late. I ate a late dinner and crashed. I was going to try and get in another writing session, but I was exhausted.

So, as I said, last night, in my head, I’d already done my writerly things. Silly me.

Today will be another busy day. We’re going to church, then it’s off to the movies, and over to my father-in-law’s house. Since I know it’ll be a busy day and I forgot to blog yesterday, I’m getting my blogging and writing done NOW so I don’t forget 🙂

I’m off to write!

Until Next Time!

Stay Awesome!

Hey Crew,

It’s Friday! Woo Woo! Day Job was a bugger this week. Not in a bad gosh i wish I had a different job kind of way, but in a mentally exhausting let me sit in front of the TV for hours kind of week. Today was no exception. I needed to get a lot of reports created and take a number of trainings. Taking a day off in the middle of the week didn’t help matters, but you roll with the punches life deals you.

Today was no different and I got everything done workwise that I had intended to get done and then some.

Writing? Well, I had a couple shallow days. I’m happy with my 7 day word count over all, but know I’m capable of so much better. Today I knocked out 2200 words (one of my better days) and that’s after getting a late start yet again. That writing is 1 hour of writing. I keep telling myself, write for longer you’ll have better days. Start earlier you’ll get more words done. My brain is still focused on the national mess we’re in and I ate dinner tonight and started watching the news. I should know better by now.

This weekend will be busy, so I need to take advantage of my mornings to get my writing done much like I’d done last weekend. So look for earlier posts from me.

Oh, and before I started to ramble, I had intended to give you my 7 day word count. I’m just over 10,000 words. As I said, good, but I know I can do better. I’m at the end of this book and just crossed the 90,000 word line. That’s where I thought I would be done. I will wrap this one up before 100,000 words of that I’m certain. One POV character is already in place for the sequel and I’ll be finishing his thread soon. The other POV Character needs to finish off the big battle that’s coming up. That will be…interesting. I didn’t paint my character into a corner, but he is in over his head and will need some backup.

That said, I should be getting started on V&A Shipping 3 next week. The title for that one will be Rogue. I hope to crank that one out and also get GRPC3 completed before the end of the year. Then I can jump into Almost-Super Heroes 3 and have all the 3s completed. That will give me 6 books left to complete in this 15 book story arc.  It’s weird to think I’m getting that close. Every book takes me one step further to my goal.

Going on a weird tangent from that, I need to cut open my finger. As I mentioned the other day, I tried to break my fall by grabbing a cactus. A cactus with very long needles. Ow. So in one of my fingertips, I’ve got a broken needed. In the palm of my left hand, I’ve got a broken. I don’t know how deep the are and that’s why I’m reluctant to get in there and dig around. I’m hoping for the best at this moment and we’ll see what happens.

It’s about time for my to turn into a pumpkin. Tomorrow may be Saturday, but I’ll be up early.

Until Next Time!

Stay Awesome!

Hey Crew,

Another long, Abby Normal day. It’s late. I’m tired. I need to get up at 5am again. I got 1500 words written. I’ll write more tomorrow.

Let me leave you with a small piece of advice.

When falling backward because you stepped into a small hole, don’t grab a cactus on your way down to break your fall.

Just Saying.

Hopefully, I’ll be wordier tomorrow. Take care of yourselves.

Until Next Time!

Stay Awesome!

Hey Crew,

Wow, what a late, late night.

The day started out mostly normal with the day job. There was an announcement that had me worried at first, but my fears have been averted. Nothing I can talk about, but suffice to say, what happened to me last year, shouldn’t be happening again this year (or anytime soon). If you don’t know what I’m talking about, reach out to me and I’ll tell you personally as I don’t want to talk about my job or my employer on this blog.

My buddy is starting his own business washing windows. If you live in the San Diego area and need windows washed, I know your guy. Again, reach out to me and I’ll send you his contact info. My Favorite Daughter is working on his logo and will do many other things to help him out (website, flyers, door hangars, business cards, etc). I can’t wait to see what she comes up with.

Anyway, he spent a good chunk of the day at my house using it for practice to get the hang of what he’s doing. He’s not the fastest right now, but he’ll get better.

Once he was done, I was also done with the day job. I made some dinner before getting on the weekly writer’s meeting. Always fun catching up with everyone. Two of us challenged each other. My goal for the week is ~20,000 words. After today, I’m not certain I’ll get there. Why?

The Mrs. got home shortly after the call ended. I helped put away some groceries, we talked for a bit and I thought I’d go sit down and start banging out words.

My niece called. She needed help with her laptop. Several issues.

I’ve said this many times, family comes first. Well, my health comes first, then family. Without my health I can’t always be there for my family. At any rate, I’m usually pretty good at figgering things out with computers. I thought I had her issue corrected at least 3 different times and each time, I was way wrong. She was able to use the home computer to complete her homework and I’ll revisit her laptop this weekend and get things corrected.

That put us around 10pm. Well, today was the Big Brother finale. So the Mrs. and I watched it. After my niece left. So I didn’t sit down at the writing computer until after 11pm. I’m pooped.

I knocked out 500 words and I just can barely keep my eyes open.

So that was my day. Unexpected, unplanned, but I still wrote words and wrote a blog post. No more excuses. Wring daily. Blogging daily. I can do this!

Until Next Time!

Stay Awesome!

Hey Crew,

I had taken the day off today. I had many things to get done around the house that I’ve been putting off for way too long. And I’ve got a number of days I need to take before the end of the year, so why not take a day off and knock out some of those items?

That said, ow. My knee is killing me. I’m unsure what’s wrong with it and the doctor doesn’t seem to know either. I had X-rays and all looked good. I guess I’ll struggle with it.

Moved slowly after getting a lot done (with the help of My Favorite Daughter’s boyfriend).

As I’ve said often, I read a lot of blogs. One I read because I like the author (I don’t like his writing style), is John Scalzi’s Whatever blog. I like what he posts and am interesting in what he’s doing personally for his career, but he really is an author who “needs to be taken care of.” Reading his blog, I’m getting why I don’t care for his writing.

He’s formulaic by design.

By that, I mean, he might not plot on paper, but he knows exactly the beats he wanted to hit, the path he wants his characters to take, and that’s that. He writes s story.

Why don’t I like his stuff? Simple. It’s predictable. Right down to the beats. Never to I feel his characters are in danger or threatened because the danger seems to land on queue. His dialogue is stiff and doesn’t seem to flow naturally. And everything is wrapped up with a pretty bow at the end. I’ve read…five? books by him. I didn’t read Old Man’s War and I think I might because that was before “discovered” how to write. Meaning, before he found a formula that works for him.

You can read his blog post here: https://whatever.scalzi.com/2018/09/25/1998-2018-whatever-20-20-day-twenty-five-writing/

I don’t care for cookie-cutter books and that seems to be what he enjoys writing. I’m not knocking him. He’s as successful as he wants to be and lives a great life. He writes what he enjoys and makes the money he feels due. Good on him. As I said, I like Scalzi. I just don’t like his books (and he’s fine with that! He’s even commented on my blog stating that).

That’s not me. As I’ve said before, I like to see what’s going to happen next. It’s a thrill for me. If I know every beat before it happens, then I’m working, not writing. I’d be bored stiff. Again, that’s me. That’s how I write.

Speaking of how I write. Sheesh, I wish I’d hit the computer earlier. Put down 2300 words tonight. Got a later start than intended and was cranking along. The fact that I’m knee-deep in the ending of this book (or getting there) is helpful. I’m not 100% sure, but I think I’m 6 or 7 chapters from the end. Let’s just say, I can see daylight now.

I cannot wait to get to the end of this book and crank out V&A3.

Now I know what you’re thinking.

Hey Jay! You said you’re re-releasing V&A1 in September. Yeah, about that. It would appear My Favorite Daughter and book cover designer, has been busier than she thought she’d be. She was supposed to have 3 weeks off from school and be done with the job she’s doing at the school.

Well, the couldn’t find a replacement for her, so she’s been working a lot, and she only had 2 weeks off (she didn’t check her schedule). That said, there will be a delay in the re-releases until I get book covers. Or, I might just roll with what I’ve got and have a freebie on the book for a week (or do a deep discount). We shall see. We shall see.

I’m off to bed. Brain is tired and I need to get up at 5am again. I started with my house chores early this morning. Perhaps I’ll write early tomorrow to get a jump on my words. Again, we shall see.

Until Next Time!

Stay Awesome!

Hey Crew,

Busier day though I thought it would be. How was yours?

Yesterday we went to have dinner with my step-mom who is in town. Always great to see her. Last time we saw her was when most of the family (from my side) went to Vegas for an extended weekend. That was LOADS of fun.

Today did the day job, and after that, it was busy, busy, busy. Needed to get My Favorite Daughter’s car running with a jump start. Then proceeded to run several errands. Post Office, Hardware Store, Automotive Store (to return the alternator core and get the deposit back), and to check the air in the tires since the low-pressure sensor was tripped.

Back home, needed to make sure the car restarted, a few times, and fixed the front door with some extra long screws. The top hinge keeps coming loose, I should say kept coming loose, and it would be a pain in the rumpkis to open the screen door. That appears to be better with a couple of four-inch screws.

It was dinner, Big Brother with the Mrs. and a little bit of Dancing with the Stars with My Favorite Daughter (wanted to see John Schnieder from Dukes of Hazzard, and Nancy McKeon from Facts of Life). Much fun.

Also got 1000 words done on Almost Super Heroes 2. We’re cruising to the end on this one. Getting close now and it’s exciting. I love making things go boom!

I’m taking tomorrow off from work as I have a number of things that need to be done around the house. Will be a long, physically demanding day. But this house needs some attention.

I’m off to bed. No early writing or blogging today.

Until Next Time!

Stay Awesome!

Hey Crew,

Boy howdy am I glad I got my writing and blogging in early yesterday. I knew it was going to be a busy day and I was right. After doing my writing and blogging, I went to do a few errands that kept me away from the house for most of the day. I got home and decided to take a short nap before we went to our friend’s house for a birthday party.

Two hours later, I woke up and needed to get ready in a rush. We were late to the party. That’s how the Murdocks roll 🙂

Mid-way through the party, My Favorite Daughter called. She had been asked to work at a neighbor’s daughter’s wedding up in Descanso (about 30 minutes away up in the mountains). On her way back, her car died. I’m 99% certain it’s the battery. The Mrs. and I went to rescue her and returned to the party. Got home around 11:30 just exhausted.

Today, another early morning. The Mrs. went off to do her workout and I know it’ll also be a busy busy day. I got my writing in (around 1600 words) and now we’re on our way back to the stranded car. Since it’s on the hill up to Jullian, we’re going to call AAA, get her car fixed, and finish going up to Jullian for breakfast and snacks.

When we come back down the hill, we’ll go visit my father-in-law for a bit before heading downtown to have dinner with my step-mom who is in town for a conference.

So it’ll be yet another crazy busy day and I’m happy I got my words down and this blog post done. The power of a streak compels me to keep going. Off to rescue a car and have some apple pie for breakfast.

Until Next Time!

Stay Awesome!

Hey Crew,

It’s days like today that I love writing. As I’ve said before, I’m a little bit country and a little bit rock-and-roll. I mean, I’m a plotter, and I’m a pantser. I know the major movements of the story, but I still write “into the dark” and discover things along the way.

I had thought things were going to REALLY stretch this book out unintentionally. The last scene I wrote, I wasn’t prepared for. None of the characters were prepared for it. Everything that I just wrote, I had no idea would occur. That’s what makes writing so much fun. My hope, when I run into something exciting, readers will experience that same rush.

Right now, everything is a frenzy for what unexpectedly happened. I can’t wait to jump back in and really get this story going.

I have much to do today, but hopefully, I’ll get more writing time. I got an early start because I wasn’t confident how the day would shape up and if I’d find another free hour to sit and write.

So I knocked out just over 1500 words. This story is really moving now. Lots happened to get us to this point and it’s all building to a conclusion. It’s getting me more excited for the 3rd book in this series as well as the 4th. I know, generally, what’ll happen. I just need to write the books so I’ll know exactly what’ll happen and how it’ll all tie together in the grand scheme of all the books.

Speaking to that, I’m still excited to write V&A Shipping 3 and GRPC 3 (well, and the 4s also). I wish I hadn’t stopped writing last year. It agonizes me to think that I could have had all these books done already if I’d only stayed the course. Yes, life happens and priorities change. I fully understand and accept that. I also accept that it was my own choice to stop writing when I did.

Now is not the time to look back and feel guilty for not writing. The time for reflection is gone. Now is the time to look forward. I’m on a roll. I’ve written every single day for the past 30 days. I’ve averaged 1000 words per day. Not nearly what I’d like, but I’ve been gaining steam as I continue. I’ll only get faster from here.

As I’ve said before, the more I write, the more I want to write and the more ideas I get for writing. It’s challenging to look at a blank page and try to figure out what to do. Best thing for that, do something. Do anything. Press forward in the face of doubt. That’s what I’ve been doing for the past month when I’ve been questioning every word. Why am I doing this? What’s the point? I have 0 sales in the past 30 days. Who really cares?

I care. It’s my fault I have no sales. It’s my responsibility to keep a flow of books coming out in the hopes of gaining a readership. Even if my story makes one person happy, I’ve succeeded. Based on the reviews on my books (yes, I have a bad habit of reading them) people love what I’ve written, they just wish I’d line edit better. Well, I’m doing that.

I’ve got a stinky dog to go and wash. Hopefully, more words will happen today, but if not, there’s always tomorrow.

Until Next Time!

Stay Awesome!

Hey Crew,

It’s Friday! WOO WOO! I didn’t think the weekend would get here. On Tuesday, I thought it was Thursday. Until I logged off for the day and had to actually think about what day it was. Wednesday I woke up and thought it was Thursday. Until I logged off and realized it was time for the writer’s group meeting. Yesterday I had to doublecheck to make sure it was Thursday because I wasn’t certain. Today? Yeah, for some strange reason I had a week of Thursdays. It wasn’t until the day was half-over I realized it was actually Friday.

I made it!

The getting up at 4am has really thrown my brain for a loop. You’d think after the Mrs. leaves to go to her work out, I’d be able to crash for a little bit. Yeah. Didn’t happen.

So I’m popped.

Did the day job. This week was getting a report template built for a couple different styles of reports as well as a table to pull in counts so we don’t need to pull those from the millions of records from the main table. Once that was done, it was easy to generate a couple dozen reports that we needed for upper management. Felt good to get all those done and happy to see them execute so quickly compared to hitting the main table.

If none of that made sense, fear not. It did to me because that’s my job 🙂

Got done, made some dinner, did some dishes, a little putzing around the house. Watched another episode of Luke Cage (love the Marvel shows on NetFlix) and managed to watch 0 minutes of news today (I’m getting better). Practiced bass for about an hour. Write 1000 words in about an hour. Slow today because my brain is frazzled.

I don’t think I need to get up early tomorrow for anything. We shall see. Hopefully, I can get caught up on my sleep and be refreshed to his the keyboard this weekend. Might not get much time so I’ll need to take advantage of every minute I can. I’ll explain as the days go by 🙂

I’m off to bed.

Until Next Time!

Stay Awesome!

Hey Crew,

Another early morning. What do I read? I’m so glad you asked.

Fair warning, if you’re not into psychological horror/sci-fi, don’t visit this page. You’ve been warned.

Paul E. Cooley is a close personal friend of mine. He’s been a writer for many years and produces his own audiobooks. He’s an inspiration to me in that I’d also like to get getting my own audiobooks out there. Similar challenge I have that he has, there are only so many hours in the day.

He has a twisted sense of humor and is also the host of the Dead Robots Society (a writing podcast). Check him out if you need to be more afraid of things that go bump in the night.

https://shadowpublications.com/

http://deadrobotssociety.com/

Day was a normal day. Day job, workout, dinner, power cleaning the carpets, watched the first episode of season two of Luke Cage (instead of the news). I’m learning. 🙂

Sat down to write. Head is a little groggy, but I got 1400 words done and am now near the 80,000-word mark. I’m thinking this one won’t come in at 90K. Just my feeling. I’m guessing it’ll weigh in close to the 100K mark. Everything is set for the big battle coming up. That’s when things will really get rolling along. Moreso than they are now.

I’m off to watch Big Brother with the Mrs. The finale is almost here! Another exciting night. Then it’s bed so I can get up at 4am and do it all again.

Until Next Time!

Stay Awesome!