More Time Writing...

...less time writing about writing!

Minutes spent updating this blog (and the other ones) are adding up. I'm going to update weekly for a while to see how that goes. I'll still post " *** The 38 *** " if people are following it (let me know by commenting). From the start this has been a way to keep me honest and to have a record of my writing habits.

I'm in a routine now, so it's going well. I should have no problem finishing two stories by the end of March, for example.

I'm also excited about a new project. I'm writing scripts for short videos on motorcycle safety tips. I intend to film them however I can and if they air somehow, great. There's always YouTube if it comes to that - I can link them up to my motorcycling blog at the very least. It's a good off season project. We'll see how it goes.

I will now be able to devote some blogging time to "Across the Miles" and "On Riding and RiderCoaching". I'm way behind on the latter. I have 22 drafts just sitting there that need to be finished, and new ideas and topics keep popping up all the time.

Time...there's a limited supply!

Edit>Revise>Revamp!

I started doing some editing on "The House". I stalled right out of the gate. I have to better establish why the character is doing what he is doing. Without that, it's not believable. Have to think more...

Changed gears to story #9. It also needs some revamping. There is too much background info. I did some editing, but I think I need to go back to my outline and do some major work plotting the action of the story, then work from there.


Today: 1.1 hours/editing, some rewriting, outlining

Finally Finished

I have completed the first draft of the story I've been calling "The trouble."

It took a while (about 1.6 hours) and I rewrote and edited some.

I'm sure there's more work ahead, but it feels good to have a complete story with beginning, middle, end.

A number of others are in the works and, if I remember right, I wanted to have two stories finished by the end of March.

Still going............

Reprieve!

As my "publishing office" was closed today, I took the opportunity to do some more rewriting. Deadlines, shmeadlines! I'm using the short outline I described in the last post. I think my draft of "The Trouble" will now come out more compact and better.

I'm close to finishing it (even if it is just a first draft).


.7 hours/.8 pages plus editing

Sunday...

...was a busy day, for sure!

Did some good thinking and editing on current story. Let's give it a hint of a title: "Trouble".

Anyway, I tried to reduce it down to the bare essentials - the minimum I needed to arrive at the payoff at the end. I was getting into little subplots and side streets - too long for a simple short. I thought back to the 55 Word Fiction Project more than once. I also focused on how simple the idea was originally. So I trimmed the fat and made an outline of things the story must contain, then began to rewrite the whole thing from the start to see how compactly I could hit all those points.

So far so good. I'm feeling better about the story already
, even though my deadline is tomorrow!


2.2 hours/ pages? minus 2?

Saturday Hodgepodge

Today I reviewed some of the comments and entries on writing. It was good to review that stuff, to process what others are saying, and to comment back on a few. Helps me get my thoughts set.

Did some blogging on other places as well.

Today: blogging about writing, editing, minor additions to current story. 1.5 hours

Friday

.9 hours/ 1 page plus editing

Have added a new situation that allows me more conflict for my main character as well as allows me to show her more than tell about her.