13 Months / Happenings In The Outhouse 29-April-2022

By the end of next month, I should have my latest work-in-progress published.  And, as you may guessed it from the title of this post, it took me . . . drum roll please . . . thirteen months to complete.

As of this posting, I am over 109,000 words into it and I have six more chapters to write.

Now the big question: why is it taking me so long?  The book had already been written and I'm using the old pages as an outline.  So it really shouldn't take that long, right?

Right?

For me, that would be a solid no.  Although it is nice having the finished product to look upon, it actually drags me behind a bit.  And this is a longer book than what I normally write.  I have also found periods of time where my productivity has amped up immensely, whereas other times it has lagged.

This has been an interesting project for me to tackle.  What I will do is take what I learned on this one and apply it to the next one in a similar situation.  I have three other books that were written previously, and when I come to rewrite them, I may do things differently.

I will share details of this project as I come closer.

More Progress (And Pondering What's Next) / Happenings In The Outhouse 22-April-2022

I pray I don't jinx myself for saying this, but I will finish my current work-in-progress by the end of May 2022.  I started it on April 23, 2021, and boy am I ready for it to be completed.  Just to let you know, it wasn't that long ago, I was fearful that I wouldn't finish by the end of June, just before our planned vacation out west to Montana.

I have 6-7 chapters left (including an epilogue) and I have surpassed 105,000 words.  I have also surpassed 500-pages on Monday in the current document.

As I always near the end of a project, be it large or small or somewhere in the middle, I ponder what to write next.  I have many to choose from, and some stories are itching to get out into the world more than others.

Multitasking / Happenings In The Outhouse 15-April-2022

Multitasking.

Even just the word "multitasking" can bring a wide range of emotions.  But define what it is?  Is it doing many things in a single day?  Or doing several different things in a single lifetime?

John Grisham has done well with his legal thrillers, but he has also written other stories which has broadened his audience.  King has done the same with horror.

And I could go on and on.

Brandon Sanderson may be known for writing a lot of fantasy, but he has dipped his toes in many different realms in the fantasy genre, and with an insane output of words to boot.  He recently had an impressively successful Kickstarter where he wrote a bunch of secret stories while slated by contract to write another tome in his Stormlight Archive series.  And not just one, but four!

This might be an area we'll explore more later on.  The point of this is based from a TED talk I watched where the speaker gave examples of multitasking but this was over a person's lifetime.  I find it okay to do several different types of things, to spread out your talents.

Again, it depends on what your definition of multitasking is.

Another (Short) Story Completed / Happenings In The Outhouse 08-April-2022

As the end of the first quarter 2022 winded down last week, I decided to take a small break from my current novel and crank out a short story for the "Writers of the Future" contest.

I submitted it the night of the 31st of March, with a few hours to spare, so crossing my fingers on it.

Now, it's back to my current novel, which is still coming along.  I have surpassed 100,000 words, which is no small feat.

No Excuses / Happenings In The Outhouse 01-April-2022

I recently listened to a podcast interview Tim Ferris did with the one and only Neil Gaiman, and it struck me as odd that us creatives no longer have any excuses when it comes to creating our work.  None whatsoever.

In the interview (it is well worth the 90 minutes to listen to it; it is absolutely golden), Neil talked about how he wrote many of his stories using a fountain pen.  Yes, my friend, by hand.  No laptop.  No computer.  Not even a portable typewriter.

By hand.

He also said that while vacationing, he thought he brought materials to finish one of his novels, American Gods.  It turned out he forgot them behind, so therefore wrote more on his bestselling The Graveyard Book.  Funny how life turns out, huh?

Kevin J. Anderson, bestselling science fiction and fantasy author, dictates many of his novels in a recorder, then has them transcribed.

Years ago, I wrote a few short stories by hand at work, and I will tell you that it was liberating.  Writing out by hand makes one think more about the words they're putting down.

It is something I may try again, when I find myself either in a place where I didn't bring my laptop or I want to start scribbling some notes.