Ira Heinichen's Blog, page 79
August 14, 2023
Day 3,569: Bam
Wooo weee. I was THIS close to missing my page target for the day, but I pulled out a clutch writing session here at the very end to juuuust hit it. A fun section to write, I just went through, too. Lots of WORDS, because it was action and not dialogue, but a fun one. Scary assassin stuff.
Solid day. Hit my page count. Got some work done with more to do. Interviewing candidates for a job at the writer conference in November; gonna get that squared away.
A solid Monday. Need to do it again...
August 13, 2023
Day 3,568: The DL
Going to be bed on time! I am short, yet again, on reading through my manuscript BUT…I did more this week than last. That’s progress, and I’ll take it. Plus, I’m only 3-ish hours away from catching all the way up. I can do it!
Need to have a solid week this week, so…I will. No if ands or buts. That starts with a good night’s sleep, so…Night night.
August 12, 2023
Day 3,567: Toppled
A day of rest.
It’s not time for sleep, so…yeah. Gonna get on that.
Night night.
Day 3,566: Miss Her
Joy’s over at KBear and Arg’s tonight because I podcasted with Josh and didn’t want to leave her alone at home for that long. Coops I knew would be fine. He can handle six hours like a champ. And he did. Sweet boy. He’s having his whimzee right now.
Wiped. Loooonngggg day. But, I survived. And thrived.
Night night.
August 10, 2023
Day 3,565: By Half
Bit of a rough week on the writing front…but NOT A DISASTER. Minor miracle there, given how busy work kept me. Another suuuuuper fast turnaround dropped on me late today.
Here’s the thing, though, about when that happens: I kinda get to be the hero, you know? I’m the guy they can turn to in a pinch, and I’ll get them what they need. And that’s value right there. It definitely sucks time and energy-wise, because it takes a lot out of me to deliver in those tight windows, but…it’s also a little...
August 9, 2023
Day 3,564: Sleep Data
Twenty pages today. Woo! Wiped. What’s amazing, though is that I was wiped all day, and I still got my work done and my pages. I’m on a roll, for real though.
The only thing I will say about how I currently construct stories is this: my Act 1’s don’t need to be so long. Ugh. I mean, for this story, it literally did. Same for Book 1 and Book 2. But, in the general sense: too long. Get to it faster. Need to figure that out. And I will. Next book is gonna get right to the damn thing.
Sleep.
...August 8, 2023
Day 3,563: Butt To Butt
Coops and Joy are almost butt to butt right now on the bed. Coops has gotten WAY more comfortable with her around. Finally. It’s such a relief. He’s way less stressed out by her, and she’s way less scared of him. I think she’s just finally grown up enough—and it’s been enough time—that she’s less triggering for him. Easier to ignore.
She just moved back up to the head of the bed. She sleeps right next to my pillow. Sometimes, she’s right up against me. I love it so much.
Keeping this one s...
August 7, 2023
Day 3,562: All Footage
One of those very, very busy workdays. They don’t happen often, thankfully, but they do come around every so often. Honestly, I’m thankful to be busy. I need my job, and it’s reassuring to know that my job needs me.
I was able to get in 10 pages before the floodgates opened work-wise. Hoping to get that many pages done tomorrow as well, which would still put me on track for 60 pages on the week. That’s been the average, spot-on, for the first two weeks. I’d love to get up to 80, which is stil...
August 6, 2023
Day 3,561: Joelly and Tuffy
Joelly was a short-haired white and grey-patched cat. She had tabby stripes in those patches. I’m not sure what kind of coloring that’s called, but she was a round, very sweet cat. And patient to the extreme. I have vivid memories of delighting in trapping her by putting a milk crate on top of her, and—particularly painful to think of as an adult—tossing her off the deck. I was probably 2. And I think the memory is so vivid because I remember my mother being very upset with me for doing it, and ...
August 5, 2023
Day 3,560: Merle
Merle was my first dog. A big German Shepherd, and my first best friend.
The story goes that Merle was the dog of one of my mom’s friends, and some situation came along—like moving, or something like that—where they couldn’t take Merle with them, and so my mom volunteered to take him in. I don’t know if I was born yet at that point or not, but he took to me, and I to him.
Merle and I went everywhere together. We lived on four acres of redwood forestland, and I spent most of my playtime wan...
