Roderick T. Macdonald's Blog, page 9
April 2, 2024
Fighting off a body blow
Hello, my friends and the occasional relative! Procrastination and doubt. I have written about doubt before, in a series I think. It was quite a long time ago. I thought I had compartmentalized my doubt: not exactly put it away, but perhaps contained it. I felt confident I had developed the tools and the knowledge …
March 26, 2024
Reading aloud to the Demon of Perfectionism
Hello, my friends and the occasional relative! Okay, so the copy edit is complete. One more hill climbed, another mountain ahead. I have started the read aloud proofing pass, and am 5.5 to 7% of the way through that, depending on criteria chosen. No graphical representation employed. So far I have added and removed equal …
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March 21, 2024
Halo Season 2 Finale: Mystery Box Explosion Edition
So. That was that. First impressions immediately after watching. Please recall I have watched this show once through, and not with insanely close attention, so if there are actually explanations for the many things that annoyed me, great, but they weren’t clear enough for me to catch in one viewing, which is a narrative problem …
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March 19, 2024
Halo: Mystery Box Edition (And my books are on Sale – Buy them!)
Hello, my friends and the occasional relative! 97% of copy edit complete. Two things this week. One, as of today both my books are on sale in the UK and USA, in the ebook edition anyway. Continue your recovery from St. Patrick’s day overindulgence by sitting down with a good book. That’s an order, soldier! …
Continue reading Halo: Mystery Box Edition (And my books are on Sale – Buy them!)
March 12, 2024
Obscure words and stones in shoes
Hello, my friends and the occasional relative! Almost there! I am 91.6% or 93.2% of the way through the copy edit, depending on criteria used. Hopefully next weekend it will be done, and on to proofing. This week I discovered I used word in an unusual fashion. I used ‘bulled’ as a verb, to indicate …
March 5, 2024
Dune 2 and the difficulty of story execution
Hello, my friends and the occasional relative! Progress continues with the copy edit now 80-85% of the way there, depending on the criteria used. Finish line in sight. Reread and proofing remain. I saw Dune 2 this afternoon. No spoilers, but I feel a little let down by it, after loving the first film. There …
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February 27, 2024
Falling in love with my next novel, one conversation at a time…
Hello, my friends and the occasional relative! I proceed apace, copy edit now at 69-72% complete (no graphic), depending upon criteria. Given that positive progress, and multiple walks in wind and sun, my mind has been turning to the next story to obsess me. I wrote two excerpts yesterday, plus a brief reminder to myself …
Continue reading Falling in love with my next novel, one conversation at a time…
February 20, 2024
52 weeks. Achievement unlocked.
Hello, my friends and the occasional relative! This week marks the achievement of a blogging milestone for me. This is the 52nd week in a row I have posted a blog on Tuesday. Hooray! Now, blogging isn’t the powerhouse it once was in terms of garnering engagement, especially in my simple words on a page …
February 13, 2024
A poorly researched partial polemic about reading standards
Hello, my friends and the occasional relative! I’m 44.4-46.6% of my way through the copy edit, depending on criteria used, no graphic as usual. A word of warning: this is not my usual blog, it goes slightly longer, and takes a left turn along the way. Though you might think me discouraged by what I …
Continue reading A poorly researched partial polemic about reading standards
February 6, 2024
The Writing Life: I got the re-read blues
Hello, my friends and the occasional relative! How many times shall I read thee? Let me count the ways. Again. Minor advice column for writers this week. Lessons learned from my own repeated experience as a fellow traveller in the writing trenches. Copy editing progress continues. Depending on how I measure it I am …
