David R. Michael's Blog, page 11
August 6, 2012
Writing Progress Report
Writing progress report for the week starting Monday, July 30, 2012.
Writing Project
Words
Monday
Gunwitch2 (misc editing)
100-ish
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Edited “Running Free”.
Edited “Stevie Gets Back in the Saddle”.
Edited “Under the Dragon”.
Edited “The First Dragon”.
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
Total
Publishing/Marketing
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Created cover for Running Free ebook.
Created base ebook for Running Free.
Formatted Running Free for KDP, PubIt, SW.
Uploaded Running Free to KDP, PubIt, SW.
Created cover for Dragons of the Stars ebook.
Friday
Created base ebook for Dragons of the Stars.
Formatted Dragons of the Stars for KDP, PubIt, SW.
Uploaded Dragons of the Stars to KDP, PubIt, SW.
Saturday
Sunday
Reading List
Grave Peril by Jim Butcher.
Related Posts:
Now Available – Dragons of the Stars9 Months of Indie PublishingNow Available – Running Free (2 Stevie Buckbee Stories)
August 4, 2012
Now Available – Dragons of the Stars
Dragons of the Stars – 2 short stories about the future, where spaceships controlled by superintelligent AI’s go renegade, venting their human crews into the vacuum of outer space and become the Dragons of the Stars.“Under the Dragon” – The roar of the dragon’s thrusters could not be heard through the vacuum of space. But Allan heard it anyway, in his mind, as the massive bulk of the renegade spaceship eclipsed the light of the distant Sun…
“The First Dragon” – This mining outpost had been attacked two weeks ago, the third time in the last year. And so the Company had sent a team of dragon hunters to deal with the problem. The hunters had arrived, and that should have been the beginning of the hunt…
Dragons of the Stars Edition
Price
Kindle edition (Amazon)
$.99
Nook edition (Barnes & Noble)
$.99
Ebook (Smashwords)
$.99
Related Posts:
Now Available – Running Free (2 Stevie Buckbee Stories)Now Available – THE DOOR TO THE SKYNow Available – New Fairy Moon
Dragons of the Stars
Dragons of the Stars by David MichaelCollection
Two short stories about the future, where spaceships controlled by superintelligent AI’s go renegade, venting their human crews into the vacuum of outer space and become the Dragons of the Stars.
“Under the Dragon” – The roar of the dragon’s thrusters could not be heard through the vacuum of space. But Allan heard it anyway, in his mind, as the massive bulk of the renegade spaceship eclipsed the light of the distant Sun…
“The First Dragon” – This mining outpost had been attacked two weeks ago, the third time in the last year. And so the Company had sent a team of dragon hunters to deal with the problem. The hunters had arrived, and that should have been the beginning of the hunt…
Available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords and more!
August 3, 2012
Running Free & Stevie Gets Back in the Saddle
Running Free & Stevie Gets Back in the Saddle by David MichaelCollection
Two flash fiction stories about 13-year-old Stevie Buckbee.
“Running Free” – Running sprints after soccer practice isn’t so bad with the help of Cocoa, one of Stevie’s horses.
“Stevie Gets Back in the Saddle” – Jack Rabbit, Stevie’s first horse all her own threw her and kicked her over spring break. Now it’s time to get back in the saddle.
Available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords and more!
Now Available – Running Free (2 Stevie Buckbee Stories)
Running Free & Stevie Gets Back in the Saddle – 2 flash fiction stories about 13-year-old Stevie Buckbee.“Running Free” – Running sprints after soccer practice isn’t so bad with the help of Cocoa, one of Stevie’s horses.
“Stevie Gets Back in the Saddle” – Jack Rabbit, Stevie’s first horse all her own threw her and kicked her over spring break. Now it’s time to get back in the saddle.
Keywords: girl, horse, family, barrel racing
Running Free & Stevie… Edition
Price
Kindle edition (Amazon)
$.99
Nook edition (Barnes & Noble)
$.99
Ebook (Smashwords)
$.99
Related Posts:
Free Fiction – A Stevie StoryThe Girl Who Ran With Horses – Now Available!Now Available – New Fairy Moon
July 26, 2012
Almost Time to be a Writer Again
The Journal 6 has been released, and the emotional rollercoaster ride of the post-release period has begun to slow down. Which means I get to be a writer again soon. The fun part will be remembering where I left off.
My writing goals for 2012 have been shot to hell. In fact, they’ve been shot to hell since late March. Which is a bit earlier than I expected them to come under attack, but that’s the nature of trying to plan for an entire year: There are a lot of days-weeks-months between 1 January and 31 December.
How I was able to think, back in December, that I could hit those writing/publishing goals and develop, test, and release The Journal 6 is beyond me. Even back then I knew that I would be doing each and all of those things from January through at least July.
I’ve done software version upgrade releases a number of times before, for a number of products. I should know by now that I get more obsessive and single-minded the closer I get to the software release date. And that the obsession doesn’t go away with the release. It takes time (for a variety of reasons) to fully recede and allow other activities some mindshare.
But, no, I chose to ignore that experience and make plans as if I was some kind of relaxed, easy-going, and balanced fellow–and absolutely not the obsessive, single-minded type of guy I can be.
In fact, based on my experience with writing goals over the past several years, I should learn from that experience and stop making detailed writing goals at all. Stick with a very simple set of overarching goals, like:
Write.
Publish.
Within any given year–sometimes even within a given month–those can easily cohabitate with my other overarching work goal:
Develop software.
Rotating through this Trynamic Trio over the course of a year, obsessing on one, then the next, then the next, I should be able to get all sorts of stuff done. In fact, that’s how I’ve worked for years. I just never seem to remember that when I’m making my goals in December. Maybe this year I’ll finally learn.
All of which to say: Once the new release of The Journal has settled down (hopefully within the next couple weeks), I plan to shift my obsessive mentality to the completion of Gunwitch2.
-David
Related Posts:
The Approaching End – My Goals and Deadlines for 2012Things That Loom and Goals That AdjustMy Latest Heresy: I Don’t Want to Write Fulltime
July 14, 2012
Last of the Mohicans with Zombies!
And Magic!
And Natty Bumpo is a woman!
Sorta.
In 1718, in an England that might have been, the law found Rosalind Bainbridge guilty of witchcraft. In lieu of execution, she became Private Bainbridge of the 101st Pistoleers.A Gunwitch of the King’s Coven.
Twenty-four years later, dishonorably discharged and working as a scout on the Amerigon frontier, Rose’s past comes looking for her. A summons and a request from the officer who saved her from the hangman’s noose. A reunion with another veteran of the 101st, someone she never wanted to see again. And a meeting with the Misses Janett and Margaret Laxton, the daughters of the man who pressed her into service as a gunwitch.
Reluctantly, Rose agrees to take Janett and Margaret to their father at Fort Russell. No one knows the swamps around New Venezia better than Rose and her bloodsister, the enigmatic Chal. The trip should take only a few days.
But there’s more waiting in the swamps than mud and mosquitoes. War and betrayal threaten Rose and the girls, while an ancient, unspeakable evil pursues them all the way to the walls of Fort Russell.
Gunwitch: A Tale of the King’s Coven Edition
Price
Trade paperback (Amazon)
$14.95
Kindle edition (Amazon)
$6.99
Nook edition (Barnes & Noble)
$6.99
Ebook (Smashwords)
$6.99
Related Posts:
Now Available – Gunwitch: A Tale of the King’s CovenWin a FREE Signed Copy of Gunwitch: A Tale of the King’s CovenExcerpts Should Include a Blurb
July 9, 2012
A Word From Our Sponsor: The Journal 6 is Now Available!
The Journal 6 is now available!
Lightning-fast searches! Even if you have thousands of entries in hundreds of categories, searching them is fast and easy. 
Synchronize multiple copies of The Journal! Have The Journal on your laptop at work and your desktop at home? Keeping them in sync is easier than ever. You can sync from another Journal Volume, a backup file, or any of The Journal’s export files. 
Synchronize The Journal with your mobile- and tablet-based software! Import your entries and notes from such products as EverNote, Penzu, and more. The Journal also supports exporting to the Xml-based ATOM publishing format which can be imported by other products. 
Easily use The Journal with automatic backup/sync-ing software! The Journal’s new, single-file database configuration is faster and uses less space on your hard drive or USB/Flash drive, and makes it much easier to use The Journal with products like DropBox. 
More! Improved printing, exporting, and importing!
New Entry Report Wizard (on the Tools menu), with new and improved reports!
Improved topic support and reporting!
Improved international character support, including Insert Symbol (on the Insert menu)!
More options for categories, including specifying the day the week starts and sorting options for loose-leaf entries.
New entry editor options like hot-linking images, a running word count on the status bar, format painter
The Journal has a 45-day free trial, so check it out today!
-David
PS I expect to be able to devote more time to writing again soon.
Related Posts:
A Scenic Outlook on the Evolving Road MapI Love My SoftwareNumber 5 is Alive!
Writing Progress Report
Writing progress report for the week starting Monday, July 2, 2012.
Writing Project
Words
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Gunwitch2
232
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
Total
232
YTD Total: 69406
Project Total: 71782
Reading List
Sleepyhead by Mark Billingham.
Related Posts:
9 Months of Indie PublishingNow Available – "Insanity"Now Available – "The Perfect Hiding Place"
July 5, 2012
I Got Lost Trying to Find the Proper Path
I don’t remember exactly when I decided I was going to be a writer. Before I was a teenager, I’m sure, because I was already a writer as a teenager. I wrote a handful of short stories and had an ever-growing, novel-length work in progress before I was 18. Even wrote a few songs (lyrics only) and had rough outlines of a series (or three) of fantasy novels. I was well on my way to becoming a “real writer”.
Then … nothing. For most of the next two decades I made no progress on my writing at all, or at best very little progress, despite still having the dream/goal of becoming a writer.
I used to think it was my first encounter with computer programming, followed by college and a Computer Science degree, that took over my life and pushed the writing aside. But that’s not it. Throughout college and afterward, I would think about writing, and think about stories to write, and read about writing. Damn little actual writing, though.
Now, with some accumulated hindsight, I think I know what the real problem was: I was trying to go about writing The Only Right Way.
I constantly read books and articles and (eventually) Web pages about How to Write and How to Get Published.
Of course, I did. I’ve always been a voracious reader. That’s how I learned to do almost everything related to computers. That’s how I taught myself computer programming and video game programming and object-oriented programming (ah, those were the days) and more. I found books on those topics, and I read them and learned from them.
There were all those books out there about writing and getting published, so, of course, I devoured them. I read them one after the other, looking for The Only Right Way.
This is, I’m sure, at least partially an artifact of my computer programming education and experience. There is (or can be) a real elegance to programming software. I came of age in a period when programmers were still fighting against constraints of memory and processor speed. As a programmer, you wanted to have the fastest, smallest code that achieved the most impressive result. I embraced this to an extreme degree. I wanted my programs to do everything Right. And I wanted them to be Absolutely Perfect the First Time.
I spent most of the late 1990′s and early 2000′s fighting past this self-imposed limitation/insanity in my software development. I had to learn how to get past searching for the Right Way, and go with “Good Enough For Now (I’ll Fix It Later, But Only If It Needs Fixing)”.
It wasn’t until 2002 or so that I realized a similar mindset had stalled my writing. I finally saw that I had been trying to plot and populate and write my stories and novels The Right Way. Since there is no “right way”, nothing ever made it past a few pages of notes before seizing up and grinding to a halt. I had spent so much time trying to find the Right And Proper Path of Writing, that I had gotten lost and gotten nowhere.
It wasn’t until I stopped trying to be “right” that I started making any progress. In the years since then I’ve experimented with a number of approaches to writing stories and novels, and I’ve learned a lot about myself and how I work (and how I don’t work). I’m still experimenting. Not sure I’ll ever stop experimenting.
I still have to remind myself that there is no “right way” (in programming and in writing both), but not so frequently as I used to. Which is probably the best I’m going be able to manage. But that’s good enough for now (I’ll fix it later, but only if it needs it).
-David
Related Posts:
There Is No WhyWriting Short Stories Considered UsefulA Bit More DavidRM Backstory
