D.A. Cairns's Blog, page 44

W.A.S.

In the Australian taxation system we have a thing called a B.A.S. (Business Activity Statement) and it has to be completed and submitted to the Australian Tax Office each quarter. This post is a W.A.S. It has nothing to to do with tax, and I can submit one whenever I like it, or not as the case may be.

Today's Writing Activity Statement actually covers yesterday because I am writing this in the morning before I go off to paid employment. To the job I would like to leave so I could concentrate on writing, but I can't because my writing income won't cover the bills...yet.

I submitted two stories to writing competitions. Should I be fortunate enough to sufficiently impress the judges and win, I plan to use the winnings to get the Devolution project up and running. That's the one for which I cannot find any willing investors. Also yesterday I added approximately 2000 words to my WIP, and did some more planning and thinking.

W.A.S. complete.

Crap Parenting

The most important job which any man or woman will ever hold is that of parent. Being a mother or father is an incredibly difficult and demanding job. Although the duties undergo significant changes along the way, parenting is a life long career. Once you have a child, you are committed until you die, or until they die. You will more than likely receive no financial reward, and at different stages perhaps not even much praise for your work. Your heart will be broken multiple times, you will suffer anguish and anxiety, you can expect sleepless nights, an overwhelming workload and a paucity of gratitude.                                                You will bear most of the heavy, heavy load of responsibility for the upbringing of a good person and a citizen. You will carry the weight of occasionally naive and unrealistic expectation. Your stomach will be twisted into knots which threaten to cripple you as you make decisions for another person.
I love being a dad. I have two children, teenagers now, and they are beautiful people who care about other people. They demonstrably love me and my wife, and each other. They live purposeful, busy lives, working, studying, playing and socializing, and they don't get into trouble. They don't get into trouble because they don't look for it. They are sensible and sensitive, and they make good decisions. They are forgiving and brave.
Are these awesome children my handiwork? Are they my legacy? Am I defined by what I have done for them, and to them, and who I am to them? Can I take full responsibility for the people they have become? Of course not, but as a father, a parent, I have played the role God assigned to me, and I have done my best to raise my children to love God and to love others.
The pain I have experienced for them, and at times because of them, is nothing at all compared to the joy they have given me. My life would be so shallow and meaningless without them. Through them, and through fathering them, I have learned so much about myself and the God who blessed me with them. To love is to suffer, but I suffer gladly because they are worth it: the happiness they bring, and the rich satisfaction I feel sharing their lives, the pleasure and fulfilment that comes from being a dad is the single greatest thing in my life.
I'd love to hear your thoughts on being a parent, even if you are not one.
This post was inspired by a story I read about the poor quality of modern parenting. Read it here. crap parenting
Photo sources:http://parentingbeyondpunishment.com/...

Progress

I wrote approximately two thousand words yesterday. Not impressive at all, although I did also do quite a bit of planning and organising. I decided for example, that this book will probably need to be in two parts, so I wrote the last chapter with a teasing end. Furthermore, through much contemplation, I developed a stronger sense of the heart of this book. It will be my best so far.

Add to the above, four stories submitted to writing competitions, a wad of administrative tasks completed, and a little housework, and I'm going to call yesterday a success. How was your day?

Write Now

Today I am going to seriously start writing again. I've been so busy with other stuff, and I still have some stuff to do this morning, but I am going to rip in today. I  have 10087 words down, and I've written a full chapter plan. I have two chapter ones, a chapter seven, and something called a 'later chapter' and today I will resume 874 words into chapter three. I've set myself a little challenge: how far can I advance this project in three weeks, and at the same time complete two more assignments for my Masters? Stay tuned.

Did someone say little challenge? When have you bitten off more than you could chew?

Special offer

I am under exposed. Obscure. One way to gather more readers, is to get reviews posted by those who have read my books. If you are one of my treasured readers who have already posted reviews, I say thank you very much. If you are among those who have read one of my books, but as yet have not posted a review on the purchase site, may I offer this incentive.
Review one of my books and I will give you a free digital copy of one of my other books.
To those who have not yet purchased any of my books, may I offer this incentive. I will give a free digital copy of either Devolution, Loathe Your Neighbor or Ashmore Grief to the first 20 respondents. Simply leave a comment.
To those eagerly anticipating my next novel, A Muddy Red River, which will be brought to you by Rogue Phoenix Press, I say thank you, and stay tuned.
author website

On to other things

I finally managed to work through the list of publishers to whom I submitted A Muddy Red River, to inform them that I had signed with another publisher.

The tale of the tape: 66 queries submitted. 12 rejections. 46 no replies. 6 joint venture offers. 2 traditional press offers. 1 contract signed with Rogue Phoenix Press.

Now on to the next project, or should I say back to it. I've had a bit of a change of heart and now I know exactly what to do now.

A Muddy Red River

Three days

After a fairy long dry spell, it has now been raining for three days. Technically, today is the third day and it would have to rain all day for it to be true to say, at the end of this day, or perhaps in the evening, that it has been raining for three days. It has also been three days since...since...never mind. Christ was in the grave for three days before rising from the dead. That's an historical fact. I wonder if anything else which has died recently will come back to life. There is always hope.

A Big Ask

I want to have a new cover designed for my debut novel, Devolution, and re release it in India. Why India? Much of the action takes place in Mumbai, and the lead female character is Indian. I've found a publisher over there who will publish it and promote the you know what out of it. Big market there. I reckon it will sell, but I don't have any capital to get it off the ground. I know it's a big ask but would any of my supporters/friends/followers like to invest in Devolution?

Check out Devolution right here

Wakakirri

As previously mentioned I attended a concert on Wednesday night at the Wollongong Entertainment Centre to watch my niece perform. Wakakirri is a national festival that celebrates learning via the creation and sharing of stories. To enter the Wakakirri challenge schools create stories using dance, creative movement, acting, song and film to be performed, screened and displayed to audiences across Australia.

The show I watched on Wednesday was a part of this festival, but basically it was a glorified school concert. Not to be derogatory, but my expectations of school concerts are fairly low. I expect to be entertained, and for there to be some talented performers, but overall I know it's going to be a bit lame. They are just children after all. There are exceptions of course but generally, one knows what they are going to get at a school concert, and really, attendance is more about providing support and encouragement for the children, especially those to whom you are related.


Nine schools performed on Wednesday night and most of them were quite fun to watch. I couldn't help admire the amount of work that had gone in to the creation of these dance stories: the costumes, props, choreography and music. A few of the performances stood out, but one of them actually made me cry. It was very dramatic and moving. Overall, I was surprised by the quality and I left on a high, before heading to McDonalds for a sundae with my daughter.

Some of the young performers I watched at Wakakirri may go on to careers in the entertainment industry. I wish them well, and I thank them all for entertaining me, especially Macquarie Fields Public School for moving me.

What has been the best 'school concert' you've seen?

Read more about Wakakirri

Missed a day

Who wants to be a fascist about these things? I missed a day. Never mind. I won't be flagellating myself over it. And today I don't really have anything to say. We all have days like these. It may surprise you to learn, or not if you've been following closely, that I have been having a lot "days like these", but I have managed to keep writing something. I'm pushing through the turmoil as best I can, and I won't give up, but I just get sick of it all sometimes. Boo hoo.