The AH Coffee Shop and Reading Room 09

[MillieDynamite]

My writing for my pen name is at a standstill right now. I thought I was improving, but yesterday and this morning were not so good. It's hard to write when you feel like shit. I have to pound out the paid work regardless of how I'm filling. I don't care what kind of coffee it is, just make mine strong, black, with no sugar!

 

[Duleigh]

My writing for my pen name is at a standstill right now... I have to pound out the paid work regardless of how I'm feeling

I've been in the same pattern. I published All Aboard Andi's Dream Ch. 16 with a huge cliffhanger... but Chapter 17 eluded me. I knew what to write, I knew exactly what I wanted to say, but when I started typing nothing came out. Campus77 was a huge fan of the "Andiverse" and we met and talked all day about the future of the story... then he died, and I couldn't do it.

Alan Scarlett was my refuge, I was going to get paid for that so the second Alan Scarlett novel is coming along just fine. A fan base is waiting for Alan Scarlet and the Eastern Triumvirate. That should sell fairly well, but Andi wouldn't come out of my keyboard. (I plan to get paid for Andi also, but that's 80,000 uncharted words away) I had to sit down and get nasty with myself, I refused to look at Alan Scarlett, or my Winter Holiday story, or anything else until I finished Chapter 17. The first day was awful, I probably got 200 words. The next day was worse. Maybe 75 words, but by Wednesday I was able to put in a few hundred words. The momentum continued to build throughout the weekend and I spent yesterday and today doing a final edit on Chapter 17 and I submitted that a few minutes ago.

Harlan Ellison was right, The trick is not becoming a writer. Everybody has one or two stories in them. The trick is staying a writer. Sometimes you have to get mean with your publisher's favorite author.

 

[MillieDynamite]

Mostly, it's because I'm sick. My editor/publisher and I are going through my Sci-Fi story today via constant emails and getting ready to publish for sale. It has a couple of extra thousand words from what was in the contest at (that other place) and is much better edited. I rushed him to get it done. I've missed many contests because I spent too much time perfecting a story. Well, try to, at least. By accident, I'd cut out some important things I'd written that shouldn't have been. I had to recreate them. I can't decide if I'm publishing this here soon or waiting to put it into the Halloween contest here next year.

I've been in the same pattern. I published All Aboard Andi's Dream Ch. 16 with a huge cliffhanger... but Chapter 17 eluded me. I knew what to write, I knew exactly what I wanted to say, but when I started typing nothing came out. Campus77 was a huge fan of the "Andiverse" and we met and talked all day about the future of the story... then he died, and I couldn't do it.

Alan Scarlett was my refuge, I was going to get paid for that so the second Alan Scarlett novel is coming along just fine. A fan base is waiting for Alan Scarlet and the Eastern Triumvirate. That should sell fairly well, but Andi wouldn't come out of my keyboard. (I plan to get paid for Andi also, but that's 80,000 uncharted words away) I had to sit down and get nasty with myself, I refused to look at Alan Scarlett, or my Winter Holiday story, or anything else until I finished Chapter 17. The first day was awful, I probably got 200 words. The next day was worse. Maybe 75 words, but by Wednesday I was able to put in a few hundred words. The momentum continued to build throughout the weekend and I spent yesterday and today doing a final edit on Chapter 17 and I submitted that a few minutes ago.

Harlan Ellison was right, The trick is not becoming a writer. Everybody has one or two stories in them. The trick is staying a writer. Sometimes you have to get mean with your publisher's favorite author.

 

[NotWise]

I'm up to 800 words in my synopsis, and it's taken four days. It's slow, but most of my time is spent brainstorming, and that's a lot of the fun.

 

[Duleigh]

Winter Holiday Story, The Extra Special Magical Gift is 50% done, Alan Scarlett and the Eastern Triumvirate is 50% done, All Aboard Andi's Dream Chapter 17 is submitted and in Pending, All Aboard Andi's Dream Chapter 18 starts tomorrow! I'm tempted to dig up the very original version of A Krissmas Karole and post that as A Krissmas Karole T.O.S. the end freaked me out so much I re-wrote it as I was writing a multi-chapter story to cover the back story and I had to re-write several chapters of the back story..

 

[Candy_Kane54]

I noticed that the coffee pot was empty so a new pot is brewing. I'll be finishing my winter holiday story today so I'll be out the rest of the day. Enjoy!

 

[Duleigh]

Thank you for catching that Candy! I've been pretty busy at the keyboard myself. I'm hoping to have The Extra Special Magical Gift finished by the end of the week.

 

[NotWise]

It's mulberry morning, when all the mulberry trees drop their leaves as the rising sun warms them. It usually happens all over town at the same time, though sometimes it'll happen at different times in different neighborhoods. I have like 8 inches of fallen leaves on the east side of the house.

I'm almost done with the synopsis of my new story. There are a few details left, but at least I found a way to resolve the story without making the female protagonist the least-intelligent FMC I've ever written.

 

[MillieDynamite]

There are too many Events, Challenges, and Contests for a girl to keep up with in this place.

Winter Holiday Story, The Extra Special Magical Gift is 50% done, Alan Scarlett and the Eastern Triumvirate is 50% done, All Aboard Andi's Dream Chapter 17 is submitted and in Pending, All Aboard Andi's Dream Chapter 18 starts tomorrow! I'm tempted to dig up the very original version of A Krissmas Karole and post that as A Krissmas Karole T.O.S. the end freaked me out so much I re-wrote it as I was writing a multi-chapter story to cover the back story and I had to re-write several chapters of the back story..

I noticed that the coffee pot was empty so a new pot is brewing. I'll be finishing my winter holiday story today so I'll be out the rest of the day. Enjoy!

 

[Duleigh]

There are too many Events, Challenges, and Contests for a girl to keep up with in this place.

The Extra Special Magical Gift is a contest piece
Alan Scarlett and the Eastern Triumvirate is a money piece - novel #16 (It should land at 95k words)
All Aboard Andi's Dream Chapter 17 is a personal enjoyment piece (it will become part of Novel #17)
A Krissmas Karole T.O.S. is already written, it just needs a final edit.

 

[MrPixel]

In interesting "nice" news, I am meeting with the owner of our local pharmacy this morning. She was reviewing my meds and made the calculations that if I were to change to another Part D plan, I would save ~$1000/year. Would a Walgreens or CVS do that for you? Nope.

In less-happy news, on the life-improvement front our little upgrade at the studio for a mini-spa is slamming headlong into brick walls impeding completion. The privacy fence is not done because the contractor ordered the exact quantity of materials for the job, and one crucial cut left the piece too short. There is a 1-week lead time to replace. Then the really frustrating part is it seems that nobody does concrete work around here any more, so our little patio required for under the hot tub is... gosh... I have no idea when it's going to be done or who is going to do it. Been working on that for a month. In better news, the tub is in-stock at the dealer and all I have to do is say "Go!".

The studio lounge/spa and construction has inspired another "Steve & Cyan" story, a LW/GS/romance-of-sorts. It's about half done.

 

[MillieDynamite]

Lucky you! LOL. Me, lucky, not so much!

The Extra Special Magical Gift is a contest piece
Alan Scarlett and the Eastern Triumvirate is a money piece - novel #16 (It should land at 95k words)
All Aboard Andi's Dream Chapter 17 is a personal enjoyment piece (it will become part of Novel #17)
A Krissmas Karole T.O.S. is already written, it just needs a final edit.

 

[Duleigh]

The Extra Special Magical Gifthas been submitted. Start arming up the one bombs!

 

[dmallord]

Yea. Went through the get-up-get-going routine again today and made it to the specialist's office. It felt strange to be out of the house and having someone else driving me. I haven't been in a car since before August, my ride then was EMS and no window view.

The specialist reviewed all the records from both hospitals and said... surprise... they didn't run the tests to determine the cause of my liver failure nor even attempt to find a way to ameliorate the damages. He suspects it may be related to the other blood pressure meds have had on other organs.

At least the specialized blood tests and MRIs are not in a hospital. Does mean more out of hospice visits though.

Word of advice: Do your best not to get old.

Thanks to those who've sent kind words. I do appreciate those.

On a writing note. I dug up an old unfinished story and did so tune up and finished it. I have sent it to a Lit editor for help. Kenjisato has done most of my stories now. It's a western theme about a ravished girl's revenge on a wanted man–3,000 words. Not sure what category it belongs in. The sex is scantly mentioned, just enough to create the victim scene, and the rest is an attempt to emulate the Zane Grey style:

• "At sunset hour the forest was still, lonely, sweet with tang of fir and spruce, blazing in gold and red and green; and the man who glided on under the great trees seemed to blend with the colors and, disappearing, to have become a part of the wild woodland". Zane's The Man of the Forest
• 
  
• "Yet, even in its decay, the old Wild West town held stories as vivid as a cyan sky at dawn—legends of lost gold, tales of betrayal that turned friends into foes, and mysteries that dared anyone to unravel them. One such story began on the splintered porch of the dry goods store, where a bent and wiry old-timer named Jarvus Mackleberry sat whittling a toy figure." Mallord's A Calico Girl’s Revenge

Thanks again. Penny for your thoughts on a category.

.

 

[Duleigh]

Word of advice: Do your best not to get old.

I work hard to make others around me feel old... very, very old.

Not sure what category it belongs in. The sex is scantly mentioned

Don't worry about it. I've found that sex is so hard to write when you're not feeling good. I have a short stack of stories that I wrote last year when I was feeling so horrible and had nurses coming to the house. Those stories are full of large gaps with one sentence in the middle that says "Sex scene here" I'm going to have to fill those gaps now that I'm feeling a little better.

 

[Duleigh]

It's on... it's cooking... it's slow...

 

[Rustyoznail]

@dmallord, glad you're feeling a bit better.

As for category, I guess EC would be the fall-back.

 

[Duleigh]

"If you spend your whole time thinking about the universe, you tend to forget the less important bits of it. Like your pants." - Sir Terry Pratchett

 

[MillieDynamite]

Morning all! I hope you're all having a cheery day. The turkey is bought and will be smoked by pops. All will be great! Or so I hope. No Sis or Bro this year, so we got the folks all to ourselves.

 

[Duleigh]

I had a doctor's appointment with Dr. O. She was happy with my progress toward the grave (it has slowed down) and I escaped with 0 lectures, other than "why do you let the VA issue you such garbage?"

 

[Candy_Kane54]

I started a new pot of coffee for those who are just getting up. I'm heading for bed soon. Finally finished and submitted my Holiday story.

 

[Duleigh]

It's 40° in South Georgia/North Florida. Global warming is needed here. Please send some to The Real Nassau County, Florida. 32021

 

[MillieDynamite]

Right back at ya!

It's 40° in South Georgia/North Florida. Global warming is needed here. Please send some to The Real Nassau County, Florida. 32021

View attachment 2432093

 

[MrPixel]

40° down there, D? So disappointing. 46° here, but that's normal this time of year, just like it is for Millie.

I have a plumbing chore to get done at the studio, part of the hot tub prep. I just told C that I'm going to come to a stopping point (writing a story, actually) and head over there to work on the pipes until it's done done, or until I quit in frustration. Too many complex joints in a small space; I sort of did it to myself.

 

[TarnishedPenny]

It's 40° in South Georgia/North Florida. Global warming is needed here. Please send some to The Real Nassau County, Florida. 32021

View attachment 2432093

Oh, Mr. D! That’s terrible! I feel so sympathetic.

No.

Wait.

No, I don’t.

This is two day’s worth and there’s another eight inches inbound.

And don’t bother telling me about North Dakota. I’m bloody well north of that!



Now, doesn’t that put 40° into perspective? You have a nice day.