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Family and Friends is my everyday journal. Captain's Log is where I pontificate on religion and politics.

Wednesday, November 09, 2011

Crazy Year In Writing

A year ago I had a really bad case of something that kept me in bed for nearly the whole month. When whatever it was let go of its grip I needed out of the house, but still wanted to write. My client didn't have much legal work for me so I approached him about using the office for my writing and I'd do a few gofor things as a quid pro quo. He agreed.
I came across an article about Yellowstone being a super volcano that could explode at any time and that it would nearly wipe out mankind when it does. I started a novel with the premise that if we can fly into space, build underwater hotels, survive in the arctic and antarctic that our technology is now capable of meeting even this challenge. I hit 80,000 words starting my story The Fan Plan in 1963, but the back story reaches to 1948 and worked my way up to 1990. I set the eruption around 2017 to 2020. I hit a wall at that point so I put it aside. I finished editing Human Sacrifices which I had worked on for ten years while editing and printondemand publishing: Optimus: Praetorian Guard. I submitted it to Publish America after Anne Littlewolf did a wonderful cover for it, but then discovered the wonderful world of e-publishing. I backed out of the deal with PA and felt a 900lb Gorilla fall off my back.
I published HS and the first 40,000 words of The Fan Plan (up to 1976).
For years I'd been writing descriptive flash stories based on pictures as an exercise. I compiled them into three anthologies and published them.
The very first novel I wrote Vander's Magic Carpet over the summer of 1989 on a 286 pc with monochrome screen on 51/4 inch floppies for Ted Turner's Tomorrow Awards. A 50,000 word piece that didn't win. I discovered that I'd transferred it to 3.25 floppies and then from hard drive to hard drive of numerous computers and still had it. My client looked it over since I start the story with a court case and he gave me advice on how to make it more authentic. I started editing it and then discovered that marketing flying cars around the year 2000, which was the future when written wouldn't sell today with our war on terror. I've put it on the backburner until I have time to edit it more for the present. I think the story will still work.
So projects in the works:
  • Update Vander's Magic Carpet.
  • Finish Fan Plan
  • Research and write sequel to Optimus: Praetorian Guard
My client suddenly needed me to do some actual work, taking documents to the courthouse, getting ready for a trial, which has been put on indefinite hold, and now that documents are being submitted digitally I scanned his current cases and have just finished scanning all his dormant files. For the past three months I haven't had a lot of time to write. I was also doing 10 hours a week volunteering at a golf course to get free golf. I'm kind of thick at times. After three months I figured 10 hours to golf once a week for free wasn't worth it. That has freed up some time.
With scanner at the ready I've given my card to numerous attorneys and said, "Have scanner will archive." So far no takers, which is good for my writing.
While doing all of the above there was no sense in working on novels. I started looking at some of my flash stories and developed them into short stories. It's been so nice that once I have a 3 to 5 thousand word story done I can post it at Smashwords and Amazon for Kindle. Smashwords then sends them out to Kobo, Nook, Sony or readers can download a HTML or PDF files. I've even been getting royalties. Wow who would have thought it a couple of years ago that the average author could now get royalties instead of rejection letters or be an indentured servant of print on demand!
I'm hoping to have the second part of Fan Plan and Vanders ready for publishing by the end of December so I can get serious about Stephanus (my sequel to Optimus).
That is if my client doesn't tie me up with legal work or I get takers on digitally archiving.
Where's this coming from?  I ran into fellow teachers at a Mickey D's yesterday and they asked if I was getting by on retirement. I handed them my card with pmprescottenterprises.com on it and said, "Check it out and see how I'm doing."

4 comments:

Unknown said...

You are certainly on the right path with your writing, P M. I am told by friends who write that they devote hours every day to their projects and avoid checking e-mail because they are so single minded about their books. I am very much like the Boeing 787--late on delivering a manuscript. So, my hats off to you!!!

P M Prescott said...

Being retired helps.

Yogi♪♪♪ said...

You are here there and everywhere. My dream retirement is to be busy, on my own terms.

P M Prescott said...

The key is to keep busy doing what you like.