Adam Israel » progress http://www.adamisrael.com An economy of words Wed, 01 Feb 2012 16:00:27 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 Draft Zero http://www.adamisrael.com/blog/2011/04/28/draft-zero/ http://www.adamisrael.com/blog/2011/04/28/draft-zero/#comments Thu, 28 Apr 2011 04:55:09 +0000 Adam http://www.adamisrael.com/?p=449 I didn’t reach my original estimate of 5,000 words but this draft is done.

Project: Motown Blues (tentative)
New words written: 811
Reason for stopping: End of story

No matter how much I outline and plan, these stories tend to take on a life of their own once I get started. The voice fluctuates until it finds its pace and pitch. Tangents emerge, sidetrack, and must be wrestled into submission. I like what this is shaping up to be. Like painting, the next steps are to refine the edges, fix the flaws, and add depth to bring it to life. 18 days til deadline.

 

]]> http://www.adamisrael.com/blog/2011/04/28/draft-zero/feed/ 2 What do you mean, fifteen minutes *each*? http://www.adamisrael.com/blog/2011/04/24/what-do-you-mean-fifteen-minutes-each/ http://www.adamisrael.com/blog/2011/04/24/what-do-you-mean-fifteen-minutes-each/#comments Mon, 25 Apr 2011 01:48:11 +0000 Adam http://www.adamisrael.com/?p=447 I missed a couple days of writing last week, which included a day spent trying to get fingerprints taken for immigration and ended up with an appointment one week out. Who knew that fingerprint technology had advanced beyond ink pads? One set for Ontario, and a set each for the FBI and State of Illinois to request my records. The saga, she continues.

My Illinois driving records have been received by Mom and will soon be on their way here. Soon, I’ll be able to get an Ontario drivers license and then we can start the car shopping. I’m researching the Ford Focus, Mazda 3 hatchback, and the Dodge Caliber. A nice compact with good gas milage should do us well.

Project: Motown Blues
New words written: 599
Reason for stopping: family obligations

Two and a half scenes to go. I’ll wrap this draft in a few days and get hustling on the first revision. Between now and May 15th, when it’s due, I’ll end up with three or four revised drafts. There’s good guts in this here story. I just need to tease them out and make them pretty.

]]> http://www.adamisrael.com/blog/2011/04/24/what-do-you-mean-fifteen-minutes-each/feed/ 0 Armed with a palm full of spit and vigor http://www.adamisrael.com/blog/2010/10/10/armed-with-a-palm-full-of-spit-and-vigor/ http://www.adamisrael.com/blog/2010/10/10/armed-with-a-palm-full-of-spit-and-vigor/#comments Sun, 10 Oct 2010 09:53:48 +0000 Adam http://www.adamisrael.com/?p=292 Project: Sex/magic story, now with more poly love, a plump dominatrix, a Chicago swinger’s club, and one pissed off magician.
New words written: 1,210
Reason for stopping: End of scene

One more scene left before I can make draft, so I’m on target to wrap this up by the end of the weekend. Today’s been upside down thanks to insomnia but I don’t mind the word count. It’ll be nice to get back to regular sleep schedule, though.

]]> http://www.adamisrael.com/blog/2010/10/10/armed-with-a-palm-full-of-spit-and-vigor/feed/ 0 Week 4 coughs up a lung http://www.adamisrael.com/blog/2010/02/02/week-4-coughs-up-a-lung/ http://www.adamisrael.com/blog/2010/02/02/week-4-coughs-up-a-lung/#comments Wed, 03 Feb 2010 02:07:59 +0000 Adam http://www.adamisrael.com/?p=195 Week 4 ended on a bit of a downer. I’d been doing well, writing a bit each day but the streak came to an end. I drafted two short stories and three flash fiction. I started a fourth but it wasn’t ready to be told. Instead of forcing it, I skipped a day.

Somewhere along the way, I caught a nice little cold/flu, was diagnosed with some vitamin deficiencies (insert scurvy joke here, matey) and started a few new prescribed drugs. Needless to say, it’s taken a toll on my energy levels. Falling asleep at 9pm and sleeping for 11 hours is definitely not what I would call my normal. Hopefully the worst of this will pass in a few days.

My goals throughout February are slightly changed (I’ll update my goals list when I have more energy). So named by Andrea, February is now Type Edit Polish Submit (TEPS) month. Type up draft zero and whip it into shape, clean it up, and send it to market. This should be good practice for me. Writing first drafts is easy; I have twenty of them in that state. Editing is the hard work and the thing I need the most work at.

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