How-To Writing Books

Greetings All!

Today I want to talk about a few writing books I've read recently that have jump-started my passion and creativity. These weren't books on writing outlines or characterization or such topics, though I've read my share of those, but more about the writing lifestyle and how to get more out of each writing session. Really, when you get right down to it, these are "self-help" writing books. 

I'm going to make this short. I'm not going to go over each one, but make a general note about my overall experience reading these books. I will link the main books I'm talking about at the bottom of this post, so you can check them out individually if you are so inclined. I will also say that, for the most part, I didn't agree with everything said in each book, but it doesn't matter. I got a few nuggets from each that I feel will help my writing career, so each was worth it. I'll list a few things I learned (or had reinforced) to better help some of you who might be, like me, floundering about a bit in the actual writing of a book.

First, I realize I need to actually schedule time to write. My writing schedule has been, for the most part, every day, but whenever I feel like it. Nope. I need to have a set time each day so my creative brain knows it's time to get, well, creative. For me, I've decided I want to spend at least one hour each day. Since my summer break is just about over, I've decided I'm going to set my alarm for 5 am each morning and write for a half-hour before getting ready for work. I will then take another half-hour before bed, probably at 8 pm, to finish up my hour. If my schedule allows it each day, I will get some writing time in, but no matter what, I'll have that hour in.

Next, I need to start writing during my writing time. Actual story words, not plotting and outlining words. I'm one of those who noodles with an idea for a while before getting it into an outline. Then I'd decide that outline needs to be revised before I can start my first draft. Maybe more than once. No longer. I need to get writing. If I don't know everything that's happening, so what? Have fun with it. I don't plan to go full "pantser," but I need to learn to trust my creative brain much more often. So often in my past writing life I would have the big outline and go off the rails anyway, meaning I'd need to spend more time fixing the outline after I made the story better by going off-script. Why waste time making such a detailed outline when my writing brain is up to the task to write a good story?

Finally, I learned some great tips about how to get unstuck when I get stuck (as will undoubtedly happen when everything isn't scripted out in advance). My favorite is to have a pad of paper next to my computer to freewrite for a few minutes about the problem, which should hopefully lead to a solution. Also, before that happens, I like the idea of writing a quick freewrite for a few minutes before the actual writing session about what I plan to write. It's not quite an outline, but it will still serve to get the creative brain working. Another idea I liked was the advice to simply write the next sentence. If it doesn't work, it's easy enough to get rid of, but the simple task of writing it can very well lead to the real words being unleashed. 

As I said, these books helped excite me for writing again. I had spent most of the summer plotting a book that I was starting to hate. I decided to spend some time reading instead, and I became invigorated. I decided it was time to jettison the book I was no longer excited about and start a new one with a new plan of attack. Will it ultimately get me out of my writing slump and help me finish a book for the first time in a long time? I hope so, and I plan on doing all I can so it's true. Of course, I will let you know how it works out! 

As promised, here are a few links to the books I found helpful. Like I said earlier, not everything in these sparked me, but enough points did that I had to share. I pulled out the tips I thought would help and ignored those that didn't. Hope some of this helped a few of you. And if not, I hope you enjoyed the post. Happy writing!

2,000 to 10,000: How to Write Faster, Write Better, and Write More of What You Love by Rachel Aaron

5,000 Words Per Hour: Write Faster, Write Smarter by Chris Fox

Lifelong Writing Habit: The Secret to Writing Every Day by Chris Fox

Writing Into the Dark: How to Write a Novel Without an Outline by Dean Wesley Smith

13th Birthday Wish

Hi there! I thought it would be fun to post a short piece of fiction so you have something by me to read. You can decide at the end if it's a fun YA story or a piece of horror. It's less than 1500 words, so it won't take you long to read. I'd love to hear what you think of it. Let me know in the comments below! Enjoy the story!

13th Birthday Wish

My thirteenth birthday party started out innocently enough. Mom and Dad did a great job of setting everything up. All my friends were there, along with everyone in my family, including those relatives I only saw on special occasions. There was even a bounce house shaped like a haunted castle. At first, my friends and I thought it was a stupid, baby thing for the party, but I’d be lying if I didn’t tell you we got hours of entertainment out of it.

Everything went great until the end of present time. My family pretty much all gave me cash and gift cards, which was awesome, while my friends got me goofy little trinkets, which was almost as cool. (Most were way cooler, but, come on, money!) After I opened my last card, this from my great Aunt Helen and Uncle Roger, and fished out the twenty bucks, my great-grandfather, Grand Pop-Pop Bob, motioned for me to come over so he could give me his gift.

“Sure, Pop-Pop,” I said as I pushed myself to my feet. Something felt off as soon as I started towards him. He sat not far away on the other end of the picnic table, but it felt as if I walked through miles of mud to get to him. I was so focused on him and what his present might be that I didn’t notice everyone else in the party not just go silent, but freeze altogether. Not like they were being still on their own, but as if time stopped.

“Sit down, slugger.” Pop-Pop patted the bench next to him.

Once seated, I expected him to hand me a package or envelope or something, but instead he looked me dead in the eyes. He didn’t say anything, not at first, but I knew not to hurry him. Not that I thought he’d get mad or anything, but Pop-Pop wore an air of authority I didn’t want to test.

“Thirteen is an important age in our family,” he said at last.

I nodded, not knowing where he was going with this. I had never heard of anything different happening to anyone when they turned thirteen. I wanted to look over to Mom or Dad to see if they had anything to add, but I didn’t dare break eye contact with Pop-Pop.

“When you reach thirteen, you are bestowed with a wish. A single wish with no limits. It’ll work exactly as you ask with no tricks. Except for a big one, but I’ll get to that in a second.”

All the tension drained out of me, and I laughed. “A wish, Pop-Pop? Come on, I’m not a kid anymore.”

He nodded and chortled his little laugh, the same he used whether he was humoring someone or if he found something truly funny. I figured for a second that he was laughing because I caught his joke so quickly, but the humor never reached his eyes. No, those remained dead serious.

“You’re not a kid, which is why I’m giving you this today. In fact, you can’t get it any other time except for the day of your thirteenth birthday. It’s why I insisted there be a big party.”

“This was your idea?”

He nodded. “A wish. One with unlimited power. You can use it today, or you can horde it until you’re on your deathbed. Either way or any in between is up to you.”

“So I can wish for a billion dollars right now? Or an unlimited number of wishes?” I gave him a grin, but it faltered when he nodded.

“Yeah. Well, not until our conversation ends, but I hope you won’t. Which leads me to the big drawback of the wish.”

I tried to stifle an eye-roll and sigh. This had to be a joke, right? Or was Pop-Pop off his meds? I didn’t know then if Pop-Pop was actually on meds (he wasn’t), but I figured he had to be. I’d never heard any stories of him being a prankster, so unless this was a first, I knew something had to have eaten away his mind. What other explanation was there?

“The reason you don’t wish for something tangible is as soon as the wish comes true and is complete, you die. Just like that.”

“So you haven’t used yours?” I wasn’t sure if I was actually curious or just humoring Pop-Pop.

“No, I did. I followed the advice of my own Pop-Pop, which is what I hope you’ll do.”

I kept my mouth shut. I didn’t want to offend Pop-Pop, I really didn’t, despite how crazy he sounded.

He smiled and shook his head. Here it came, the big reveal that he was staging a big prank. Instead, Pop-Pop said, “I know you think I’m pulling your leg. I thought the same thing when I was in your shoes, but this is a legitimate thing. Legit, I think you kids say.”

“I don’t know, Pop-Pop,” I said, though I still bit. “How did you use your wish?”

Pop-Pop’s smile grew. “I wished for a long and happy life. Long enough to pass the family gift off to my youngest great-grandson. And here we are.”

“So are you going to kick the bucket right after this talk?” I still couldn’t take this seriously.

To his credit, Pop-Pop chortled. “Maybe I will, son, maybe I will. Thanks to my wish, though, I’ve never been sick a day in my life, at least after I wished it, so I may stick around another decade or two. You never know. I sure don’t.”

This was the first time I looked around and saw that everyone had indeed frozen. It freaked me out a little bit (or a lot), and I stood. Pop-Pop’s hand shot out and he gripped my upper arm with more strength than I thought he had in him.

“Don’t take this lightly,” he said, his voice low. “If you use it like I did, it’s a gift, but if you let it fester in your mind, you’ll soon see it can be a curse. Some in the family have found other ways to use it for good, but as my own Pop-Pop told me, this way is best. That’s all I’ll say on the subject. Happy birthday.”

I’m not ashamed to admit I was more than a little creeped out, so I murmured a thanks and backed away. I didn’t notice anything on the way back to my spot, but when I plopped down, everything around snapped back to normal. I looked over to Pop-Pop and saw him talking to Auntie Ruth as if our little conversation had never happened. He glanced over at me and smiled, but with nothing in it that spoke anything of the past couple of minutes. That was doubly weird. Either he was a great actor, or I might want to consider heading in to see the school psychiatrist.

Mom came up behind me and said, “Nice haul, huh?”

“Yeah,” I said. “How long was I talking to Pop-Pop?”

She frowned. “What do you mean? Other than when you said hello to him earlier, I haven’t seen you anywhere near Pop-Pop.”

I opened my mouth to argue, but the look on her face proved I may not need to seek out the school’s psychiatrist; she and Dad might find one for me. Instead, I shrugged, not sure how to cover that up.

“Are you okay, Daniel?” she asked. “What is this about Pop-Pop?”

Without thinking, I said, “I wish I hadn’t said anything.”

Two things happened simultaneously. First, I watched Mom’s worry fade away. And second…well, that was it. Everything went blank, and then I hovered above my body and the party. I couldn’t hear anything, but I could see it all. Mom opened her mouth to scream, and everyone else turned, looked to see me slumped over, and panicked. Only Pop-Pop didn’t look at my body, but instead right at my spirit, my soul, my ghost. Or whatever. Though I couldn’t hear him, I didn’t need to be a lip reader to understand what he said.

“Dang fool idjut.”

Introduction...4 Years Later

Hello!

I've decided to restart this blog. Mostly because the bones are here. I started this blog in 2015 for my Steampunk and Weird West writing, but life took me on a different journey. I originally picked the name Horatio Hexx because I thought it was a cool Steampunk and Weird West name, but I still love it as an author name. I think it'll look cool on book covers, especially the horror and dark fantasy I plan to write.

I don't plan to blog much, but I do have things I'd like to post. In the future, when I'm starting to publish short stories or novels (either through the traditional route or self-pubbing through Amazon, I haven't decided yet), I want to use this space for some promotion. And in the meantime, I plan to post flash fiction so you can get a taste of my writing. My goal is to post one a week for the next couple of months while I have my summer off, and then every so often after that. I'm going to use it as writing practice, and I hope some of you enjoy the reads!

There's not much more to say at this point. I will post the links to this blog on my Twitter account, so you can follow me there to be up to date. See you soon, and thanks for reading!

Completed Serial

My supernatural steampunk adventure, The Power of Steam Compels You, has been completed. It ended up being 13 chapters, and you can read it from the beginning here. I hope you give it a look, and I'd love to hear what you think, either right here on the comments, or over on the comments where the story is published. Thanks!

The Power of Steam Compels You

I want to apologize for the week break I took in my serial, The Power of Steam Compels You. That dreaded reality of real life got in the way of Zephyria for a while, but we're back and running now. You can head over to Adventures from Zephyria right now to give the newest chapter a look! I hope you are enjoying the supernatural steampunk adventure!

Not Many Limits on Steampunk

Before I start, if you aren't quite sure what steampunk is, give it a quick look in your search engine of choice. There is already a ton of helpful information on the genre/lifestyle. Today I'm simply offering my opinion.

The thing I like most about the genre/lifestyle of steampunk is that there are very few rules. The overall scene is very accepting. You might be more into the gaslamp scene, or dieselpunk might be your thing, but overall, you can call it steampunk and be right. (Again, Google is your friend if you're not sure what those and other subgenres are.)

Of course, you can't simply glue gears on something or put on a pair of goggles and say it's steampunk. (Well, the great thing is, you probably can!) You really should research what has come before and go from there. After you know more about it, however, you can pretty much do anything you want in the genre. From ancient alternate history, to pure Victorian Steampunk, and far forward to Future Dystopian Steampunk, the world is your oyster!

So, my point being? Simply as I said. Whatever your interest in steampunk, you aren't confined by many rules. Find the basics, and you can basically go anywhere - past, present, or future. If you want to be a steampunk, do it however you like, and you're doing it correctly. I love that about the movement!

So what do you think? Do you agree with me, or am I being far too general in my view? I'd love to hear from you in the comments!

Writing Prompt #1

I love writing prompts. They're excellent for writing practice, creating short stories, and even sometimes unlocking a key point in a longer work that you just couldn't make right. Because of this, I want to occasionally post writing prompts here. Use them however you like. There is no need to credit me with whatever you come up with. Writing prompts are simply ideas, so any stories or plots you come up with are fully yours. 

With that being said, here is the first writing prompt. Of course it has a steampunk bent to it, but use it for whatever genre you like. (Note that I say "you" in the prompt, but, of course, this means your character.) Have fun with it, and I'll see you in the aether! 

Prompt #1:
You're walking along the beach when you see a bottle with some sort of parchment stuffed inside. You investigate and find it's a schematic to create a fantastic machine. There is also a short note. What sort of machine is it, and what does the note say? Does it lead you on an adventure that only the fully-built and functional contraption can help you conquer? Or does it leave you with a moral dilemma about the possible uses of the machine? Or does it say something else entirely?