tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33824560.post115734854142556777..comments2024-01-29T17:34:57.576-07:00Comments on A Blister to My Eye: Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08274485227373284224noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33824560.post-1157427897330524702006-09-04T21:44:00.000-06:002006-09-04T21:44:00.000-06:00anonymous,Thank you for your kind words about thos...anonymous,<BR/><BR/>Thank you for your kind words about those two ancient books of mine. You're in rare company, since few people have read those, especially the Green God. And the essays on the Web site, which I have a ball doing.<BR/><BR/>Years ago, I started keeping a journal of the type you describe, but I never could keep it going. I'm finding this much more satisfying, so far.Davidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08274485227373284224noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33824560.post-1157427708409874372006-09-04T21:41:00.000-06:002006-09-04T21:41:00.000-06:00Helen,Thanks. I sometimes wish I had kept some ki...Helen,<BR/><BR/>Thanks. I sometimes wish I had kept some kind of record over the years. Being a techie guy by training, I could put all the numbers in a spreadsheet and generate graphs and stuff like that. Which would tell me nothing and would not contribute to making progress on the current novel, but I could put all of that on my Web site, or here, and it would look really nifty.<BR/><BR/>Ho, ho, about the words here not counting towards the non-blistering. Yesterday, after I did the work to set up this blog and wrote the first post, I felt proud of myself and felt I'd really accomplished something. Then I had to remind myself that the novel was still at the same point as before.Davidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08274485227373284224noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33824560.post-1157403174410774482006-09-04T14:52:00.000-06:002006-09-04T14:52:00.000-06:00David, I think this is a great idea! I do somethin...David, I think this is a great idea! <BR/><BR/>I do something similar to keep myself on target with other tasks and goals, even very mundane things like doing housework and exercising. <BR/><BR/>This is how it works for me: I keep a simple, factual dairy. Every night, I briefly record things like what housework I did that day, how much exercise I did, what e-mails I sent, even whether I ate healthily that day. Knowing that I am going to record these things truthfully every night gives me more willpower to stay on track. (I don't need to write about my work. That's the same old stuff almost every day.)<BR/><BR/>Naturally, my diary does not compare to a writer's output log, but I wanted to let you know that other people do similar things, and that I think your idea is a good one.<BR/><BR/>Good luck to you! I'll be checking in from time to time to see how you're doing. Please keep those keen eyes blister-free! :-)<BR/><BR/>By the way, I'll be eager to read both the new books when they come out. I'm actually a fan of yours from way back in the 1970s, when I first read The Children of Shiny Mountain and The Green God. I think your versatility is amazing. I like your humor most of all. <BR/><BR/>I love the essays on your website, too, especially the political stuff. There are lots of us out here in Blogland who agree with you. <BR/><BR/>A.H.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33824560.post-1157400865437129132006-09-04T14:14:00.000-06:002006-09-04T14:14:00.000-06:00Hi David,I saw your link on TalkLeft and thought I...Hi David,<BR/><BR/>I saw your link on TalkLeft and thought I'd check out your blog. I am a writer too. So far the stuff I've been paid for is mainly scriptwriting, but I have also written some articles. I am working on a novel. The novel is my second, but the first is (and in all probability will remain) unpublished due to it being based on a true story.<BR/><BR/>I have found keeping a record of what I've written invaluable and have been doing it for several years. I tend to use word count as my measure. It just works best for me. I have many quirks and one of them is liking round numbers, so I can often convince myself to keep writing until I reach one (you can laugh now because, yes, you're right, I hardly ever hit a figure on the nail and at times I have even convinced myself to keep working to get to the next round figure. Deeply sad, but true). I also have many other commitments and so am unable to write full time, so I can say to myself, 'Just see if you can fit a couple of hundred words in while the kids are watching their TV programme' or whatever and that is achievable.<BR/><BR/>The word count record works in two ways. Firstly, I can't kid myself that I've done some work if the figures say otherwise. If I haven't reached my target, it's back to the keyboard until I do. However the other benefit is that some days writing is like pulling teeth and I feel that I haven't done much at all when in fact the word count record shows I've done a lot - it was just difficult!<BR/><BR/>I shall definitely be checking out your blog in the future although you should know this: anything you write in it does not go towards your word count that day;)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33824560.post-1157385510482268582006-09-04T09:58:00.000-06:002006-09-04T09:58:00.000-06:00Test comment. Or frist, as they say on the politi...Test comment. Or frist, as they say on the political blogs.Davidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08274485227373284224noreply@blogger.com