Tools for Writing Anytime

Word, Scrivener, Pen and Paper, or E-mail.  

Since I've been writing, I've used several different tools to get the job done.  Even though days come and go without too many words written, I have found that I can be pretty consistent, getting several hundred words a day even on hectic days.  It's not always easy, but with a little creativity and flexibility, it can be done.

When I started to write everyday, the software of choice was Microsoft Word.  It's a good program, used by many and it was already on my computer, so it was a no-brainer for me.  It worked good for a while, but there was another program out there that I had been hearing a lot about. It sounded great, and I wanted to try it out for myself.

That software was Scrivener.  The things that I had heard on podcasts and read on blogs turned out to be absolutely true.  Scrivener is my knew favorite writing software.  It has so much functionality that it's a little scary.  All I'm doing with it right now is typing away, but there is so much more there.  A tutorial is there to get you in on all the good stuff, but everything looked so good that I just dove right in, unable to contain myself until the end if the tutorial.  I need to go completely through that thing sometime, but as it is, I'm happy, even if I'm not getting the full benefit of the software.  That's how good it is.

I do have a problem with Scrivener though.  That problem is one of mobility.  Having your computer with you is a must with Scrivener, just like it is with Word.  That's not always a possibilty for many of us.  There's always low tech ways to go though.  Pen and paper is a go to that I've used many times away from home or computer or both.  Pen and paper is great.  It is relaxing to just sit and write, watching the ink flow onto the page.  It's a real refreshing way to get some writing done.

There's a problem with pen and paper too though. My big problem with it is that, when I put something that I really like down on paper, I then have to transfer it to digital to really work with it.  That can be a pain, but it can be worth it if it means capturing something good.  And besides, you can use that time typing your work in as the first editing pass, and that's a win in my book.

The latest thing that I've been using to get my daily writing in is e-mail.  Smartphones are everywhere these days.  There's a good chance that you are reading this on one right now.  Well, when you get done reading this, you can open up an e-mail, address it to yourself, and start your story.  It's easy and it's with you wherever you go.  I have several drafts addressed to me right now.  The only problem I've found with this method so far, is that if an e-mail gets too large, it may not save right and you could loose those words.  It's happened to me twice, and it sucked, so be careful until you figure out how large an e-mail your carrier can handle.  With Gmail it's pretty large, but it can happen.  When I lost parts of my story, I was over 3
0 chapters in. Sorry, I don't have a word count on that though, so just be aware and keep an eye out for missing words.

Writing can be tough. It takes time and effort that many can't or won't ever understand. There are ways to keep going though. Even when it gets rough and hectic out there and you're short on sleep, you can keep writing.  However you write, wherever you write, keep writing.  Good luck out there, and write on!

A Week of Movies

It's not unlike us to head out to the movie theater on the weekends.  We like to watch a movie in the theater and on a normal weekend,  Friday is our night.  There are weeks that we don't make it, for one reason or another, but that was definitely not the case this week.  This week, instead of our somewhat routine movie on a Friday night, we ended up at the theater four times.  We watched Spy, Insidious: Chapter 3, San Andreas, and last but not least, Jurassic World.

Spy was really good.  I've never been one to take in a lot of comedies in the theater, going for the bigger budget special effects flicks instead, but Spy did not disappoint.  We laughed through the whole movie and left the theater feeling good about the money spent.

The next night, we were back at the theater, with a much different experience in mind.  Insidious: Chapter 3 was the first movie in the Insidious series that I had ever seen.  As it turns out, that's okay as Chapter 3 is actually a prequel to the first two movies, so you can go see this one without having to worry about watching the first two if you haven't already seen them.  It was a pretty good movie, with lots of suspense throughout, if not all out scares.  If you like creepy, suspenseful movies, this might just be what you're looking for.

The next night, it seemed that we weren't going to make it back to the theater, but we did manage to make it to a late movie.  San Andreas was, I thought, your average, run of the mill disaster movie, complete with several chuckle worthy moments.  That's the thing that kills me about these movies.  They seem to take themselves so seriously, but then they throw in a scene that is just so unrealistic, it makes you laugh.  San Andreas was the worst movie we saw all week, but it really wasn't that bad.  I would save it for a Netflix night if I had it to do over again though.

Jurassic World came out just yesterday, and though we missed opening night, we knew that we wanted to go check this movie out.  When we did get to the theater this morning, Jurassic World did not disappoint.  It was everything that Jurassic Park was twenty years ago, amped up with new special effects for a new generation.  Jurassic World was the best movie we saw all week, entertaining from start to finish.  The dinosaurs looked great and the special effects were, for lack of a better word, special.  If you're looking for a movie to go see this week, Jurassic World would be my recommendation.

I'm not sure what this next week will hold for me.  We may be back at the movies, depending on what's coming out.  If that happens, I'll let you know what I think of it.  See you then.

Neglect

I've neglected this platform for some time now.   For several reasons I guess.  The biggest of those is that I can't imagine that I have that much to say that anyone would really care about.  People like to read what experts in certain fields have to say about their craft.  I'm not an expert in any field.

What I am is a guy that decided a little over two years ago to write every single day, and so far I've managed that.  At least 250 words a day with the with the help of The Magic Spreadsheet, I've managed well over 700 days and counting so far.  I'm still logging my words on the spreadsheet today.  It's been quite the ride.

Then last summer, the Writing Challenge group started on Twitter.  They were doing 500 words a day and I was in.  That lasted for a while.  Several months anyway, increasing my productivity and my skills as a writer.  There were a lot of short stories written in that couple of months.  A few that were sent of to various magazines or websites and were rejected in turn.  That's okay though.  Rejections are part of this game and I expected as much even if I did have high hopes while sending out my stories.

My daily goal to write now, is 300 words.  There are days that yield more, but very, very few, that ever yield less.  It's hard to say the last time I settled for 250 words.  300 words just works for me and when I'm feeling it, I can keep going.  Those are good days!

So, while I've neglected this blog, I've not neglected my writing.  I hope to send some more stuff out at some point.  This game is persistence.  All I can do is write and write, work on my craft, and try to get better.  When that happens, I'll get something picked up by one of those magazines or websites, and I'll let you know about it right here. In the meantime, I'll try to give some more updates here and be more accountable.  I've not been good at that in the past, so we'll just have to see how it goes.  Until next time, have fun out there!