My Writing Journey: So Many Threads, 1/13/2019

In my last entry, I explained that last week was not super productive. I accomplished a few things, sure, but they weren’t very tangible. I decided to fix that problem this weekend and put my nose to the grindstone. Let’s take a look at my current reading list.

[Slowly, but surely, I’ll make it through these.]

What you’re looking at there is an NRSV translation of the Bible, three critical introductions to the New Testament (one conservative, one moderate, and one skeptical), and a collection of the works of Edgar Allan Poe. This weekend, I picked through three of those five works and took some notes, although I’ve been bouncing around between all of those books recently.

Why am I digging through these tomes? Well, I’m not sure if you’re aware of this, but the New Testament (NT) is complex, and I think some critical guides help in analyzing that complexity. For now, I’m focusing only on the Gospels. It would take too much space to explain in detail what I’m working on, but basically, it’s research for a writing project. This is the ambitious effort I mentioned in my last post.

I also had a new idea for a short story series. The ideas aren’t exactly new, but I finally found a way to work them into some fiction. I completed two chapters in the last three days (although they probably still need a bit of work). I have at least six more chapters in mind (all of them around 2000 words, I hope). Despite the quick writing at the beginning, I think this project is going to take some time. I’m hoping by mid-February or early March I can have something I’m satisfied with.

I had another short story that I’ve mentioned previously. At around 4000 words, I ran into trouble trying to sort out a plot transition, so that work is unfortunately on hold for now. It started out as a Southern Gothic piece, inspired by some of my favorite writings. But it definitely had a horror element to it, which I think I owe to @dirge’s work. Then, inspired by the terror in @birddroppings’s works, I realized that maybe I could work in something with the creepiness of technology. Finally, while on a run one day a week or so ago, the last line of the work hit me like God just dropped it out of the sky and into my head. I mentally reworked it for the last third of a mile or so of my run, and when I got home, I went straight to the computer to write it down. Now I have to figure out how to get from point A to B. It’ll come to me eventually.

Lastly, I’ve got some @bananafish stuff to work on this week. I don’t know if I’ll have time to finish all of it, but I’ll do my best. That’s going to keep me fairly busy, but it’s a really exciting project. Soon, soon. I’m looking forward to sharing it with you all.

Until then, take care, dear readers.