Tag: Poetry

Blogs, Creative Writing, Uncategorized

Speaking on Rain, Writing, Loss, and Hope

R. H. W. Dorsey

Deer outside on 062019

Speaking on Rain, Writing, Loss, and Hope

As the month of June 2019 is nearing its end, I’m wondering how Spring passed by so fast. I remember the rain, rain, and more rain most of this year. I wanted to make sure it wasn’t my imagination we’d had a very wet year in southwestern Pennsylvania. Effortless research online led me to this recent article written by a local meteorologist. I can’t say I was surprised at the precipitation level reported. The article* informs my region had precipitation on 72.5% of the days this year. That figure doesn’t include the fifteen days since the article was published. There’s been even more rain since that time. I need to mention today’s forecast shows three of the next four days with rain. I’ll leave any complaining right here as I acknowledge other areas in my country experiencing worse rain. There were massive flooding events around the world and here in my country over the past months. Lives were lost. I don’t make the mistake of forgetting I’m blessed. I took a snapshot recently of the grass and trees outside my door after a rain (featured above). If you look carefully at the beautiful green scenery, you’ll see a visitor behind the fence spying on me. 😊

With the beginning of Summer starting this past weekend, I feel 2019 slipping away fast. Working on multiple writing projects were the things occupying my time in this second quarter. Daily, weekly and monthly writing goals are a welcome part of my life. What I enjoy most is sharing this journey with like-minded writers and readers. The Twitter #WritingCommunity is filled with supportive writers and readers. A recent Twitter non-scientific poll I ran had 75% of the respondents as solely fiction writers. I’m in the minority 20% that write both nonfiction and fiction. I’m still working on finding my true audience. My style is eclectic like me. I believe finding the happy medium between doing what one loves, caring for yourself, and attending to those you love can be tricky. At this point in my life it’s important I focus on all things that bring me joy.

The past year brought the passing of family members and friends. These losses are happening more frequently than ever. The deaths notifications remind me of my mortality. As I get older, I cherish the personal relationships of family and friends more. My faith keeps me grounded with a peace I wouldn’t trade for anything. My hope is to live every day grateful for the offerings life presents.

Do It

Go ahead and eat the cookie.
Go a little over budget.
Watch the mindless reality show.
Laugh at yourself.
Gaze at the moon.
Cheer loudly for your team.
Hold your loved one’s hand often.
Hug your family every chance you get.
Cherish your friends.
Love fiercely without regret.
Say “I love you” out loud.
Life is a moment long.

© Copyright 2018 R.H.W. Dorsey from “Second Act Writings: An Eclectic Poetry & Prose Collection.” 

 

 

* https://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2019/06/10/pittsburgh-weather-2019-rain-how-much/

 

 

 

Think It’s Rained A Lot In Pittsburgh This Year? You’re Right

Blogs, Creative Writing, Uncategorized

Non-scientific Writing Community Polls on Twitter

R. H. W. Dorsey
person dropping paper on box
Photo by Element5 Digital on Pexels.com

 

I enjoy Twitter polls and can hardly resist scrolling past them (no matter the subject). There’s something about being part of a poll that I just dig. (I’m a Boomer). I thought it would be interesting to get an idea of what writers think, feel, use in their craft, etc. For the last five weeks, I’ve polled the #WritingCommunity on things that piqued my curiosity. I participated in the polls, as well. The writing and publishing processes are dynamic, and I wanted to see what’s fresh. Some of the polls I ran had only a handful of responses – but some data is better than none. Of course, since this is a ‘non-scientific’ poll, the results are technically misleading. I could even go so far to say some responses may have been for sport (see the poll on 3-12-19 below).  At the present time, I’m content being a part of the #WritingCommunity on Twitter.

 

TWITTER WRITING COMMUNITY NON-SCIENTIFIC POLL

(Total votes are listed after polling data)

  • 2/21/19: Writers, how often does your WIP change genres?
    • 36% Sometimes; 18% Always; 46% Never (11 votes)
  • 2/22/19: How much time do you spend reading books every day?
    • 25% Less than 1 hour; 50% 1-2 hours; 0% 3-4 hours; 25% Over 4 hours (4 votes)
  • 2/28/19: Novelists, do you create an outline for your novel?
    • 36% Always; 27% Never; 37% Sometimes (11 votes)
  • 3/1/19: What writing software are you using, if any?
    • 30% Scrivener; 41% Word; 20% Google Docs; 9% Other (44 votes)
  • 3/6/19: Have you ever completely revamped your WIP before publishing?
    • 75% Many times; 25% Once or Twice; 0% Never (4 votes)
      • (I’m filing under questions just stupid enough to ask)
  • 3/12/19: Have you ever taken an online writing course?
    • 64% No; 18% Yes; 9% I’m a Genius; 9% Currently taking a course (11 votes)
      • (I’d love to meet the geniuses one day)
  • 3/16/19: What are you currently writing?
      • 80% Genre fiction; 13% Literary Fiction; 7% Other (15 votes)
  • 3/20/19: Are you planning a book launch?
    • 60% Not sure; 30% No; 10% In Progress (10 votes)
  • 3/26/19: What to do when writing and losing focus?
    • Total 39 votes: 31% Exercise; 23% TV; 31% Read; 15% Other (39 votes)
  • 3/30/19: Which of the 4 genres would you buy a book?
    • 41% Literary; 0% Nonfiction; 7% Poetry; 52% Crime (27 votes)

Tweet comments were posted on some polls (summarized below)

  • 2/21/19 Poll: “…while it might change, it’s never too far from where it started.”
  • 3/1/19 Poll: Other writing software noted in poll comments: New Novelist; OpenOffice; Zenwriter; Hemingway; Grammarly.
  • 3/26/19 Poll: Activities when losing focus noted in poll comments: watch videos; housework; write something else; nap; physically move to a new space to write.
  • 3/30/19 Poll: I purposely used the four categories of my personal interest in this poll. Two people commented:
    • Sci-Fi
    • Crime Fiction and a split between contemporary Lit.

 

What did I learn? I learned that I was almost always in the lower percentage of the polls. I embrace being different so very much!

What was I surprised by? 64% of those that answered had never taken an online writing course – I’m one of the 64% (the only poll where I was with the majority).

As much as the poll was unscientific, it helped me interact with the writing community.

 

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END OF NATIONAL NOVEL WRITING MONTH

R. H. W. Dorsey

Every-Accomplishment-760x500

Congratulations to everyone that took the NaNoWriMo and Write Nonfiction in November Challenge. It was grueling at times for me but worth well worth the effort. So, congrats to all that participated.

I personally wrote more words this month than I’ve ever written on one single project in this amount of time. That’s a huge accomplishment for me considering I’ve mostly done short stories and poetry. My non-fiction novel written in November included every bit of information about the events I felt necessary. However, I didn’t reach my word-count goal for full novel length. I’m giving this one an “incomplete” on the basis I said I’d do forty to fifty thousand words and didn’t. The book may end up as a novella in the end. With that said, my goal of a full-length novel may have been unrealistic considering the topic. Including content not needed for the sake of a word count didn’t work on this one for me. Unlike fiction, there was nothing to make up or embellish. However, a loss is a loss and I’ll own up to it.

I have a decent first draft and now the fun of re-drafting, proofreading and editing will begin. I’ll tell you a secret: I love the proofreading and editing part – it’s fun for me. The professional help will come much later in this process.

I’m taking a breather for a few days then it’s back to writing in December. Does this writing thing ever stop? I hope not.  😊

Going forward, I hope to refocus my blog on other stuff going on in the world around me.

…until next time!

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CRUNCH TIME! National Novel Writing Month

R. H. W. Dorsey

keep-calm-its-crunch-time-12

It’s not lost on me that I’m not alone. The holidays are difficult to keep most time-sensitive commitments. I must research and find out who decided to make National Novel Writing Month in November. Was it because of the “N’s”, I wonder? In any case, I’m behind on my word count goal. However, I’m not so behind that I can’t make it to my goal if I hustle. Also, there’s a push by writing coaches, editors and other industry folks to get their products this month. It’s probably the best time of the year to market. I’d do it if I were them. Well played coaches, editors, and agents.

At the beginning of the month, I blogged about all the projects I was working on and hadn’t a prayer of finishing. I was wrong. I’m on track with the poetry challenge, and the flash fiction stories. The memoir is finished and published on Amazon and Kindle. The short story was submitted to an online contest. Sadly, the full-length novel suffered.

All is not lost. I have approximately twenty-six hours and eighteen minutes left to finish (give or take a few minutes depending on when I finish typing this entry). I won’t get any prize for finishing. I’ll know I can do this, and that’s worth more than any certificate I could earn.

By the way, my Steelers lost yesterday to the Broncos 17-24. Ben, why did you play action fake to the wrong guy? I know you owned up to it – good job. But wow.

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Pittsburgh Steelers defeat Jaguars

R. H. W. Dorsey

football helmet picNeglecting my love: Football

 

I realized a few weeks ago that I’ve neglected my favorite pastime this month: Football. It’s not just football, in general, it’s Steeler Football. It’s hard to grow up in Pittsburgh without being a fan of at least one sports team. Most people I know are fans of the at least one of our professional teams. A great majority of those folks are fans of the big three: Steelers, Penguins, and Pirates. There’s no gender politics where Steeler football is concerned in my town. Plenty female Steelers fans have bled black and gold since they were able to speak. Literally, the baby clothes section at the Pro shops in town gets frequented plenty. It’s hard to go on social media during a season to not see someone’s post of a baby or small child in miniature sports gear. It’s a beautiful thing.

I’ve loved everything Steeler since Mean Joe Green came to my school so many years ago. At the young age of 11, Joe Green was the largest man I’d ever seen in person next to Muhammad Ali a year or two before. I’m no fair-weather fan and I have been known to perform my ritual each Steeler game.

Now to the neglect: This is National November Writing Month. I took on multiple writing projects (by choice) and spend most waking hours writing poems, short fiction or devoting time to my novel. Semi-retirement is great as I make writing a new career – slowly but surely. I’m behind on current events in the local and national news. I hadn’t realized the Steelers were on a winning streak at the present time (I hope I’m not jinxing them). I did, however, get to see the last few plays of the game today with Jacksonville. The Steelers defeated Jacksonville 20-16. So, we’re having a good season and I’m missing most of the games. It’s fine if they keep up the good work!

Besides, I’ll have multiple poems and stories written to put into a compilation and a jump on that novel. 😊

Break’s over!