Tag: writing

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.

 

Blogs, Uncategorized

National Clam Chowder Day

R. H. W. Dorsey

seashells in a bag

Photo by julie aagaard on Pexels.com

 

Today, January 25th is National Clam Chowder Day. I promised on a blog post last year that I’d revisit the subject of National Days. Better late than never, I always say. The 25th of February is also National Chocolate Covered Nut Day. I prefer chocolate covered nuts much more than clam chowder, but I learned clam chowder was a more interesting subject.

Are you aware that clam chowder has over nine variations? I mean, who knew? Maybe clam chowder lovers were aware, but not I. Not being a huge clam chowder fan, I can say that I’ve eaten clam chowder at times throughout the years. As a child and into adulthood, I only knew about two types of clam chowder: Manhattan and New England. I always preferred the Manhattan chowder for its tomato base and flavor.

Why does clam chowder deserve a special day? While I can’t answer the question, I believe the issue is not as subjective as I’d originally thought. National ‘Singles Awareness Day’ was observed just last week. If you’re single, aren’t you aware of it every day of the year? If you’re single by choice, shouldn’t you celebrate it every day? Maybe ‘National Singles Day’ would be a better term. Semantics, I know. National ‘Fun at Work Day’ is observed later this week. I wonder how many employers will buy into making the work day ‘fun’ for employees without sacrificing their bottom line? A day of fun at work is possible for some professions, though. When you consider there are ‘National Days’ slated for just about anything, naming a day for a chowder with multiple variations might be reasonable.

Besides New England and Manhattan clam chowder, I’ve read about variations of clam chowder named Rhode Island, Delaware, New Jersey, Hatteras, Minorcan, Long Island, and Puget Sound. It seems the different areas of the United States add or omit ingredients to the chowder, thus giving it a unique name that stuck with the region. While I won’t go into the details of all the variations, I found one interesting variation I’d like to try. Hatteras clam chowder is prepared with celery, carrots, potatoes, onions, and clam juice. My own favorite potato soup recipe has almost all the ingredients of the Hatteras variety, less the clam component.

If nothing else, clam chowder and its many varieties are interesting enough, in my opinion, to have a National Day observance.  My opinion counts – at least on this blog. Personally, as a writer, I’m looking forward to National Tell a Fairy Tale Day tomorrow.

If you like clam chowder, which one is your favorite, and why?

 

 

 

 

References:

https://www.homeandplate.com/blog/2015-2-hatteras-clam-chowder/

https://nationaldaycalendar.com/february/

https://www.ehow.com/info_8355520_different-kinds-clam-chowders.html

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Creative Writing, Uncategorized

Creativity While Writing

R. H. W. Dorsey
low angle view of lighting equipment on shelf
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

What spurs your creativity while writing?

 

Very often during my writing process, I take mini-breaks to update social media or read the news, etc. Today, a subject about music and writing came to mind.

Music has been an important part of my entire life. There’s something to the saying about music being the “soundtrack” of one’s life. Name me a few top ten songs on the ‘Pop’ charts during my childhood or young adulthood. I’ll probably be able to tell you what was going on in my life just by the mention of the songs’ title.

Sadly, music for the past decade or more hasn’t had too much of an impact on my memory retention. Almost exclusively now, I find myself listening to songs from twenty or more years ago.

Music gives me inspiration at the beginning, middle and end of my day. I thank my parents for always playing records and having music available during my early years. If ever I were on the proverbial desert island, I’d want an endless soundtrack of music to enjoy.

One of the MC’s in my current short story collection is thinking of The Carpenter’s song “Close to You” when she meets who she thinks is a potential love interest. I listened to the song for inspiration to help me along with the MC’s feelings at that moment.

At other times, I take a short walk outside just to breathe in fresh air and my stories are rejuvenated.

What inspires your creativity in the writing process?

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Uncategorized

Writing Rituals

R. H. W. Dorsey

Blog Pic_Writing Rituals_021019

I’ve read about writers who have very detailed and specific writing rituals. My rituals aren’t as detailed as I’ve heard others claim. I could probably imagine a space that would make my senses pop if I put more thought into the process. For now, what follows is my writing ritual at the present time.

I have space in my home where most of my writing gets done. The lighting is based on the time of day and how I’m feeling. If I’m having a not-so-good morning, shades are closed, and the lights are set to low. When I’m raring to go, natural light and hydration are all I need. In the evenings, lights are set to as bright as possible. Due to various reasons my writing space needs to be mobile. The constants are my paper notepads, pen, pencil, laptop, electronic tablet, and a beverage.

Silence, while I’m writing, is now a must. Silence helps with my creativity and clears thoughts in my head. However, silence in my surroundings isn’t always possible. A frequent pre-writing ritual of mine is doing meditation. Guided meditation with audio files or silent meditation helps me start the day or clear my thoughts toward the end of the day. After meditation, I listen to a few of my favorite songs while I check email and update social media.

When I was younger and away at college, I could write an entire essay with music blaring all around. I know those days are gone forever. There’s enough mumbo jumbo going on inside my head without adding music to the mix.

I’ve changed habits over time and my current writing rituals will most likely change in some way going forward. I normally do what works for me at the present time.

What’s your writing ritual?

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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!

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NATIONAL NOVEL WRITING MONTH IS HERE!

R. H. W. Dorsey
macbook pro on desk
Photo by rawpixel.com on Pexels.com

NATIONAL WRITING MONTH – NOVEMBER 2018

It’s November 1st, the first day of writing, writing and more writing. In the past month, for whatever reason, I decided to ramp up on my writing. So, why not pick the busiest time of the year – the start of the holiday season?

Today, I’ve started participating in the ‘Write Nonfiction in November challenge, and the FlashNano 2018 challenge. Both projects are intended solely for the month of November. I’m also concurrently writing a non-fiction short story that needs to be done by mid-November. I shouldn’t forget the memoir proof copy I’m waiting for in the mail. The memoir requires one last look over before it’s published in a couple of weeks.

It may be surprising only to those who don’t love writing that I’m loving every minute of these writing challenges. Completing all the above projects would be amazing. I doubt it will happen though, but that’s okay. My goal is to get writing again. With that said, hopefully at least one or more of the projects will get done. Did I mention the poetry collection I’m working on as well? It’s said if something makes you happy, you don’t mind doing it. It’s true.

I probably don’t have the time to write in this blog today – but what the heck. I want to wish all of the National Writing month participants good luck and hope you meet all of your goals!

Coffee anyone?

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No Shortage of issues to BLOG about…

R. H. W. Dorsey

So, it’s been more than a minute since I’ve last posted on this blog. A couple of years have passed. The state of my life and this United States of America have changed. I don’t have any plans on which direction I’ll take by reviving this blog. It started out years ago as a cathartic form of self-expression on my issues of interest. I have no plans to promote anything at this time. I do, however, have many opinions on what’s going on in my world and universe. Maybe, I’ll just start there.