Life

May 19th 2023

Peter Germany Health, Horror, Horror Writer, Life, Lifestyle, Men’s Mental Health, Mental Health, Writer, Writing , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Good Evening folks! How are we doing tonight? I hope everyone has had productive and fun weeks.

I’ve written 640 today, I didn’t have much time and I’m quite happy with that. Overall this week has been pretty good, I’m about 4000 words in with two days to go. Even though the words petered out in this mid to end part of the week I’ve kept a bit of momentum but writing each day going. Even if it’s only a couple of hundred words. I’m trying to build a mentality of consistency. Whether its a few words a day or a thousand. It’s all words. At the start of the year I set a goal of writing for at least half an hour a day, for at least twenty-five days a month. So far this month I’ve had two days where I’ve not done any writing work.

I know my biggest enemy is myself. My sheer lack of confidence and self-esteem torpedos me, I get some oomph going and I have a bad day which takes a chunk out of my confidence and or self-esteem and I retreat into my shell. My aim is to keep my momentum going even when I take a mental health hit. This is something I feel like I’m improving on. I feel more capable of sitting in the chair and getting words done when I’m looking for an excuse not to get any writing done.

I’m not discounting the fear element either. Once I’ve got a story done, as in something I’m either going to self-publish or submit to a publisher, then once it’s out there it’s out there. It’s something that can be judged, and I know I have to have a hard skin for it and that’ll come with time and more I get out there, but there’s still that potential rejection from the reader. I know anything I publish will blow up, but it’ll still have some readers.

A random picture I took in my garden this afternoon

These are things I know I’ve got to overcome, and I think I’m doing it bit by bit. Being consistent with being productive is going to help. Doing so always leaves me in a better headspace. So its a win-win.

Yesterday was pond cleaning day 🙂

Right, I’ve rambled enough (need to stop doing that. Rambled makes it sound like what I say has no weight or direction. Its a form of self-deprecation and although us Brits can be experts at that it doesn’t help someone like me), so I’m gonna watch a movie and call it a night.

Have a great weekend all!

16th of May 2023

Peter Germany Editing, Horror, Horror Writer, Life, Sci-Fi, Writer, Writing , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Good evening folks, how are we doing tonight?

Today I’ve written 531 on War Child. I didn’t have a lot of time to write today so I’m happy with that. Yesterday I wrote 1162, and edited 4309 on War Child. So two very productive days.

One thing I did yesterday was sit down and work out a few of the bits I need to write for this story that I haven’t covered at all. This isn’t something new for me. I’ve done it a few times where I’ve gone back and written a scene and then inserted it into the story. What I’ve noticed is when I’m doing this, and not just when I’m writing a scene to add it, I’ll write from the central point I want to make. I’ll jump straight in and start the scene with no building up to it. It’s like starting The Lord Of The Rings trilogy with The Two Towers. Not a lot of context. So I need to learn how to build up to these scenes. One thing I’ve done today is start the scene with another plot thread of the story, and then I’ll merge it into the plot point I’ve set out to. I’m hoping this’ll give it a little more depth while also making it feel more organic.

That’s the hope anyway.

Right folks, have an awesome one!

Flash Post – 10/5/23

Peter Germany Health, Horror, Horror Writer, Life, Sci-Fi, Short Fiction, Writer, Writing , , , , , , , ,

Evening folks, I’ve not felt too well this afternoon and have felt wiped out. I think it’s some fallout from being unwell at the weekend. So I’ve stepped back my goal today (1000 words), and will get back on it tomorrow.

I did write 221 on the short story today during my break at work. This has gone in a totally different direction than I was expecting, so I’m not sure where it’ll go.

Right, have a good one, folks!

8th of May 2023 – Building A Structure

Peter Germany Health, Horror, Horror Writer, Life, Lifestyle, Men’s Mental Health, Mental Health, Preparation, Sci-Fi, Short Fiction, Writer, Writing , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Howdy folks, I hope everyones week has started well. I had a good start with work and when I got home I got some words wrangled and did some gaming before dinner.

I managed to scrap a few words during my break as well on a short story but not many. All in all I wrote about 1300 words today give or take. I’m particularly happy with one section where I took a scene that was kind of filler and gave it some depth while building up a subplot for the early part of the book.

I’ve tried to map out what I want to achieve this week on a desk planner. This is something I’ve tried and failed at before but I’m hoping with the changes in life I’ve made and what I’ve learnt will help me make the most of it.

So far this month I’ve 7137 words, I’m trying to figure out what my targets should be and make sure they’re realistic. At the moment I’m working off a rough target of twenty thousand words a month, but I think I should be pushing to have that a minimum goal rather than a target to aim for.

None of the three cats were very helpful today….

I know writing before work, during my break, and when I get home works for me. So why not push and make that my routine and try and focus on building from that? I’ve looked at my work rota for this week, as well as non-writing bits and pieces I need to be doing. As well as time with family etcetera. I’ve worked out my daily targets from looking at what else I have each day. Thursday for example; I’m working 11am through till 6pm. A somewhat unusual shift for me which doesn’t leave much time before work (unless I actually get up at a decent time!) to write. So I think my words will be written during my break and a few after. I do feel like I’m low-balling that number, but I’m also looking responsibly. If I hit target for the other five days of the week (I’ve got my little one at the weekend so I won’t be writing then) then I’ll have 4500 words for the week.

The problem I’ve had in the past is when life throws a curveball I have a habit of loosing momentum with writing, when that’s the time I need to be writing the most. Not only is it good for my mental health to be writing but keeping that habit of writing each day will keep some structure in life. Even if it’s just writing during a break or when I have a spare moment, it’s still writing.

Sunday 7th of May 2023

Peter Germany Horror, Horror Writer, Life, Lifestyle, Sci-Fi, Writer, Writing , , , , , , , , , , ,

Howdy folks! How are we all doing tonight? I hope everyone has had a great weekend.

I’ve had a couple of days off from writing, I wasn’t well yesterday no slept most the day after finishing work. And Friday I had my little one and then errands to run.

Today I got cracking nice and early and got 1409 of War Child written. I was aiming for 1000 words and I was about 600 words in by 11am and when I next looked at just after midday I saw I was past the fourteen hundred mark and decided to call it a day as I had a lot around the house to do.

It’s kind of that steady progress, working through one scene after another until I’m happy with them. It’s a little bit editing and a big bit rewriting to include details to build the world. Sometimes I find trying to insert details into a scene can make it feel forced and I don’t want that. I want it to feel as smooth and organic as possible. This story, War Child, is the most complicated story I’ve ever attempted. I think I can do it, but it’s going to take a little time. I need to get some sort of plan of how I’m going to get this done from start to finish. Book one through to book whatever.

I think I need to be working on other projects while I’m doing it though. I need a little variation in what I’m doing. It’ll probably be short stories I’ll be working on but it’s still something where there isn’t the pressure of War Child. I can have a little fun with them. Also, not for nothing, getting short stories finished will serve as a good morale boost. I find it can be a little monotonous working on one big project at a time.

This coming week has a lot of potential and I’m hoping I can tap into it.

5th of May, 2023

Peter Germany Horror, Horror Writer, Life, Writer, Writing , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Good evening, folks! How are we all?

Writing has been okay this week, this is the first day of the month that I haven’t written. I’m very close to 4500 words for the month so far, which I’m super happy with. I’m aiming to keep this momentum going.

I’m going to try and achieve this by seeing to it I write a little bit each day. I remember Paul E. Cooley saying that’s daily target was (not sure if it still is) 250 words a day. This is because writing 250 words is relatively easy. Even if I’m not in the mood, I can get the words out. Even if I hate them and rework them the next day, it’s still words written. But what if those 250 words are passed and you’re at 1000 before you realise it? I don’t know about other writers, but there have been days where I was only going to write the 250 words, but I’ve got into a flow and I’ve knock out 1000 plus words before I know what’s going on.

So the hope is I’ll do more of the later than the former.

Right, have an awesome weekend folks!

😈

Tuesday 2nd of May, 2023

Peter Germany Health, Horror Writer, Insperation, Life, Lifestyle, Men’s Mental Health, Mental Health, Sci-Fi, Writer, Writing , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Good evening folks, I’ve written a total of 1120 words today on two different projects. 758 on War Child, and 362 on a new short story.

I wish I could tap this energy I’ve got at the moment better. over 3500 words in two days? That should be a regular occurrence, not just when I’ve got butt in gear. It needs to become a habit, but defeating my own brain is a war that is still ongoing. I’m winning battles, using the lessons from each one to better fight the next.

I was lurking on Armand Rosamilia’s Twitch livestream yesterday and he was working on a short story and it struck me that I have worked on one short story in the last few months. An idea popped into my head and I started it last night and am currently at 510 words on it. I’m not expecting it to be a long story, and I already know how it’s going to end. I am a little worried the ending will be a bit predictable but I’ll see how it goes.

It’s a good start to the month, I’m going to try and keep it up.

1st of May 2023

Peter Germany Health, Horror, Horror Writer, Life, Lifestyle, Men’s Mental Health, Mental Health, Sci-Fi, Writer, Writing , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Howdy folks! How are we all doing?

I have written 2241 words today. I started about 9am and finished a little after midday. A damn good start to the month.

I didn’t deliberately take a break from blogging the last week or so, it’s just been busy away from writing. I had other areas of life where i had to prioritise so writing at those times takes a step back. Today, very much back on track though. I’ve generally been working towards getting back in the habit of writing before work and during my break, which I’ll be focussing some energy on continuing. This has worked well for me in the past and I’d like to build on that, mainly getting more consistent with it. Then the plan his to come home and knock out more words. I know I can do it, but I need to get that consistency. That, I think, is the difference between someone just playing around and someone who wants to make something of their passion.

One of my big faults when it comes to writing is how I’ll back off when other areas of my life are taking more energy than normal. There are times when I don’t write and I’m happy not to be writing, when I have my little for example. Then my focus is on her and it’s one of the few times when I don’t think about writing at all. But those times aren’t like when I’ve got a lot on my plate. Last week for example my Dad was in hospital (he’s home now), so that’s where I put my attention. But even around visiting etcetera I still had plenty of time where I could have written more than I did. I’ve got myself into a mindset where I think I haven’t got the energy, but that’s bollocks quite simply. It’s giving my self-doubt an out. Which I hate because it’s letting doubt win. And bollocks to that as well.

Writing is therapy for me. It helps my mental health in all the good ways, and my self-doubts know that. So it’s trying to stop me from helping myself in more than just making fiction. I need to get that reaffirmed in my head and get back on track again. Today is the start I needed. Tomorrow I’m at work, but I’ll have time after work. I set myself a goal at the start of the year of writing no less than twenty-five days a month, and for at least half an hour. I should be doing that easily! So Peter, you doughnut, get it done!

Hospital waiting area words.

Sunday 9th of April 2023

Peter Germany Cat, Editing, Gaming, Horror, Horror Writer, Life, Lifestyle, Outlining, Planning, Sci-Fi, TV, Writing , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Howdy, folks! How are we all?

I wrote 980 words today on War Child. I’ve come to realise I’m essentially working on a second draft. Not quite writing it from scratch but I have rewritten the first couple of scenes. It’s a case of it being easier to do this than it is to add in the details I need to. Starting War Child during last years NaNoWriMo was a good idea as it got the story off the ground, but it has also hampered it. Where I was writing a bit here and a bit there a lot of the time I wasn’t able to be as deep with it as it needs to be. At the moment it feels like NaNo served as an in-depth outline for the story. It helped me get an idea of the story I want to tell, and how broad it is turning out to be. I think I’ve said in previous posts that I was loosely planning three books, a trilogy that would tell this story. Well, where book one was originally meant to end is a long, long ways off. At the moment I think this is going to be a good five book series, which I think I got overwhelmed by. Even now I feel like the scale of this is too big for me to get my head around. I think this has led to me not working on it too much since the start of the year, but that time has given me time to process what I need to do to get this first book done.

Dizzy doing what cats do 🙄

Watching the science fiction I have recently has given me a lot of ideas, as has diving back into the Halo video game series. I spent a fair chunk of yesterday afternoon replaying the first game, and boy had I forgotten how good it was. I’m playing the Master Chief collection which is remastered and damn it looks good. Plays fantastic too (I’d forgotten how hard those damn Warthogs are to drive though!). I’d not really played any game aside from GTA for quite some time, so I was worried the different game mechanics would have a negative effect. But thankfully they didn’t and I really got stuck in. It was a lot of fun and I’m looking forward to playing it again in the next few days.

To make sure I don’t get distracted by it, I won’t be gaming until I’m done with any bits and pieces at home I need to do, and I’ve written. I’m going to be starting kind of small with it, a scene a day for example. But I’m hoping that I’ll get into a flow with the story and this will increase each time I sit down to write.

Words Were Wrangled

Peter Germany Health, Horror, Horror Writer, Life, Writing , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Good morning folks! It is early here in the UK as I’m about to start a shift at my day job. I’m not near awake despite the amount of sleep I’ve had recently. For the last week I’ve been hit with some bug which has knocked me off my feet. I’m finally feeling a little better but still very tired.

This has meant I’ve not been writing. I’ve got next to nothing done this month but I did manage to get my arse in gear yesterday and cracked some words out.

I think I’ve figured out what I’ve got to do with War Child as well. I’m not going to go into details but I hope I’m going in the right direction with it now.

Thankfully I am beginning to feel a lot better. Once I’ve been finishing work this last week I’ve been crashing out, but each day feels a little less like I need to just pass out when I get home. So hopefully I’m well past the worst of it.