Parkwriting, the AlphaSmart3000, and ZC5 progress

A while back I came across a post on kboards about the AlphaSmart Neo word processor. It sounded pretty awesome to me--a super-simple, super-portable word processor that gets 400+ hours of power from three AA batteries. No cords, no load-time waiting--you press the power button and you can start typing less than two seconds later. I got so excited that I went on ebay looking for one. I ended up buying the predecessor to the Neo, which is called an AlphaSmart3000. Cost me twenty bucks, shipping to Hawaii included.

Another bonus I've discovered about the AlphaSmart: the thing has such a tiny screen that it makes it hard to go back and edit what you've written, so you're sort of forced into just producing new writing instead of my usual "edit-ceaselessly-throughout-the-process" approach that always ends up taking forever. I'm hoping that getting the rough draft all the way out, and then doing a more-involved editing/revision, will be a more efficient and faster way to go about producing a story.

So I've been taking the AlphaSmart3000 to the park after work, and working on Zombie City Episode 5. I'm more than 13K words in so far, and I feel like the AlphaSmart's ease of use is helping me be more productive. I'm also showing a bit more discipline than I typically manage. If things keep going like they have been, I might have ZC5 ready in half the time it took me for the last episode.

Here's hoping!

great interview with Hugh Howey

First of all, I feel compelled to mention that the video host is a bit too "business-oriented" for my personal tastes. (If you want to skip past his intro, Hugh starts talking at about 1:30.) Even so, Hugh Howey has a very inspiring self-publishing success story, and this video is definitely worth watching.

Inspiring Words from Kate Danley

"I don't submit to traditional publishers anymore. I don't submit to studios. I don't do anything anymore except focus on creating the best stories I can possibly tell, and for whatever reason, this seems to resonate with people. And I think perhaps because I try not to be a jerk, folks usually don't mind inviting me to join them on awesomeness.

"So as the broohaha continues over traditionally publishing vs. indie publishing, I just thought I would share my experience. Your mileage may vary. Is indie publishing a risk? Sure. But you'll miss 100% of the shots you don't take. Please know that you can be both indie and traditionally published. One does not exclude the other. Both are great. Just, please, stop waiting for someone else to fix your life. This is yours. It is the only one you have got. Take a chance."

(Emphasis mine.)

Read the rest of her blogpost here.

ZC5 is now underway!

Shoots, it's been over a month since I hit the publish button on episode 4, and I'm only now getting started on episode 5. The main reason for the delay is I'd been waiting for inspiration to strike. And it did strike, here and there, but not often enough or with a big enough boom to give me the whole story plotted out before I got started. Well, now I'm tired of waiting for the muse, so I'm taking what I've got and I'm jumping back into the story, hoping I figure out where I'm going as I go.

I mean, it's worked out well enough so far. Right?