Time Management Tips for Writing Parents

I'm not in this position, but John Scalzi offers these tips that could be adapted for most parents working at home.

Zy's novel and NPI

I'll be participating in October's NPI working on 250 words daily into finishing the first draft of Zy's Novel. Let's toast accountability!

Phantom Highwayman Notes 03

The Hitchhiking Highwayman

Progress Bar from Writertopia

I rewrote the entire back half and added in Tim. Tim's verse got cut out of the song, but he's the one who betrays the lovers in the poem.

The story has been submitted as of ten minutes ago. I won't be upset if I'm not a finalist. Short story is becoming less my medium of choice, which is okay. And this was a weaker story by my standards. But the deadline was met and now I can concentrate on getting my home computer running again.

Phantom Highwayman Notes 02

"Phantom Highwayman" is not gelling, and I can't figure out how to fix it. It's the same honking problem I get every time I attempt a short story, the result is a big yawn. My protagonists doesn't do anything. The editing problem is where usually I can see a zag to go for instead of zig. So far, it's been three days and no zag. No zag, no zag, go back to the archetype.

Archetype: girl in dress walking along the road, guy or guys give her a ride to the dance they're heading too. Says that's where she's going. Have a good time. Go to take her back to the address she gives and she vanishes from the car. Talk to people at the house; she's a relation dead for years. Find jacket or some other personal object on her tombstone.

So the Highwayman's ghost walks into the pub... I need to noodle that to see if it is really a zag. It sounds like the beginnings of a bad joke, but if places really have memories and if Bess has issues after her suicide.