Category: Inspiration

Updates June 27-July 01

From the Desk of JC Henry

Hello,

Photo by Jess Vide on Pexels.com

Thank you for the likes and follows.

This is the last week of June, well actually the last 4 days. I don’t want to believe it, but that is reality. The second quarter is over. There has been some progress and some regression. I wanted to have significant improvement in my stories and writings. However, I spent more time not writing than writing. I’m at fault here. The thing I’ve heard Sarra Cannon say in many of her YT videos is to be honest with your time. Which means there are going to be days you can’t write and days you don’t want to write, try to get them into your schedule, and don’t beat yourself up when they happen. In layman’s terms, expect the best, prepare for the worst. I was not thinking about it at all. Despite what I wrote in these updates.

I realized this second quarter that I have a mindset about writing that needs to change. This is a guess. I wrote about 5000 words this week. But the majority were day journal words not meant for the public until I’m dead plus 80 years of the life of whoever has control of my estate. The fiction or non-fiction writing is the work I think of when I say or type writing. Not the reading or listening of books scheduled for reviews, not the admin stuff I do for this blog or my life.I realized this second quarter that I have a mindset about writing that needs to change. This is a guess. I wrote about 5000 words this week. But the majority were day journal words not meant for the public until I’m dead plus 80 years of the life of whoever has control of my estate. The fiction or non-fiction writing is the work I think of when I say or type writing. Not the reading or listening of books scheduled for reviews, not the admin stuff I do for this blog or my life. This is all work for the writing but not considered in my mind. When I spend time on things that are “not writing”, then feel like nothing is getting done. I haven’t found the correct method to deal with this, especially when life outside of this website and writing also is important. I don’t talk about finances on the website, but that is important. After I got sick, I could no longer do a day job in healthcare. It is an issue I have to take seriously because of the rise in expenses. I used to say that I had a writing life and real life. My struggle for a long time is to merge them without problems. Any constructive suggestion leave in the comments.

Despite what I’ve said in previous entries. I have signed up for Camp Nanowrimo in July. Third quarter will start off with a busy bang. The rest of this week will be me, making a plan for this to work. The good thing about Camp Nano is that the rules are a little different. I can be a nano rebel with ease. The story I started in April will continue. I wrote about 4000 words on Connection Lost; it is far from complete. There are 4-6 more scenes that need to be written for the story. The plan is that the completed story will run in the word range of a novelette or novella. But those are later plans. The goal for Camp Nano July is 25,000 words and to get as many badges as possible. I enjoy collecting badges and the camp nano trajectory graph. There are also new friendships and encouragement from others. So many more people would have been talking about it if the Supreme Court hadn’t decided to run with tyranny. I don’t want to go off on that tangent.

I have decided to give credit where credit is due. That means I will no longer erase the name tags attached to the pictures I borrow for essays or Quotes for Writers. I get many of them from the WordPress and Pexels. If there is a tag, I will leave it. Apologies to artist for previous post and thank you as well.

In Reading news, I am jumping around. I have not finished reading any story for review or fun. It is the same for audiobooks. I don’t think I have reader’s block, just a mild case of reading fatigue. It hasn’t stopped me from buying books. I got the last book in a series called Wotakoi: Love is hard for Otaku by Fujita. It is a lovely slice of life, an office romance manga that is also an anime. I can’t remember what I saw first, the manga or anime. The anime was fantastic, and the so is the manga. Considering re-reading the previous. Even though they are digital, I am happy to have a full set.

Strange enough, the writing goals this week will include a lot of reading. I haven’t looked at Connection lost since May. I need to familiarize myself with the story again. There is a brief concept outline, but for my sanity and productivity, I will look into real scene outlines or something to that effect.

That is all I have for right now. Despite the state of the world, I will continue to say, let’s be kind to each other. We do not let people’s negative guide our thoughts or lives. We are the change the world needs. I wish everyone the best.

The End

Updates June 06-10

Hello,

Thank you for the likes and follows.

Last week there was no update.  There wasn’t much to update anyway.  I’m in the same quandary that started at the beginning of this second quarter.  I have a work/life unbalance.  The writing and this website blog are suffering.  I take full responsibility, I always knew this would be a problem.  But I am a prime procrastinator.  The things I want to do and the things I need to do are rarely the same, which is frustrating. 

Recently I watched a YouTube video, the content creator is a writer.  She spoke about many things in her life but she also mentioned the heinous incidents that have plagued us these last weeks.  She stated that her vlogs were writing orientated, she was aware of other things but felt that other people were talking about it with better incite and information. I understand and agree with her. I am the same.

I am a black woman, a mother, and a Christian. I am getting more upset when people use Jesus to justify their violent words and actions. I don’t agree with any of them and I am tired of them taking the Lord’s name in vain. However, that is not what my blog or this website is about.

This website is supposed to be about writing and the writing life which includes reading, listening and watching all types of media. There are so many stories out in the world. It can be overwhelming and fascinating, especially when the truth is stranger than fiction. This is the last month of the second quarter and I was hoping for improvement in certain parts of this website/blog. It is possible that my effort was not enough. However, I will persevere and plan to do better.

Writing news is about the same. I am kind of stuck in a scene. I am reading up on some writing craft books to see what can be done. So the goal for this week is to get this done and complete the scene. I am also looking at shorter writing projects that I thought would be easier to produce. There is some difficulty but it is slowly being sorted out.

The new Disney+ show is out, which is of course Obi-Wan Kenobi. I will have to give it a look. I haven’t yet because I want to get certain writing projects settled. The other show that I’m keeping tabs on is the anime Spy X Family. It is a wild action almost slice-of-life show, about a Spy, the husband/father, an assassin, the wife/mother, and the child, an esper(telepath); The two adults are trying to keep their other lives separate from normal life but the daughter who can read minds already knows. She is also down for whatever her adopted parents do. It is hilarious and I wish I had invested in the manga.

There are two book reviews in the works. But this week by the crook, I will be posting an essay on adaptations. It is a subject I have been juggling for months. It is something I have been thinking about for years. A large amount of our visual media are adaptations from a previous story. Some are loved and others are viscerally hated. I have an opinion.

That is all for now. These are trying times, please remember to be grateful for the little things, and to be kind, when it seems impossible. I am hoping for the best for all of us.

End