Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF

September 27, 2019September 26, 2019 ~ John W. Howell ~ 53 Comments

Today is Friday. Hold on. If that is news to anyone it is definitely time for a relook at your priorities. Yes, it is the last workday of the week. Yahoo. Always nice to recognize Friday.

This week has been pretty typical. I managed to meet my 1000 word a day goal and now my WIP stands at above 89,000. If I do seven more thousand next week the first draft will be done and total 96,000 words. Of course, the conclusion could come crashing in at fewer words but either way it will be done next week. (God willing and the creek don’t rise.)

Then the editing and rewrite will begin at the expense of the few hairs I have left.

I spent some time this week on Amazon ads. There was a weeklong workshop in which I participated. It was informative and gave me some pretty good ideas about Amazon advertising. I have vowed to conquer this beast or die trying. We’ll see how it goes.

I raised some concern about views and the need to maybe change some things on the blog. I took a look this week at visits to my blog in contrast to just looking at views and for the most part the visits are pretty consistant. Long story short I’m going to leave the format alone but continue to keep monatoring.

Today’s JohnKu talks about continued review of our chosen path to make certain it is still relevant. I hope you have a great weekend.

The path well travelled,

Should be evaluated . . .

So you won’t get lost.

Friday – JohnKu – AKA – TGIF

September 20, 2019September 19, 2019 ~ John W. Howell ~ 58 Comments

Twiggy and Lucy — “What is that noise?”
“Friday just pulled in.”

Another Friday in the hopper. I’m looking forward to the weekend. There is college football on Saturday, and unfortunately, I don’t get the Pittsburgh Steelers games regularly. (Yes I’m too cheap to pay for an NFL package) There is plenty of Texas football on Sunday, but my problem is I don’t follow the teams. So a quiet Sunday it will be. For the views of the neighborhood feature this week I’m going on a Heritage Tour on Friday. I hope to get some lovely photos of some of the heritage of Lakeway. I have to hope also that I haven’t already photoed a lot of the stops.

My WIP is coming along. Last week I was at 74,500 words and this week I finished 82,000. This means two weeks from now the first draft will be in the can, so to speak. Shows to go ya that a steady pace can produce results.

I have seen a declining trend in the number of views for my posts. Although the quantity is respectable, it is still off from the early part of the year. This always concerns me because I like to continue to put out good content. I have been wondering about my formula posts and think maybe it might be time for a change. Since I value your readership, I would love to get your opinion. Maybe a poll on what to keep and what to let go. I’ll think about it and let you know.

Today’s JohnKu talks about change. I hope you have a great weekend.

When the signs are there,

Do not ignore the message. . .

Might be time to change.

Friday – JohnKu – AKA – TGIF

September 13, 2019September 12, 2019 ~ John W. Howell ~ 78 Comments

Another Friday is upon us. For whatever reason this week seemed to last a long time. I think maybe it’s because football began in earnest last weekend and I spent a lot of time looking at a few games. I can’t say any of the games had the outcomes that I wanted but, hey. As a fan, it was good to see the games back again.

I am still working on the first draft of my WIP. Last week I was at 68,000 words and this week I fell slightly short of the 1000 words a day at 74,500. (It was only 500 words short but short nonetheless.)

I had a lot of research to do and just got lost in it. I guess I could have gutted it out to make up the 500 words, but it seemed forced, so I didn’t do it.

This week’s JohnKu talks about missing goals. I hope you have a super weekend.

It happens sometimes,

A well-planned goal is not met . . .

Shake it off, keep on.

Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF

September 6, 2019September 5, 2019 ~ John W. Howell ~ 67 Comments

Twiggy — “It’s Friday. So much to do. So little time.”

“Here, we are again. Having to face another weekend away from our beloved work,” said no one ever. I hope you are looking forward to the weekend. I also hope your week was a good one.

Nothing much going on around here. Just plugging away on the WIP. Last week I finished up at over 61,000 words. This week’s total is over 68,000. That is still on the 1000 word a day goal. I am grateful I can continue the pace and don’t take the productivity for granted. We all know things could get in the way at any time, so I mark it up as a good run so far. It also means I’m about 75% complete on my first draft. Yeah, that feels good.

Today’s JohnKu talks about taking things for granted. I hope you enjoy your weekend.

We accomplish goals,

And tend to think it’s just us . . .

Fate is there to help.

Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF

August 30, 2019August 30, 2019 ~ John W. Howell ~ 61 Comments

Lucy and Twiggy — “Think we out to hit it, Lucy?”
“Well, it is Friday after all.”

Another Friday. Once this day is done, then there is a three day weekend ahead for all you productive prisoners of organized commerce. I certainly hope you all have a wonderful time and remember the rule of safe party behavior. The rule? No drinking and driving. There is another rule of thumb that should be followed when doing a weekend of celebration which is don’t yak in your own hat.

I’ve managed to keep the 1000 word a day regimen for this last week on my WIP. I was at 54,000 words last Friday and am over 61,000 words today. I am very thankful to keep moving. I was a little unsure how to get to the ending even though I had written the last three lines. I had a breakthrough yesterday courtesy of one of the characters.

Today’s JohnKu talks about the holiday weekend. I hope you have a fabulous time.

Monday holiday,

Takes forever to get here . . .

Then gone in a flash.

Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF

August 23, 2019August 22, 2019 ~ John W. Howell ~ 73 Comments

It is Friday again. This week has been more of the old heatwave. It has been 103 degrees for the last nine days. That kind of heat wears one out. We are expecting at least another two weeks of above 100 degrees. We can complain as much as we want, but it won’t help.

I spent another week on my WIP. Again I averaged above 1000 words a day and am currently at over 54,000.

Today’s JohnKu talks about the weather which is everyone’s favorite subject.

It’s one of those things,

We all talk about daily . . .

And never change it.

I hope you all have a great weekend.

Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF

August 16, 2019August 15, 2019 ~ John W. Howell ~ 59 Comments

Looks like we made it to Friday. I hope your week was a good one. I can’t say much has been going on around here. We have had a full week of above 100 degrees F. Have to say it gets old after a while. Wednesday night we got a nice downpour. It was totally out of the blue. Not forecasted. It seems the big high-pressure area that sat over us all week moved slightly to the west. Nature abhors a vacuum so in rushed a little cold front and there we had it, rain.

I managed to keep the 1000 wood a day pace on my WIP this week. I’m currently at over 47,000. That means I did a little better than 1000 a day. I usually target about 90,000 so I’m a smidgeon over half way to a completed first draft.

Today’s JohnKu talks about unforcasted events. I hope you all have a super weekend.

It would be pleasent,

If every surprise was good . . .

Too bad some are not.

Friday John Ku – AKA – TGIF

August 9, 2019August 15, 2019 ~ John W. Howell ~ 84 Comments

Another Friday (YAY). This week has been pretty standard around here. It seems odd not to have workers or furniture disrupting the day. Well, we are certainly glad for that situation.

The weather here in Austin has been in the 100’s all week. We are told by the local weather forecaster that it is going to be this way for another two weeks. There was no discussion about what happens after that, so who knows how long it will last.

I managed to keep my 1000 words a day goal. I’m now sitting at over 41,000. This book is a strange one for sure. Let me tell you about it. The protagonists are both dead and on a trip to the eternal home. They were allowed to choose some learning stops, so they went to Dodge City, Kansas in 1874 and ended up in the Longbranch Saloon. Then to Tombstone Arizona in 1881. It seems James (The protagonist) had an interest in Wyatt Earp. From there they ended up at the Alamo in 1836 but this time it wasn’t a destination they requested.

Apparently, they witnessed the devil taking a soul at the OK Corral in Tombstone, and now the devil wants to chat. He sent a text to James (His reply number 666), but he and Samantha (The other protagonist) decided to ignore it. So now the devil is manipulating their agenda. He definitely wants to strike a deal so that James and Samantha won’t be letting souls know about his personal visits at the time of death.

The devil thinks it might be bad for business if people knew the devil himself would be ushering wicked souls to hell. He thinks people might not damn themselves if they knew a personal meeting was the result. The devil believes it would be a good idea if James and Samantha joined his team. Joining him would guarantee their loyalty and silence. He decides to show them what it would be like being a devil’s disciple.

Their first stop is Wimbledon where James beats Roger Federer for the 2019 title. Next for James is the Normandy landing on D-day 1944. James is leading a company of troopers headed for Omaha Beach. James has no idea what to do and worse, not sure he can get back to the Bellagio in Las Vegas. That is where he and Sam were having dinner with the devil before he was willed to France. Stay tuned.

Today’s JohnKu talks about imagination. I hope you have a terrific weekend.

Imagination,

In the hands of a writer. . .

Can be a good thing.

Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF

August 2, 2019August 8, 2019 ~ John W. Howell ~ 59 Comments

Another Friday is here and thank goodness for it. As you know from last week. I was on a break. It was terrific having mt eldest daughter visit. We did so many things, and she was a delight to have close.

I didn’t do any writing on the break. My goal was to be with my daughter, and that was accomplished. I did get back to work on Wednesday and have managed a thousand words a day since then. So in all, I took a break of six days, and I worked on my WIP for five days. I was at 28,000 words when I last reported, and I’m now at 34,000. That means the days I worked, I did a little over 1000 words a day. You may wonder why I am going through these gyrations? To stay on point is why. If I have to report my output to you guys weekly, then I’m more dedicated. So I think you for keeping my nose to the grindstone.

Today’s JohnKu talks about staying on point.

When there’s a to-do,

Best to commit to others. . .

To stay right on point.

I hope you have a great weekend.

Friday John Ku – AKA – TGIF – Posting Hiatus Coming

July 26, 2019July 23, 2019 ~ John W. Howell

Lucy — “Ah, the boss is gone. Time for a sunbath.”

Friday is here. I guess it is cause for celebration. A perfect time to let you know I’m going to be away from my post for a few days. My daughter is visiting from Indiana. In fairness to her visit and the quality of the posts, something has to give. I will be taking a social media hiatus to concentrate on her. This will be the first break I’ve taken since I started blogging in 2012. Makes me a little nervous but think in the long run it will be best. I apologize in advance for not visiting your posts, but time will be a premium. I may get there but not as often.

I’ll be back on Wednesday the 31st. I have disabled comments here since I won’t be available to answer. Today’s JohnKu Talks about trying to do too much.

Doing it All by John W. Howell

We always resist,

Giving up something we love . . .

Choices must be made.