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Side Trip
A Cinematic Two-Step In my last newsletter a fortnight ago, I wrote about some decisions I made concerning the wider distribution of my two Oregon Meltdown companion novels and my presence on social media going forward (Balancing Act, v 516, 5/16/26). Two weeks later, I feel much more comfortable with those decisions, as well as…
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Old Crow Books Newsletter Interview
Shout-out to Sue Robertson Danells for both this wonderful newsletter & the chance to be interviewed for the February edition. LINK Interview with Drew Faraday 1) What inspired you to become an author? I had the great fortune to grow up in a family where hard work and storytelling went hand in hand. As I…
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Why not?
This is the eighth & last post in a series dedicated to a self-assessment of my writing journey, particularly as it relates to Core Haven, my new release. The previous posts were: This final installment in this series addresses another emotional aspect, as well as a practical one: As I mentioned in previous posts, I’m…
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My Level Best
Given the maelstrom swirling around us here of late, I started questioning my resolve to post about my own publishing journey during the next few months. Yesterday the thought of even mentioning how the last polishing phase of my newest novel is going suddenly seemed trite and self-indulgent. Fortunately before dawn this morning, I found…
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Both Worlds
NOTE: This post was written entirely by a human author—yours truly—without any assistance whatsoever from AI, automated writing, automated editing tools, or machine learning algorithms. If somebody had told me a few years ago that in the near future I’d be posting fairly consistently on my own author’s website/blog, I would’ve shrugged it off &…
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Battle of the Century—The Humble Em Dash v The New World Order
NOTE: This post was written entirely by a human author—yours truly. Here we stand at the dawn of a new age of AI, machine learning, & whatnot, wringing our collective hands over a controversy so full of— Yep, you guessed it. Full of dire warnings about the use of the measly em dash in everyday…
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Along the Way
Whenever I sit down to read long-form posts & articles about writing, I’m not really on the lookout for more tools of the trade. I already have a healthy collection of online how-to articles & videos, numerous ebooks & books, & plenty of emails related to the independent author adventure. Instead, reading a long-form post…
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Deep Dive II
If somebody asks which part of my writing process I enjoy most, I say in all sincerity, “Oh, ____, for sure” (whichever phase I’m currently in). I mean, it’s impossible for me to pinpoint why I’m so eager to write for the lion’s share of my scarce free time & even sleep time. But the…
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Landing Zone
If you’ve read any of my previous posts, you might recall that I’m not the most digitally adept independent author on the block. Because of that, I spend inordinate amounts of time working on something like this website or a promotional reel or figuring out how to get into a flow on my social media…
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A Shout-out
To all those who’ve expressed support for independent authors no matter their perspective on the current troubled times, or who will do so going forward, I offer my heartfelt thanks. The team spirit has inspired me in more ways than I can say. Drew My first self-published novel, Pearl Fields and the Oregon Meltdown, is…
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Cool Your Jets
Everybody lucky enough to be in my aunt’s sphere of influence has experienced one or more of her spontaneous deliveries of the title of this post—on a scale of a mild rebuke to the ultimate freeze in your damn tracks ‘cause Thor’s hammer’s about to drop. Not that she’s ever laid a hand on anybody…
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The Hammer
Not long ago, I was busy slogging my way through the final proofreading phase of Core Haven, my serialized companion novel, & about to post some episodes on Kindle Vella for the first time. Then the Amazon Hammer came crashing down on that fledgling platform with a surprise announcement that the lights were going out…
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Surprise, Surprise
Nothing like putting the finishing touches on my first serialized novel, Core Haven, in preparation for launching it on Kindle Vella days before Amazon’s surprise announcement that they’re pulling the plug on that platform in February 2025. No worries, though. I’m still set to upload all 43 episodes of my companion novel set in the…
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Close Enough for Rock & Roll
Ever find yourself lost in thought, only to be interrupted by somebody else’s favorite line setting up shop in your memory? Just the other day I was nonchalantly slogging through the latest round of proofreading my serialized companion novel about to be released on Kindle Vella when out of the blue, I heard my uncle’s…
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Latest Interruption
One thing I have going for me on my writing journey is that I openly embrace the various interruptions I experience as simply a part of life—besides, I’m pretty much powerless to stop them. I can’t remember the last day that passed without at least one unexpected twist & turn taking a toll on my…
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Shenanigans
Who says the life of an independent author without a competent, affordable editor in the wings has to be boring? Why, I just got to spend the last two hours poring over my serialized novel deciding whether hyphens should be in descriptors like nail-biting, or between color adjectives like red & white, or not be…
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I, Edithead
OK, so I made all that up. But why not give edithead a chance to join its well-established, illustrious kin like Deadhead, hardhead, egghead, & __head? (I imagine you just generated your own mental list of cousin words, some of which are no doubt excellent for venting or starting a fight.) I’m fully aware that…
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Back in the Saddle
I’m sure I could come up with a viable excuse for not having posted here of late. After all, I do spend a fair amount of time writing fiction which, it might be argued, is akin to weaving together random excuses with character arcs, plot twists, & doses of action. But the truth of the…
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Interference
Here of late, I’ve been dabbling in the field of memory research in preparation for a new project I’m exploring. While doing so, I’ve been curious about the role memory plays in fiction writing—notably my own. In the past, I’ve been frustrated by my struggles to remember the names of real individuals not long after…
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My Own Devices
Sometimes when I reach a milestone on my self-publishing journey, I celebrate the moment with abandon. At other times, however, I find myself grumbling that it actually means very little when viewed through the lens of the woes of the outside world. It comes as no surprise that those challenging moments can lead to an…
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And I’m Milk & Cookies
Nope, the title of this post is not a sign that I’m losing touch with reality or trying to write obtuse poetry. It relates to a memory game I recently came up with while trudging through the 1100+ revisions amassed during the final editing phase of my serialized companion novel due to be released on…
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I Don’t Know Why
Updating my first published novel didn’t look like it was going to a big deal. After all, the process is pretty straightforward according to Kindlepreneur & other sites: When I followed those steps a couple days ago, everything appeared in good order, but I soon realized only half the links in my Author’s Note worked…
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Getaway Snacks
Nope, this post isn’t about eating during a vacation, chase scene, or heist even. It’s about a concept I’m borrowing from an exercise trend that promotes spurts of activity throughout the day along with full workouts. Getaway snacks involve those few minutes I find here & there to pretend I’m doing something productive when all…
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Tea & Toast
Ah, it doesn’t get much better for me in my current circumstances than enjoying a steaming cup of black tea & two pieces of toast slathered with butter & honey. The last few days have been a challenge since my aches & pains intensified before finally backing down enough for me to get outside for…
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Morsels
Sometimes I think my writing life can be measured in morsels—tasty & bite-sized to be sure, but not, I’m happy to report, as in the sample sentence in the last connotation listed in Merriam-Webster: “a negligible person.” Yeah, I still like to look up words, especially the roots of any I happen to be focusing…
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After-Party
A recent thread I interacted with a bit on both Instagram & Threads has to do with some of the struggles independent authors face when it comes to self-promoting. During the last year & a half, I’ve grappled with coming out of my shell enough to even consider sharing my writing in any way other…
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Free-Range Reading
Happy New Year! In my last post, I mentioned coming down the homestretch of updating my first self-published novel a year and some change after its release. At that point, I’d finished all the items on my copyediting to-do list & was comfortable enough with the outcome that I added the following comment: ”Now that I’m…
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Push & Shove
Here’s to coming down the homestretch of updating my first self-published novel a year after its release. The process might seem pretty straightforward at first blush, but the gyrations involved sometimes bordered on the comical. First there was finding the latest, cleanest Word doc to match up with its Scrivener counterpart to convert to an…
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Detours & Shortcuts
Not a day goes by that I don’t see some reference or other to the mystical “writing process” on social media & in random ads, stories, or videos—often with a definitive the in tow. I’m the first to admit to occasionally giving unsolicited advice on a range of other topics, as well as seeking out…
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Good Ole #11
In my last post, I wrote about grappling with an unreasonable expectation that I’d launch my companion novel in serialized form on Kindle Vella this month. My love-hate relationship with deadlines dates back to my early days writing short stories before venturing into the world of novels & screenplays. After a brief stint exploring the…
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Me, Myself, & I
Nothing quite like coming to terms with an unreasonable expectation of my own making. At first blush, it might seem insignificant & easily fixed, but when I’m grappling with a self-imposed deadline, the hold on my psyche can be stubborn. I won’t go into the reasons behind setting this month as the launch date for…
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657 Times & Counting
In my last post (Relishing the Moment), I confessed to actually enjoying the copyediting stage of my current project in preparation for its launch on Kindle Vella this coming January. I realize more than a few writers dread this process above all others. (I wonder how many daydreams all the independent authors in the world…
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Relishing the Moment
In my last post (Deep Dive), I wrote about immersing myself in the copy editing phase of my WIP (work in progress). One week later, I’m nearly done pouring over Benjamin Dreyer’s excellent resource book Dreyer’s English & enhancing my old list of pitfalls to avoid. And yes, the revisions are piling up (over 300…
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Deep Dive
Have you ever found yourself reading a book & wishing you’d already done so a year or two before? Well, that’s my current experience with Dreyer’s English by Benjamin Dreyer, the managing editor & copy chief at Random House. His take on the dos & don’ts of copy editing is both insightful & hysterical. The…
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To Review Or Not To Review
Last week I finished my second book review on Goodreads (Nightshade Academy by Mel Torrefranca). My main motivation for doing so—as I wrote in the review itself—was to “expand my focus beyond my usual genres (in this case, into that of YA fantasy-thriller) and the tendency I have to avoid reading anything but standalone novels.”…
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Categorical Denial, Part II
In my last post, I described my two choices for addressing the new-to-me rule in KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing) that restricts an independent author to three categories instead of choosing up to ten as I did with my first self-published novel, Pearl Fields & the Oregon Meltdown. Last week, I mentioned my two choices at…
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Categorical Denial, Part I
In my last post, I used the metaphor of spinning plates to describe how I feel about juggling everyday life with my writing routine—fiction, this blog, & social media posts. What I neglected to add to that brief list was the business side of being an independent author. No surprise there since I’ve been known…
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Spinning Plates
I remember as a kid watching a juggler balance more spinning plates on sticks & his body than I ever thought possible. While most everyone else in the crowd was fixated on another, more risqué, street festival act, I couldn’t stop watching his antics like pretending to stumble before catching a falling plate at the…
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Something From Scratch
I recently started rereading Zen in the Art of Writing by Ray Bradbury. Not exactly sure why I picked it up—other than the possibility that one of my journal explorations about my current writing process reminded me of something from one of his essays. Even though I’m only a third of the way through it,…
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Comment Tango
As I close in on my two goals of polishing the first 23 episodes of my upcoming serialized novel & honing the book description, it’s time to turn some of my writing attention elsewhere. As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, once I release the first four episodes sometime in mid-October, I’ll have nearly two months…
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Midway Mark
Looking back over my previous posts, I realize when it comes to writing, most of my attention centers on process instead of product. No surprise there, but I decided to try shifting that slightly. So, I took a hard look at the scheduling side of setting up my upcoming serialized novel on Kindle Vella. With…
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The Luddite Ring
I can’t help but notice more & more references to the benefits of becoming a social media Luddite. The trend to openly embrace avoiding social media seems to be gaining steam in some quarters, even while more tech advances & opportunities dominate the lives of those in the mainstream. It’s only when I grapple with…
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A Lesson Learned the Hard Way
A Desk, A Book Stand, and a Chair I learned an invaluable lesson at dawn yesterday that I’m confident I’ll remember for quite some time. A simple one, really, that many might find so inane and embarrassing as to be unworthy of mention except as a desperate, self-deprecating anecdote when a group conversation hits a…
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Move Away from the Data
Digital Quicksand Just the other day, it dawned on me that I’ve allowed an annoying, counterproductive behavior to throw a monkey wrench into my well-being. Damn data, anyway. Even the realization that I’m not alone in feeling swept up into a whirlwind of data points won’t keep me from airing my grievances with my situation…
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Problem-Solving
Any Chance a Third Way Exists? Does anybody else get the sense that much of the debate surrounding the use of AI in writing/publishing/creating is quickly devolving into a no-win, rage-baiting exercise some might say is reflective of current political divides throughout the world? Although I’ve been wide open about my decision not to use…
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For Free
Standing On a Noisy Corner Some people wonder why, after publishing two companion novels, I bother posting here on my website, Substack, Medium, & elsewhere. You know, rah-rah, sis-boom-bah, focus on your current project, yada, yada. As you no doubt can guess, the lion’s share of those well-intentioned souls don’t write more than they feel…
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Riding the Fence
A futuristic short story about a writer who keeps a secret from the revisionist history authorities about the Tangle, the Internet’s newest version.
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Another Thing Coming
In the darkest corner of the dimly-lit, filthy basement, random piles of old plastic crates surrounded a dilapidated arcade kiosk. The last drops of rainwater from a morning thunderstorm plunked into grungy plastic buckets and chipped ceramic bowls scattered across the muddy floor.
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The Joy of Detours
Not long ago while taking a quick break from writing to check on the business side of things, one email among the morning stampede caught my eye. Usually a random announcement of a deadline for even a respectable screenwriting competition would’ve resulted in a summary deletion on my part. However, for some unknown reason, I…
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A Request for Advice from Editors & Writers Alike
How Do I Write Dialogue in the Age of AI? Author’s Note: Although I’ve written various snarky comments in the past about the crackdown on em dashes due to the adoption of AI by some writers (certainly not yours truly), this post is my honest request for help in figuring out how to move forward…
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I Write My Fiction; I Revise My Work
Author’s Note: Please be advised that the two em dashes, two colons, two semicolons, & one ellipsis in the following piece were generated by this all-too-human author without the assistance of AI or even another human, for that matter. Oh yeah, and the hyphens, commas, periods, apostrophes, ampersands, & sentence fragments as well. I’d toss…
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Balancing Act, v. 516
In my last newsletter a fortnight ago, I wrote about a few decisions I was in the process of making regarding my author’s journey (Inflection Point, Take 518, 5/2/26). This week’s installment centers on a couple significant changes I’ve since implemented & some decisions still residing in the penciled-in column. The first major update has…
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Inflection Point, Take 518
So another fortnight has come & gone since my last post (see Stepping Back for a reference). And yes, two sets of forks in the road await me on this next leg of my author journey. If you’ve read any of my previous posts, you might remember some of the struggles I’ve been experiencing while…
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Spare Time (Full Version)
A Short Story Author Note: After hiking through a local woodland and napping in the sunshine yesterday, I settled in at my desk to devote an hour to whatever came to mind. Writing eight hundred words without a game plan might not seem like much of a cause for celebration considering that over the past…
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Spare Time (Episode 3)
A Snippet of Fiction, Final Installment Author Note: In case you haven’t read Episode 1 (posted on 4-4-26), or Episode 2 (posted on 4-11-26), here are the links: If you prefer reading “Spare Time” in its entirety, here’s a link to a separate post: [No AI was used in any aspect of the writing above,…
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Spare Time (Episode 2)
A Snippet of Fiction Author Note: In case you haven’t read Episode 1 that I posted on 4-4-26, here’s a link: [No AI was used in any aspect of the writing above, the fiction piece below, anything else I’ve written, or anything I will ever write, for that matter.] Spare Time Episode 2 The silence…
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Spare Time (Episode 1)
A Snippet of Fiction Episode 1 Author Note: After hiking through a local woodland and napping in the sunshine yesterday, I settled in at my desk to devote an hour to whatever came to mind. Writing eight hundred words without a game plan might not seem like much of a cause for celebration considering that…
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Ticktock, Ticktock
In case you’re an author interested in promoting your book(s) or seeing how Bookfunnel works, you might be interested in taking a closer look at the Group Promo I set up for my two Oregon Meltdown companion novels. The basic steps involve these four aspects: If there are any Bookfunnel users out there who have…
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Part 1: This Side of the Fence
Note: As you may know, over the past few years I’ve been sharing aspects of my writing journey as I’ve completed, launched, & promoted two Oregon Meltdown companion novels. However, this week instead of posting about writing, I decided to share an excerpt of my published fiction. The following two chapters (≈ 3000 words) are…
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Stepping Back
Even though I’ve been posting weekly for the past eight months or so, I decided to take last week off as part of a shift in my writing regimen. After more than a year of revising, formatting, promoting, & whatnot, I’m finally coming to terms with being burned out. And not just mildly so. I’m…