Tag Archives: Merry Christmas

Happy Holidays from the Fictorians

It’s Christmas Day 2017, and everyone here at the Fictorians would like to wish you and yours a happy holiday season.

No matter if you’re staring out of the window at a blanket of fresh snow or noticing that there’s a migrating bird resting on your dusty cactus, the holidays are meant for family and friends. Hopefully you are surrounded by both as you read this. Maybe someone is passing you an egg nog or you’re ducking the wads of wrapping paper getting shredded by tiny hands. Perhaps, like me, you’re making a couple of calls to folks who live hundreds of miles away. Take the time to appreciate those you love.

You may wish to appreciate the authors, editors, artists, and publishers you’ve interacted with this year. Networking is still one of the best ways to get published well. If you read a book, why not take some time today to drop a short review wherever you picked up your copy. Even better, post one at Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Doing so helps that book get a few more buying eyeballs stopping by. Maybe someone will post one for you because your novel was exceptional. In any case, always consider supporting your fellow creatives. Writing and artwork are not zero-sum games. The more quality creative work is produced, the more the world becomes a tiny bit better.

It’s also a good time to reflect on what happened during the past year. Have you accomplished any of your writing goals? Have you learned anything new that has helped to shape your work? Have you branched out a bit to other genres? Now is the time to start thinking about the new year. It’s only a week away, so perhaps take a bit of time to consider new goals and ideas. Is 2018 the year you publish a novel? Is 2018 the year you join a couple of pro organizations because of the sales you made in 2017? Hopefully you have a lot to be happy about as far as your writing is concerned.

Whatever your answer, all of us with you peace and happiness throughout the holidays and the upcoming new year.


 

About the Author:DeMarco_Web-5963

Guy Anthony De Marco is a disabled US Navy veteran speculative fiction author; a Graphic Novel Bram Stoker Award® nominee; winner of the HWA Silver Hammer Award; a prolific short story and flash fiction crafter; a novelist and poet; an invisible man with superhero powers; a game writer (Sojourner Tales modules, Interface Zero 2.0 core team, third-party D&D modules); and a coffee addict. One of these is false.
A writer since 1977, Guy is a member of the following organizations: SFWA, WWA, SFPA, IAMTW, ASCAP, RMFW, NCW, HWA. He hopes to collect the rest of the letters of the alphabet one day. Additional information can be found at Wikipedia and GuyAnthonyDeMarco.com.

 

Stop Writing!

My goodness, that’s an interesting title to find on a website devoted to helping writers improve their craft. It’s an easy thing to tell someone to just sit down and do your best to get as many words on the digital paper, and for most folks that’s the secret they’ve been trying to avoid.

For others, sometimes it’s important to know when you should focus on other things.

Medical Issues

This one caught up with me in a big way for the past year. It’s important to take care of yourself when you’re younger. The older you get, the tougher it is to fix the old chassis. In some extreme cases you may find you have to have defective parts removed, such as an appendix. In other extreme cases, one may require spare parts to be installed, such as a new kidney or a sense of humor.

My issues include heart problems that put me in the hospital twice in the last thirty days, plus the slow deterioration of other important things like kidneys and joints. I now usually walk with a cane, which is not what I was expecting.

If you can, go to those doctor appointments even if you think you’re feeling fit as a fiddle. Sometimes a fiddle string can be on the verge of snapping, and it takes a practiced eye to spot it.

If you have persistent aches and pains, go find out what is causing them. It may be something as simple as bad posture or something that a chiropractor can adjust. It may be something more sinister lurking under your skin.

Ibuprofin, Tylenol, and Naproxen Sodium are not cures for pains. They mask the symptoms. Finding out the cause is the best method for long-term relief.

If it hurts your arms, wrists, hands, or fingers to write or type, stop doing it. You can take a break to let your appendages recover. I have repetitive motion issues, particularly in my left arm and wrist. I am in the process of switching over to dictation as my writing method. It takes a while to get used to it and to train the software.

Mental Issues

Personal mental health problems are tough to deal with, especially when one goes from twenty eight years of marriage to two years of living alone. Depression is a tough foe to battle. Find a therapist you can afford when you need one. I’m still waiting to see one from the Veterans Administration, but I’ll get to see one eventually. Hopefully they’ll be competent, but sometimes it is hit and miss with the VA.

Don’t get sidelined by the stigma of talking to a professional. Sometimes just talking is enough to get you through some of the tougher spots in life. Get it taken care of now instead of when it’s a life-threatening emergency.

Family

It’s easy to get sidetracked with writing deadlines (or your occupation in general) and forget to do things with your family. This will come around and bite you in your later years. Go play catch with your daughter or kick the soccer ball around. Take some time off to go to the beach or some other inexpensive day trip. The kids won’t remember how much you spent on them, but they will remember the time you were there. This is particularly tough if you happen to be in the military, but do the best you can when you’re not deployed.

Work on issues with your spouse when the problems are small. They will grow with age, just like a mutant troll who feeds on your trash and lives in your basement. If you don’t solve the issues when they’re relatively minor, you’ll be waging a war later on — or even sitting alone in a quiet house writing up posts for a website during Christmas week.

♦ ♦ ♦

This is a bit of a depressing blog post, but it is an important one for writers to hear and understand. Think of me as your Ghost of Christmas Past, pointing out the error of my ways in order that you don’t get bound by the same rattling chains I forged and attached to myself. Think about your future, since your life and your family are important pieces of your writing life.


Self-Promotion Time: I’ve been heading up a project called ConDB (http://www.condb.com), which is a convention database listing website geared towards authors, artists, and creative professionals. Stop by and check it out.


 

About the Author:DeMarco_Web-5963

Guy Anthony De Marco is a disabled US Navy veteran speculative fiction author; a Graphic Novel Bram Stoker Award® nominee; winner of the HWA Silver Hammer Award; a prolific short story and flash fiction crafter; a novelist; an invisible man with superhero powers; a game writer (Sojourner Tales modules, Interface Zero 2.0 core team, third-party D&D modules); and a coffee addict. One of these is false.
A writer since 1977, Guy is a member of the following organizations: SFWA, WWA, SFPA, IAMTW, ASCAP, RMFW, NCW, HWA. He hopes to collect the rest of the letters of the alphabet one day. Additional information can be found at Wikipedia and GuyAnthonyDeMarco.com.

Happy Holidays!

‘Twas ten seconds before Christmas, and all through the house,
Not a creature was stirring, except for an author still working on a story.
Deadlines, deadlines…

Since today is actually Christmas, at least in my time zone, I’d like to wish you and yours a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. If you’re not one who follows this holiday, than I wish you a Happy Kwanzaa, a Happy Chanukkah, or even a Blessed Solstice. The point is, I hope you’re going to be interacting with someone in close physical proximity instead of using your keyboard or smartphone. This year, that won’t be me. It’s a quiet yet oddly warm evening out here in flyover country. This is the second Christmas in a row that I’ll be celebrating alone. Last year, I volunteered to move two of my kids across the country, since my publishing company owns a large box truck. I ended up stranded in a snowstorm when the windshield wipers and the cabin heater broke. At least this year I’m at my writing cabin, and it’s warm. I’d better knock on some wood before I toss it in the fireplace.

Writing can be quite a lonely profession. We all get caught up in whatever writing project or looming deadline that is fast approaching, and we forget that it’s the season to pay attention to those around you. You see a lot of writing advice talking about focusing on writing. There’s a corollary to that thought. Don’t forget to live. Don’t forget to interact. Don’t forget to appreciate those you care about, because one day you might find yourself stranded in a blizzard or alone in a quiet house. Neglecting the truly important things around you just to get the final polish on a short story isn’t worth it. Spend some time with those you love, or even those you tolerate. Sometimes the story is polished enough and you can shove it out the door so you can go play catch with your kid or make your significant other a candlelit dinner.

After all, all work and no play makes Jack go a little crazy in the Overlook Hotel.

Happy Holidays from everyone here at The Fictorians.