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I'm going to follow Raven   's idea and post my plans for today. We'll see how things work out. The frist thing is to go back and add some character and romance beats to yesterday's chapter in my WIP, "The Cave of Worlds"  . I think I've already done that, along with adding a couple of plot beats and fixing some of the exposition. Next, I want to work through the details about the location and strategies for the next big battle scene, the one that is supposed to be the climax of the quest. I've got that in general, but not in particular. Ending the quest is kind of the "false victory," as it serves to launch another phase of the character arc and romance arc...but I'm not planning to follow the romance or quest beats exactly...we'll see how it goes. Assuming I get both those things done, the last writing step is to draft chapter 19, where the characters actually learn stuff about the location of the battle and develop their strategies for surmounting the obstacles. Not sure I can get the last thing done, though, as I've got to be taxi driver for Mr. Gene who still can't drive due to his rotator cuff surgery. That'll take up part of the morning and much of the afternoon, after which I need to fix dinner. I'm thinking maybe italian sausage, mushrooms, and gnocchi, which will give a few days of leaved-overs for me to eat. |
This seems at first glance like an organizational aid without peer, but really, {sarcasm}what I really need is something else to distract or replace my writing time in the morning.{/sarcasm} I can only admire all you writers with these tricks and aids to keep yourselves on track. One more reason I never hit the Big Time, I suspect ...  |
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| Jack of Diamonds - Jack, as it turns out, I just spent two hours writing a reveiw of another author's chapter in the Novel Workshop (see "About Crosstimbers Novel Workshop" ). Now I've got to shower and get ready to be taxi driver, so, alas, I've gotten nothing done on my novel. |
Reply| Max Griffin 🏳️🌈 - Yeah, things do get away from us, and I've found in my own case that they don't need any help! At the moment, I'm sitting on a carpet that needs vacuuming, looking at a sink full of dishes that aren't going to wash themselves. I had planned to write another scene on my novella WIP, but I'm not feeling the juice, so rather than write some drivel that I'll have to delete tomorrow, I'm going to finish up a blog post I've been working on. My creative time amounts to a rather small window in the morning, and as much as I might like it to be different, them are the conditions what prevail. So I'm off to take advantage before my real workday starts. Best of luck to you, my friend, and happy writing if you can get to any! ... |
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| I'm off to SoonerCon in Norman, OK for the weekend. If any WDC members will be there, let me know! It'll be a chance to meet FTF. I'll also be on three panels: writing non-human protagonists, AI Art, and "Are we living in a simulation." These appear to be mostly unstructured discussions rather more conventional panels where speakers present differing perspectives...we'll see how it goes. It's my second SF con and my first as a presenter. |
Oh man, not only that I‘d like to meet you FTF, I‘d SO love to discuss the simulation thing. Imagine the possibilities! You‘re gonna rock the show, of course  - have fun! |
Olivia‘s met 4 astronauts!  - In case you're interested, my prepared remarks at at "Are You Living in a Simulation?" |
| That's so awesome! Alas, I won't be there, but I'm excited for you and those who have the opportunity to meet you! Enjoy yourself!!! |
| Okay, I've spent the last two days writing an essay on the Lorentz equation. I don't imagine there are more than one or two people on here who would have even the vaguest interest in this subject, but here goes. The Lorentz equation describes the difference in time between a moving observer and a stationary observer. tm = g ts where tm is time measured by the moving observer and ts is time measured by the stationary observer. It's a simple equation, like E=mc2, but one that's hard to understand. The constant g is always greater than one, so the usual interpretation is that one second for a moving observer is longer than it is for a stationary observer. This usually only matters when the moving observer is going at a considerable fraction of the speed of light. However, the accuracy of the GPS systems we all use rely on using this equation. In any case, the usual facile explanation about time slowing down when you speed up isn't quite correct. I had a story submitted to me at Tales from the Crosstimbers that misinterpreted this, which is what led me to writing the essay. While I was thinking about it, I realized that, unlike the more famous Einstein equation everyone knows, this one doesn't require any deep mathematics. It's possible do deduce the Lorentz equation just using Euclidian geometry. It's remarkable that such a profound fact has such a simple foundation. That's in this short essay, too, along with an explanation of what it does and does not mean. Like I said...I'll be amazed if anyone actually reads this, but it was kind of fun to write. The essay is at "Time Dilation" |
| A subject I know a little about and enjoy, you have written fantastically about it. Right triangles and the Pythagorean theorem is the perfect way to help anyone realize that time dilation is all about frame of reference and that time truly is relative. I have done similar exercises for the light clock on the train. Fantastically, done. Two things are quite amazing about this story. When Einstein came up with Special Relativity and this insight about time, it upended a millennia of scientific and common sense. Everyone, including the late Isaac Newton knew time was a universal absolute. It was like saying up is down and down is up. The other amazing thing is Einstein realized this Special Relativity, didn’t deal with acceleration and he sense gravity was equivalent to acceleration. So it sent him on the great quest that changed the shape of our universe in general relativity. |
Damon Nomad  - Thanks for the kind words!! I was thinking of doing something similar with the Lorentz-Fitzgerald equation. Probably not, though. This took a whole day away from my current novel. |
| In case anyone is interested...I made some minor changes to my little essay on the Lorentz Time Dilation equation. I added a cover, made the type bigger, corrected a few typos, and polished the exposition in a couple of places. The new, and improved essay is at: "Time Dilation" You can also find it at Tales from the Crosstimbers. |
 Prompts--Chose one of the following three prompts  Genre prompt:  mystery/detective --there's a crime and someone's got to solve it; OR Words prompt: use the words brouhaha, bamboozle, and ineffable; OR Character prompt: your protagonist has  OCD   Length Limitation: Stories should be 3000 words or less. Prizes Winning authors earn  GPS and  Merit badges , and their stories receive an  Awardicon . The contest accepts a maximum of ten entries, so click here or on the banner above to reserve your place now! |
| Not sure if you're familiar with Finding Nemo. But all I can think of when I read "brouhaha" is the chant during this scene |
Allan Charles 🐾 Sick 🤒  - I love Finding Nemo! For one thing, it's an iconic example of the three-act-play. |
| Prompts--Chose one of the following three prompts Genre prompt: mystery/detective --there's a crime and someone's got to solve it; OR Words prompt: use the words brouhaha, bamboozle, and ineffable; OR Character prompt: your protagonist has OCD Length Limitation: Stories should be 3000 words or less. Prizes Winning authors earn GPS and Merit badges , and their stories receive an Awardicon . The contest accepts a maximum of ten entries, so click here or on the banner above to reserve your place now! |
| Tales from the Crosstimbers is open for submissions through June 30, 2025 for the Fall 2025 issue, due out in September of 2025. We're eager to read your speculative fiction of 1000-5000 words. Payment is at least $10 and up to $50 per story based on word count. Members of Writing.Com are especially welcome to submit. Contact information and more details on the links below. Link to publication: https://theCrosstimbers.online Link to open call: https://thecrosstimbers.online/open-call/ Link to submission guidelines: https://thecrosstimbers.online/submission-requirements/ |
| Fine publication and quite thoughtful of Max Griffin 🏳️🌈 to give a special invite to WDC writers. Been thinking about taking a shot at traditional publishing for a short story? Give Tales from the Crosstimbers a shot. |
I'm pleased to announce that the Summer Issue of Tales from the Crosstimbers is now available. Click below for Kindle and Amazon Print edtition links. Starting tomorrow and until Saturday, the Kindle edition is free. WDC author Raven has the cover story.  |
I've written a flash fiction horror story. I'm not good at either flash fiction or horror, so I'd appreciate feedback. It's rated 18+ due to some graphic descriptions, so I don't want to link it here, but if you're interested, I'll send you a link or you can find it, titled "The Coven," at the top of
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New title, new cover, and new teaser for my WIP  Sebastian likes his new job, except for all the distractions. His OCD forces him to constantly check stuff out, like that hunky guy he spotted going into the mysterious office down the hall. When Sebastian checks him out, he winds up joining a desperate quest to save the Cave of Worlds, a system of wormholes and the realms they connect. |
| Olivia‘s met 4 astronauts! - First three chapters are in the clear and available to read--click on the cover. The remaining ones are available on request...there are eleven so far. |
Max Griffin 🏳️🌈 - I‘m in your Folder right now and saw it. Awesome illustrations btw.  I‘ll finish May catching up on "Anniversary Reviews ~ Summer Break" , but by the beginning of June… |
| More doodling...a marginally better cover for my WIP "The Cave of Worlds" |
| So, instead of doing actual, real work on my novel today, I made a better cover and came up with a tagline Sebastian joins Lord Marcus on a quest through the Wheft and into the cave of worlds. |
| First three chapters done on "The Cave of Worlds" , and I've now got a clear idea of the plot. Chapter three launches the Hero's journey. The first three chapters are open to all; remaining chapters will be under passkey, but I'll share them on request. As always, feedback would be great. I used AI to generate images of the three protagonists so far, Sebastian Vargas; Marcus Melmoth; and Rufo the troll:    |
| I wish I had the time to read what you've got going on. I know I'd love it. You're so talented! But I'm trying to finish school early this semester so I can drive to LA and get settled in before the next semester starts. I also haven't even begun packing, yet I'm supposed to start driving next weekend? Uh, yikes! Anyway, I hope you find some great readers and get some super helpful feedback! I love the images! |
| I've been doing research for my in-process novel, "The Cave of Worlds" , and stumbled across a fascinating speculation about the source of ancient Scandinavian legends of trolls. For background, these legends sometimes characterize trolls as roughly human-sized, living in caves, living separately from human communities, having large noses, thick skins, and heavy skeletal structures. They generally have language and can successfully--if rarely--interbreed with humans, and are sometimes helpful and sometimes hostile. If that reminds you another, real group from pre-history, you're not alone. Here's an article by an archeologist from Stanford speculating the source of the troll legends might be an echo of human-Neanderthal interactions roughly 24,000 years ago: https://www.norwegianamerican.com/neanderthals-scandinavian-trolls-and-troglodyt... He discusses genetics, linguistics, and archeological evidence, that could support--or not--this speculation. He also mentions fiction that includes this speculation as a premise. Anyway, I thought it was interesting enough to share here. |
Not sure this is going to go anywhere, but I drafted the opening chapter to a new novel this morning....
I'd be grateful for comments... |
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Conveniently, I happen to have a detective hanging around with a few loose ends 
