PROGRESS REPORT: WEEK ENDING MAY 24, 2014

Hello Everybody.
It's the Memorial Day weekend here in the United States of America. A time of warmer weather, outdoor activities, plenty of sales, and somewhere along the way we should also be remembering those past and present who served in this country's military branches to protect the freedoms that we enjoy today.

In any event, I did finish Chapter 9 to Alpha, Book 2: Wayward Son and have a good start on Chapter 10.
Unfortunately my friendly beta/proofreader Nancy A. Hansen is still working on the last short story I gave her to go over (after she finished reviewing the galley PDF to her next book), so I'm not sure when she will get to that, let alone Chapters 7 and 8.

Meanwhile, New Babel Books is getting closer to publishing the Singularity: Rise of the Post Humans anthology. More details on that as they develop.

I still have one more short story that I am committed to writing in 2014 (so far) that will be done long before its current October deadline, and I have been jotting down some ideas for what will be Book 3 in the Hugh Monn, Private Detective series! Work on that will start when Alpha 2 is done.

Wish I could say more besides the above and brag about the fact that The Free Choice E-zine has already reached 3000+ page views again this month!
I do have a few other things on the creative back burner, but they are nowhere near ready to start working on.

In any event, have a great week folks and I'll see you around the Internet.
Lee Houston, Junior
25 May, 2014

PROGRESS REPORT: WEEK ENDING MAY 17, 2014

"Let's see now... This week was next week last week..."--Daffy Duck

I would love to say more has happened since last week, but that would be lying to you fine folks.

Alpha image by Marc Guerrero

I have made some serious progress on Chapter 9 to Alpha, Book 2; and the book is really living up to its subtitle Wayward Son.
Unfortunately, my friend and beta/proofreader Nancy A. Hansen just finished going over the galleys to her next published novel this past week, and will be back proofreading my latest short story this week. So it will be at least next week before she can look over Chapters 7 and 8.

Otherwise, my health is well,
The Free Choice E-zine received 2000+ page views again for the 9th straight month,
I will be finished with the other short story currently on my agenda looong before its actual October deadline,
and Spring is finally showing signs of arriving!
I may even get to start wearing shorts and light weight t-shirts before the end of the month instead of the winter wardrobe I've been sporting since last October!

In any event, take care everyone and I'll see you around the Internet.
Lee Houston, Junior
18 May, 2014

PROGRESS REPORT: WEEK ENDING MAY 10, 2014

Mixed results this week

My progress report for the last 7 days is mixed.

Nancy A. Hansen, my friendly beta/proof reader, had to set my latest short story aside (for now) to go over the galley PDF of her next release to make sure everything was alright before publication.

Meanwhile, although I have continued working on Alpha, Book 2: Wayward Son; life had other ideas about what should and shouldn't have been on my agenda this past week, so all I really accomplished was getting a good start on what will be Chapter 9.

And of course, there's always my duties as Editor-In-Chief of The Free Choice E-zine to attend to.

This leads us to an interesting point. Last week I discussed WHY DO I WRITE?
This week, since I've discussed this topic before, a brief second look at WHAT TAKES SO LONG?
I've always wondered this from a reader's perspective, as I anxiously awaited the next release from any of the authors I like. But now that I'm on the other end of the keyboard, I have a better understanding of the situation.

First and foremost, I'm only human.

That goes without saying, but as such, I have all the trials and tribulations that everyone else faces. Eating, sleeping, housework, and all the other ups and downs of life that must be faced on a regular basis.
As much as we sometimes wish otherwise, there are only 24 hours within any given day, so we have to make the most out of what we have.

Writing isn't as easy as you might think.
Granted, there are some days when the words come faster than I can type.
Yet there are others when seems like I couldn't find them even with the help of the world's most powerful microscope!
It isn't just a question of knowing what you want to say, but how to say it as well.
Some writers might be able to tell you how much material they are able to produce within a given amount of time.
Me? I've always been more concerned about quality over quantity.
Whether I've written 100 or 1000 words at the end of a session, whose length varies because of all the other trappings of life that must be addressed, if those are the best passages I am able to produce, then I'm happy and believe that the readers and fans will be happy when whatever I'm working on is finally released.

Of course, I start each new writing session by rereading what I wrote in the previous writing session first, but that leads into a discussion of HOW I write, which is a topic best saved for another time.

See you around the Internet.
Lee Houston, Junior
11 May, 2014

PROGRESS REPORT: WEEK ENDING MAY 3, 2014

News to celebrate!

In my capacity a its Editor-In-Chief, got to post Star Wars themed jokes on The Free Choice E-Zine since today is May the Fourth, as in "May the Force be with you."
Unfortunately, the way the calendar is arranged, this opportunity will not arise again until 2025!

Meanwhile, there's some serious progress to report since the last update.

I FINISHED the short story that has a May deadline, and it is now in the hands of Nancy A. Hansen, my friend, fellow writer, and beta-reader for review. Once she has finished going over it, I shall make a final pass before submitting it to the publisher!

Meanwhile, I have completed Chapters 7 AND 8 to Alpha, Book 2: Wayward Son!
The manuscript is at about the 25,000 word mark at the moment, with about a third of my plot for this volume covered.

So overall, it has been a great week writing wise.
See you around the Internet!

Lee Houston, Junior
04 May, 2014