Did You Write? April 25, 2011

Did You Write? April 25, 2011

Boy did this week go by fast. It did not seem to have much time for writing. I know a lot of us have that problem. Others have the time but find other things they need to do with that time, and then there are those of us who write regularly, keeping up with goals, producing SOMETHING.
The purpose of this note is to eventually get all of us into the regular writing camp, flooding the publishers with quality work everybody wants to read. In this note, quality is not addressed. It is simply to help us all write and regularly.
How much to write is not as important as making the attempt. Word counts can be a good guide, but there are times where it is a bad measure of one's work. I have had editing sessions where I ended up within a few dozen words of what I started. I have also had writing sessions where I fought tooth and nail with a scene and had little to show for it. The act of opening the work is the most important thing.

I give a long list of things that can be writing. Time constraints today limits my post tonight. If you have to ask if is writing, the answer is yes.

On the writing front, I only got 1400 words in my Waxy story. I have had some long days, working extra hours (will look good on the paycheck) and extra hours on my weekend projects so I have not had the time to write I really wanted to. I also fought with a scene a bit and had to get my mind off original mind set and get into the swing of the new emphasis on the story. It is now looks like it is falling together.

On the story idea front, I have 48 ideas in my compost pile. I had a couple days where the ideas flowed fast. Several of the new ideas are exciting and deserve more effort to develop them than I am placing in them. Time constraints have priority.

This weekend I did a project I am really proud of. I have a small machining lathe. I can make cuts across a piece, or along the piece, but angles are not possible for anything that is long. Over the past week, I designed a new tool that would give me the ability to cut on angles. I tried different designs and finally came up with something that might work well.
This weekend, I spent an eight hour day making a mock-up of the part in wood to prove the design. With some modifications, my design will work fine. I now need to get some metal of the right size and then machine the metal into the actual part. It was a learning experience I am proud of. I had a lot of planning, figuring and adjustments to do before I ever made my first cut. I am excited about giving something like this another try. I have found another hobby and I might even be good at it!!!

Using the above for a story idea, He is an old style machinist. His machines are belt driven and he has to make his own tools. His planet has to be abandoned so he ends up on a space station. He is given a job at a tool making company. He is shown the machines he has to work with. Because the metals are so hard and impervious, they use a constant beam of a laser to do the work. There is no turning the beams off, one simply has to make the cuts the vest one can.
He is left to figure out how to do his work. he tests a tiny piece of the metal and sees it takes some time to cut. He then takes a cheap piece of metal, part of a packing case and finds it cuts easily. He looks over some of the tools and cannot find a way to hold the parts he wants to work with.
He picks a block of cheap metal and works out how he wants it designed. He then carefully works the part in the beam until he gets the part shaped. Since he cannot drill, he cuts in a thin slot and then cuts around until he has his hole. He cuts slots in other places, rocking the piece carefully to sweep away metal that needs to be removed.
He then shows off his part to see what others think. They are impressed with his imagination and skills. He is instantly placed as a permanent worker rather than a temporary worker.

As to the question of the week,

I can honestly say,

YES I DID WRITE

DID YOU WRITE?