Lindsay Gurka

While Table Six is still my number one big goal, I need a little something to pump up the motivation and excitement level a smidge. That internal editor is working nonstop to go back and erase and rewrite all of chapter one that I’ve written and I need her to cut the shit, so I’ve developed a new challenge that’s sort of keeping her busy enough to leave well enough alone.

New challenge: A short story compilation called Prompted.

I have stories that were born from a combination of writing prompts and a randomly chosen supernatural something or other. I put these together in a binder and decided they needed some more friends, so I compiled a list of 32 more writing prompts and have decided to go in order on the suckers. Each new story is born from the next prompt on the list and a randomly chosen supernatural being. The first of this challenge was so much fun that I tore through the story in just a few days. It needs some editing, but while I was working on that, I edited another short story and it worked so well to shut off that editor bitch, that I think this might just be the method I need to stick with for now, or maybe even forever if she never gets privy to my schemes.

I’ve started the second prompted story, chosen the next supernatural being, and I’m wicked excited for this. I’ve been reading a lot about self-publishing and trying to figure out the best way to do this, but I think this is the most excited and the most I’ve worked without an external deadline in my whole life. As of right now, I have four stories ready for this and at this rate, if I can keep up the momentum, am planning for a January 1st release.

I’ve also pulled up Scrivener as a means to manage the formatting stuff and keep everything organized, which brings me a great amount of calm. I haven’t used it in years, not since the Nanowrimo days, but I love that I can sync to my phone so I can work on things when I’m not near my laptop. How fucking cool is that? Oh! Maybe this month will be my own little Nanowrimo. I’ll write all the stories now and edit the crap out of them in December.

This week has also been a busy one with figuring out branding and design. I finally put Canva to good use and redesigned all the icons for various posts and for my short stories and poetry on Patreon. Which I’m also going back over and editing before putting that out into my personal Facebook world. Do people ever stop editing? How do you know when you’re done with the editing process? Every time I think I’m done, I read back through it and there it goes again.

Well, I’ve gotta run, so here’s the current status update

Table Six
Word count: 1069
Prompted
Word count: 8,123
Story count: 4/12
Coffee intake: Back at a pot. Whoops.
Music: Anthony Raneri and Bayside. Still on repeat, I can’t help it.
Books I’m reading
1. The Burial Tide by Neil Sharpson (SO good, I just need more focus!)
2. In the House in the Dark of the Woods by Laird Hunt (almost finished but struggling)
3. Save the Cat Writes a Novel by Jessica Brody
Games I’m playing
Final Fantasy Tactics – trying to get through that three battle, gate breach, archer hell.
Hollow Knight: Silk Song

Love, Lindsay