bradsalomons I’ve been spending a lot of time #writing and drinking #coffee but progress on the novel has been a little slow this year so far. I had a great big push late in 2024 to get though the second half and then hit a bit of a block.

Many writing folks will tell you to push through the block and put in the effort and just write, and I did that, getting in my daily word count on other side projects. And that was fine to a point, but none of it was dislodging the plot block in the novel.

Last week I decided to brute force the damn thing and so I’ve set my daily word goal a bit lower and have been writing a bare minimum of words into the novel regardless of other factors.

Specifically, where I was usually tasking myself with sitting down and writing a scene, usually amounting to between 1000-1500 words, now I’m setting the daily goal of 250 words. Yeah, that’s a lot less, but after a week of generously meeting my goal each day I’m nearly 2000 words ahead of where i was last Monday, and that accounts for (sadly) more than half of the words I’ve written in 2025 on this project.

Happily, progress is progress is progress, and the “just write” advice is definitely locked in and valid.

bradsalomons It’s been a weird week of snow and stuff and such and I haven’t done much #writing or had many #coffee sessions, but with Friday here and the month settling into some end of year finality, I made it out to get some words on the page. Of course, I’m sitting here posting this, so you can speculate on exactly just how well that is working out, but—

bradsalomons The Canmore #coffee scene has a #paranormal vibe that I’ve incorporated quite judiciously into my fiction #writing — that is to say the fictional City of Birchmont and setting for my recent word-craft is based heavily on this little town, no doubt, and influenced by our frequent visits. Yet somehow I hadn’t noticed the #cryptozoology vibe in the town until I started writing paranormal fiction—but now I see it everywhere.

I got a couple scenes written while we visited this weekend, so inspiration meets perspiration, huh? The first book in my Stories from Birchmont series will be completed soon, maybe even by the end of November if I stop goofing around and write the last few chapters!

bradsalomons I have been making extensive headway on The Underfoot this past couple of weeks and I’m comfortable with thinking about my next steps with the novel. In that mood I’ve been contemplating taking another serious stab at an #audiodrama version, produced with some music and sound effects. I found myself down in the #rivervalley this morning then recording some #foley and wandering through the woods trying to find the quietest place in the city… which was not easy. In fact I hiked from the dog park over across the bridge to the wilderness on the way to fort edmonton park, and hid in the bushes with my recording equipment. All of that was in service of capturing some autumn sounds of the woods and birds and leaves as background fill. Who says the life of a part time writer is dull, huh?

bradsalomons “What do you think, bud?” Ludo stands, hands on his hips, surveying the trunk of a particularly broad-trunked ash tree near the back quarter of his property. “This one? Gee, she must be a hundred years old by the looks of her. I can’t even see the top, can you?” [read more...]