The Stories of Scott D. Southard

December 24, 2012

My Online Literary Experiment: Holiday Break!
Sometimes like a coach, a writer has to make the right call for the team or athlete, no matter how unpopular the decision might be. (I am assuming this, I know nothing about sports.)

See, I realized today that it would be impossible to really create a first-rate chapter in time for this friday because of the holiday.

I have two little kids, and family to visit, etc., and the fact is I will be losing too many evenings writing. (Seriously, almost all of my evenings! It would’ve been hell and stressful. Not Christmas-y at all.) So I have decided that it would be best for the book that I delay the release of Chapter 23 by one week.

Yup, Chapter 23 will not be released now until January 4.

For those that might be worried that somehow the book/writing experiment might be in trouble so near the end, let me say loudly: NO WORRIES. I have a good first draft of the chapter ready, and if it was a normal week ahead there would have been no problem at all.

And also, do I want to be stressing this week about a chapter, writing until the wee hours, or instead waiting for Santa by the window with my kids? Sorry, readers the answer was obvious to me. I’m a believer in the man in the red suit and the white beard.

Anyway, I hope everyone has a nice holiday. Rebecca, Jenn, Vince, Marty, Mary, Viv, Gordon, Steve, Ralph, Lilly, and even Bob will be back in the new year to end my new novel, Permanent Spring Showers.

(… Oh, and buy my new book A Jane Austen Daydream. It is quite lovely and filled with writing surprises [and only 99 cents on amazon right now!]; and will help you as you wait for the return of my little/massive experiment.)
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December 19, 2012

Neil Diamond’s “A Cherry Cherry Christmas” is the Worst Christmas Song Ever! A Holiday Musical Rant.
It takes a lot to write a worse song than “Christmas Shoes.”

You could almost see a contest being created around the Herculean task. The title of the contest could relate to old, smelly sneakers or something.

Yet, in 2009 Neil Diamond would have won the coveted holey shoe without any trouble at all with his “A Cherry Cherry Christmas.” (You see how I did that? Because we are talking about the holidays and I said “holey” instead of holy?… Oh, nevermind.)

How did I escape this atrocity to the holidays for the last few years?

It might be my first proof of Christmas angels. (And not the little ones who are all alone with no toys to play with except a shoebox… Wow, I hate that children’s book; most depressing vision of the afterlife ever.) See, I love the holiday season and one of my little embarrassing quirks is each year I give the local radio stations a chance to prove to me that there is still the possibility of good Christmas music being made. Usually, they don’t succeed…

Actually, sadly, I can’t think of the last time they have convinced me that anyone should consider making a holiday CD at all again! (more…)
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December 17, 2012

The Christmas Accordion: Holiday 2012 Thoughts
I have three memories around my second grade teacher, Mr. Nyenhuis.

The first involved the time he dumped Dan Wheeler’s desk on the ground, showing what an absolute mess it was. Seriously, there was a smell coming from it that we all had to find out about. It couldn’t be natural.

The second memory was around my broken wrist. It was my first (and only) broken anything and I had to get up in front of the class and tell everyone about it. I remember the feeling of all of my fellow classmates’ eyes on me and their excitement as I got closer and closer to the moment I fell off the bars on a backyard play set (I remember doing an incredibly inaccurate “crunch!” noise). To this day, I point to that moment as one of the defining ones that turned me towards storytelling.

The last memory involved Mr. Nyenhuis, the holidays, and Christmas.

–

See, for every year I was in elementary school, on the last week of school before Christmas, we had a tradition at Parkview Elementary. All of the kids were led out to the hallway for a daily sing-along. (more…)
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December 16, 2012

Happy Birthday Jane Austen!
Today is Jane Austen’s birthday. I won’t presume to argue that the best way to celebrate her big day is by buying my book, A Jane Austen Daydream; I don’t roll that way.

Jane inspired me to write my latest novel; wait, she just didn’t inspire it, she is also IN it. She is a writing hero, and I wanted to give her a better tale than the one life had chosen for her. Yes, it pains me that she didn’t have time to give us more great works.

It’s a good day to brush off your copy of your favorite Ms. Austen book and enjoy… Happy Birthday Jane Austen.
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December 15, 2012

Do you want to read the first chapter of A JANE AUSTEN DAYDREAM? Green Spot Blue is sharing it now.
I am honored to have Green Spot Blue, a literary and parenting (and very wonderful) web site, sharing the first chapter from A Jane Austen Daydream. You can read it right now by clicking here.

Green Spot Blue was one of the first and strongest supporter of this work and in many ways gave me the confidence not only to seek out a publisher for it but to even do this writing blog. I hope you will visit their site.

If you will like to buy the ebook, you can find it here:
The paperback is coming soon…
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December 14, 2012

A JANE AUSTEN DAYDREAM is being shared by the Jane Austen Society of North America, Central NJ Chapter
I am honored that today A JANE AUSTEN DAYDREAM is being shared on the main page of the Jane Austen Society of North America, Central NJ Chapter. You can visit the site and its page for the book here.

On the site you can see the trailer, read about me and the book, and find links where you can purchase it. Pretty cool!

If you would like to read the eBook of A JANE AUSTEN DAYDREAM you can find it via these links:
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December 13, 2012

Writing About Tolkien
Tomorrow! Tomorrow! To say, I am looking forward to seeing The Hobbit tomorrow is to not to do it justice. Tolkien and his writing was a major influence on my writing (I discuss this in the post here). Yes, I don’t write fantasy typically, but this is more soul-related, life direction. Okay, this may all sound dramatic, but it is so very, very true for me. So I will be there, the first showing on Friday, turning off my iphone (with its Hobbit case) off for three hours… the only question is do I wear my Middle Earth t-shirt?

I’ve written three different articles about Tolkien this year. I think it is a record. Here are the articles:
I hope you enjoy the movie!
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December 12, 2012

A JANE AUSTEN DAYDREAM is in the Spotlight at My Jane Austen Book Club
I have the honor of sharing that A Jane Austen Daydream is being showcased on the website My Jane Austen Book Club right now!

You can read not only a description of the book, but also the first two chapters!

You can find the book on the site here or here.
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December 12, 2012

A JANE AUSTEN DAYDREAM Giveaway!
This is a part of getting my book published I was not expecting and it’s kind of fun. My publisher is giving away items related to my new book!

This month two lucky readers can win A Jane Austen Daydream poster. I think it is a great cover and would be a neat addition in any classroom or nearby bookshelves (or, dare I dream, in a Jane Austen museum???)

To enter, please visit the Facebook page for the book here (https://www.facebook.com/AJaneAustenDaydream?ref=ts&fref=ts) and click on the giveaway button after clicking on the like button. It is as easy as that.

If you haven’t picked up the eBook yet for A Jane Austen Daydream, you can find it here:
The paperback is coming in a few weeks. I hope everyone is enjoying the daydream… Cheers! And, as always, thanks for reading!
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December 11, 2012

My Online Literary Experiment: Riding the Train
On this Friday I will be sharing Chapter 21 and I am, honestly, feeling more stress and pressure now around the writing of the book than I have ever before.

Wait… have I said that before? Whatever the case, I am on the train and we are flying down the tracks. Little animals beware!

Part of the stress might just be because I have to keep up this blog at the same time… and there is the matter of my new little book being released last week!

(Oh didn’t you know? Here is a link for my info- https://sdsouthard.com/2012/12/07/a-jane-austen-daydream-my-latest-novel-is-out-only-4-99/.)

Yes, there is a lot going on and I feel it in my writing bones…

The Struggles

As I noted in my last update I am no longer ahead a week in my writing, which means Chapter 21 is still a work in process even today, but that is not my big problem. My big problem is that as I get near the end there is so much I want to do which means my chapters are getting long.

When I first began the experiment, I thought the chapters would always be between 10 and 15 pages, in the most. Well, that was thrown to the wind with the first 20+ page chapter emerged (Chapter 3).

Ah, Chapter 3… What did you do to me!?!

(more…)
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