Harddaysknight: Blog

I hope that 2016 began well for everyone. I'm now involved in remodeling a house we purchased "on the court house steps" literally. That's a story in itself.

I see that the Clitoride Award season is again upon us. There are some very good stories and authors nominated for awards. I suggest that readers look over the process and register their opinions. I have a few favorites, but don't want to try to influence how other readers vote. I will say that I personally do not do very well in these contests, and much of that is because I really do not write many sex scenes and am not very good at it when I try.

With a name like "Clitorides" I think we can expect more than a little sex in the winning stories. I realize that while I do enjoy erotic stories, mine are not erotic for the most part. I'm fine with it. Not everyone can write pages of various sexual activities and maintain the readers' interest. I often skim the sex parts in stories, especially when it is background fill. I do enjoy sex, and reading about sex, if it is well written and part of the story. I do not enjoy writing about it in detail.

These writers, for the most part, pour their hearts and souls into their stories and any encouragement you can offer is greatly appreciated by them. By the same token, telling a poor writer how good they are is not doing them a favor, is it? Point out where they need improvement and try to remain positive. We writers are fragile creatures.

Do have a great 2016!

It's been a hectic year, but Christmas is a time to look back and appreciate how special life is, and how easily it goes. It's time to look ahead and see how we can do better. But mostly, it's a time to hug our family and friends, toast them, talk to them, and just love them.

I greatly appreciate everyone that has taken the time to read my story, Lady in Red, that has taken.. around two years, I think. I am amazed that some readers have stayed with me this long.

This story has festered in my diseased mind for a few years and I finally decided to get it out in the open. I know the characters are not totally believable, but I like to think they could exist. I like to think that there could be very talented people that place others before themselves, that use the wealth derived from their talent to help others, that have honor and courage, and that hold their families and friends dear. It could happen, couldn't it?

Thanks to the readers that have written to tell me that they enjoy my efforts and encourage me to keep trying. It helps more than you can know. Ask any writer. Without readers, we really don't amount to much, do we? Merry Christmas!

I'm feeling grateful, even before I have a cold beer! I have 1.13 million hits on my stories on this site. I am enjoying writing and posting my Lady in Red story. I have a few chapters left to complete Book 2. Thanks to those that are still following this epic (to me) in the making.

I am really enjoying the following series, 'Stupid Boy', 'Unforgettable Weeks', and 'Grim Reaper' and suggest that readers check them out.

Lastly, everyone needs to consider how fortunate they actually are. Life is short, so lighten up and enjoy it. Make people around you happier, if you can. It will make you life so much better. Have a great Thanksgiving!

I was surprised and pleased to see that I have had 1,075,336 downloads of my stories over the years. While it is not a record and could be about average since I have no way of knowing how many downloads other writers have, it does give me some satisfaction. I don't get paid for this stuff, and it's probably a good thing that I don't ask. Still, it shows either longevity, or maybe that Mom has developed a system to download my stories all day long? Thanks to all of you that have read one or more of my stories. Now I'm shooting for two million!

I am deeply committed to my Lady in Red story and plan to write many more chapters. My wife and I recently sold two residences and moved to be near our daughter and her family. We are starting a new real estate business from scratch. We have years of experience in the field and expect to do just fine. We have been painting and changing light fixtures in our future office, as well as all of the paper work that goes with moving, starting a business, and getting licenses in order. Boring, yes, but it all has to be done.

We have found that many contractors ask exorbitant amounts for what they do, so we are painting and changing fixtures ourselves. It's what we've done since we first got married and had no money to pay to have these things done. Old habits die hard and we enjoy the feeling of accomplishment.

I always sat down and wrote for a few hours at a time. I find that I now need to adjust and write when I can and for shorter intervals. I am just too busy with grandkids and work to spend long periods of time writing. I am working on changing my mindset so that I can still manage to put my thoughts on paper, or in this case, the monitor, in shorter spurts.

One of my goals in this story was to have some attractive young people that have some moral compass. I am not against fun, but I do like my heroes to have some basic values that make what I consider a good person. I also want the characters to be sexy and quite liberal in their attitudes about a lot of things, like nudity, but conservative in things like fidelity. That may seem almost contradictory, but it does happen in my story. I like Gwen and Steve and want the reader to like them as well. Some readers want Steve to bang Paula, Diane, Kate, Jordan, and ..... the list goes on. I would love to see Steve nail Paula, but neither character is written that way. It won't happen, as interesting as it may seem. When a man respects someone and is a friend, he does not betray them. Pretty simple idea, really. Steve is big on respect and loyalty, which is needed in a hero, at least to me.

Gwen and Steve will be making Super Bowl commercials and hosting the Academy Awards. Gwen will have some tough votes in Congress and experience pressure from lobbyists and politicians. I have yet to introduce pirates to the story, but I will. Book two will end with a rather impressive wedding, but there are numerous chapters to post before that happens.

I thank all of you that have written to me and expressed both the desire to read more and the hope that I am doing okay. I'm in good shape, for the shape I'm in, so don't worry about me. I promise to work a lot harder on my story. I think about it almost every waking moment, if I'm not doing something that requires my full attention. Thanks to all of you that take the time to read my unlikely, perhaps impossible tale. I like to believe there could be people like this in the world.