Monday, January 2, 2012

Happy New Year!

party hats1I’m big on New Year’s resolutions. Here are some writing-related ones:

I resolve not to use the names James, Jim, Jimmy, Jamal, McJames, Jamie, Jimbo, and Jiminy in the same book.

I resolve not to use the name Hortense in any book.

I resolve to use Correct capitalization, good:punctuation; and proper grammar whenever it would been poSSible”

I resolve to use more. Complete. Sentences.

I resolve not to play Minesweeper, check my Amazon rankings, and surf YouTube every fifteen minutes.

I resolve not to end every scene with a cliffhanger. Or will I?

I resolve not to write rough drafts with crayons anymore.

I resolve to do some research for my next book.

I resolve to no longer read Amazon reviews of my books. I’ll just assume they are all five stars. (Hey, these are my resolutions, and I’ll resolve what I want to!)

Got any to add?

 

Happy New Year, everyone!

Alan

11 comments:

Lois Winston said...

Gee, Alan, what do you have against Hortense?

Robin Allen said...

Fun post, Alan! James is one of my favorite names and my main character's love interest is named Jamie. But you're right that too much of a good name is confusing.

I resolve to finish writing Poppy's confrontation with the killer, even if it kills me.

Shannon Baker said...

I love that you can make resolutions. Too much commitment for me. I just might see a need to use Jim, James, Jamal, and Hortense in my next chapter! Happy New Year.

Alan Orloff said...

Lois - I much prefer past tense.

Robin - Thanks! Good luck with the confrontation!

Shannon - I didn't say I KEPT resolutions; I just like making them. HNY! (I learned that from Keith.)

Darrell James said...

I resolve to keep all my resolutions in 2012. (I just haven't resolved to make any yet.) Happy New Year, Alan! And good luck with DEADLY CAMPAIGN! It's already on the streets and I have my copy!

Keith Raffel said...

Thanks for the post, Alan, and confirming the wisdom of Mark Twain who said: "New Year's Day: Now is the accepted time to make your regular annual good resolutions. Next week you can begin paving hell with them as usual."

Deborah Sharp said...

Got a chuckle, as usual, from your post, you funny man! From someone who (stupidly) named her characters Mace, Mama, Maddie, Marty and, because that wasn't bad enough, the love interest: Martinez ;-)
However, I have refrained from using Hortense.
Happy 2012, buddy.

Dru said...

I love your resolutions. Does this mean you'll read B&N reviews?

Alan Orloff said...

Darrell - Thanks! And thanks for warning people about DEADLY CAMPAIGN. HNY!

Keith - Thanks for mentioning me and Mark Twain in the same comment. HNY to you!

Deb - HNY2012, boomerang!

Dru Ann - Thanks! I think I'll only read the good reviews. If there happen to be any, of course.

Anonymous said...

Alan - Oh, these are great!. As for me, I resolve not to use hyperbole, which I've told myself a million times not to do!

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