As you may or may not know, I keep a spreadsheet of my daily word counts. Nerdy, I know, but you’d be surprised how helpful it can be with keeping goals and staying motivated. As part of that, I’ve decided to do a quarterly report here on my blog. Here’s my report for April 2010… Continue reading Second Quarter 2010 report
Author: Joe Vasicek
Joe Vasicek is the author of more than twenty science fiction books, including the Star Wanderers and Sons of the Starfarers series. As a young man, he studied Arabic and traveled across the Middle East and the Caucasus. He claims Utah as his home.
Writer’s block? Tallyho!
Just a quick post before I go to bed. Health problems suck when all you’ve got is catastrophic insurance. I started breaking out in this weird rash last week, and I went into the clinic today. It was seventy five dollars well spent, but…man, seventy five dollars? So between taking the bus all over the… Continue reading Writer’s block? Tallyho!
Take me to Arabia
Recently, I’ve found myself nearly overwhelmed by the sudden urge to run away to the Middle East and go totally and irrevocably native. It may pass, but I still want to go back there–really bad. So I looked up BYU’s TESOL certification program, and figured I could apply in January, start fall of ’11, and… Continue reading Take me to Arabia
The need to change
I picked up this sign at institute last Wednesday. The lesson was on our desires; specifically, how the thing that we truly desire deep down is often the thing that we get. The main reason I posted this sign on the door was to motivate me to get a better job than my current one. … Continue reading The need to change
Cover Letter Fail
On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I volunteer as a slushpile reader for The Leading Edge. We see some pretty bad stuff, such as stories written entirely in one-line paragraphs, or self-proclaimed “short stories” over 80 pages and 30 chapters long, or hilariously awkward phrases like “the copious softness of her breasts.” This, however, takes the cake.… Continue reading Cover Letter Fail
Quick update
Just a quick update on things, since it’s been forever since I’ve blogged. The Utah Valley Democrats offered me a position, but it wasn’t the internship they’d advertised, so I turned it down. They wanted me to do all their phone surveys, for 20 hours per week at $8.50 an hour, working evenings and Saturdays… Continue reading Quick update
Most and least productive days
Man, I don’t know how it happened, but I did not get a word in in my novel today. No, wait, I know how it happened: my schedule looked like a piece of moldy Swiss cheese. First, there was work, then plasma, then a few hours of free time followed by an interview for an… Continue reading Most and least productive days
The wilderness is calling me…
…and I’m kind of hesitant to answer. Four years ago, my sister went through Wilderness Quest, a wilderness therapy organization based in Monticello, Utah. At the end of the program, I went down with my whole family for family therapy. The experience was incredible–intense, emotional, and very life changing for all of us. Fast forward… Continue reading The wilderness is calling me…
An interesting concept
Last night, I was hanging out with a friend of mine and a couple of girls in the apartment complex where I currently live. We got to talking about books, and one of the girls said something really interesting: Every book needs to have one thing that the main character knows that the reader doesn’t… Continue reading An interesting concept
In search of a title
Okay, it’s REALLY bugging me that I don’t have a good title for my next novel. I’ve been thinking, though, and here are a few of the ones I’ve come up with: Chasing Home Exile’s End Worlds Away Worlds Apart from Home Where I Am Fallen Fallen from Home Fallen in the Wilderness I’m not… Continue reading In search of a title