I got on Facebook this morning, and saw a post referring to the writer David Farland. It turned out he passed away on Friday, after falling down some stairs and hitting his head. He was 64.
My buddy Jeff knew him as a boy (when he was just getting started as a professional writer), and it was David Farland who told me the difference between a short story and a novel ("Your character has a problem. If he solves it, it's a short story. If there are obstacles to solving it, it's a novel."), and I used that to complicate my short story about a frontier sheriff with an interesting problem, and it became my first novel.
I used to see him often (at literally every one of the writers' conferences I'd go to in Februarys), and he was a genial man with an awesome hat. Yes, I made fun of him a few times too, because he would name-drop writers more famous than him whom he had mentored, but I wish I were more of a self-promoter than I am, because it's a necessary tool for success, and while I can certainly BE a tool, I lack that tool in my life.
Sit-ups Today: 111
Sit-ups In January: 1622
Push-ups Today: 111
Push-ups In January: 1478
Words Today: 339
Words In January: 9477
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