Midlist Writer: Want to write? Turn off your computer!

Thursday, 2 June 2011

Want to write? Turn off your computer!

Yesterday I took a break from my computer. I turned it off the night before and didn't turn it back on until this morning. It was nice to sit in cafes all day scribbling in a notebook like writers are supposed to do. I wrote half a short story and got a chunk of research done for my next history book.

Sitting at the computer is tiring and distracting. There are a million things you can do online, half of them plausibly work related. When I'm in front of the screen, especially after a few hours, my mind gets scattered and I do five things at once. I check my email way too often and become increasingly inefficient.

Having a computer-free day was fun and productive and easy on the eyes. I think I'll try to do it once a week, work permitting. One thing I noticed when I logged in after a 24-hour lull was that nothing had fallen apart. There were no emails that I absolutely had to reply to, Gadling was still online, and my books were still selling on Amazon.

So take note, writers, you don't need your computer as much as you think you do.

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The Case of the Purloined Pyramid

The Last Hotel Room

He came to Tangier to die, but life isn’t done with him yet. Tom Miller has lost his job, his wife, and his dreams. Broke and alone, he ends up in a flophouse in Morocco, ready to end it all. But soon he finds himself tangled in a web of danger and duty as he’s pulled into scamming tourists for a crooked cop while trying to help a Syrian refugee boy survive life on the streets. Can a lifelong loser do something good for a change? A portion of my royalties will go to a charity for Syrian refugees.

Warpath into Sonora

Arizona 1846: Nantan, a young Apache warrior, is building a name for himself by leading raids against Mexican ranches to impress his war chief, and the chief’s lovely daughter. But there is one thing he and all other Apaches fear—a ruthless band of Mexican scalp hunters who slaughter entire villages. Nantan and his friends have sworn to fight back, but they are inexperienced, and led by a war chief driven mad with a thirst for revenge. Can they track their tribe’s worst enemy into unknown territory and defeat them?

Radio Hope

In a world shattered by war, pollution and disease. . . A gunslinging mother longs to find a safe refuge for her son. A frustrated revolutionary delivers water to villagers living on a toxic waste dump. The assistant mayor of humanity's last city hopes he will never have to take command. One thing gives them the promise of a better future--Radio Hope, a mysterious station that broadcasts vital information about surviving in a blighted world. But when a mad prophet and his army of fanatics march out of the wildlands on a crusade to purify the land with blood and fire, all three will find their lives intertwining, and changing forever.

Refugees from the Righteous Horde (Toxic World Book 2)

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The Scavenger

In a world shattered by war, pollution, and disease, a lone scavenger discovers a priceless relic from the Old Times. The problem is, it's stuck in the middle of the worst wasteland he knows--a contaminated city inhabited by insane chem addicts and vengeful villagers. Only his wits, his gun, and an unlikely ally can get him out alive. Set in the Toxic World series introduced in the novel Radio Hope, this 10,000-word story explores more of the dangers and personalities that make up a post-apocalyptic world that's all too possible.

Trench Raiders

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