Posted in Other, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, Thoughts, Writers on November 21, 2025| Leave a Comment »
“It’s the questions we can’t answer that teach us the most. They teach us how to think. If you give a man an answer, all he gains is a little fact. But give him a question and he’ll look for his own answers.”
― Patrick Rothfuss, The Wise Man’s Fear
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, drabble, Fiction, Writers, writing on November 18, 2025| Leave a Comment »
I wrote a drabble yesterday but decided not to share it. Why not? Because it’s dark and it’s sad. I like to keep things largely upbeat here, for my readers and for myself.
That doesn’t mean I’m all unicorns and rainbows, obviously, but I want you to come away from this site feeling at least a little hopeful. I try to focus on the future, and I hope that it’s a good one.
Sometimes that means facing down darkness, and I’ve done that before even in a 100-word format. Not this time, though, so I’ll keep it in my files for now.
Still, progress is progress, and I’m happy to be writing!
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Posted in Other, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, think positive, Thoughts on November 17, 2025| Leave a Comment »
“There are enough negative forces in this world—don’t let the pessimistic voice that lives inside you get away with that stuff, too. That voice is NOT a good roommate.”
― Felicia Day
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Posted in Other, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, Thoughts on November 15, 2025| Leave a Comment »
“There is nothing like a dream to create the future.”
― Victor Hugo, Les Misérables
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, creativity, think positive, Thoughts, Writers, writing on November 12, 2025| Leave a Comment »
“It was never the right time or it was always the right time, depending on how you looked at it.”
— Ann Patchett, Bel Canto
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Posted in Other, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, #BeFrodo, conviction, courage, ethics, J.R.R. Tolkien, morality, Thoughts on November 10, 2025| Leave a Comment »
“To become the shadow to defeat the shadow only extends the shadow’s reach and its reign. In one of the great ironies of our international moment, it appears that many of the people who’ve read “The Lord of the Rings” the most understand it the least. They perceive an emergency – a world in crisis – and grasp for the ring.
But Tolkien’s message is profoundly different. You must demonstrate courage to defend against evil, but to defeat it, you cannot rely on your own strength. It is to the “light and high beauty” that we must turn, even when we cannot see a way through.”
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Posted in Writing on November 9, 2025| Leave a Comment »
One thing I like about posting every day is that, in my mind at least, this process becomes less about perfection and more like a conversation.
If I forget something, I can come back the next day and add it in. If I want to digress, it’s no big deal. And if I don’t feel like writing anything very involved, I can give you a quote and a pretty picture but I still post something.
Stakes are lowered, and the emphasis is on consistency, not genius. (What is “genius” anyway? The post that strikes you as incredible may land flat for someone else, and that’s fine. I can’t worry about that, I need to stay focused on writing.)
For me, that’s the key here. Write something. Say something. Do it again.
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, creativity, Thoughts, Writers, writing on November 8, 2025| 1 Comment »
“The right time is any time that one is still so lucky as to have.”
— Henry James
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, #DontTryThisAtHome, Writers, writing on November 7, 2025| Leave a Comment »
When I hear a story like “crown jewels stolen in brazen theft,” my first thought tends to be “Now what?” (Ok, my first thought was, wait, France still has crown jewels? And then the other thing.)
I have zero interest in actual theft, but you never know when this sort of information might come in handy for fiction. That’s where experts come in. Here’s a law professor and specialist in art crimes on that very subject.
You’ve just stolen a priceless artifact – what happens next?
The high-profile heist at the Louvre in Paris on Oct 19, 2025, played out like a scene from a Hollywood movie: a gang of thieves steal an assortment of dazzling royal jewels on display at one of the world’s most famous museums.
But with the authorities hot in pursuit, the robbers still have more work to do: How can they capitalize on their haul?
And here’s another professor on what might happen to this particular loot.
What will happen to the Louvre jewellery after the heist? There are two likely scenarios
The stolen jewellery includes well-known pieces that are easily recognisable. This will make it difficult, if not impossible, to sell them on the black market, even to well-heeled collectors and buyers.
(Oh, and given post-heist updates, I’d probably add “Don’t drop the loot and / or leave DNA behind” to this list of handy suggestions.)
Perhaps this will help you think about a (fictional!) story.
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, creativity, Thoughts, Writers on November 3, 2025| Leave a Comment »
“The gifts you possess can lift you up or pull you down; it all depends on how you use them.”
— Arthur C. Brooks
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J.R. Johnson 
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