Tag: Writing as a Craft
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On Writing and Storytelling: Small Victories Are Better Than None
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in Alex Diaz-Granados, Amazon, Amazon Reviews, Amazon Spain (Amazon.es), Amazon UK, Book Reviews, Comings and Goings: The Art of Being Seen, Computers, Creative Writing, Florida Weather, Kindle, Kindle Create (Publishing App), Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Lenovo IdeaCentre (PC), Life in Central Florida, Life in Florida, Reunion Duology, Reunion: A Story, Reunion: Coda, Spring 2026, Spring in Florida, Writing as a CraftWednesday, April 29, 2026, Orlando, Florida Hi, everyone. Central Florida is doing its best impression of late July today. As midday slides into early afternoon, we’re sitting at 86°F (30°C) under mostly sunny skies, humidity at a deceptively polite 46%, and a shy little southwesterly breeze at 3 MPH (4 km/h). The heat index, however,…
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On Writing and Storytelling: Trekking from WriteItNow 5 to Scrivener 3
Monday, April 27, 2026, Orlando, Florida Writer’s Log; Stardate 2604.27 It’s been several days since I boldly traded my trusty WriteItNow 5 for Scrivener 3 — a leap that felt equal parts daring mission and necessary upgrade. So far, the switch feels like a win. Not only am I dodging those $100‑a‑year Hemingway Editor subscriptions,…
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WriteItNow Is Gone — And What I Chose Instead
There’s a particular kind of heartbreak only writers understand: the moment you go looking for the tool that shaped years of your creative life… and discover it’s simply gone. That’s what happened to me with WriteItNow. For those who never used it, WriteItNow was a quirky, affordable, surprisingly powerful piece of writing software — part…
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On Writing and Storytelling: Playing Catch-Up After Replacing a ‘Dead’ PC
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in Alex Diaz-Granados, Amazon, Amazon Spain (Amazon.es), Amazon UK, Audible, Books, Comings and Goings: The Art of Being Seen, Creative Writing, Florida Weather, Garratyverse, Kindle, Kindle Create (Publishing App), Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Life in Central Florida, Life in Florida, Reunion Duology, Reunion: A Story, Reunion: Coda, Spring 2026, Spring in Florida, The Jim Garraty Chronicles, The Summer of Two Movies, Writing as a CraftMonday, April 20, 2026, Orlando, Florida Hello there, dear readers! It’s a moody, blustery Monday here in Central Florida, the kind of day when clouds gather like gossiping neighbors and the wind seems intent on rearranging every stray leaf. As I write this, early afternoon is upon us. The thermometer reads a friendly 75°F (24°C),…
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Sunday Drizzle, Story Edits
Sunday, March 29, 2026 – Orlando, Florida Hi, everyone. It’s a warm, gray‑shrouded early spring Sunday here in my corner of Orange County on this last weekend of March 2026. The kind of day that feels like it’s holding its breath — not quite bright, not quite gloomy, just wrapped in a soft, humid hush.…
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On Writing and Storytelling: The Elementary School That REALLY Wasn’t
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in Amazon, Amazon Spain (Amazon.es), Amazon UK, Books, Creative Writing, Garratyverse, Kindle, Kindle Create (Publishing App), Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Life in Florida, Life in South Florida, Reunion Duology, Reunion: Coda, South Miami High School in fiction, South Miami Senior High School, Writing a First Novel, Writing and EditingThe Elementary School That REALLY Wasn’t (A Funnier Follow‑Up) So, remember how I said I fixed the Kinloch Park reference in Reunion: Coda, and everything was good and tidy and ready for KDP? Yeah. About that. It turns out Jim and Mark’s elementary school wasn’t just mentioned once in the Prologue. Or twice. Or even…
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On Slow Weeks and Stubborn Callings
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in ACX, Alex Diaz-Granados, Amazon, Amazon Reviews, Amazon Spain (Amazon.es), Amazon UK, Audible, Audible Reviews, Audiobooks, Blogging, Book Reviews, Books, Brandon Padilla, Bryan Haddock, Comings and Goings: The Art of Being Seen, Creative Writing, Florida Weather, Kindle, Kindle Create (Publishing App), Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Life in Central Florida, Life in Florida, Personal Thoughts, Praise Circles, Reunion Duology, Reunion: A Story, Reunion: Coda, Royalties, Spring in Florida, Stefan (Steve) Lee, The Jim Garraty ChroniclesA brief dispatch from the post‑DST haze Thursday, March 12, 2026 — Orlando, Florida It’s midafternoon on a muggy, rain‑soaked March day in Central Florida. The temperature is hovering around 85°F (29°C) under a curtain of heavy rain, and thanks to our subtropical climate—now supercharged by global warming—it feels more like early summer than spring.…
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Bridging Two Stories: An Excerpt from ‘Reunion: Coda’
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in Alex Diaz-Granados, Amazon, Amazon Reviews, Amazon Spain (Amazon.es), Amazon UK, Audible, Audiobooks, Creative Writing, Kindle, Kindle Create (Publishing App), Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Reunion Duology, Reunion: A Story, Reunion: Coda, Stefan (Steve) Lee, Writing a First Novel, Writing as a Craft✨ Introductory Note for the Excerpt When I first wrote Reunion: A Story back in 1998, I believed it was complete—a self‑contained tale about a man haunted by a moment he never fully understood. I didn’t know then that I would return to Jim Garraty’s world decades later, or that the emotional fault lines of…
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Spring’s First Breath and a Slow Sunday
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in Alex Diaz-Granados, Amazon, Amazon Reviews, Amazon Spain (Amazon.es), Amazon UK, Blogging, Book Reviews, Books, Comings and Goings: The Art of Being Seen, Computer and Video Games, Creative Writing, Florida Weather, Life in Central Florida, Life in Florida, MicroProse Software, Personal Thoughts, Reunion Duology, Reunion: A Story, Reunion: Coda, Sea Power: Naval Combat in the Missile Age, Spring in Florida, Triassic Games, Writing a First Novel, Writing as a CraftSunday, March 1, 2026, Orlando, Florida Hello, friends! Today marks the first day of meteorological spring—though astronomical spring won’t officially arrive until the vernal equinox at 10:46 AM on March 20. Still, I’m more than ready to bid farewell to the winter of 2025–2026. And in true Central Florida fashion, spring is easing in with…
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On Writing and Storytelling: Choosing Craft Over Coddling
Friday, February 27, 2026, Orlando, Florida Above all else, I consider myself a storyteller. To be specific, I’m a writer with deep roots in journalism and media criticism, and I’ve dabbled in poetry, screenwriting, and literary fiction. My journey down this winding path began way back in the early 1970s—picture a kid at Tropical Elementary…
A Certain Point of View, Too 