Tag: Writing
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On Writing and Storytelling: The Comfort of Lasagna, the Weight of Goodbye
By the time I began writing Reunion: Coda in the spring of 2023, I was facing an uncomfortable truth: this was my third attempt to write a novel since 2015 and my fourth attempt overall. Each previous project had stalled out somewhere between ambition and exhaustion. I knew I couldn’t afford to abandon another one.…
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The Last Afterschool Walk Home – June 15, 1983 (An Excerpt from ‘Reunion: Coda)
This vignette is the third movement in the four‑part Prologue of Reunion: Coda. The Prologue begins with Jim’s wry rejection of clichés, then shifts into his candid admission of why he never pursued Marty in high school. This passage picks up only minutes after the final 1983 scene of Reunion: A Story, following Jim and…
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On Writing and Storytelling: The Chronicles vs. Kindle Create: Round… I’ve Lost Count
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in Alex Diaz-Granados, Amazon, Amazon Reviews, Amazon Spain (Amazon.es), Amazon UK, Books, Comings and Goings: The Art of Being Seen, Creative Writing, Kindle, Kindle Create (Publishing App), Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Reunion Duology, Reunion: A Story, Scrivener 3 for Windows, The Jim Garraty Chronicles, Writing and Editing, Writing and Editing Software, Writing as a CraftTuesday, May 5, 2026 — Orlando, Florida It’s one of those classic Central Florida afternoons—so hot the air practically sizzles. My weather app insists it’s 86°F (30°C) under a sky that can’t quite decide if it’s sunny or not. With 38% humidity and a gentle east-southeast breeze at 3 MPH (4 Km/H), you’d think it…
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On Writing and Storytelling: Why Brahms’ Poco Allegretto Has Become Jim’s ‘Letter Music’ for Me
Wednesday, June 15, 1983 My dearest Martina, I’m not sure if I am doing the right thing by telling you this now, or if I should tell you this at all. I wish I had the answers. I can’t believe our three years at SMSH have come to an end. It seems as though only…
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“The Morning I Became Someone Else” — A Poem from Jim Garraty’s POV
Every so often, while revisiting Reunion: A Story and Reunion: Coda, I find myself returning to the emotional fault lines that shaped Jim Garraty long before he ever set foot in Cambridge or New York. Graduation Day 1983 is one of those fault lines — the day when childhood ended, adulthood began, and the girl…
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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: Under Partly Sunny Skies, I Keep Going
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in Alex Diaz-Granados, Amazon, Amazon Reviews, Amazon Spain (Amazon.es), Amazon UK, Audible, Blogging, Book Reviews, Comings and Goings: The Art of Being Seen, Creative Writing, Depression, Florida Weather, Kindle, Kindle Create (Publishing App), Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Life in Central Florida, Life in Florida, Life in Miami (1972-2016), Life in New Hampshire (December 2023 – October 2024), Life in South Florida, Life in the Tampa Bay area, Life in the United States, Personal Thoughts, Reunion Duology, Reunion: A Story, Scrivener 3 for Windows, Semiquincentennial, Spring 2026, Spring in Florida, The Jim Garraty Chronicles, WriteItNow 5/6, Writing and Editing SoftwareTuesday, April 28, 2026, Orlando, Florida It’s a hot, muggy mid‑spring afternoon here in my corner of Orange County on this second day of my workweek. As I write, the temperature sits at 82°F (28°C) under partly sunny skies. With humidity at a sticky 60% and an east‑southeast breeze of 4 MPH (6 Km/H), the…
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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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Semi-Whaaa? Or: America’s 250th Birthday is Almost Two Months Away…and I’m Not Excited About It
Sunday, April 26, 2026, Orlando, Florida It’s a sultry spring afternoon in Central Florida, the kind that makes you wonder if the air conditioner is working hard or hardly working. As I write, the sun’s out in full force, the temperature hovering at a balmy 83°F (29°C)—so bright and cheery that even the lizards seem…
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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…
A Certain Point of View, Too 