[LS] Back to normal - except escaping cows and books that refuse to die
Yes, I started up another book out of earlier-scrapped essays, while two cows escaped and swam a flooded creek last night to eat tall grass on the other side.
Hi,
Proofing still ongoing. Had to redesign the beta book. And then still another book that was nagging me again raised its hand for attention. Two cows escaped last night, where I couldn’t get to them. But then were back with the herd this morning…
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Farm News - Grass is short everywhere - except where cows aren’t supposed to go, swimming to get there.
Writing News - Feed back from two beta-readers forced a redesign. And then another book raised it’s hand…
Expectancy and Survival - Life is pretty good, providing you learn to let go of the really inane and insane that are trapping your attention.
Farming News
A somewhat sleepless, worried night when two of my younger cows (one a first-year heifer) got out of the fence, swam across the swollen creek, and proceeded to eat the tall grass on the other side.
No, I wasn’t going in after them and swim to the other side, then herd them over and swim back. It was nearing sunset already. No, I didn’t have a way to drag a trailer over sodden ground to load and haul them back, hoping I didn’t get stuck before or after. So all I had left was my (hopeful) common sense that they’d come back to be part of the herd - and prayers.
This morning, I called the herd into another pasture they’d just left - figuring that with the rest of the herd gone somewhere else, these two would want to find out where they went. And - I had some feed mix to tempt them as backup. (Which they consider basically candy due to the high carb content and molasses.)
But when I counted the cows as they came in - there were these two escapees. So I was thankful that my prayers got answered.
Next chapter in this? The herd gets my front and back yards to munch on for a few days. They are my mowers, as you recall… Can’t swim the creek if they can’t get to it. And yes, I have more fencing repairs to do wherever they got out. Look for pictures next week as I get them to work mowing.
Whew.
Tiny Home News
We’re eating more home cooking. And saving money was well as losing weight - and enjoying my wife’s marvelous cooking. Yes, she’s teaching me to quit inhaling my meals and recognize the distinct flavors each dish has.
For a writer, this is sensory heaven.
This is the season, as it is all the growing season ‘round, to keep an eye out for flowring plants that fruit. Right outside our door, a great Black Arkansas apple is blooming, along with other yellow apples nearby. And the wild plums are in bloom. The pears I mentioned last week are now gone, just on the cusp of some freezes. The trick is to mentally note where you see these, and then revisit during the summer to harvest the wild fruit.
Oh, and the spring flowers… My mother makes violet jelly some years. Pretty much any flower blossom can be made into jelly. Basically just add sugar, water, and pectin. The blossoms (and fruit) give flavors and color to it. Redbud is another one she likes to make, but the blossoms are mostly out of reach for her these years.
Writing News
The preliminary feedback got me to reorganize the book a bit. I hope to have the new edition (much shorter) up on that beta-reader link for you. (Still won’t cost you anything.)
I thought to make something of the other essays / threads I’d written about my 6 months of failed audience building on Twitter-X/LinkedIn, but in proofing, it fell apart. So it is now to become just a couple of notes in the back of WriterpreneurOS. But I’m reviewing to see what can be salvaged out of all that writing, so stay tuned…
And I’m still asking for more beta-readers on WriterpreneurOS. (But you’ll have to print your own copy to mark up from that free download until the paperback comes out.)
Here’s the link: https://livingsensical.gumroad.com/l/WOS01-beta-readers
Find the oopsies. Leave comments, reviews. Ask questions. Be one of the first anywhere.
Between 250 and 300 pages, depending on format. Available are epub and PDF. No charge. (Free download, in other words.)
Nearly 20 years of writing-publishing-entrepreneuring - all rolled into a single book. And updated. Condensed.
The next one on copywriting is getting exciting. In the end chapters of copywriting, I deal with the craft of creating truly viral content.
Essentiallly, my writing journey is researching and collecting stuff that works, then distilling this to leave a trail worth following. I think what’s coming up is more revealing than anything I’ve covered about writing and publishing ever before. Because the commonalities I research are tending to coallesce into a working framework - one any focused and disciplined writer can put to work for themselves.
More Book News
This book came yesterday:
This is the project I was working on this summer as a volunteer editor. Nice design. More data on it at this link. (Took this photo while it was trying to rain some more. And before I found those two cows had escaped.)
Expectancy and Survival
Let’s see - there’s bioengineered food, and superprocessed food stuff. And some apple pies need apple flavoring these days, since the “apples” they use are flavorless.
It all goes back to just buying straight from farmers you can meet at the local farmers’ markets, and then cooking your own food instead of eating out. Saves you a bit of money there, as well. And if you know what’s in your food (like knowing how your farmer raised it) then you can cut down on all sorts of stuff that’s being passed off on you.
Plus, you have the great experiment of learning all about how your food is made and what it takes to make it.
We’re looking at getting a grain mill and making our own flour. Adventurous, but it doesn’t have the extra gluten in your bread like store-bought. Or cost as much as the specialty breads, even if you buy organic “wheat berries” to grind flour from.
Something to put on a back burner for now, perhaps. Do your research and decide.
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I hope your life is not too interesting to be overwhelming, but sufficiently engaging to keep you amused. (Like some of us here...)
Robert
PS. Again, you can always email me about anything.
PPS. Again, do upgrade to the paid newsletter version. That helps me keep the lights on - so I can keep all this coming to you. As much or little as you want…
Dotty the Luddite cow. I can picture her with a satchel over her shoulder as she takes her long walk about with her trusty companion Long Eyes.
I so want the two adventuresome cows to have names.
So tell me. Which is easier: chasing cows or chasing down writers to make changes to their prose?!