Author Archives: Richard Reilly

Order of Operations

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I have three heavy-duty, time-consuming projects going on right now.  First, I’m four days into The 50 Day Memory Challenge.  Second, I have a large Elance job.  Third, I need to finish the third draft of my manuscript.  It’s getting difficult to sit down and figure out which one I should be working on.  This is the third day that it has been like this.  In the end, it goes like this.

1. Memory Challenge.  It’s quick and makes me feel creatively accomplished when I finish.
2. Elance.  Since I accomplish creativity early, I feel like I have the energy to do monotonous work.
3. Edit.  Doing this last means that I can do it for as long as I want without causing a problem.

I still might have to take a break to go on another adventure.  The fire here in Fort Collins is kind of crazy–37,000 acres in 48 hours.  It’s starting to hit the outer edge of town.  It’s still 0% contained and burning lots of houses to the ground.  I went on two expeditions yesterday–one brought us close to the flames.  The other got me pulled over.  What does today’s adventure bring?

Here is today’s memory:

Day Four: AIM Crush Realization

Fire a Brewing

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I’ve become rather obsessed with the fire exploding outside town.  It started at 6:00AM yesterday morning.  Now, some 32 hours later, it is already bigger than 14,000 acres.  They are evacuating people on the north side of town and into the mountains.  After going for a swim in the Reservoir this morning, we drove as close to the fire as we could.  Although the fire was fascinating, it was the evacuating population that caught my attention.  Watching people loading up their vehicles.  One man was chasing down his dog.  At the evacuation center, young people were gathered in the parking lot because there was nowhere else to go.  It’s fascinating how disasters mess with culture.

I worked for several hours yesterday and hope to continue to do so today.  I am already deep into the third draft of my book.  I also got a lot done on my Elance job.  So…today will consist of more editing and hopefully finishing off the first part of the Elance job.  It’ll be hard work….but it’ll be worth it.  Until tomorrow, here is day three of my memory challenge.  It’s different than the others (and kind of cheating), but just go with it.

Day Three: The Abortion & Remembrance

Editor Richard Reilly?

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I started work on a big Elance job today.  This one is particularly interesting because the end result will actually carry by name: “Edited by Richard Reilly.”  It’ll be a great way to build my portfolio.  It’s an easy task…it’ll just take some time.  I’m just excited because most of the work I do through Elance is Ghostwriting…meaning my name will never be carried on the finished work.  It’ll be nice for some real recognition (and a good paycheck).

I spent my morning garage saling and watching a fire grow in the mountains west of town. Now I’m spending several hours writing–trading between memories, work, and editing.  Lot and lots of work to do on every front.  My goal is to finish by Elance job early and finish the third draft this week.  It’ll take a lot of work, but it will be worth it.  Until tomorrow, here is day two of The 50 Day Memory Challenge.

Day Two: Kicked Out of a Bar 

Starting the Memory Challenge

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Twenty pages of editing down.  Today was utterly exhausting.  Lots of yard work followed by an afternoon with my grandmother followed by a couple hours of editing.  It is the good kind of exhausting.  The kind where, at the end of the day, I feel like I have accomplished a lot.  And the day isn’t over.  I have plans for what sounds like an incredibly strange evening ahead.  I can’t wait.

I started the 50 Day Memory Challenge today.  I’ve been wanting to start this for quite some time.  Having Jordan preempt me was all the encouragement I needed.  My first one comes from the trip I made to Europe during my Senior Trip.  I hope you like it.  More to come over the next 49 days.

Day One: Love in Frankfurt

Interrupted my a Storm

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I was going to use yesterday evening to edit my heart out.  Instead, this happened.  The storm was moving so slow.  I watched it for nearly an hour as it slowly approached town.  Then, when it finally hit, I had way to much fun.  Lots of rotation in the clouds, plenty of hail, and some of the heaviest rain I have ever experienced.  This is easily the best storm of the year.

I’m going to try to get back on track today.  I have a lot to do before I can sit down and edit…but I’m going to get that out of the way right after I finish this update.  I want to get at least another 10-15 pages done today.  I’m also kind of jealous of my friend Jordan.  She already uploaded her second day of the Memory Project.  I never got around to it.  Maybe I should just start today.  I will let you know…

With Love,
Richard

A Long Day of Moving and Editing

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I spent four hours of my day helping my mother move out of her office.  After the role I played in getting her fired (or reassigned, as they put it), it was the least I could do.  As I walk away from today, I have a renewed understanding for why I hated working in an office and would prefer never to be a part of one again.  Politics is frustrating enough in a family or set of friends…it’s simply Hell at work.

I’ve started working on the third draft of the novel.  Since there are so few changes necessary, I am breezing through it.  There are 52 chapters in all…and I just spent the past 90 minutes getting through the first five.  A part of me just wants to finish off the draft over the next two days so I can focus on some other projects (like actually starting the Memory Project) while other people look it over.  I’m at least going to continue editing for the next 80 minutes (I hate that the coffee shop in this town closes at six).  Maybe I will continue working at home.

With Love,
Richard

Best Coffee Ever

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My hometown has some of the best drip coffee I have ever tasted.  It’s called The Blue Mug.  For only $2, they give you a mug that you can refill as often as you would like.  That’s why I feel like I can get so much work done here.  I just finished writing one of the extra chapters and loved it.  I was preparing the information for the second chapter when i realized it really wouldn’t add much.  I’m going to scrap the idea.  My novel is going to be short of the planned 70,000 to 80,000 range.  Going into the third draft, it stands at 67,344 words.

I’m going to alternate between Ghostwriting and working on the Third Draft the rest of this week.  I’m house sitting for my parents again–which gives me a lot of free time.  I just got a pretty big ghostwriting job via Elance.  I can’t wait to get started.  I think I will be able to strike a nice balance between writing as a job and writing as a hobby.  Only time will tell on that front.  I have to run.

With Love,
Richard

Third Draft

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With the help of forty ounces of coffee, I was able to finish the second draft of my manuscript. I am going to write two new chapters tomorrow before regrouping and starting on the third draft. It’s a great feeling to know that your manuscript is approaching the stage where others can read it and not be bothered by small mistakes.

When I finish with my next draft, I will give two people the opportunity to be the first readers. First is my mother–mainly because she would kill me if I let someone else be the first reader. The other is a friend of the family. She is a fast reader who helps me edit. She also is a great way to see how the average person will like the book. I can’t wait to get it to them. Soon enough.

With Love,
Richard

Ghostwriting Problems

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I don’t want to leave the wrong impression.  I love ghostwriting.  I like getting paid to sit down and write on random projects.  There’s just a problem that goes with it.  It forces all your energy away from your project and into someone else’s project.  I spent the last two days working on a website and real estate rewrites.  It was easy money…but I haven’t touched my novel in 48 hours.

It’s time to get back to work.  I am going to try to finish the first rewrite of my novel within the next 48 hours.  I’m still going to take sporadic ghostwriting jobs because I need the money…but I need to find the right balance.  I am currently dedicating at least three hours to writing a day–whether it is my own writing or ghostwritting.  I may bump that up to four hours.  Getting my own projects done when I have the time is the best way to not fell stressed out when i have a ghostwriting job.

Much Love,
Richard

Writing Various Ages

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As I come close to finishing the second draft of my novel, a certain thought keeps coming to mind: what ages am I capable of writing?  I used to believe it was almost impossible to write beyond your age.  I now know that not to be true.  I am now 23 and the core of my novel center around three characters in their late twenties.  Nowadays, my thoughts revolve around the more extreme ages.  Throughout the novel, I bring in random characters in their forties and fifties…but I worry that I can’t make them as well rounded as the other characters because I haven’t gone through that part of my life.

Then there is youth.  With this novel, I feel like I have done a good job with my youngest character.  She is 14.  When I think about it, however, I am not sure if I could go much younger.  I love reading books with young characters…but I don’t know how to develop such a character.  How do you enter the mind of youth?  I talked at length with one of my friends about this.  She just read “Room.”  It’s a book that centers around a five year old.  I can’t even imagine.  Maybe that’s another boundary of my abilities that I need dismantle through hard work and writing practice.

With Love,
Richard