Thord D. Hedengren

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  • Too Many Chairs

    Too Many Chairs

    I occupy a lot of chairs, wear plenty of hats, don several mantles. You might even say that I do a lot of different things. Some of these things muddle the message a bit, much like using tired old metaphors to explain something simple…

    I’m a writer, first and foremost. That should be pretty clear, but it isn’t, since I not only write technical books, articles, and columns, but also write fiction, both long and short. To complicate things even further, I also write essays and blog posts, ebooks and commentary to what have you. So while I’m a writer, it’s hard to tell what kind, even for me (other than “the kind that writes” of course). Communicating this, be it in conversation or in promotional material, is tricky.  (more…)

  • The E-ink Typewriter

    Writing outside is a painful experience. Sure, you could do as I do now, sitting cross-legged in the shade on my lawn, tapping away on my iPhone. That works reasonable well, at least until my back gives in. It’ll work for today’s 300 words of the iPhone novel, but beyond that it’s just not ideal.

    An e-ink Kindle perhaps?
    An e-ink Kindle perhaps?

    I’d like to be able to put out a table, perhaps equipped with a parasol, and sit in a proper chair. I could do that, but it’d be far from ideal. Laptop screens just plain suck outdoors, and although devices like the iPad fare better, they still put an unnecessary strain on the eyes.

    What I really want is an e-ink display and a keyboard, I really don’t need much more than that. I can’t find it though, probably because e-ink is still too slow and unresponsive to make it truly work as a regular screen. But let’s dream a bit, shall we?

    The e-ink typewriter for modern writers who like to work outdoors:

    • 9–10″ screen, backlit and with a retina-like resolution (much like the excellent Kindle Paperwhite)
    • Keyboard support via bluetooth
    • Wifi and/or 3G, mostly for sync with Dropbox/other
    • Mad battery life (10+ hours should be a piece of cake for a device like this)
    • No need for a distraction-infested app store of any kind.

    The only thing the e-ink typewriter needs is a nice writing app, something inspired by iA Writer or Byword. Markdown support would be nice, but it really doesn’t matter. I’d like to be able to change the font size and margins, for a more personal workspace, but that’s not a must-have either.

    Please sell me this writing device. It’s all I want during the summer. Well that, and a new chair and table, possibly a nice parasol that I can angle anyway I like too. And sun, and a cold beverage, obviously.

  • Writer Math

    Let’s do some simple writer math. If you write 1,500 words on a daily basis, that adds up to 10,500 words weekly. On a 30 day month, you’ll clock in at 45,000 words.

    In two months you have your 90,000 word novel. Or rather, you have the manuscript for the first draft.

    Photo by M. Valdes (CC)
    Photo by M. Valdes (CC)

    How long does writing 1,500 words take? That depends on who you ask, for me it’s less than an hour most days. There are times when it’ll take longer, days when the writing’s hard. We all have those days.

    What does this simple math teach us? It’s pretty obvious, but I’ll spell it out anyway: Write every day, preferably at least 1,500 words.

    This math is dangerous, because it’ll tempt you to consider what 2,000 words daily would mean (14,000 words weekly, 60,000 words monthly, just a month and a half until you reach the 90,000 words mark mentioned above). Or maybe 3,000 words (21,000 words weekly, 90,000 words monthly), some of us could crank that out on a daily basis right? These are tempting, yet dangerous, numbers. It’s all too easy to get lost there.

    My advice: Pick a sensible daily word count, cut it down to 70%, and achieve it every day.

    It’s as simple, and as hard, as that.

  • Four Days Of #MobNov

    I’ve written 300+ words daily for four days straight, on my iPhone, and thus far the iPhone novel writing project that will be part of my everyday life for the coming six months is coming along nicely. Four days out of (up to) 184 is almost nothing, but I’ve made some initial observations:

    • 300 words daily is an easy target, which was the whole point.
    • Starting a new writing project is awarding, and thus I’ve written more than 300 words on the first days (594, 578, 747, and finally, 316 words today). I expect the word counts to normalize at between 300 and 400 words.
    • I’ll have to be careful not falling into the “lots of short chapters” trap, where each writing session turns out to be a chapter. This has been the case up until now, and might mean that the structure of the draft will need more work than usual when I’m done.
    • The outline is, as expected, crucial since every writing session is so short.

    I’ll report back on the project in regular intervals, weekly to begin with (on Sundays, as you might’ve gathered). If you want daily updates, follow me on Twitter and/or App.net. The updates pertaining this projects are marked with the #MobNov hashtag.

  • Indecisiveness

    Indecisiveness

    Most writers know about indecisiveness. It’s what we have to face time and time again, be it while we’re working on an outline, writing the first draft, or editing our final manuscript. There’ll always be situations when we’re struggling to decide where to go next.

    Photo by snigl3t (CC)
    Photo by snigl3t (CC)

    Personally, I think the worst indecisiveness you’ll face is what to do next, the next project. Being creative creatures, we tend to have quite a lot of ideas. Where to go next is hard since it means choosing between these brain children of our imaginations. It can be a crippling decision.

    At times, the next project is obvious. Perhaps some outer factor have made the decision for you, like a contract with a publisher for example. That can be a good thing, it might feel like a lifesaver. It could also be suffocating in its own way, but at least there’s no indecisiveness to tackle, only your own discipline to get the job done.

    (more…)

  • I'm Writing A Novel On My iPhone

    That I love writing on my iPad, with the appropriate apps and accessories, is no secret. After all, I did write an ebook about it, called The Writer’s iPad, so it goes without saying.

    I’m also an avid iPhone writer. Before this wonderful device came along, I managed to crank out the occasional draft on my dumbphones, something that was a lot less pleasant than today’s alternatives.

    Writing on mobile devices, smartphones in this case, is nothing new. There’s been novels written using SMS and Twitter only, and there used to be things like this in Japan back in the day. There’s nothing groundbreaking about writing long form on a smartphone, a lot of friends and acquaintances rely on their iPhones and Androids for these things, much like I do. I’ve written a lot of shorter stuff on my iPhone myself, and thousands of emails, as well as parts of longer articles. Thanks to the wonderful world of cloud computing, I’ve been able to jump into documents as needed, getting work done using only my iPhone.  (more…)

  • Appricorn Shelved

    I have decided to put the Appricorn project on hold, despite having both content, concept, and the technical solution ready to go. What’s left is the actual design, launch procedure, marketing, and possibly signing up some additional writers outside the small crew I have.

    And yet, the project’s shelved for now.

    The Behind Appricorn blog logo
    The Behind Appricorn blog logo

    I’m not blaming time for once, but rather a growing flaw in the basic premise. Appricorn was to be monetized by affiliate links, and since the only apps covered would be good-to-great apps, there would be no issue of trust. The idea was that every app covered would be a great deal.

    The problem is, the App Store is changing, and that change is affecting the Appricorn concept. More apps are using freemium business models, or in some fashion relying on in-app purchases. I think this is good for a lot of apps, but it puts a serious dent in the Appricorn model.

    (more…)

  • It’s OK To Not Be Productive

    “How do you manage to work all the time?”

    “Stupid brain, focus! My free day is going to waste!”

    “If I get up an hour earlier I can write another 2,000 words and finish the novel in two months…”

    “Did I tell you about my startup? We’re making an app on weekends!”

    The silly things we hear, say, think, and push ourselves to do. The term overachiever is thrown about, but every time it comes up I cringe. So you’ve got your career, and a bunch of other projects to top it off. So you think you can balance your workload. So you count the hours and figure that if you’re really productive you could finish ahead of schedule. So you’ll just have to be really focused and extremely productive and all will be well. So you want to do everything at once.  (more…)

  • The Logitech Tablet Keyboard And AAA Batteries

    I was a little bummed out when I got my Logitech Tablet Keyboard for iOS. People who follow me on Twitter or App.net have heard me complaining about the less than stellar plastic sleeve that turns into a stand. As a stand, the Tablet Keyboard is something of a failure since it risks sliding around on a flat surface such as a tabletop. I’m using said plastic thingy as a stand for my iPad mini as I’m writing this, and although it does work, I really wish I could motivate myself to go upstairs and fetch the excellent Compass stand from Twelve South.

    This isn’t about stands though. This is about batteries.

    (more…)

  • Don't Publish Everything

    Just because you wrote it, doesn’t mean someone else should read it. It’s harsh, I know, but true nonetheless. It really doesn’t matter how many words you have written, it might not be publish-worthy even if you spent years writing them. Book manuscripts comes to mind, but the same trail of thought should be applied to most written things, including blog posts, emails and yes, even tweets and Facebook updates.

    Whenever you write something that turns out not to be publish-worthy, you have to decide whether to continue working on it, or not and start over. Edit and revise, or hide in your digital sock drawer, so to speak. There are no middle grounds here, and no shortcuts.

    Every time you trash something you’ve written, you feel bad about it, perhaps even doubt your writing skills. Don’t, at least not for trashing your words. On the contrary, understanding when something isn’t good enough, beyond salvation, is a skill every writer needs. Cherish it.

    What’s good enough to publish, well, that’s a completely different story altogether.

  • The Best Computer

    Let’s make a list.

    • Best computer: iPhone
    • Best mobile device: iPhone
    • Most used computer: iPhone
    • Favorite computer: iPhone
    • Workhorse computer: iPhone
    • Computer for work: Mac

    Innovate faster, app developers!

    Incidentally, happy fifth birthday, App Store. This is really almost all your doing.

  • Taking It Easy

    I had planned to write about something completely different today, but things happened. Not today per se, it’s more of a slow moving long-term kind of thing.

    Stuff happen. Shit happens. Things change.

    All my glorious plans for this summer took a hit this past month due to way too much work. The outlook for these projects are pretty bleak at the moment, but we’ll see. I’ve rescheduled books, and other books have rescheduled themselves due to reasons out of my control. The idea is to free up some time to catch up on vital things, such as breathing, and possibly drinking too.

    Taking a breather is important. I’m an always on kind of guy, I get bored easily and I need several projects rolling at ones. But it’s exhausting too, and the strain you’re under tend to extend to your loved ones as well, in a lesser degree of course, but still.

    Photo by pasukaru76 (CC).
    Photo by pasukaru76 (CC).

    So this is me telling you to slow down if you can, when you can. Take a deep breath, or ideally several, and allow yourself to rest up a bit. Reload those batteries.

    I proclaim July to be International Battery Recharging Month.

    The flip side of slowing down? I’ve got three new ideas already, and yesterday I finished an unscheduled short story. While I’ve been taking it easy, I accidentally solved a problem with a storyline, and although I won’t be hitting that draft just yet, I know that when I do I’ll do so at full pace. I’ve also caught up with most of my correspondence, done another story outline, decided to kick off that newsletter in August, and written some lyrics.

    Who knew taking it easy could be this productive?

  • The Writers Twitter List

    I bet you’ve heard of Twitter, that 140 character soap box that media keep referring to as a “social network”? I’m @tdh over there, and I’m a great fan of this particular method of procrastination. Among the things I like about Twitter is that it can get you in touch with people otherwise inaccessible. I’ve spoken to everything from developers to musicians, and of course to fellow writers, be they literary wordsmiths, freelancing penmonkeys, pretentious poets, or something entirely different.

    A few months ago I started to collect all these writer types in a list. Yep, Twitter lets you make your very own lists, which is incredibly handy if you like me don’t want to read every little thing everyone writes, all the time. The Writers Twitter list is 200 writers strong, and although I do have a lot of these folks in my main feed as well, I feel that a list can be very handy.  (more…)

  • Så tyckte jag om iOS 7, nya Mac Pro med mera

    Om man gissar inför en tillställning, så måste man förstås berätta mer efteråt också. Här är min post mortem på WWDC, för den som är intresserad av sådant.

  • WWDC 2013 Post Mortem

    iOS 7

    I’ve been having a rough couple of days, which is why I haven’t followed up on my WWDC predictions until now. All in all I think I did alright. I was surprised that the MacBook Pro line didn’t even get a speed bump, but the Air got a nice upgrade at least.

    What else? Let’s take this in bullet form.  (more…)