Reading and Re-reading - Facts

 I read so many posts on Facebook or Twitter-X asking similar questions – “Do you read and reread favorite books”?

And most often the answer is yes; often people will say they reread books, and sometimes the same book or books many times. With that said, I decided I would reread the first book I remember reading. (Kind of remember). That would be the book all of us old timers started with,  FUN WITH DICK AND JANE.

What a great book; it introduced all of us young readers to 100 new words, which, when added to the 58 words we knew from the three basic primers we started with, gave us a reading ability of 158 words. Who could forget those first readers? We Look and See, We Work and Play, and of course, We Come and Go, all unforgettable reads when I was six years old.

Many readers will be surprised that today most modern books use only 4,000–6,500 unique words, no matter their length. When you compare that to most average adults' vocabulary of 20 up to 30 thousand words, reading is a cinch! If that sounds like too few words, many have read popular classics like The Outsiders (3,898 words) or The Catcher in the Rye (4,306 unique words). Both books are good examples of unique word counts, although many more recent books use even less.

Reading level for most books sits around an 8th-grade level or at the level of a 14-year-old. Why only a reading level for Jr. High? Ease of reading keeps us turning pages – simple!

How many of us hear that people no longer read or don’t read much anymore? Sadly, it is mostly true. Too much time on social media and gaming are the most often stated reasons people don't read like we once did. Interestingly, those are the most often cited reasons why kids are not as physically active or fit as they were a few years ago.

Statistically, the average American reads 1 – 12 books each year, but the median is only two books, and even that might be skewed by the fact that 19% of readers account for more than 80% of all the books read each year.

Surprisingly, the average trade paperback or e-book is now fairly short at a bit less than 250 pages. Some think a book of that length is too short, but I enjoy shorter fiction and love reading books quickly, so it works for me. In today's world, nearly 80% of readers do at least part of their reading on an e-reader, tablet, or on their phone. I admire people with eyes good enough to read on a phone, but it’s not for me – I do probably read more on my e-reader (Kindle) than from physical books now.

By reading for 15-20 min each day, you could read 20, maybe 30 books in a year. Odd that spending that much time looking for memes or shorts doesn’t seem like much, but reading for that long seems a chore to many. I read about an hour each day, maybe up to three if I am really into a book or the weather is too bad to go outside and do something.

So go ahead, pick up a book, read a few pages, and feel smug. Statistically speaking, you’re already ahead of the game.

More to Write and Only About Two Years to Finish

 At times, I think I should go back to posting and make this blog more active. My problem is that newer, shorter social media seems to be where it is at now. Must be why I stay away for so long. I am somewhat active on both Facebook and Twitter-X. @Wyohistory guy.

So, am I still writing? Absolutely!

But, that said, I may be working on too many projects at the same time. From that, I accomplish, well, not much. What is too much? How about three nonfiction and two fiction books, all in various states of confusion and competition. 

Goals - I hope to publish all six of my works in progress before my 80th birthday. (You read that right, 80th and I have a bit over 20 months to do it). 

I remain active by playing golf, gardening, hiking/walking, and photography. I have included a few of my recent photos - enjoy. 

Hopefully, I will be back again before 2027.

Neil

Getting Older - Writing On - Enjoying Life

When I was born, my life expectancy was just under 65 years. Today, for people like me born in the late 1940s, life expectancy is around 73. Born today, and life expectancy jumps to 76 and a half. Here I am at 78 and still living on.

    One of my favorite things - speaking to a nice group of people

No one ever told me how much I would hurt, joints mostly, as we age. My older brother used to say, "I'm not sure how I should feel at my age, I've never been this old before." And that fits perfectly. Aches and pains, but still doing lots of things every day. I hurt before and then worse afterward, but I'm still working on projects, playing golf, gardening, hiking, and walking, and enjoying life. I have learned that Tylenol can fix most of what ails me.

For anyone reading who is near the twilight time of life, I hope you are doing well and loving beating the odds and growing older. Every morning, I walk, eat a nice breakfast, and then spend some time sitting in the sun or, on warm days, in the shade. Sadly, after that, I watched a bit of the news, limited to about 40 minutes. Afternoons are for hobbies and projects and some YouTube favorites; evenings, and sometimes into the late hours, are for writing and editing.

                                            My 14 books

Now it is time to go back to work on my three WIPs, yes, three books going at the same time. Call me crazy, and some do, but it keeps me young!

Another Book Completed - and It's About Time

 Writing - It has been a long time – too long, but I have ordered a proof copy of my newest book. Health problems set me back many times, but finally, it was completed. Funny when good health came back how much I could, once again, do.  This book, entitled Morning Walk, is my third book for and about senior living.

The first two, On Turning 70 and Elderly, sold enough copies for me to forge on and, at last, finish this one. It's good that I did, as I have another in the works, although it is more of a memoir than the previous three.

So, what's next? I am in the final edit of my third Blade Holmes western. I have said that before, but I never finished the edits. This time, I believe I will.

It is always the weather. Cold weather has kept me mostly inside, which has been good for my writing. I don't know how much I will get done in the world of writing when April comes along, with its suitable weather for gardening and golf.

"Writing is just work—there's no secret."    -   Sinclair Lewis

Today's photos are from my morning walks the past few days.

Enjoy the rest of the month, and keep reading and writing.

2024 - It's a Wrap

 Looking Ahead

It is getting so close to the end of 2024 that many are already considering 2025 resolutions. Never mind; I don’t do them, but if you do, great. Change for the good is never bad, and isn’t that what resolutions are all about?

Looking back on 2023 - here are a few things I have learned.

 It now seems unlikely I will get my followers on X to the one million number. Being short by a little over 998,000 after over a decade, it might be time to give up—not give up Twitter—X, but give up on trying to drum up more of a following. I have not tried too hard, and my numbers show it.

Engaging in any online politics is not only a waste of time but might also harm our health. (worry, worry, worry) I occasionally comment, but let's face it, no one will change their mind when any of us disagrees with a political post. It is good for a smile or laugh some days; otherwise, not much good comes of it.

Saying I will write or edit more next year is not enough—I guess I will really need to do it.

If independent writers want to sell books, it takes work.

And this is the last one—my resolution for 2025 – I will finally publish the two books I have completed, even if that is all I get done in the world of writing.

 

Today’s Photos – All taken within ten miles of our home in East-Central Wyoming.

“I’m writing a book. I’ve got the page numbers done.”    

Steven Wright

Happy New Year! Keep on writing, editing, reading, and, most of all, publishing and raking in all that money.

 

 

It's Almost the End of the Year - Writing Update

 

Writing - After a couple of years of low output, I am once again rolling along. Yep, I am writing, editing, and working on a new book cover. With a bit of luck, I might get something published in 2025.

Weather - We are experiencing a mild winter so far. We have been getting more wind than I like, but most days are reaching close to 40 degrees with an occasional 50. It was so mild, in fact, that I played golf several days last week.

The early sunsets make it seem like the days are shorter, which, according to the calendar, they are as far as sunlight is concerned.

Books - Tonight, I should have the third book in my series for seniors ready to send to my first readers.

Walking - I'm still getting in my morning walks. A skiff of snow slowed me down today when I was on hard-surfaced roads. Luckily, most of my walking is on gravel, which is much safer for an old guy like me.

Today’s Photos – From my walks and drives nearby. 

Have a great rest of the month. Make sure to finish your Christmas shopping soon. Meanwhile, keep on reading and keep on writing.

 

Writing Thought from Someone Famous - “Get it down. Take chances. It may be bad, but it’s the only way you can do anything really good.” William Faulkner

November Writing Update

Long Time - As I say each time, it's been a while. No, I'm not dead; I'm just not actively writing much. In the past few days, I have started to edit one of my finished projects, hoping to get to the final edit done stage. Maybe I'm back. 

What am I Doing? I am staying busy, working on putting my yard and gardens to bed for the winter, and still spending some time out with my cameras. It is always fun.

Staying Busy - I found myself following more of the news as we went through another election cycle. My hope for the new administration is that prices will stop going up. I would love to see them drop, but I have lost hope for that. 

Keeping Fit - Still working on staying physically active and making sure to get my daily walks in. On that note, I am ready to create a cover for my book on senior walking/fitness. Yes, that one is done. 

Western Writing - My Blade Holmes western mystery, book 3 of the series, should be out this spring. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. 

With my Camera - Photos today are from my morning walks this month.

Writing Quote of the Day - “You should write because you love the shape of stories and sentences and the creation of different words on a page. Writing comes from reading, and reading is the finest teacher of how to write.” — Annie Proulx.

Random Thoughts, Writing, and Loving My Outside Days

Random thoughts today - 

Where has this month and the summer gone? It's hard to believe it's already the last day of July. Here in Wyoming, we have been warm and dry, as normal, but maybe a bit dryer than the past two or three years.

I continue to work, halfheartedly, on some of my finished books. Someday I will reach the level of polish that I want before I reach the satisfaction I need to publish. Meanwhile, I spend too much time working on covers for the two books closest to completion.

I have been spending some time in the mountains, but my outside hours are curtailed presently as we have a huge fire that got within two miles of town yesterday. We are safe, but lots of smoke. 

It seems I am spending more time writing on X and Facebook than I do on my fiction and nonfiction. Oh well—I guess I am still writing something. 

Photos from around my little part of the world this month.

"I need this wild life, this freedom." Zane Grey

Getting Back

Sometimes, it is difficult to get back. But, slowly, I am. For the past two weeks, I have been both writing and editing some works I have finished but not polished. Odd, but I thought they were finished, but I couldn’t get myself to publish. The reason was simple – they were not ready. Why? They were not good enough. I still had work to do and knew it. Now, I seem to be rolling along and, best of all -  enjoying it.

We have been busy enjoying summer company and doing some traveling ourselves. After physical complications kept me off the golf course for two years, I am also back at it again.

Enjoy your summer!

Photos today from our adventures over the past week here in beautiful Wyoming.

2024 - Writing/Edits and a Book Excerpt

And Off We Go - We are off and running now - it's already the second week of January. For us, that means cold, and it's coming. Nighttime lows down to -20 this weekend, and right now, we are waiting for the furnace man to show up. We have good space heaters and a gas fireplace, so we are not in any danger, but that makes for some hot and some cold rooms. Oh, how I like my creature comforts.

Edits Never End - have been spending about two hours a day editing, for the final time, my third book for older readers. This one follows On Turning 70 and Elderly. Titled Morning Walk, it is a physical and mental well-being book. As usual in this series, I try to add as many antidotes, stories, and jokes as I believe my readers can stand. Getting old is many things, even, at times, funny. I have put this one away so many times, but now it is starting to grow on me, looks like a go. 

Morning Walk -  an excerpt from chapter 2. 

Walking is as close to the perfect exercise as will ever be found. We can do it anywhere and at any time of the day - other than a good pair of shoes, no special equipment is needed.  I walk in blue jeans or khakis with a t-shirt or a hoodie in cooler weather.  In warm weather, it’s shorts and a tee shirt.  I see people dressed like me, and I see people dressed to the nines in the latest fashion for runners and walkers.  For younger readers, dressed to the nines is something from my childhood and teen years. Not sure why it made a comeback in the 50s and 60s, as the term goes back about 200 years.  My favorite explanation of this saying is that tailors, at one time, used nine yards of material to make their best suits.  Thus, dressed in the best the tailor could sew together, they would be dressed to the nines. That’s a pretty long-winded explanation of people who dress in nice running/walking gear when I see them on the trail.

 

Photos - Today's photos are from my walks and drives over the past few days/weeks.

Quote of the Day - “It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all - in which case you fail by default." -  J. K. Rowling

 

That’s it for today - stay warm and enjoy winter as much as possible.

 

With New Year's Come New Beginnings

I hope everyone is off to a great start in the new year. My 2023 was a bit of a loss, so I am happy to put it behind me. 

Starting Over - again

I have started and stopped so many projects in the past two years that I could not, even if I wanted to, count them. Now feeling much better, maybe, just maybe, this will be the year I will publish one or two, or all three of my finished first drafts.

Last year, after having a neck fusion in mid-December, I was determined to walk an extra 1,000 miles in 2023. I kept track and made it with three weeks to spare. This was an accomplishment I was proud of since I was still using a walker to get around on January 1, 2023. Now thirty pounds lighter, I am back, mowing the grass, playing golf, traipsing around the countryside with one of my cameras, and enjoying life as a somewhat older person. 

Writing - For many years, I wrote around 300,000. In the past two years combined, I have written about 50,000. Not so good! This year, with some good luck, I hope to get at least 10,000 per month - I will keep you posted.

Maybe this will be one of many writing posts in the new year. I sure hope so.

Photos from in and around our little place in the world.

“With the new day comes new strength and new thoughts.”    Eleanor Roosevelt

Thanks for reading - in 2024, keep writing, and keep reading. 

Me Vs. AI

 Like many writers, I have read much, in recent weeks, about AI vs. Human-generated writing. Before I say anything else, my main conclusion is that AI-generated material might work for technical writing. But, in the world where I live, fiction and creative nonfiction writing, I do not see AI becoming a go-to way to accomplish a project.

In my years teaching high school kids, it was easy to tell when someone got too much help. AI stands out like that. I have not read thousands or hundreds of pages written with an AI program. But, I have read several dozen pages, mainly in the form of short historical articles.

Comparison - Here is a short historical story about Wyoming legend Jacques La Ramee. The writing prompt I used was – Write a story about why  Jacques La Ramee was famous in Wyoming.

My, written in less than 10-minute report.

Mine - Jacques La Ramee is more of an enigma than a real person to most Wyoming people. Fort Laramie is only a few miles from where we live. The Laramie River, Laramie Range, and Laramie Peak are all nearby. I retired from my teaching job in 2012 at Laramie High School in the city of Laramie. Interestingly, Laramie is in Albany County, not Laramie County, which borders Albany and is the home to Cheyenne, our state capital.

So who was this man that so much was named after? He was a French-Canadian mountain man and trapper born in Montreal in the early 1780s who lived, worked, and died in Wyoming. His travels, adventures, and life have been passed on, primarily through oral history, and may be as much fiction as fact.

La Ramee was undoubtedly well acquainted with eastern Wyoming, where so much is named after him. He may have also traveled west through South Pass, where he could have been the first or certainly one of the first non-native people to enter the Yellowstone area. He led a life that was likely as eventful, surprising, and scary as the legends portray.

 

AI-generated report – after I typed the prompt, it was up in a few seconds.

AI - Jacques La Ramee was a name that was synonymous with Wyoming. He was famous for being a trapper, trader, and mountain man in the early 1800s. His exploits in the Rocky Mountains were legendary, and his adventures were the stuff of folklore.

Jacques was a French Canadian who was born in Montreal in 1784. He arrived in the Rocky Mountains in the early 1800s and started trading with the Native American tribes in the region. He quickly became an expert in the ways of the wilderness and was soon known for his incredible hunting and trapping skills.

Jacques was not just a trapper and trader; he was also an adventurer. He explored the Rocky Mountains extensively and was the first white man to cross the Continental Divide by way of South Pass. He was also one of the first white men to see Yellowstone National Park, which he described as "the place where the hot water came out of the earth."

Jacques was known for his toughness and resilience. He survived numerous attacks by hostile Native American tribes and even survived a grizzly bear attack that left him badly injured. Despite these setbacks, he continued to explore the Rocky Mountains and trade with the Native American tribes. Jacques La Ramee's legacy lives on in Wyoming. He is remembered as a legendary figure in the history of the American West and a true pioneer of the Rocky Mountains. His name is synonymous with adventure, exploration, and the spirit of the American frontier.

My Thoughts – AI sounds more like a Wikipedia article, factual but not fulfilling to read. The article also seems to have mixed in some information from other mountain men. Unfortunately, this one sounds like most history textbooks. Textbooks are probably more responsible for kids not liking history than anything else. On the other hand, although written quickly and without research or editing, mine has some personal touches that make it a bit more interesting, at least to me.

What do you think?

 

Today's Photos – All from places named Laramie

July Writing Update

 Elmore Leonard once said, “I never open a book with weather. If it’s only to create atmosphere and not a character’s reaction to the weather, you don’t want to go on too long. The reader is apt to leaf ahead looking for people.” 

So What About the Weather? -  July has been pleasant here in our little part of the world. We have had some warm days, mostly offset by cool nights. Overall, the summer has been a bit cooler than the 30-year average. The fine weather has allowed for more flowers and more vegetables than last year. Two small hail storms were the only downside of this summer’s weather. The second one was short-lived, but nickel-sized hail took out most of our raspberries and the higher-on-the-vine tomatoes. Update - tomatoes are looking good and tasting even better!

Finishing a Book – I was asked this week if I had ever started but not finished a book. They should have asked me how many books have you started but not finished. My answer – too many. I have written nearly 200 pages with 200+ footnotes on one nonfiction project, now dead for five years. Add a kid’s book or two, a memoir, and two series books I abandoned. I nearly forgot to mention a history storybook and a historical highlights book. Maybe some days, I will go back and look at one or more of these books, but not soon.

Edits – The first long and slow edit of the third of my Blade Holmes western mysteries is complete. Now I will lay it aside for a week or two, then listen to the computer read it. Then a third go through. In the meantime, I am editing the third of my nonfiction books for older readers. It is a shorter book; I should finish this edit in a week or so.

 

Writing Quote of the Week – “A blank piece of paper is God’s way of telling us how hard it is to be God.” Sidney Sheldon

Photos – Today’s photos are from this week’s wanderings, walks, and strolls.