DIY

I started another blog but didn’t finish it. Then it hit me: I don’t have to. We’ve got a three-day weekend coming up. Why strain myself?

So here’s the deal: I’m going to start a number of blogs, and you can fill in the endings yourself. That’ll take the pressure off me until next week. Happy writing!

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Can anybody figure out just what got “reformed” under Obamacare? As far as I can tell, medical costs are still outrageous, insurance premiums suck, and malpractice, mistakes and abuse of the system still run rampant. The only thing that changed is that now the taxpayer has to foot the bill. Buy health insurance or pay a fine, aka a tax. That’s not health care reform. That’s passing the buck.

Here’s how you fix health care costs: eliminate insurance, put caps on the prices of medical procedures, and let everybody pay out of pocket. No more middleman driving up the costs. Or else _________. (When you’re done with this one, mail it to your Congressman. Who knows, maybe we can get some actual health care reform out of this.)

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Here’s another way to cut government costs. Our elected reps are there to serve us, the people, right? That implies they care more about the country than their own personal gain. So here’s what we do: pay all Congresspeople minimum wage. Let ‘em share offices. They can bunk at the YMCA. Let ‘em work in a cube farm like the people whose taxes support them. That ought’a separate the true public servants from the leeching opportunists. We can start by _______________. (Please do not include “dropping a bomb on the Rotunda” as one of your responses.)

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It’s been about five years since I switched over to romance writing, and I’m still not able to make a living at it. I couldn’t make a living at science fiction/fantasy, either. I’ve concluded part of the problem is my lack of prolificity. I just don’t write that fast. You don’t necessarily have to be good to make it as a writer. You just have to get it out there, on a far more regular basis than a book or two a year. Especially if you’re in e-publishing and not getting even minimal advances. If I could just speed up, I’ll bet I could eke out a comfortable living at this.

Here are some tricks to increase your writing speed: ____________________ (No, I don’t know any, or I’d be using them. In fact, don’t even bother finishing this blog for me. Just send the tips to me directly. I’ll be ever so grateful.)

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My favorite TV show is ________________, because ______________. (Easy one. Mine is Supernatural, because the boys are hawt. I’m easily amused. For those of you stuck for blog topics, this one’s a great fallback entry. You can replace “TV show” with “food,” “actor,” “movie,” or “sexual position.” If you use that last one, please send me a link to your blog.)

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Here’s one for the fiction writers:

Clarence hated George. Not only was he rich and handsome, he’d gotten the job Clarence wanted and stolen the girl of his dreams. Clarence was pretty sure George secretly kicked puppies and swindled widows out of their life’s savings, but had never actually caught him at it. Something had to be done about George, and Clarence knew just the thing. This coming Sunday he would ____________________. (I expect to find this one shelved under “Murder Mysteries” a year or so from now. Or in six months, from one of you faster writers.)

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Having trouble coming up with a blog entry? No problem. Write what amounts to a series of prompts and have the readers write their own blogs. Then be prepared to run when they come after you with ____________________. (Anything but “torches and pitchforks” will do here. Those are so overdone. Be creative!)

That should do it for another week. Maybe I’ll have come up with an ending for my original blog by then. Enjoy your Fourth of July!