New Year´s Day
New writing, first planned that I will begin therewith at January 1st. But I finished all stories, therefore why waiting? So I will begin with the new writing in December 2018 now, even when the overall title “New Year´s Day” sounds maybe a bit strange then.
Some things will stay, some will change. First, no travel to the USA in February 2019. But I plan to travel in Europe. The hard-boiled series is finished, I will not continue therewith. I want to give my writing a new structure:
Six parts this time, I plan to work the whole year 2019 on them. Four of this parts are stories. Twelve months time means that I can develop extensive story arcs. There will be no reason to hurry. That not means that I will change my writing as such, daily and in the way of “automatic writing” (spontaneous, no planned stories, some ideas, but open to changes).
I have authors like Selby or Vonnegut in mind. In some ways the Beat Generation (William S. Burroughs) and the American Postmodern Literature (Robert Coover). I hope that I can give my writing a new character.
I want to try to earn money with my writing this year. I want to see whether there´s a possibility to become (more) independent. It would be interesting for me would it be possible to concentrate more on writing, to have more time for reworking. We will see how the things will develop.
The six parts:
“The Art, Of Being Not Affected By” - Replaces “Live Your Life”. Therefore short stories, poems, function as a diary and more.
“Travelin´Around” - No part as “In California” or “Californian Hopes and Dreams” this time, no travel to California 2019. Therefore no such interlude between the main writings. But I plan to travel and I will not include this writing in “The Art, Of Being Not Affected By”. The writing during my travels will be included in this part. The first travel - to London - is planned for May, therefore this part will be inactive for a longer time.
“The American Dream” - Peter, private detective in a not named American city. His life, his thoughts, his cases and the American Dream.
“The Happy Clown” - Peter, stand-up comedian in a not named American city. He will become famous, a nation-wide star. Art, the meaning of art, the possibility of art, the limits of art.............
“Beg Your Pardon! I Would Do It Better – Mr. President!” - Peter will become the 46. president of the USA in 2020. His run for president from the very beginning on, during the primaries, the presidential election, till his inauguration in Washington in January 2021.
“To Be A Woman Means To Be Humbly” - Enough Peter! I´ve written that it´s a strange feeling “to be a part of the problem, but not of the solution”. Time to reflect about the solution.
Bad Friedrichshall, December 19th, 2018
It´s early March now, roughly three months of writing. The stories begin to develop and new ideas pop up. The most incisive idea? To expand the time of writing, at least for three of the stories.
“Beg Your Pardon! I Would Do It Better – Mr. President!” - I will write this story in real time. This means that the story and the writing will end in January 2021. This gives me the possibility to include all real developments that will happen.
"The Happy Clown" - I will expand also this writing till January 2021. The first part is already finished. The second part I will finish in February 2020. The third part in January 2021.
“To Be A Woman Means To Be Humbly” - apart from the decision not to write the parts in a row, this decision gives this story further possibilities. I write already the first and the second part parallel. This will continue till February 2020. Then I will begin also with the third part, then I will write all three parts parallel till January 2021.
"The American Dream" - this story is not affected by this decision. I will write this story till it will be time to end it.
“The Art, Of Not Being Affected By” / “Travelin´ Around” - we will see. Depends also whether I will stay (as planned) in the USA in February 2020 again. February 2021 would be charming.
Maybe I will start also with something new during this period (till 2021). A new crime story maybe, or something different. But I think the part "New Year´s Day" will span till January 2021 now.
Bad Friedrichshall, March 7th, 2019
After some time thinking about it, I decided to stop "To Be A Woman Means To Be Humbly". I think this is the wrong way. I´m not interested in writing novels in the third person. I am I, I´m Peter and I´m a man. Therefore I stop with this part today.
Bad Friedrichshall, March 21th, 2019
I will begin with a new part today. "To Be A Woman Means To Be Humbly II". The same basic idea, but in a different way. The plot is still a vague idea, but I think it´s an interesting starting point that I found. Let´s see if this functions better.
Bad Friedrichshall, March 21th, 2019
I´ve begun with "Dystopian Dreaming" today. Harder, extremer writing - we will see.........
Bad Friedrichshall, May 10th, 2019
I´ve begun with "Cozy Days In London" today. A reaction to my first travel this year to London.
Bad Friedrichshall, May 10th, 2019
I´ve started to rewrite "To Be A Woman........." today. I will safe the so far written texts (Version "I" and "II") under the title "To Be A Woman....... - Fragments". I will use (some) of the so far written texts, especially from version "II". I also will include Kishana, version "I". But this texts will change, I will shorten everything and have to give it a new structure. I hope this will give everything a better structure, but I think that I should not try to write version "III".
Bad Friedrichshall, July 5th, 2019
I´ve finished "The American Dream" today. I will begin with the next hard-boiled story - "That´s No Reason To Give Up" - within the next days.
Bad Friedrichshall, August 31st, 2019
Still problems with "To Be A Woman........". I´ve eliminated the "Kishana" part now, "Day One" till "Day Five" I have finished / stopped now (a small part I still have to write – "Elizabeth´s Dreaming"). I will move on with a part I have named "The Rescue Of The World". The starting point for this part will be the S.C.U.M. Manifesto, written by Valerie Solanas. I have the feeling that I will have a lot of fun to write this part!
Bad Friedrichshall, August 31st, 2019
I stop "To Be A Woman Means To Be Humbly" (III) today and will begin with a new part "The Book Of The World Of Ladies". Some thoughts about about "The Book Of The World Of Ladies" at the beginning of the text, all parts of "To Be A Woman Means To Be Humbly" can be found at one place now.
Bad Friedrichshall, April 7th, 2020
I stop "Dystopian Dreaming" today. It makes no real sense anymore. More information about it you can find at the end of the story.
Bad Friedrichshall, April 13th, 2020
I will start with a new section - "Videos". I have decided to make videos again, following up the "In California" videos. I hope this will give me more opportunities to express myself.
Bad Friedrichshall, June 12th, 2020
Have begun with a new part today: "The United States Of America As The Microcosm Of The World". Let's see what it will yield!
Bad Friedrichshall, September 16th, 2020
I will start a new part "Name Him Peter" today, as if I have not already enough writings! But this part will be different, and not only in one regard.
First, this part should become a collection of short texts in the tradition of American short stories - slice of life. Second, I will write a basic text as always - fast, unplanned, raw - but I will rework this text then, till I think that I cannot make the text better. Only then I will upload the text! Third, no quibbling, the texts will be strictly autobiographically, they will tie in with texts, right from the beginning of my writing (especially): "My Dark Heart - Itinerary"; Chapter Two "Art And Icons"; Chapter Four "Dreams And Feelings"; Chapter Eight "The Female Form".
My goal: These texts should be a try to develop my style, not to develop a new style, I'm not megalomaniac, but my personal style. I think that I will upload the first texts relatively fast, the first "Name Him Peter" I have written today, but then - most probably - it will take more and more time. Maybe I will even rework already uploaded texts again, so that a certain text maybe will exist in different variations at the end (still, what's uploaded is uploaded).
Timeline? All writing of "New Year's Day" will find its end at inauguration day, therefore also this part. I feel better and better, my head is full of new ideas, I hope this development will last - still somewhat tired. All my doing is now geared to three dates:
- Election Day
- Inauguration Day
- The time in between
Because of the many uncertainties, right now an infected president!, it's not possible to plan anything. But I feel new energy and I have the feeling, that this is the right moment to start with such a writing, not only because of one reason.
Bad Friedrichshall, October 2nd, 2020
Today I have decided, finally, to finish the part "New Year's Day" at the day before election day, November the second, and to start a new part at election day, November the third, not at inauguration day in January as previously planned.
In the last weeks I got more and more the feeling that this writing is outdated, that the American reality has "destroyed" the opportunity to continue them in a meaningful way. Also, it was obvious that I have to change my writing in January.
I think that election day is a very good date - and opportunity - to finish one stage and to begin with another one. I have to concentrate my writing on one story - still two weeks till election day! I will finish all stories with a kind of epilogue, talking about the ideas I had for this story, why the story no longer functions for me and so on.
I want to finish "Cozy Days In London", maybe I will integrate the story to the new part, if not finished till election day, what I assume. So far the new part has no title, as well as the story, but I have written two prefaces for the story today.
I feel motivated and think that this is a very good decision!
Bad Friedrichshall, October 19th, 2020
I will stop "Name Him Peter" today, because I will add this writing to the new story. The so far written two parts I will include as they are written, as well as a written, but not reworked and uploaded third part. Therefore, this part will find its continuation as one of the storylines of the new story.
Bad Friedrichshall, October 22nd, 2020
I will stop "The United States Of America As The Microcosm Of The World" today, because I will add such thinking and writing to the new story (storyline: "Old Man"; "I"). So, this writing will find its continuation in one of the storylines of the new story.
Bad Friedrichshall, October 22nd, 2020
I will stop "The Book Of The World Of Ladies" today, because I will add such thinking and writing to the new story (storyline: "Old Man"; "I"). So, this writing will find its continuation in one of the storylines of the new story.
Bad Friedrichshall, October 22nd, 2020
I will stop "That's No Reason To Give Up" today. The story has started as the continuation of "The American Dream", I thought that the relation between Peter and Caroline should become an important aspect of the story. But then COVID-19 came, and maybe more affecting, all the other developments in the US. I have the feeling that I lost the story, nevertheless the story has still some interesting aspects. But I will stop also this story today.
The new story will have as one storyline a detective story. This will be the (so far) only (partially) fictional part. I have already written the first introducing part, the story as such will begin at election day, everything else will develop. So far nothing is determined, no "Caroline", no "Jack", no case, even no name, no "Peter". Of course, even if not mentioned (so far), the story is located in the USA, he lives "in the toughest city of my tough nation". This resumes the idea of "The American Dream" and "That's No Reason To Give Up", the city as a mixture of Los Angeles, Chicago.........and other large American cities.
I was very unhappy with the development, that I felt, that I have to decide where Peter lives, in the end I decided for New York obviously, even if the city's name never was mentioned. But for the story it would have been very different, due to corona, whether Peter would have lived in Los Angeles, CA or Chicago, IL or New York, NY and so on. But has this changed now?
Yes and no. But more, I have no idea about the development of the next months! But I will try to do it "better" this time, to stay more fictional in this aspect, to talk more about nationwide aspects. But this will have limits, say the happenings regarding Gretchen Whitmer. Would my protagonist talk about it in the way, "a governor", then this would mean, that he definitively lives not in Michigan. I think that a solution could be, to talk about such aspects always in such a way, even if this means in the extreme, that he has talked about all American states in this way, therefore he lives in no state, therefore he lives not in the USA. But in this way "his city" would become a real fictional city, nowhere and everywhere in the States. We will see.
I stop with "That's No Reason To Give Up" first, regarding the three major stories, because I will concentrate for the final days on "Beg Your Pardon!.........." and "Cozy Days In London", maybe also "The Happy Clown". An additional reason is, that the, for the story important developments, would happen after election day, after I have begun the new part.
Bad Friedrichshall, October 22nd, 2020
The part "Travelin' Around" is finished, because I will not travel during the next days till election day.
Bad Friedrichshall, October 22nd, 2020
I will stop writing "The Happy Clown" today, this story is my mostly failed story - but what alternatives I would have had? It's nearly sarcasm that the third part starts with a paragraph, headlined COVID-19!
My idea was, to write about an artist, now becoming a huge nationwide, even worldwide, star, like a Dave Chappelle for instance. I was not sure about his relation to Caroline, nor what will happen to him. Maybe becoming a rich asshole, a kind of Kanye West, or maybe staying grounded? But maybe more important was the idea, that he would stay for some days a week in Los Angeles, to record the show, and some days in Portland every week. In between is San Francisco, not far away Seattle and the Canadian border. Tours to the so far missed states - Hawaii, Alaska and Puerto Rico - I have planned, again to places from the nationwide tour (Part II), also to Mexico, Europe and so on. All this became destroyed by the virus, Peter had to stay in Portland.
Looking back I see, that the real development with COVID-19 and the president would have been a great possibility, but it was not to see, in what a way the pandemic would develop, neither the president. This is a problem of my writing, daily about the given day (several stories!), maybe two or three days later because I had no time. Would I start Part III today, I could develop a fantastic story, what all has happened in Portland for instance, but in a way I feel this as boring. Maybe this is stupid, maybe this will destroy my efforts to become a writer, but to write about the current president after a possible win of Joe Biden is cowardly for me! You have to write about him today, you have to name him a swine and Nazi today, not when he's no longer in office!
I'm sad about, that it was not possible to me to write this story in the way I thought about, it was wonderful to travel through the United States, even if only virtual. I would have liked it, to do it again, also to travel with "Peter" to Europe, to Germany. To write about, to be a big, big star. But, it is what it is, new writing will begin soon..............
Bad Friedrichshall, October 24th, 2020
Now I have stopped the writing on "Beg Your Pardon! I Would Do It Better - Mr. President!" also. At least this story has found an end, only the "in between" is missing.
"The in between", this will be the major question - at the moment I feel good, have the feeling that Joe Biden will win, not sure with what a margin, not sure about the Senate, not sure about the reaction of the president.
In a way this writing will find its continuation in the new writing, as well as all the other stories. Nevertheless, I feel sad, but I have the feeling, that this was a good step!
The next hours will decide very much - give him the Rust Bell states, Florida as well as Texas! Come on, let me dream, it would be so good for this nation to have a very clear result - but then there're this three months, and this fucking feeling, scorched earth.
Three hours left, then it will begin, then this writing will have found its ultimate end, the new writing will have begun.
Do it right, Lady America! I would like it very much, to meet you again, as soon as possible!
Bad Friedrichshall, November 3rd, 2020
That's it, "New Year's Day" has found its end. Soon we will have the first results, soon my new writing begins, but therefor this writing has to end. No long goodbye - goodbye, let's see what this very special night will yield!
A remark to "Cozy Days In London". Because this story is not connected to the current developments in the USA, Europe and the world, I will finish this story. As long as I need to finish the story, I will include the story (also) to the new part "Living In Historic Times". Later, after I have finished it, it will be only a part of "New Year's Day".
Bad Friedrichshall, November 3rd, 2020
"Cozy Days In London" is finished. It will now become just a part of "New Year's Day" again.
Bad Friedrichshall, March 2nd, 2021
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