Life in progress

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The Friday Reminder and Prompt for #SoCS August 15, 2026

Hello there! Friday is here but Linda was called away. This is Dan Antion, sitting in, and in a move that is completely out of character, I’m going to get right to the point. I am bringing you your Stream of Consciousness Saturday prompt. I have had an eventful week, and I won’t be around much on Saturday, but I’m here now and ready to offer some bonus points (I love doing that). Here’s your prompt:

Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “Bald, Balled, Bawled” Use one. Use two or use them all any way you’d like. If you manage to use all three, I’ll slide you some bonus points. Enjoy!

After you’ve written your Saturday post tomorrow, please link it here to this week’s prompt page and check to make sure it’s here in the comments so others can find it and see your awesome Stream of Consciousness post. Anyone can join in!

To make your post more visible, use our beautiful SoCS badge! Just paste it in your Saturday post so people browsing the reader will immediately know your post is stream of consciousness and/or pin it as a widget to your site to show you’re a participant. Wear it with pride!

2019-2020 SoCS Badge by Shelley! https://www.quaintrevival.com/

Here are the rules:

1. Your post must be stream of consciousness writing, meaning no editing (typos can be fixed), and minimal planning on what you’re going to write.

2. Your post can be as long or as short as you want it to be. One sentence – one thousand words. Fact, fiction, poetry – it doesn’t matter. Just let the words carry you along until you’re ready to stop.

3. I will post the prompt here on my blog every Friday, along with a reminder for you to join in. The prompt will be one random thing, but it will not be a particular subject. For instance, I will not say “Write about dogs”; the prompt will be more like, “Make your first sentence a question,” “Begin with the word ‘The,’” or will simply be a single word to get you started.

4. Ping back! It’s important, so that I and other people can come and read your post! For example, in your post you can write “This post is part of SoCS:” and then copy and paste the URL found in your address bar at the top of this post into yours.  Your link will show up in my comments for everyone to see. The most recent pingbacks will be found at the top. NOTE: Pingbacks only work from WordPress sites. If you’re self-hosted or are participating from another host, such as Blogger, please leave a link to your post in the comments below.

5. Read at least one other person’s blog who has linked back their post. Even better, read all of them! If you’re the first person to link back, you can check back later or go to the previous week by following my category, “Stream of Consciousness Saturday,” which you’ll find below the “Like” button on my post.

6. Copy and paste the rules (if you’d like to) in your post. The more people who join in, the more new bloggers you’ll meet and the bigger your community will get!

7. As a suggestion, tag your post “SoCS” and/or “#SoCS” for more exposure and more views.

8. Have fun!


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Oiling the Creative Machine

I’m looking for input on an idea. It all started like this…

I decided to play with a pseudonym, but I didn’t want to have to keep signing in and out of this WordPress account to keep my name a secret, so I went to … hold on to your seats … Blogger. Don’t everyone gasp at once. I’ve been there for a whole four days and not a single peep out of any one of the maybe three people who have looked at my blog. Needless to say, it’s frustrating. SO much harder to follow people over there – I swear I can hear crickets. You may be wondering just why I would want a pseudonym. Easy. Yes, that’s right, I want something easy to write – short, sweet, random, funny snippets that don’t take away from the theme and goal of this blog, which is to talk about my life in a reasonable manner and to further my career as a novelist. I can’t see shooting out the occasional random crap as a stop to reaching that goal. The other, more important reason for my Blogger blog came up in relation to my shoulder. I’ve been told to bend over and let my arm hang, swinging every once in a while to keep the joint lubricated. Just like I need to lubricate my creative joint by writing… But writing things like decent fiction and grammatically correct articles takes up so much time!! So here’s my crazy little idea.

What if I created another WordPress blog, just for this purpose. I could keep the pseudonym, only everyone will know it’s me, because when I write and comment my gravatar will be there. Would you follow me? Some of it will be semi-fictional, some will be more like a tweet only longer… all of it will be just random amusing crap that may well culminate in huge discussions. Most of all, it will be for me.

So, input? Have you ever considered doing something like this? Your opinions will likely have a lot to do with whether or not I go through with it, so please be honest.  Here, I’ll make it easy for you.

The poll is no longer active. Thanks for voting!

 

 


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Liking Comments on WordPress, Reevaluated

After much thought and many comments, I’ve decided to try out the “like” button in my comment section. As Jason of HarsH ReaLiTy pointed out, it’s another way of making connections and interacting and I know this to be true by experience. I have, in the past, clicked on the blogs of people who have “liked” my comments and found a few bloggers who were interesting enough to follow, and who subsequently followed me back.

In all I’d have to say that the enlightening conversations I had on this post have highlighted not only the benefits of “liking” a comment, despite its often narrow meaning, but I’ve had some fun “liking” comments there too. My love/hate relationship with the button has tipped slightly to the “love” side. Or at least the “like” side.

If you decide to come along for the ride, you can turn your comment likes on by going to your dashboard, in the settings and then the “sharing” section. Why not give it a try? You might end up “liking” it.


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WordPress – If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it

It seems every week WordPress is changing something else. I’m still flabbergasted over clicking on my “posts” button and seeing them all in a reader-type list instead of a list where I can easily find twenty of them and edit them quickly in one click.

Then, was it last week? we had to start going into our dashboard to open a full screen with all the options (including being able to preview our post) in order to write something – instead of this “beep beep boop” crap I keep seeing.

Today, it seems, they’ve changed something else. The “Freshly Pressed” button is gone. Not that I often check the page, but where do I find it now?

Is there anyone out there who has found these changes an improvement? Or am I the only one who thinks they’re more of a pain in the ass?

 

Edit: My notifications box isn’t lighting up today either. Is anyone else having this problem? Check your notifications just in case!


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A New Record!

Not including my own post, we had a record number of participants yesterday for Stream of Consciousness Saturday! I’d like to say thank you once again to all who took part, as well as everyone who enjoyed reading the posts. As always, my main goal for hosting prompts is to help everyone build their community of bloggers.

So if you discovered a new, awesome blog, good for you! I know I’ve found many through the course of this weekly event. And if you’ve also gained followers then that’s wonderful too. Congratulations!

Here are the twenty-two participants this week in reverse order, in case you didn’t get to some of the later entrants:

Pav: http://pavorisms.wordpress.com/2014/07/05/off-on-the-wrong-tooth/

Shanjeniah: http://shanjeniah.com/2014/07/05/socs-body-language/

Michael: http://summerstommy.com/2014/07/06/prompt-for-socs-july-514-arria/

SomeKernelsOfTruth: http://somekernelsoftruth.com/2014/07/05/what-id-really-like-to-say-in-the-body-of-a-cover-letter-for-a-job/

Helen: http://helenespinosa.wordpress.com/2014/07/05/thoughts-and-bodies/

Willow: http://willowdot21.wordpress.com/2014/07/05/precious-body-stream-of-consciousness-saturday/

Jeanne: http://jeanneowensauthor.wordpress.com/2014/07/05/exercising-the-body-mind-and-spirit/

Rose: http://rosebfischer.com/2014/07/05/socs-i-am-not-your-inspiration/

Rivers, streams, and painted turtle shells: http://paintedturtleshells.wordpress.com/2014/07/05/stream-of-consciousness-saturday-july-5/

Soulful Poet’s Heart: http://soulfulpoetsheart.wordpress.com/2014/07/05/the-floor-of-despair/

Bee: http://beehalton.com/2014/07/the-body-of-socs.html

Doobster: http://mindfuldigressions.com/2014/07/05/no-body-no-homicide/

Irene: http://irenedesign2011.com/2014/07/05/body-mind-this-post-is-a-part-of-socs/

Forty c’est Fantastique!: http://fortyandfantastique.wordpress.com/2014/07/05/anybody-socs/

Traces of the Soul: http://tracesofthesoul.wordpress.com/2014/07/05/stream-of-consciousness-socs-july-5-2014/

People, Places, and Perspectives: http://minahmisteri.wordpress.com/2014/07/05/body-not-in-the-usual-sense/

John: http://johnwhowell.com/2014/07/05/4695/

Fabricating Fiction: http://fabricatingfiction.wordpress.com/2014/07/05/socs-my-body-is-awesome/

Joanne: http://topofjcsmind.wordpress.com/2014/07/05/socs-body/

Wandering Story Teller: http://awanderingstoryteller.wordpress.com/2014/07/05/a-womans-body/

KG: http://booksmusicandmovies.wordpress.com/2014/07/05/socs-too-many-bodies/

My Leaky Boat: http://myleakyboat.com/blog/?p=779

We had plenty of return SoCS’ers as well as a few newcomers this week. Make sure you check them all out. Some really awesome posts listed above!

Thanks again, and I look forward to seeing you all back next week. And don’t forget, bring your friends!

 

 


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I’m Following How Many Blogs?

Ah, I just love WordPress’s random glitches.

I have a request for my fellow bloggers. Please go into your reader, and click on the edit button for “Blogs I Follow.” (It’s at the top right corner of the page.) Then report back here and tell me if you follow the same number of blogs I do. According to mine, it’s 1.

Yes, one.

That’s wrong, by the way.

I’d like to see if it’s just me WordPress likes to mess with.


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WordPress Meet and Greet – Take 2

This is a great way to meet new bloggers and gain more followers. Thanks so much to my amazingly generous friend, Jason for opening up his site. 😀


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My Fiction Blog is a Year Old Today!

Happy Blogaversary to me,
Happy Blogaversary to me…

Okay, it doesn’t quite slip off the tongue like Happy Birthday does, but it’s unique to the Blogiverse, isn’t it?

In celebration of my first aniversary, I’ve made a few changes… in fact you won’t recognize it, other than the fact that all my fiction and poetry are still there. To make it more clear that my fiction blog is, indeed, a fiction blog, I’ve changed the name to “Inspiration in Progress” to coincide with this one – “Life in Progress.” I’ve also changed the menus, the “About” page, and the theme!

Please go and have a visit, and let me know what you think.

Oh! It’s here: http://lindaghillfiction.wordpress.com/

Thanks!
Linda


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Bravely Blogging or Fanatically Fizzling

It was February when I signed up for the A-Z April Blogging Challenge. At the time I had energy. “I can do this!” I said. “It’ll be easy!”

I even decided on a theme way way wayyy back then. “I’ll write about writing!” I said.

Well, with a week left to go I’m putting a brave face on and I’m saying, “Yes! I can still do this!” I moved the badge to the top of my sidebar, and I’m waving it proudly.

Meanwhile, I’m gathering all the notes I’ve written on napkins, in the notepad on my phone, on the ceiling in my bedroom… yeah, that was back in February … on what exactly to write about, and I shall give it a go!

How will I keep it fresh and entertaining? Life, of course. Rather than gobbling about the rules and guidelines, I shall devote the month of A-Z on writing, to how I pull from the observations, characters, emotions, etc., etc., I find in everyday life and apply them to creating stories and all the elements which go into them.

It’ll be … fun!

If you’re reading this and you’re joining in the fun of A-Z April, please let me know in the comments so I can follow along with your posts. Let’s have … fun together!


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Does it count?

I wrote a 2,100 word short story and a blog post today. Can I count that on NaNo? Coz I didn’t get a word written today otherwise. 😛

Look at the picture!

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*runs away*