What could be so hard about writing zombie stories for a living?

With a week remaining until the release of Zomblog: Snoe (the 4th book in the series...and the first after I released what I titled Zomblog: The Final Entry), I am starting to get that pre-concert rush of adrenaline. That's really the best thing I can equate it to. Having been the lead singer for a few garage bands, I always got that little surge right before taking the stage. That was usually accompanied by me wondering if I would remember all the words. Of course, once the show goes live, there are no fixes...no do-overs. The release of a book is the same. Still, while I may not be raking in the big bucks, I do well enough that this is my life, my job...my dream realized.

One of the new events in my life is the way I get to answer when somebody asks me what I do for a living. There is something very groovy about being a writer for a living. Lest anybody thinks it is all fun and lazy days...I start my day at a quarter to six in the morning. My wife is an accountant at what many of you would refer to as "a real job." I check to make sure my blog post went live as scheduled (6 AM PST) and then it is time for her and I to hit the P90X. Then, while she hits the showers, I make her lunch, which I pack in a little lunch box I bought for her.

Once she is out the door and I have had at least one more cup of coffee, I sit down for my first session of editing whatever project is on the docket. (Currently I am blessed to have Zombie Fallout by Mark Tufo as he has brought me in to clean up his back catalog after recently editing Zombie Fallout 6. Next up is The New World by John O'Brien.) After my first editing session, it is time to let my OCD run wild. I get in some house cleaning, laundry, and take the dogs for a walk. 

After that...it is time for my first writing session. Currently, I am working on the fifth book in the DEAD series, Dead: Siege & Survival. I tend to write in 1,000 word blocks. After each sesssion, I get up, take out the dogs and clear my head for ten or fifteen minutes before going at it again. I stop around noon for a light lunch and a little time with my guitar. to clear my head. 

After lunch, I do another editing session. I like to do those when my head is not into being creative, that lets me focus on mechanics. I usually have a dozen or so links up on my screen to various grammar sites just in case I have a question about a particular rule. It is like instant replay in football.

Once I have edited to my target page, I set it aside. Sometimes it is really hard to just quit...especially if you are in the middle of a great scene--which Tufo seems to sprinkle liberally. However, with that done, I get to take another walk with the dogs and then come in for my afternoon writing session.

By now, it is closing in on around four in the afternoon. That means I need to start getting dinner ready. With Denise working PLUS going after her SECOND Master's degree, I like to make sure that she has a good dinner waiting when she gets home. The only day that is not the case is Friday. We go out to dinner on Friday nights. After dinner, Denise settles in to study and work on homework. I usually try to get in another short writing session and then some reading. I firmly believe that a good writer HAS to be a reader.

Saturdays are a bit more relaxed. I have a lot of the same schedule, but Denise tends to the house and the meals on Saturday. She does school work and I try to write with college football on in the background unless it is a big game or my Oregon Ducks or LSU Tigers are on. Then the game has my full attention.

Sundays are family time until 6PM. Now to be honest, I get a bit of a pass because football is a big deal for me and brings me a lot of happiness even when my Seattle Seahawks are miserable. Denise watches bits and pieces with me, reads, or naps. It is a lazy day by comparison. So there you have it...a very encapsulated version.

Art, covers and publishing services by R.L. Treadway can be found at http://atrtpublishing.com/

So here is what you can look for the rest of this week. I am tossing my hat into the Coffin Hop ring. What is the Coffin Hop you might be asking? Well, since I am brand new to it, I am discovering it with you. However, in the spirit of spreading the Coffin Hop love, I will be making the link to their "Linky List" available every day and have a number posted. All you have to do is go to the linky list, go to the number and then share something in my comments about that link. Three lucky winners will be chosen from the posts over the next week. And what do they win? That person wins a free ebook a month from the May December Publications catalog for ALL of 2013! Also, one Grand Prize Winner will receive a signed copy of any book that I have written from the DEAD or Zomblog series.

Tune in tomorrow for the number of the day and some up close and personal time with Mark Tufo.