“Come out to the coast. We’ll get together. Have a few laughs…”
That is Daisy — one of Josie’s kittens that I adopted out. I’ve been babysitting her this week, as her owner is traveling. For newcomers, my name is Brian Keene. I’m a writer, outdoorsman, comic book and book collector, and wrangler of feral animals. And this is Letters From the Labyrinth, a weekly newsletter for friends, family and fans of my work.
Several people on various social media platforms and the forum have asked about my daily schedule. There’s an old one published in the HAIL SATEN books, but it is horribly out-of-date, so here is something more current.
Monday thru Friday:
5am - Wake up. Stretch (my own weird mix of yoga, katas, and athletic stretching), lift weights (at age 55, I lift to maintain strength, rather than to develop mass or definition). Shower. Get dressed.
5:30am to 7:45am - Drive over to the home of my youngest son and his mother. Prepare breakfast for him. Pack his lunch for school. Have two cups of coffee with her (they are a Sumatran household). See him off to school. Walk one mile with her and talk about our previous day, or what’s going on in life, or the state of the world, or the kiddo. Drive home.
8:00am to 8:30am - Answer email and messages (there’s no way to answer it all, and I’ve long since quit trying. I do what I can and simply let go of the rest with the hope that I’ll get to them at some point in the future). Have two more cups of coffee (usually Sumatran, Italian, or Ecuadoran). Do the morning news on Brian Keene Radio. Check social media and the forum. Have final cup of coffee (five cups per day total) and then switch over to water or black unsweetened iced tea.
8:30am to 12:30pm - Write. Morning writing is always spent on the first draft a novel, novella, script or story. That then gets posted to Patreon. My FitBit reminds me to get up and move every hour. Mary usually wakes up around 9:00am, so my movement for that hour is to go downstairs and say good morning to her. The key, however, is not to be away from the desk for more than two minutes tops. These four hours are meant for writing and productivity.
12:30pm to 1:00pm - Walk another mile in the woods, this time by myself, and think about the morning’s writing and the forthcoming afternoon’s writing. Also return phone calls.
1:00pm to 2:00pm - Nap.
2:00pm to 5:00pm - Write. Afternoon writing is always spent on second or final draft rewrites and editing, or the formatting of books coming back into print, or other ephemera like Introductions, Afterwords, essays, interviews, etc. If I have none of those, then it is spent working on first draft writing, but something different than what I worked on that morning. For example, if the morning was spent working on the first draft of a novel, then the afternoon is spent working on the first draft of a story or novella.
5:00pm to 10:00pm - Make dinner for Mary and myself. Spend time together. This usually involves watching a TV show or movie together, another walk in the woods, playing cards, or occasionally going out somewhere. I also usually take a hot bath for thirty minutes or so, both to help with the chronic pain that comes with being a battle-scarred writer, outdoorsman, comic book and book collector, and wrangler of feral animals — and also because that’s my prime reading time. On Tuesday nights, when Mary is recording her podcast, I play with my comic book collection or go fishing (if the weather is nice) or read.
10:00pm to 5:00am - Sleep
Saturday and Sunday:
5:00am to noon: Write. Saturday’s are usually spent working on this newsletter and then whatever I was working on throughout the week. Sunday’s are spent working on J.F. Gonzalez’s literary estate. Regardless, I’m done at noon on both days so that I can spend time with Mary, my sons, our family, and our friends.
What can you, the reader, determine from this?
When it comes to writing for a living, there is no right or wrong schedule. You simply find a schedule that works for you, and then you stick to it, same as any other job, making sure to balance family, health and free time, as well.
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I am indeed typing this on Saturday. Later today Ronald Malfi and I will be signing books at the Barnes & Noble in Pikesville, Maryland. Richard Chizmar (whom I’ve signed with more than anyone else this year) was supposed to join us, but he’s had some family obligations come up, so it will just be me and Ron. Although Thomas F. Monteleone says he is going to stop by, so I’m sure that some type of trouble will ensue.
Update: It is now Sunday morning and here are a few pics from yesterday.
But you are, of course, reading this on Sunday, and that’s good because today — if you live in or near Pennsylvania — you should come to Lovedrafts Brewing Company 165 Gateway Drive Mechanicsburg, PA, 17050 today from noon to 6pm. I’ll be there, signing books and drinking beers, and I’d be happy to do both with you.
Last night we attended my son’s marching band banquet. Awards were given out and the band members were honored. I was surprised to discover that he knows the macarena and a bunch of other dances, and he has some moves. I was also surprised that he and his high school friends prefer songs like that, and Earth, Wind and Fire, and Neil Diamond rather than songs from today. Yes, they went nuts for Taylor Swift, but it was songs like “Cotton-eye Joe” and “The Macarena” and “Lets Groove” that got them on the dance floor en masse.
This gives me hope for the future.
I said to his mother at one point, I don’t think I’ve ever seen him so happy as when he was out there with all of his high school friends, in a big circle, arms around each other, singing Don McLean’s “American Pie” as a group and swaying back and forth. The grin on his face, and watching him fit in with his people and finding clear acceptance and inclusion from his peers, filled me with joy. It was good evening.
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I was pleased to appear on this week’s episode of The Ghost Writers Podcast, along with Wesley Southard, Stephen Kozeniewski, and Deena Dib, and hosts Mary SanGiovanni, Somer Canon, and Matt Wildasin for a remembrance of Dave Thomas. Listen here.
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Mary and I have set a wedding date of May 27th (as it is a holiday weekend, and thus, will allow our friends and family more travel time). We’ve decided that for our honeymoon, we’re going to do a cross-country signing tour, as she has never done one before and has always wanted to. I’ll begin setting up dates in December. It will be limited to the continental United States. No Canada or United Kingdom or Spain or Germany this time, and no Hawaii or Alaska. We’re going to try to do this without airplanes, as much as possible. But if you live in the continental U.S. — expect us.
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If you signed up for Borderlands Boot Camp, expect us to contact you the week after Thanksgiving with all the information you’ll need. And if you haven’t yet signed up for Borderlands Boot Camp, time is running out. Click here to reserve your spot.
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Currently Watching: Avenue 5 (HBO Max), Survivor season 43 (Paramount+), and Tulsa King (Paramount+).
Currently Reading: The Early Long by Frank Belknap Long and Dust Bowl Children by Wile E. Young and Emily Young.
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As I said I planned to do in last week’s newsletter, I used social media far, far less this past week, and I didn’t miss it at all. I did, however, write two new Blog entries, and participated in the forum each day.
This Week’s Blog Entries:
And some forum discussions you might find of interest:
1. David J. Schow (co-writer of the original film adaptation of The Crow) has some thoughts on the forthcoming remake.
2. Are token-paying or semi-pro paying anthologies worth it?
3. Stephen King Books from an alternate universe.
4. Valancourt is bringing Karl Edward Wagner back into print!
5. A Light Most Hateful update from Hailey Piper.
As of Friday evening we have 1,162 registered members and haven’t yet had to ban or discipline anybody. It’s all been very fun and chill. Next week, Douglas E. Winter will be joining us, so come say hi to him.
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SUBMERGED: THE LABYRINTH Book 2 continues to sell very well. I’m pleased with the responses so far. Lots and lots of readers are comparing the ending to the end of THE RISING, but in this case, you know for sure there’s another book coming. In fact, as of yesterday, I officially hit 30,000 words on it. If you haven’t yet read THE SEVEN or SUBMERGED, they’re available in paperback from Amazon, B&N, BAM, Waterstones, etc. and in eBook on Kindle, Nook, Kobo, and Apple. Links to all of those options can be found here. The first book is also available in audiobook. The audiobook adaptation of the second should be available before the holidays.
The next forthcoming releases will be a brand-new edition of LEADER OF THE BANNED: THE BEST OF HAIL SATEN Vol. 4 and a trade edition of THINGS LEFT BEHIND by Mary and myself. The former should be out in December. The latter should be out in January. ISLAND OF THE DEAD is also forthcoming. Thunderstorm Books will release a signed, limited hardcover next year, followed then by paperback, eBook, and audiobook. It is, of course, currently available on Amazon’s Kindle Vella.
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And that is it for this week. I hope that you are doing well. My wish for you is that you find your tribe — some folks with whom you belong — and you dance the Macarena and sing “American Pie” together. Or whatever the equivalent is in your world. I hope to see some of you today. And I’ll see the rest of yo back here next Sunday.
— Brian Keene
Schedules and routine are so important for creative professionals. Even with small children and sometimes crippling ADHD, I at least try to keep a schedule of a few writing sprints throughout the day. I'm always intrigued to see how other writers go about their days.
Hey Dude,
Part of the tour should include Detroit. You can stay with us or Malerman. We can finally make it to Greektown or Mexican Village.