The Hacks Progress: A Book of Days

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Eventually he had a script that converted each quote into an image, and a shell script on the Kindle to display them according to the time. As a bonus, the origin of the quote is displayed only optionally, turning the clock into a simple trivia quiz along the way. In the years since the Raspberry Pi and other similar inexpensive Linux-capable single board computers came to the market, we have shown you a huge variety of projects using them at the heart of portable computers. These normally take the form of a laptop or tablet project, but today we have one that starts from a completely different perspective.

The Zero W is a particularly useful computer for this application because of its tiny size, lowish power consumption, on-board Bluetooth, and wireless networking. He has taken a W and put it in the official Pi case, with a portable battery pack. As an input device he has a Bluetooth keyboard, and his display is a jailbroken Kindle Touch tied to the Pi using his Android phone as a WiFi router.

kindle | Hackaday

We suspect with a little bit of configuration the Pi could easily serve that function on its own, but the phone also provides an Internet connection. The result is a minimalist mobile computing platform which probably has a much longer battery life and higher reliability than portable Pi solutions using LCD displays, and certainly takes up less space than many others. How much cooler would it be if the water was moving! Like any good hacker worth his weight in 2Ns, [Kyle] set out to make his idea a reality.

After discovering some pricey options , he found a Kindle Paperwhite with a display that had decent resolution and 16 levels of grey. After stumbling upon a community dedicated to hacking Kindles , [Kyle] got to work. The next trick was to write a script that called the command multiple times to produce a GIF-like animation effect.

He then found some code from [GeekMaster] thanks for the tip! After a few more tweaks, he got everything working and the end result looks like something straight out of the world of Harry Potter. The animated picture frame can run for three to four weeks between charges. This is a hack that would make a great gift and look nice in your office.

If you make one, be sure to put the skull and wrenches on it first and let us know! It all started with headphones and audio tapes. For all of us who got to use tapes and school headphones, we know the flaws with this plan. Nothing lasted the sticky and violent hands of children for long. But I plodded ahead. I was surprised to find that my biggest challenge was finding my writing rhythm. I put on 10 pounds that month, but I wrote the story—all the way through to that ever-elusive ending.

Sadly, there is no one-month path to publishing … NaNoPuMo, anyone? After that first year, I convinced a friend to join me, so I would have a partner to meet and write with in the daylight hours, far from food temptations. If I can do it, so can you! It helps to have a general idea of your story and characters before you begin, but once the clock starts, get cracking! You can fix it when you sit down with a smile to read your completed draft a month later, red pen in one hand and giant latte in the other nonfat, of course.

My first finished book is thanks to NaNoWriMo. The experience was a whirlwind of creativity, as I was forced to put aside my Inner Critic and Grammar Nazi a rowdy bunch that like the last word. By the end of the 30 days, I had a manuscript of which I realized I could only keep less than half, but that was OK.

I knew exactly how I wanted to edit my manuscript—and I did, over the next couple months. Forcing yourself to write 50, words in 30 days is a bit like putting paint into a shotgun and pointing at a blank canvas. One day, though, I just felt the overwhelming need to start writing. What I did was write at every opportunity.

My month-long power session produced far better work, and was the best thing I ever did with my writing. Book in a Month: This book takes an interactive approach to help you complete your write-a-thon step by step, with expert instruction accompanied by spreadsheets to track your progress. First Draft in 30 Days: Includes worksheets, day-by-day planners and brainstorming exercises.

Chock full of brain-stretching exercises, this book will have you running to keep up.

Write Your Novel in a Month: This comprehensive guide embraces the process start to finish, from shaping your preliminary ideas to exploring next steps for your completed draft. When I started getting serious about writing, one of the first things I did was seek out like-minded individuals. I love the idea of banding together with others poised for the same goal. Our competitive streaks help us shine. The trick is getting extra words in the bank early. Things always pop up as the month goes on.

You will also be more burnt out by the end of the month, meaning that both the quality and quantity of your writing may suffer. Normally I edit my words in my head before the poor things can even get on my computer screen, so it was very freeing to just get it all out because of a deadline. One month to create a story that had been brewing in my mind for years. And it was a challenge. I would berate myself every second I stared at that blinking cursor.

It would be a half hour, an hour, as my eyes darted back and forth between the screen and the glow of the TV. But I soon discovered that just typing away was the key. And out of the nonsense came a thoughtful sentence, and then another, and another.

30 Tips For Writing a Book in 30 Days

I had to sift through a lot of garbage to find a few treasures. But I found them. Read about them here. You know how they say you need to unplug? Turn off the TV, the iPhone, the Internet, all of it. If I needed a break I picked up a book. Every time I read, I got an idea for what to write next. Write anything, write everything. Read what you love. And in the end know that you are a real writer. You always had a story to tell. And it may take longer than a month.

But you can do it! My co-author Erin McRae and I wrote our first novel a 70,word gay romance in a month. Having each other as an audience kept us going, and wanting to be able to share it with others kept us going fast.

Know Your Why

We did the next two drafts in a month each as well, and then submitted. Our book was published by Torquere Press in September, and the publisher has bought its sequel. Sharing it with others is your reward for the work. Also, if you do have a co-author, find one in another time zone! I was in Europe for my day job for a big chunk of our writing cycle, while Erin was in Washington, D. With the six-hour time difference, one of us was working on the story at almost all times.

I had fallen behind early with my word count, and then started obsessing with trying to catch up. An apt comparison is running, where one may set out to run four miles a day, but some days runs may be shorter or longer based on how the runner feels on the trail. I wanted to try to write the book in 30 days. My plan was 2, words a day minimum, and February was a great month to attempt such a feat, as it can reach degrees here in northern New York.

I outlined my ideas most of which never made it in—my work tends to take on a life of its own and not conform to my plans and made myself comfortable at the kitchen table with my laptop and Bob Marley playlist. That first week I drank 21 coffees and wrote over 26, words, averaging 3, a day. The following week I wrote another 24, words, averaging 3, a day. By now the plot was getting thick, as were my character worksheet folders. I was writing 6—10 hours a day, getting up early so I could do most of my writing while my daughter was in school.

I finished the book in 18 days at 70, words—not a heavyweight, but a good size for my genre. As I write this it is No. Lure your muse out with some chocolate and pinot noir, grab a hold of her, and tie her to your desk until you are done. When you take the responsibility of creating the story out of the equation, it becomes quite easy.

You are simply a conduit. In September , the idea for a novel fell onto my lap. Knowing NaNoWriMo was six weeks away, I stockpiled mental notes, developing character profiles, plots, conflict. Once my day job invades my head, the brainpower and willingness to work on fiction dries up. So on the evening of Oct. Some mornings I managed at least the average number of words I needed to hit 50, Others, I struggled and vowed to make it up the next day.

Every day, I marveled at the twists my story took from the sparse outline in my head. I typed the last word—58,—on Nov. But it was disorganized, overly ambitious, repetitive and, for some reason, full of foul language. Four years later, Men of Sorrows is longer, structured, less repetitive, less cuss-laden.

And it has a theme readers can relate to: How far will a person go to make life seem worth living? There has been one deleterious effect of the day-novel exercise: I can no longer sleep past 4 a.

Writer's Digest Magazine

I spend my early mornings now writing my synopsis and elevator pitch, and researching agents to try to get Men of Sorrows published. Maybe when that happens, I can finally get up after the birds do. Click here to buy it now. For more tips on writing a book in 30 days, click here.

For more great writing advice, click here. Follow Brian on Twitter: I was hoping to fill some gaps on on the Interwebs.

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