{"id":48048,"date":"2026-07-21T11:30:12","date_gmt":"2026-07-21T15:30:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/?p=48048"},"modified":"2026-07-21T11:30:12","modified_gmt":"2026-07-21T15:30:12","slug":"what-are-words-for","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/2026\/07\/21\/what-are-words-for\/","title":{"rendered":"What Are Words For?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"As I have written before, I’ve been dedicating the first hour of my day to writing a work of fiction, Teenage Beast<\/em>, since June 7 of this year. I had grown tired of social media and rage-bait articles, so I decided to do something constructive with my mornings instead.<\/p>\n

To my surprise, I’m enjoying the process. I thought it would feel like homework, but instead I look forward to spending time with my cast of characters every morning.<\/p>\n

\n
\n<\/div>\n

My wife recently asked me how many words I had written.<\/p>\n

I had to admit that I had no idea.<\/p>\n

I’ve been writing the story in Apple’s TextEdit, which is about as basic as a word processor gets. It doesn’t offer much in the way of statistics, certainly nothing like a word count, so I imported the text into LibreOffice. If you’re looking for a free alternative to Microsoft Office, LibreOffice is an excellent choice.<\/p>\n

That gave me the answer.<\/p>\n

I was surprised.<\/p>\n

As of this morning’s writing session, Teenage Beast<\/em> stands at 26,137 words<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

It’s not really a big deal to me. I never sat down with a target word count or a deadline, and it’s not like I’m getting paid by the word. My plan has simply been to write until I’m satisfied with the shape of the story and the pace of the scenes, then see where I end up. Once I reach the finish line, I’ll find out whether I have enough pages to fill a book.<\/p>\n

In other words, I’ll figure out how long it is after I’ve finished telling the story.<\/p>\n

\n

I have also been trying to put time in on the sketchbooks. That’s where some of the loopier ideas come bubbling up to the surface. This whole project started with doodles.<\/p>\n

It all came from the sketchbook.<\/p>\n

\"GURK!!!\" <\/a>
GURK!!! <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Subdued <\/a>
Subdued Brian Bubonic <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Shaggy <\/a>
Shaggy Brian Bubonic <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"The <\/a>
The lurker in a filthy retention pond. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A simple question from my wife led me to discover just how much progress I’d made on Teenage Beast. It turns out I’ve been so focused on telling the story that I forgot to keep score. Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":48054,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[49,6405],"tags":[6410,9,6408,907,5249,76,3661,6331,5,6406,25,5937,480,336,6409,5978,6407],"class_list":["post-48048","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-it-came-from-the-sketchbook","category-teenage-beast","tag-behind-the-scenes","tag-comics","tag-creativity","tag-drawing","tag-fiction","tag-horror","tag-illustration","tag-independent-creator","tag-joe-williams","tag-novel","tag-sketchbook","tag-teenage-beast","tag-usa","tag-vintage","tag-work-in-progress","tag-writing","tag-writing-process"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/tookapic-screen-933307_1280.jpg?fit=1280%2C720&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1ed1x-cuY","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":45372,"url":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/2025\/07\/24\/keeping-good-habits\/","url_meta":{"origin":48048,"position":0},"title":"Keeping Good Habits","author":"Joe_Williams","date":"July 24, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"This is the thin 3-ring binder I bought from a dollar store near work and filled it with 97\u00a2 worth of looseleaf paper in order to work out the story of The Teenage Beast. I am writing an outline for what will probably be a novella and have done a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Book Design"","block_context":{"text":"Book Design","link":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/category\/book-design\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/three-ring-binder-outline.jpg?fit=640%2C751&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/three-ring-binder-outline.jpg?fit=640%2C751&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/three-ring-binder-outline.jpg?fit=640%2C751&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":45889,"url":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/2025\/09\/09\/when-does-the-band-go-on\/","url_meta":{"origin":48048,"position":1},"title":"When does the band go on?","author":"Joe_Williams","date":"September 9, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Here is another sketch from my developing Teenage Beast story. The crowd awaits the arrival of Brian Bubonic and the Plague. I drew this with sky blue mechanical pencil leads and Sailor Fude De Mannen fountain pens in a small UCreate sketchbook by Ticonderoga. It takes ink surprisingly well and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Doodle Tuesday"","block_context":{"text":"Doodle Tuesday","link":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/category\/it-came-from-the-sketchbook\/doodle-tuesday\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Awaiting-Brian-Bubonic.jpg?fit=640%2C448&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Awaiting-Brian-Bubonic.jpg?fit=640%2C448&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Awaiting-Brian-Bubonic.jpg?fit=640%2C448&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":521,"url":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/2009\/10\/05\/teenage-beast\/","url_meta":{"origin":48048,"position":2},"title":"Teenage Beast","author":"Joe_Williams","date":"October 5, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Another sketchbook variation of the Teenage Beast A.K.A. Goo Goo Muck that I did back in the 1980s. In true, '80s, monster movie fashion as the movie progresses, our hero turns into a bigger and badder monster as the remnants of his humanity fall away. Once again, this was done\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Blast from the Past"","block_context":{"text":"Blast from the Past","link":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/category\/blast-from-the-past\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/10\/teenage-beast-02.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":44872,"url":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/2025\/04\/08\/the-teenage-beast-continues\/","url_meta":{"origin":48048,"position":3},"title":"The Teenage Beast Continues","author":"Joe_Williams","date":"April 8, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"My punk rock monster, The Teenage Beast, continues to haunt my sketchbooks as I piece together a story through doodles and develop an approach to the illustrations. I'm still figuring out where the story is going and what materials will serve me best.","rel":"","context":"In "Doodle Tuesday"","block_context":{"text":"Doodle Tuesday","link":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/category\/it-came-from-the-sketchbook\/doodle-tuesday\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Teenage-Beast-Transformation.jpg?fit=900%2C676&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Teenage-Beast-Transformation.jpg?fit=900%2C676&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Teenage-Beast-Transformation.jpg?fit=900%2C676&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Teenage-Beast-Transformation.jpg?fit=900%2C676&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":44548,"url":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/2025\/02\/04\/this-is-the-end\/","url_meta":{"origin":48048,"position":4},"title":"This is THE END","author":"Joe","date":"February 4, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"...or it could be. I may have figured out the end of my story and I am working my way backwards. I never planned on revisiting the Teenage Beast character which I cooked up back in the mid-1980s, but I find that is where my pen and my sketchbooks are\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Doodle Tuesday"","block_context":{"text":"Doodle Tuesday","link":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/category\/it-came-from-the-sketchbook\/doodle-tuesday\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Pen and ink drawing of the Teenage Beast going back to hell","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Teenage-Beasts-Final-Form.jpg?fit=640%2C796&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Teenage-Beasts-Final-Form.jpg?fit=640%2C796&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Teenage-Beasts-Final-Form.jpg?fit=640%2C796&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":46177,"url":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/2025\/10\/21\/the-beast-of-times\/","url_meta":{"origin":48048,"position":5},"title":"The Beast of Times!","author":"Joe_Williams","date":"October 21, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"I'm having the beast of times with my Pen+Gear Sketch Diary sketchbook, a gem my wife Tina unearthed for me at our local Walmart. The sturdy paper withstands the rough handling of my pencils and erasers, while its surface handles the ink from my Sailor and Pentel pens better than\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Doodle Tuesday"","block_context":{"text":"Doodle Tuesday","link":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/category\/it-came-from-the-sketchbook\/doodle-tuesday\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Teenage-Beast-Gray-web.jpg?fit=800%2C1029&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Teenage-Beast-Gray-web.jpg?fit=800%2C1029&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Teenage-Beast-Gray-web.jpg?fit=800%2C1029&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Teenage-Beast-Gray-web.jpg?fit=800%2C1029&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48048","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=48048"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48048\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/48054"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48048"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48048"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48048"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}