Milestone April 6, 2009

20,021 words. Need I say more?

Actually, yes. Matthew Pearl has a new book out! I literally danced when I found The Last Dickens in Barnes and Noble. Sadly, I couldn’t buy it at the time. Once I get my hands on it though, I’ll be sure to post a review. Hmm. Maybe I should go back and post reviews of his first two books, The Dante Club and The Poe Shadow. He is one of the few authors whose books I buy before reading or even reading reviews. I liked his first one best, but the Shadow was still very good.

Spring Procrastination March 24, 2009

I’ve heard a couple other writers bemoaning the bad case of procrastination/writers’ block that has hit them in the past couple weeks; I wonder if it’s something about the time of year.

My WIP is a bit stuck again. My MC is turning into a snot, and I don’t like it. So I’m glaring at the page wondering how to fix this problem, and yet she just glares stubbornly back. Sigh. When I get “stuck” like this, it is so vital that I still write something. Sometimes it’s just a journal entry or a blog post, but my writing usually benefits more from prompts and exercises. I have this book that I sometimes use. Jess recently inspired me with a prompt she put up, but I still haven’t actually written my idea out. Maybe I’ll do that today, since I don’t really have time to glower at my MC much longer.

What do you do when your character tries to take off without you?

Spring Fever March 21, 2009

I didn’t mean to take a two-week break, but that’s life for ya. I did a little writing in that time, but not much. I kind of got out of my groove when our company came (which was very fun, just not really good for my muse) and am just now starting to get back into it. However, I’m not sure how long that will last, since I volunteered for extra hours at work this week. Since I actually HAVE a job now I’ve been getting back into gear with school (I’m at 80-some credits now, yay), so extra money is very good and very needed, it’s just the hours cut into my study/writing/other stuff time, not to mention my time with my man. It’s only a week though, so I guess I’ll survive.

With spring coming on, I’ve been hit with an organizing bug. This includes finished multiple sewing projects that have been languishing in my closet for months (in one case, years). So I guess that’s interfering with my writing as well, but they really did need to be finished.

I’ve begun to wonder if I try to read too many writing blogs. There’s 39 unread entries sitting in my Google Reader right now. Granted, this only happens when I skip about 4 days of reading, but still. I dunno.

Reading update:

The Darkest Evening of the Year is taking me forever to read because it’s so creepy. I can only read about two chapters before I have to put it down so I’m not totally freaked out.

Passionate Housewives I’m still reading, taking it slow for various reasons.

Hancock Park was  returned to the library when I discovered the protaganist was lesbian. Sorry, I’d just rather not spend my free time reading that, even if it was otherwise well written.

Dog Man is still in my to be read pile.

B is for Burglar was pretty good for a modern mystery. I didn’t realize the alphabet series was a chronological story, so I sent “O” back and read C is for Corpse instead. Fast reads, I guess 3 stars overall. Nothing spectacular, but I’ll probably finish the series when I’m wanting a light read.

The Glimmer Train Guide to Fiction is still in my pile as well, and I’ve barely touched it since my last post about it. Maybe I jinxed it. Actually, I have a bad habit of doing more reading about writing than actual writing, so I purposely left it alone for awhile. I’ll be reading more in it over the next few days, I hope.

Hmm. Haven’t been doing much reading, have I?

Miscellany March 4, 2009

I now have more than 18,000 words on my WIP. I know this is not a lot, especially to certain people who complete NaNo four times over during the course of November, or even just once, but for me it’s rather major. My goal with this WIP is just to finish. I’m not aiming for publication, just to assure myself that I can indeed finish a novel length project. So I’m excited.

The fact that I feel somewhat possessed by it at present also excites me. I haven’t felt like this about a story since I was about 14. It’s driving me to the keyboard, even though I have other things I know I could/should be doing (cleaning the bathroom, finishing my quilt, putting away the clean dishes, etc). I guess I could say my muse is back, perhaps in the form of the very happy golden retriever with his head perpetually on the arm of my chair or in my lap.

Posting may be sparce over the next few days, as we’ll be having some company. I expect my muse will be demanding any of my extra time, but I’ll be back soon.

Links February 19, 2009

This is a cool article about naming your characters. The author’s writing blog is one you don’t want to miss, either.

Great blog for those of us wanting to eventually be published.

I love having my own library catalogued.

While I don’t use FanStory myself, I was reminded of it again by an e-mail this week. Some may find it very enjoyable and useful for critques and learning.

FundsforWriters is another great resource (mainly for non-fiction writers). Check out the e-books. The founder also keeps a blog.

Of course, the Christian Writers Guild is also an excellent resource. Just don’t let them tell you that there’s only one way to write a selling book, and they are (obviously) bent to Christian books.

Victoria Gaines is always putting up inspiring authorly quotes.

I recently discovered Bookmarks Magazine. Awesomeness.

Yup, the old fall-back of Writer’s Digest. Sometimes a little snotty in tone, but with excellent resources and articles.

For keeping up with all those blogs: Google Reader. My favorite, it’s clean and simple and it works.

*drumroll* December 11, 2008

I promised myself I wouldn’t update this blog until I could make this announcement, so without further ado:

I finished the Christian Writers Guild Apprentice course!!!

I seriously thought I wouldn’t finish, sometimes. But I did. I’m just waiting on the certificate to come in the mail. I feel like I’ve really accomplished something. At this point, I’m not sure I’ll pursue any further classes with them. My perspectives and opinions on a lot of things have changed in the past two years. It was a great growing experience, and I learned SO much from my mentor and the newsletters. Onward and upward!

I’m now rethinking my writing plans, reasons for writing, along with future education plans. My current WIP has been a WIP for well over a year now, and I’ve been mulling over the storyline and characters a lot. I’ve decided to start over. Well, not quite. Basically edit the 15K I have written. I was really wanting to get the entire novel written first, but the story has changed so much that the first 7-8K don’t agree with the last. Heh. I’ve decided to actually do some research for it, since I’ve decided I definitely want to finish it.

I don’t know how much more non-fiction writing I’ll pursue. I had an article published in Acceleration (CollegePlus!’s newsletter), and that was some nice extra $$, but the other job I had writing reviews seems to have fallen through. I feel like I’m really narrowing myself down, too, by writing for only homeschool magazines. It’s been completely unintentional, but it’s the only thing I feel knowledgable enough about to actually write about. I need more life experience. Anyway.

Still Plugging Away July 8, 2008

Still working on the Guild lessons and novel, but in more exciting news…

I landed a job as a writer for an online newsletter! A paying job. Yes, I’m jumping up and down. While it’s not huge, it’s not tiny, either, with a circulation of about 6,000 homes. Woot woot! I’m very happy. I have an assignment for an article that will be put out in October. I am so excited! This is non-fiction, not fiction like I prefer, but oddly enough I have more experience/success with non-fiction. Sigh and go figure.

On a different note, does anyone have an Amazon Kindle? I’ve been watching this gadget’s progress with interest, and tonight sat down and really looked over the selections, etc. Though the initial price has a bit of a *gasp* factor ($359 at present), if the technology sticks and continues to be popular, having one and using it to build a library would actually save a lot of money. As appealing as that is – plus being able to carry a sizeable selection of books with you – I still can’t imagine giving up a real book library. Anyway…someday when I have an extra $359 lying around. Maybe I’ll give it to myself as a graduation present.

To Get Back into the Swing of Things… May 28, 2008

ONE WORD ONLY!

Not as easy as you might think. Now copy, forward, or post this and change the answers to yours and pass it on. It’s really hard to only use one word answers.

1. Where is your cell phone? none

2. Your significant other? Darling…

3. Your hair? messy

4. Your mother? garden

5. Your father? steady

6. Your favorite thing? Adam

7. Your dream last night? nonexistent

8. Your favorite drink? apple cider

9. Your dream/goal? regretless

10. The room you’re in? ours

11. Your ex? none

12. Your fear? loss

13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? West

14. Where were you last night? home

15. What you’re not? pushover

16. Muffins? blueberry

17. One of your wish list items? laptop

18. Where you grew up? everywhere

19. The last thing you did? teach

20. What are you wearing? jeans

21. Your TV? none

22. Your pets? dog

23. Your computer? Adam’s

24. Your life? blessed

25. Your mood? happy

26. Missing someone? dog

27. Your car? non-present

28. Something you’re not wearing? makeup

29. Favorite store? B&N

30. Your summer? busy

31. Like(love) someone? family

32. Your favorite color? pink

33. Last time you laughed? today

34. Last time you cried? today

35. Who will re-post this? dunno

I Think…I Hope… April 10, 2008

I can post again! Yay for Firefox. Back soon with more writerly updates.

Computer Problems – Can’t Post, Can’t See Site…Back Soon, Hopefully February 29, 2008