My synapses are firing like crazy right now--and those pings are all about the new wip. On the way to work, I had so many ideas pop up, it was ridiculous. I took copious notes when I arrived, and I'm super charged to make these new scenes come to life. But first...first...FI.
Okay, I may sneak a scene in here and there. (g)
I've even come up with a general concept for the book...dare I say, an organizational concept. (g) Yikes. I have this strange feeling that I could finish this book very very quickly. That's how well-formed it is in my head right now.
EEEE.
Love it.
For those of you who have asked what the book's focus is, etc... I have to hold this one close to the vest for now. Not trying to be a tease, but I'm just really...excited and nervous. I'll share as soon as I can. Promise!
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Monday, September 29, 2008
Sunday Check-In
So, I just realized I didn't check in last week. I can't say I did it consciously...just forgot, is all. (g) Sorry 'bout that.
Anyway, things have been super busy. I've been pushing through some tough spots in FI...it's going slow and steady. But a few blank scenes (blank in as I know what needs to happen, but I have no clear idea of how to get the dang scene on the page) are becoming clear. It's progress, tho...so that's good.
I've had an idea knocking around in my head for a while. It's a bit...different from my usual stuff. Much darker. And well, I have to admit I'm excited about it for many different reasons. (1) It's a challenge. A huge one. To tell a story that is very dark and very important. I feel a lot of responsibility to Get It Right. (2) It's a subject that has been covered many times over, but (I think) not quite in the way I plan to tell it. (3) It's a nice little outlet to stretch my writing muscles--without the pressure of knowing I have to send it in to DA when I finish. I'm free to write when/if I want...and there's no "turn in" when I finish. I just write. For. Me. It's lovely. (4) Being as it's a rather scary subject matter, I feel like I'll grow in different ways -- and in the end, it will be easier for me to take other stories _there_. Maybe not as far as this, but you know what I mean.
Anyway, with those thoughts in mind, I pounded out nearly 2K earlier...and very quickly. I honestly didn't know whether I could do that anymore. Guess I can, but not with FI. LOL. Gah, that just sucks. Ah well, I'm still making progress, and I feel better having written something significant in one sitting. I'm going to post it...just for the hey of it (I'm calling it STOLEN for now). I have only a quasi-feel for what this book will be in the end...some ideas, but nothing concrete. I think you'll know the gist of it all when you read it. Not that I think this book will be quite what people expect. My plan is to keep y'all guessing. I'm also posting this new wip because the current scenes in FI are total spoilers and well, I don't want to ruin the entire book! :)
Hope all is well with everyone...I also have some book reviews to post. Perhaps tonight.
Anyway, things have been super busy. I've been pushing through some tough spots in FI...it's going slow and steady. But a few blank scenes (blank in as I know what needs to happen, but I have no clear idea of how to get the dang scene on the page) are becoming clear. It's progress, tho...so that's good.
I've had an idea knocking around in my head for a while. It's a bit...different from my usual stuff. Much darker. And well, I have to admit I'm excited about it for many different reasons. (1) It's a challenge. A huge one. To tell a story that is very dark and very important. I feel a lot of responsibility to Get It Right. (2) It's a subject that has been covered many times over, but (I think) not quite in the way I plan to tell it. (3) It's a nice little outlet to stretch my writing muscles--without the pressure of knowing I have to send it in to DA when I finish. I'm free to write when/if I want...and there's no "turn in" when I finish. I just write. For. Me. It's lovely. (4) Being as it's a rather scary subject matter, I feel like I'll grow in different ways -- and in the end, it will be easier for me to take other stories _there_. Maybe not as far as this, but you know what I mean.
Anyway, with those thoughts in mind, I pounded out nearly 2K earlier...and very quickly. I honestly didn't know whether I could do that anymore. Guess I can, but not with FI. LOL. Gah, that just sucks. Ah well, I'm still making progress, and I feel better having written something significant in one sitting. I'm going to post it...just for the hey of it (I'm calling it STOLEN for now). I have only a quasi-feel for what this book will be in the end...some ideas, but nothing concrete. I think you'll know the gist of it all when you read it. Not that I think this book will be quite what people expect. My plan is to keep y'all guessing. I'm also posting this new wip because the current scenes in FI are total spoilers and well, I don't want to ruin the entire book! :)
Hope all is well with everyone...I also have some book reviews to post. Perhaps tonight.
Sunday, September 14, 2008
What Would You Do?
I've been a little behind on current events. Happens when you work unbelievably long hours. (g)
Anyway, I nearly missed the whole MIDNIGHT SUN controversy. I'd heard about all the backlash regarding BREAKING DAWN, and I guess I figured it was all tied together somehow. Not so, apparently.
If you're not familiar, the gist is that 12 chapters of MIDNIGHT SUN, a retelling of TWILIGHT (by Stephenie Meyers) from Edward's POV was leaked onto the internet. And as with anything highly sought after, it spread like wildfire. Meyers hasn't revealed much about the leak, only saying it was given to trusted individuals and that she doesn't believe the original leak was done with any malicious intent. For the whole story (in her own words), go HERE, the August 28, 2008 entry.
Now here comes the truly sad part. Because of this leak, Meyers has postponed finishing the book -- indefinitely.
A lot of people are obviously bothered by this decision, but I must say that I can empathize with her. Imagine if you were writing a book, and had given it to trusted individuals. Now whether it was intentional or not, that book was released onto the internet. Gah, I don't think I would be too off base by saying that most of us would be fairly ticked off. And honestly, I would have a hard time trusting anyone from there on out. Would I be unable to finish the book? See, I don't know. I guess I couldn't really say unless I were in that situation, but think about it... those twelve chapters tally up to almost 300 pages of her book. Egads. Tell me that wouldn't upset you.
I think most of us would be devastated.
Meyers makes an interesting point in her post. For a writer, mood is everything. If you're not "in the right frame of mind," the book will suffer. This sort of contradicts the whole idea that writing is a job and that you should always push through, but I think it's somewhat true. If you're trying to finish a book that you know people have already read nearly half of...well, wouldn't it be hard for you to carry on? And how in the world would you trust anyone with your much loved manuscript again?
Anyway, she decided to post the chapters...giving in to a losing battle, I suppose. And well, who knows if she'll ever finish the book. Kinda sad when you think about it. Very unfortunate all around, but I can't say I really blame her...though I'm very disappointed.
Any thoughts?
Anyway, I nearly missed the whole MIDNIGHT SUN controversy. I'd heard about all the backlash regarding BREAKING DAWN, and I guess I figured it was all tied together somehow. Not so, apparently.
If you're not familiar, the gist is that 12 chapters of MIDNIGHT SUN, a retelling of TWILIGHT (by Stephenie Meyers) from Edward's POV was leaked onto the internet. And as with anything highly sought after, it spread like wildfire. Meyers hasn't revealed much about the leak, only saying it was given to trusted individuals and that she doesn't believe the original leak was done with any malicious intent. For the whole story (in her own words), go HERE, the August 28, 2008 entry.
Now here comes the truly sad part. Because of this leak, Meyers has postponed finishing the book -- indefinitely.
A lot of people are obviously bothered by this decision, but I must say that I can empathize with her. Imagine if you were writing a book, and had given it to trusted individuals. Now whether it was intentional or not, that book was released onto the internet. Gah, I don't think I would be too off base by saying that most of us would be fairly ticked off. And honestly, I would have a hard time trusting anyone from there on out. Would I be unable to finish the book? See, I don't know. I guess I couldn't really say unless I were in that situation, but think about it... those twelve chapters tally up to almost 300 pages of her book. Egads. Tell me that wouldn't upset you.
I think most of us would be devastated.
Meyers makes an interesting point in her post. For a writer, mood is everything. If you're not "in the right frame of mind," the book will suffer. This sort of contradicts the whole idea that writing is a job and that you should always push through, but I think it's somewhat true. If you're trying to finish a book that you know people have already read nearly half of...well, wouldn't it be hard for you to carry on? And how in the world would you trust anyone with your much loved manuscript again?
Anyway, she decided to post the chapters...giving in to a losing battle, I suppose. And well, who knows if she'll ever finish the book. Kinda sad when you think about it. Very unfortunate all around, but I can't say I really blame her...though I'm very disappointed.
Any thoughts?
Scene Chart...erm, List...uh, THINGUM? Check!
FI Stats:
Word Count: Hovering right around 80K, give or take a couple of thousand words.
Scenes: 56
Characters On The Chopping Block: 1 (I'm combining two, actually.)
Scenes On The Chopping Block: Hmm, hard to say, but several small ones will be combined with others or deleted altogether.
Total word count loss? Hmm, around 3-4K when all is said and done.
Scenes Left To Write: Hard to say exactly. I'd estimate around 10.
Scenes Left To Revise: Pretty much every one of them needs to be tweaked in some way. Especially since I eliminated one of the characters. Muhahaha. Man, I've got a God complex now.
My Next Move: Start from the beginning, eliminating/combining scenes, and move forward. Keep at least one active scene going at all times.
Estimated Time of Delivery (to Betas): I have no idea. A long time.
I need all of you to send virtual chocolate. :)
Word Count: Hovering right around 80K, give or take a couple of thousand words.
Scenes: 56
Characters On The Chopping Block: 1 (I'm combining two, actually.)
Scenes On The Chopping Block: Hmm, hard to say, but several small ones will be combined with others or deleted altogether.
Total word count loss? Hmm, around 3-4K when all is said and done.
Scenes Left To Write: Hard to say exactly. I'd estimate around 10.
Scenes Left To Revise: Pretty much every one of them needs to be tweaked in some way. Especially since I eliminated one of the characters. Muhahaha. Man, I've got a God complex now.
My Next Move: Start from the beginning, eliminating/combining scenes, and move forward. Keep at least one active scene going at all times.
Estimated Time of Delivery (to Betas): I have no idea. A long time.
I need all of you to send virtual chocolate. :)
Miss Crabby Pants
A'yup. That pretty much sums up my mood today. I've been going through scenes in FI and nothing is reading well. Nothing. I decided I needed a nap and a shower, and next I will go outside and spend some time with the pups. When I'm done there, I'm coming back inside with what I hope will be a much improved attitude.
Why?
Because today is the day I'm pulling the book together to know what holes I need to fill. I don't know if I'll produce a "scene chart" but I definitely need a list of some sort--just to make sure everything is being tied up, or any new threads I've ended had an actual...yanno, beginning. (g) Ah, chunk writing.
I've got a lot of scenes that are 75-90% finished. Sigh. Must tackle those first.
Okay, outside I go.
Why?
Because today is the day I'm pulling the book together to know what holes I need to fill. I don't know if I'll produce a "scene chart" but I definitely need a list of some sort--just to make sure everything is being tied up, or any new threads I've ended had an actual...yanno, beginning. (g) Ah, chunk writing.
I've got a lot of scenes that are 75-90% finished. Sigh. Must tackle those first.
Okay, outside I go.
Friday, September 12, 2008
Squeee!!
I'm having a _ridiculous_ fangirl moment. I'm talking RIDICULOUS!!
Why?
Because Hank Green, brother of YA author John Green, finally friended me on Facebook.
SQUEEEEEEEE! I really am excited. (g)
If you haven't watched the Brotherhood 2.0 vlogposts, you NEED to. Speaking of which, I haven't finished them myself. I think I have 7 or 8 months left, in fact.
Can't remember if I posted a Hank video or not, but here's one of my favorites, in which he pays homage to the one and only member of his "guilt-free three" list.
Why?
Because Hank Green, brother of YA author John Green, finally friended me on Facebook.
SQUEEEEEEEE! I really am excited. (g)
If you haven't watched the Brotherhood 2.0 vlogposts, you NEED to. Speaking of which, I haven't finished them myself. I think I have 7 or 8 months left, in fact.
Can't remember if I posted a Hank video or not, but here's one of my favorites, in which he pays homage to the one and only member of his "guilt-free three" list.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
9/11
Today makes me extremely sad. It's like everything from that morning comes roaring back. I refuse to turn on the TV. I'm sorry, but I can't go through the hours of video again. Not this year. For once I'm glad to be working a loooonnng day.
Anyway -- let's all take a moment to remember all those we lost.
Anyway -- let's all take a moment to remember all those we lost.
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