Sunday, July 24, 2011

Projects...

So I have a knack for biting off more than I can chew, as demonstrated by my senior year of high school and series of failed betas last year, oh and I can't forget dropping the ball on my critique partners which I've done more times than I can count. (Bethany and Bethany if you are reading this I'm working on the weekly swap and your full Pimpernel btw, this is more of a reflective post). I'm not proud of any of that, it was poor management on my part and why I have devoted this summer to getting my organization on track and living a life based off of lists, it's working well when I follow them anyways.

I would like to take this moment to apologize. I suck as a person sometimes and I'm working on it. I mean we all have our shortcomings right? Right? Alright well I like to think my ball-dropping-ness isn't the worst thing in the world, but it is bad I know that and I'm working on it. That's got to mean something, wanting to change and taking the steps to change, right? So if I have ever dropped the ball for something related to writing, or disappointed you in any way I am sorry.

Projects, that is the topic of today's blog. Projects can come in all sizes, shapes, etc. It can be as small as writing a query, which really isn't small at all even though it only takes up one piece of paper, to doing edits on a trillion word MS (uh if your MS is that long there is room for concern.)

The key to projects is to pace yourself, hence the big open up a few paragraphs ago, it's a cliche but Rome wasn't built in a day--and your WiP wont be either (unless you're a super prodigy and in that case hats off to you!). I like to tuck myself into my corner, a hot cup of chamomile tea, and different forms of dark chocolate (covered raisins, covered cranberries, bars, ice cream etc.) and write. It doesn't always work that way though, I take it where I can get it. In the car on the way to work, after work at the bookstore next door, on my arm during school.


I really can't remember where I was trying to go with this, which is sad but I've been up all day and totally should have been able to finish this train of thought.

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Renovations

Yeah so this new design has been in the works for awhile, it's not complete--not by a long shot. I just needed something different.

I've been finding that is the case lately, just needing change. I don't like change, not at all, but as each day brings me closer and closer to leaving home and getting out on my own I find myself yearning for it. I'm ready to get out of here. I am afraid of heading off to college, in less than a month I'll be on my way, and I am beyond terrified of the new school conditions I'm going to have to deal with. I've never been to college before, I don't know how it works! I mean high school was easy, it was just a blown up version of middle school, middle school was just elementary school with more than one teacher. College is not like any of those, at all. So on one hand I'm pumped to get out of my house, except I'm going to miss Mac and Finn and Seamus but I can survive without their late night cuddles and cold noses, and on the other I am so not ready to start learning things again or for summer to be over.

I am apologizing for the rant that is about to follow.

Also I am ready to be done with my sister, the fifteen year old, who gets to throw a hissy fit every fifteen minuets and then not speak to me and blame me for everything wrong under the sun. Once I'm gone she will get to do all the chores herself, and have to deal with our parents without me as a buffer. I cannot f**king wait.

We have a big family, but I only have one biological sister who has been doing nothing but winning the-most-obnoxious-person-on-the-face-of-the-planet award for three months. (For the count record I have three "brothers" and five "sisters", all of whom are related to me one way or another but aren't necessarily siblings, I just consider them as such, if that makes sense.) So based on that logic/my opinion she is the third youngest and has been taking a nice long ride on my last nerve for over two months now. I am sick of the excuses my parents give me "she's a teenager, you were the same way." I was not. or "it is normal behavior, just leave her/it alone." NO. I will not leave it alone, I should not have to walk around our house on eggshells because my sister has decided to rule over it with an iron fist of I-can-throw-the-biggest-hissy-fit. She isn't two, or four, or seven or even ten. She is fifteen, and her behavior is not acceptable in any way shape or form.

Rant done.

Onto renovations. I've also been living my life by a schedule, unfortunately work disrupts that more than not but planning everything out has definitely made more time for writing and me time.

So renovations, that is the topic of the post, but after I had my rant and my freak out over college I can't remember where the post was originally headed. And for that I am sorry. I will have a post more related for writing ready for later this week. Promise.

Friday, July 15, 2011

Harry. Ron. Hermione. And Fred...

So I went to the midnight release last night. There will be spoilers in this post, just so you're warned.

I cried when the Warner Bros. Insignia showed up on the screen, and then dried my tears and jumped in.

There isn't much I have to say, but I do have to say a few things.

Anyone who knows me knows I love Fred. After Sirius he was my favorite character in the Harry Potter series. I believe my favorite characters are cursed, Sirius was my first ever favorite character to die, and since every single favorite character I've had has either died, or spent the rest of their life miserable.

So for those of you who don't know, and you should seeing as the book came out four years ago, Fred dies. I was really broken up when I read those words, "No! Fred NO!" Like cried for thirty minuets upset. So waiting for this movie, the final the second half, was hard and nerve wracking. I was going to have to watch him die, and that was going to be hard. Overall I felt like there wasn't enough of him in the final movie--his death wasn't really shown, and it wasn't expanded upon enough, but I'm biased, aren't I?

The kiss. Amazing. I wish they had then had more lip-locking between Ron and Hermione, but I liked the kiss they showed and was contented with it.

Snape. There isn't much to say. Alan Rickman is the only person they could have cast in this role, and he nailed it. His memories, nailed. Except I wanted more. I wanted more detail, more memories.

Overall I just wanted MORE.

And after everything J.K. Rowling has given me, her stories--without them I would not love reading, I would not love writing, I would not be who I am. I know I must sound absolutely nuts, and after crying so hard last night my brains may have been liquefied into tears, I may be.

I was given eight movies, and I will own every one once this comes to DVD. So asking for anything else seems greedy.

However the movie left me wondering...wanting. It was the shortest film in the series, clocking in at around 130 minuets. So there was room for more, and I just wished they'd filled it. However I know when the DVDs come out there will be loads of deleted scenes and extras and I will be over the moon when that happens...

Yeah I'm still in shock, and not sure. I'm going through the five stages of grief, I know that. Right now I'm in denial, and I'm scared. My childhood was crafted around the lore one woman dreamed up and tied together. And that is over. In esscence this "end of an era" is the end of my childhood as well, and that is absolutely terrifying.

Going ahead is a great mystery. There is no next book to look forward to, no new movies, I am stepping into the future with nothing to guide me, and I am beyond afraid.

Friday, July 8, 2011

inspiration...

I've decided to do a post about inspiration, or really to re-post a post I wrote for my Critique Group's blog, about inspiration. I just found it the other day when I was rereading all our old posts and thought it would fit nicely.

What inspires me…I don’t really know my compulsion to write is just that--a compulsion. I don’t know how not to. I find that this sentence rings true for a lot of writers out there, they just can't not write.

I have to stress that point, the thing of it is that I am not able to completely pin down what triggers my--I dunno what you call it “idea button” or something—creativity I think will fit the bill for now. In fact just the other day, (I don’t remember what I was doing) someone said something that I immediately scribbled down onto my hand, then into my notebook, and then texted myself. About seven simple words that have since spurred my latest story idea, no I will not share them with you for fear you may have the same brilliant idea and beat me to the punch. Kidding, I’m not going to share because it’s personal and I haven’t decided in what direction I want to take my story. Maybe then I’ll share.

I have an amazing family, who’ve not only supported me in all my choices but who also are just inspiring human beings. I’ve been lucky enough to have two aunts whom have both had serious forms of advanced stage four cancer and defied the odds, only one is still with us now but the way they’ve dealt with it was just mind boggling, I admire them for it every single day.

Of course then there is the media. (No not moronic newscasters, I avoid them—they are a pet peeve of mine). Music, sometimes you’ll be in a writing funk and a song you’ve never heard before pops onto the radio and BAM! An idea is there. Or you’re watching TV and an interaction between two characters has your heart racing and all of the sudden you can’t breath and BAM! You’ve figured out this scene that has been bothering you. And my favorite, by far, you are reading a book and you are so taken with the eloquence of the writing you feel the need to go back and rewrite entire scenes in your novel (not to mimic the other authors eloquence or style, no). To try to condense as best you can and prefect your voice, the flow of your story, to give someone reading your story the sense of elation.

That is the kind of inspiration I long for, the kind that drops out into your lap and just takes your breath away. It happens--it does, not always often (though sometimes it’s just like BAM! BAM! BAM! And you can’t stop the inspiration flow.) But it happens and those are the moments that matter the ones you have to hold close to your heart and nurture.

But inspiration isn’t just that “ah-ha” moment when the seed of an idea is planted, it has to do with the support and nourishment for that idea too. And that support can be found in all sorts of places. From your family, your friends, and I am lucky enough to have the strongest support system in the world. To find your true inspiration and help it grow, you have to surround yourself with people who care, who are honest and will tell it to you as it is—like a bangin’ critique group, a best friend, a mouthy baby sister or two. Those are the people who matter and they are there for the inspiration, whither they are doing the inspiring or nurturing, they are the ones to hold close and cherish.

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

Where I Instruct You to GO LOOK

So anyone who has been reading my blog at all knows that I am friends with K.M. Walton, a fellow writer who is represented by Sarah LaPolla, and whose debut novel Cracked (which has a gorgeous cover that you can ogle at here) will be released March 3rd 2012!!

She just launched her author website, and it is beautiful! I felt I had to do a post to direct you over there!!

Here is the link. Head over and appreciate the prettiness, it was designed by her sister Christina MacRae, and developed by Gregg Fair. Neither of whom I know but they need credit where credit is due!

Now head over to K.M. Walton's Website and ogle people!!

Friday, July 1, 2011

The Great Reread

So in roughly fourteen days Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part 2 is released.

Safe to say I am already freaking out!

My costume still isn't all together, though I did already buy my midnight showing IMAX tickets, oh and I need to buy a new pair of contacts...also I haven't exactly decided on the character I want to be...maybe Ginny...or Katie Bell...just someone...I don't think I could pull off Luna or Fleur, I'm just not blond enough...maybe I'll just be a random student...regardless I'm getting off track.

As of tomorrow I will begin what I have dubbed "The Great Reread", I intend to read through all of the Harry Potter books, again, before the midnight showing. I'm SO pumped! This is the end of an era people, I'm going to cry and be a mess but I'm okay with that, because Harry has seen me through a lot and I'm going to be there till the end.

J.K. Rowling dedicated the seventh novel, in part, to "and to you, if you have stuck with Harry until the very end", I was one of those people. I've been with him forever, granted I was a little too young and inexperienced reading when the books were first published but I started reading the books in third grade, just a few months after the paperback version of the third came out. I was addicted to them. Without Harry I would not love reading, and I would not be who I am today. I'm seeing Harry out with everything I've got, it is a bittersweet end, but I have no doubt he will be with me forever. I'm going to read his story to my kids, grand kids--heck I've already started with my nephew (before they get to see the movies obviously). And I'm always going to cherish the memories attached to him--the midnight releases of the books, the movies, etc. It will always be with me.

So here goes. Time to reread!