Found on the Internet

The amazingly talented Lindsay Samuels created an amazingly wonderful website called LibraryScienceDegree.org.


I admit to busting a gut when I read her 50 Most Hated Characters in Literature entry. I adored her Top Ten Fictional Feminist Icons of All Time, too.

I am now inspired to go figure out my own fictional feminist icons. What are some of yours?

Go, read, enjoy!

YES!

I just emailed the newly revised Dracula's Secret to my agent, Jewelann Cone.


And there was MUCH rejoicing!

Grooving to the baseline.

In my head, I never work hard enough and I never get enough done. I'm sick of it.

For the next two weeks, I am taking aim at my anxiety about 'working enough'. I'm going to overwhelm it with (get this) actual data on my work habits. I'm getting a baseline of behavior.

All I'm doing is keeping a simple log on

1. What I am doing: Am I in meetings? Updating my blog? Doing promotional work? First draft composition? Brainstorming?
   
2. How long I'm doing it: pretty self explanatory there. And
   
3. How I feel about the work. Basically, did I think I did ok work, good stuff, or Yowza! level material.
   

I've been doing it for three days so far, and I am already amazed by my real progress versus my imagined progress. My early prediction for this experiment is that I will find out just how much I downplay how productive I really am.

I'll keep you posted!

Scaring the hell out of myself.

Both Bob Mayer and Michael Hauge said many brilliant things this past weekend. Fortunately, I wrote them all down and I'll be able to work my way through them all.

The biggest lesson I got, though, really threw me for a loop.

You've got to go where the fear is, both your characters and yourself.

As the old saying goes, "If you have a character who is afraid of water, she'd better be in the ocean by Act Two."

As an author, I'm afraid of revealing too much of myself to my readers. Where does the line fall between pulling in real emotion and oversharing?

That scares me.

I guess that means I'd better go there.

Back to work.

Today, I officially started on The Sequel (title still unknown, sorry). I've had several outlines, plots, and ideas for this book, but since I changed the ending for Dracula's Secret, I had to start completely from scratch.

I don't worry about all the previous work because I've found that writing is never wasted. I know it'll be useful, and most likely sooner rather than later. :)

And to top it off, I found my plot! I'm not going to announce it yet, because things can always change (and usually do), but for now, I have an road map for myself. I also started in on my GMC charts.

And that makes for a very very good day. :)

YES!!

Today, I turned my completed manuscript in to my agent, Jewelann Cone of Atlantis Literary Agency.

This is a big milestone, so I'm going to celebrate for the next week!

YES!!

I made my word goal for the year!! So even though I still have some scenes to write and some tweaking to do, I have done it!!

I will now celebrate the year's end with a pure heart. :)

Riding the Quote Train.

The most powerful myths are about extremity. They force us to go beyond our experience. There are moments when we all, in one way or another, have to go to place we have never seen, and do what we have never done before. (p. 3)

[Myth] enables us to place our lives in a larger setting that reveals an underlying pattern and gives us a sense that against all the depressive and chaotic evidence to the contrary, life had meaning and value.

A Short History of Myth by Karen Armstrong.

Quote of the Moment.

Sometimes, other people just say it best. Here's Anne Lamott from Bird by Bird.

I still encourage anyone who feels at all compelled to write to do so. I just try to warn people who hope to get published that publication is not all it is cracked up to be. But writing is. Writing has so much to give, so much to teach, so many surprises. The thing you had to force yourself to do - the actual act of writing- turns out to be the best part. It's like discovering that while you thought you needed the tea ceremony for the caffeine, what you really needed was the tea ceremony. The act of writing turns out to be its own reward.

Sometimes I need to be reminded of this.

Thought for the day.

What would you do if you believed your focused attention was a precious resource?

Sustained focus is renewable, but it is not infinite during the course of the day. How would you treat yourself if you knew that ?

I think I'd be a lot kinder to myself about not being able to write for eight hours on end.

And you?

Tips and tricks.

Let's be honest. We all experience insecurity and fear about our writing. Everything from "It sucks", to "I suck" and everything in between.

It can paralyze an artist in a quagmire of self-loathing misery. Sometimes, though, it's possible to make a few steps out this nasty, leech-ridden, malaria-infested swamp

I call upon my 'tricks' to make it easier to find a shortcut. Here's few of my favorite tricks in no particular order, in a handy numbered list for quick reference. :)

1. Change writing locations. I'll write in the library, different rooms in the house (I'm writing this now on my second floor landing), a coffee-shop (Starbucks is a cliche for a reason, folks!), or even just go outside. Something about a different visual geography can shake me out of a funk.
2. Bribery is both functional and traditional. One of my critique partners says, "I don't need a lollipop every time I finish five pages." Well, I'm not nearly that mature. I love to bribe myself with hot baths, visits with my friends, a good movie - you name it. I try to avoid bribing myself with food, though. That way lies getting stuck in the different quagmire of body image issues.
3. Ask for help. Somewhere out there, someone believes in you. Give them a call or an email. Say, "I'm going in. Cover me!" For some reason, this works really really well.
4. Set a timer. When I'm exhausted and nearly falling out of my chair, I can fulfill my promises to myself by setting a timer for however long, and then letting myself rest.
5. Read your work aloud. Something about hearing the story usually gets me ready to rock and roll.
   
6. Crank your tunes. Turn that knob to eleven. Let the music drown out all those nasty, self-defeating voices.

What are some of your favorite tricks?

Lather, rinse, repeat.

I liked the Escher exhibit so much I went back today!

Remember what the Dormouse said...

Feed your head!

(sorry about the earworm, there, but it had to be done)

Something I always forget, but is of vital necessity - intellectual stimulation is the life-blood of writers and other artists. When I haven't seen art, listened to live music, or done any of those other life-affirming things, I have a very very difficult time writing.

Yesterday, I checked out the MC Escher exhibit at the Portland Art Museum. It was brilliant and eye opening.

The show had study after study for his pieces, original lithographs, and even the plates he used for his work.

What did I learn?

That art takes time. And, despite my natural tendency towards impatience, it is supposed to take time.

What a relief!

Doing what can't be done!

I write tight. I don't want to bore anyone, ya know. But there's fast paced and then there's, "What's going on here, again?"

So I have to add to my manuscripts, opposed to most of my friends, who write long and then cut.

My goal is to let go of my fear of boring people and write as floridly and passionately as I can. Or at least put in a few Zombie Frogs.

Ah. Communication is that thing we can always do better.

Sorry I've been away from my blog for so long - I've been writing like a madwoman and loving it.

I'm in one of those streaks where I'm clicking away on revisions. I can see the words bringing the story to an even higher level of emotion and risk.

I love that.

Back to work!

Surrounding yourself with heroes.

Books on writing are full of advice - some of it life-changing. Some are, how do I say this nicely?

Utter rubbish.

And sometimes, advice starts as one and turns into the other.

For example, when women try to lose weight, they are told to paste a picture of a slim person on the inside of their cupboard or on their refrigerator. I have always found this to be nasty, belittling, and condescending - yet another way of telling women that they are not beautiful and they will never measure up.

But we all need heroes. That's why we write, that's why we watch movies/TV, that's why we read. Everyone needs someone to show us that what we want is possible and how to get there.

So this week, I found pictures of my creative heroes and I've seeded them around my writing stations.

Obviously, I have a love for mythology and for the band Queen. Freddie, Brian, Roger, and John now live in glorious color on my laptop's wallpaper. Their music, politics, and courage never fail to lift me up when I'm feeling sluggish or stuck.

Jayne Ann Krentz, a wonderful best-selling author (and former librarian with a background in history!) is another of my heroes. I've met her in person a few times and she is down to earth, intelligent, and has great insights on our craft. If you do not own Dangerous Men and Adventurous Women, you are shorting yourself some great discussion on Romance!

Emma Holly writes beautifully sexy and emotional fiction.

I've got lots. Who inspires you?

Who knew?!

Holy cow! You can turn your phone off while you're writing and call people back later!

You can even not answer your email right away.

I'm gobsmacked.