Cornered

Got four pages today--and they went in a totally different direction from any I expected. I wrote myself into a corner. It's not a bad corner, but I think the only way out is through, and I'm not sure I want to go through this love scene. I may have to though.

It's not that I don't like writing love scenes. This one may be a little tricky, but it ought to be fun as well. It's that I write them so slowly. It takes my page production way down because I want to get them Right and I spend twice as much time weighing words and making sure what they do is actually physically possible. These people aren't gymnasts. (Though sometimes I think they'd like to be.) And this one is definitely tricky. Very, very tricky.

If they refuse to cooperate unless I let them do this, maybe I can write it, then cut it later... (grumble, grumble) Characters are SO uncooperative...

Stinky Day

I'm trying not to use...questionable language in my blog. But today was not the best day for me. Got a rejection on a romance--deserved, I think. Which will require some thinking as to the next step to take. But not now. I'll think about it later. (I'm very Scarlett O'Hara that way) It's still da** depressing. (Yeah, I know. I used one of "those" words. I can't help it. I'm in a questionable mood.) I do know that everything said in the rejection letter is 100% true. I know that I have sold books before, and will again. But it's still depressing, and I'm still in a stinky mood.

And I only got 4 pages written today. Got six pages yesterday--didn't post that yet. I was pleased with yesterday's stuff--and today's is pretty good. Just didn't get as much done as I would have liked. It would probably help if I knew what needed to happen. Didn't do "morning pages" today, which is where I usually work this stuff out. Guess I'd better not skip them tomorrow. Got to get on the stick and get my writing done. Don't want to be finishing it January 31.

A Week's Worth of Writing

It's been a good week, once I managed to get into it. Mondays and Tuesdays always seem to be so hectic, for some reason. But I was able to consistently get pages written, though not always as many as I wanted. I did four to four and a half through Wednesday, then Thursday, I got five pages. Friday, I got six, and yesterday--though I usually don't write on the weekends--I got seven pages done. It was a "working Saturday".

I think I've reached the half-way point in the book. I hope there's enough adventure up to this point--I know there's set-up--I just want it to be right. I love these people and this story, and I want to do them justice.

Starting slow

Getting back into gear slowly. The 4 pages I wrote yesterday feel a tad slow--I'll have to see when I go back over them again. The 4-1/2 pages I got done today, before heading to town, went better. Big fight scene. Now I have to do the wrap up, and figure out what happens next. I sort of know, but not sure how much transition I need in between.

But that's what "morning pages" are for. Figuring stuff out.

Can't think of anything else to blog about, so I'll just quit. Done here.

Back to Work (I hope)

I haven't posted here in a while. Haven't done much of anything, actually. I went to Waco a week ago Saturday to for that workshop on characterization, and came home exhausted. It wasn't until Wednesday afternoon (after I fixed lunch for the Friends of the Library) that I realized I wasn't just tired. I'd come down with some kind of creeping crud. I've been fighting it ever since. And I still had to organize breakfast for the high school band Saturday morning before marching contest. I only had to make phone calls and ask people to do stuff, but you may know by now how much I hate doing that. I'd rather eat worms than make phone calls. I'd rather get bit by fire ants than make phone calls. I'd rather...well, you get the idea.

Finally went to the doctor today for drugs. I hope it will go away soon, because I was worthless when it comes to writing. I did type all the stuff I already had into the computer--I'm up past p. 200 now, but new stuff is coming slowly. The brain is definitely in a fog.

About all I've done is read books. I read Shield of the Sky by Susan Krinard, the October Luna book--very good. I read Karen Harbaugh's The Vampire Viscount and The Devil's Bargain--paranormal Regencies--and enjoyed them a great deal. I also read the new Laurell K. Hamilton, Incubus Dreams about 3 times--my usual practice with her new releases. I'll let it wait a bit more and go back and read the good parts again. I really like her books...

I read more than that, but don't want to take time to post them. I may do a "Recent Reads" page on my website, or something.

I did get 4 pages written so far today. I want to do six--but don't know if I can get the brain in gear or not.

Off to the Waco Workshop

Today, I typed in more of the story into the computer. I'm up to p. 160 and still have lots to go--and I'm not sure I'm halfway in the story yet...I mean, even with the stuff I haven't typed in. And in the afternoon/evening, I wrote up this characterization workshop I'm doing in Waco on Saturday--which meant I had to figure out just how I do my character creation. Frankly, I don't really have a clue--but I do have a process. And I don't create characters. I get to know them. They somehow already exist. They live in the primordial stew that's called my subconscious.

And then, once I figured that out, I had to do all the handouts and visual aids for the workshop. Hope they appreciate them.

Hope it works.

Oh, and then I had to dig out some childhood/baby pictures for the boy for his last senior year pep rally. I couldn't find his toddler pictures--when he had a thing for wearing sun visors upside down and backward, or deely-bobber antennae. I tried to scan one from a photo montage thing we have on the wall in a frame--didn't work too well. But we did find some cute pictures. Had to do it tonight, because they're due in the morning.

It's coming together

I think I have converted the whole of the new opening, typed it all in, added in scenes from different places that needed to be moved into the new bit, and managed to get back to the main story already written. I think it's working.

I typed it in and converted the stuff I already had typed--I started on about p. 53, but with the new opening bits, I only lost about 26 pages. Not bad. Lots of stuff coming. I'm up to p. 123 or so. This one may not be quite so long as the first one.

Didn't do diddly-squat yesterday as far as writing goes--well, except for the newspaper column and another little news tidbit. (Didn't look to see whether I got it in in time to make the paper...) I went to Amarillo. Went early so I could go see Wimbledon, because I knew I couldn't drag the men who live with me to see it. They have to see manly movies. I really liked this movie. Lovely romantic comedy, nice tennis stuff, great scenery. Oh, and England was pretty too.

Finished a painting, but didn't bring it home because it was raining. I really need to take pictures of these things. I write it on my "to do" list every day, and never get it done.

Tomorrow, I have to put together a workshop on characterization for the Heart of Texas RWA chapter. Driving down to Waco for it, and to brainstorm with my best buds. Don't know what I'll brainstorm, but will come up with something.

Exhaustion Sets In

Actually, being as it's Monday, and I've had all weekend to rest, the exhaustion is beginning to pass. I left home shortly after I posted Friday's entry to this blog thing, and didn't get home again (except for rushed trips to change clothes and visit the little girl's room) till ten o'clock that night. And I didn't get to sit down until the football game that evening. My knees are still killing me.

I did almost nothing on Saturday. I couldn't. I did get up and go to the $5 quilt club thing at 9 a.m. Turns out that two of my new neighbors (I'm actually the new one.) are also doing this quilt, so we decided we might try to get together and work on it if we need to. Then I came home and went back to bed. When I woke up a couple of hours later, I read a book (The Mountain's Call by Caitlin Brennan--fabulous read) and then decided to get out the sewing machine. So I've already finished this month's quilt block. And a bunch more blocks for the Indian Hatchet quilt I'm doing. Now my back is killing me too.

Sunday, we did church and then I came home and sewed some more, and was generally lazy. So we come to Monday, and I was able to get back to the writing.

I was entirely and totally right to cut that second beginning and start on this third one. It's going much, much better. I'm wondering whether Kallista is getting a bit histrionic, but given her stresses, I suppose she deserves it. Only one of them gets to lose it at a time, though. It's her turn. Didn't take but four new pages to catch up with what I already had. Now I have to do a scene break and figure out what's going on with the rest of the crew.

Tomorrow is "going to the city" day, but if I get my newspaper column done tonight, I should be able to work on the story before I leave.

The week from Heck

If this has been the week from heck (and it has), today is the day from you-know-where. This is the day all the stuff I've been trying to pull together all week MUST come together. And I have to look good too! (Or at least dressed nicely.)

Last night, the luncheon hostesses (including moi) decorated and set tables for the luncheon today, and of course it started raining before we left, so we got wet. (One of the ladies won't be able to come today, because she got so much rain out on her ranch, the roads are too bad for her to make it into town.) I came home and burned a CD with Italian opera music so we could have music with our lasagna today, and then I went to type in some of the story, and figured out what was wrong with the new opening I've been working on all week.

It's too dang slow. So I'm dumping another 6 or 8 pages and going with the heroine's POV and the scenes that begin when they arrive in town. Which means I now have to find more ways to work in character introductions and set-up. Which means I have to go back and re-write Again. Ugh.

And who knows when I'll have time to do it? Maybe not till Monday. Because after I go to the luncheon, serve and clean up there, I will have just enough time to come home, change into my cooking clothes, grab the 30 pounds of browned hamburger and run up to the school to start working on the band dinner. I do have someone bringing change. I have someone cooking--and I imagine I'm going to have to cook too, because the other person I'd asked won't be able to do it. And somewhere in all this madness, I want to go out and watch the Homecoming parade, since I haven't seen a single one since the son started school in this town, and he's graduating next spring...

Oh, and my parents are arriving in town sometime today to spend the night. They always stop off on their trip from Austin to Colorado, or vice versa. (This time they're heading south.) And today's the day. So somebody needs to come meet them at the house and escort them to dinner at the school. (They've come to the Mexican pile-on several times before--somehow always seem to be traveling through during Homecoming...)

And then tomorrow, we're loading up all the leftovers from the garage sale and carting it to Goodwill or the library. (They get the books.) Which will probably take all day. I might be able to get to the rewrites by Monday. I hope.

Thanks for listening to the lengthy rant.
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