The *facepalm* week

It's been a *facepalm* week. (swiped from the vernacular of my nine year old who idolises Homer Simpson. Everything is 'doh' or *facepalm*!)
I planned everything out meticulously - even worked out that if I break my tasks into blocks of half an hour, or an hour, I cope better than four hours of working on one project. I actually get MORE done mixing up my day a bit, instead of blitzing through everything in massive chunks.
So there I was, calendar ready. Everything fit. I mean - I even managed to plan stuff around my odd uni hours (my university insists on having classes at 15 minutes past the hour, instead of on the hour).

And then - facepalm moment. I'd done a bragging twitter about it (which I have since removed) and another freind responded in IM - so you even fit your non fiction and fiction writing in? WOW! go you.
*FACEPALM*.

No, no I hadn't. Queue lots of desperate scrambling. I think, by getting up two hours earlier a day, I can be a zombie, and at least be too tired to care that I'm not working on my books, and own projects this week - after all the rearranging I did, other stuff just seems to have seeped into my gaps.

Another facepalm moment - I'm giving a presentation, on a wonderful book, called Beloved, by Toni Morrison, at my uni...wait for it...on my birthday! And not just any birthday, oh no. It's my 30th, and mom is coming down especially. Woooooo.

Anyone else had any facepalm moments this week?
Anyone else wanna share thier twitter id?

Time after time....

We're a week and a half into the summer here.


I'm not sure about anyone else, but part of the reason I freelance is so that when we get to the holidays, I can take some downtime with my kids - so that there's no holiday problems with care for them, and so that I'm not spending every minute in work wondering whether I'll need to leave early and find they've caused riots.


It does mean, however, that all of the work I'd planned on doing is being is being sandwiched in between episodes of Hannah Montana and Tom and Jerry. It's a nice life, but it's hard to measure the value of the work I'm snatching in. It also means that I've been pushing back and pushing pack things like theme designs and my fiction writing. I got up on Sunday morning though and decided that I needed to stop procrastinating and actually take control!

So, I've written a post over at Publishhacks about the best, and worst freelance tools, in my opinion, for monitoring and supporting any freelance career.


I'm always expanding and testing them though, so I thought I'd find out what your favs and time sinks are.


(so far, I've got Xobini, RescueTime, WordPress, the Internet (wikipedia), The Internet (RSS), Zoundry Raven - some good, some bad ;)) What do you have, and come on over to PublishHacks, to find out about the tools I've mentioned.

Remembering to breathe (occassionally)

Sometimes, just sometimes, you spend three weeks doing nothing. You can spend hours researching posts, days, writing and painting wonderful sketches for sites.
And then....like my article on 'feast and famine' (though, what I was referring to was building a buffer for the leaner times), things get madcap.
In the last four weeks, things got madcap for me.
I'm STILL designing the new theme for this place, which is a giggle and a half. I love doing themes, but I'm not overly fond of writing the documentation for them, and whilst I'm doing this theme, I'm also doing the docs for someone that decided that they needed them, after I designed thier theme :)
Most of all though, I'm working through documenting stories too. Following the 30 day manuscript book, I've finished adapting the worksheets to what I need (and they aren't - really - that different from the book) and I'm about to dive headlong into my third and fourth outline. And THEN I get to go back and clean up the first two, do five and six, redo three and four, etc. :) I've got 54 books to get through, so I'm thinking that this is going to be refined in about 10 books, and go so much faster after that.
And yes, I said 54. I'm always getting more ideas than I can use, so once I've sifted them, I might file some of them - though I totally love all of my ideas, I get the feeling some of my outlines - and some of my novel ideas are complete busts. And to find that out, I'll need to outline first ;)
And I've got the whole summer to work it out.
I just have to remember to breathe occassionally. :)

Stepping past rejection

SoImage by takomabibelot via Flickr We're all about contracts here - which for many, involves endless rounds of querying, writing, polishing, promoting, edits - redrafts, invoicing, deals with publishers, deals with editors buying articles for whole stables of magazines, sites, newspapers, blogs and more. It's about working towards that shining goal of having your name and words in print right?

I spent the last year investing in my writing - I started a course at University that I really am enjoying - and at the same time, to celebrate the end of term, I polished up all of my stories and poems and subbed them round places I spent the year hand picking. Its not an *ideal* way to get yourself into print - for a start, it doesn't subscribe to the 'rule of 13' that Dej and Heather frequently mention (I think!) on Thewritingmother's mailing list.
Sometimes, when I'm submitting work, I feel like I'm trying to use a rosetta stone to decifer success though. I've yet to 'crack' it - but I'm sure its there, just round the corner.
Due to various things that changed (for the better!) in my life recently, I'm even more determined to translate some of my hard work into success, but I'm finding rejections very hard to deal with. not because I believe I'm not being seen in the right places, but because I'm sending my work to 'all the right places' and I just can't seem to break in. Its not a bad thing - I'm becoming more determined to do it, and writing all the better.

So - I wonder - how do you step passed rejection? It is, after all, only another stage of your journey as a writer - so how do YOU deal with it?

Did you miss me? I sure missed you....

Image via WikipediaOne of the things that I absolutely adore about a 'regular' gig, that writing my own blogs doesn't give me, is the fact that I know I'm reaching people that ordinarily, I might not get to talk to.
But...for the last two weeks, I've been finishing up my first year of Uni (errr...didn't I start when we started this blog? That's kinda scary!), and that meant somewhere in the region of 20,000 words that makes sense to my professors...
I think you can see the problem there ;)
Mainly the whole 'making sense' thing, if I'm being completely honest. And then, last week, I caught a kidney infection, and then...I was wiped. Entirely. Which meant that when I'd only intended to be MIA for maybe a week, I've been gone for around two, perhaps more than even that.
I don't take weeks at a time off blogs normally, because one of the main points of blogging is that you have to try to do it consistently - but sometimes life gets in the way.
Writing is like that too. Have you ever sat down and thought to yourself 'I MUST...' and then, instead, vegged in front of the TV? Surfed aimlessly around the internet? Played around with things that you don't really *need* to do.
Yep - most of us do that. Its not life getting in the way, but it is our brain's way of saying 'enough already'. I've given in fighting it - I can achieve 'butt in seat' but I find it wearing if I really don't want to write - so instead, I read, I draft, I plot, I plan. I spent most of this last month reading non fiction books on the 'how to' of plot and characterisation, testing out new pens, finding things that I enjoy...
I'm currently testing out some project support programs that should help me (yes, I'm still at it - I called ceasefire over the last two months, cause Uni got manic) - and by extention, anyone interested - reorganise, reprioritise, and most of all, gain control over my time completely again. I have to stress though, and I'm not in denial - I don't have a time management problem. I really don't. There's just not enough time in the day to do everything all the time. Which is why I'm working on shifting gears, amalgamaing....most of all though, I'm trying to find a way to make sure that my writing time is truly my own again ;).
There is something you could perhaps help me with though. Do you, as a writer, collect, or hoard pens. I do. I've got about a million of them - most of them rarely used - sixteen fountain pens - thousands of ballpoints, both functional and pretty, and fineliners, hilighters, hybrid, fancy, calligraphy and other pens. I've always wondered if it is a 'writer' thing. :)
And if you DO collect them - is it becuase you like pens, or because youve never got one handy when you wanna write? :) I'm talking about this on both my personal blog (Kai's Personal space) and my professional writing blog (Ardentwriter) but I'm curious, so I thought I'd ask here too ;)

Meme answers and my favorite writing (related) quotes

Carolyn's posted a Meme (and funnily enough, I always read the 'meme' thing as 'me - me'. A friend of mine used to debate the whole concept of 'meme' because, even in the broadest sense of the word, viral quizzes and other things that pass on via blogs aren't - technically - memes. That's probably a rant for another time though ;)

So, without further ado, seven things...I'm more self indulgent that Carolyn, so don't mind talking about myself :D.
1) I'm writing a set of books based around a pattern of seven. Its a police/thriller style book, and my MC, Elliot Peters, is visually based on Chris Meloni (from Special Victims Unit, Oz, and a guest appearance in Scrubs).
2)I've just finished my first year of Uni with what I hope to be a 2:1. I've done really well on most courses, which I'm very proud of.
3)I am genuinely flummoxed by the need that most women I know (please note, not all) to have more than a minimum amount of shoes. I've got six pairs and that feels like about three too many.
4)I've written close to 40 novels. Now to sell them...
5) at one point I owned 500 websites. I'm cutting it down rather rapidly, but I still own a huge amount. I wish I could find someone to take them off my hands, cause all that most of them need is a little TLC.
6) I am 30 this year. I only just discovered I like spas (I went for the first time last night) and I play roleplaying games at least three nights a week in person and once or twice a week online on World of Warcraft.
7)I hate letting people read what I'm writing, as I'm writing it, which, in part is why I won't take part in LiveBlogging events. I LIKE time to think about how silly I'm looking.

And some favorite quotes:
"If you don't know there's a trampoline in the room, you're not going to dust the ceiling for prints." - Captain Craigen SVU
Now, before you wonder what this has to do with writing, that's the easy bit to explain. No writer should ever ignore the angle that everyone else has overlooked - its our JOB to show people that there was a trampoline in the room, and to go ahead and dust that ceiling. In other words, we're here to give a perspective that people understand and relate to.

'Genuine poetry can communicate before it is understood.'

T S Eliot

I love this quote, because it lines up with something that slid into place with one of my lectures. My lecturer had been ranting about how 'soul' means something different to each and every person we encounter. He also told us that poetry should leave 'gaps' for the reader to fill in. My brain somehow rearranged it to 'poetry leaves gaps for readers to fill in with bits of their soul'. And I think that's a great way to be with ANY piece. We're supposed to leave enough room for people to understand - to fill in with their experience, their imaginings, their loves and hates.

'Writing a novel is like driving a car at night. You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.'

E L Doctorow

Again, this is great. And its totally true, though in my case, I've got deja vu when I get to certain bits. Been there before. Oh gods, I know what happens now, do I really want to watch?
LOL.

And finally...

"Are you going to come quietly, or do I have to use earplugs?"
Spike Milligan

Sometimes its not about doing it right, or politely - or within reason. Sometimes its about shouting from the top of the roof, at the top of your lungs, with that huge loudspeaker - when everyone else is being quiet. Sometimes - just sometimes - its about doing it my way. And that one line from Spike Milligan, whom I share some similarities with, reminds me every single time that writing isn't about doing it any other way than loud, proud and in as many faces as possible.

The writing diet

Heather asked us this week about our favorite type of writing, after Carolyn asked what we'd write even if we weren't paid.
I'm going to approach thing slightly differently, because I would (and DO) write whatever takes me because its food for my soul. I can't NOT write. It hurts my head if I don't.
But my writing 'diet' has differences to other people.

I write full time for my university course. I am in Uni for 10 hours a week, and all ten hours plus the eight hours per class of private study that I do is my major commitment. On top of that I do a couple of hours, per book, every two days, and I have five books on the go. In that hour, I add between 500 and 15000 words - depending on how complicated the scene that I'm writing is and how involved I get.
I also blog - five blogs, five posts per week, per blog, plus I update my personal blog irregularly.

I like my writing diet - I might not always get three 'meals a day' but I love the writing - and reading I do in association with the work that I'm up to that specific day. And its a varied diet - as varied as the things I've been working on - one day I'm writing 20 articles on blogging - the next I'm world building - creating worlds and weaving personalities.
To answer the question though...
My favorite type of writing is the one that lets me put the right words on a page. Whether that's poetry, prose, copywriting or programming. And don't get me wrong - being paid for it is NICE. I like being able to hand money to my partner and contribute to the house, but affecting people, and sharing the things that I'm trying to help people understand is more important - giving back what I've had support in learning is priceless.
On the subject of that though, I now have a contract - my first novel in my (sort of) pen name (Kai Viola ) is coming out in 2009. I'll explain why its a 'sort of pen name' and more about it later next week, and can share the blurb and finalised descriptions 'etc' if anyone is interested.

Doin the rounds

It was my birthday yesterday, something which I allowed to pass without much of a whimper. Well, online anyway.
Yesterday, I spent most of the day in the local ER cause we thought I'd broken my foot (again). I had planned on finishing up University essays, before having guests round for our horror game and birthday party *thang* that we had planned.
What I learned from that whole experience is one, you can't write with a sore foot, not while you're trying to make sure that other people (some of whom were drunk) aren't bumping it too.
We sorted that out, I came home, finished the essay I'd started before taking out my ankle. Turns out I've probably done nothing more than sprained it. But as the very kind ER doc pointed out, given my last accident, when they thought I'd broken my neck, I have to be very careful to make sure I'm not injured more than I think I am, given the fact that I don't have as much feeling down my left side.
As a writer, this is interesting (well, in my opinion anyway) cause one, it shows accidents happen, even on the most important days of our lives. Its a good thing to bear in mind when building up the 'little slivers' that lead to the major event in our stories. Its their birthday - break their leg, crash their car - let them be rained on going to work.
The second thing I learned yesterday was just because we KNOW our bodies, our minds, and our reactions, doesn't mean we always learn to compensate correctly. I know I'm damaged in my neck, and have less feeling in my left side, but I forget when I hurt myself. So when you're dealing with a character, do we always remember that just because they THINK they are OK, and work well within the boundaries of their environment, HOW do they react when things are thrown off?
It might seem odd, but its the little details that make our stories our own - and though its important to get the big things down, its just as important to build the little things around your characters. Depth is what makes the memorable books stand apart from the ones that are compelling to read, but just don't stick with us, or your readers as well.

Cheating at NaNo

November is coming, with it's holiday busy-ness and something else exciting: National Novel Writing Month. Why they couldn't have picked January or February, I'll never know, but November is the month non-fic writers like me turn into novelists.

NaNoWriMo is a non-profit organization designed to help us do just that. You can learn all about it at their webisite, but I'll give you the quick version: You sign up to write 50,000 words of your novel in a month's time. No concern over quality - the goal is just OUTPUT. Just Write It. Just get the words down and later you can edit. (There's a month for that too, I believe.)

If you do it, you "win." If you don't do it, you sigh and think, "Next year."

Last year in November, I sighed and thought "Next year." I had something like 11,000 words. It was a very busy month for me, with travelling and visiting relatives and Thanksgiving with family, etc. (Lots of excuses to be found if you just look hard enough!)

Anyway, the novel I started was going to be GREAT. I still think it is going to be great. I still have 11,000 words.

The NaNo rules explicitly state that you work on a NEW novel. You can plot and plan in October, but no writing is allowed. Writing begins on November 1.

But how can I abandon my old characters at 11,000 words? My main character is still circling the living room, if I remember correctly, planning her next move.

Well, I'm pretty sure I'm going to cheat. If it compromises the integrity of the process, I won't officially sign up at the official site, but I know of a few places where I can still hold myself to a word count. Maybe here would be one place. I might get one of those tickers or something that shows my progress.

Anyway, I have a few weeks to think it over before I actually commit to NaNo, cheating or otherwise. But until then, I want any NaNo cheaters to come out of the woodwork. Are you going to cheat? Tell me. Confess. Don't leave me out here in the cold, looking like the only cheater. Please.

NaNo Cheaters unite!

Carolyn