The Refresh of Shame

...as John calls it.

I know I've been absent for a while. That's how I've felt. Absent from my writing. And it is very frustrating after the rush of creativity in November. There should have been momentum, but everything came to a dead halt in December. Work has been much busier with the end of the year, but it doesn't account for all of it.

Jenny posted about another metaphor for "filling the well". Her grape metaphor comes close. But I feel more like a balloon that's been deflated. Not a slow leak either. It's like someone just let go. Maybe they let go mid-month last month. The creative burst was me flying around the room.

The dogs are here right now so I'm pretty distracted still. Maybe I should just wait and be conventional. Start again in January. That's what a new year is for, yes? I got a couple award-winning mysteries for Christmas. Sounds like a good week to just read. Maybe that will put some more air in me.

Reprieve Over

I'm glad I took advantage of it when I had the chance. Although I did not get through the whole rewrite, I'm close enough to be happy with it.

This week, the preparation for the end of the year has begun. Free time at work will be at a premium. I will still take advantage of it when I can. I will have to be more disciplined about writing in the evenings on the weekends than I have been if I'm going to keep up the momentum from November.

Deb reminded me last night that I have an article due for the PPW NewsMagazine. At least one evening this week will have to be spent on that. Other than that, I don't think I have anything else to intrude. So add an article to my goals for the week.

Partial Reprieve

The last few days of the month and the first few days of the next month are always busy for me. Comes with being a bookkeeper. So I was prepared to be too busy to work on HM yesterday or today. But the boss is pushing to get a new product tested and out the door so I only have a small fraction of my usual tasks to do today.

That means that I may be able to get through the end of the rewrite. Which will set me up nicely for new pages over the weekend. I'll be busier than usual on Monday, but that's okay. Today I may make my revised NaNoWriMo goal of finishing the rewrite and straightening out the tangles.

Evans Above and Rambling

I finished Evans Above by Rhys Bowen yesterday. I could not find fault with it. The characters are well-drawn and believable. The setting, rural Wales, is unusual and vivid. It had a good plot and the pacing was what a mystery should be.

It's not exactly a cozy, because the protagonist, Evan Evans, is a town constable. But the laid back setting feels like a cozy. One of the reviewers called it Hamish MacBeth in Wales. I would agree.

This is a series I will continue with. There are about 10 Constable Evans mysteries in the series. She (Rhys Bowen is a pseudonym) also has two other series that I might check out.

It gives me hope for the genre. Nancy Atherton, Monica Ferris, Martha Grimes and now Rhys Bowen are all relatively current writers I enjoy. Although Ferris was on the edge with hers. We'll see how the second in the series goes for her.

I typed another 12 pages yesterday, including a new scene. I also have hope for finishing by the next PPWC. Then I may have to try my hand at pitching. I'm not looking forward to that.

Anti-Cyber Monday

Today is supposed to be the big day for shopping online, aka Cyber Monday. The theory is that people get back to work and use the Internet there to do their shopping. I'm not sure I believe that. Most people who are computer savvy have a connection at home where they don't have to worry about their boss catching them. Or I could be wrong.

For me, today is Anti-Cyber Monday. With the exception of updating this blog, I'm disconnecting from the Internet so I can work on HM. Wish me luck.

A Good Walk

Yesterday morning, before I started cooking for Thanksgiving, I went for a walk around the neighborhood. It was well below freezing, but beautiful. Clear blue skies with Canada Geese flying in formation. Neighbors also out walking, smiling and saying, "Good morning."

As I walked I tried to prewrite on HM. I couldn't. "But what's next?" Then I realized that I'm doing a "next" scene right now. It's time to rewrite the rejiggered first part in order to be able to "next". It was a good feeling. Because it means that I feel like HM is now in the right shape. Working on a new scene would, at best, be distracting from the task at hand. At worst, it would be a wasted effort because it might not fit with the newly reformed front part. I'm not so structured that I don't think I could find a new, and improved, tangent while I retype.

I thought I was in a bad place right now with HM. But not so. It's where it needs to be. It was a very good walk.

Scenes

I spent yesterday afternoon listing scenes for HM then arranging and rearranging. It looks like it won't be as spare as I feared for a while. I have a lot going on Sloan and Shannon and a few things with Caleb and Jenny. Instead of introducing a suspect and then dismissing him or her and introducing the next, I have them all jumbled up now.

Overall a productive weekend without gaining any wordcount. I can live with that. For now.

Working For The Weekend

I printed out HM last night on green paper. I'm trying Jenny's method of different colors of paper for different drafts. It's a lot bigger than I thought it was going to be. Tomorrow I will pull it apart, rearrange it and start the retyping process. The plan is to do that quickly enough that I can add some more pages before the end of the month.

We usually get an extra day or two around a holiday. The boss likes to have a skeleton crew in case a customer calls in so we to have to alternate. Deb's asking for Wednesday since her sister will be out of town. That will probably mean I get the Monday after Thanksgiving. Either way is nice and gives me an extra day to write. And with the Monday, I won't be worrying about cleaning for company or precooking anything.

Weekends are nice. Long weekends are wonderful. Extra long weekends are heaven.

Tangles

My new subplots and tightening of the timeline, while positive changes, now have me totally confused about which day is which and who was interviewed when. I was going to start another book, but I just can't bring myself to do that before I finish this one. At least a first draft. Writing in circles doesn't appeal to me either. I think I need to stop, print out what I have and get it in order. I will be retyping it in order to keep track of the plot. Then I can continue.

Depending on how long that takes, I may be done with NaNoWriMo for this year. I am more interested in finishing HM and doing it right than in doing it quickly. Even if quickly would have been nice.

Prompt of the Day

We recently 'fell back' an hour. Write about a time you fell back, either physically or emotionally.

Chugging Along

I am making progress on HM. 25 pages so far. While I'm not going any directions I hadn't planned on, I find myself inserting moments between Sloan and the people around him that give more depth to what their relationships are. One I like in particular is between Sloan and his daughter, Shannon. He's remembering a moment with his wife when Shannon was 2 (she's 12 now). Shannon comes in and sees him with tears in his eyes. It's a nice scene--if I do say so myself.

My one concern is that I am moving the plot along very quickly and may end without reaching the page count I was shooting for. Before I get a lot of comments, I realize that the book will be as long as it needs to be. I tend to write sparsely and have to go back and flesh out. Plus it will need to be checked for continuity problems because of the changes I implemented halfway through, which may end up increasing the word count. But I will have to decide if I want to start the second HM book or maybe start D&D or JB (jewelry book--I hate coming up with titles).

Any suggestions? Any that sounded more or less interesting to you? I would guess that the "industry experts" would say to start the second HM because starting one series is hard enough without throwing a second or third. But is it silly to write the second book in a series when you haven't sold the first? I guess I'll just decide when, and if, I get to that point.

Workshop

I didn't want to spend a whole day at a workshop when I could have been writing. Deb talked me into going, though, and I'm glad I did. Although I am now way behind on NaNo goals.

The presenters hit all the ways writers can add tension to their work. All the pieces of writing can be used. Character, setting, pacing, plot all can be places to add tension. The exercises were fun. I got to try to make a fountain pen scary. I'm not sure I succeeded, but it was fun trying.

I will be thinking about what I learned as I churn out pages of HM. The trick will be to not self-edit as I'm working.

Prompt of the Week

I'm stealing from the Scaring Your Readers Workshop that I attended on Saturday.

Think of something you'd never be scared of. Now write a short story making that innocent object scary.

NaNoWriMo

Last year, I had a lot of success starting HM during NaNoWriMo. I hope to be able to use November to finish HM this year. Of course, reading that, I realize how long it's taken me to write my first novel. I hope the second one is faster.

To really do NaNoWriMo, the writer agrees to write 50,000 words in the month of November. That breaks down to 1,666.6666666666 words a day, or about 6-7 pages. I can type about 5 pages an hour. That means if I write for 2 hours a day, I should be able to finish early. "Should" being the operative word.

I will weigh in a few times a week to see where I am. Fingers crossed.

Prompt of the Week

Halloween night, the doorbell rings. You answer the door, expecting children dressed as princesses, ghosts and Batman. Instead, shockingly, it's __________

Writing Without Actually Writing

Deb just left my office. She was giving me grief about not updating the blog more often. Of course, she hit the proverbial nail when she suggested that when I'm don't write, I don't blog. I haven't been writing. Well, I haven't been getting words on paper. But I have been thinking about stories. How do I quantify that?

Here are some of the things I've been working out for HM:

--Sloan's relationship with Jenny. When does he acknowledge that she's more than his daughter's godmother?
--How much should the blizzard impact the story?
--Do I need to deal with Caleb's position being an elected one?
--How many deputies would he realistically have?
--What does the area around the quilt shop look like?

For D&D:

--Where does their money come from?
--How many employees are there?
--What kind of licensing do they need?
--What are the packages they offer?

For TOO (The Other One--I don't have a name yet):

--Should it be on a real street in Pueblo or should I make one up?
--What is the name of the shop?
--I can see the protagonist but don't know her name yet.
--What is she retired from that would give her enough money to open this shop?

When I spell it out like that, it looks like I have been working. I don't have answers to everything yet, but at least I know the questions. And with the boss out today, I may be able to answer some of the questions. Or put words on paper and really feel like I've accomplished something.

Prompt of the Week

Create your own workshop. Think of a writing workshop that you would like to attend. Who would run it? What would the topic be? How long? Who are the other attendees?

Bonus Prompt

Evil Editor has a fun writing exercise on his blog today. You roll a die and use the number you get to pick a genre. Then roll again and get a setting. And so on. You can see what the options are at www.evileditor.blogspot.com. This is like Deb's story cards, except with specific characters.

My results were:

Children's/YA genre
Set in a courtroom
My two speaking characters are Bullwinkle Moose and Norman Bates.

This could be fun. Or a trainwreck.

Finally

A good book. The Spellman Files by Lisa Lutz broke the streak of really bad mysteries. The question is: Is it a cozy? I guess an argument could be made because it's about a family and, mainly, what goes on in their family life. But the family business is private investigation so they are all professionals. And what goes on is a lot of cloak and dagger. The last two things would say it isn't a cozy. It really doesn't matter. It's a fun read.

Which leads to a question. Does it matter what label you put on a book as far as genre goes? I have seen some pretty nasty exchanges on one of the Yahoo! lists I'm part of over genre. Those who write "genre fiction" stating things along the lines of "those literary snobs." Arguments over what is literary as opposed to Literature. Gnashing of teeth over the death of horror as a separate genre. Does any of it really matter to anyone outside the writing community?

I don't really think so. People pick up books they think they'll like. They may start in the Mystery section or Romance or Fiction. But then they scan the sale tables or the staff recommendations. They remember a book someone told them about, or that they heard about on Fresh Air. I have never heard any non-writer friends say anything along the lines of, "It was supposed to be a mystery, but there's an awful lot of romance and a poltergeist so it probably should be called paranormal romance with undertones of mystery. It always bothers me when they mislabel something like that." They either say it's good or it's not.

So why do we tie ourselves up in knots over these labels? Or do you? Do you just write what you want?

Environmental Prompt of the Week

Think about climate changes that have already happened in a favorite spot. If things go on as they have been, what will it be like in ten years? Twenty? Write about what it would be like and, more importantly, how you would feel about those changes.

Throwing Books

I finished The Body in the Library last week and have been having a hard time deciding on the next book to read. I picked up Fool Moon, the second in the Dresden Files series. About 30 pages in and I can't get into it. Maybe part of it is that they adapted this story for the television series and I already know "whodunnit." But the biggest part is the way Dresden talks about himself. "I growled" and "I barked" are used as dialogue tags several times. Okay, the book is about werewolves. Cute. Except people don't talk about themselves like that. And one of my nitpicks with the first book resurfaced over and over in this one. He keeps describing himself as tall, lanky, long-legged. I get it. You're tall. You don't have to tell me three times every chapter. So I put it down.

Then I picked up The Cat Who Dropped A Bombshell, the 28th book in the series by Lillian Jackson Braun. That is the book that I literally threw across the room two chapters in. All of the characters spent those two chapters telling each other things they already knew. Maybe it's a case of author malaise after so many books about the same characters. Maybe the editors just didn't have it in them to read another book about KoKo and Yum Yum either. Whatever the case, I just couldn't do it. I may go back and look at an earlier installment to see if it is the "curse of number 28" or just indicative of the genre. Which would make me very sad.

There are some good cozies out there. I have read them. So I'm not quite ready to give up on the genre altogether. But it is frustrating to run into so many bad ones.

Blog Action Day 2007 Video 2

Prompt of the Week

The New Hampshire primaries and the Iowa caucuses are still months away, but the candidates have been out stumping for months and months. Let's say that you aren't happy with any of the choices so you decide to throw your hat in the ring. Right up your platform.

Goals

Deb was just in my office talking about how she forgot to set her goals on a weekly basis. Which reminded me that I hadn't done my check-in for the week.

I didn't revise 25 pages last week, but since I overachieved the previous few weeks, I'm okay with that. I will try to finish the revision on the first part this week. That should be about 25-30 pages.

Prompt of the Week

The Fall colors are brilliant. Describe the scene without using the words red, yellow, orange or green.

Pirate Name

I haven't been updating because I have been covering for Deb at work while she's on jury duty. I can't remember if we've talked about the fact that we work at the same place. We do. That's how we met. So I've been extra busy this week, which is fine. She did the right thing by serving. What it means is I just found out about the pirate names. Mine is:

Dread Pirate Rackham

Like the famous Dread Pirate Roberts, you have a keen head for how to make a profit. You have the good fortune of having a good name, since Rackham (pronounced RACKem, not rack-ham) is one of the coolest sounding surnames for a pirate. Arr!

I sort of like it.

Prompt of the Week

Listen to Neil, writing down any words or phrases that 'speak to you'. Then pick one as the start to your writing.

Unexpected Results

On Monday I thought that I would be lucky to get through 25 pages of revisions. I am well past that already. What happened? I wish I knew. I just seemed to get in the zone, and things started to flow. Fingers crossed that it continues. I'm always afraid that once I realize the writing is easy, it won't be any more.

Have you been able to identify what can put you in the zone? Or is it something different every time?

Neil Gaiman's Murder Mysteries

Deb asked me last week if I'd read Stardust yet. She loaned the book to me a while back. I had to admit that it's still sitting on the nightstand. I've been so focused on mysteries that I haven't picked up anything else. "That's what I thought," she said and handed me an interesting blue book titled, Murder Mysteries. When I opened it, I discovered that it's a comic book based on a Neil Gaiman short story. I think my lip curled at that point. "It's a quick read. Just try it." Deb can be pushy when she wants.

I read Murder Mysteries and was so impressed I finally picked up Stardust. I'm still impressed. I don't know if I have the time to tackle anything longer right now, but I will read more Neil Gaiman stories. Maybe I'll pick up a copy of one of his short story collections.

Author Self-Reference

Around page 75 of The Body in the Library, a young boy tells the chief inspector that he enjoys reading murder mysteries. The boy collects autographs of famous authors and starts listing them. One is Agatha Christie. While it made me smile, it broke the illusion and threw me out of the story for a second. I know other authors have done the same thing--Dante comes to mind, but that was part of the structure of The Divine Comedy.

How does an author do it successfully? Is the cleverness of an author referencing themselves worth the chance that the reader will be thrown out of the book and not pick it up again? Would it be easier if you were less well known?

Weekly Goals Check-in

My goal for the week was to finish marking up the beginning of HM and type it up. I did the marking, but not the typing. However, I did figure out a plausible way for the guys to figure out who did it and how to tighten the timeline to add more tension. Good stuff, so I'm not going to beat myself up over not typing the changes yet.

For this week, I'm going to start the retype, making both the timeline and subplot (marks) changes. As this will take longer than just adding the mark-ups, I will be very happy with twenty-five revised pages.

Prompt of the Week

Pick a historical character. Now pick a fictional character. Put them together in a story.

Process Improvement

A few years ago I worked at MCI/Worldcom. Back before The Big Layoff of 2002. I was part of group whose responsibility was to improve processes. Specifically invoicing processes, but we also were asked to help with many other kinds of processes.

Shane's very funny, and amazingly accurate, post did save a lot of time and effort for Deb and me. So, I will agree to write one article and see not only how much time it takes, but what impact it has on my other writing. Then I'll decide if I want to become a columnist.

Thanks for cutting to the chase, Shane! And for a good laugh yesterday.

Decisions

The other night at the rogue gathering, Deb asked me if I'd take over her column in the Pikes Peak Writers NewsMag. That's a nice offer, I am honored, but it's also something else to fill up time. I already have work, research, jewelry and the actual writing.

The column is called The Writer's Life and is about different issues a writer faces. Similar to what we talk about on our blogs. She said I could write about anything I want. They only publish every other month, so it might not be too time consuming.

I'll think about it.

Goals

Last months my goals were to write 25 pages of HM, finish the 1st Christie book and 2 more. And stay in the better place.

I have stayed in a better place and finished the first Christie book. I also started reading the 2nd one. And I came up with a couple cool subplots to enrich HM so I've been marking up the start to incorporate them before I go on.

Using Ali's weekly goal plan, this week I'd like to finish marking up the first bit and get it typed up. Doable, as Deb says.

Prompt of the Week

Start with this sentence: Two guys come in with guns.

Scary Things

Ali's challenge for September is to do something that scares us, do something risky. What am I afraid of? A quick list is: looking foolish, mice, possessed dolls/mannequins/ventriloquist's dummies. None of those seem to relate very well to writing mysteries.

Writing a mystery about a mouse-shaped ventriloquist's dummy that seems possessed seems really silly. Three birds with one silly stone.

But I'm not sure I'm going to go there.

Prompt of the Week

One of your characters won't survive the night. Write an obituary outlining a brief history, a list of accomplishments, the people who will mourn his/her passing and the cause of death.

First Effort

Here is the result of meeting Ali's deadline. I had to have at least earrings done by last Saturday. I'm pretty happy with the result. The yellow is all from the background as the beads used were black, clear or some combination of the two.

I did notice, though, that Ali didn't stop anyone else at the door to check for newly made jewelry.

Prompt of the Week

I used to love using photos for prompts in Feminine Ink. They--like poetry--always caused big groans. But we also got some great responses. Use this as the starting point for your writing today.

Unstuck In Time

"Just remember that the best bits come up and surprise you from behind. " A comment by Whittaker Luckless on a post by John about being stuck that was a follow-up to a post by Ali about also being stuck.

I have been stuck with HM. Nothing that usually works has helped with the unsticking. I even considered the booze suggestion made by a couple people over on Ali's blog. I went to see Stardust last night with a friend (you were right, Ali & Deb), and while negotiating the traffic cones on Austin Bluffs Parkway on the way home I had a flash for a great subplot. That led to an idea of how to proceed.

Maybe the movie sparked something. Or it could have been the conversation at dinner before the movie. Or it was just that I wasn't worrying about being stuck. In any case, it worked.

Jewelry Post

Ali very gently reminded me yesterday that I haven't made a jewelry-related post in a long time. That's probably because I haven't actually made any jewelry yet. I started to on Friday but felt like I still didn't know enough to accomplish anything. Yesterday I bought Jewelry Making & Beading for Dummies. It explains all those terms and techniques I couldn't quite figure out from the magazines I had. So I should be able to have a new pair of earrings done by Saturday. That's the deadline Ali gave me for completing my first project.

I also picked up a copy of Stardust while I was at the bookstore yesterday. I've been reading all the posts and comments by Ali, Deb and Jenny about Neil Gaiman. It may be time to check him out. Deb's offered to lend me Neverwhere and American Gods if I like Stardust. I'm not a big fantasy fan (except for Butcher, who really writes mysteries), but we'll see.

Prompt of the Week

You are summoned for jury duty. The waiting room at the courthouse is filled with other potential jurors. One person seems familiar to you. Then you realize they played an important role in your past. Who are they and what did they do?

Monsoons and Comfortable Silences

Last night was First Monday for The Group. People either arrived earlier (Jenny, Shane and Ali) or later (Fleur and Mary) than usual because of a violent thunderstorm that moved through the area from about five to six o'clock. Visibility was almost non-existent. Wind and mini-rivers on the sides of the roads made driving dangerous. Most of the usual suspects showed up anyway. John even joined us for the first time.

There was the usual spate of venting and catching up with each other. Some of us only see each other at these gatherings. Jenny asked her questions. We groaned, but had a good time answering. Then we'd go quiet for a few minutes. Some would stare off. Others nodded as if agreeing with something in their own minds. But it was never an uncomfortable silence. More of a collective breath-catching.

A half-hour after closing--the people at It's A Grind are really great about not throwing us out--we issued our final challenges to each other and walked out into a damp summer evening.

Now I'm ready to jump back into HM and get to the end. How what we do leads to renewed creative energy, I will probably never figure out. But it works.

Yes, Ali, I'll work on those earrings this weekend, too.

Prompt of the Week

I've been wanting to use poetry as a prompt, but kept running into the copyright issue. Evil Editor has solved my problem. Go to www.evileditor.blogspot.com and scroll down to the Poetry Corner. Read the submissions and pick a line or phrase from one of them. Something that strikes your fancy. Then use that as the first line of what you write. Have fun with it.

Goals

If you've been following along, you know that I didn't get much written this month. I didn't make my goals, but I did get through to a better place to start August. The goals were to write 25 pages of HM, outline D&D and read two Agatha Christie novels. I did finish the outline just under the wire yesterday. I marked up what I'd already written of HM and read half a novel.

This month I'd like to actually write 25 pages of HM, finish the 1st Christie book and 2 more.

And stay in the better place.

Pulling A Fonzie

I'm about halfway through reading Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie. It's the first of the Miss Marple books, and I'm wondering if Dame Agatha had planned to start a series when she wrote it. My guess is no.

The book is written in first person from the perspective of the vicar. Miss Marple is, at this point anyway, a secondary or even tertiary character. She's the old busybody who lives next door to the vicarage. One of many old busybodies in the village. But she is more fully fleshed than any of the other characters. Was this on purpose? Or did Christie just fall in love with the character and give her more attention than the protagonist? Was the format a purposeful device to introduce Miss Marple?

I know there are biographies of Agatha Christie. I don't know whether any of them go into these issues. Would anyone other than a writer care? But I'm smelling more research in my future. Of course the big question is, does this impact what I'm doing with my own mysteries?

Possibly. What if in HM, Caleb becomes the stronger character? Pulls a Fonzie, so to speak. Is this something to protect against in the writing by making sure Sloan is the more interesting of the two? Do I slight Caleb in order to elevate Sloan? Would it really matter?

I think I need to trust my gut and just write it. There should be room for two, or more, strong characters.

Prompt of the Week

When you hear the word "summer" what images come to mind? Pick one or two and write about them.

Bonus prompt: Write a poem using these images.

Research or Distraction?

I like to do research. It's learning new things. I was one of those kids who looked forward to the new school year. Doing research is one of the joys of writing for me.

But there are times when I think I overdo it. In HM, the protagonist has a job that I know only a little about. So I need to research it. No problem there. Buy a magazine that caters to the person who does this job. Except it isn't one magazine. It's all 4 titles on the shelf. For several months in a row. Do I really need that much information?

The same with D&D. They own a particular type of business. This one doesn't have a lot of magazines on the shelf, but I buy what I can find. Then I decided that someone they know should make jewelry. Ali and Mary are both wonderful jewelry makers. Great sources. But I also bought 5 jewelry magazines the other day.

Maybe it's not a research problem, but a magazine addiction.

To emulate Ali, I'll pose a question: How much research is too much?

Prompt of the Week

Christmas in July. How would you change the way you celebrate Christmas if it fell on July 25th instead of December 25th? If you don't normally celebrate Christmas, which holiday would change for you and how if it was held in mid-summer instead of the usual date?

Relief

About fifty pages into the reread, and it's not as bad as a I feared. That may change when I get further in, but for now it's looking okay.

Yay!

I decided to read through what I have already and make some notes. Not a full rewrite, but at least get down what I feel is wrong.

It feels like positive motion.

Hallelujah!

Prompt of the Week

In honor of Bastille Day: What would be worth going to prison for?

Whining

Just a little.

I'm having trouble getting back into a routine with HM, and I'm not sure why. Part of it may just be that I did break my routine. That can make things a bit hinky.

Writer's block obviously isn't the problem, because I'm not having trouble posting. Or working on other things. So it's HM related.

What about HM is giving me pause?

Characters? No, I love my characters. The Group teases me about playing with the guys. And I like the supporting cast. So characters are not the problem.

Setting? Again, love the setting. A little town in the mountains of Colorado with a blend of people whose families have been there for generations and newcomers using the former village as a bedroom community. All good.

Plot? I like the murder. Which is weird sentence to type. Victim-good. Murderer-good. But there's something nagging there. Subplots aren't strong enough. And I'm not sure that the clues are great. Or the resolution.

In summary, what I hear myself saying is that it needs revision. Okay. But revision is for after the first draft is done. First draft is for just getting it down in all its messy glory. As Deb says, "Sometimes The First is painful, embarrassing or messy." And for first drafts, it should be.

So, I need to tell that Inner Editor to shut up and wait her turn.

Goals

Guess I should fess up to how I did on my wimpy goals for June and set some new ones for July.

Last month I said, "I'd like to finish my first cozy, known here as HM, and outline a second, which will go by D&D (not Dungeons and Dragons, even though my nephew loves that D&D). Not a lot but enough to keep me busy.I'd also like to read a few more of the current crop of cozies out in the world today. Just to see what's there and, maybe, discover what might be missing."

I did not finish the draft of HM, but I did figure out that it's okay to write the beginning, then the end, then the middle. Hoping that helps move the page count. Did not outline D&D since goal one wasn't finished. It shouldn't have mattered one way or the other, but it did. I did read another cozy and bought the two Agatha Christie's to delve into.

This month, I'm setting my sights a little lower since we're already more than a week into July. I'd like to write 25 pages of HM. And I will outline D&D no matter what happens with HM. And read at least the 2 Agatha Christie's.

Prompt of the Week

"The sky is falling!"

Something falls on your head. What is it? Where did it come from? What does it mean?

Getting to The End

Interesting First Monday last night. There was some great discussion about Deb's book, which I've read and like, but have a hard time with all the characters at the beginning. Then we moved on to our usual format.

Deb and Jenny spent a lot of time trying to figure out how the Harry Potter series will end. I guess I'll have to read the books one of these days. The movies are okay. I'm not sure why I've resisted reading them so much. Maybe it's all the hype around them.

Someone asked me about HM. I told them about the problems I'm having with just wanting to end it even though it's far too short. Shane asked if it wouldn't be okay to write the beginning, then the end, then the middle. I don't see why not.

I think that's what I'm going to do. I have a five-day weekend to put it in practice. Maybe that will be my process. Maybe not. But I feel like I need to experiment and the first book is the place to do that.

Prompt of the Week

In honor of Jenny (she knows why):

Your character was born on February 29th. Describe how s/he feels on those non-leap years.

Brainstorms

They're wonderful things.

I was writing Morning Pages--a habit Deb got me into a year or so ago--and thinking about the fact that I haven't written as much on HM as I'd wanted to this month. So the questions started.

Why not? Because I'm not sure where to go from here. Wait, that's not exactly true. I want to wrap it up but the word count is about a third of what I need minimum.

How to fix that? Need more going on. A few more subplots. Maybe change the structure. Add more depth to some of the current subplots.

Cool! Now I have a blueprint. Decide what to add and what to expand. Then I will employ a little of The Novel Plotter's Toolkit (thanks, Giles!) and resummarize my chapters with what I need each to accomplish. Then do it.

Just that easy.

In theory.

Going Home

In a manner of speaking anyway.

Last night I picked up two Miss Marple books at B&N. I realized that I haven't read Agatha Christie in at least ten years. So the next two mysteries I read will be "The Murder at the Vicarage" and "4:50 From Paddington."

We had a discussion the other night about sometimes not being able to go back and read books you liked when you were younger. That your taste as a reader matures and changes, and what you loved at 12 or 18 or even 25 may not hold up when you're 35 or 45.

Will that be the case with these? I certainly hope not.

But I'll keep you posted.

Prompt of the Week

Include the following 3 words in your writing for this week: plum, storm, bossy

Blocks

Ali recently posted about writer's block and whether it really exists.

I don't know. I do know that I tend to write in spurts, one has just started--thank goodness. I'm not sure what really triggers them, but it's something to look at. See if I can maybe set them off on my own.

Are the off times blocks? Feels like it. And it's not a good feeling.

Here's to a long, long spurt.

Dogs!

A friend dropped off her dogs last night. She and her husband are out of town through the weekend. Both dogs are mixed breed, about medium size (maybe 50ish pounds) and sweet as they can be.

My cat is not pleased. Spooky has been an only cat for a very long time. The dogs' arrival means she is relegated to the blue room. This will mean many tufts of black cat hair will have to be removed before any kind of painting can start. So no redecorating this weekend.

I also have to be careful about the fence between my back yard and that of the neighbors to the west. They have 3 dogs who like to charge the fence when Kita and Missy are visiting. Another one of those projects that may move up the list soon.

An update on the hornet nest: When I sprayed it, most of the hornets flew out under their own steam. Only about 3 died. None of the survivors moved back so I knocked it down. Mission accomplished.

I have a feeling Spooky will be harder to deal with when the dogs go home.

Figuring It Out

I recently finished reading a very good cozy mystery. Well crafted, some nice tension, realistic characters and humor--always a plus for me. But I knew who did it the minute the character was introduced. I kept hoping I was wrong, but nope.

Fleur says that's one of the problems with being a writer. We read books or watch movies and think, "What would I do here?" Movies with big twists are especially disappointing. About ten minutes into "The Others" I knew what was going on. That doesn't mean I'm particularly smart, just that I thought, "What would make this movie different from all the other ghost stories out there?"

So how do we avoid giving away what we're trying to hide and still play fair? Introducing a character on page 250 of a 255 page book and then declaring him the culprit is a cheat.

I guess, as with most things in this business, it comes down to the writing. Craft a story with all the elements I listed above, and the reader won't care that she figured it out. She may even feel good about it.

Prompt of the Week

You're waiting for your baggage at the carousel in the airport terminal in Des Moines. A woman in a pirate costume stands a short distance away. It's not even close to Halloween. What's going on?

Top of the List

I'm a list maker. I guess that may be where the outlining comes from, come to think of it. Not that I always remember to take the list with me or always follow the outline, but there you are. It's what I do.

There should be no surprise then that household projects go on a list. The list is rearranged as needed. Some things go to the top of the list because not fixing them immediately would lead to other things needing repair or because I'm excited about them. Some things move to the bottom because they aren't critical or they're too expensive or I just don't want to do them.

A new item is at the top of the list.

As I left the house for my walk this morning, I was dive-bombed by hornets. The little buggers are nesting between the screen door and the front door. This is an example of an item that should have moved to the top of the list because it would cause other problems. My screen door is as old as the house--about 35 years. It's one that can be switched from a storm door (with glass) to a screen door (with screen). But two of the clamps that hold the glass or screen in place have gone missing over the years so it's an air door. Which allowed the hornets to get between it and the front door. Which means I need to find a way to get the nest out of there without getting stung. I'd like to do it without killing the hornets, but if it comes down to a choice between them or me...

Well, it is my house.

Oh, and I wrote 5 pages yesterday. Yay!

Forward Motion

Three pages!

Doesn't sound like a lot, but when you haven't written for a while, three pages are a huge breakthrough. One scene finished and another started. A key scene started. Questioning a suspect.

Even better, I know what has to come next so I'll be ready when I start on it. Which should be in just a few minutes.

And the best part is that I read through the first 109 pages and liked it. That doesn't mean I don't have some tinkering to do when the first draft is done, but not a lot.

All in all, a good way to start the writing day.

How Do You Feel?

One more thing. When you finish writing your response to the prompt, write down how you felt while you were writing. You don't have to share that part. You don't really have to share any of it, but it always seemed to help in Feminine Ink when people did.

And you don't have to say who the person is that you're writing about. I'm certainly not going to.

Writing Prompt for 6/11/07

Think about someone you don't understand. Now write from that person's point of view.

The Why and How of the Weekly Prompt

I mentioned that I met a friend for wine and conversation yesterday. We orginally met when I ran started Feminine Ink. A group of women got together once a month to freewrite based on prompts that I supplied. I had to let the group go because I needed more time to actually write.

But Laurel and I both miss the regular get-togethers and the fun we had sharing what we wrote from those prompts. So once a week, I'll post a prompt here. The rules are simple, read the prompt and start writing-by hand. You shouldn't think about it much. This is an off-the-cuff thing. Write for 7-10 minutes without stopping and without self-editing while you write. Once the pen starts moving, it has to keep going until time is up. If you start on a tangent, go with it. There's gold in them thar tangents.

If you'd like, post what you wrote in the comments. I will add mine when I'm done.

Chopping Wood and Prewriting

Last night I had a little trouble falling asleep because I didn't write anything all weekend. It felt like I accomplished nothing. Even though I watched a friend's dog, cleaned, did five loads of laundry, etc. I moved a lot of junk out of the Blue Room in preparation for a making it the Lilac Room. And I met a friend yesterday whom I hadn't talked to in months. We caught up, drank a little wine and really enjoyed ourselves. Not a wasted weekend by any means.

But I didn't write. Except...I did in a way.

Let me go back a little bit. One of the aspens next to my deck died over the winter. I think something infested it--I don't know as much as I'd like about trees and other plants so I can't be sure just what killed it. Last week a windstorm blew it over. Luckily, it fell in such a way that it didn't hurt the deck, the shed, the garage, the fence or the rose bushes. Early Saturday morning I went out and cut it into manageable chunks to get it out of the way. While I sawed and sweated and cursed a little bit, I thought about the next scene in HM.

Then this morning on my walk, I thought about it some more. I now know exactly what I need to do in that next scene. When I sit down to work, I won't have to stare at a blank screen trying to figure out what to write. So, I guess I did write this weekend.

One Size Fits All?

The other night I got together with my writing friends. It's a great forum for talking about what's working for us and what isn't when it comes to our writing. We can solicit help, feedback, commiseration, whatever.

Deb was talking about outlining her new novel, and that started a discussion about whether or not to outline. The responses were pretty evenly distributed. Fleur and I always outline, which makes sense. We both write what could fall under the broad umbrella of crime fiction. We need to know where we're going. Jenny and Mary are both organic writers. They start with a character or situation and just write from the gut. Shane and Deb fall somewhere in the middle. Shane says he outlines in his head before he starts, but then it's organic. Deb jots notes and sort of follows them, but will allow herself a tangent if it feels right.

All of these people are excellent writers. I guess it just shows that one size does not, and cannot, fit all. Beware of those who would tell you otherwise.

A Room of My Own

I actually have a house of my own, but have wanted a Writing Room since I moved in. I finished collecting all the supplies to convert the Blue Room. Lilac paint for the walls and white for trim, a new light fixture, shelves and new miniblinds. The room already has a daybed that I use as a couch for writing. It took me a while to realize that I preferred the daybed to a desk because that's the way I wrote when I was in junior high and high school. It makes it feel less like work.

There's also a new comforter set for the daybed and lots of fuzzy, brightly colored throw pillows. I'll move my writing books and research books upstairs when it's done. Maybe a few interesting tchochkes to spark ideas.

When I finish it, that excuse for not writing will be gone.

Maybe I'll take my time.

Goals

My friend, Deb, is big on setting goals. Every month she sends out a challenge to set do-able, as she says, goals that will take a bit of a stretch to accomplish. Some months it just gets on my nerves. Of course, those are usually the months I want to slack and really need the goals to stay motivated.

For June, I'd like to finish my first cozy, known here as HM, and outline a second, which will go by D&D (not Dungeons and Dragons, even though my nephew loves that D&D). Not a lot but enough to keep me busy.

I'd also like to read a few more of the current crop of cozies out in the world today. Just to see what's there and, maybe, discover what might be missing.

Dresden Files

Some may wonder why I've listed Storm Front, the first book in the Dresden Files series, under "Mysteries I've Read". Because it fits. It's not a cozy, but still...

Harry Dresden is a private investigator. He also happens to be a wizard, but he's a wizard trying to find out Who Done It. This book could just as easily fit on the Mystery shelf at my local Big Bookstore as in the Fantasy section.

Plan to see more of the Dresden books listed soon. I like Harry's smart-alecky tone. After hearing that James Marsters--Spike from Buffy and Angel--read the audiobooks, I may have to indulge in one or two of those as well.

The Dresden Files television show is also worth a watch on SciFi Channel. They've changed a few of the specifics, but got Harry just right.

To Cozy or Not to Cozy

That is the question.

I grew up reading Agatha Christie. And as much as I enjoyed Hercule Poirot and his little grey cells, I preferred Miss Marple. Let's face it, that little spinster has spawned a lot of offspring. Jessica Fletcher immediately comes to mind. Tommy and Tuppence were a lot of fun, too, and set the stage for other sleuthing couples.

Many who write in what can be called the cozy genre hate the moniker. They prefer "domestic mystery". Whatever. I like the sound of cozy. I picture an overstuffed chair, doilies on the arms and afghan draped over the back, next to a little piecrust table. A good reading lamp, a cup of tea (Earl Grey, of course), a few snickerdoodles on a Royal Daulton plate and a ginger cat curled up on a braided rug. All set before a cheery fire in the fireplace. What could be better?

Today, however, the thriller is king. Shoot 'em up bang bangs with explosions and gory details. Not that I don't enjoy those, too. It's just...if I'm going to spend the time it takes to write a novel in one world or the other, I'd prefer the doilies and snickerdoodles.

Having said that, my mystery doesn't take place in England but in Colorado. The protagonist isn't an aging spinster but a 35-year-old single father. He has an Australian Shepherd instead of the ginger cat. And there may some sex and violence thrown in for good measure.

I don't plan to post any excerpts here, but will chronicle the trials, tribulations and triumphs of turning out that first cozy. Right now, I'm at page 109.

Stay tuned.