First lines

It's crazy I can't believe that I'm posting yet again. Maybe I'm getting into a good habit. Another good habit I need to get into is starting my novel and working on it everyday. I'm not sure how well that's going to work out.
I've been seriously struggling about coming up with a first line. I think it is one of, if not the most, crucial lines in the whole story. It has to grab the reader's attention, set the mood for the whole story and it has to be perfect in every way. I'm stressing out.
I know I could just settle on something and then work on it later but I think that sets a bad path for me. If I settle on this line then I'll settle on every line and then where do I draw the line. It just needs to be the best sentence I've ever written and no less.

In hopes to work it out I decided to go through some of the books I own and study some of the first lines.

"When he was nearly thirteen, my brother Jem got his arm badly broken at the elbow."
- 'To Kill A Mocking Bird' by Harper Lee

"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife."
- 'Pride and Prejudice' by Jane Austen

"She hurries from the house, wearing a coat too heavy for the weather."
- 'The Hours' by Michael Cunningham

"In my younger and more vulnerable years my father gave me some advice that I've been turning over in my mind ever since."
-'The Great Gatsby' by F. Scott Fitzgerald

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair."
-'A Tale of Two Cities' by Charles Dickens

"If you really want to hear about it, the first thing you'll probably want to know is where I was born, and what my lousy childhood was like, and how my parents were occupied and all before they had me, and all that David Copperfield kind of crap, but I don't feel like going into it, if you want to know the truth."
-'The Catcher in the Rye' by J.D. Salinger

Of course, now that I've typed all those out, I just found the American Book Reviews top 100 first lines . I think the only one on my list not on theirs is from the Hours which is actually my favorite. It says a lot about what's going on. (She's left a house. She's in a hurry and it must be somewhat warm out.) It makes me wonder why she's leaving in such a hurry, where she's going and why she's wearing such a heavy coat. The reason I love it the most is because it's simple. So I guess that's what I should be trying to bring to my book.

"Three more months and this hell would be over."

"How you comin' on that novel?"

I was reminded once again, when I got my second questionnaire the other day, that I have no choice but to write this book. Both surveys that I received have come with that wonderful note that has sealed the fate of this book. "I can't wait to read it." It must be written or I will disappoint people. I know maybe they don't care enough to be disappointed in me but I don't want to be that person that everyone comes up to for the next five years and ask, " So how's that novel coming?" That means the pressure is on.
It's bad enough that I have a co-worker, who has the ability to quote just about every movie and T.V. show she's ever seen, is amazing at doing the voices of just about every character, and who also happens to be a huge Family Guy fan. Anyway, she knows Jenni and I are working on Behind the Naugahyde so she comes up to me all the time and says:

"How you uh, how you comin' on that novel you're working on? Huh? Gotta a big, uh, big stack of papers there? Gotta, gotta nice little story you're working on there? Your big novel you've been working on for 3 years? Huh? Gotta, gotta compelling protagonist? Yeah? Gotta obstacle for him to overcome? Huh? Gotta story brewing there? Working on, working on that for quite some time? Huh? Yea, talking about that 3 years ago. Been working on that the whole time? Nice little narrative? Beginning, middle, and end? Some friends become enemies, some enemies become friends? At the end your main character is richer from the experience? Yeah? Yeah? No, no, you deserve some time off."

or

" Oh I know it hurts now, but look at the bright side: you have some new material for that novel you've been writing. You know...the novel you've been workin' on? You know the the one, uh, you've been workin on for three years? You know the novel. Got somethin' new to write about now. You know? Maybe a, maybe a main character gets into a relationship and suffers a little heartbreak? Somethin' like what... what you've just been through? Draw from real life experience? Little, little heartbreak? You know? Work it into the story? Make the characters a little more three dimensional? Little, uh, richer experience for the reader? Make those second hundred pages really keep the reader guessing what's going to happen? Some twists and turns? A little epilogue? Everybody learns that the hero's journey isn't always a happy one? Oh, I look forward to reading it. "

- Stewie to Brian from "Family Guy"

I definitely don't want to keep hearing that. Although, I'm not sure which is worse "How's that novel coming?" or "Your book sucked!"

TWO YEARS!

YAY! It's been two years of blogging! I couldn't think of anything super special so I thought how about stats. Everyone likes stats. They are short, easy to read, don't take much thought to comprehend and hopefully are somewhat entertaining. Plus it's a good thing to do on an anniversary. It's a way to look back at all the cool things that have been documented on this blog. Especially, since there hasn't been much big and exciting news lately.
Of course some of the things listed may have happened pre-blog and if so I apologize but sometimes it's hard to keep track.

Date started: May 10, 2005
Visits to this blog since getting a site meter:2,077
Number of post:234
Rejection notices: 155 (This number may be a little off since some of the notes do not have dates and I didn't keep very good submission records when I first started.)
Stories published: 3 (Double Take, Double Take 2- Sophomore year, Sweaty Palms)
NaNoWriMos participated in: 2
Novels worked on: 3(Nano 1- untitled, Nano 2- untitled, Behind the Naugahyde)(This is novels that I actually started writing)
Novels completed: 2 (Nano 1- untitled, Nano 2- untitled) (This is novels that I finished writing the first draft but have not necessarily been edited.)
Short stories written:15 (most notable- Double Take 2 and Sweaty Palms)
Submissions sent out:227
Writing contest entered:4
Writing contest that my work placed in: 1 (2nd place in the LCC division of the L.A.N.D. writing contest)
Different prints of 'freelance writer' business cards: 3
Writing related classes taken: 3 (creative writing 1 & 2, Writing Literature)
Comic book related job ads responded to: at least 4
Comic book scripts worked on:3
Potential comic book artist: 10-give or take
Ashcans made based on my comic book: 1
News articles written for the LCC Lookout: 3
Superhero Sonnets completed: 4
Letters written to Wizard magazine:1
Times I've moved:1
RENT performances attended:2
Agents interested in Behind the Naugahyde:3
Novel promotional websites started:1 (BehindtheNaugahyde.com)
NaBloPoMo blog entries:30(but only 29 days because I'm a bum)
Novels read: more than 51
Times I forgot to save my work before closing a screen: at least 3
Times my Internet was down with technical difficulties:3
Times my Internet was down because I couldn't pay the bill:2
Typos found while researching these stats: 19
Categories for post:64
Links in side bar:16
Different types of errors made when sending out submissions: at least 5 (sticky envelopes, forgetting to put contact info, signing letter from Jenni and Jenni, forgetting to attach the story, and signing the letter Ashley Review)
Times I whined about being out of stamps, envelopes or ink: 7
Things that were too many to count or that I was just too lazy to count: Times I mention Jenni, comments left, post of me babbling about why I write, post I wrote while procrastinating on another project, times I bumped back a project deadline, hours Jenni and I spent planning Behind the Naugahyde, times I mentioned writer envy, movies watched/went to, trips to the library, comic books/graphic novels read.

So there it is. I really wanted to put links to every thing mentioned but that would be a ton of links and it's already taken me a few hours to put this post together over the last few days considering that I had to read and reread my blog a few times. If I tried to make all the links this post might not get done before my next blogiversary.

Thanks to everyone that has stopped by and read my blog over the last two years!

Anniversary eve

Tomorrow's the big day. Two official years of blogging. I have a post that I'm preparing. It's not very cool or exciting but neither is two years of my blogging.

Yesterday was my day off and I thought it was rather productive. I got sunburned while sitting outside reading one of my research books. Then I went to the safety of the library where I took a stack of books and browsed through for answers to my unanswered questions.
I was also super excited that I got another one of my questionnaires back in the mail. That was another thing that I sent self-addressed stamped envelopes out for and was worried about the postage change. Anyway, the survey I got back was from an infectious disease doctor and nurse practitioner who specialize in AIDS and work closely with the Lansing Area AIDS Network. The answers are great but they a took a while to decipher because the handwriting is not the best. Not that I'm complaining. I am very grateful for the help.

Aside from that I have been reading about all these awesome things coming to town or close to town that I would love to do but am completely broke. Wicked is coming as well as Barenaked Ladies, Kelly Clarkson, Dancing with the Stars, the Lion King(I was totally bummed I missed it the last time it was near).
Not to mention, even though it's not near, I just read that Anthony Rapp and Adam Pascal are returning to their roles as the original Mark and Roger in RENT. And their run will over lap with Tamyra Gray, from American Idol, playing Mimi. Oh well, I doubt I will save enough money to go to New York by September.

Suspense, ridiculousness and crazy brides. Sounds like it would make a good story but no, it's just a boring blog post.

Goodness, am I the only one on the edge of my seat waiting for the final two episodes of Heroes? I'm not sure if I can take this new T.V. show format where the whole season is one giant episode that is 'to be continued...'. Sure it allows for a huge epic story that would be way too long for a movie but the suspense kills me. The only thing worse than waiting a whole season to find out what happens is the years that have been waited to find out what happens to Harry Potter. It's madness.

Anyway, I worked on submissions this weekend until my computer ran out of ink. I'm thinking of taking them to work and doing them there since my boss just recently gave me a speech on how my efforts to conserve things for the company, such as paper, were completely pointless. I know those things add up but he doesn't care. He once told Jenni "if a nickel fell out of my pocket every day, I wouldn't care." So I really don't think he can or will be mad that I'm using company time and supplies to work on my writing. Not that he'd ever notice. But enough about work because I need to save the ridiculousness in my 'Behind the Naugahyde-possibilities' folder.

Nothing else really exciting going on. Although I have been involved in and reading blogs about insane pre-wedding functions/weddings and the brides that plan them. I'm not sure what really to do with all the craziness but I feel a story bursting out. I'll just have to figure out what kind of story.

Reading, movies, and more

Just an update on what's going on in my little world. Not much. I've been reading a lot at work, books that I thought would be good research for my upcoming novel but they are really not answering the questions that I have. Maybe I'll do some Internet research when I get some time.

I went to see Spider-man 3 last night. It was good but not great. It had action and humor but sometimes was a little cheesy and there was too much going on. Three villains, two love interests. Sometimes this person's bad, now he's good but the other guy's bad, and now they're both bad. I don't want to say too much because I'd hate to spoil it.

Don't forget tomorrow is free comic book day. So go to your local comic book store and see what comics have to offer.

Also plans for the month of May: I guess I better think of something special because my blog two year anniversary is on May 10th.
And the Motor City Comic Con is coming up in a few weeks. I'd like to go now that I actually get weekends off but I'm not sure if it will fit into the budget.

Group work?

Goodness time flies. I can't believe the weekend is over and once again I got nothing done.
I did do one small, little thing but it wasn't actual writing. Lately, I've been frustrated because I feel like there must be a reason my writing isn't getting published. I know there can be many factors as to why and that even if my writing is great, I may still never get published. But before I go spending tons of money sending out submissions I would like to get some feedback on my stories so I can make sure they are not absolute crap. Of course, I show my writing to a few non-writers and I get the "that's really good" but since they have nothing to back it up with they could be lying to spare my feelings and if they aren't lying it would be nice to know why so I can do it again. So I've been trying to find a writing group in my area.
Also it would be nice to have some supportive writing friends. Don't worry I'm not forgetting about Jenni. I have asked her to look at some of my writing, other than my parts of Behind the Naugahyde. Believe me there is no better editor and reader than her, at least not that I have met but she is a busy lady. She's working hard teaching high school students to be great writers, readers and thinkers.
Anyway, I found a list of writing groups on the library website and I e-mailed the contact people to see what kind of writing group they were and if they were adding new members. Hopefully, I'll hear back with some good news. If not I'll try to find an online writing group but I feel like I'll be more committed if it's a face-to-face group. I get horrible anxiety when I think there's a chance that I'll run into someone I let down.
I just hope a writers group gets me back into the swing of things.

Stamped on

In a few weeks the price of postage will go from $.39 to $.41. I still have a stack of $.02 stamps from when they changed it from $.37 not so long ago so I'm excited I will get the chance to use those up. And I'm not really mad about having to pay an extra $.02. What I wish is that they would announce this much further in advance. Remember back in January when I sent out all those submissions. The self-addressed stamped envelopes that I sent with all those submissions, in hopes of a reply, all had $.39 stamps on them and I've only gotten responses from about a quarter of those. Sometimes responses take six months to a year. I'm pretty sure that small literary magazines are not going to go buy a bunch of $.02 to fix this problem, if they even pay attention to the postage on the stacks of self-addressed stamped envelopes that they deal with daily. The reason I'm fairly certain that one of those theories is true is because I did not get one submission response after they changed postage rates last time.
It would seem like it's no big deal because they are all rejection notices anyway and if on the off chance someone did accept my story they might spring for $.02 or not even use the self-addressed stamped envelope but rather a nice big envelope with lots of cool published writer stuff in it. But the truth is I like my rejection letters. Sometimes they give me good advice, they always make me feel like I'm at least trying and if I completely fail as a writer, at least I can have the world record for most rejection ever endured by one person. And that is a goal all in itself.
Anyway, at least this time they are fixing that problem by creating the "forever stamp" that will always be good even if the rate increases again.

Just watched: The Office, 30 Rock, Scrubs

Answers to questions

Yesterday, I went to the LAAN (Lansing Area AIDS Network) volunteer appreciation party and was so excited to get my first responses to my written interview/surveys that I handed out. The volunteer coordinator said he had been working on it all day and his answers were great. They were just the kind of information I was looking for.
Of course now the pressure's on because I had to tell people why I wanted them to answer these questions so they know I'm writing a novel. That means I actually have to write it now. I can't back out of it and I have to do a good job too. I'm excited about the questionnaires, though. My hope is to realistically write about HIV, those who have it and the way it has affected our society, and hopefully do that well. That's why I've been asking for help from people who have dealt with it so much.
Although, I was a little bit worried about it because I asked some really crazy questions about "what if" scenarios. I thought they might think that I thought those "what if" situations were good ideas. Unfortunately, when writing fiction, you have to think like the good person and the bad person. Otherwise it gets kind of boring.

Birthday, BTN and comic books

I finally completed my part of chapter 11 of Behind the Naugahyde and shipped it off to Jenni. Not to get too far ahead of ourselves but once we're finished with our current chapters, 10,11,12, I think that it won't be many more chapters before we're done. It is so weird to have an ending in site, well kind of sorta anyway.

I have to admit that last week was crazy and I got nothing done. Thankfully though, the reason I didn't get anything done this weekend was because I was busy hanging out with my awesome friends, celebrating my birthday.
Not many people know this but I felt like the last year of my life was cursed. I know, crazy. But a day after my last birthday my landlord called and kicked me out of my house and after that it was money battles with him that lead to other money problems, a car that took off on its own and then finally wouldn't move at all, lots of medical problems with my family and so much other stuff. And since it all started right after my birthday I was convinced it was going to be a cursed year. So far this one is starting off pretty awesome. There have been problems but everything seems to be working itself out and maybe its just my determination that this is going to be a happy new year of my life. I'm very excited.

I did buy another giant stack of comics this weekend. That seems to be how I'm buying them these days. Am I the only person in the world that's bummed that Marvel's Dark Tower by Stephen King series is exactly like the book? Did I already complain about this? And my goodness I can't believe it's been almost a year since 52 started. Also I'm hearing super bad things about the new Wonder Woman writer but I bought them so I could decide for myself.

Tomorrow I'm back at work and I hope that this week I get started on some serious research or some character workouts for my new novel.

RENT!

YAY! I just got home from seeing RENT again! I am so excited because not only did I get to see RENT, LAAN(Lansing Area AIDS Network) threw an after party where you could meet the cast and crew. I didn't know about it until I was leaving the show with my fellow RENT goers and I saw some of the LAAN staff. I stopped by to say "hi" because none of us had the $50 per person fee for the after party (it's not that outrageous because it is for charity). The LAAN staff was so awesome because they invited all of us to stay for free! I was so out of mind with excitement. I got to meet and chat with the cast of the RENT national tour. It was so exciting. I got them all to sign my RENT poster. I was bummed because even if my camera had been working I wouldn't have brought it since I had no clue about the party and it's not allowed in the theater. It was so amazing. The biggest bummer was that Jenni couldn't be there with me.
And the show was unbelievable. I wanted to jump out of my seat when they started singing RENT, I got goose bumps when Roger started singing One SongGlory and when they sang Seasons Of Love, I was in tears when Mimi sang Goodbye Love and when Collins sang the I'll Cover You reprise and I didn't even realize I was moving along with Today For You Tomorrow For Me, La Vie Boheme and the Tango Maureen until people told me after the show. I want to see it a hundred more times. The music and lyrics have so much meaning and are so powerful and the cast's performance is always so intense. Once again I can't rave about it enough.

I know that I may seem obsessed with RENT and the truth is that I am. This is one of those things that I have writer's envy over. I wish I had written something so amazing that touches so many people. Johnathon Larson made something so incredible and I can't imagine every being able to create something like it.
The reason I love it so much is because I relate to it. There are tons of things about RENT that make me think of my own life. I would list them all but lots of it is just too personal to share with any random people that may wander by. But one reason fits right in on my blog about writing.
No one in my family gets me and a lot of my 'friends' don't either. I'm not even entirely sure that any of them remember I write and that's probably because I make very little money doing it. Alright, I make no money! Anyway, you get a good job that earns you lots of money. That makes you successful which equals happiness. That's what they think anyway.
I've rarely had more money than enough to cover the bills in all my life. Sometimes I can't even pay the bills. And I'm okay with that because I want to enjoy what I do. I don't want to spend my whole life working to pay the bills and be completely unhappy. I want to do what I love and writing is one of those things for me even if I don't make money at it. When I try to explain this to my family they look at me like I'm nuts. When I got this new "good job" my family wondered why I wasn't ecstatic but my first thought was 'when will I have time to write, and paint and play my guitar and I be all alone with no one to talk to'. I wasn't happy about it and I'm still not sure it was the right choice. But to my family it was the only choice because having money makes you happy. That's why when I see RENT, and there are people who are okay with being poor as long as they have time to spend on the things that really matter to them, I don't feel alone. I think to myself 'wow someone finally gets it'. And that's just one of the reasons that I love it so much.

Questionnaires and work

I wasn't going to post today because I had absolutely nothing to write about. However, I didn't want to go more than a week without posting in fear that people would give up on my little blog and I would lose the few readers I have managed to get.

So what's been going on in my world of writing? Well I did manage to get my written interview done for the novel I plan on starting. I would have preferred face-to-face interviews but the people I plan on asking the questions all have very crazy schedules that pretty much include them working while I'm working. And somehow I don't see my boss giving me time off to do research on a novel. Anyway, since I had to give written questionnaires now I have to hope that somebody sends it back and in a timely fashion. I don't want to call people bugging them when they are graciously helping me out. I did include self-addressed stamped envelopes so hopefully that helps.

I finally got around to typing up the few pages of Behind the Naugahyde that I managed to write at work the last few weeks but nothing new yet. I thought this week at work would be a great time to get writing done since I wouldn't have to worry about my boss coming in but unfortunately that's not the case. I had to spend the last two days calling a woman asking to charge $50 to her credit card because of a mistake an employee made this weekend. I wish it had been just one mistake but it was four mistakes that cost the store about $200 total. So I didn't get to write because first I had to figure out what happened then try to fix it. Thankfully my boss is in Mexico and will hopefully come back in a very good mood, doubtful but you never know. And no I'm not mad that I actually had to work at work. I just hate having to be the one to tell employees they messed up and tell customers 'we need our money back'. It's not fun. Good book material but seriously not enjoyable in anyway.

And of course nothing else got done this weekend while I had time off. I attended a funeral and a wedding on Saturday which was definitely a first for me.
This weekend coming up is going to be hectic with Easter on Sunday and I'm going to see RENT on Saturday. That means I better get something done during the week.

Just watched: Dancing with the Stars
Just saw: Blades of Glory
Finally read: 52 #40-45 (I know I'm still behind)

Not much

My teleportation story has been edited and it is in the mail. There's no going back now.
Work has once again been slow this week. I wrote down some notes on new story ideas but mostly I tried to catch up on my comic book reading.
I must say that the writing tips of the day featured in my side bar, well, they're pretty lame. I'd take it out but I'm too lazy. Who knows maybe they'll get better. I do think it would be quite hard to come up with a new and unique writing tip everyday so I shouldn't complain too much.
Anyway, I thought I had more to fill up this post but I guess not.

Just watched: Dancing with the Stars
Just saw: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Finally read: Ultimate Spider-man #101-105 the clone saga

Editing and libraries.

Okay I edited my teleportation story. Hopefully it's sci-fi enough and well written. That would probably help. I'll reread it tomorrow to double check for typos after I haven't been staring at it for a few hours.

What's my next project? Well I still need to finish my part of Behind the Naugahyde chapters 10, 11, 12. I would like to finish it this weekend but no promises.

After that I'm going to start a fictional story that centers around HIV/AIDS infected characters. I already know a bit about this subject but there is always more to know. I've been working on really professional sounding interview questions because I have a few people I want to interview for research purposes. I also went to the library for some books.
Here's a little fact for you. I know I've written at some point that there are three branches of the Capital Area District Library that I frequent. The main branch downtown because it has the biggest selection, the south side which is a few blocks away from my house but it's in the poorer side of town and it's usually filled with unattended children, and there's the one near my work in the wealthy town which is usually very quiet but has snotty librarians.
Anyway, I went to the south side branch yesterday and it had 18 books on the topic of HIV/AIDS. Today I went to the wealthy town library, which is about the same size as the south side library, and they had 4 books on the subject of HIV/AIDS. And that's what they carry not what they have available.

On a completely different topic, all this search for non-fiction makes me long for card catalogs. The little drawers in the library filled with index cards that listed every book in the library alphabetically under title, author and subject. I loved flipping through those when I was younger. I felt like I was an investigator looking for that one book that held the answer. Now that it's on the computer I'm just typing. I do that all the time. I'm doing it right now. Big wow.

So little time

Okay, although I've kind of sorta started it, I'm not sure I can get my science fiction story finished and edited by the deadline. So I was thinking that I could switch my sci-fi/western comic into short story form but I'm not even sure I would get that done in time. My other option is sending in an already completed story and the only one I have that would qualify, I'm not sure actually qualifies. The whole story revolves around the idea of teleportation but it takes place in current time and has no other science fiction element. Is that enough sci-fi for an all science fiction contest? I'm not sure. I guess I could attempt to finish one of the other options and if it gets to close to crunch time I can try the teleporting story.
I feel like ever since I started my new job I've had so little time to write, which disappoints me. Whether I ever get paid for it or not, writing is something I think I'll do for the rest of my life. On the other hand, selling shoes for the rest of my life, I hope not.

Under $10

Well after a bunch of attempts I finally got my sitemeter working, my sidebar now includes a list of blogs and a writing tip of the day. Plus, as can be seen, I decided to change to the super cool red template since I never figured out why I had a green one. Not that I'm dissing green. I like green, but I love red.
Anyway, at work last week I mostly read since I have a book that needs to be taken back the library but I'm not finished. I did write a little bit of chapter 10 of Behind the Naugahyde. Of course since I have to write long hand at work, now I have to find time to type up what I've written.
My new job is really boring, I don't have any crazy stories that would make good book material because no one comes in.
I did go to the book store this weekend and I got a book, 'how to edit your novel', on clearance for $3. I wonder what the quality must be if it only cost $3 but I'm on a shopping kick where I don't buy anything over $10. I've been using this with books, clothes and movies and it's working out pretty well. What did I do with all that saved money? I bought a giant stack of comic books and it's a crazy loophole because they are very rarely over $10 a piece.
Speaking of comics, I did get to see 300 this weekend. I had never read the comic but I liked the movie. I didn't splurge for the IMAX though.
Hope everyone had a fun and safe St. Patrick's day and didn't get too drunk off of cheap green wine that cost $2.50 a bottle but since it was green it was on sale for $2.00. Oh wait that was me and notice it's still under $10!

Been watching: The Winner, Dead Like Me
Just saw: Lemony Snicketts and a Series of Unfortunate Events

I fixed it. I think.

Okay, I fixed it. Apparently my browser sucked. So now in order to post I had to get Firefox as recommended by the blogger support staff. It's a bit of a pain to have to log into it but at least I can sign into blogger without having to wait two hours or leave a comment. And I can now post something other than just a really long title. Now onto the excitement.

I would have fixed this stupid thing yesterday but I was too busy having a rockin' time. Jenni and I, along with the rest of my adoptive family, went to see RENT! The show kicked butt and the theater was beautiful aside from the tiny rows that didn't allow for short little me to cross my legs without kneeing someone in the head. I felt even worse for Jenni and family because they are quite a bit taller than me so their long legs were wedged against the seats. Of course I fell asleep the night before without somewhat straightening my hair thus it was so huge I was afraid I would knock out the person behind of me. The rows were just that small. Anyway, we were all too busy loving the show to worry about the seating. I laughed, I cried, I tried really hard not to sing along. Needless to say I can't rave about it enough and I don't want this to be a novel length post so I'll leave it at that. I will add that the best part by far was the company.

So this week wasn't a very productive one as far as writing goes. I did however get more done than last week. I did a few submissions and I finally got some down time at work which I used to update my personal journal about all the chaos of the last few weeks.
Also, I started editing a story that I would like to start subbing. It needs a lot of work. It had a horrible opening line and paragraph, several grammatical errors and the tense I wrote it in was not consistent. Goodness.
And unless you count all the awkwardness and ignorance that occurred at work this week and spending time with Jenni, I did not get any work done on Behind the Naugahyde.

I did manage to see Ghost Rider last weekend. I haven't really read too many comics with Ghost Rider so I'm not sure how the movie compared. I do imagine that the penance stare is cool in the comic books but it doesn't really translate well onto the big screen as the big finish for beating an evil villain in an action movie. I was impressed that Roxie didn't just sit around waiting to be rescued(Don't want to spoil anything). Over all I'd say it was a pretty decent movie.

New schedule

I have gotten absolutely nothing done this week, not even submissions. I know, the shame, the shame. This new work schedule is kicking my butt. I'm sure I'll get used to it eventually. I'm already starting to adapt. By next week I'll be back on track.
And I didn't manage to use any of that joyous down time at work that I bragged about. While the store does have very few customers, the lady that ran the store before me left it looking like crap. So I've been rearranging and reorganizing everything. I'd explain it all but that's a super boring story. I didn't want to live it and nobody else wants to read it.

Good bye to where it all began

Am I the only person that just can't sign into blogger. If I try the regular 'sign in' page it takes hours to load and today I tried signing in by leaving a comment. It told me I had an incorrect password for twelve tries so finally I gave up and came back later. It's just becoming a big pain.

Enough complaining.

Good news, Jenni and I managed to get chapters 10, 11, & 12 of Behind the Naugahyde planned. From what I hear Jenni has already got a big chunk of hers done and well, I haven't started.
On a sad note about Naugahyde, tomorrow will be the last day that I will work in the store that started it all. The store where I met Jenni, the store that had all the crazy customers and employees that may or may not have inspired the novel, the store with the ugly, green, Naugahyde curtains.
I'll still be employed by the same company and there is always a chance that I could end back at the other store for a short or long period of time for various reasons. And to be honest the store really hasn't been the same in a long while. Still, it's sad to think about it. The other store is lonely, it has very few customers and I think they are a different kind of customer, I'm not sure yet. Most of all they only have one stock room/wall with one entrance and it has a fabric curtain, not Naugahyde.

Sci-fi stories and work drama.

I haven't gotten much done this week. I did my obligatory submissions on Sunday but not much else. I guess I thought I would take a small break since I just got done writing a novel. Ideas for my next project are in the works. My plan is to write a sci-fi/fantasy story. I know I'm a genre hopper but I don't want to get stuck in a rut and to be honest I'm not entirely sure what genre I would want to write exclusively. I read everything and I want to write everything.

I had been reading sci-fi short stories trying to get inspired for an idea but I wasn't having a lot of luck. Then I started thinking about the awesome Jenni, fellow author of Behind the Naugahyde. It was her strong belief in animal rights that got me thinking about this idea. I'll give more details when I figure them out but for now I must keep everyone in suspense.

Aside from vague descriptions of sci-fi stories I don't really have much else to say about writing for now.

I am excited that next Monday I will start a new job but really it's still my old job. I'm moving to a different location where I will have no one to talk to and little work to do so I will have plenty of time for writing and reading.
The drama leading up to the new position has been so ridiculous that the sequel to Behind the Naugahyde has pretty much written itself.

Lets hope next week involves less madness and more writing.

It's done, finally

It's been 3 months and 15 days. A little over schedule, well a lot over schedule depending on which goal we consider. My Nanowrimo goal, Nanofimo or just to finish in three months. Anyway it matters no more because after 98497 words, I am finished with my still untitled novel! Yay!
I really have no idea what to do with it. For now I will let it sit and then I'll go back. Hopefully I won't realize that it is all crap but that's most likely what it is.
Now I think I'm going to write a sci-fi/fantasy short story for a little change of pace. Then I hope to make some edits to my comic book script and figure out something to do with it.
And hopefully I will talk to Jenni soon and we can start planning the next chapters of Behind the Naugahyde.

Just watched: The Office, Scrubs, 30 Rock
Just saw: Hannibal Rising
Just read: Dark Tower-The Gunslinger Born #1

A pleasant surprise

After doing my submissions yesterday I decided to check my e-mail one more time before I headed to bed. I was surprised to see Jenni had sent me her part of chapters 8 and 9 of Behind the Naugahyde! So I stayed up and read them. They were so awesome and I'm so excited about them. And I now I'll go through and make comments and fix the things in my part that Jenni noted. We're planning on finding time this week to plan the next chapters. YAY!

I also got a mailbox full of rejection today. One of the editors said that my story couldn't have been more depressing, however it was interesting but I should try not to use so many "thens". At least I learned something, right?
Well not really. I just searched the document. Out of 880 words I used "then" twice!

Only one great line

Tonight I finished my part of chapter 9 of Behind the Naugahyde. It's weird because the idea for Behind the Naugahyde really came from how much Jenni and I wrote about our jobs in e-mails and on live journal. We started thinking we could write a novel.
I just told Jenni this recently, but when we started and even now, I felt this horrible pressure about writing my part. Jenni would always have an amazing way of dramatically retelling stories. There were so many times when the muscles in my face would hurt from laughing so hard. I, on the other hand, wasn't so clever at writing them. I knew Jenni's part would be fabulous and mine would not be. For what we've gotten done, that is true.
Sometimes it scares me that I feel so much pressure about writing. This isn't the first time I've felt pressure to make something good. Of course all authors want to write great things so I'm sure I'm not alone.
The first time I remember having this incredible pressure to write something was in my tenth grade American Lit class. We had to write a poem for some reason, I don't really remember. It was one of those on the spot assignments that I absolutely hate. Anyway, I wrote the first line "She's in love with herself". My teacher came by and just started raving about what a great line that was. "It's a beautiful opening line. It's so powerful. I instantly want to know more about her." That' probably not what she said word for word but it was similar to that. Of course the first line was the only line I had and then I just became run over with this pressure to write lines that were equally great. I sat there forever trying to figure out what else to say about her that would be powerful, something that wouldn't disappoint the people that wanted to know more, like my teacher. Well time was up so I scribbled down a few meaningless lines about how she thinks she's all that, I can't even remember them now. I turned it in completely heartbroken that I had only one good line and that I my never have a series of great lines that make an unforgettable work of art.
I don't know what I ever did with that piece of paper. I'm sure I threw it out because it was awful and I didn't need the constant reminder that I cracked under pressure. Also I think I'm a bit of a coward and don't want to have it sitting around. I might be tempted to try to see what I would have come up with if I wasn't under the pressure of the time restraint. Of course I would always be under pressure with that line because my teacher had put that comment out there and because I want every line of everything I write to be one of those great lines.

Saving and signing in

I never knew what auto recovery was or that I had it turned on until I wrote for two hours last night and then my computer froze. It decided to shut down Word and take all my unsaved writing with it.
After a search on the Internet I found out that there is an auto recovery option for Word files but I was certain I had never turned it on. Apparently it was set to save every ten minutes anyway so I only lost a paragraph. Yay!
And no the novel still isn't done yet.

I would have posted this last night or earlier today but ever since the new blogger happened it takes me a year to get on to the "sign in" page. It wasn't until I was on someone else's comment page where I needed to sign in so that I could comment that I figured out I could go right to my blog and post since I was already signed in from posting the comment. It's depressing to think of the time I wasted trying to sign on before I figured that one out.
All the time I tried to sign in and failed I kept thinking of the Slowsky's. Those cute little turtles that prefer DSL to cable Internet because they like things to be slow. I love them.

It's kind of cold

Goodness, it's cold and I mean 5 below actual temp cold with a wind chill of negative 25. That's what I mean by cold. But I'm not complaining. I prefer this over the heat waves of summer. In fact it's the perfect weather to sit inside and finally finish my NaNo novel because I haven't done that yet. So close though, so close.
I did work on Behind the Naugahyde, which is kind of my Saturday thing. After working and dealing with loony customers each and every Saturday it's quite easy to come home and write about loony customers. I also re-read the whole chapter seven and sent some notes of to Jenni.
Today I worked on submissions and they were boring as usual.
That's been about it this weekend. I didn't get too much done because I had to work both Saturday and Sunday despite the advisory to not leave your house. Why can't they cancel work the way they cancel school? Oh well, I have tomorrow off and hopefully I will finish my novel.

Recently watched: Capote
Listening to: Barenaked Ladies-Are Me

Lucky number 7

What a day?! The release date for the 7th and final Harry Potter book was announced today. Coincidentally, it was on the same day that Jenni sent me a completed (but not yet edited) edition of chapter 7 of Behind the Naugahyde. Is it the universe's way of trying to intertwine the fates of great books present and future? Probably not, but both things happening have made my day super exciting. (Anyone else think it's odd that Jenni made one of these great things happen and J.K. Rowling made the other. That's two J's folks go ahead and count them. Sorry I'll stop now. Unless I think of something else like that if you combine "Behind the Naugahyde and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" there are 7 H's within. And yes I know it's sad that I counted those.)

I got a chance to read the completed chapter of Behind the Naugahyde and now I'm making some notes and Jenni will make some notes. Then we'll combine minds to either act or not act on particular notes. Then we'll do the acting or not acting. After that it's on to chapter 8.
As for the Deathly Hallows release date I am excited but also bummed since it will be the end and of course I'm naturally always bummed that I am not the author. I will still count down in great anticipation and will be in line at midnight on July 21. The store I bought the last three at is out of business so I'll either have to brave the long line at some giant store or find another independent store. And no I don't care if it cost more. Also I will have to ask for the Friday and Saturday off of work. On Friday there will be all kinds of festivities which I cannot miss and I need Saturday to read the book before someone ruins it for me. And someone will because mean people do that.

So it's been an exciting day for me. I made it to the library and found the book I was looking for. I actually ended up going to the branch in the richer part of the capital district which was lacking in parent-free children but was not void of snotty librarians. Not that I'm complaining. It's more of a comment. I could never complain about a place that lends me numerous amounts of books for free. I love that!

Library blues

Wow! I cannot believe January is now over. And no my NaNo novel is not finished but I'm so close that it's really shameful. If I had just worked a little harder on any given day I could have been done with it in three months but no need to dwell. I'll get over it. And finish it, by the end of this week.

I think I'll make another trip to the library tomorrow. A different branch. There's actually one within walking distance off my house but when I'm there I feel like I'm in a day care. The parent to child ratio is discouraging. I almost think parents drop their children off thinking who's going to kidnap them in a library. And it's horrible if that really is their only alternative or if they have other choices and that's what they go with.
The downtown library is better. Although most of the library has started to become consumed by the DVD section. It's depressing to see it change but I'm sure I'm not the first person nor will I be the last to hate to see something change. I just try hard to remember it the way it was. When I was younger I loved the library. My grandma would walk with me to the library every week. I remember having a goal of reading every book in it. And I used to picture that all the souls of the people in the books came out at night and haunted it. I don't think even now that I'll ever be able to stay in a library at night by myself.
Although if it does become completely dominated by DVD's I might be okay. I don't really get weirded out by video stores.

Just watched: The Devil Wears Prada (and no I did not borrow it from the library.)

You don't need THAT

One more day left in January and I'm not quite done with my NaNo novel so I guess my deadline has been bumped to the end of the week. Of course I do have tomorrow off from work and miracles can happen. After all this is my fourth day in a row of posting so you just never know.
I did learn something today while reading the last bit of my NaNo novel. I had to go back and read the last part I wrote because I couldn't remember exactly where I left off. And yes I'm pretty sure that's a bad thing but oh well. Anyway back to the thing I learned. You really don't need that as much as you think. I write the word that all the time. Way too much to be exact.
I've decided that I can't stand the word that.
See I could have just said that I've decided I can't stand the word that.
And in the last sentence all I need to say was that I could have just said I've decided....
Once again there was no need for that in the last sentence. I could have kept going on but it would never end.
So I learned something new. I can eliminate a good chunk of my word count if I just go through and take out some thats and when NaNoWriMo time comes around I will put that in every sentence and then edit them out in NaNoEdMo.

My trip to the libraries

Yet another post, goodness. I actually don't have much to say about writing today it's all more about reading.
I went to the library today, well two different branches of the Capital Area District Library. Originally I was searching for a few sci-fi/fantasy books because I'm thinking of writing a science fiction/fantasy story to enter into a contest. I haven't read much sci-fi fantasy although I've watched a lot of it. And I did write an eight page script for a sci-fi/western comic once. Although nothing ever happened with that. Anyway, I thought I should read a bit but I couldn't find any of the books I had in mind and I'm really horrible at just picking a book by looking at it so I ended up with nothing in that department.
I did however think to ask if they had a copy of Hannibal Rising. There are 37 copies in the CADL libraries and only two were available one of which was at the second branch I visited but was the first I asked if they had it. The other was at the first branch I visited but hadn't thought to look and/or ask for it. What are the odds? I think there are like maybe ten branches, give or take a few. Anyway, I've read all the other books by Thomas Harris except for his first book that isn't connected to the others. I liked them all but was a little bit disappointed in the way Hannibal ended. I won't go into details in case someone hasn't read it but it did not end like the movie.
I actually bought the first three for a dollar at a used book store that was going out of business. This was long after I had actually read them but I thought I might want to read them again one day so I picked them up. I couldn't afford to buy the hardcover of Hannibal Rising and wasn't sure I wanted to so I checked it out. Maybe I'll buy it one day if I like it.
And I can't even believe it already has a movie coming out.
I also checked out the trade paperbacks at the library but there wasn't anything that I didn't already have that I would be interested in reading. I have bookshelves of TPBs and I haven't even made a dent in reading them. At least now I have something to feed my comic book need while I'm insufficiently funded to buy new comic books right now. I'll just have very little idea of what's going on currently. It'll be annoying but I'll be okay. I think.

Just watched: Heroes

It's kind of like a weekly update

If I'm not going to post everyday I should come up with a better posting schedule. Sometimes I don't post for a week and then I post two days in a row. That's okay I like to be unpredictable.
Once again it is Sunday and I kind of felt like giving a weekly update on my writing since I didn't post much this week.
Since today was Sunday it was submission day. Sometimes submissions remind me of preparation for the SAS shoe sale. For those of you who have never worked in a particular crappy shoe store this is what it includes. It starts with going through the computer system and trying to find anyone who has bought an SAS in the last six months but isn't on the list and put them on the list. This may or may not include looking up the address in the phone book and/or fixing several errors. Also you want to keep an eye out for customers who haven't shopped there in years and remove them because they've mostly likely passed away and their family will call or even come in and complain that you sent mail to the deceased and that conversation is not pleasant. I think of that part as looking up different companies and then doing research to make sure my story would fit and trying to avoid letters that have rude comments about how I clearly didn't look into guidelines. After that comes the best part. Folding, stuff, sealing, labeling and sorting by zip code over 3,000 envelopes and if you're lucky your boss will get them at a reasonable time so it doesn't have to be done in four days (but you're not lucky). Needless to say that part reminds me of printing, folding, stuffing, sealing, addressing and recording all submissions.
Speaking of ridiculous tales about a shoe store, I did work on Behind the Naugahyde this week. I try to make Saturdays my Behind the Naugahyde day but I got sidetracked with blog reading yesterday so I didn't get as much done as I hoped. I did however get a surprise visit from the awesome Jenni while I was working at the previously mentioned crappy shoe store.
I'm still attempting to finish my still not titled NaNo novel before January's over. It can be done but if not, I'm certain it will be done by the end of the week which won't be too far off target, only about two months and three days.

Just watched: the Simpsons (yay! Bartman), King of the Hill(yay! Dale Gribble who has a freakishly scary resemblance to my dad) and Family Guy (yay! Rupert they really don't feature him enough)
Currently reading: Illness as a Metaphor and AIDS as a Metaphor by Susan Sontag