Earned Distractions

Helen: 4350 words written Monday, and counting! I flew by the 100,000 word mark, which doesn't exactly thrill me. I don't WANT to be much above 100K, but I am currently sitting shy of 106,400. Odysseus has arrived on the scene, which is always a good time. Wish he'd popped up closer to 95K than 110 though!

Television: With the excellent progress I've been making, I took a break last night to watch some Deadliest Catch. Guys, Instant Play on Netflix + Deadliest Catch = I could easily accomplish NOTHING for the next week. Deadliest Catch is the crack of reality television, in my opinion. When it's on, I can't turn it off. I mean, I am physically incapable. Those Deadliest Catch marathons on Discovery channel kill me. It's one of the reasons I'm glad we don't have cable, and most of the reason I never turn the television on when left to my own devices.

Other: A conversation on twitter prompted me to open up my Mia One-Shot short story. It's a worthless 17,000 words in length, but I love it. It interrupted my work on Helen a few months ago for a good two weeks, but it was worth the time, even though I can't do much with it. I thought, for your entertainment, and mine, I might share one of my favorite scenes today (or part of it--and it isn't revised because of Helen's takeover of my LIFE). I'm not sure the background really matters, but Mia is a determined flirt, and Jean is a Parisian born Frenchman who rather enjoys the ladies.

[removed]

Ah, also, I don't actually speak any French. PLEASE correct me if I'm wrong.

Quick Update and some Odysseus!

Helen crossed 93,000 94,000 96,000 97,000 words and I haven't hit the climax. At least I'm writing forward though! I'll take what I can get. I think I have one more chapter to go and then I'll be there, and then I can start the falling action and wrap it up. At this point, I do not think it will come in under 100,000 words, but I know there is some room to cut, and I'll be able to deal with that when I start editing. Over all, I'm feeling pretty good about how things are going. Tomorrow I'll have another long day to write, as long as I get started first thing when I get up. That's the trick, for me, I think-- as long as I open up the document and start working before I get sidetracked by anything else, I end up keeping on task a lot better than if I start with anything else first.

Edit: The last 1000 words were pure agony. Judging by the emotional tones, the climax just snuck up on me. DECISIONS HAVE BEEN MADE.
Edit Edit: I'm beginning to fear that I'm going to overshoot the ending somehow. I feel like I might have just written it. Except that it isn't where I want it to be. ARRRGGGHHHH I HATE ENDINGS.

ALSO, if you were wondering, my clam sauce came out awesome. The swiss chard was delicious. And my purple green beans were delicious. (Color changing when you cook them! How much awesomer can green beans even get?!)

Re: Odysseus's Palace Being Unearthed in Ithaca.
This is a great post explaining how when it comes to things like this, you have to be skeptical of the claims. The fact of the matter is, if you go LOOKING for something in history, with an agenda, you're bound to find supporting evidence-- but when it comes down to it, it doesn't really prove anything. Would it be awesome if we found a palace belonging to Odysseus? Heck yes! But just because a palace is unearthed of Mycenaean style and with a convenient date, does not mean this is so. Claiming it belonged to Odysseus is pretty presumptuous, honestly, unless you find his name carved into the stone. (And I hate to say it, but this all applies to the King Arthur mythology stuff too.)

Have a fabulous weekend!

Vegetables and Writing

I don't have a lot of time to blog-- Helen finally just started moving today, instead of being totally the most stubborn manuscript on the face of the earth, so I am writing writing writing for as long as it lasts. I hate the idea of opening this chapter with a dream, but I suppose since it isn't the FIRST chapter of the book it isn't breaking any rules. (I totally broke that one already anyway. I know, I know. But at least I'm not PRETENDING it's NOT a dream in the scene! More on how rules should sometimes be broken over at Mia's blog, which apparently I am determined to promote of late!)

Also, I have the monstrous task of cooking up all the vegetables my mother sent us home with. I have a giant pile of Swiss chard, a second giant pile of beets with greens attached, a smaller pile of green beans and lots of tomatoes and cucumbers, fresh basil, garden garlic, and fresh parsley. This would be great eating for the rest of the week if my husband were actually going to be home for dinner ever. Unfortunately that isn't meant to be.

I'm going to use up the fresh parsley, and a portion of the garlic with some home made clam sauce, then cook up some shell pasta. It just happens to go super well with swiss chard, and if I'm really on my a-game, maybe I'll crack open the white wine and toss some of that in too (it's been sitting in my fridge for WAY too long). Either way I need to chop the greens off the beets and store them separately so they'll keep a bit longer, and get everything squared up that way. Plus dishwashing. Oh, dishwashing, you are, as ever, the most frustrating of kitchen chores. You are the boulder to my Sisyphus.


And you know, sometimes writing can feel that way too-- like we're Sisyphus, pushing that gosh darn boulder up the hill only to have it come crashing back down on us before we make it to the top. The job is never finished. The manuscript is never complete, never perfect, never up to par with whatever it is we're doing next. Like the dishes, when you think you're done, more stuff crops up that needs revision or rewriting or editing. Or maybe it's just the new book, and the same old challenge of making it sing. But remember, as long as we're writing, even if the "finished" manuscript doesn't sell, even if we have to roll that boulder back up the hill by writing a new book, it's still practice, and with every struggle to the top, we're honing our craft and becoming stronger writers for it.

Just like Sisyphus is going to have the most awesomely sculpted thighs and arms of any man who ever lived. If, uh, he ever gets to quit rolling his boulder and show them off...

A Letter to Helen

Dear Helen,

We have been through a lot together. It's been a great run. We've had good times, and we've had bad. We've distanced ourselves with third person, and grown closer with first. We've taught each other a lot, and you know that I don't in any way wish terrible things to happen to you.

I just want to remind you of something. Though the end of your book is coming up on us, this is not the end of your story. This is not the absolute finish. You are not STUCK where I will leave you. There are plenty of options still! Egypt, Troy, body doubles made of clouds! I know you don't believe me, but the gods are in your corner, and trust me when I tell you that we will ALL be understanding of whatever choices you make in the future. I know that things don't look bright right now, and really, all this doom and gloom, it's terrible. It's agonizing. I hate every minute of what's coming in the immediate future. BUT remember that you still have hope! There is a whole new book waiting for you on the other side! A book that MIGHT* even have a happy ending, instead of a tragic one!

I really am sorry for what Homer did to you, but don't take it out on me, please. And hey, look at it this way, you still get to meet Odysseus, and he's kind of a cool guy! And there's the reunion with your brothers to look forward to! You know Pollux will be thrilled to see you again. You guys are like BFF! Then there is the lack of maintenance when you're back home-- no more worrying about coloring your roots and keeping your hair dyed! That will save you SO much time! So, I mean, it isn't ALL terrible. Let's just get through this together, just like we've gotten through everything else, and put it behind us!

Love and Skittles,
Amalia

*I'm sorry to say that I can't make any promises as to the LEVEL of happiness in this regard. But I CAN promise you that it will absolutely be less awful than this one.

Why is my Lounge filled with Bloggers? OR Bloggy Snatchers Blogfest!

Please go here to see the list of other participants in Ms. SonshineMusic's Excellent Festival of Blogs. And do be sure that you read Mia's post here before this one, because it is to this--this--IMPOSITION--that I am responding! :P

I knew Mia was coming today, but I had some errands to run before she arrived, so I had been out for most of the morning. Mostly these errands involved buying hot dogs to have on hand for the zombies, just in case, and let me tell you that a certain Thunder God was not happy about the news that we were having undead guests.

"Zombies are trouble," he grumbled, holding the door for me when we arrived back at the house. "And you'll have a mess. It isn't as if you can train them. Glitter," he warned. "Everywhere."

"It's only for a few days." I ignored his glower. Thunder gods are incredibly skilled at glowering, and then the whole sky glowers down on people too. I smiled brightly to counteract the darkening clouds, and he exhaled his frustration as we headed into the kitchen. He set the groceries down on the counter, still grumbling. And when I say grumble, I mean rumble. But as long as it was only a quiet roll of thunder, I figured we'd be okay.

Before I could even get the hot dogs out of the bag, the lounge door exploded inward. A woman with feathers stuck to her clothing and glitter on her skin blasted through the kitchen, shouting, and ran straight into Thor's immense person, followed by three zombies. Thor caught the human, but he let the zombies bounce, his eyes flaming white as they toppled to the floor in a pile.

He gave me a LOOK, his lips pressed together into a grim, I-told-you-so line that I was much, much too familiar with.

"Uhm." I stared at the woman as Thor set her to rights. "You're not Mia?"

"Oh, Amalia! You're home!" Tessa smiled, brushing herself off and glancing side long at the thunder god who had just crossed his arms over his chest in a very imposing manner. The zombies scrambled under his glare, lurching back the way they had come leaving a trail of feathers and glitter. "That's wonderful! Now we can really get started!"

"Get... started?" I was wondering if that was really a question I wanted to ask even while I followed the zombie-path to the door. They had left it open of course, when they ran back out.

I blinked a few times at the sight that greeted me in the lounge. How had I not heard the television when we walked in? Nick must have had the volume at 62 to hear it over the others, and Simon was laughing with him loudly, waving his glass. I hoped that he had brought his own Vodka, because I was fairly certain the quality of mine was not up to his usual--shall we say-- par?

"Well," Tessa was saying behind me, "We heard that Mia was coming, and so we figured you wouldn't mind if we came too, especially since she was bringing the zombies already. You can always use a few more hands to keep them from getting into things!"

"Yes," I said faintly, watching the zombies in question throw glitter at one another, getting it absolutely everywhere all over my favorite brown paisley armchair.

Oh god I was never going to get it all off. So. Much. Glitter. "Yes, that's true."

Behind me, I heard a very distinct snort from Thor at my internal monologue. I cleared my throat.

"#Amalia!" Mia grinned, hopping up from her seat on the couch and skipping toward me.

Everyone else looked up, seeing me for the first time. A chorus of hellos came from Rebecca, Naomi, and Tahereh. Nick gave one of those I'm-too-cool-to-look-up-from-the-game half-waves of the wrist, and Simon raised his glass with a "Cheers!"

"Uhm. Hi," I said.

And then the training of my childhood kicked in. Apparently, seeing so many people in my lounge, I had no other choice. There was only one thing that could be done in this scenario of home-invasion!

No.
Other.
Choice.

"Anybody need something to drink? a glass of water? Something to eat? I brought..." I glanced at the zombies and lowered my voice to a whisper so only Mia and Tessa could hear. "I bought some hot dogs for the zombies."

"#ThatsGREAT!" Mia said.

Thor sighed, evidently giving up on the idea that I was going to let him evict anyone. A rumble of thunder sounded outside, but it didn't shake the walls, so I figured it would all be fine. There would be plenty of time to kick everyone out later, after all, AFTER they'd been fed.

SO THERE, BLOGGY INVADERS! SO. THERE.

First Kiss, Part Two

Remember when I talked about how I had been agonizing over Helen's first kiss? Well, as a form of procrastination, I am revisiting my agony again. Apparently Helen will stoop to anything to keep me from finishing her book! I'm back staring at the kiss-scene chapter again, instead of moving forward.

I went and dug through the first draft, written in third person, to find how I wrote her first kiss the first time, since all I seemed to be able to do THIS time was stare at the page while I wrote "His lips brushed mine," and then deleted it and replaced it with "He kissed me, soft and gentle," and then deleted that and rewrote "His lips brushed mine," again... and I think you know where this is going. Anyway, I wanted to share the first draft-- because I wish I could just lift it, switch the she's to I's, polish it up, and slap it into this book. Unfortunately it doesn't fit the narrative anymore though, so I'm still staring at my screen at a loss.

[excerpt removed]

Needless to say, rereading the original, I wonder how I managed to write it without agonizing. I don't remember having any problem slapping this down on the page at all, and it isn't half bad!

I must just be over-thinking it this time around. I don't know. Stupid kissing scenes. Or. It's entirely possible that my problem is that I'm writing in first person instead of third.

Does anyone else have problems writing certain kinds of scenes in first person, that are otherwise no trouble in third?

Keeping it Brief! and an ARC GIVEAWAY

All right friends, I am completely failing at the Helen thing right now, so my blogposts are going to be, I hope, on the briefer side of things until I finish (85,750 words and counting!).

But here is the deal!

1) I rewrote my query for BoG for the umpteenth time and a half, because the query I THOUGHT was awesome clearly isn't awesome enough judging by the responses from the trench. HUGE thanks to Tina Lynn and Miss Mia Hayson for their assistance in that endeavor! I'm still agonizing, but it SHOULD be improved. Right now (midnight) I hate everything though, so I'm going to wait until morning and see how it reads after a good night's sleep. Also going to send it out to a couple of other folks to see if they think it's working before I commit to it whole-heartedly and start proclaiming any kind of level of awesome THIS TIME.

2) I am attempting to rewrite my synopsis to make it more concise. The one I have now, I'm not entirely a fan of because it's broken up into three sections and fairly long even before it gets double spaced. I wrote it kind of off the cuff, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but I think I can do better. So. I'm going to give it a shot. Worst case: I go back to using the old synopsis if this one I'm writing sucks harder. Best Case: Synopsis Win. Either way: It's Practice and Practice, as we all know, Makes Perfect.

3) HELEN FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS HOLY LET ME FINISH YOUR BOOK ALREADY.

4) Shannon Whitney Messenger is doing a HUGE arc Giveaway and one of the arcs is Robin McKinley's PEGASUS. Now, I just happen to be a big fan of Robin McKinley, and this book sounds amazing. For that matter, most of the books she's giving away sound amazing! What you need to do, my followers, is head over and become a follower of Shannon's, and make sure you mention I sent you to get me some extra entry-age. You guys know I'm serious, because I rarely ever post anything about contests. SO. Go Forth. Enter to win. Let's make this happen. We don't want another episode like Frankie's Hunger Games giveaway, with that utter failure. This time, we want to win, guys! We want to Win. (No, I still haven't read The Hunger Games, but if this Helen ridiculousness keeps up... well. Let's hope it doesn't.)

5) You may be thinking that I'm using this query rewriting and synopsis rewriting as a procrastination tool so that I don't have to write the awful agony that is the end of Helen's book. You may also be right.

Happy Tuesday, folks!