Weird – a Magical Confidence

Tags

be happy, be you, choices, growing up, thoughts, weirdness

My 12yo daughter will smile and say, “We’re weird, Mom, and that’s okay.”

Wow. Such wisdom. If only I had known.

When I was 12, or even 13, 14, 15, 16… 21, 22… yeah, you get the picture, if I would have been able to say that I liked me, that being me made me happy, that being different was my choice, life would have been… better? different? happier? Maybe. Not being like everyone else had been my choice, but I didn’t see it that way. I thought something was wrong with me. I was weird. I was quiet, a goodie-two-shoes (still am *puffs chest out*), got good grades, read books, drew strange pictures of evil-looking creatures (it freaked my mom out), didn’t wear all the latest trends, and liked being home with my mom and dad.

And I was happy that way, but couldn’t see it!

Kids made fun of me. I didn’t get to go to all the parties. Boys did not ask me to dance. Something must have been wrong with me. That terrible inner voice screamed that no one liked me. I desperately wanted someone to like me, which would be difficult considering I didn’t really like myself. In the midst of our strange teen years, does anyone really like themselves?

So now, as an *cough*adult*cough* I embraced the weird, the different. I like to be me. Not everyone gets to see that brilliance shine, because not everyone will completely appreciate it. I’m okay with that. I don’t need everyone to like me.

I still don’t go with the flow. A group of friends isn’t calling me to go out. I take myself to the movies. I’d rather be home with my cats, computer, and chocolate. My greatest wish is to have time to myself every night.

I hope I am teaching my kids to be happy, to understand that not being like everyone else is a choice, one you should celebrate. Other people’s lives are not molds to fit ours into. Be happy with what you choose and who you choose to be.

Embrace it. And never look back.

Expectations

Tags

expectations, magic, panic, pitchwars, thoughts, writeoncon, writing

Expectations can be a weakness. They can steal the magic.

It stems from hope, maybe this or that will happen, but grows into an untamable beastie. I want… I need this to happen. I act out the entire thing in my mind.

Wrong! Don’t do it.

I entered pitchwars and found myself beyond frustrated. I had a goal. I was conducting an experiment. However, if you have no control over the situation, the experiment will fail. The wonderful mentors spend A LOT of their time reading submissions, picking ones that resonate with them, choosing manuscripts they think they can help. It really is a marvelous thing.

I would love a mentor. I think the beginning of my manuscript needs help. Really. Let’s be honest, beginnings aren’t my thing. At. All.

But if I’m going with honesty… I wanted to know if my query and first chapter could hook a reader. And pitchwars is not the place to do this. Not. Some mentors request pages, I thought maybe if I got page requests… BAM I hooked someone. So when I get no requests? When none of the mentors follow me back on Twitter… does that mean I suck?

Maybe.

Okay… NO. Mine could be pretty good, but not what they are looking for. Maybe they don’t feel like they can help mine. Some mentors don’t request pages. Some mentors stay pretty quiet while they’re selecting their victims… er, winners. And these busy people with lives of their own don’t have time to give me feedback. That’s just silly.

So I had expectations, but they weren’t realistic. I do write fantasy, so real isn’t something I do well. I need to relax and see what happens. I need to remember why I enjoyed pitchwars last year, because of what it can give me. Friends. Contacts. CPs. And other ways to fulfill my expectations.

Look for the good and that is what you will find! *beats self over head*

So I heard about WriteOnCon… a forum for writers to post queries, the first 250 words, and the first 5 pages and other writers will stop by to comment, and I can comment on others. I went and signed up then panicked… OHMYGOSHWHATISTHISWHATAMIDOINGTHEREISTOOMUCHANDIDONTKNOWWHERETOGO!

So I gave up.  Seriously, this is classic me. Don’t be afraid, I usually end up hating the fact that I quit and go back with fierce determination. I’m not a complete loser. Pfft.

Then I mentioned my giving up on Twitter and a very nice friend Kate Foster @winellroad helped me figure out what to click on and how to do it. So I did. However, my query didn’t seem to post, so no idea there. And I am still floundering about over there. I am KPalm if you want to find me… be my friend… something.

Now, with WriteOnCon, I expect to read some good words and make a few (hopefully) helpful comments. I expect to get a few comments that I will use to make my writing better. From pitchwars, I expect the mentors to choose a ms to make them happy, that they love and if it isn’t mine, I get it. I won’t throw in the towel.

Expectations can wipe away the magic that I treasure, the magic of what comes from living.

Dr. Who Magic Returns… TONIGHT

Tags

celebrate, Dr. Who, season premiere, thoughts, TV

For those of you who do not know the marvelousness that is the sci-fi show Dr. Who, this post might not mean much to you (that’s okay, I still love you). For all you Whovians out there, get up and celebrate with me! You know why!

 

Tonight! The season premiere!

Not just any new show, but a new Doctor! Scary and exciting, I have seen many Doctors come and go, some I’ve loved, others I liked, and a couple I didn’t really connect with.

Late one night in the fall of 1989, when I was a junior in high school, I came home from being at a football game with friends (yes, I had a few). Needing time to unwind from the stress of being social, I went downstairs to watch TV and found my dad draped comfortably on the couch, a TV show I didn’t recognize flickering in the background. So I sat. My dad has good taste in TV and movie, so if he watched it, I did too, believe me I discovered many shows I loved doing that.

I started watching these strange people, until finally I couldn’t take it.

“What is this?” I asked.

“Dr. Who,” Dad replied.

“Dr. Who?” I asked. I know! The whole I said that fact is terribly cool.

Then he went on to explain about Time Lords and traveling through time and space in the TARDIS, he shared his knowledge of regenerations and The Master and Daleks… AND ALL THE WONDERFUL THINGS.

And every weekend after that I perched myself on the couch to watch Dr. Who with my dad.

I have seen every show from the Third Doctor on and a couple from the first and second regeneration. Let’s remember, shall we?

The First Doctor started it all in 1963. William Hartnell played the role until 1966. He traveled to the time of the dinosaurs, the wild west, and faced the Daleks.

Patrick Troughton played the Second Doctor from 1966-1969 and brought a bit of craziness and a recorder. We met the Daleks again and discovered an army of Cybermen.

Jon Pertwee Took over in 1970-1974 as the Third Doctor, who the Time Lords punished by trapping him on Earth. Still plenty of adventures, I missed the TARDIS. However, one of my favorite companions Sarah Jane Smith joined the fun.

My very favorite Doctor, the fourth regeneration, Tom Baker took us back out into time and space from 1974-1981. With a pocket full of jelly babies, a really long scarf, and a strange wit, he took us to deal with Daleks, Cybermen, and Zygots.

Peter Davison entered as the Fifth from 1982-1984 as a nicer version. His celery pinned to his lapel, he and his TARDIS packed full of companions (SO many!) traveled time and space fighting the good fight.

The Sixth Doctor, Colin Baker, took over from 1984-1986. Not my favorite one, he was a bit of gloom and faced the Time Lords when they put him on trial.

You might know the Seventh Doctor, Sylvester McCoy, from The Hobbit as Radagast the Brown. From 1987-1996 with his umbrella and explosion-loving companion Ace, he once again faced the Daleks and some super creepy clowns. Now the shows disappeared somewhere in there. I remember them ending. Dad and I panicked. And for a while I thought Dr. Who would never return. Until…

Fox made a TV movie in 1996 where we see the Seventh regenerate into the Eighth, played by Paul McGann, who brought humanity to the role, letting him love. The whole feelings thing totally caught me off guard, but it paved the way for later regenerations.

Of course after the movie, I once again felt a pang of sadness. Had they brought it back for one movie and that’s it?

Nope.

Christopher Eccleston took over the role when the Sy-fy channel (THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!) brought the show back in 2005. For only one glorious season everything was fantastic! Then we said good-bye (too early) to the Ninth Doctor.

David Tennant ruled as the Tenth Doctor from 2005-2009. Allons-y took over the TARDIS as he brought so many emotions to the role and serious awesome shoes.

Finally that brings us to the Eleventh Doctor Matt Smith, 2010-2014, who brought a bit of the craziness of the Fourth Doctor back as well as a bow tie, which is cool. Hello, sweetie.

Now we settle in to get to know a new Doctor Peter Capaldi. What will he bring to the role? Who will travel with him?

LET’S GO!

The Magic of Wanting

Tags

dreams, failure, magic, pitchwars, thoughts, writing

We all have dreams. Goals. Passions that drive us to get out of bed and, maybe, put on pants. (or not, no one panic)

I recently finished another round of tough revisions for my YA fantasy Doors and I entered pitchwars, an online contest where we writers hope that a mentor picks us to help polish our manuscript to a high shine for agents. In my YA category, there are over 500 entries. So do I stand a chance? I don’t know, probably not. So why do I torture myself by pressing submit? Why do I stalk the Twitter feed looking for clues that my ms has caught someone’s attention?

Because!

Because I have a need, a desire, this terrible burning in my gut… I want to be published SO MUCH – like every other writer out there. I burst out in tears when others share news about getting an agent or their book published. Because I want it to be me…

And I fear it never will be.

What makes my books stand out? I don’t know. Is my writing really any good? I don’t know.

But I keep doing it. I keep writing. I keep entering contests and sending out queries because of a little spark of hope, one that won’t die, one that won’t let me give up and find a real job I can hate forever.

I want to know if I have a chance.

TELL ME PURRRR-LEASE!

Last year my YA fantasy Faerie Wind was failing out there in the land of querying. Last year it had its turn to not be picked for pitchwars. Maybe next year I’ll have another one… my YA magical realism Fate’s Mistake is next on the big revision block.

Yea.

I am lucky to do what I love. I write for me because I have these stories to tell. But I write so that someone else out there can share in the journeys and maybe be affected by my words. And I am privileged to get to read and critique others’ work – seriously love that part. One I get to start soon! Eeeek!

Even though right now I am having a party with my self-doubt, a big mess of a party. Right now I am reaching out on FB and Twitter hoping for words of encouragement. (and I’m getting them, *bows in gratitude*)

Even though no one can ever answer my question of if I have a chance.

I’ll keep going. Because as afraid as I am of failing… I am more afraid of never succeeding.

Fear is not a welcome traveling companion. Fear will never lead you down the right path of life.

The magic of wanting keeps us all going.

 

 

When the Magic is Lost

Tags

anti-police, Ferguson, hate, human, make our world better, mistakes, police, thoughts

There are bad people in the world. Terrible things happen.

I haven’t been following every moment of the tragic events in Ferguson. I don’t know every detail. Honestly, I don’t think anyone knows all the facts and we might never know. I do know that a lot of people have decided that they know what happened and are angry, more than that they’re enraged. Instead of grieving, of acknowledging mistakes, learning and moving on, they are acting on their rage.

They need someone to blame. But there is no one to blame.

The anti-police comments have brought me to tears. For those of you who don’t know, my hubs has been a cop for almost 19 years. People have pulled guns and shot at him, people have run from him, people have told him he should have better things to do than pull them over, people have tried to hit him. He’s seen people dead in their homes, been in the midst of angry crowds ready to riot, and sat out all night in the rain to catch people when they decided to break the law and steal. He has been trained to deal with all of this. He has put on riot gear and sprayed mace. He has drawn his gun, but never used it. He does his job to the best of his ability, like a lot of the police out there.

I’m not saying all police are good. Like all human beings everywhere, there are those who don’t follow the rules and sometimes they make mistakes. We all do.

Being a cop is a tough job. Before we blame those in uniform for everything that goes wrong, let’s remember that they are people. Just people, who make mistakes, who have problems, and who are doing their jobs. And they have families. So in my own little way, I am here to stand up for them. If you haven’t been in their shoes don’t judge.

What happened in Ferguson was terrible and I grieve for the loss of life, but this happens everywhere. People shoot people all the time and no one does anything, until it involves a cop, until it involves race.

Did a cop make a mistake? I don’t know. Maybe. Or maybe he did what he needed to. No one will ever know because no one is listening. No one cares. But we should.

Are the events in Ferguson the fault of the police? No. People decided to react by standing and screaming for blood, for justice.

How is this making our world better?

It’s not.

We are Human. There will always be bad people. There will always be violence because someone can’t accept someone else. There will always be violence because no one cares to listen. Reacting to violence with violence only increases the hate and rage.

So take a step back. Before we decide who to blame for all the evil in the world, let’s look at ourselves. Are we doing everything we can to make our world better? Or are we just pointing fingers hoping no one looks back at us, at our mistakes, at our problems.

Don’t lose sight of the magic that is life.

And now I will climb down from my soapbox … carry on.

Let’s Talk about Stress… Bay-bee

Tags

Believe, friends, hope, self doubt, stress, support, thoughts, writing

So… yesterday, I kinda freaked out.

No biggie, I do this every once in a while when life seems impossible, when what I want is an inch (or a million miles) too far out of reach, and I begin to doubt my ability to grab hold of it and make it more than a dream, but a reality.

This goes for everything, not just writing. Everyone has dreams. Everyone has self-doubt, whether a tiny speck or a mountain stretching into outer space. We all struggle. Some of us might explode in rage. Others will curl up in a dark corner and throw M&Ms at themselves (my chosen method of “dealing”). Tears will roll. We will attempt to comfort with food, or perhaps working out (I suppose those people do exist).

But what we should do is talk. Let it out into the world. Somehow, when all our worries and fears are set free into the universe they lose their power. So after I sobbed hysterically, draped over the arm of my couch, I turned to my friends on Twitter and FB. I tried not to unload all of my fears, keeping my pity party to a minimum, but got enough out there that I got responses. Really, when we say things out loud, we want someone to say something back, kind words of encouragement or an acknowledgement that we are not the only ones struggling.

Writers united yesterday to give me a bit of a pep talk. One I desperately needed. One I will need again, I am certain. My wonderful CP even sent me a love-filled e-mail (WHILE ON VACATION, so I felt special). Twitter. Facebook. A day with my writers’ group allowed me to have fun and not think about all the problems spinning in my head.

So, when I sat down to revise last night, I got through two chapters and the problem chapters lurking in the beginning of the manuscript, well, I had enough faith to know that I would get to those and do the best I could.

That’s the magic… believing, doing the best you can. It works every time. And when it’s too hard to believe in yourself, others will carry you for a moment, allowing you to drink of their faith, of their joy. I hope I add as much magic to the lives of others as they have given to mine.

Will my dream ever come true. I honestly don’t know, but I HOPE, and will always hope. Thanks to all my friends… my cheerleaders, without them I would still be tossing chocolate at myself, muttering incoherently, while curled up in a corner. I hope you know who you are. I shall bake you all a cake.

When stress hits, find your support. It’s out there. Always believe.

 

 

The Utterly Uninteresting and Unadventurous Tales of Fred, the Vampire Accountant Review Tour

Tags

book review, Drew Hayes, fantasy, funny, parahumans, The Utterly Uninteresting and Unadventurous Tales of Fred the Vampire Accountant, vampires, werewolves

This is my first attempt at doing a book review.
Eeek!

I was asked to read and review Drew Hayes’ new book The Utterly Uninteresting and Unadventurous Tales of Fred, the Vampire Accountant. I was honored! And YES, YES I WOULD. So here goes.

“My name is Fredrick Frankford Fletcher, and yes, that name did get me beaten up quite frequently when I was a child.” – from Fred (as it is lovingly known) by Drew Hayes

Fabulous cover!

Blurb:
Some people are born boring. Some live boring. Some even die boring. Fred managed to do all three, and when he woke up as a vampire, he did so as a boring one. Timid, socially awkward, and plagued by self-esteem issues, Fred has never been the adventurous sort.
One fateful night – different from the night he died, which was more inconvenient than fateful – Fred reconnects with an old friend at his high school reunion. This rekindled relationship sets off a chain of events thrusting him right into the chaos that is the parahuman world, a world with chipper zombies, truck driver wereponies, maniacal necromancers, ancient dragons, and now one undead accountant trying his best to “survive.” Because even after it’s over, life can still be a downright bloody mess.

REUTS Publications – http://www.reuts.com/about/

GoodReads – https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22081680-the-utterly-uninteresting-and-unadventurous-tales-of-fred-the-vampire-a?from_search=true

Amazon http://www.amazon.com/Utterly-Uninteresting-Unadventurous-Vampire-Accountant-ebook/dp/B00M6AM6Q8/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1407767495&sr=1-1&keywords=drew+hayes

4.5 out of 5 stars…

Don’t let the title fool you! This is anything but uninteresting. Told in parts, different tales from Fred’s life… er, rather unlife?… show you that Fred is no ordinary vampire.

“Eternal life was pleasant enough, I suppose, though I’d become concerned about what I would do once I finished viewing every movie in the rental store.” – Drew Hayes

He’s a real hoot. A party animal. (okay not really)

“As I’d learned already, it turned out admittance into the club of ultra-powerful undead beings is much like buying a fantastic new home-theater system. Once the novelty wears off, you find yourself realizing that while the method of presenting it has greatly improved, the content generated is still just as lackluster as it was previously.” -Drew Hayes

Each tale offers a fun romp through the parahuman world of vampires, weresteeds (yes, wereSTEEDS), zombies, and devils. Each story shows us a bit more of Fred’s personality – cause under that eco-friendly, movie-watching, brown loafer-wearing vampire is a pretty cool guy.

I was bogged down a bit at the beginning of each part as he repeated information. But I got over that as the adventure began. And there’s plenty of adventure. Fights with werewolves…

“If you have never been fortunate enough to see a look of utter surprise race across a werewolf’s face, I highly recommend you do so.” -Drew Hayes

Ah! LARPing! And not just because that brought me one of my favorite characters, Albert, who holds a special place in my heart, but a vampire pretending to be, well, a vampire is totally fun.

“That’s right; I was hunching my way through a forest with finger horns.” – Drew Hayes

My favorite tale included the best and strangest joust ever, where Bubba really shines. (okay I had a quote to go here, but I can’t … *giggle* … you just have to read it.)
But I will say this…

“Today, the only cavalry we had was a werepony, a bumbling zombie, and a chickenshit vampire.” -Drew Hayes

The words lacked emotion, I didn’t feel the love story, the panic, the fear. Then again it is written more as recollections from a journal than a first-hand account. In the end, Fred is not an emotion-filled guy, so I went with it and enjoyed it.

The characters make this book! They are fun, different and crazy in their own ways. Albert, *sigh*, everyone needs a zombie in their lives. And life without Bubba would be tragical. And Fred, of course, the vampire who wears a sweater vest and has no idea what he’s doing. I laughed. I smiled as Fred learns to live his life… after he dies.

“We aren’t human, but that doesn’t make us monsters.” -Drew Hayes

The final words left a smile on my face. Because in the end…

“Sometimes being a vampire really blows.” -Drew Hayes

Now for a bit about Drew Hayes… cause he’s worth knowing.

He just screams awesome…

Author Bio:
Drew Hayes is an aspiring author from Texas who has written several books and found the gumption to publish a few (so far). He graduated from Texas Tech with a B.A. in English, because evidently he’s not familiar with what the term “employable” means. Drew has been called one of the most profound, prolific, and talented authors of his generation, but a table full of drunks will say almost anything when offered a round of free shots. Drew feels kind of like a D-bag writing about himself in the third person like this. He does appreciate that you’re still reading, though.
Drew would like to sit down and have a beer with you. Or a cocktail. He’s not here to judge your preferences. Drew is terrible at being serious, and has no real idea what a snippet biography is meant to convey anyway. Drew thinks you are awesome just the way you are. That part, he meant. Drew is off to go high-five random people, because who doesn’t love a good high-five? No one, that’s who.

Website – http://www.drewhayesnovels.com/

Twitter https://twitter.com/DrewHayesNovels

If you like humor and weirdness, this book might just make you smile.  (I wish I were better with adding links that don’t look like a jumbled mess)

When the Magic Began

Tags

Believe, celebrate, life struggle, magic, revising, thoughts, writing

Ten years.

Ten years ago I announced that I wanted to write a book. And I did.

The joy. The fear. The overwhelming emotions of finally discovering what you want to do with your life, what you’re meant to be.

And I had two kids at the fabulous ages of two and three. I didn’t need to pay attention to them. Pfft.

But I was also 31 years-old and ready to be me, to find my passion. Life as a mom was great, but I wanted more.

Back then I had no idea what it took to write a book, well, writing it was easy, finding out that you have to edit it four hundred times and then trying to get it published would threaten to destroy my soul.

With several finished manuscripts, short stories, and a brain full of ideas, I know I chose the right path. Writing, making up stuff is what I love.

I want to celebrate the years of learning, of discovering a lot more courage buried deep within me than I ever thought possible. Any artist who has offered their work to the world, braving the critiques and rejections for those moments of acceptance, deserves to be celebrated.

Maybe I’ll bake a cake. I like cake.

Ten years ago, the magic began. Who knows how far I will get. My stories have done okay. I am working on getting a book published. Will it happen? I honestly don’t know. I can do the work, revise, write, listen to comments. I can control where to send queries. I can’t control whether or not my voice and my stories connect with agents or publishers and I will try not to let that affect me.

Even though sometimes it does. Even though there are times I want to quit, seconds where I stop believing. But the stories never lose hope, because they keep talking to me, forming in my mind.

So I write what speaks to me, what lives in my heart.

I love what I do. I will keep doing it, forever searching for that someday when someone else loves it too.

I will not worry about what I can’t control. The market. What people read. What agents want to see. All that will keep me from being me, from finding true joy.

To all of us out there struggling to find our place in the world (not just writing) I raise a big glass of chocolate milk.

To us! Be happy in the life you have chosen and don’t let the great, unforgiving world steal your joy.

Just be.

 

Blog Tour… a Bit Magical, a Little Mystical

Tags

Blog tour, writing

The wonderful Mary Lou Rigdon has invited me to join this world blog tour. I met Mary Lou when I joined the Summit City Scribes writers’ group a couple of years ago. Her fabulous advice has helped my writing improve and listening to her read is always great! Seriously, folks, this woman can WRITE. Look for her books on Amazon, so many different genres and categories… it will blow your mind. I personally LOVE her YA fantasy http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=M.L.Rigdon

Her website has all the details http://mlrigdon.com/.

Follow her on Twitter https://twitter.com/RigdonML .

Go visit her blog, http://historyfanforever.wordpress.com/  read her post and wave! She’s even newer to blogging than I am! *gasp* I know.

I want to share the terrifying, twisted, awe-inspiring tale of how I came to be a writer. Okay, it’s really pretty normal and boring.

As a kid, I made up stuff. I have notebooks full of drawings of beings, creatures, and worlds. I wrote paragraphs describing everything from what a character looked like, to who they were, to how they lived. My fantastic creatures and worlds kept me entertained for hours. In my head, everything was real and had a story. I decided I wanted to be an illustrator, to give the power of words an added kick with color and lines. It never crossed my mind to be a writer, I could never be a part of that elite group. No way. So I went to school and received my degree in art. Yea!

But, it didn’t seem to be my passion. Painting was fun, but it didn’t drive me forward.
I’ll never forget the day I was standing at the kitchen sink, cleaning something (I do that a lot), thinking about the same story that had been circling my head for years, when the answer hit. I had currently been involved in reading Harry Potter and it occurred to me that writing for kids, for teens would be fun, more than that… it would be PERFECT! In that moment, the characters I had struggled with took form and began talking. The story floating about my brain became real. That story still sits in my computer and on discs and on a flash drive. I write three out of what will be a series of four books. Someday, I will go back to them, and discover how awful my writing was when I first set off down that path, but I will go back, because I love that story.

What am I currently working on?

I am tackling the final revision of my YA fantasy DOORS, born of a simple idea… what if you could go anywhere in the universe, what if there was a door. Well, I had a few readers offer to critique it. FABULOUS PEOPLE! I love comments. I love letting them sink into my brain so it can come up with what I want to change. But I am procrastinating diving into the words. What if I fail? What if I just can’t make it better? Stop me if I go for the flame thrower… please.
I am also working on edits for my two stories that were chosen to be published in the Reuts anthology of twisted fairy tales.
I will also be writing a short story for Pen and Muse blog, who are calling for shorts featuring a haunted house. If that appeals to you, go sign up to participate. Should be FUN!

How does my work differ from others of its genre?

Sit ten authors down, give them the same idea, and BLAMO… ten different stories. I like to think my words create music, their own special tune. I like to think my odd view of the world helps me stand out, but who really knows.

Why do I write what I write?

I read fantasy, horror, anything weird. I watch the same thing on TV or at the movies. My brain is wired to hold onto the strange and paranormal, the magical and fantastical. That would be me. Since that’s what interests me, since that what sticks in my head, that’s what I write. The stories and characters come from a place in my heart. I write to change someone’s perspective. I write to add my bit of weird to the world.

How does my writing process work?

I wouldn’t go right for the word process. My notebooks full of notes, of character sketches, of plot points and every idea EVER are a mess. My ideas become snowballs on a white snow-covered hills. Sometimes, the ball rolls down the hill, constantly growing as the story is revealed to me. Yes, revealed. The story exists, I wait for it to step out of the shadows.
Then I write it without dwelling on all the grammar problems and terrible word choices. I need the story written then all can be fixed in revisions.
I LOVE CPs! I LOVE comments!
Relaxing, taking a moment to do nothing will unlock all the answers. The more we try to pry open the box holding the answers, the more locks appear. So no worries, the answers will come when they will.

Because I did a writing process tour last week, I am going to direct your attention to a few writers’ blogs that I love, some of whom have shared their writing process.

Kris Holt is witty wrapped up in awesome. Go say hi.

http://4thousandwords.blogspot.com/

Jamie Adams makes me smile.

http://jamieadamswriting.wordpress.com/

Judith Post offers great insight into writing and being a writer.

http://writingmusings.com/2014/08/03/writing-you-have-to-find-what-works-for-you/

Julie Artz is a new to this touring thing, so give her a round of applause.

http://www.terminalverbosity.com/

Aaaaaand… I’m out!

Axis of Awesome

Tags

awesomeness, change the world, growing, Kelsey Timmerman, learning, Midwest Writers' Workshop, thoughts

At the Midwest Writers’ Workshop (MWW), I accumulated information from authors, from agents, from everywhere. I enjoyed the speakers. I enjoyed the lessons, workshops, sessions (honestly I have no idea what to call the hours spent soaking in all the words).

My friends Rena Olsen and Jamie Adams have been discussing the experience on their blogs. Go visit. They have lots of wisdom to share.

http://renaolsen.com/

http://jamieadamswriting.wordpress.com/

Anyway… The Saturday morning schedule read “Buttonhole the Experts”. Huh?

Well, groups of six people could sit at tables with an agent, author, or generally smart person and ask any questions that popped in their heads. Ummm… my immediate reaction was “no way”. The thought of not being able to hide in a crowd scared the bejeezus out of me, but we went. Weren’t we brave?

*graciously accepts your praise* Thank you.

So there we were, staring at tables where pretty cool people would soon sit, ready to talk to us about various subjects. As we all know, I am not cool, so I fought back the panic. Jamie studied the layout and devised a plan, where to start and our path through the tables. She’s very good. I sat. I listened. I did not freak out, throw up, or sweat profusely. Yea! Well, turns out all the experts were nice, normal people, who do want to help.

Oh my gosh, possibly I am turning into a grown-up.

Nah.

For now, I want to focus on one topic. Kelsey Timmerman (follow him on Twitter @KelseyTimmerman and visit his blog http://whereamiwearing.com/) talked about finding your axis of awesome. We had no idea what that meant, but, hey, the table fit into our overall plan and who doesn’t want to sit at a table labeled awesome.

WELL, IT WAS AWESOME.

First, list your skills.

Second, list your passions.

Third, list your challenges, your obstacles.

Now, weave them together, find a path leading from one to the other. Let your passions guide you. Let the challenges of life teach you. Finally, link them to your skills and BAM! That is your axis of awesome. Use it wisely. For with it you can change the world. So I can write… some days. I am passionate about kids, about teens being able to grow up without judgement, without being told how to live, what to do. I have faced depression and wandered into the wide world without a clue. I can take each part and, like clay, mold it into, well, awesomeness. I can help teens. By writing fiction? Maybe. Or maybe as I let all this simmer in my brain, I will discover a bigger and better solution in the future.

When skill collides with what we love, fabulousness will be the result.

Let your awesome shine!