Mar 17, 2006 | Uncategorized |
A writing friend (and fellow Aloha Chapter member) recently sent me an email that said, paraphrasing: I've been reading Miss Snark for the past hour and I'm hooked. Other than the brief visit I made to your blog recently, this is my first experience. I don't understand why people write blogs. Why do you do it?
You know what, I don't know precisely. I started this blog in June 2005. I forget why, I forget how I decided to do it, I forget which blogs I read before I did it. Partially, I thought of it like an online journal, just a place to type up my random thoughts (beats my handwriting any day). And, wow, other people might read my random thoughts and say things and we might have discussions! Who wouldn't like that?
::snort::
Okay, when I got over that idea, I just sort of found a groove and started having fun. I enjoy the interaction, not just the comments on my blog, but the blog surfing I do and the discussions taking place throughout the writing/publishing blogosphere. It's like being able to pal around with other writers, hang out with editors, ask agents questions, eavesdrop on cool conversations, etc. Oh, I admit it's tough to think of things to talk about sometimes, but then other times I get a gift–like the conversation with my friend in Mexico. Blogging about that was good therapy because writers understand. Not to mention it's just funny to think someone can be so obtuse about publishing. 🙂
To me, blogging is community. I enjoy being a part of it. The idea that even one person reads my post gives me a thrill.
So why do you do it? What makes you type up that post every day (or week)?
Mar 17, 2006 | Uncategorized
| You're 10% Irish |
You're not Irish. Not even a wee bit.
Not even on St. Patrick's Day! |
Oh dear. And here I thought the Irish saved civilization…..
Mar 16, 2006 | Uncategorized |
I was wondering what to talk about when Providence intervened in the form of a phone call from a friend (yes, he's really a friend, and I do love him regardless of this paraphrased transcript). Friend is in Mexico, soaking up the sun while I watch the rain pour down here in Hawaii. He called me from poolside:
F: How's your writing going?
Me: Great. One of my mss finalled in a contest, the short story collection is coming out soon, and I've got some ideas on the burner.
F: Are you writing about anything important?
Me: I think so, yes.
F: But how is your work any different from all the other books out there?
Me: It's called Voice.
F: Yes, but do you have anything to say that hasn't been said before? Is this worth doing?
Me: If you're asking if I'm working on a literary piece that will make you mope around for a week pondering the meaning of life, no, I'm not. But yes, I think my stories and my characters have something to say, even if it is genre fiction. [said because friend is a professor and not because I think there's anything wrong with genre fiction]
F: If you're any good, then why doesn't anyone want to read it?
Me: [gritting teeth] It's not as easy as shipping the mss off to New York and then raking in the bucks, dear. Sometimes it's timing and luck. Sometimes it's your idea or execution. The next one might be it. [didn't bother to mention I haven't actually shipped anything anywhere recently]
F: Take such-and-such. It was his 10th novel that hit big, but his previous 9 got published even if they didn't make a splash.
Me: How do you know he doesn't have 9 more under the bed that never saw the light of day? First novel doesn't usually mean FIRST novel, you know.
F: Why don't you dash off some short pieces for [insert major magazine markets here]? That'll get your name out there and then when you send your work to NY, they'll want to see it.
Me: Gee, why didn't I think of that? Surely it's infinitely easier to get, oh, say COSMO to publish an article by little ‘ol me than to get a mss request from a NY publisher!
F: Exactly. Dash off 30 or 40 of these pieces, get them published, and then submit your novel. You're not getting any younger.
Me: I'm not even 40 yet.
F: Yeah, but time is of the essence. You'll never make it if you don't do it soon.
Me: [gnashing teeth, performing deep breathing exercises] Think I'll keep doing what I'm doing for now. I have confidence in myself.
F: [I can hear the shrug over the phone] Whatever, but I still think you should get your name out there.
Me: [murder would get my name out there; too bad he's in Mexico] Well, I've got some things I'm doing for now that I think are good. Blogging, a website, active in my chapter–
F: But that's not enough. You need a blitz campaign, you need to publish these short pieces, fling as much shit against the wall as possible and see what sticks. Get your name out there any way you can.
Me: [man, this murder idea is sounding GOOD] Yeah, okay. Mm-hmm, mm-hmm, I see what you're saying, mm-hmm. Oh hey, gotta run. I want to dash off a piece for the New Yorker and see if I can get it in by this afternoon.
F: (Thanks, Mauricio. Put it on my tab.) What? Oh, yeah, just got another beer. Okay, talk to you later. Let me know how the New Yorker piece works out.
Me: You'll be the first to know.
[Head to kitchen. Dump tequila, ice, and margarita mix into blender. Crush with a vengeance. Back to computer with icy drink. Open file. Think. Stare. Give up and go to bookcase. Ah yes, A WRITER'S GUIDE TO POISONS…..]
Mar 15, 2006 | Uncategorized |
Do your characters refuse to cooperate? Are you typing along when, wham!, someone reveals depths you didn't know they had? Something that has the potential to change everything? I love that and I hate it. Love it because it's cool. Hate it because it usually means I may have to rewrite a lot of stuff.
Did I mention I'm on the third rewrite of SEDUCING EVANGELINE? The first time, it wasn't going anywhere. The second, it was going, but the wrong direction. And then I realized I'd given the hero the wrong job, the heroine not enough motivation, and the conflict not enough zing. Now I think I have it right and still I get stuck. I have a subplot involving the heroine's relationship with her sister that is giving me fits. I don't know why. I know why they are estranged. I know they have to work on the relationship. But I don't know how much of that is important to the central problem of the book. And I hate the part where I have to write the scenes, knowing I may lose them in the end anyway. I don't have a problem cutting, but I hate to do the work in the first place if I'm going to cut it. Catch-22, dammit.
(I'm reading Wuthering Heights for the first time ever. OMG. I don't want to put it down. How did this sheltered woman write this story? It's brutal and ugly and amazing and beautiful all at once. What talent.)
Mar 15, 2006 | Uncategorized |
Nalini Singh is tagging people to interview their houses. Sounds like fun!
Me: Hi, house, how are you?
H: Wet. You see that rain out there?
Me: Yep, hard to believe we're in Hawaii, huh?
H: Nah, I been here a while. It can rain for weeks.
Me: Now you tell me. The guidebook said no more than three days in a row.
H: It lied.
Me: That sucks.
H: If tourism is your biggest industry, would you tell people the truth?
Me: I like to think so.
H: Hey, it's still Hawaii. Just because we're wet doesn't mean we aren't warmer than most of the mainland U.S. right now. You've got the air conditioning on, don't you?
Me: That's because if I open the windows, the mosquitoes will come in. You know how I swell when I get stung.
H: Mosquitoes are part of the bargain. When it's wet, they take over.
Me: I think I saw the neighbor's car float away.
H: Mosquitoes or flash flood?
Me: Not sure. Could be both.
H: Hey, I thought this was about me.
Me: Anything you want to say?
H: Yeah, could you stop staring at your computer all day and vacuum my carpet? How about a little dusting too? Mmmmphh, mmmphhh–
Me: Thank you, that concludes our interview!
