Wednesday Writing
Jake emerged from the ghost train with a bloodied machete in his hand.
I’m one chapter through the Typing in section of one-pass editing. It takes ages, and it’s hard to say motivated, but at the same time it feels good. I’m quietly confident in this manuscript.
I also really love the line above, which is in the last paragraph of chapter one. It’s brutal, but I think it’s got a certain poetry to it. It’s also the first glimpse into Jake’s actual character.
In terms of this first chapter I’ve made little changes, grammar and spelling. Taken out some repetition and added some more character stuff for Rain, since her personality is changed drastically at the end of the chapter.
The other thing I did was go through my short story ‘Famine’ again and send it to Morgue for feedback. I hadn’t touched this particular story in a while, I felt like I was missing an important theme. The book Wintergirls gave me a push in the right direction and I’m pretty happy with it now. I have the fear that I am deluded though, maybe it’s a nothing story…but no. I’ll try and shop it around when I hear back from Morgue.
No linky this week, been too busy socialising and watching Buffy to read much online. Instead, why don’t you watch this video of a tiny horse playing with a ball?
There, don’t you feel better now?
OMG yum
Pizza dough, bane of millions. With the leaving it to rise and the consistency and the not cooking it through….well, I was inspired. I tried it out.
It turns out that the easiest pizza dough in the world is in fact, the easiest pizza dough in the world.
I made it from when Steve arrived last Tuesday and I think it took about 25 minutes from pouring yeast into the water to putting the first pizza into the oven. But I don’t remember that accurately, it was nearly a week ago.
The dough mixed together like a dream, instantly making itself spongy and good. I have had a lot of experience making bread from when I got obsessed with it as a teenager so I know a good dough when I see one. The recipe asks you to leave it to rise for just ten minutes, and that was plenty.
I made a double recipe so we could feed four people. The first pizza was super huge and by the end of the third one we were all stuffed. Double recipe = three pizzas = plenty. I topped them all with the same things because we didn’t think ahead enough to get multiple topping options. Tomato paste base, mushrooms, yellow capsicum, La Bella Italia salami (mild), chopped garlic and fresh mozzarella.
Oh yeah, look at the pizza.
The base went golden brown along the edges and pleasantly crisp on the bottom when baked on paper on tray. It kind of adhered to the pizza stone, which was slightly embarassing. The later pizzas had a thicker, breadier base because it was a hot day and the dough kept on rising. Lee would prefer a thinner base, so next time I’ll use the rolling pin instead of just my fingers. I’ll try and remember and take pictures of next time. I would have taken photos of the slices so you can see more detail but I’m afraid I was too busy eating.
It was amazing. So easy and delicious. I was seriously impressed with myself and crowned myself pizzioli of the house.
Random things
Scary Minds, the centre for Down Under horror fic has done a great review of The Event. This has made me very happy, and once again cemented the importance of doing fiction that is available to people for free. I should do more of that. In fact, this morning I started a short story with an eye to submit it to everyday fiction, since Matt and Debbie have both had the good luck to be accepted to there. Unfortunately I think my story might be longer than 1,000 words, but hey. There are other markets.
Ironically, I think this photoblog of unhappy hipsters focussing as it does on loneliness makes me feel more connected to the general population of the world. Maybe that’s why I still love awkward family photos so much as well. We’re all just trying to be cool.
I started my journey into Radical Self-Love. I have this gorgeous NZ designed and made notebook that a friend gave me for my birthday. On the front it says “You’re lovely” in ribbon writing. I figured that was a pretty good start for my radical self-love bible. In the front I have written:
“To love myself, increase my creative output and become rich and happy. I will use my own capacity for love and happiness to improve the lives of those I love. I will be a successful writer and my success will bring joy to others.”
I have chosen my old gold un-charmed charm bracelet for my totem/reminder of radical self love. It’s delicate and gold and it has a heart lock clasp. I keep meaning to get charms for it but I never quite manage. Maybe this month? As I achieve stuffs?
Also, this morning I went for a run. There are three main things that have made this happen: 1. My asthma has been really bad these past couple of weeks, exercising cures it quite a lot. 2. I suspect I might be getting my mother’s varicose veins, and that freaks me out, so I’m hoping exercise will cure that too. 3. I am rounder than I have ever been, which I don’t particularly mind in the boob department but some of my clothes are getting a little tight. Being fitter may not cure me of roundness, but at least I’ll know I’m healthier. Plus, 4, Lee keeps bugging me about getting exercise. This will solve that. So, yeah. I’m a get back into running. Not full time, no marathons, just aiming for 20 – 30 minutes three times a week. It’s not much, but it’s vastly more than no exercise at all.
Things I Love Thursday – Radical self love
Gala Darling is a running a month long blog seminar on radical self love. That is, focussing on accepting and loving yourself how you are. Click on the picture above to check it out 
People such as Sok and Debbie saying they’re looking forward to reading Rain.
Sunshine, fundraising baking at work, potato chips, noodle canteen, noticing my T shirt is see through half way through the day and everyone can see the black lace and little hearts on my bra and not caring, naps, writing, editing, Cyanide and Happiness, youtube videos, singing, burgers and pasta.
And you, please share your list of happy in the comments…
Wednesday Writing
Celebration cupcakes for everyone!
I have finished the long hand part of my manuscript slog. This means that I’ve gone through the whole darn thing with a fine tooth comb. In addition to spotting typos, grammar mistakes and inconsistencies in the story (Mick turns into Jim who turns into Bobby and then back to Jim???) I was holding my big themes for the story, Rain and Jake’s issues and character arcs and looking for the conflict in each and every scene. This isn’t easy, but like anything it gets easier the more you do it.
Today I went through the big Demon Gate climax and the aftermath and one scene actually made me cry so I’m thinking that’s a good sign indeed. The next step is to go through the digital copy and make all the changes that I found in the print copy. This is going to take a while, but I am super-psyched to do it.
In other news…there is no other writing news. I have thought up some ideas for short stories but I haven’t written any of them yet. I am reading a fascinating YA supernatural romance called Lips Touch: three times by Laini Taylor. It’s essentially three different stories but linked thematically by such important things as magic, first love, passionate and wilful young women and of course, kisses. I am half way through the second story. I like.
Linky:
Amazing amazing 100 things about writing a novel (part 1) especially this:
Writing a novel is sometimes like going to a party and hearing someone call your name outside the window and when you get there, a dragon floats in the night wind, grinning. How did you know my name, you ask it. But you already know it’s yours.
Storyfix’s recent guest post about why we write, or should write is also great. I really love the two facts he starts the article with. So true for me too.
Things I Love Thursday
As you can no doubt tell from my posts of this week, I had an awesome time at Kapcon. Seriously, I loved every game I played in, the LARP blew my mind, I caught up with all my peeps, made a couple of new friends and ate some delicious takeaways.
I love this article about how dogs are rich and happy. It makes me want to be a better person. By being more like a dog. Huh.
My new diary. I finally got a small, portable and yet roomy inside pink diary for 2010. This way I shall hopefully be more organised and less likely to flake. Unfortunately it only gives me a *teeny* amount of space for the weekends, but hey, it’s pink!
Thinking about future awesome roleplaying and costuming. I have signed up for a Camelot LARP (thanks to Donna for letting me take Guinevere) and a Sweeny Todd inspired 1900 LARP. I can make up the Medieval costume pretty easily using my purple dress from the Sanctuary and adding some bling and some cape action. The 1900 one is a bit more challenging, since I don’t have anything appropriate just lying around. Might have to check out some costume stores.
Honourable Mentions: writing going well for me, friends getting publishing opportunities, sunshine, clean clothes, our new (new new) cleaner, Fall last night (actual play soon), laughing, sleeping, M&Ms trumpets, wedding invitations to the weddings of people I love, short stories, new breast cancer research tshirts from Glassons and candy.
And you? What are you happy about today?
writing
With Kapcon and Lee’s sickness last week I didn’t manage the normal load of writing/editing this last week. However having my manuscript all set up on the table is definitely conducive to work and I have got to page 75 on my one-pass edit. That’s a bit over halfway, so it’s going well.
Linky:
A quick thought on character voices.
I also enjoyed learning what authors get control over.
Another awesome how not to write article about 6 top writing whines.
More on query letters, specifically annotating query letters to show what to do and what not to do.
Reunion LARP
This year’s LARP was about a number of planets interconnected by gates which were shut down 500 years ago being reunited. My character, Marianne La Grange, was from the delegation from Arboria. We lived on the tops of gigantic trees and dressed like Victorians.
The delegation from Arboria
That’s us. You’ll notice I am standing rather close to a gentleman with a white scarf and a walking stick? That’s Alan Copeland the 26th, current King of New London. We were kind of involved. The thing is though, my character had a reason for going in the delegation that was more than just curiosity. My character’s family was immortal. My parents had cracked the gene coding or something and I’d been alive roughly 560 years. I was keen to catch up with my siblings and also…my husband. I’d married Steven back before the shutdown and we were separated when the gates closed. I had indulged in any number of flings since then, but I hadn’t let myself fall in love with anyone else until Alan…just a couple of years ago.
So, I was anxious. Of course, this was all a secret. None of the rest of the delegation knew my secret, although the physician had been suspicious. Alan’s father, Alan Copeland the 25th had been asking some awkward questions so I left New London and travelled. When I heard that the 25th was killed I went back to see the 26th. Right around that time the gates reopened.
