No Longer Brain-Dead

I finally--let me repeat that--FINALLY had an enjoyable weekend. Meaning, I did things that were FUN and RELAXING. I spent time on MYSELF. (Pardon the Caps, but you must understand that for someone who doesn't have kids, this shouldn't be nearly as rare as it has been.)

I cleaned house a little, watched Mall Cop, played computer games, visited friends, went shoe shopping with my Mom (I'm happy to say I came back with NOTHING. Go me.), and slept in! Yay!

And then a miracle happened.

This morning on the way to work, I was actually musing about Dragon Queen again! WOW! I finally found out what it was that I didn't like about where the story was heading (it was feeling a bit repetitious) and now I can actually move on. And--more surprises!--I actually was able to look back at Ch. 1 of "Fury" and decide what was wrong with it. I have now, officially, began rewriting the beginning and scratching whole paragraphs. Go me! The new version is much more cohesive and makes better sense. However, it is still a rough draft, so I'm not completely happy with it, but it will get better.

On the note of beginnings, fellow writers need to check out Nathan Bransford's competition. You can post the first paragraph of your WIP or novel and if you win he will request a partial or a query or more! Consolation prizes are books and autographed bookmarks by one of the authors he represents. Cool, eh? Check it out! And good luck! (I might even post the first paragraph of "Fury"!)

Movie Time: Watchmen

I recently tried out that movie-mailed-to-home thing, and, well, I guess I live too far out in the boonies to really get the best of this deal. It takes me about a week before I can get a movie, and then another week to get another movie (even if I send the viewed movie back the next day!). However, I did get the chance to see Watchmen (directed by Zack Snyder) last night, a movie I was looking forward to.

First off, I like super-heroes. Spider-man. Superman. X-Men. I'm all over it. The action is usually pretty great and the plots (while a tad predictable) are satisfying. So, when I popped Watchmen into the DVD player, I was expecting something along those same lines. Mainly, entertainment.

Er, not so much.

"Watchmen" is set in an alternate 1985 America in which costumed superheroes are part of the fabric of everyday society, and the "Doomsday Clock" - which charts the USA's tension with the Soviet Union - is permanently set at five minutes to midnight. When one of his former colleagues is murdered, the washed up but no less determined masked vigilante Rorschach sets out to uncover a plot to kill and discredit all past and present superheroes. As he reconnects with his former crime-fighting legion - a ragtag group of retired superheroes, only one of whom has true powers - Rorschach glimpses a wide-ranging and disturbing conspiracy with links to their shared past and catastrophic consequences for the future. Their mission is to watch over humanity... but who is watching the Watchmen?" Written by T-Hen (Courtesy of www.imdb.com)

I never thought I'd call a super-hero movie deep, disturbing or thought-invoking, but this was all of those things. It starts off with The Comedian getting murdered (pretty typical action movie, right?) but then it pans back into all this political stuff dealing with the Cold War and nuclear warheads. You see glimpses into the Comedian's past, and, well, he's not what you would call a typical super-hero. Not even a typical dark and tormented super-hero. If I could sum it up in one word, I would say that he's a bastard. Definitely not what you would think of when you think of a "good guy".

And then we get a very GRAPHIC (har har) history of all the other flawed super-heroes. Even Dr. Manhattan (who is often referred to as 'god-like') is apathetic and unconcerned with the fate of humanity. (Is that an alliteration for God? Probably.) This is shown in a disturbing (yes, I'm going to use that word many times in this post) exchange between the Comedian and Dr. Manhattan in Vietnam. Thinking about it now still makes me shudder.

The beginning is slow, but when you get to the end, all those scenes that make you think "Ok, yeah, so? Can we move on please?" make sense in the end. It's definitely a movie you have to pay attention to, so if you're looking for mindless entertainment, I'd pass on this one.

I wouldn't recommend letting the kids watch this one either. It's Rated R for a reason (and trust me, there are a LOT of reasons, including watching two dogs play tug-of-war with a girl's leg.) However, if you're wanting to watch a movie that will make you think, definitely pick this one up. If you're anything like me, you will be deeply affected. And also saying, WTF?

Memorable quote:
Adrian Veidt: It doesn't take a genius to see the world has problems.
Edward Blake (aka The Comedian): No, but it takes a room full of morons to think they're small enough for you to handle.

An ADD Moment

I haven't been diagnosed with ADD, but sometimes I really think that I might have it. But then, I have to reevaluate and think that maybe it's just my mind rebelling against all the demands I put on it.

And then a part of it is sulking, just because.

The point is, I can't focus on anything today.

I was all gung-ho on editing "Fury", so I posted the first chapter on the writer's forum. The reactions so far are, well, not ones of amazed wonderment that I was hoping for. So I'm pouting. Just a little. (Never fear, I'll get over it.) But my zeal for editing "Fury" evaporated. I'm going through that moment that all writers go through: where you throw up your hands and ask 'what's the point?'

So, now that I'm throwing "Fury" dirty looks, I decided that maybe it was time to pick up "Dragon Queen" again. And, you know, finish it. I wrote a couple paragraphs but I'm stuck. There is SOMETHING MISSING! (Besides my confidence.) So I stared at the screen for a little while before throwing up my hands again and deciding to find something else to do. But nothing appeals.

Well, a nap appeals, but that's not an option at the moment.

Grr. Maybe I need some caffeine or something (except I'm not supposed to have caffeine. Bummer). Really, someone needs to whip me up a concentration potion (or at least chocolate cake).

What Works

Have you heard that saying (or something similar), "It's a lot more difficult to be creative on a deadline"? This statement is frequently heard when a certain bestselling author comes up with the same old story, the same old characters, and the same old plot. I've heard complaints that they just didn't have enough "time" to think of something new. And, really, why should they? Because their name is attached to it, it will still sell.

Well, I have to disagree with the statement that creativity does not exist in time constraints. Mainly due to the fact that I am a procrastinator (always have been) and I find that I work the best when I have a fast-approaching deadline. That's when the ideas start germinating, the pen starts flying, and I get so excited that some people might call me rabid. That's what it was like in college, and that's what it's still like.

Maybe that's why I'm more satisfied with some of the pieces that I write using Write or Die than those that I write leisurely.

If I have lots of time to write a story, I usually find myself putting it off to do other things. I'm easily distracted and easily bored. Often, I tap away at the keyboard listlessly, and my characters are often just lolling around, not doing anything. But when someone is breathing down my neck (or I pretend they are) that's when the juices flow.

However, it's really a matter of "whatever floats your boat". So, what would you prefer? All the time in the world or a deadline?

A sad, sad day

Something awful happened to me this morning.

I got up (no, that's not the awful thing) and was like "oh no! I think I overdrew my bank account yesterday!" (no that's not it either) and so I race to the computer (actually, stagger is more appropriate--it was 6 in the morning, after all) and wait while it slowly beeps to life.

Un-caffeinated, I stare at the screen for about three minutes before I realize that something is wrong.

Lots of white text on screen = normal (I found out today that the appropriate term for this is the 'post'). But then, at the bottom, it says "Insert media reboot device and press any key". Now, even when I am caffeinated, that makes me go "What media reboot device?" So, what do I do? I just press a key, cross my fingers, and hope that works.

It didn't. Like a patient school teacher, it repeated its message.

Well, I'll show you, computer!

I turn it off.

Wait.

I turn it back on.

If computers could laugh diabolically, mine would have. In a truly truculent moment, it whirs to life (yes, it whirs. The fan is huge) and refuses to do anything else. The screen is completely blank.

I blink at it for a moment. Debate about smashing said computer, and do the fail-proof fix. I turn off the computer again. Check all the connections. Make sure nothing is on fire (or looks like it's about to be). Check the connections again. Turn it back on.

It whirs to life and then...Nothing!!!

I start cussing. My boyfriend starts looking for exits. I reconsider my plan to smash computer to bits.

Leave for work. Discuss problem with IT guys. Diagnosis: You're probably going to need to replace the hard drive or motherboard or both.

My response: So, what you're saying is you're coming over to my house after work, right?

Blank stare.

My response: So, what you're saying is that I need to buy a new computer, right?

And, thus, my tragedy. Fortunately, I have a laptop I can connect, so all is not lost. But I'm going to coerce one of my friends to come over and confirm the diagnosis. Then I'm going to have him either A) fix it or B) recommend a new computer.

I like the idea of a new computer...if someone else wants to buy it for me. Any takers? :)

What's on the Bookshelf?

I've been somewhat of a snob lately when it comes to reading . . .and it makes me want to cry.

Why? Well, I picked up a romance (woot) by one of my favorite authors and ended up rolling my eyes every other paragraph. I blame my inner-editor, but when it starts interfering with just enjoying a book, then you know it's time to re-evaluate the situation. Which led me to two conclusions.

1) That I was being overly critical, having aftershocks from editing "Fury", and needed to give Ms. Favorite Author a break.

2) The book really did suck, and I had just realized that one of my favorite authors wasn't such a great author after all. ::cry::

So, I head to the bookshelf. Well, THE bookshelf (I have two, you see. One for generic books that were "ok" and one for my FAVORITES). Well, her books are on THE bookshelf, which is one of those sleek, cherry, leaning bookshelves that I honestly squealed over when my boyfriend bought it for me for Christmas <3.>

They're women.

::Gasp!:: I'm a sexist reader! 

Well, I had to prove that I wasn't a sexist, so I delved and found that I happen to have a few books on there by men. They are as follows: Christopher Paolini's books; J.R.R. Tolkien's LOTR trilogy and The Hobbit; Piers Anthony's Dragon on a Pedestal; Nicholas Sparks' The Lucky One (which I haven't read, whoops); and The Bible (argue all you want, it was written by MEN). 

The rest, which usually include more than one book, are by Anne Bishop <3, Julie Garwood, Teresa Medeiros, Stephenie Meyer (hey, they're hardbacks), Kristen Britain, J. K. Rowling and...

I think that's it. They're some art books, and then my books stuffed in binders, but that's it.

Still, if you look at it with squinty eyes, you're going to see that the female authors overwhelm the men. Looking at it--still squinty eyed--I came to the conclusion on why that was:

Women tend to write about other women. They have strong female characters who are, more often than not, the protagonists. As a woman, I like reading about female heroes. And, if they're not the hero, they have to be more than one-dimensional. Male writers (not all!) seem to have the problem of putting women in categories. This is especially true with "classic" literature. And since they got away with it centuries ago, some modern male writers think they can still get away with it. The Rejectionist had a hilarious rant about receiving such manuscripts recently.

However, I have no desire to avoid male writers simply because they're male. So I'm trying to broaden my horizons. If you have recommendations, I'm all ears.

I'm BACK!!!

I'm finally back from vacation (if you could call it that). 

I got back into Arkansas around 11:30 a.m. Friday and just wanted to shout for joy. I've seriously never been so stressed on a trip. And when you top dollops of stress with a recovering immune system, what do you get? 

Apparently, hair loss.

The sad thing is I'm not joking. Fortunately, I have enough hair to suffocate in, so losing a few handfuls isn't going to be too noticeable. Except that my hairdresser noticed. Eek. So I'm loading myself up with vitamins and meditation, and hopefully that will work.

It helps, too, that I'm no longer dealing with a 60-year-old man who acts like a freakin' toddler. Grr. There are some people that I wish to cut out of my life, but, unfortunately, they're related. So that's not possible. Drat it.

But, the point of this post (other than letting you know I'm back) is that I have to apologize. 

I'm sorry . . . because I did not work on "Fury" or "Dragon Queen" at all. I had the time, I'll admit. But I was so aggravated the whole time we were in West Virginia that I couldn't grasp the Muse. If I was writing a battle scene, I might have managed it. But, nope. Sorry. Sorry!

I promise to be a good girl (and a good writer) and write furiously this week. Hopefully we shall see the end of Dragon Queen soon!