From the Inkwell, From the Vein.....

Day 2 since my 2-month escapade into the world of challenge writing ended... day 2 without a specific deadline hanging over my head----- annnnnnnnnd, now??? hello?? anybody?? *sigh* Suddenly I realize why I was so desperate to jump into the Story A Day challenge right after the A-Z challenge ended--- I needed the challenge to focus my energies. I needed the guillotine hanging over my head. Now I have all the energy (manic at times) but, none of the focus. So, I sit here.... drumming my fingers across my laptop, fingernails bitten down to the quicks, struggling to create the kind of funnel for my energies that these challenges provided for me. The beauty of these challenges was that they only lasted a month (long enough for results, not long for me to get discouraged) and they were completely different from anything I'd ever done before--- (novelty does wonders for relieving boredom.) Now I'm back to where I was before the beginning of the April A-Z Challenge--- A mill...

Today's post is an off-shoot of yesterday's new-found inspiration. After spending a blissful night, reveling in the fact that I was heading in the right direction with my frustratingly slow-moving story, I woke this morning, ready to work. I busied myself scouring primary source narratives to further my research and to ensure the authenticity of what I'm trying to say. While taking a break, mind whirling after pouring through 4 or 5 narratives, I stumbled upon a wonderful essay by Chuck Palahniuk. He is known for offering sage and direct advice to would-be writers. And, in his essay 'Hiding a Gun', I had a profound eureka moment! I think I may have figured out one of the nagging plot holes that has bothered me since I started writing this story---- I had no idea how to end---- Well, that's not completely true, I had a vague notion of what needed to happen, but I had NO CLUE how to get there. But, then I read  Chuck's Essay , and viola! Not only do I ha...

I think I may have finally  made it past the horrific pains of caffeine withdrawal. This, the 8th day of Lent, and not a single mg of caffeine has crossed my lips, not a single migraine in 3 days. I do still have a tightness and twinge at the base of my skull (what would normally indicate a full-blown migraine was on its way)...but, so far, all it does is make for a stiff neck-- somewhat like waking with an annoying "crick". ---- much easier to handle. Second day off from work in a row--- What bliss!--- and I have nothing planned that might interfere with a day of relaxing, story plotting, crafting, etc. So, I have allowed myself two days of leisure, in hopes to ensure those pesky migraines are indeed gone. Which means, I haven't accomplished much in the way of actual writing, but, I'm not going to let myself stress about it..... not yet---- did I mention how bad migraines suck! But, having a not-writing-leisure-day, doesn't mean I haven't been plotting an...

Okay, so much of the problem I'm having with my WIP is coming from the criss-crossing my characters seem to insist on doing with each other. I should have known when I titled this story, Tangle of Matter and Ghost,  that I was sure to curse myself.... and this Voodoo hex may have no cure   >_< Quick list of characters: Aggie            Joseph           Billy          Ralph       Chester      Jefferson      Ambrose       Charlotte Emily            Aldia              Benjamin   Esther      Letty          Marie          Jebediah        Granny Preacher       Nathaniel Now the ties: Aggie/Joseph -- Runaway slaves dabbling in Voodoo Ol' Gray Granny -- Healer that...

 So, I've been doing some research for my current work-in-progress from NaNoWriMo, Tangle of Matter and Ghost. I've been really excited about the direction this story might go, but, I am also coming across more problems than I've ever encountered with a story. I don't want the reader to drown in the emotions of what is going on, but the emotions are exactly what I'm going after. I've been toying with how to get the information across without bogging the description down with factual data and sweeping the reader from the page with an emotional tidal wave. Here's a link to the  discussion  I've opened on my facebook  page for anyone that wants to discuss, contribute, or just chide me for my ridiculous attempts to stuff every emotion possible into one book.....

So, I was trying to get my head around this mess of a story that I have, when my husband-- in his always infinite wisdom-- told me I needed to find some way of tying all the pieces together. I had bemoaned how my story had not only shifted time-frames in the writing process, but also shifted complete plot points. Granted, I have most of the same characters that I started out with, though quite a few others have joined the cast. But, the essence of what I thought my story was has suddenly become something unrecognizable. It's sort of like those "Connect-The-Dots" sheets that elementary teachers were so fond of handing out for busy work--- I think they must get secret stashes of the sheets in their teacher survival kits. There was always a different sheet for every different "busy work" episode. Unlike most of my peers, I thoroughly enjoyed running my pencil line from numbered dot to numbered dot--- there was something thrilling about seeing the page of seem...

Two months can seem forever when so many things happen. 60 short days since my last post and suddenly we are at the end of October. Tomorrow is Halloween and for those of us that are NaNoWriMo regulars, it is our last "free" day until November 30th. Once the final bell rings at midnight on Halloween, we will be off and running in this year's race to complete our 50,000- word masterpieces---well, our 50,000-word first drafts :-) This month has been a roller coaster ride of emotion--- excitement with the impending NaNo adventure, doubt about completing the word quota, fear about the contest results from recent entries, elation about the results of one contest. Seems impossible to hold everything in perspective, impossible to continue the forward movement. But, it will continue, nonetheless. "Tangle of Matter and Ghost" is this year's NaNo title. The tiny kernel of a Southern Victorian Ghost/Voodoo story of cursed love and soul currency. I have a handful of...

I sat down to write a note about my preparations for NaNoWriMo year 3 and I suddenly became aware that it has almost been a full year since I added a post. Funny how life gets in the way sometimes. This year has not been the easiest, but as each day passes I revel in the fact that I am one day closer to moving on, moving past, going forward or whatever the appropriate terminology is. This year has been a lesson in self-discovery, loss, fear and triumph. I have come to the full realization that I am no longer happy in the job that I am working and I am hoping that this discontent will fuel my passion to become a published author. With that goal in mind, my efforts post-nano will be doubly focused on making that dream a reality. By this time next year, I would like to be able to post a substantial number of submissions that I have made. It is time for me to step up from just writing to actually submitting. My chances of becoming published will only improve if I get my work out there, o...

After my less-than-hopeful last post, I'm hoping this time to not further depress anyone who might read what I've written. Slowly, the 2-month long shadow is beginning to lift. It feels as if I've distanced myself from my creative self for far longer than 2 months, but that is all it has been. Desire to return to my unfinished stories and the limbo-held lives of my infant characters is now needling its way through the darkness...... --I've left Morgan Blake in the clutches of her sadistic, psychopathic cousin. --Poor Daniel Quinn has been "lost" in the In-Between for longer than he should have been. --And my dreadfully neglected Gruesome triplets must surely think I've disowned them-- Wilhelmina, Phineas and Ignatius are still without a home, though their inheritance should be of some comfort. --Regretfully I'm ashamed to even mention Carson Reed and Raimi Singh, whose story is still only half-conceived. I am obliged to return to my writing, n...

As if I wasn't insane enough to get myself caught up in the November writing frenzy, NaNoWriMo---50,000 words in 30 days--- Now I've signed myself up for the sister program Script Frenzy---20,000-word or 100-page script in 30 days, which is set to begin April 1st. I've never written a stage or screenplay before, so it should be an interesting exercise in imagination. And because I want it to be fun, I've decided to use one of their generated plot ideas so I don't have to struggle with what to write. Try not to laugh too much at the plot, it is supposed to be fun, you know ;) So, without further ado, here it is: Screenplay: Devil Dread Bayou Main Characters (so far): Max Steiner, Elsa Hardcastle Plot: In a world where sleep must be paid for, a bike messenger with a death wish, plans to camp out in a haunted bayou. So, let's see what I make of it :) I'm hoping it will be a good way to relieve some stress, since I don't really care how it turns ou...

I've been fleshing out the plot/character line-up for my newest project and I'm beginning to think that this story will become more psychologically dark than I originally anticipated--- not that it's a bad thing, it's just probably more than the teen genre will allow. I think the strongest dark element is my protagonist's young daughter being in possession of another child's soul and memories---a child who has been dead for five years, and whose soul is eager to rejoin her dead brother, even at the expense of another life. I never planned on the story skirting the edge of horror...I've never enjoyed being scared, but if this story decides to take over, I fear that's just where it is headed. To do the plot justice, I plan on amping up the research, everything from paranormal psychology to Jung's idea of collective consciousness. I'm a bit concerned about doing justice to everything I want to include and I'm also struggling with the number ...

Just when you think you've got everything all figured out, something somewhere seeks you out and throws you a massive curve ball the size of small island. Okay, so maybe it isn't the size of a small island, but it's still annoying. So, I have a vague, very general outline for my up and coming project "Soul Sifters", but I am, as yet, unable to come up with a single character name and I'm not even sure that the outline I have is really what I'm looking for.... sometimes I just wish stories could write themselves. I like the idea, but it borders on possibly being a psychological thriller or possibly a horror story. I don't think it's going to fit in either younger genre that I'm much more accustomed to writing in. Yet, I suppose that dabbling in other genres is part of the growth process. How will I know where I fit as a writer unless I try writing every possible form of writing out there??

Though there weren't many votes, it seems like everyone is eager for me to write out my story idea for "Soul Sifters". Now that NaNoWriMo is officially over *sighs*, I must focus my attention to other stories and to editing. I'm actually looking forward to reading my NaNovel. As it is, I've only read the first chapter and a few scattered paragraphs as I was finishing up. It will be interesting to see how well my plot held up through the 20-day marathon of writing. "Soul Sifters", I think, will be one of the more ambitious stories that I have floating around. I'm still fumbling through plot ideas and structures. I know the ideas I want to get across, but I'm struggling as to the best way of presenting them. But, there's no immediate rush. I'm giving myself until January to plot and outline and do some early research. It's Christmas, and anybody who's ever worked retail in the holidays knows it's pretty much---all work and not...

Okay....so I can't decide which of the following to work on next :) Any help would be greatly appreciated :) 1/ Stolen Child--- Inspired by William Yeats' poem with the same name. It's still a bit fuzzy but I want it to be something along the lines of a dark myth. Set in an isolated area, a "cursed" water area is avoided by all locals except those who are "dared" to try and stay in the area alone--- dark Faery-people lure innocent humans to leave their own world behind, but every wonderful promise the faeries present is a lie. The true motive is to ensure the survival of the dark faery-people as each human they trick and kidnap then become dark faery-folk who are enslaved and forced to trick and kidnap other humans. 2/ Soul Sifters--- Okay, this might be a strange one to describe and it isn't intended to be religious or non-religious, just a creative "what if"--- One of the laws of thermodynamics is that "energy can neither be cre...

I'm down to the 22 hour mark and counting. Soon the misery of anticipation will be over and the race will be on! I'm so anxious to get started that I almost can't stand it. It's difficult to find enough things to occupy all the time necessary to make it to the starting line. It's strange how easy it is to procrastinate when you're in the middle of a project...but when you have to purposely "wait" to start the project, all you seem to want to do is start it. I think this psychological reversal might be a great motivational tool for getting things done when you really don't want to. I'm prepped and prepared, outlined and outfitted. I've characterized, plot-erized, scene-erized and now I'm ready to begin. As long as my momentum holds, this might actually be easy. Lets just hope that once the thrill of getting started wears off, that there will still be enough energy to complete my story.