| To Read - recs from friends |
[Dec. 6th, 2009|07:13 pm] |
| [ | Tags | | | to read | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  cheerful | ] |
I've been telling myself that I was going to make a "to read" list FOREVER, so I'm finally starting one here under the "to read" tag.
Will LJ cut because I'm nice that way.
( Recommendations from friends )
I'm always open for recommendations of all kinds, so if you're really enjoying a book, let me know about it! |
|
|
| I Am Win! |
[Nov. 30th, 2009|02:46 pm] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| | relieved | ] |
Huzzah!
My last NaNo related project of the year (apart from the TGIO party this Saturday) is to put together an excerpt that can live on my NaNo profile all year [EDIT: it's up!] Prose-wise this was definitely THE ROUGHEST year yet (aren't I supposed to be getting better at this?). But it generated some ideas and the shell of a story that I definitely want to come back to some day - once I have done much, MUCH more pre-planning.
Will probably post again soon with my revised writing goals for the next month or so. Going to keep things light so I can focus on Christmas/Yuletide and applying for grad schools. I think it's going to be a focus on reading - "filling the well," as they say.
But anyway. NANO WIN! |
|
|
| NUTS! |
[Nov. 22nd, 2009|11:17 am] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| | cheerful | ] |
I completely forgot about the weekly short story for ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif) tamingthemuse this weekend - I thought about it on Thursday night when I went in for my shift at work, but then it left me entirely. So my streak ends at 20 weeks instead of my intented 30. I would have gotten the next level of "award" at 21 (since they're given out every three weeks) but I have a thing for round numbers so I'm kind of glad that it was 20 instead.
Definitely some positives to this turn of events: I can concentrate on the more pressing stuff for the next few weeks, such as NaNo (and its associated gatherings) and applying for grad school. I can stop feeling guilty about writing fluffy stuff off-the-cuff (hee, rhyme and alliteration!) instead of planning and preparing my stories. And now I can use the actual new year as a jumping off point for my next long-term goal, instead of the awkward date of January 23rd.
And I just might dedicate December to reading. I like the sound of that.
So here's to trying things, making mistakes, and going with the flow. |
|
|
| Holy crap busy holy crap |
[Nov. 16th, 2009|09:50 am] |
Man, the last few weeks have just flown by. Lots of stuff going on. Here's a quick recap:
- Have been doing a weekly NaNo themed podcast, which you can find and listen to here. I've been promoting it on Facebook but I haven't been able to convince myself to be more present on the NaNo forums, where it would hit more of the target audience. I've also been too shy to approach people to be on it. But the editing and general production is getting easier, and I think it'll have been a worthwhile project in the end.
- NaNoWriMo is in full swing! I'm regretting (in some ways) my decision to write a novel instead of short stories this year, because I am stumped on the novel bigtime. I just don't think in novel terms these days and it requires so much planning, worldbuilding, etc. But it's coming. Don't expect to see anything posted here, though - this draft isn't so much "prose" as "long-winded brainstorming."
- Still writing the weekly short stories, though I haven't posted them here yet. I've been busy with NaNo and work and the podcast and organizing local events, so I've scaled the stories down into explorative flash pieces, usually written in the span of half an hour. If you want to read them, be my guest. (Will probably port them over here at some point.)
And also thinking about realy actually applying for grad schools really soon, honest. And thinking ahead to the end of my thirty week short story stint (TWENTY WEEKS DOWN!) which should be around January 23rd. And thinking about the shift from reckless writing to furious editing that will entail. And thinking about how I need to let myself do more reading, and broader reading, and silly reading, and serious reading. And thinking about how I want to start writing and recording essays about songs and movies and internet phenomena.
The days! They do not have enough hours in them!
One thing's for sure, though: I like being busy. Probably a good thing that this isn't about to stop anytime soon. |
|
|
| Scriptravaganza: Actually a Two Week Process |
[Oct. 17th, 2009|10:30 am] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| | accomplished | ] |
On Thursday night I finally sent in the first completed draft of the horror audio play (code name: "Broke Open"). It is definitely a work in progress, but I feel like I've taken it as far as I can given my current level of experience and skill in writing audio plays (read: next to none.) Some plot and structural elements are nagging at me and I'm hoping that I will get some feedback that will confirm my suspicions and help me figure out how to resolve them.
I am... "happy" doesn't quite cover it, because I am NEVER happy about anything that I know isn't pretty much perfect. But because this way lies madness, I am calling myself "satisfied given the context" and dusting my hands of it for a bit. And in terms of actually having researched / worked through / actually written this thing, I am definitely happy with myself. At least a dozen times in the past two weeks I decided that I was a talentless hack who isn't kidding anyone, just give up now you loser, who are you trying to fool anyway? But I kept working at it, and overcame some of the hurdles, and wound up with something that at LEAST has some promise. And I guess we'll see where it goes from there.
Now I'm going to do a bit of prep work for the weekly story, which will be a bit more substantial than the past couple of weeks', even though I have enjoyed the relative break from outlining, brainstorming, etc. It's still going to be something of a speed-write and thus a kind of larval story (dude, 90% of the stuff on this journal is in that state right now), but I think it's going to be fun to write. Especially after two weeks of straight-up dialogue.
[EDIT:] The story is written - this week's half of it, anyway. Will write the second half for next week, and I'll post both parts then. It's Portal fanfiction! Fun! |
|
|
| Scriptravaganza! |
[Oct. 4th, 2009|05:09 pm] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| | determined | ] |
My deadline for finishing the first draft of the horror audio play is end of day Tuesday. I'm slightly blitzed for lack of sleep today, but I'm still going to put a couple hours into fleshing out my outline, working on some of the characters, and doing a bit of research and decision making re: the setting and some plot elements. I basically want to end today ready to hide away somewhere and write the script tomorrow.
Tomorrow: I write the script. In its entirety. I make notes as I go of character/storyline/setting stuff that I need to work on, but I'm not going to obsess over this stuff. At the end of the day I'll have a very rough but COMPLETE script with the words "THE FRIGGIN' END" at the bottom of the last page.
Tuesday: Work out the kinks identified during Monday's speed write. Edit the script / rework as much as makes sense on the day. We're still talking about a first draft, so I'm not going to go overboard, but I want to be in a good position to have someone read it and give me some feedback on where to go with it next. I basically want to feel like I've thrown myself at it with as much gusto as I can muster on my own.
All right, time for less rambling and more writing. SCRIPTRAVAGANZA BEGINS! |
|
|
| Flash Fiction: So Am I |
[Oct. 3rd, 2009|05:15 am] |
Written for Prompt 167: Antapology over at tamingthemuse.
I had a weird week - was feeling really under the weather for a lot of it. Slept a lot, and cooked a lot, and generally have taken it easy otherwise. I started this story a few days ago and then couldn't decide what I wanted to do with it, so I gave myself a half-hour time limit tonight to finish it up, something like my 15 minute flash fiction (but, um, twice as long.) Next week I am putting my nose to the grindstone and finishing the first draft of the horror audio play, which will eat up a lot of my time. I may take the same approach with next week's short story. We'll see.
( So Am I - flash, 711 words ) |
|
|
| A change in priorities |
[Sep. 14th, 2009|12:03 pm] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  contemplative | ] |
As painful as it was (and as damaging to my sleep schedule, apparently), I'm really glad that I squeezed out the story / glorified outline of the short horror audio play the other day. I abstractly knew that there were lots of things to work on (ie: every possible facet?), but now that it's on paper (or will be, once I print it) I can actually see not just what those things are, but how to start working on them.
I mentioned earlier that I want the bulk of the work on this to be done before November rolls around. So instead of trying to edit a play / short story every week, I'm going to focus entirely on the audio drama (code name: "Broke Open"). It's going to be my main focus for the next two months. I'm still going to write a short story every week for tamingthemuse (11 weeks down, 19 to go!) but I'm going to scale them down a bit, maybe write flash fiction in the 500 - 1000 word range.
And, of course, I need to read more.
Because I love them so, here is my editing "To Do" list for this week:
- Print "Broke Open" and take a red pen to it. Highlight things that need:
- World-building and character work.
- Thematic and plot work.
- Formatting and structuring work (ie: translation to "audio drama" needs).
- Further research.
- Take care of the research stuff first, as it'll impact changes to plot, etc.
- Work on the big-picture issues: world-building and theme.
- EDIT: Read the radio play section of Michael Straczynski's "Complete Book of Scriptwriting".
There. That should keep me busy. Next week will move from macro to micro stuff, and try to get this whole thing to gel. |
|
|
| A new project! (and today's "To Do" list) |
[Sep. 8th, 2009|01:53 pm] |
I just signed up to write a sci-fi / horror audio drama for an anthology called The Omega Road Chronicles. I'm already involved with these folks as a voice actor for Age of the Zombies, which is how I heard about the project.
I'm pretty excited. As I told them, I've never written audio drama before, but I a) write short stories and b) have SOME experience writing thatre/screen scripts. A new format plus a relatively new genre for me equals a BIG challenge, but it's one I feel confident about and am really looking forward to sinking my teeth into.
Since I'm doing NaNoWriMo again (as always - and more on that later), I want to have the bulk of the work on this (including redrafts) done before November.
Now that that's out of the way, here's my writing etc. "To Do" list for today:
- Edit that play I want to submit for Script Happens (an hour and a half)
- Brainstorm and outline this week's prompt for tamingthemuse
- Submit a story to Critique Circle
- Critique a story on the above.
|
|
|
| Some goals for the next few weeks |
[Aug. 26th, 2009|05:57 am] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  tired | ] |
As much as I am enjoying the frenetic (and usually VERY last minute) challenge of tamingthemuse every week, I am realizing that I need to have some structured, dedicated writing time (not just a stolen few hours at work.) With that in mind, here are my goals through to the end of September:
- Continue writing every week for tamingthemuse, but be better prepared for it. Brainstorm / outline over the weekend, and then take two dedicated hours during every work shift to write (more on the last night if necessary.)
- Spend at least an hour and a half over the weekend doing editing work on an older story. The newer, tender ones need time to set before they're toyed with.
- READ MORE. SERIOUSLY. You like reading. What's the hold up? The internet is not your only toy at work, you know. Read a short story every other night, and get a novel on the go.
- Read and critique at least two stories per week on Critique Circle. Experiment with different genres.
I'm hitting about 60% of July's goals. I'm cutting "finish the lingering play" off, because I don't really know where I'm going with it. As for editing the other short plays, if I don't pick at them during my weekly editing time I'll make sure to put a specific push on in October. Before NaNo starts I need to have my material ready to submit to the theatre company next year. (Speaking of which: maybe it's time to start writing plays for tamingthemuse instead of short stories? What a concept!) |
|
|
| A short "To Do" list (to be updated throughout the day) |
[Aug. 24th, 2009|03:33 am] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| | amused | ] |
Now that I'm moved into the apartment (woo!) and have prised my life back from the clutches of The Bard, it's time to start working through some of the stories that I've written over the past year (read: the past three months, but one of them is a year old, so technically...) I've hit about 50% of my goals for July, and the end of August is fast approaching.
I want to accomplish a few things today. I'm trying not to over-tax myself, so I'm keeping it short and sweet:
Spend an hour and a half working on First Born / That Story That Needs A Title - DONE!
Brainstorm for next week's tamingthemuse prompt - DONE!
Read. Pick up a short story and enjoy it thoroughly. - Done, though as it was a re-read for a critique on CC, it's a bit of a cheat. Will try to get a "purely for pleasure" story read once D&D is done for the night.
Of course, I've got other stuff in the works for tomorrow - non-writing stuff like cooking, cleaning, hanging out with people. But I will feel a lot better about myself if I make time for these things, now that I have time to make. |
|
|
![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small}
wordwhacker's journal
curious