Bram Stoker Weekend

I'm so excited! Next June I'm going to be here! Very cool. Peter Straub. Peter. Straub. Oh. My. God. I can't believe it.

Weeeeeeee!! Already registered. Good to go.

Incidentally, did you know that thrillers are now considered to be a sub genre of horror? This is interesting. I think that genres blur anyway. That's what the theme of the event is, too. Shades and variation on genre.

I write suspense/thrillers and mysteries. So I won't be out of my element.

Some really cool panels are scheduled for that weekend, too. Woohoo!

And I get to hang out with other writers and readers of horror/thrillers/suspense. Wow!

Jeff is authentically interested in hangin' with me at this event, too, which is awesome. Of course, he'd pretty much have a good time wherever I'd drag him. Pretty easy to please, lucky for me :)

Okay, back to my own book.

Soooooo Close!

Great writing day! So happy with the progress. Wrote two more scenes and got more editing done. 18 pages of editing left. *Maybe* Another couple of scenes to finish things off, and I'm done! Woohoo!

I think I'll run around screaming in glee when I actually type "the end."

Sunday

So far the weekend hasn't been cooperating in terms of getting the writing done. But this morning daddy's taking the bean out for a couple of hours, so I'll have some complete quiet time to get 'er done. Or at least try.

Thinking about the synopsis. Good thing I do the mind map thing. I just use Microsoft work and text boxes for known scenes, then color code them according to plot thread. If a scene needs particular attention I use a shiny color that I wouldn't normally use for a plot thread, like silver.

But the mind map helps because I can go back and look at those scenes spread out in front of me, and decide which are the most important, and need to be included in the synopsis. Can't add them all.

Looks like it's going to be a nice day. Must get pumpkins soon.

Chitter Chatter

Well, an unforeseen snag worked against me making any progress on the book. My little guy got sick, which made working on the document pretty difficult. When he gets sick, Neither of us sleeps much, and so during his naps, which are never long when he's sick, I nod off with the laptop on my lap.

So we'll see who I do this weekend. I'm both stoked and apprehensive about finishing. As usual. I mentioned this not long ago to my friend Deb, who said to me, "You're not afraid of failure. Are you afraid of success?" To which, without hesitation, I replied, "Yes." This kind of freaked me out because I never had even thought about it. But it was a quick trigger answer, so I guess it was the most honest one.

I choose not to analyze this right now, though. I'm sure there are many reasons, but I don't want to jinx my finishing the book.

Another friend of mine read in Cosmopolitan Magazine that human females are not the only creatures that prostitute themselves, but that penguins will trade sex for pebbles, which they use to build their homes. Interesting.

I've always been a sucker for chocolate, myself.

Cosmo sparked another conversation today, about relationships, and what kinds of things a man needs to do to ignite a fire in our hearts. Not just our panties. Though said behaviors definitely wouldn't hurt the panty (or lack there-of) thing.

She said, "Paying for dinner. Making us laugh."

I said, "Laughing at our silly jokes, putting up with our craziness, bringing us chocolate when we're sad (but really, there is no bad time to bring us chocolate). She added that peanut butter chocolate is best. I won't disagree, and though I love all kinds, my favorite is dark chocolate.

But thinking on this, what I think every woman wants is to feel special to the guy. We know that you can live without us, fellas. But what we need to know is that you'd never, ever want to.

We need to know that we brighten your days the way that no one else can. That we offer something to you that no one else can, at least, not in the same, wonderful way. The woman you love needs to know that she is unique to you, and that if you ever did try to replace her, that you'd miss her terribly because she is one of a kind. Another woman may bring you happiness, but she'd never be this woman.

How did my fella hook me? He was interested in my mind. He thought/thinks that I'm intelligent. And although he isn't a book reader, he's read two of my books. He appreciates and respects how important the writing is to me.

I suspect that most women want to know that they aren't only beautiful to their guy, but that their fella also thinks that they are smart and talented, and shows them their respect and admiration.

You want to set a fire in our hearts?

Make us feel special.

That's the secret ;)

(P.S - I'm betting that men are the same way. The panty removal thing only goes so far. Am I right?)

Dirty Business Stuff

The bean didn't nap long for me so I wasn't able to get as far as I wanted to in the edit, but did discover that I needed to write another scene as a bridge between two other scenes. Just finished that scene a few minutes ago.

Still sick but not nearly as. Had a good sleep last night and have been popping the vitamin C like candy, so I guess it's helping.

Feeling giddy because, barring any more unforeseen snags, I only have 40 - some odd pages left in this edit. Then I print out a paper copy. Woohoo! Always freaked out by how many pages there are. How many words. I'm always in awe when I see the amount of work I've done. That all that stuff came from my brain.

Then I write a synopsis and I'm done! The synopsis is always a giant pain in the ass, but it has to be done. hair-tearing experience because it's so hard to condense so much into just 2 to 5 pages. Crazy, because my books are so full of action.

So I really have learned the meaning of "highlights". The trick is to figure out the most crucial highlights to include.

Going to bed early tonight to try and kick the rest of this cold.

Off to bed before I nod off here on the couch. Over and out.

Horror While Editing

Watching 30 Days of Night on FX while I work on the edit. This is an excellent horror movie. Scary as hell and very well done.

And my oh my, but Josh Hartnett is nice to look at. *Fans self* Reminds me of a young Tommy Lee Jones, whom I also love.

*Sniffle* *Cough*

Ugh. I have a cold. Think I've been fighting it for a couple of days. Baby's had a cold for a week. Yesterday we had a great day at a family party. But this cold hit me by early evening. Jeff's not feeling great either. So we're all sick.

But on a lighter note, on the last stretch of the edit. Woohoo! Hoping to get it done today. We'll see what happens. This cold makes me sleeping, so I hope I'm not napping with the laptop on my lap while my little guy naps.

Daddy's taken him to the park so I'll see what I can get done until they get back.

Foggy brained but determined. Here I go.

Blech

Ugh. Had a flu shot today. Walked into Walmart and they were holding a flu shot clinic. Last year I had to wait for a half hour in line with my little guy to get my flu shot. Today, there wasn't a soul at that table except for the two women giving the shots. So I thought, what the hell.

The prick of the shot itself doesn't bother me at all. But the flu-like symptoms I suffer several hours later suck. Aches and pains and general ickyness. So I'm going to bed early. Which also sucks, because my little guy went to sleep fast for me and I'd have a couple of good hours of editing. But I can't keep my eyes open.

So it's off to bed with a book. My top comfort writer is Dennis Lehane, so I'm going to bed with him tonight.

Tomorrow is another day.

So here is another Eric Carmen song I love.

Validating Writer Insanity (well, feeling like you're nuts)

Not that I'm enjoying the suffering of another writer, but I find reading these things validating. Like I'm not crazy. Well, for the way I feel about the whatever book I'm trying to slog through when I get feeling like this. Lilith says,

"I am at the stage where I just have to keep repeating, “You always feel the book is total crap at this point. Work through it. Put your head down and go through. You can’t fix what you don’t write.” Of course, the signs that I’m at this stage include staring blankly at the monitor, a sudden overwhelming urge to do housework, frequent rounds of whispered cursing, the urge to listen to the book’s soundtrack over and over while I’m running, and the frequent despairing thought that perhaps I should change careers. Go back to school and be a plumber or a paralegal or something. That thunking sound you hear is me hitting the desk with my head. Repeatedly."

Story Stuff

Monday, Monday. But I'm home and I have my document open. I got up at five a.m to do my 40 min work-out so I'm a bit sleepy but I won't go to bed until I've done some work on Dirty business.

My favorite time of year is coming up! The weather is cooling down and I'm able to breathe and sleep much better. Halloween decorations are starting to infiltrate the stores. Lots of cute and creepy things about, and I'm looking at them with an eye of tricking out my work cubical a little bit this Halloween. Last year two of the girls and I wore witch hats. I think the girls are up for it again this year.

I was just looking at Alexandra Sokoloff's post here which discusses various types of story situations. She points us to this link, which lists the 36 Dramatic Story situations.

I've got severals of those listed in Dirty Business:

- Deliverance
- Crime
- Pursuit
- Abduction/Guardian
- Self-sacrifice for an ideal

This book also has strong fairytale elements woven into it. I didn't realize this until I began really analyzing the elements of the story, but it really does. As well as betrayal and the consequences suffered as a result of betrayal.

I can see a strong mentor factor going on in this story as well.

I'm having fun identifying all this stuff. Very neat.

Okay, back to work for me.

Editing Fool

Working on the edit tonight. But there's a new playlist up! My little guy has a cold so I'm trying to work as fast as I can before he wakes up frustrated and miserable because he can't breathe, poor little bean :(

A Creepy Little Bed Time Story.

Little guy wanted to go to bed early, 7:30 pm instead of 8:30. Weeee! So I'm working on the edit tonight.

My mind has been spinning for a while, with this book all over it. It's been hard to focus enough to give you any content worth reading. I'm sorry about that. But I was thinking about what makes people who they are, a question I go back to again and again. I thought of my own upbringing, and what made me want to be a storyteller before I ever knew what a storyteller was.

Many things, most of which I won't get into here because it's dangerous terrain for several reasons, but also because I don't want to ever sound like I'm whining about my childhood. Many experiences occur in a person's life to help form them. A myriad of factors which shape us, and design the core of our personality. A psychological blueprint.

I was a storyteller before this. As a child I loved hearing stories and making up stories. I haven't changed. There were elements of my life that made stories comforting to me. Escape is probably the biggest reason.

But writing has also been a coping mechanism for me. Coping with things that happened or didn't happen or came close to happening. One of the things that had a huge effect on me almost happened when I was seven years old, on a bright, sunny August afternoon.

I was almost abducted by a man in a car that day. In a lane way behind the my aunt's house. Thank Christ I was an extremely cautious girl. I was on a bike and, though he had the door open to try and grab me, I rode around it, and I can still see him leaning over the seat, arm outstretched.

This memory leaves me feeling jittery. I don't like to talk about it and I don't talk about it with people in my daily life. I know that in the telling of it I'd stammer, swallow back panic, and generally choke on my words.

I don't know if he'd been watching me or not. Maybe. He wasn't someone I remembered every seeing before, and he looked completely normal, which was even more disconcerting. But I never saw him again.

Believe me when I tell you that I looked for him and his car for years afterward, and I stayed nervous of cars coming up behind me while I was walking or riding my bike for years. I can hear a car coming up from a long way away if I'm out. But I didn't hear him come up behind me that day. I was too much in my own head. I only saw the car when it had already pulled up close beside me, and he'd tried to block my path right away.

It happened so fast it was surreal.

I know that if he'd gotten me into that car, I never would've made it back out. I know this as sure as I know the sun will rise and set tomorrow.

So, I hope I've made up for my silence with this creepy little story. It's a true one, and one I keep wrapped up in the darker corners of my memory.

I have others, but I don't know if I'll share them here or not. We'll see ;)

Now, back to the edit.

Currently Listening To . . .

His hair gets me hysterical, but I love this song. 1988!

The Art of David Oster

I love this artist. I met him twice. Once at the Tulip Festival in Albany about 8 years ago, and once at some other fair around the region the following year. I fell instantly madly in love with his work. His prints literally took my breath away.

He's done some amazing ink drawings of structures around the capital region. My ex-husband and I bought five of his prints, three of which I own but are in my hometown because I couldn't squish them into my Jeep on the way back here without damaging them (one of a building in Troy under a starlit sky which I had to fight for custody of in my divorce. I left everything except my own belongings in that house, but I wanted that framed print of Troy, dammit! He got the other two).

Some day I'll get them back, if I ever visit there again. It's a long trip. 14 hours by car.

He's done a stunning one of the Capital Building. Unfortunately, I lost that one in the split up. I'll get another print of it some day. Anyway, I digress.

Here is his website. I think he's just amazingly talented. I love this one. I need to order it some day and have it framed.

One of the prints I have in Sudbury is of an old Victorian house that he drew to look creepy and haunted. Very atmospheric. When I spoke with him about it, he said that the house actually didn't look spooky at all, but he'd drawn it that way because that is the inspiration that hit him at the time. I think that's skill. To be able to change the mood of something without actually modifying the structure.

Anyway, I love his work. Love. It. Check him out.

Almost The End.

80,000 words. A third of the way through the third draft (edit). Finish this, then I send it to a friend of mine to read.

Can't believe I'm almost there. Wow.

Friday Stuff

Set out early and went to the Schaghticoke Fair with my mother and little guy. Spent a couple of hours but had to leave because it was SO friggin' hot and humid. Actually felt light-headed after a while. But my little guy had a great time on the rides and seeing the animals. He especially loved the horses.

He fell asleep in the truck on the way home so he won't nap for me today, but my mother has him downstairs so I'm gonna take advantage and continue the edit of Dirty Business.

I'm off today! Didn't even realize it was Labor Day Friday that I'd requested like, six weeks ago. This is awesome because Monday is a holiday! Weeeeee!

Okay. To work on the book.

Retro

Always loved this song:

Sparks Release!

Laura's Book Sparks is out! WOOHOO!

The first book in the series, Embers, is fantastic! I can't wait to read this one! Go get it!