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Feb 16, 2009 Did you write? . This is an attempt to provide an incentive to write regularly. I post this each week, to give you a chance brag about your accomplishments, and cry about your failures, and to otherwise to tell about what is going on in your life. My hope is that you will know this note is coming up and you will, if necessary, force yourself to write something, anything, to be able to say you wrote. Do this every week and one can end up with a good boy of work and possibly a habit.
Of course, what you consider writing is really up to you. Here are some suggestions, but this list is not all encompassing. You just have to justify what you consider writing, as writing, and then it is. Also, you might not consider some on my list as writing. That is your choice. Any new writing, is of course writing. Editing, even if it is the work of someone else's work, is writing. Poetry is writing. World building, I believe, is writing, as long as something gets onto paper. Blogging, Article writing, report writing, Writing assignments, are all writing in my opinion. E-mails could also be writing, as long as it is very wordy and pertains to writing. There may be others if you use your imagination.
I did not write on any of my stories. I did a couple quick poems for a poetry challenge and wrote a few words for a writing assignment, but I really don't count them as writing. I ended up short on my story ideas and had to catch up so that killed writing time for my stories. My writing partner finally finished a story I edited. I gave it a read through (actually used Yread to listen to it at work) and decided it was good. That has been posted now. My writing partner is editing story #3 that I wrote. She is actually rewriting it, turning it into two stories as she saw a way to make it more intense, more interesting. We have discussed that and one of the next stories quite a bit, both in E-mail and on the phone. These stories are based on things we did on my vacation to her house, but placing it in the world I created for my baby dragon stories. We figured there would be thirty stories involved, but now it is growing. I need to start on the next story and start developing that. In case you are curious, our first two stories are on http://www.xprodigy.net/board/ then roll down to Writer's Roost. The first story is about half way down and is named Waxy Visits Lazlo - Vacation story #1 and the second story is near the top and is named On The Elsewhere - Waxy's Vacation #2. You can also see our writing assignment prompt and my story ideas in that forum.
I am, at the moment, caught up on my story ideas, but will be missing an evening this week and will have to make it up. I just noticed that I keep looking at the wrong week on the calendar, thinking this is the last week of the month. I do have another weekend to catch up, but would rather not have to depend on the last days of the month to get caught up. I do not like that kind of pressure. Over the past week, I have done several story ideas that are rather pathetic. They filled in the spots needed to keep the idea a day, going. My compost pile has 47 story ideas that need to be written.
I delivered my bowls and carvings to an Antique shop I have had my stuff in that past couple months on Friday. I had borrowed the stuff the previous Friday for my art show, and then brought it back. I set up some different items. I did not have enough room to do what I really wanted, but I set up a plate, saucers, wooden silverware, goblets, pies, etc, in something that might have a semblance to a table setting. I have so much stuff on the table that I don't think it really is noticeable that I have a display. He was happy with my display, other than the fact that I bumped two Chandeliers with my hand cart while carrying the hand cart to the door where I could load it up with my boxes. I was carrying it high to avoid stuff on the floor and was not looking up.
Saturday, I went to the local Renaissance fair. This was a test of the medical Orthotics (special arch supports) I wear in my shoes. In previous shows, I would be almost crippled by the end of the day and would take at least a week, in some years, several weeks, to recover. They open at Ten, and close at dark. I entered when they opened the gates, and left at two. I usually am looking for the exit by noon. The place is big and I walked it twice, with a whole lot of standing added to it. My feet bothered me some, but nothing that was a problem. I did not fell crippled and the next day, my feet were back to normal. I even thought I could have done the show again the next day, though I might not have lasted as long. I do hope to go again, but it will depend on my funding, more than anything.
I love the Renaissance fair. I always love the concept of entering another time period or world for a while. The costumes are fantastic. The crafts and artwork, which is supposedly of the period, are wonderful. They have rides that, even if they never existed back then, could have. I have used the Renaissance fair concept in many a story idea and in other things I have messed with or have planned. There is a lot that can be done with these, whether it is actually a fair, or one ends up in the past or another world. It is just fun to play with.
As to the question of the week, Since I did not write on my stories, I am going to say I did not write, even though I did fit some of the other categories.
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I did a crit on a great piece of concept fantasy for a fellow Hatracker, and I also received some midnight inspiration which helped me start my very first short story. It's 80% done - just one more tough bit to work through.
Unfortunately, my current WiP received almost no attention whatsoever. What am I afraid of? The very best part is coming up next, so why am I stalling?
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LucyintheSky, I find that I sometimes hit a wall when I'm about to write a scene, particularly when I have very strong opinions about where the story's supposed to be going. I get the nagging sense that I won't be able to put it on paper well enough to do it justice.
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As it happens, yes, but very little. Saturday afternoon-evening, when I sleep, I dreamed up part of an idea. Sunday I wrote up an outline and some notes. I don't know whether I'll continue with it beyond that---it has a beginning, and it has an end, but I have yet to figure out (or dream) the middle that connects them up. Also I still need to justify it by the laws of physics, and that may be beyond me as well.
Ah, well. It's writing. It felt good to be writing something new and original. And then again this morning, I did a little---a very little---bit of revision on another story.
Of course, life goes on. Yesterday I roasted a turkey and had a guy in to install a broadband line. That took up a fair amount of time.
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AMPAglut, you're exactly right. I'm apprehensive because the scene is so strong in my mind, and it's such a pivotal moment for all the characters in my story, and I'm fairly certain that my efforts will fall short of the mark I'm hoping to hit.
But this fear is the same thing that's held back my writing for years. So even if it's total crap, it will be written!
Don't you have anything better than nail biting? I need the good stuff!
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Yup.....I worked on number 5 in "Changegate" series....finished it off today....I also got my Viewsonic monitor back from warranty repair and moved my writing files from my laptop to my desktop again....actually they sent me a refurbished one because my other was toast, I think....good monitors though...I game a lot so wasn't too surprised it died on me....today got the word that my first childrens' story I ever wrote (a flash) got accepted at "Spaceports and Spidersilk" ...."Torrance the Tidy Troll" so I am yahooing in multiple posts atm.....(we yahoos like to yahoo, I guess).....anyway, in short, I am writing on number 6 in "Changegate" series today
[This message has been edited by honu (edited February 17, 2009).]
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Yep. It took to the last day before I really got going, but Sunday wrote 2300 words, and finished another short story. So even though I didnt have as many days as I had hoped to write, I did get my goals done. Posts: 1168 | Registered: Mar 2008
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Cranked out about 500 words, and managed to do some more planning for my novel. Only about 30k to go .
Posts: 450 | Registered: Sep 2005
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