Happy Halloween

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Just in time for Halloween, yesterday’s seventy degree weather has given way to lower fifties with wind gusts of 25 mph. I shouldn’t complain. This is warmer than last year when my girlfriend and I bundled up for a chilly trudge, armed with big glasses of wine. The kids we don’t worry about. They run too much to get cold. We trick or treat in a Minneapolis suburb, built in the 20’s where the homes are close together and the kids get more bang for their buck. I’m a child of the 70’s when the energy crisis put a stop to all the Christmas lights decorating the houses. Which means as I walk the neighborhood and see all the orange lights, lawn blow up figures of ghouls and ghosts and the dry ice machines pumping spooky smoke, I wish I was a kid again.

What is cuter than a bunch of labs in ghost costumes?

Today’s Goal: Get lots of pictures of my daughter in her great costume
Yesterday’s Achievement: I sent my PRO paperwork to RWA
What I’m Grateful For: Being almost done with my rewrite on Negotiation

Halloween Eve

A friend at work sent me this wonderful e-mail with a bunch of great pictures of boys. In honor of Halloween I post this one. Tomorrow I will have other pictures I've collected off e-mails to celebrate the spooky day. Only they're not really spooky, they're actually quite fun.

My daughter had a school project where she had to do a report on a famous person. She chose Catherine the Great. I can't wait to see how the presentation turns out. The kids were supposed to dress in costume and have their picture taken as their character. I found a terrific queen costume at Target (bless them) that was dark brown and the style was even appropriate for the time period. She had a blast dancing around with the hoop skirt and was the talk of the class. I wish I could bottle her high spirits and enthusiasm. I swear she is the happiest person I know.

Today's Goal: Stay away from the TV and get some work done.
Yesterday's Accomplishment: I made it to Round 3 of Karin Tabke's contest
What I'm Grateful For: Friends that make me laugh.

Round 3

Yeah! I made it to round 3 of Karin Tabke's first line contest. I've never reworked the beginning of a story so much. When you only get one sentence at a time to stand out, it makes you really scruitinize each word. If I wrote an entire book like this it would take me a hundred years at least. But it sure is fun.

The competition started with 74 entrants. Each week another 10 will be culled. At some point there will only be 5 cut. The wait from Friday evening until Monday when the results are posted is a nail biter. But when isn't waiting hard.

There is a lot of variety in the entries. I can't wait to see where the stories are going.

Today's Goal: Figure out line 3
Yesterday's Achievement: Spent the day with my daugnter. We saw the Broadway version of the Lion King.
What I'm Grateful For: Beautiful falls days in Minnesota.

Gone, Baby Gone

Dennis Lehane is a very talented author. It's been a lot of years since I've read his books and I'm inspired to reread him after seeing the movie based on his novel. Casey Afleck stars in the movie directed by his brother Ben. And Morgan Freeman is his usual strong character that I've seen in many movies, but which he's perfect for. The mystery leaves you not knowing what to make of the players. Are they good or evil? In the end the question I was left with a question: is it bad to do the wrong thing for good reasons? Or is doing the right thing the way to go even if it doesn't end up being the best thing? Can the wrong thing ever be right?

Today's Goal: Still working on chapter 11 revisions
Yesterday's Achievement: Plugging away
I'm Grateful For: Winning a contest and receiving a darling pendant with flamingos. Thank you TARA!

Endings and Resolution

I’ve started and deleted this topic a dozen times. I’m fascinated by why people do what they do and probably should have gone for a career in counseling instead of business. But I think my personality is too impatient. “Here’s how to fix your problem, go do it.” Yeah, I don’t that would go over well.

So, I write about people and their problems instead and in the course of a story I get to help them deal with their issues. I’m passionate about happy endings for my characters, my friends, family, strangers and dispense nuggets of information (you notice I didn’t say wisdom) where ever I go to whomever will listen.

Here’s my question: If a character has multiple issues, is it okay not to resolve all of them by the end of the book?

I ask this because the movies that stick with me are the ones where I walk out of the theatre dying to talk to someone about it. If everything is resolved, do we walk away from a movie or book and never think about it again?

Another question: What was the last book or movie that left you still engaged when you finished? Why was that?

Mine was The Valley Of Elah. In most movies the hero moves from a negative situation into a positive one. In this movie the hero starts out with unshakable belief in the military system and an unquenchable pride in our nation. By the end he questions what he once counted on. On his journey, he brings faith to a little boy and his mother.

I left the movie, pondering how this new faith will influence the little boy and how our hero will now cope with a lifetime of beliefs no longer supporting him.

Plus I thought the movie was an excellent example of how a story can be moved forward through by showing not telling.

Today’s Goal: Finish chapter eleven revisions
Yesterday’s Achievement: Finished chapter ten revisions.
What I’m grateful for: 2 hours of free time on Saturday so I can go see a movie.

Ancient writings

Beginnings are fun. It’s the middle and ending I have trouble with. And this is true of almost all aspects of my life. (Which is why there are so many unfinished craft projects around my house.) I have between one and three chapters of about thirty novels. They range from short contemporary romance (my current focus) through historical, romantic suspense, mystery, paranormal and fantasy. Some of them were written so long ago (10-15 years) that when I reread them it’s like reading a completely different writer.

Most of the stories will never get finished because the ideas for them were never documented and I have no clue what I was thinking. Some I might be able to make something of someday. Whatever happens, they are nuggets of how I used to think.

How about you? Any ancient writings from another era?

Pardon my lapse

After a too long absence, I’m back to blogging. As a writer, I shouldn’t have trouble pounding out a couple hundred words, and heaven knows I have enough to talk about. Am I interesting? My daughter thinks I am (aren’t 8 year olds great?). So, I’ve decided to get over myself and get back to thinking out loud.

Today’s topic is Podcasts. Specifically Will Write For Wine. Lani Diane Rich and Samantha Graves are the brain child (children) behind the hour long (or short) podcasts that pair great information on writing, wine and misc. stuff with a whole lot of laughter. Seriously, if you can get through an entire podcast without grinning once I’ll send you a brand new twenty dollar bill. Their topics run the gamut from serious writing help to just plain fun, but I’ve never walked away without learning something.

I have an iPod and download the podcasts from iTunes. You can subscribe (it’s free) and each time they upload a new podcast to iTunes, you automatically get the new episodes. You can also download the podcasts off their website (but iTunes is so much easier and did I mention automatic?). And you don’t need to own an iPod. You can listen to the podcasts on your computer through iTunes.

I’d like to send out a thanks for kicking me in the butt to Lexi Connor.

Today’s Goal: If I’m going to spend 2 hours revising, please let it be on more than 1-500 word scene
Yesterday’s Accomplishments: 2 hours spent revising
I’m Grateful For: All my amazing writer friends who inspire me daily