Applying the Seat of the Pants...

Officially threw my Hat on the Rack and joined the group getting entries ready for the On the Premise contest. Now I have to come up with something by mid-week. I have the start of something but no idea how to fit the myth & legend into it yet.

Go brain, go!

Seriously? What is wrong with me? I'm actually contemplating whipping up a short story (1000-5000 wrds) for a contest.

I. Don't. Write. Shorts.

Most of my chapters are between 3000-5000 words. How do I condense an entire story into that same space? I don't think I've written a short since the IMPs and even then, few and far between.

Okay. I can do this. A little challenge. A nice mental break from The Book and The Other Book.

Or a mental breakdown. How can I be sure?

Theme is: Myth & Legend

I spent way too much time this morning, at the paying job, on-line, on non-job related things. I'm bad. I'm also easily distracted. I somehow got onto several author & writing blogs and one thing lead to another and next thing you know I was on Kristin Nelson's blog, then the agency website and then....

I think because I'm making writing contacts again. Because I've come out of the Life Happens induced coma of no fellow writer relations. I'm energized and excited to be a writer aspiring to be an author. I can do it!!

I'm also, I think, scarily close to finalizing Between Darkness & Light and thinking about sending some queries out. So the question becomes, to agent or not to agent? I've researched a few and have a relatively short list. I really like the feel I get from Kristin Nelson's blog and the agency website so have added her to my list as well.

So close.....

Don't know what happened but couldn't log on to LJ for almost a week.  It either wasn't there, or the log in hung up so badly I didn't have the patience to wait it out.  Gave me flashbacks to my old dial up days!

Finished one more chapter on The Other Book last week.  Still like where it's going, that's a good thing.

Hung up on BD&L.  Chapter 13 about killed me.  Sent the last draft of 13-Finis to my reader to get some feedback.  Maybe I don't need to totally re-write my back end.  Maybe I'm just being a super picky nut job.  (Hmm, if I *could* re-write my back end, it would be smaller and firmer.)

Woo-hoo!!  It's only a hair over 70 at 10:36 and it rained!!  I'm so excited.  We need a lot more rain than we got to uncrunchify the pastures but every little bit helps.

Received a memo with my check yesterday, two more Friday's off.  Yippee!!  Okay, I'm one of the weird ones, I'm perfectly fine with 36 hours.

Today's schedule... already banged out two crits and have to do a couple more before the weekend is out.
Need to get rolling on chapter 13 of The Book -- my reader is waiting impatiently.
Want another couple chapters on The Other Book and looking at throwing Chapter one up for critting on one of the groups I'm in.
Vet appointment for Row and Grady at 1:30.  It's their annual...way behind.
Have to call Verizon and see if they'll buy me out of my Sprint contract.  Oh yeah, Sprint has unlimited everything but what good does unlimited do when  you can't get a decent signal anywhere?
Need to get a blog entry up on my training blog about the clinic last weekend.  I need to not spin it in a truly negative light but it was a very frustrating weekend.

That's it.  Time to get busy.

I'm sitting here drinking a glass of Red Decadence, a dark red wine with a hint of chocolate that to me tastes a bit like a Tootsie Roll, enjoying the slight break in humidity and heat, reflecting on the past week.  Not a lot of writing went on since last Thursday due to being out of town.  Not a lot equals none at all.  Unless you count the new blog I started up.  Yeah, needed that like the proverbial hole in the head.  Have enough. 

The weekend wasn't as good as I hoped.  

I hate heat.  I hate humidity.  Extended days upon days of it is starting to wear on my temper.  There's more of it in the forecast and very little rain.  We need rain.  Everything is crunchy. 

With the heat and humidity has come hordes of biting deer flies.  We always have some but going outside now means being attacked by swarms.  I feel sorry for the stock.  They can't do anything but bear with it.  At least I can retreat, running and flailing, into the house.

I don't see much happening this week in any creative vein but if I get the chance...three more chapters on The Book, two more on The Other Book.

I am soooooo not looking forward to tomorrow.  Back to work after 10 days off.  A productive 10 days as far as writing.  Not as far as anything else.  But what else is there?  Right?

At the moment, I am sweltering.  It's hot and muggy and gross. 

This week is going to be a busy one.  Getting back into the swing of the normal routine, then heading out for MN at noon on Thursday for a stockdog training clinic.  Won't be back until Sunday so I'm not sure how much writing will get done between then and now.  But I'm really looking forward to it and seeing some folks I don't see nearly often enough.

Goals for this week... One or two more chapters on The Book, another chapter on The Other Book.  I'll keep it simple.

I'm thinking a more appropriate moniker would be Speed Bump Day.  I looked at my To Do list formulated last week in expectations of having this week off and nothing has been crossed off.  Heck, nothing's even been started.  I have been writing daily, so that's at least a good thing.  But the weather has been hot and humid so outside activities aren't really something I even want to consider.  Yesterday my student was an hour late for his lesson pushing everything else back.

Today I have a lunch meeting at 11:30 and this evening my goddaughter wants to stop in for "wine and girl talk".  This invariably means something is wrong.  Which meant last night I didn't sleep so well thinking about it.  Last time she wanted to stop in for "wine and girl talk" was in March when she told me she was moving down here, could she stay with us for a while because, BTW, she was also getting a divorce.  No problem.  I'm totally there for her.  So long as it doesn't end up being a monetary thing.  For some reason, the members of my family think we're independently wealthy and when they fall on hard times they come calling.  Really?  If I could afford to give you 5k with no hope of getting it back, ever, do you think the hubby and I would both be working full time jobs?!!?  People, we have a ginormous mortgage.  Get real.  Not that I wouldn't help them out financially if I could.  But I can't.

Wow!  Where did that rant come from???

I digress.

What's on the schedule for today besides lunch and wine?

• Write some more.  I'm up to Chapter 7 on TOB and liking it.  Chapter 6 on the rewrite of TB so today I'll work some more on that.
• Make some calls this afternoon for Nationals related items
• Call the vet....still have 3 dogs to get in for their yearly's...only three months late.  Man, what is up?!!?
• Try to get outside and get some work done although I see the thermometer is already edging toward 80 and it's only a little after 8:00   Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

 

Looks like today is going to be my run around day which means not a whole lot of other stuff will get done.  Grrrr.  I have a lesson at 9:00, then it will be jump in the shower and run to the store.  I should run to Fleet Farm as well but I'll wait till a weeknight the hubby can come.  I have to pick up a couple mineral blocks and he's got more muscles than I do.  ;-p  Tonight I have an agility training meeting and have to break the news that I need to back off the classes I teach.  I never intended to do it this long.  I've been working with a couple trainers and the point was to get them ready to take the classes.  I think they're ready.  I need to find my TO DO list I made for this week and print it off.  A bunch of stuff for Nationals, a lot of writing, some organizing and tidying...hmm...did I fit any fun stuff in there??

Don't get me wrong.  Love the hubby.  Love spending time with him.  But when he's home and I'm home and he's bored or can't find anything to do (I have a long list of things he seems to NOT want to do) he hovers.  Looks over my shoulder, "whatcha doin'", "what's that for", "how long you going to be working on that", "hey, come in here and look at this" ......  Very hard to concentrate or get any work done that way.

Goals for this week as far as writing:

• Continue on rewrite of The Book -- just sent the first five chapters off to be read by a willing victim...er...volunteer
• Continue on The Other Book -- reworking Chapter Four then back into Chapter Six
• Write some reviews
• Massive critting for the on-line groups I'm in

Non-writing goals:

• Work the dogs daily
• Clean up duck arena, weed whack attack and new take pen
• Finish the cleaning/re-organizing of my studio/office
• Work on Lace's portrait

I think I better stop with that!