Well, Christmas came and went. What can I say? I ate too much and played stupid games.
Martin and I went over to his parents house and sat around doing the 'opening presents' thing. Martin's brother has a new bird. Some chunky girl with a penchant for brown velvetine tracksuits. Ugh! We watched the two love birds exchange approximately 30 gifts each, with the fluffy bears getting bigger with each gift. It was a little bit sickening, but perhaps its just coz I only got three pairs of shoes this Christmas. Hehehe.
So, the day passed non-eventfully. I knew about most of my presents anyway so it wasn't all that surprising, but it was good to finally have the items I picked out ages ago. A couple of DVDs, some CDs (Loreena McKennitt's new album - An Ancient Muse, and Alanis Morissette's accoustic Jagged Little Pill) which went straight onto my ipod once I got home. Also got a few books.. one of which I have been waiting over a year to be released!!! It came out months ago, but stupid me said 'why dont you give that to me for Christmas?' thus making my stupid self wait longer.
Its Terry Goodkind's 'Phantom'. I think its the last in the Sword of Truth series, but I'm not sure. I'm over halfway through reading it and I honestly dont remember his last books being so damn long winded. One conversation spanned about 5 chapters! He always leaves a little cliffhanger at the end of each chapter though, so he knows how to spin a good yarn.
I've also got the second book in Earth's Children's series by Jean M Auel 'Valley of the Horses'.. I think thats what its called. I haven't got it in front of me at the mo. I also thought I'd try reading 'Eldest' by Christopher Paolini. If some kid can write a book and make a mint then I'm going to read it and find out what the fuck he has written that is so great. His first book 'Eragon' wasn't very flash but perhaps I'm missing something. I also heard that the movie is a waste of space. Still, I'll look at it anyway coz its fantasy and the cast line up is pretty cool.
I haven't touched any writing since I last blogged, and although the break from Blogger and the Book has been good, its been a little wierd. I've felt oddly very emotional in the last few weeks and have been entertaining some wierd thoughts. Its almost been a bit scary the things my brain has spat at me. I'm not going to divulge things here, coz although this is my journal of sorts, it aint very private and some things have to be kept private lest the funny farm comes and takes me away.
So, I'm not going to be doing any writing until next year.. ie Monday (Heheh.. I love referring to the next few days as 'next year'. It sounds a long way off even though its only a few days). I've got all of January to add an extra 40,000 words and some new plot points. I need to add the negative balance to the story, which means a whole new character with his own problems/motivations. Will take a bit of thought but I'm sure I can wangle it.
Well I've got to get off my arse and go pick up a package that wasn't delivered yesterday (even though Martin was home all day the useless post people didn't even knock or anything. Lazy bastards!!)
For New Year I'm just going to a pub with some friends to drink myself into oblivion. If I dont ever blog again after that then no doubt the forces of evil, aka Jack Daniels & Coke, have taken over my body and I'm stuck in a perpetual hangover.
Sounds like fun.
Saturday, December 30, 2006
Friday, December 22, 2006
The Office Drunk!
Thats me!
I've only been in this job two months but I still got an appraisal. I cleverly scheduled it for Tuesday before the Christmas party on Wednesday and boy am I glad I did.
We all went out for a nice Christmas lunch Wednesday, and I was sat next to the boss, but of course I didn't care, I still went ahead and drank 6 Jack Daniels & Cokes!
But, being the trained JD drinker I barely felt tipsy. We left the restaurant and headed over to the place where the supposed Christmas party was. It was just a dull and boring room filled with suited and booted boring professionals... until my department walked in from the restaurant. We still had our silly hats on from the crackers at lunch, so we all got stared at.
I had to then move onto the red wine.. which wasn't so bad I suppose, but I'm not sure how much I drank coz my drink was topped up at least 3 times.
We left there at about 8-ish and went to the tiny little pub across the road. Its from then on that things turn all blurry. I bought my first drink - a double JD.. and from then on my drink seemed to multiply every time I got down to the dregs.
I always had at least two JD's in hand at once, and I was told this morning that I swayed a great deal, but never spilled a drop! Ha.. I'm a professional!
So, thanks to some of the boys from my department I managed to get across the road to the train station - propped up between the two of them, still with my silly hat on.
I managed to find the right platform for my train and had to wait half an hour for it (which turned out to be longer since it was delayed!) so I decided to go to the ladies. When I got into the toilet there was some young french bloke standing in their complaining at how long we were taking, but I wasn't in any mood to have a bloke taking a tinkle before me, so after a little bit of pushing and shoving I chinned him one with the best punch I could manage (after at least 12 JD's it was probably a weak slap, but in my mind it was the best punch in the world).
Thank god he was a weedy little bastard, coz he could have turned around and smacked me clear off my feet. Thankfully he just left, coz three other girls were starting to take offense at his presence.
What a dickhead!
So anyway, I managed to get on my train and talked a load of bollocks to whoever would listen, and then stumbled home. I was lucky to meet up with the hubby (who was also coming home from his Christmas bash) on the way home, but I am very pleased to say that I didn't fall down once all night!!
The hubby on the other hand tripped over a few times, grazed his knee and hand, and broke his phone. And he wasn't even all that pissed at the end of the night.
I honestly cant remember the last time I was that pissed! It was fantastic!! I didn't even feel that bad in the morning. I was still really pissed in the morning though, so I phoned up and took an emergency holiday day! Hehehe. Thankfully it was all ok.
Oh, but the best yet.. Today my bosses came over to my desk and presented me with some lovely perfume as a 'thank you'! I dunno what the thank you was for, but perhaps it was just the christmas spirit. My face went so red, I was speechless. At first I thought they were coming over to tell me off about something, but apparently not. By the looks of it I'm doing pretty well in this job! Hoorah! (Hopefully I didn't do something I shouldn't have at the party.. perhaps that was what the 'thank you' was for! I hope not!)
I've only been in this job two months but I still got an appraisal. I cleverly scheduled it for Tuesday before the Christmas party on Wednesday and boy am I glad I did.
We all went out for a nice Christmas lunch Wednesday, and I was sat next to the boss, but of course I didn't care, I still went ahead and drank 6 Jack Daniels & Cokes!
But, being the trained JD drinker I barely felt tipsy. We left the restaurant and headed over to the place where the supposed Christmas party was. It was just a dull and boring room filled with suited and booted boring professionals... until my department walked in from the restaurant. We still had our silly hats on from the crackers at lunch, so we all got stared at.
I had to then move onto the red wine.. which wasn't so bad I suppose, but I'm not sure how much I drank coz my drink was topped up at least 3 times.
We left there at about 8-ish and went to the tiny little pub across the road. Its from then on that things turn all blurry. I bought my first drink - a double JD.. and from then on my drink seemed to multiply every time I got down to the dregs.
I always had at least two JD's in hand at once, and I was told this morning that I swayed a great deal, but never spilled a drop! Ha.. I'm a professional!
So, thanks to some of the boys from my department I managed to get across the road to the train station - propped up between the two of them, still with my silly hat on.
I managed to find the right platform for my train and had to wait half an hour for it (which turned out to be longer since it was delayed!) so I decided to go to the ladies. When I got into the toilet there was some young french bloke standing in their complaining at how long we were taking, but I wasn't in any mood to have a bloke taking a tinkle before me, so after a little bit of pushing and shoving I chinned him one with the best punch I could manage (after at least 12 JD's it was probably a weak slap, but in my mind it was the best punch in the world).
Thank god he was a weedy little bastard, coz he could have turned around and smacked me clear off my feet. Thankfully he just left, coz three other girls were starting to take offense at his presence.
What a dickhead!
So anyway, I managed to get on my train and talked a load of bollocks to whoever would listen, and then stumbled home. I was lucky to meet up with the hubby (who was also coming home from his Christmas bash) on the way home, but I am very pleased to say that I didn't fall down once all night!!
The hubby on the other hand tripped over a few times, grazed his knee and hand, and broke his phone. And he wasn't even all that pissed at the end of the night.
I honestly cant remember the last time I was that pissed! It was fantastic!! I didn't even feel that bad in the morning. I was still really pissed in the morning though, so I phoned up and took an emergency holiday day! Hehehe. Thankfully it was all ok.
Oh, but the best yet.. Today my bosses came over to my desk and presented me with some lovely perfume as a 'thank you'! I dunno what the thank you was for, but perhaps it was just the christmas spirit. My face went so red, I was speechless. At first I thought they were coming over to tell me off about something, but apparently not. By the looks of it I'm doing pretty well in this job! Hoorah! (Hopefully I didn't do something I shouldn't have at the party.. perhaps that was what the 'thank you' was for! I hope not!)
Tuesday, December 19, 2006
Grab a Book Meme
Marie has tagged me for this fun meme.
All you have to do is:
1. Grab the book closest to you.
2. Open to page 123 and go down to the fifth sentence.
3. Post the text of next 3 sentences on your blog.
4. Name the book and the author.
5. Tag three people.
Here's mine:
It is finished. Old Mitsima's words repeated themselves in his mind. Finished, finished... In silence and from a long way off, but violently, desperately, hopelessly, he had loved Kiakime. And now it was finished. He was sixteen.
Aldous Huxley's Brave New World (the book I'm currently reading)
I'm going to tag the Cook! I'm not going to tag anyone else.. that would be presumptuous of me. As if others read my dribble! Hehe.
The Cook is a close buddy from Australia, so I know she looks in from time to time (Will you cook me roast beef with taters the next time I visit??).
All you have to do is:
1. Grab the book closest to you.
2. Open to page 123 and go down to the fifth sentence.
3. Post the text of next 3 sentences on your blog.
4. Name the book and the author.
5. Tag three people.
Here's mine:
It is finished. Old Mitsima's words repeated themselves in his mind. Finished, finished... In silence and from a long way off, but violently, desperately, hopelessly, he had loved Kiakime. And now it was finished. He was sixteen.
Aldous Huxley's Brave New World (the book I'm currently reading)
I'm going to tag the Cook! I'm not going to tag anyone else.. that would be presumptuous of me. As if others read my dribble! Hehe.
The Cook is a close buddy from Australia, so I know she looks in from time to time (Will you cook me roast beef with taters the next time I visit??).
Monday, December 18, 2006
X-Factor Farewell
I must say I'm pretty gutted that the X-Factor is over. Its one of a series of tv shows that I've been watching that has ended for the Christmas season.
I think that that is the main problem with depression/anxiety over Christmas. If you're like me then you're stupidly anchored to your television (or computer) all the time and rely on its methodical and dependable timetable to keep your life flowing in the happiness direction.
Of course there are always hiccups to disturb this - ie wars/news flashes/sport, damn sport! etc...
I've been following Lost, Prison Break, House, My Name Is Earl, X-Factor.. ummm.. thats about it I think, and all of them have stopped over Christmas. Its incredibly annoying. Now I feel forced to spend more time with family blah blah blah. I'd much rather choose to turn the tv off and spend time with them, but to be forced to either watch total bollocks on tv or switch it off is a major pain in the bum! I want my tv goddammit!!
My couch groove will start to unfold if I spend too much time away from it.. and I cant have that!
So anyway, back to the X-Factor. What do I think? Well, I really like Ray (I love swing etc!) but he shouldn't be on the X-Factor. He's going to have a long career in the West End anyway, so he should have stood aside and let Ben go through to the final.
If the above had have happened I would be unable to choose who should win. Ben is fantastic, but Leona's voice is phenomenal! I'm pleased she won for the whole 'girl power' thing and I'm sure if she sluts herself up a bit she could have a good career. I just hope that someone picks up Ben and keep his music going coz I reckon he could make it big if he gets some original stuff done and gets a band behind him.
How good was it to hear all the losers singing? HAHA! I love Earth Song, but they totally ruined it. I thought the best of the bunch was the fat old tart who missed her queue! Fantastic! Loved it!
I'm looking forward, straight ahead, to Christmas Day... 7pm... BBC 1... DOCTOR WHO!! WOOOOO HOOOOOO!!
I think that that is the main problem with depression/anxiety over Christmas. If you're like me then you're stupidly anchored to your television (or computer) all the time and rely on its methodical and dependable timetable to keep your life flowing in the happiness direction.
Of course there are always hiccups to disturb this - ie wars/news flashes/sport, damn sport! etc...
I've been following Lost, Prison Break, House, My Name Is Earl, X-Factor.. ummm.. thats about it I think, and all of them have stopped over Christmas. Its incredibly annoying. Now I feel forced to spend more time with family blah blah blah. I'd much rather choose to turn the tv off and spend time with them, but to be forced to either watch total bollocks on tv or switch it off is a major pain in the bum! I want my tv goddammit!!
My couch groove will start to unfold if I spend too much time away from it.. and I cant have that!
So anyway, back to the X-Factor. What do I think? Well, I really like Ray (I love swing etc!) but he shouldn't be on the X-Factor. He's going to have a long career in the West End anyway, so he should have stood aside and let Ben go through to the final.
If the above had have happened I would be unable to choose who should win. Ben is fantastic, but Leona's voice is phenomenal! I'm pleased she won for the whole 'girl power' thing and I'm sure if she sluts herself up a bit she could have a good career. I just hope that someone picks up Ben and keep his music going coz I reckon he could make it big if he gets some original stuff done and gets a band behind him.
How good was it to hear all the losers singing? HAHA! I love Earth Song, but they totally ruined it. I thought the best of the bunch was the fat old tart who missed her queue! Fantastic! Loved it!
I'm looking forward, straight ahead, to Christmas Day... 7pm... BBC 1... DOCTOR WHO!! WOOOOO HOOOOOO!!
Friday, December 15, 2006
A New Challenge
I got an email the other day (I'm not sure how the person got my address or what I signed up to in order to receive this email), and it looks like it could be a great new challenge.
The email was advertising a writing competition. It looks like it could be a good thing, but the only problem is the submitted novel has to be complete at no less than 90,000 words.
My novel, Fleeting Life, is roughly completed at almost 52,000. The competition deadline is the end of January.
Now, I know I can do this. 40,000 words in 6 weeks. Easy peasy! I wrote the whole 52,000 in roughly 3 weeks for Nanowrimo, so I definitely know I can do it.
So whats the problem?
I dont know. I feel a lingering 'but'.. but dont know what it is. Perhaps its just coz I feel my story is a bit lame and bland. Although, having said that I'm quite aware that it needs a big overhaul and have a few things added in and touched up, but .. I dunno. Perhaps I'm just doubting myself.
I think I'm being the obstacle that I always thought was an object outside of myself.
I'm at least going to use this competition as a great deadline to get my novel fully complete and needing not one more word added to it! I may start next week, or wait until Christmas. Not sure.
I was considering sending in a hook to Miss Snark's Crapometer but I cant think of 250 decent words to describe my book in its current state.
Needs a bit more work to it I think.
I think I'm just in a dismal state at the moment. I'm so tired I'm almost falling alseep as I type this. I'm looking forward to a weekend of peace and relaxation. Perhaps some gift wrapping.. thats a nice therapeutic activity to do.
And no writing! (for a few days)
The email was advertising a writing competition. It looks like it could be a good thing, but the only problem is the submitted novel has to be complete at no less than 90,000 words.
My novel, Fleeting Life, is roughly completed at almost 52,000. The competition deadline is the end of January.
Now, I know I can do this. 40,000 words in 6 weeks. Easy peasy! I wrote the whole 52,000 in roughly 3 weeks for Nanowrimo, so I definitely know I can do it.
So whats the problem?
I dont know. I feel a lingering 'but'.. but dont know what it is. Perhaps its just coz I feel my story is a bit lame and bland. Although, having said that I'm quite aware that it needs a big overhaul and have a few things added in and touched up, but .. I dunno. Perhaps I'm just doubting myself.
I think I'm being the obstacle that I always thought was an object outside of myself.
I'm at least going to use this competition as a great deadline to get my novel fully complete and needing not one more word added to it! I may start next week, or wait until Christmas. Not sure.
I was considering sending in a hook to Miss Snark's Crapometer but I cant think of 250 decent words to describe my book in its current state.
Girl dies. She wanders around for a bit and wonders what to do with herself. She decides to find her killer and get revenge. While trying to find him she falls in love with some bloke. With some pathetic detective work she finds her killer, but stuffs up and her new lover bites the dust. Twist. New Hope. End.
Needs a bit more work to it I think.
I think I'm just in a dismal state at the moment. I'm so tired I'm almost falling alseep as I type this. I'm looking forward to a weekend of peace and relaxation. Perhaps some gift wrapping.. thats a nice therapeutic activity to do.
And no writing! (for a few days)
Go Google
I googled myself the other day and was annoyed to find that there was already an author by the name of Kate Wheeler making her presence felt in the world.
Bugger.
She's an American though, not an Australian living in the UK - which is me!
When I'm published, however, I'm not sure that I'll use my name 'Kate Wheeler' anyway because a surname beginning with W would put me on the bottom of the bookshelves. My maiden name of 'Swan' might be better, but S is still a fair way down the bookshelf. Most authors have surnames between D and M... but I really really dont think I want to give myself a different surname.
Perhaps I could swap my name around and go around being called 'Wheeler Kate'. It would at least put me in the 'K' section of surnames.. roughly middle/eyeline of bookshelves. Or I could go around as 'Swan Kate'.
Hmm.. that has a better ring to it.
No point really thinking about it until I get my f***ing sh*t sorted out. I've been so lazy with the whole book thing, but with the hubby shouting in my ear constantly to get off the computer, then shouting in my ear constantly to get the book done, I'm a bit confused as to how I'm actually going to do it other than printing it out and taking a red pen to it. I'm not a pen/paper kind of person anymore. It was drilled into me during school and uni that everything must be done on computers from now on......
So I'm being pushed this way.. pushed that way.. made to feel guilty, while also making myself feel guilty.. and my hands are completely tied in knots. I'm beginning to HATE this whole f***cking writing thing.
I didn't get into this stuff to end up hating it. My writing is not for anyone else to enforce on me EVER!! My parents were always try to do that whenever they ran out of other things to try to tell me what to do.
Its as if no one can talk to me without telling me what to do. It drives me f***ing mental! Actually.. what also drives me mental is putting in little stars to blur out the swear words. Fuck that. I'm not going to censor myself. And I'm not going to let myself fall under the delusion that this page is read by millions of people all craning their necks to see whats going on in my life.
Thats not the point of my blog anyway. The point was to keep a diary of my journey from pathetic lowly spare-time writer to fantastic-wealthy-published success. If anyone sees my pages, so be it. If no one does, so be it.
I hate feeling pressured to write write and write some more. My stories and novel ideas are my babies and whether I finish them or not is entirely upon my head. It is only a tragedy to me, and its no one elses business.
a;kgjna;iorngoeiafnhsdkv........
Hmmmmmmmmm... I have issues.
Bugger.
She's an American though, not an Australian living in the UK - which is me!
When I'm published, however, I'm not sure that I'll use my name 'Kate Wheeler' anyway because a surname beginning with W would put me on the bottom of the bookshelves. My maiden name of 'Swan' might be better, but S is still a fair way down the bookshelf. Most authors have surnames between D and M... but I really really dont think I want to give myself a different surname.
Perhaps I could swap my name around and go around being called 'Wheeler Kate'. It would at least put me in the 'K' section of surnames.. roughly middle/eyeline of bookshelves. Or I could go around as 'Swan Kate'.
Hmm.. that has a better ring to it.
No point really thinking about it until I get my f***ing sh*t sorted out. I've been so lazy with the whole book thing, but with the hubby shouting in my ear constantly to get off the computer, then shouting in my ear constantly to get the book done, I'm a bit confused as to how I'm actually going to do it other than printing it out and taking a red pen to it. I'm not a pen/paper kind of person anymore. It was drilled into me during school and uni that everything must be done on computers from now on......
So I'm being pushed this way.. pushed that way.. made to feel guilty, while also making myself feel guilty.. and my hands are completely tied in knots. I'm beginning to HATE this whole f***cking writing thing.
I didn't get into this stuff to end up hating it. My writing is not for anyone else to enforce on me EVER!! My parents were always try to do that whenever they ran out of other things to try to tell me what to do.
Its as if no one can talk to me without telling me what to do. It drives me f***ing mental! Actually.. what also drives me mental is putting in little stars to blur out the swear words. Fuck that. I'm not going to censor myself. And I'm not going to let myself fall under the delusion that this page is read by millions of people all craning their necks to see whats going on in my life.
Thats not the point of my blog anyway. The point was to keep a diary of my journey from pathetic lowly spare-time writer to fantastic-wealthy-published success. If anyone sees my pages, so be it. If no one does, so be it.
I hate feeling pressured to write write and write some more. My stories and novel ideas are my babies and whether I finish them or not is entirely upon my head. It is only a tragedy to me, and its no one elses business.
a;kgjna;iorngoeiafnhsdkv........
Hmmmmmmmmm... I have issues.
Tuesday, December 12, 2006
Oh The Rejection!
Oh the pain of it all!
I've been kicked by the pointed heel of Miss Snark.
Alas, due to the upcoming Crapometer she has deleted all her email, including mine with a question about publishing that I'm not going to repeat here in case it makes me look stupid, and has sent me a form email.
Such tragedy.
I feel gutted. So alone. So rejected.
A reply I received, but of all replies it had to be a form email. 166 other hopeful questioners got the same blow that I did. Perhaps we should all form a club and grieve together.
Hehehee. I love Miss Snark's blog.
I'm not devastated at not getting my question answered, really. Methinks I might enter into this crapometer thing. Could be a good thing. I like getting shot down in flames! Hehehe.
I've been kicked by the pointed heel of Miss Snark.
Alas, due to the upcoming Crapometer she has deleted all her email, including mine with a question about publishing that I'm not going to repeat here in case it makes me look stupid, and has sent me a form email.
Such tragedy.
I feel gutted. So alone. So rejected.
A reply I received, but of all replies it had to be a form email. 166 other hopeful questioners got the same blow that I did. Perhaps we should all form a club and grieve together.
Hehehee. I love Miss Snark's blog.
I'm not devastated at not getting my question answered, really. Methinks I might enter into this crapometer thing. Could be a good thing. I like getting shot down in flames! Hehehe.
Sunday, December 10, 2006
Latching onto the Singleton
I'm discovering the nightlife of London one bar/pub at a time.
My best friend from childhood (we not only went to the same schools we even went to the same kindergarten and have been neighbours all the while) moved to England in the same week as I did, but we did so totally independent of each other.
We catch up every now and again, and while she lives somewhere near Camden I'm way out in Kent. Its not too bad, its only 35-45 by train into London (and I do it every day to go to work), so I decided to ditch the hubby at home and go out with her last night.
She's single (-ish. Some bloke has been using her for years and she really likes him but as soon as he feels any commitment coming on he runs a mile. I haven't met him yet, but I'm looking forward to it. I feel like an older sister to my friend even though I'm only one month exactly older than her, so I'm going to make sure he knows I wont take any bullshit from him and wont stand for him to be mistreating her).
So her being single is a great way for me to feel like I'm out and about as a young single maiden. I never was one for traipsing around town on a man-hunt anyway though. I think its incredibly funny how blokes and lasses sniff each other out and attempt to impress each other. Its so wild and naturistic that I just feel stupid.
Needless to say I'm an incredible bitch to any poor haplass bastard who tries to snare me in his manly net. I used to feel all giggly and so pleased that someone would come up and talk to me as though I was some kind of princess, but now I'm not so innocent. I groan and roll my eyes when I see any kind of sparkle from a man's eye. Its frustrating to have to keep batting them away like flies. Its like having to wash the dishes. You know its got to be done and its dirty and messy work, but at the end you can put everything away and clap your hands at a job well done. I've gone through every kind of rejection response possible known to man but I've grown so bored with trying to be creative that I rarely even let blokes even start to walk towards me.
I like to pretend I'm adjusting my hair or scratching my face, using my left hand, making sure the diamonds on my wedding band and engagement ring shine so bright that no one can actually see me standing there. It seems to work, which is good. It takes barely any effort and I like things that take little effort.
Hehehe.. I'm such a bitch. Ah well, its gotta be done.
Anyway, my point of this post was actually to complain about the cost of drinks. Amy and I went to this little underground bar for her housemate's going away party which looked like a building from the Flintstones with its curvy walls and strange-shaped little nooks and crannies. We each had a drink - I had my usual Jack & Coke, while she had a Midori & Lemonade (Midori is huge in Australia. Its this green melon tasting spirit thats only 21% alcolohol. I think it tastes like sh*t personally, but it is nice and refreshing). I joked to her that the round would probably be about 10 pounds for the two drinks, and was absolutely flabbagasted when the barman asked for 11.50!!! WTF!??!?! I nearly spat the drink in his face.
Needless to say we didn't stay at the bar long, and left to find a tiny little pub with a much more honest atmosphere. I bought the same round for us and got change from 5 pounds. It makes me sick that the price varies so much. Its not like the atmosphere of the Flintstones-like bar was worth the extra cost at all.
I at least took with me a cute shaped little pack of matches from there. I always take souvenirs from places I go, coz its unlikely I'll ever go back, and I can tell ya know I wont be going back to the Detroit Bar.
Far too pricey for my cheap ass!
My best friend from childhood (we not only went to the same schools we even went to the same kindergarten and have been neighbours all the while) moved to England in the same week as I did, but we did so totally independent of each other.
We catch up every now and again, and while she lives somewhere near Camden I'm way out in Kent. Its not too bad, its only 35-45 by train into London (and I do it every day to go to work), so I decided to ditch the hubby at home and go out with her last night.
She's single (-ish. Some bloke has been using her for years and she really likes him but as soon as he feels any commitment coming on he runs a mile. I haven't met him yet, but I'm looking forward to it. I feel like an older sister to my friend even though I'm only one month exactly older than her, so I'm going to make sure he knows I wont take any bullshit from him and wont stand for him to be mistreating her).
So her being single is a great way for me to feel like I'm out and about as a young single maiden. I never was one for traipsing around town on a man-hunt anyway though. I think its incredibly funny how blokes and lasses sniff each other out and attempt to impress each other. Its so wild and naturistic that I just feel stupid.
Needless to say I'm an incredible bitch to any poor haplass bastard who tries to snare me in his manly net. I used to feel all giggly and so pleased that someone would come up and talk to me as though I was some kind of princess, but now I'm not so innocent. I groan and roll my eyes when I see any kind of sparkle from a man's eye. Its frustrating to have to keep batting them away like flies. Its like having to wash the dishes. You know its got to be done and its dirty and messy work, but at the end you can put everything away and clap your hands at a job well done. I've gone through every kind of rejection response possible known to man but I've grown so bored with trying to be creative that I rarely even let blokes even start to walk towards me.
I like to pretend I'm adjusting my hair or scratching my face, using my left hand, making sure the diamonds on my wedding band and engagement ring shine so bright that no one can actually see me standing there. It seems to work, which is good. It takes barely any effort and I like things that take little effort.
Hehehe.. I'm such a bitch. Ah well, its gotta be done.
Anyway, my point of this post was actually to complain about the cost of drinks. Amy and I went to this little underground bar for her housemate's going away party which looked like a building from the Flintstones with its curvy walls and strange-shaped little nooks and crannies. We each had a drink - I had my usual Jack & Coke, while she had a Midori & Lemonade (Midori is huge in Australia. Its this green melon tasting spirit thats only 21% alcolohol. I think it tastes like sh*t personally, but it is nice and refreshing). I joked to her that the round would probably be about 10 pounds for the two drinks, and was absolutely flabbagasted when the barman asked for 11.50!!! WTF!??!?! I nearly spat the drink in his face.
Needless to say we didn't stay at the bar long, and left to find a tiny little pub with a much more honest atmosphere. I bought the same round for us and got change from 5 pounds. It makes me sick that the price varies so much. Its not like the atmosphere of the Flintstones-like bar was worth the extra cost at all.
I at least took with me a cute shaped little pack of matches from there. I always take souvenirs from places I go, coz its unlikely I'll ever go back, and I can tell ya know I wont be going back to the Detroit Bar.
Far too pricey for my cheap ass!
Friday, December 08, 2006
Sucker For Punishment!
In the immortal words of Kylie Minogue - I did it again!
I shopped all day today. I had to take my Sketchers back to Bluewater today coz there was some kind of globule of glue or something right in the centre of the left foot inner sole. I was lucky and was able to replace them. I figured that my dumb luck would leave me shoeless, but today there seemed to be a light shining down upon me.
I also got another pair of suit trousers for my hubby. I dunno what he does with them, but he goes through suit trousers like they're tissues!
Then I drove to Bromley. (What a shithole!).
Got some great bargains at Primark. Cheap as chips and with all the quality of a first grader's art assignment. I'm pretty stoked. I've got loads of new clothes now.
I got home just before 5pm, but my feet weren't hurting quite so bad as yesterday coz I had on my new sketchers. I'm so cool!
Had to pick up the hubby from the station. He was drunk. Typical. When we got home he swore a bit, got undressed and passed out on the couch. Nothing new there then.
I watched Superman Returns again tonight. I'm not quite sure what I think about it, but I think I'll watch it again soon. I think its intriguing. I just love the style. Kate Bosworth is gorgeous and she makes me feel strong when weakness sets in and I feel like reaching for those fatty snacks.
Oh, I got a free book today!!
Thanks to Paperback Writer.
I feel so warm and fuzzy. She even signed it!! YAY! Hehehe.. I'm so pleased I cant stop smiling. She wrote inside it that I owe her a signed book now. Thats going to be my inspiration to keep on writing. I just cant stop smiling. I'm so chuffed. Paperback writer is one of the first blogs I stumbled across since discovering the Blogosphere. It took me a week to read it all, but I'm all caught up now and I tune in as often as possible. Pback Writer, if you're reading this - THANK YOU!
I shopped all day today. I had to take my Sketchers back to Bluewater today coz there was some kind of globule of glue or something right in the centre of the left foot inner sole. I was lucky and was able to replace them. I figured that my dumb luck would leave me shoeless, but today there seemed to be a light shining down upon me.
I also got another pair of suit trousers for my hubby. I dunno what he does with them, but he goes through suit trousers like they're tissues!
Then I drove to Bromley. (What a shithole!).
Got some great bargains at Primark. Cheap as chips and with all the quality of a first grader's art assignment. I'm pretty stoked. I've got loads of new clothes now.
I got home just before 5pm, but my feet weren't hurting quite so bad as yesterday coz I had on my new sketchers. I'm so cool!
Had to pick up the hubby from the station. He was drunk. Typical. When we got home he swore a bit, got undressed and passed out on the couch. Nothing new there then.
I watched Superman Returns again tonight. I'm not quite sure what I think about it, but I think I'll watch it again soon. I think its intriguing. I just love the style. Kate Bosworth is gorgeous and she makes me feel strong when weakness sets in and I feel like reaching for those fatty snacks.
Oh, I got a free book today!!
Thanks to Paperback Writer.
I feel so warm and fuzzy. She even signed it!! YAY! Hehehe.. I'm so pleased I cant stop smiling. She wrote inside it that I owe her a signed book now. Thats going to be my inspiration to keep on writing. I just cant stop smiling. I'm so chuffed. Paperback writer is one of the first blogs I stumbled across since discovering the Blogosphere. It took me a week to read it all, but I'm all caught up now and I tune in as often as possible. Pback Writer, if you're reading this - THANK YOU!
Thursday, December 07, 2006
Shop Til You Drop!
I am absolutely dead on my feet.
After waiting til 11am for the mould specialist to come and look at the mould problem in my bedroom I zipped off to Bluewater before the traffic (and rain/wind) got too bad.
I returned three pairs of jeans that I bought M yesterday that didn't fit, and also returned a skirt that I wasn't quite sure I liked. I dont feel bad that I've returned it so I know it was the right decision. So, with money returned to me I bought the Superman boxset as well as the new Superman, My Super Ex-Girlfriend (I'm sensing a 'super' theme here), and a Christmas Carol... the George C Scott version. Super!
Then I walked around every single shoe shop possible looking for the ideal classy but casual not-too-high-heeled shoes to wear to work. No luck there though. I found four pairs that were divine, but each one had something wrong with them ie too tight over the top of my foot, heel too high, too narrow, and too big/small (Schuh dont do half sizes damnit!).
So, no shoes today. I did get some yesterday though, those black and white spats kinda shoes. They're absolutely gorgeous!!
I was shopping for four hours. I am absolutely buggered. My feet hurt and I'm so dehydrated and spaced out. Driving home from Bluewater was a nightmare. The wind and rain made the roads a whitewash! I was driving on the M25 going 40mph coz it was so difficult to see.
Of course, I had to do food shopping on my way home too, which just tipped me over the top.
I'm tired.
Tomorrow, my second day off, I will be doing some much needed couch-work. Mmmmm.. I'm so looking forward to it. I might even sit back with my Fleeting Life manuscript and edit it.
After waiting til 11am for the mould specialist to come and look at the mould problem in my bedroom I zipped off to Bluewater before the traffic (and rain/wind) got too bad.
I returned three pairs of jeans that I bought M yesterday that didn't fit, and also returned a skirt that I wasn't quite sure I liked. I dont feel bad that I've returned it so I know it was the right decision. So, with money returned to me I bought the Superman boxset as well as the new Superman, My Super Ex-Girlfriend (I'm sensing a 'super' theme here), and a Christmas Carol... the George C Scott version. Super!
Then I walked around every single shoe shop possible looking for the ideal classy but casual not-too-high-heeled shoes to wear to work. No luck there though. I found four pairs that were divine, but each one had something wrong with them ie too tight over the top of my foot, heel too high, too narrow, and too big/small (Schuh dont do half sizes damnit!).
So, no shoes today. I did get some yesterday though, those black and white spats kinda shoes. They're absolutely gorgeous!!
I was shopping for four hours. I am absolutely buggered. My feet hurt and I'm so dehydrated and spaced out. Driving home from Bluewater was a nightmare. The wind and rain made the roads a whitewash! I was driving on the M25 going 40mph coz it was so difficult to see.
Of course, I had to do food shopping on my way home too, which just tipped me over the top.
I'm tired.
Tomorrow, my second day off, I will be doing some much needed couch-work. Mmmmm.. I'm so looking forward to it. I might even sit back with my Fleeting Life manuscript and edit it.
What's In A Name?
So, my name on my birth certificate is Kathryn. I grew up being called Katie, and only occasionally would be called Kathryn. Really only when I was naughty. Its funny how parents lengthen your name when you've been bad. When they add in your middle name you really know you're in trouble.
But anyway, so now that I'm an old bitch I'm going by the name Kate.
To continue on with my Christmas card rant.. I received a card yesterday that I have no intention of returning in kind. The dickheads spelled my name as 'Katy'
WTF???????????
I have never in my life ever seen this kind of spelling for 'Katie'. Who in their right mind would spell their name like that??
I can understand people f*cking up the spelling for 'Kathryn'. If people haven't replaced the 'K' with a 'C' then they've put 'erine' on the end. Although it still pisses me off, I can actually understand people misspelling it. Although, anyone who knows me would know NOT to ever spell a word wrong in my presence, much less my name.
'Kate' is pretty easy to get right, thank god (although I did know someone in school who insisted her name was 'Caitte'. Bloody stuck up bitch. How stupid eh!).
At my wedding the vicar dude used Kathryn, Katie and Kate throughout the ceremony, thereby confusing ALL of my friends and relatives even further. I mean, really, I'd known the vicar dude for 6 months and had been attending his Sunday rants and saying Hi to him all that time, so I was pretty peeved that he was too stupid to follow my directions and use my full name - Kathryn.
So anyway, I've filed away that Christmas card with the incorrect spelling and will never write back to them (they're from Martin's side of the family anyway), although if I do I just may forget how to spell Sarah. I think 'Cerrar' would be a lovely adaptation to the spelling, methinks.
A friend of mine pointed out using e-cards instead of wasting paper with real cards. At first I thought, 'yeah, good idea'. But then again, we get enough junk mail in our inboxes as it is, we dont need another singing, dancing, fit-inducing, annoying little note emailed to us. I think I'll pass. Then again, there is the choice of just pressing that beautiful button 'delete' at any point.
I hope to god I dont get any e-cards. My computer is slow enough! I'm quite happy to receive normal Christmas cards though, if people want to bother (and I like getting mail), but the chances of me responding in kind is so close to zero that if I asked everyone who gives me a card this year to hold their breath then I'd have absolutely no one left in my 'friends & family' circle. Hmm.. could be a nice way to extricate myself out of the lives of those annoying and hideous 'latcheronerers' (I know that isn't a word, but I dont care. Some moron made up the word 'onomatopoeia' at some point in history so I'm going to make up words whenever I feel like it. Geez I'm getting quite bitter aren't I. And I'm not even 30!)
In closing - my name is KATE!
But anyway, so now that I'm an old bitch I'm going by the name Kate.
To continue on with my Christmas card rant.. I received a card yesterday that I have no intention of returning in kind. The dickheads spelled my name as 'Katy'
WTF???????????
I have never in my life ever seen this kind of spelling for 'Katie'. Who in their right mind would spell their name like that??
I can understand people f*cking up the spelling for 'Kathryn'. If people haven't replaced the 'K' with a 'C' then they've put 'erine' on the end. Although it still pisses me off, I can actually understand people misspelling it. Although, anyone who knows me would know NOT to ever spell a word wrong in my presence, much less my name.
'Kate' is pretty easy to get right, thank god (although I did know someone in school who insisted her name was 'Caitte'. Bloody stuck up bitch. How stupid eh!).
At my wedding the vicar dude used Kathryn, Katie and Kate throughout the ceremony, thereby confusing ALL of my friends and relatives even further. I mean, really, I'd known the vicar dude for 6 months and had been attending his Sunday rants and saying Hi to him all that time, so I was pretty peeved that he was too stupid to follow my directions and use my full name - Kathryn.
So anyway, I've filed away that Christmas card with the incorrect spelling and will never write back to them (they're from Martin's side of the family anyway), although if I do I just may forget how to spell Sarah. I think 'Cerrar' would be a lovely adaptation to the spelling, methinks.
A friend of mine pointed out using e-cards instead of wasting paper with real cards. At first I thought, 'yeah, good idea'. But then again, we get enough junk mail in our inboxes as it is, we dont need another singing, dancing, fit-inducing, annoying little note emailed to us. I think I'll pass. Then again, there is the choice of just pressing that beautiful button 'delete' at any point.
I hope to god I dont get any e-cards. My computer is slow enough! I'm quite happy to receive normal Christmas cards though, if people want to bother (and I like getting mail), but the chances of me responding in kind is so close to zero that if I asked everyone who gives me a card this year to hold their breath then I'd have absolutely no one left in my 'friends & family' circle. Hmm.. could be a nice way to extricate myself out of the lives of those annoying and hideous 'latcheronerers' (I know that isn't a word, but I dont care. Some moron made up the word 'onomatopoeia' at some point in history so I'm going to make up words whenever I feel like it. Geez I'm getting quite bitter aren't I. And I'm not even 30!)
In closing - my name is KATE!
Tuesday, December 05, 2006
To Edit or To Start Anew
I've been taking a break from writing since the end of Nano, and I'm not sure what to do next.
I thought I'd start a new book - a fantasy novel. But now I'm not sure. It would take loads of research (which I've already started) and lots of planning. But it would be totally fulfilling.
Martin made a comment the other day saying that I never finish anything. Its true, actually. I love to start new things, but never really finish anything. He wants me to continue on my Nano novel and get it done so that it can be sent out to prospective agents/publishers.
Grr.. its just that I want to move on. I know I should keep at the Nano novel and edit it etc. I'm so annoyed that I'm like this. I've got to stop it.
I think I've decided. I'm going to put the new fantasy novel on hold until after Christmas, and continue on with the Nano novel. Hopefully by Christmas I can have it all set and ready to send out by Christmas.
Yep. Thats a good plan.
I thought I'd start a new book - a fantasy novel. But now I'm not sure. It would take loads of research (which I've already started) and lots of planning. But it would be totally fulfilling.
Martin made a comment the other day saying that I never finish anything. Its true, actually. I love to start new things, but never really finish anything. He wants me to continue on my Nano novel and get it done so that it can be sent out to prospective agents/publishers.
Grr.. its just that I want to move on. I know I should keep at the Nano novel and edit it etc. I'm so annoyed that I'm like this. I've got to stop it.
I think I've decided. I'm going to put the new fantasy novel on hold until after Christmas, and continue on with the Nano novel. Hopefully by Christmas I can have it all set and ready to send out by Christmas.
Yep. Thats a good plan.
Happy Birthday/Christmas, For The Next Ten Years!
What the hell kind of family have I married in to???
Martin's Aunts have sent Martin's parents their birthday cards already. Now, his Dad's birthday is next week, and his Mum's is early January. So, they've sent the cards early, but not too early. Probably just about right, I would say.
BUT,
They have also sent them their birthday cards for NEXT year as well!! WTF????
I think its wise to send birthday cards up to two weeks early, but up to a year early?? No way man! What kind of lazy dumb-ass moron would do such a thing?!?! If they're going to send birthday cards one year in advance, why not just stockpile them and send ten years worth in one go. Then hopefully if the person drops dead before the ten years runs out then you'll never have to send a card again. Bingo bango!
I mean, I thought my Mother-In-Law was a bit odd - giving us FIFTEEN separate wedding cards (all from her!), and at least FIVE birthday cards each. But at least she gave them around the time of the occasion and not months early.
I rarely give out cards. If I do, I usually hand make them and only give out ONE per person. I dont see the point in sending out umteen million each. It kind of ruins the specialty of it.
Now that I'm being bombarded by cards all the time, and hassled to send cards I think I'm going to bow out of the whole thing altogether.
I mean, Martin's Aunts complained that we didn't thank them specifically for the gift they gave us at the wedding. Well, sorry, but I thought a card saying 'Thank You' tends to cover it all. So I had to send them another one (and I had to try really hard to hide the sarcasm!!).
I've had enough. We've already spent £20 pounds on stupid Christmas cards this year. We had to get Martin's parents an ultra-huge card coz anything smaller than the size of a house would be an insult. I'd be surprised if she didn't complain that we were sending only one.
Its all madness and this whole Christmas thing is totally f*cked. There's nothing special in it anymore. When people turn up their nose at a hand made card (which took ages to make and had lots of thought put into it) then its clear that things have gotten out of hand and everything has turned commercial.
Its all 'gimme gimme gimme'.
I hate it.
Everyone keeps asking me what I want them to buy me for Christmas. 'A world without Christmas' is what I answer, but no one sees the joke in it. No one realises that the whole 'have to buy people stuff' has turned into a free-for-all spending frenzy that has lost the real meaning behind it.
So, if anyone turns their nose up at the little gifts and thoughful things I give out this Christmas (selectively and sparingly) then I'm totally opting out next year. After this year I'm definitely stopping the 'cards' thing, and I dont give a sh*t who gets insulted.
Christmas was not invented as an excuse to get as much useless stuff out of people as possible.
Its about eating turkey and sprouts and farting all night long - now thats what I'm looking forward to! Hehehe.
Martin's Aunts have sent Martin's parents their birthday cards already. Now, his Dad's birthday is next week, and his Mum's is early January. So, they've sent the cards early, but not too early. Probably just about right, I would say.
BUT,
They have also sent them their birthday cards for NEXT year as well!! WTF????
I think its wise to send birthday cards up to two weeks early, but up to a year early?? No way man! What kind of lazy dumb-ass moron would do such a thing?!?! If they're going to send birthday cards one year in advance, why not just stockpile them and send ten years worth in one go. Then hopefully if the person drops dead before the ten years runs out then you'll never have to send a card again. Bingo bango!
I mean, I thought my Mother-In-Law was a bit odd - giving us FIFTEEN separate wedding cards (all from her!), and at least FIVE birthday cards each. But at least she gave them around the time of the occasion and not months early.
I rarely give out cards. If I do, I usually hand make them and only give out ONE per person. I dont see the point in sending out umteen million each. It kind of ruins the specialty of it.
Now that I'm being bombarded by cards all the time, and hassled to send cards I think I'm going to bow out of the whole thing altogether.
I mean, Martin's Aunts complained that we didn't thank them specifically for the gift they gave us at the wedding. Well, sorry, but I thought a card saying 'Thank You' tends to cover it all. So I had to send them another one (and I had to try really hard to hide the sarcasm!!).
I've had enough. We've already spent £20 pounds on stupid Christmas cards this year. We had to get Martin's parents an ultra-huge card coz anything smaller than the size of a house would be an insult. I'd be surprised if she didn't complain that we were sending only one.
Its all madness and this whole Christmas thing is totally f*cked. There's nothing special in it anymore. When people turn up their nose at a hand made card (which took ages to make and had lots of thought put into it) then its clear that things have gotten out of hand and everything has turned commercial.
Its all 'gimme gimme gimme'.
I hate it.
Everyone keeps asking me what I want them to buy me for Christmas. 'A world without Christmas' is what I answer, but no one sees the joke in it. No one realises that the whole 'have to buy people stuff' has turned into a free-for-all spending frenzy that has lost the real meaning behind it.
So, if anyone turns their nose up at the little gifts and thoughful things I give out this Christmas (selectively and sparingly) then I'm totally opting out next year. After this year I'm definitely stopping the 'cards' thing, and I dont give a sh*t who gets insulted.
Christmas was not invented as an excuse to get as much useless stuff out of people as possible.
Its about eating turkey and sprouts and farting all night long - now thats what I'm looking forward to! Hehehe.
Saturday, December 02, 2006
Spring Cleaning
While Martin is doing his band thing downstairs, I'm going to spend my day spring cleaning - but not my house. I've got so much stuff clogged up in files all over my computer that its giving me a migraine. (I can see how using a computer which gives you migraines, while you actually have a migraine, is a stupid thing to do but I've never been the brightest spark in the galaxy).
I'm watching an old Star Trek movie at the moment. Well, not really watching it. The tv is on - I didn't turn it on, and I'm sitting in the same room as the tv. One can never help but to watch a tv that is on. I wonder if my tv would disappear from existence if I stopped watching it. Perhaps the fact that I am actually watching it is all that is keeping it 'alive' so to speak. I guess its like the tree in the forest thing - If a tree is cut down and there is no one to hear it does it actually make a sound?
I dont know, and I'm not going to find out. I like my tv. I like all tv's, and I fully admit to being a couch potato. I have found, though, that lately I'm becoming more of a computer potato. Mmm... potatoes, I might make some chips for lunch.
Anyway, I'm straying from my point. Not that I had a point in the first place.
I've just drafted two letters to send to my bank regarding two of my accounts. The bank charges on them amount to well over 1000 pounds and it makes me sick. I'm going to demand that they pay it back or I'll take them to court. Fingers crossed, I hope it works. I've got two second drafted letters ready to send if the first 'polite' letters dont work. The second letters are a bit more 'firm' and I'm hoping that some weak-minded nitwit of a bank manager wil read them and quake in their boots. Knowing my luck I'll get charged or fined for wasting the bank's time or something stupid like that.
Ooooo.. William Shatner is going to get attacked by some bad looking walking amphibian. Lucky he's on a planet with loads of Sulpher, Potassium Nitrate, and diamonds. I'm sure he'll come up with something incredibly ingenious and thwart the evil lizard. Hehehe. All his shipmates are watching him on a big screen with looks of horror on their faces (except for Spock.. he just looks like Spock).
At this point I should admit I am a sci-fi fan. Although not overly familiar with Star Trek, I do enjoy it, especially the bad (and I mean 'Doctor Who bad') villains that look like slow, dopey actors dressed up in costumes that are somewhat difficult to move in. Speaking of Doctor Who, I'm so pissed off they dropped Billie Piper. I thought she and David Tennant worked well together. Although I thought Christopher Eccleston was great too, until David Tennant filled his shoes. He's gotta be just one of the best Doctors ever!!
I'm such a geek.
I play chess too. I was in the chess club at school... and yes at one point I had no friends at all. (*sniff* kids can be so cruel sometimes!).
Pah... tis all past! I have embraced my geekiness now and I love it! I'm going to put all my geekiness together and create some pretty fantastic fantasy novels. But first I have to clean up my computer.
And change the tv channel. Shatner has thwarted the evil lizard with an ingenious plan using the planets natural resources, so I think its time to move on and watch a movie or something.
Hopefully later today I'll be able to put together all the links I've collected over the past few months into a huge bumper list. That'd be pretty handy to have them all together in one place. Especially when researching my book etc.
Yep. Good. Plan sorted.
Over and out.
I'm watching an old Star Trek movie at the moment. Well, not really watching it. The tv is on - I didn't turn it on, and I'm sitting in the same room as the tv. One can never help but to watch a tv that is on. I wonder if my tv would disappear from existence if I stopped watching it. Perhaps the fact that I am actually watching it is all that is keeping it 'alive' so to speak. I guess its like the tree in the forest thing - If a tree is cut down and there is no one to hear it does it actually make a sound?
I dont know, and I'm not going to find out. I like my tv. I like all tv's, and I fully admit to being a couch potato. I have found, though, that lately I'm becoming more of a computer potato. Mmm... potatoes, I might make some chips for lunch.
Anyway, I'm straying from my point. Not that I had a point in the first place.
I've just drafted two letters to send to my bank regarding two of my accounts. The bank charges on them amount to well over 1000 pounds and it makes me sick. I'm going to demand that they pay it back or I'll take them to court. Fingers crossed, I hope it works. I've got two second drafted letters ready to send if the first 'polite' letters dont work. The second letters are a bit more 'firm' and I'm hoping that some weak-minded nitwit of a bank manager wil read them and quake in their boots. Knowing my luck I'll get charged or fined for wasting the bank's time or something stupid like that.
Ooooo.. William Shatner is going to get attacked by some bad looking walking amphibian. Lucky he's on a planet with loads of Sulpher, Potassium Nitrate, and diamonds. I'm sure he'll come up with something incredibly ingenious and thwart the evil lizard. Hehehe. All his shipmates are watching him on a big screen with looks of horror on their faces (except for Spock.. he just looks like Spock).
At this point I should admit I am a sci-fi fan. Although not overly familiar with Star Trek, I do enjoy it, especially the bad (and I mean 'Doctor Who bad') villains that look like slow, dopey actors dressed up in costumes that are somewhat difficult to move in. Speaking of Doctor Who, I'm so pissed off they dropped Billie Piper. I thought she and David Tennant worked well together. Although I thought Christopher Eccleston was great too, until David Tennant filled his shoes. He's gotta be just one of the best Doctors ever!!
I'm such a geek.
I play chess too. I was in the chess club at school... and yes at one point I had no friends at all. (*sniff* kids can be so cruel sometimes!).
Pah... tis all past! I have embraced my geekiness now and I love it! I'm going to put all my geekiness together and create some pretty fantastic fantasy novels. But first I have to clean up my computer.
And change the tv channel. Shatner has thwarted the evil lizard with an ingenious plan using the planets natural resources, so I think its time to move on and watch a movie or something.
Hopefully later today I'll be able to put together all the links I've collected over the past few months into a huge bumper list. That'd be pretty handy to have them all together in one place. Especially when researching my book etc.
Yep. Good. Plan sorted.
Over and out.
Wednesday, November 29, 2006
My Beautiful Darling Pet Colin!
Here's a picture of my darling pet Colin. I noticed on a few other blogs that people were posting their pets for the Blogworld Road pet parade, so I thought I'd bring Colin to the show.
He's probably about 14 or so years old now, and has all the attitute of a teenager. He talks a lot, mosly crap, and he burps, farts, makes cat fighting noises, barks like a dog, swears like a trooper (thanks to my Dad when he f*cks up while working in his shed), he also sings whenever I play the piano to him, and he always says 'seeya' when you leave.
Awww.. I miss him so much. Sadly, he lives in Australia at my parents house where I grew up. I've been in England for 3.5 years now and have only been home a few times, so I dont get to see him much. I'd love to bring him over here to England to live, but he's an Aussie boy through and through. Besides, he loves to screech and imitate a car phone at 6am most mornings, which wouldn't go down well where I live. (When my whole family and I lived in the USA for a year in 1993 my cousins looked after Colin and they had a car phone which, when ringing, would make the horn beep. Thats the noise Colin ALWAYS imitates when he gets excited. Its got to be one of the most annoying noises in the world!!)
This is a pic of my sister's cat, Lloyd. I miss him too, he's so loveable!! 
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
New Horizons
I've got itchy feet to start my next book now!!
I'm going to write a fantasy novel about humans that live in the clouds because the land has broken up. It sounds really dumb when I explain it like that, but I've got some great ideas swirling around in my head, and I cant seem to stop them flooding forth. So, I've been jotting down ideas all day yesterday, and I'm going to spend the next few weeks world building etc. I'm so excited. I'll have to email myself my NaNo novel and edit it at work, or do it at home in the evenings, and write this new book in the mornings on the train.
My aim this time is 100k! My daily wordcount aim will be 2k which I think is quite reasonable and will allow me to concentrate much more on quality rather than quantity.
I'm going to give myself 10 weeks to do it, with weekends and most evenings off. I'm going to try to treat it like a day job (even though I already have one of those!)
I'll get my wordcount thingy up for it soon and am going to start world building........... now!
I'm going to write a fantasy novel about humans that live in the clouds because the land has broken up. It sounds really dumb when I explain it like that, but I've got some great ideas swirling around in my head, and I cant seem to stop them flooding forth. So, I've been jotting down ideas all day yesterday, and I'm going to spend the next few weeks world building etc. I'm so excited. I'll have to email myself my NaNo novel and edit it at work, or do it at home in the evenings, and write this new book in the mornings on the train.
My aim this time is 100k! My daily wordcount aim will be 2k which I think is quite reasonable and will allow me to concentrate much more on quality rather than quantity.
I'm going to give myself 10 weeks to do it, with weekends and most evenings off. I'm going to try to treat it like a day job (even though I already have one of those!)
I'll get my wordcount thingy up for it soon and am going to start world building........... now!
Sunday, November 26, 2006
50k!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
My Nano book is done!!!
50,000 words written!!!
WOO HOO!!!
I'm actually a little over 51k, and I still have a scene that I might pop into the start of the book. I'm relaxing this weekend with a smug smile on myself. Its really quite lovely. I got so pissed drunk on Friday, it was a really nice treat.
SO I'm having a lovely and relaxing weekend. On the train to work tomorrow I'll kill that new scene I want to include.
I'm going to run my spell check over all the chapters now. And I've got to change all the @ signs to " signs coz I've been typing on English and American keyboards for this Nano and the @ and " keys are reversed. Annoying, but will be fun and satisfying to correct.
I would like to take this opportunity to welcome back the editor in me. She has been stuffed in the dark and quiet recesses of my mind for the last few weeks and I'm sure she is starving to come out and play.
50k! I rule! YAY!
Thursday, November 23, 2006
The Universe Is Against Me!
I totally forgot to email the stuff I've written for my book while at work to my hotmail account, so I cant actually add up all my words for today.
I've uploaded everything I wrote on Jerry on the train this morning and it came to 844 bringing my total up to 49,655. How damn annoying is that!!!
I know that what I wrote at work today (despite being pretty busy) was over 400 words so I know I've definitely crossed the 50k finish line, but I just cant technically say that. Sooooooooo annoying!
I just bet that the computer systems at work will go down overnight and all the stuff I wrote will be lost... I know how the universe works. It will happen!
Eh! Bah!
Its only 345 words til the end.. I'm sure I could re-write it anyway.
I cant wait until tomorrow night... I'm going to have a little celebration for myself for crossing the 50k finish line! :-)
I've uploaded everything I wrote on Jerry on the train this morning and it came to 844 bringing my total up to 49,655. How damn annoying is that!!!
I know that what I wrote at work today (despite being pretty busy) was over 400 words so I know I've definitely crossed the 50k finish line, but I just cant technically say that. Sooooooooo annoying!
I just bet that the computer systems at work will go down overnight and all the stuff I wrote will be lost... I know how the universe works. It will happen!
Eh! Bah!
Its only 345 words til the end.. I'm sure I could re-write it anyway.
I cant wait until tomorrow night... I'm going to have a little celebration for myself for crossing the 50k finish line! :-)
Why Cant I Count Properly???
I just checked my wordcount on my Nano thing and I'm closer to 49,000. So that doesn't leave just under 2000 words, it leaves just over 1000 words, and considering how much I've written today I've probably passed the 50k mark already without even knowing.
One of these days I'll learn to count properly! As soon as I get home I'm going to upload my words from Jerry (my Alphasmart) and check my wordcount, and then go through ALL of my previous chapters and add up the word count again. I dont wanna get this wrong and considering my track record for counting its best if I check it twice.
Hehehe. YAY. I'm closer to finishing than I thought!
I'm still a twit though.
One of these days I'll learn to count properly! As soon as I get home I'm going to upload my words from Jerry (my Alphasmart) and check my wordcount, and then go through ALL of my previous chapters and add up the word count again. I dont wanna get this wrong and considering my track record for counting its best if I check it twice.
Hehehe. YAY. I'm closer to finishing than I thought!
I'm still a twit though.
Day #23 Nano - Its The Final Countdown!
I can see the end, and I've slowed my pace to an easy casual walk with a smug swagger to it. I only did about 1600 words on Day #21 and about 2700 yesterday, so that leaves me just under 2000 words to do for today to cross the 50k finish line.
Woo hoo!!!
I've written the climax of my book and now I'm just letting it down gently. I didn't plan out the entire ending so I'm just winging it, which is no prob.
I'm probably going to insert an extra scene near the beginning of the book because it would seem a bit stupid for my heroine to be attacked and then not go and report it to the police. So I thought I'd make something up to cover that. I know that if I was reading my book from a readers point of view it would drive me nuts that she didn't check the police report or newspapers to try to find her killer.
I'm not really bothered if I dont finish it today. I'm pretty tired from staying up late with a tummy ache. I've got a week to finish it, but I can feel that this is exactly what I always do. I always work work work and work and then when I get to one step from finishing I tend to slow down to a crawl or never finish. Perhaps I'm afraid to have nothing to look forward to or aim for. Stupid really, since I've got loads of editing to do etc.
The annoying thing about writing on my Alphasmart 3000 (fantastic little tool!!) is that its the American version and so the @ key and the " key are reversed. So when I transfer my writing to my laptop I get dialogue that looks like this -
But I'm a secretary, so fixing the above kinda stuff should be a breeze. Its just going to be time consuming and annoying. I suppose I could just 'find' and 'replace'. That would make sense. Duh!
Then, the only other thing I've got left to do is actually name my damn characters! I cant believe I've written the whole damn book and haven't been able to come up with some decent names. I've named four of my heroine's friends/colleagues but haven't yet named my heroine. I'm thinking an 'E' name of some sort. Not sure why. Perhaps an 'A' name. I like girl's names to start with a vowel.
I also need my heroine's soon-to-be lover's name. I've used 'James' as a working name, and 'Ayla' as a working name for my heroine, but I just dont like them. I also need to name my baddie. And my heroine's Nan. And her landlord. And her boss. And the old woman whose dead husband gives 'Ayla' advice (I named him Scatman).
Decisions decisions. I'll have to go check out some name generators or something.
Well, best get back to enjoying my lunchtime. I've got around 1000-1300 words done today already.. only a few hundred more. I just dont want to rush it. Hehehe. I want to savour these last moments. Although the way the story is unfolding the ending of the book will be about another 3000-4000 words so even when I cross the finish line the story hasn't actually resolved itself.
Woo hoo!!!
I've written the climax of my book and now I'm just letting it down gently. I didn't plan out the entire ending so I'm just winging it, which is no prob.
I'm probably going to insert an extra scene near the beginning of the book because it would seem a bit stupid for my heroine to be attacked and then not go and report it to the police. So I thought I'd make something up to cover that. I know that if I was reading my book from a readers point of view it would drive me nuts that she didn't check the police report or newspapers to try to find her killer.
I'm not really bothered if I dont finish it today. I'm pretty tired from staying up late with a tummy ache. I've got a week to finish it, but I can feel that this is exactly what I always do. I always work work work and work and then when I get to one step from finishing I tend to slow down to a crawl or never finish. Perhaps I'm afraid to have nothing to look forward to or aim for. Stupid really, since I've got loads of editing to do etc.
The annoying thing about writing on my Alphasmart 3000 (fantastic little tool!!) is that its the American version and so the @ key and the " key are reversed. So when I transfer my writing to my laptop I get dialogue that looks like this -
@Hi, dickhead. How are you?@ asked Jim-Bob Nobrain
@Yeah, not too bad. I'm pretty stupid though.@ replied Hotpants Thickasshit
@Oh really? Why is that?@
@I've fired my editor during November and now all my typing is full of stupid symbols"@
@Oh, I see.@ said Jim-Bob, @You really are a dumbass aren't you?@
@Oh yes!@ nodded Hotpants.
But I'm a secretary, so fixing the above kinda stuff should be a breeze. Its just going to be time consuming and annoying. I suppose I could just 'find' and 'replace'. That would make sense. Duh!
Then, the only other thing I've got left to do is actually name my damn characters! I cant believe I've written the whole damn book and haven't been able to come up with some decent names. I've named four of my heroine's friends/colleagues but haven't yet named my heroine. I'm thinking an 'E' name of some sort. Not sure why. Perhaps an 'A' name. I like girl's names to start with a vowel.
I also need my heroine's soon-to-be lover's name. I've used 'James' as a working name, and 'Ayla' as a working name for my heroine, but I just dont like them. I also need to name my baddie. And my heroine's Nan. And her landlord. And her boss. And the old woman whose dead husband gives 'Ayla' advice (I named him Scatman).
Decisions decisions. I'll have to go check out some name generators or something.
Well, best get back to enjoying my lunchtime. I've got around 1000-1300 words done today already.. only a few hundred more. I just dont want to rush it. Hehehe. I want to savour these last moments. Although the way the story is unfolding the ending of the book will be about another 3000-4000 words so even when I cross the finish line the story hasn't actually resolved itself.
Monday, November 20, 2006
Day #20 Nano - Back to the Grind
I cant believe I've just had three days off from Nano. What a waster I am!!
It was great though. I really enjoyed holidaying away from my book, but I also got the guilts a bit too. I could have been spending the weekend finishing off the story and crossing the 50k finish line which would have left me with over 10 days to edit etc... but oh well. Nano isn't about getting 50k of FANTASTIC writing done, its about finishing the book. And thats what I'm going to do. December will be my NaNoEdMo and hopefully by christmas I'll have a lovely shiny sparkling crisp manuscript in my dirty little hands all ready for submission. I love that word - submission. It makes it sound like the book is bowing down to what I say.
You will go to this agency and you will knock their socks off and be accepted!!
So I got back on the bike today and squeezed out 2609 words before falling asleep at my desk. How on Earth I am keeping this job and not being fired for being a lazy arse, I do not know! I've got enough filing and shredding to do to fill an entire week, but who wants to do that?? Surely secretaries should be allowed to have assistants to do that kind of work. I mean, really, I cant stand the fact that I'm just a lowly secretary. Its disgusting. I simply must have someone below me! I'll have to speak with Jenn, the other secretary that I share work with. She's itching to get someone else in and she's been there longer than me so would have more influence.
I hate filing.
But at least my Nano is over 44k! Woo hoo! Only 5000 & something more words to go!
It was great though. I really enjoyed holidaying away from my book, but I also got the guilts a bit too. I could have been spending the weekend finishing off the story and crossing the 50k finish line which would have left me with over 10 days to edit etc... but oh well. Nano isn't about getting 50k of FANTASTIC writing done, its about finishing the book. And thats what I'm going to do. December will be my NaNoEdMo and hopefully by christmas I'll have a lovely shiny sparkling crisp manuscript in my dirty little hands all ready for submission. I love that word - submission. It makes it sound like the book is bowing down to what I say.
You will go to this agency and you will knock their socks off and be accepted!!
So I got back on the bike today and squeezed out 2609 words before falling asleep at my desk. How on Earth I am keeping this job and not being fired for being a lazy arse, I do not know! I've got enough filing and shredding to do to fill an entire week, but who wants to do that?? Surely secretaries should be allowed to have assistants to do that kind of work. I mean, really, I cant stand the fact that I'm just a lowly secretary. Its disgusting. I simply must have someone below me! I'll have to speak with Jenn, the other secretary that I share work with. She's itching to get someone else in and she's been there longer than me so would have more influence.
I hate filing.
But at least my Nano is over 44k! Woo hoo! Only 5000 & something more words to go!
Saturday, November 18, 2006
Special Orders For Couch Work!
I didn't do a single thing on Nano yesterday (Friday, Day #17) and I dont plan on doing any today, Day #18. What a lazy sod I am, but I dont care. I have special orders from my daily tarot reading, below.
I've got a full week of work next week so even if I only do 1000 a day until 30th November I'll still cross the finish line.. and its likely I'll do more than 1000 words a day - I usually do 1000 words on the train in the morning, all bleary-eyed and grumpy that I'm squashed on a train with loads of other grumpy-bleary-eyed people. At least I've found a carriage that always has seats left by the time the train reaches my station.
So anyway.. I'm going to have a day of fun and relaxation. If Martin doesn't get too stroppy with me monopolising the computer then I may make a few fractals or something. I've also got 5 or 6 episodes of Prison Break to watch, an episode of House, an episode of My Name Is Earl, and a stack of new DVD's we bought yesterday.
I love doing couch work! Tho I will have to leave the house at some point today as I have no chocolate - and we're going out to dinner tonight somewhere out in the sticks in Kent. Should be nice and relaxing.
I feel so guilty for taking two days off (three if I dont do any tomorrow) from Nano when other people are really struggling to make up the words. I'm sooooo glad I got a headstart in the first week.
Yip ya!
I've got a full week of work next week so even if I only do 1000 a day until 30th November I'll still cross the finish line.. and its likely I'll do more than 1000 words a day - I usually do 1000 words on the train in the morning, all bleary-eyed and grumpy that I'm squashed on a train with loads of other grumpy-bleary-eyed people. At least I've found a carriage that always has seats left by the time the train reaches my station.
So anyway.. I'm going to have a day of fun and relaxation. If Martin doesn't get too stroppy with me monopolising the computer then I may make a few fractals or something. I've also got 5 or 6 episodes of Prison Break to watch, an episode of House, an episode of My Name Is Earl, and a stack of new DVD's we bought yesterday.
I love doing couch work! Tho I will have to leave the house at some point today as I have no chocolate - and we're going out to dinner tonight somewhere out in the sticks in Kent. Should be nice and relaxing.
I feel so guilty for taking two days off (three if I dont do any tomorrow) from Nano when other people are really struggling to make up the words. I'm sooooo glad I got a headstart in the first week.
Yip ya!
 |  |  |
Today, you're in no mood to declare your undying devotion to your partner, Kathryn Wheeler. The conjunction of the Hanged Man and the World puts you in a bad position for making sacrifices or concessions. You keep your distance rather than get too involved, and you prefer light-heartedness to stability. You must act as you think best, but take care not to hurt those close to you with your fickle attitude. When it comes to work, you should best avoid embarking on any new projects, and certainly not go in for any risks. Today, the sword of Damocles is hanging over you - the inevitable consequence of Death and of the Hanged Man! Not at all propitious for new projects or endeavors. All in all it does look today as if have reached a standstill. But that is not a reason to despair. Just let this day pass by, and look forward to tomorrow.
Thursday, November 16, 2006
Day #16 Nano - Words Away!
Well, I was right. I can only seem to write when I'm under pressure to do something else. Its so annoying. That means I'll always have to have a day job if I want to have a successful writing career. Kinda pointless, really.
Ah well, I'll just have to roll with it. Got over 4000 words done today, so that takes me over the top of 40k! Yee ha! I'm on the downhill stretch, and I'm coming to the climax in my book. So its all fun from here on in.
In other news, I just moved into Blogworld Road. It seemed like a nice neighbourhood so I took it upon myself to become a resident. I set up home in my house of cards, so poker nights will be at my place. Bring chocolate, and Jack Daniels. PARTY!!!
Ah well, I'll just have to roll with it. Got over 4000 words done today, so that takes me over the top of 40k! Yee ha! I'm on the downhill stretch, and I'm coming to the climax in my book. So its all fun from here on in.
In other news, I just moved into Blogworld Road. It seemed like a nice neighbourhood so I took it upon myself to become a resident. I set up home in my house of cards, so poker nights will be at my place. Bring chocolate, and Jack Daniels. PARTY!!!
Day #15 Nano - Work at Work
Well I had a crap day writing wise, only 1400-ish, even though I had the day off with nothing to do. It just goes to show that I'm useless at orgnising my own time and actually making myself write.
I think I'm much better at writing when I'm at work or doing something I dont want to do.
But anyway, I dont really mind. I had a fantastic start in the first week, so I'm not too fussed that I slumped so much in the second week. I'm at the halfway point in the month and I'm way over halfway with the book, so as far as I'm concerned I'm doing smashingly good. Hoorah!
Wish I didn't have to go to work tho. But, I guess I'd never get any writing done if I didn't work. I hate figuring things out about myself that I dont like and cant seem to influence. Its just stupid that the only time I feel compelled to write is when I'm actually too busy to write. I'm the eternal rebel, I guess.
Total words are over 37k, so Day #16 should take me over the top of the 40k mark. In theory, anyway. (Below - a bit of Day #15 fun)
I think I'm much better at writing when I'm at work or doing something I dont want to do.
But anyway, I dont really mind. I had a fantastic start in the first week, so I'm not too fussed that I slumped so much in the second week. I'm at the halfway point in the month and I'm way over halfway with the book, so as far as I'm concerned I'm doing smashingly good. Hoorah!
Wish I didn't have to go to work tho. But, I guess I'd never get any writing done if I didn't work. I hate figuring things out about myself that I dont like and cant seem to influence. Its just stupid that the only time I feel compelled to write is when I'm actually too busy to write. I'm the eternal rebel, I guess.
Total words are over 37k, so Day #16 should take me over the top of the 40k mark. In theory, anyway. (Below - a bit of Day #15 fun)
Tuesday, November 14, 2006
Day #14 Nano - Training Day
Only 700-ish word done today. Pretty crap, but that was all I could get done on the train before I fell asleep. I was knackered and I have no idea why.
When I got to work I had to go to this stupid training day thing which meant we all sit around in groups and discuss different ways of coming up with innovative ideas and discussing the company ethos. Is 'ethos' even a word???
It sucked. I felt like I was at some junkie meeting or something, or in a room with a group of retards where we were given pens and paper to draw pretty pictures to take our minds off the fact that we're all loopy.
So, I didn't get anything written. At lunchtime I had to spend the whole time trying to avoid the other prisoners so I didn't have to speak to them.
At least I got free sandwiches. No crisps or chocolate though, bloody cheap skates!
Day off tomorrow. YAY. A day of unhindered writing and fractal fun. Cant wait.
When I got to work I had to go to this stupid training day thing which meant we all sit around in groups and discuss different ways of coming up with innovative ideas and discussing the company ethos. Is 'ethos' even a word???
It sucked. I felt like I was at some junkie meeting or something, or in a room with a group of retards where we were given pens and paper to draw pretty pictures to take our minds off the fact that we're all loopy.
So, I didn't get anything written. At lunchtime I had to spend the whole time trying to avoid the other prisoners so I didn't have to speak to them.
At least I got free sandwiches. No crisps or chocolate though, bloody cheap skates!
Day off tomorrow. YAY. A day of unhindered writing and fractal fun. Cant wait.
Monday, November 13, 2006
Fractal Fun
This is another fractal I made. Its got three layers blended together. I love it, though I wish it didn't have 'Evaluation Copy' plastered all over it.. Having said that, though, I'm not willing to pay $59 US just to get rid of it. And I cant afford it. Bummer.Procrastinating in Fractal Land
Had a bit of fun with the evaluation version of Ultra Fractal 4, and this is the pic I came up with. Pity its got all the 'evaluation' things stamped all over it. Makes me want to send them a picture of my hand flipping the bird in fractal to them.
But anyway, it was a bit of fun.
I Can Count To Ten (But Thats All!)
I was just sorting through my novel, backing it up and making sure it was correctly saved etc, when I noticed a discrepancy in the size of one of my chapter files with the copied file on my external harddrive.
See, when I save a chapter on my computer I also save a copy to my external harddrive too because (*touchwood*) my logic is that both harddrives wont explode at the same time and I wont lose my book.
BUT, I must have forgotten to save the finished (and I use the term 'finished' very loosely) file of Chapter 2 to the external harddrive, thus eliminating approx 3,000 from my word count. I must have added up my word count from the external harddrive copy of files not realising that the wordcount would be different from my main novel folder on my computer. What a twat I am!
So, it seems my wordcount is already over 34,000, so reaching my target of 35,000 today should be a breeze. Hehehe. Perhaps I'll raise the target to 37,000. No point wasting such a lovely little bonus.
I'm going to email myself my novel now, because now that I've said the words 'harddrive' and 'explode' in the same sentence its just bound to come true.
Plus - Hoorah, beta blogger is letting me post again without that stupid annoying message!! Woo hoo!!
See, when I save a chapter on my computer I also save a copy to my external harddrive too because (*touchwood*) my logic is that both harddrives wont explode at the same time and I wont lose my book.
BUT, I must have forgotten to save the finished (and I use the term 'finished' very loosely) file of Chapter 2 to the external harddrive, thus eliminating approx 3,000 from my word count. I must have added up my word count from the external harddrive copy of files not realising that the wordcount would be different from my main novel folder on my computer. What a twat I am!
So, it seems my wordcount is already over 34,000, so reaching my target of 35,000 today should be a breeze. Hehehe. Perhaps I'll raise the target to 37,000. No point wasting such a lovely little bonus.
I'm going to email myself my novel now, because now that I've said the words 'harddrive' and 'explode' in the same sentence its just bound to come true.
Plus - Hoorah, beta blogger is letting me post again without that stupid annoying message!! Woo hoo!!
Day #13 Nano - Hey Ho, On We Go
Well, I had a pretty slow weekend words wise (only 858 in total), but it was a really nice break. I've got the day off work today so hopefully I can get my wordcount up and over 35k. I'm hoping to crack the 50k by November 20th. That gives me ten days to edit and polish before handing over my wordcount to the Nano counter and officially crossing the finish line.
Yay, cant wait!
I'm not going to dwell here on blogger, nor read too many other blogs today. I must get on. There are words that need writing, and I feel like I've got a fire up my arse! (The creative kind of fire, that is. Not the kind of fire that Johnny Cash named his song after. Haha!)
fingers crossed that beta blogger will run smoothly and let me post without showing that god-awful 'We're sorry...' message.
Yay, cant wait!
I'm not going to dwell here on blogger, nor read too many other blogs today. I must get on. There are words that need writing, and I feel like I've got a fire up my arse! (The creative kind of fire, that is. Not the kind of fire that Johnny Cash named his song after. Haha!)
fingers crossed that beta blogger will run smoothly and let me post without showing that god-awful 'We're sorry...' message.
Sunday, November 12, 2006
Day #12 Nano - Not A Whole Lotta Writin' Goin' On
I wrote a little bit this morning, but this Sunday (like yesterday) has been a much needed day off.
I've spent most of today cleaning up my computer (coz it does get quite messy), and watching episodes of My Name Is Earl, House and Lost. Gunna catch a bit of Mission Impossible III now and spend the rest of the evening not thinking about writing.
I feel like I'm holiday! Woo hoo! Thank god I made such a great head start in the first week.
*sigh* If only this stupid beta blogger thing was working properly. If I see that 'We're sorry...' message just one more time I'm going to throw this computer through a window.
Anyone else having beta trouble???
I've spent most of today cleaning up my computer (coz it does get quite messy), and watching episodes of My Name Is Earl, House and Lost. Gunna catch a bit of Mission Impossible III now and spend the rest of the evening not thinking about writing.
I feel like I'm holiday! Woo hoo! Thank god I made such a great head start in the first week.
*sigh* If only this stupid beta blogger thing was working properly. If I see that 'We're sorry...' message just one more time I'm going to throw this computer through a window.
Anyone else having beta trouble???
Beta is Better, MY ARSE!!
This is absolute crap.
I wrote a post. I pressed 'publish', and Beta says 'We're sorry, but we are unable to process this request' (I can just here the sickly sweet recording of a woman's voice saying this over and over in a monotone).
So I click 'back' and thankfully my post is still there. So I try again and click 'publish'.
Same 'We're sorry' message.
So I repeat.
And repeat again.
Still the same damn message!!
So this time I go back and save the damn post as a draft to post later, and when it brings up the page with a list of all my posts it shows that I've posted the same post FOUR TIMES! I thought it wasn't posted because of that stupid 'We're sorry' message.
So I tried to delete one....
...'We're sorry...'
Yeah, right, I'm really sure Beta is f****** sorry at pissing me off so early in the morning.
Computers suck. I'm going back to my Alphasmart to get some much needed nano words done.
I wrote a post. I pressed 'publish', and Beta says 'We're sorry, but we are unable to process this request' (I can just here the sickly sweet recording of a woman's voice saying this over and over in a monotone).
So I click 'back' and thankfully my post is still there. So I try again and click 'publish'.
Same 'We're sorry' message.
So I repeat.
And repeat again.
Still the same damn message!!
So this time I go back and save the damn post as a draft to post later, and when it brings up the page with a list of all my posts it shows that I've posted the same post FOUR TIMES! I thought it wasn't posted because of that stupid 'We're sorry' message.
So I tried to delete one....
...'We're sorry...'
Yeah, right, I'm really sure Beta is f****** sorry at pissing me off so early in the morning.
Computers suck. I'm going back to my Alphasmart to get some much needed nano words done.
Day #11 Nano - The Elevensies
Its 11.11am and I'm posting about the eleventh day of Nano. Hehe. I like those little things that tie-in so well.
So anyway. Day off! (well, got about 100 words done, but I'm not adding to my Day 11 count. I'm going to add it to my Day 12 count).
I did a bit of shopping, did a bit of lazing around, did a bit of screaming and shouting when my internet connection dropped out while I was in the middle of chatting to my Mum on MSN, and did a little drinking and video watching.
Ah lovely. I'm glad to say the internet is back up, so I think its on fragile legs, and I'm also glad to say that I didn't drink myself into oblivion. I drank responsibly. Shit, I must be growing up. Damn, I hope not.
So anyway. Day off! (well, got about 100 words done, but I'm not adding to my Day 11 count. I'm going to add it to my Day 12 count).
I did a bit of shopping, did a bit of lazing around, did a bit of screaming and shouting when my internet connection dropped out while I was in the middle of chatting to my Mum on MSN, and did a little drinking and video watching.
Ah lovely. I'm glad to say the internet is back up, so I think its on fragile legs, and I'm also glad to say that I didn't drink myself into oblivion. I drank responsibly. Shit, I must be growing up. Damn, I hope not.
Saturday, November 11, 2006
Day #10 Nano - At The 30k Base Camp
I've reached the camp a little over half way up the mountain at the 30k words point.
Damn the view is good from up here.
I've got most of Saturday afternoon free to get up to 35k (hopefully!) and also have all day Sunday. I've got Monday (and Wednesday) off, so I'll have all day then to work too, with no annoying husband around to take my attention off Nano.
Tuesday will be a bad day until the evening. I've got some training thing to go to at work, so I'll only be able to do my usual 1000 on the train, then wait til I get home to work on it more while hubby is at the pub. Since Nano started I dont think I've written a word in the evening. I hope my creativity works just as well then as it does in the morning.
Even though I hate to get up early, I've found that I write best then. Perhaps its because my brain isn't filled with a day full of crap and I'm free to let my mind explore its creativity to the full. I dunno. Anyway. I'm glad it works that way, and I'm not going to question it until I've reached the 50k summit.
Gotta round this up. I'm writing this at the start of Day #11 and I've got to nip to Bluewater shopping centre to buy Martin a new suit, because god forbid he gets off his arse and buys his own.. that would mean getting out of bed before midday to beat the traffic. He's staying in hangover town at the moment, anyway, so I might as well just get on with it. I bet I'll be back before he gets his sorry arse outta bed. Bloody husbands.
At least I'm choosing what video we watch tonight.
Damn the view is good from up here.
I've got most of Saturday afternoon free to get up to 35k (hopefully!) and also have all day Sunday. I've got Monday (and Wednesday) off, so I'll have all day then to work too, with no annoying husband around to take my attention off Nano.
Tuesday will be a bad day until the evening. I've got some training thing to go to at work, so I'll only be able to do my usual 1000 on the train, then wait til I get home to work on it more while hubby is at the pub. Since Nano started I dont think I've written a word in the evening. I hope my creativity works just as well then as it does in the morning.
Even though I hate to get up early, I've found that I write best then. Perhaps its because my brain isn't filled with a day full of crap and I'm free to let my mind explore its creativity to the full. I dunno. Anyway. I'm glad it works that way, and I'm not going to question it until I've reached the 50k summit.
Gotta round this up. I'm writing this at the start of Day #11 and I've got to nip to Bluewater shopping centre to buy Martin a new suit, because god forbid he gets off his arse and buys his own.. that would mean getting out of bed before midday to beat the traffic. He's staying in hangover town at the moment, anyway, so I might as well just get on with it. I bet I'll be back before he gets his sorry arse outta bed. Bloody husbands.
At least I'm choosing what video we watch tonight.
Friday, November 10, 2006
All Work And No Play Makes Kate A Dull Girl
All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl All work and no play makes Kate a dull girl
Day #9 Nano - Biting the Arse of the 30k Monster
Day 9 was a pretty good day in this nanowrimo craziness. Not as good as yesterday, but still more than I thought I'd get done. 4702 words, and I crossed the halfway mark of 25k without even blinking. Sweeeeet.
This whole Nano thing has been a dream. I write about 1000 words on the train in the morning, with Jerry (my Alphasmart 3000) on my lap underneath the table, if there is a table on the train seat I manage to get, and when I'm at work I just keep Word open and go back to it every time I get a spare moment. Its really nice working in 1000 word chunks. It keeps me interested. I'm quite surprised I got so much done yesterday. I went out for lunch at lunchtime, so I wrote the whole lot while being paid to actually work. Hehehe. I love it.
I'm hoping to cross the 30k mark and if day 10 is anything like day 9 then I have no worries. I dont really want to dwell on it too much, in case I break the spell, but I feel like I'm doing ok.
I reckon this is the first time ever I've stuck to something longer than 5 minutes and have actually started progressing. Probably coz I'm afraid of the view from the top of the mountain and prefer staying in the cozy comfortablness of the valley.
Well, vertigo no more, I'm climbing that damn 50k mountain and i'm going to damn well get there!!
This whole Nano thing has been a dream. I write about 1000 words on the train in the morning, with Jerry (my Alphasmart 3000) on my lap underneath the table, if there is a table on the train seat I manage to get, and when I'm at work I just keep Word open and go back to it every time I get a spare moment. Its really nice working in 1000 word chunks. It keeps me interested. I'm quite surprised I got so much done yesterday. I went out for lunch at lunchtime, so I wrote the whole lot while being paid to actually work. Hehehe. I love it.
I'm hoping to cross the 30k mark and if day 10 is anything like day 9 then I have no worries. I dont really want to dwell on it too much, in case I break the spell, but I feel like I'm doing ok.
I reckon this is the first time ever I've stuck to something longer than 5 minutes and have actually started progressing. Probably coz I'm afraid of the view from the top of the mountain and prefer staying in the cozy comfortablness of the valley.
Well, vertigo no more, I'm climbing that damn 50k mountain and i'm going to damn well get there!!
Thursday, November 09, 2006
Tarot - The Pick Of The Deck
You are The Star
Hope, expectation, Bright promises.
The Star is one of the great cards of faith, dreams realised
The Star is a card that looks to the future. It does not predict any immediate or powerful change, but it does predict hope and healing. This card suggests clarity of vision, spiritual insight. And, most importantly, that unexpected help will be coming, with water to quench your thirst, with a guiding light to the future. They might say you're a dreamer, but you're not the only one.
What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.
Thank you to Deep Thinker for this link.
Day #8 Nano - Where Do These Words Come From?
Did you just see that benchmark go flying past? It had the numbers 20k written on it!!
I flew past today's target as though it wasn't even there, clocking up over 6,000 words today making my total around 23,000 so far.
YES!
I think its pretty safe to say that I've found a method that works for me.
I have a solid outline and I've written out a description of each chapter so that when I actually to write it I dont get too lost in waffling on about description because I already know where the story needs to go. At first I thought it would be a waste of time, but I'm constantly referring back to my chapter notes wondering where I'm supposed to take the story next and its not taking the magic or mystery out of it!
I'm so pleased. I've been f*cking around with my epic fantasy novel for 8 years. EIGHT F*cking YEARS!! Its taken that long because I dont have any kind of outline for my chapters. I'm such a dunce. I cant believe I shied away from it. I thought that outlining the chapters would actually take out all the fun in creating the story, but its just the opposite. It keeps the story fun to write and makes it a hell of a lot easier. Once you know your boundaries and framework you can run riot betwee the lines.
I'm itching to get started on another book.. but I cant get too impatient. Fleeting Life (the working title for my nano book) has got to be finished first. I am, of course, under no delusion that what I am writing is perfectly saleable right now. Its not. Its a rough draft. But its a fantastic start. I can feel the editor in me craving to get out and correct those typos and disastrous shifts in POV and tense.
My aim for Day #9 is to crack the 25k. Methinks I've got it sorted, but we'll see. I dont wanna go getting complacent until I've written 49,999 words. Only then can I start to relax.
I flew past today's target as though it wasn't even there, clocking up over 6,000 words today making my total around 23,000 so far.
YES!
I think its pretty safe to say that I've found a method that works for me.
I have a solid outline and I've written out a description of each chapter so that when I actually to write it I dont get too lost in waffling on about description because I already know where the story needs to go. At first I thought it would be a waste of time, but I'm constantly referring back to my chapter notes wondering where I'm supposed to take the story next and its not taking the magic or mystery out of it!
I'm so pleased. I've been f*cking around with my epic fantasy novel for 8 years. EIGHT F*cking YEARS!! Its taken that long because I dont have any kind of outline for my chapters. I'm such a dunce. I cant believe I shied away from it. I thought that outlining the chapters would actually take out all the fun in creating the story, but its just the opposite. It keeps the story fun to write and makes it a hell of a lot easier. Once you know your boundaries and framework you can run riot betwee the lines.
I'm itching to get started on another book.. but I cant get too impatient. Fleeting Life (the working title for my nano book) has got to be finished first. I am, of course, under no delusion that what I am writing is perfectly saleable right now. Its not. Its a rough draft. But its a fantastic start. I can feel the editor in me craving to get out and correct those typos and disastrous shifts in POV and tense.
My aim for Day #9 is to crack the 25k. Methinks I've got it sorted, but we'll see. I dont wanna go getting complacent until I've written 49,999 words. Only then can I start to relax.
Wednesday, November 08, 2006
Super-Size Me & Ebay
I totally recommend using an Alphasmart to write your novel on.
If you're like me and get distracted easily, then an Alphasmart 3000 is the way to go. It shows just four lines of text and all you can do on it is write!!
There's one up for grabs on ebay here
There is also an Alphasmart Dana for sale too, which is what I originally wanted, but it has more funky stuff on it and would only distract me. I'm kind of like a magpie in that respect - I'll be working away and then I'll spot something... "Ooo.. thats quite shiny!" and that'll be the end of my concentration.
Totally useless.
Speaking of totally useless. I got my Mum to buy me a king size bed cover because my husband is 6ft and not the smallest of men (he's not fat, I dont mean fat!) and he tends to hog the covers. I figured a king size would be more than adequate! But, no! A king size barely covers us. Its absolutely ridiculous.
Why on earth can people think up super-size french fries but not super-sized bed spreads. Surely all those fat people who gobble down the super-sized french fries would need super-sized bed covers. It kinda makes sense to me. They go hand in hand, I think!
Also.. something else that would benefit from super-sizing - train seats!! Is it just me or am I always the only person stuck with a huge fat Mama half sitting on me because she cant fit into the seat?! I can totally understand fat people not fitting into train seats, coz I can barely fit into them too (I'm not fat.. I'm just normal), and I havent even started on men with broad shoulders. I mean, really, who was it who designed train seats? Skinny little children with no shoulders and hips?!??! I wish they'd get it sorted. The last thing I want when squashed on a train at some ungodly hour in the morning is to be touched by other people.
Ok, I'm done ranting now. (Already done over 2,500 words today and its only lunchtime. Yay, only a few hundred more til I crack the 20k mark!)
If you're like me and get distracted easily, then an Alphasmart 3000 is the way to go. It shows just four lines of text and all you can do on it is write!!
There's one up for grabs on ebay here
There is also an Alphasmart Dana for sale too, which is what I originally wanted, but it has more funky stuff on it and would only distract me. I'm kind of like a magpie in that respect - I'll be working away and then I'll spot something... "Ooo.. thats quite shiny!" and that'll be the end of my concentration.
Totally useless.
Speaking of totally useless. I got my Mum to buy me a king size bed cover because my husband is 6ft and not the smallest of men (he's not fat, I dont mean fat!) and he tends to hog the covers. I figured a king size would be more than adequate! But, no! A king size barely covers us. Its absolutely ridiculous.
Why on earth can people think up super-size french fries but not super-sized bed spreads. Surely all those fat people who gobble down the super-sized french fries would need super-sized bed covers. It kinda makes sense to me. They go hand in hand, I think!
Also.. something else that would benefit from super-sizing - train seats!! Is it just me or am I always the only person stuck with a huge fat Mama half sitting on me because she cant fit into the seat?! I can totally understand fat people not fitting into train seats, coz I can barely fit into them too (I'm not fat.. I'm just normal), and I havent even started on men with broad shoulders. I mean, really, who was it who designed train seats? Skinny little children with no shoulders and hips?!??! I wish they'd get it sorted. The last thing I want when squashed on a train at some ungodly hour in the morning is to be touched by other people.
Ok, I'm done ranting now. (Already done over 2,500 words today and its only lunchtime. Yay, only a few hundred more til I crack the 20k mark!)
Tuesday, November 07, 2006
Beta, Baby!
I'm here!
I've made the move!
I'll have to spend a bit of time having a looksee around to see if it was a good move or not.
I'm thinking of jazzing up my blog. Instead of bogstandard white I'm thinking I might introduce a colour.... but which colour?
I think I'll have to think it over once Nano is finished and see what I can come up with. I've already switched my sidebar to be aligned right. I think I like it better that way. Dunno. I'll probably mess with it intermittantly as a procrastination exercise during Nano month.
I've made the move!
I'll have to spend a bit of time having a looksee around to see if it was a good move or not.
I'm thinking of jazzing up my blog. Instead of bogstandard white I'm thinking I might introduce a colour.... but which colour?
I think I'll have to think it over once Nano is finished and see what I can come up with. I've already switched my sidebar to be aligned right. I think I like it better that way. Dunno. I'll probably mess with it intermittantly as a procrastination exercise during Nano month.
Day #7 - Nano
3566 words written today, making the total over 17000.
Fingers crossed that I'll hit the 20k mark tomorrow! WOO HOO!
I'm home alone tonight. Martin is off at the pub being blokish, so I think I'll have a shower and be a bit girlish tonight. Light some candles, put on some music and just chill.
YES!
Fingers crossed that I'll hit the 20k mark tomorrow! WOO HOO!
I'm home alone tonight. Martin is off at the pub being blokish, so I think I'll have a shower and be a bit girlish tonight. Light some candles, put on some music and just chill.
YES!
Monday, November 06, 2006
Day #6 Nano - Getting Ahead
Well, I closed out today, the sixth day of Nanowrimo, with 3,574 words. That makes a total of 13,469 so far. Woo hoo!
I'm stoked!
I'm a quarter of the way through, one day early. Sweeeeeeet!!!
Its been coming fairly easy, and I must say I'm totally enjoying it. But I have this hideous feeling creeping up my spine that every word I'm writing is crap. Martin came home early today and started reading my first chapter and had some good things to say, but I'll never believe friends or relatives that my writing is good. It just isnt right.
I know my nano novel is filled with typos and disasterous shifts in point of view and tenses, but I'm so pleased with myself that I've ignored the obsessive compulsive side of me that always wants to go back and edit, and have soldiered on. I've ignored the spell check. Ignored the typos. Ignored all the incorrect/bad uses of tenses, and I've even ignored naming my characters.
The latter is a bit stupid really. I've got a working name for my heroine - Ayla (named after the heroine in Clan of the Cave Bear), and I've got a few 'final' names for some of her friends, but I've really gotta spare some time soon to get all the other names sorted. I cant keep referring to Ayla's boss as 'the boss'. And Ayla is about to start falling in love (even though she's dead.. thats a cool trick eh!), but I haven't given her future boyfriend a name yet.
Decisions decisions.
It'll all come together in the end, I'm sure. I'm pretty chuffed that I'm at the quarter mark. I'm hoping to crack 20k if not by Friday, then by Saturday. And be well over the halfway mark of 25K by the following Saturday.. even at the 30k mark. That'd be nice.. Mmmm.. I'm dreaming now... and totally getting ahead of myself.
It was a bit embarassing typing away on Jerry (my Alphasmart 3000) on the train this morning. I was on one of those trains that has the tables on it, but I was too embarassed to use it so I just kept Jerry on my lap, and tried soooo hard not to elbow the sleeping guy next to me.
Thank god I had a slow day at work today and was able to write like the wind. Fingers crossed that tomorrow'll be the same.
*sigh* Its late. I wanted to switch to Beta tonight, but I spent too much time reading other blogs and my email. I'll do it tomorrow while Martin's at the pub.
Now blogger, you listen to me.. Dont even think about deleting any of my posts while my back is turned. I'm always watching you. Got it!
I'm stoked!
I'm a quarter of the way through, one day early. Sweeeeeeet!!!
Its been coming fairly easy, and I must say I'm totally enjoying it. But I have this hideous feeling creeping up my spine that every word I'm writing is crap. Martin came home early today and started reading my first chapter and had some good things to say, but I'll never believe friends or relatives that my writing is good. It just isnt right.
I know my nano novel is filled with typos and disasterous shifts in point of view and tenses, but I'm so pleased with myself that I've ignored the obsessive compulsive side of me that always wants to go back and edit, and have soldiered on. I've ignored the spell check. Ignored the typos. Ignored all the incorrect/bad uses of tenses, and I've even ignored naming my characters.
The latter is a bit stupid really. I've got a working name for my heroine - Ayla (named after the heroine in Clan of the Cave Bear), and I've got a few 'final' names for some of her friends, but I've really gotta spare some time soon to get all the other names sorted. I cant keep referring to Ayla's boss as 'the boss'. And Ayla is about to start falling in love (even though she's dead.. thats a cool trick eh!), but I haven't given her future boyfriend a name yet.
Decisions decisions.
It'll all come together in the end, I'm sure. I'm pretty chuffed that I'm at the quarter mark. I'm hoping to crack 20k if not by Friday, then by Saturday. And be well over the halfway mark of 25K by the following Saturday.. even at the 30k mark. That'd be nice.. Mmmm.. I'm dreaming now... and totally getting ahead of myself.
It was a bit embarassing typing away on Jerry (my Alphasmart 3000) on the train this morning. I was on one of those trains that has the tables on it, but I was too embarassed to use it so I just kept Jerry on my lap, and tried soooo hard not to elbow the sleeping guy next to me.
Thank god I had a slow day at work today and was able to write like the wind. Fingers crossed that tomorrow'll be the same.
*sigh* Its late. I wanted to switch to Beta tonight, but I spent too much time reading other blogs and my email. I'll do it tomorrow while Martin's at the pub.
Now blogger, you listen to me.. Dont even think about deleting any of my posts while my back is turned. I'm always watching you. Got it!
Day #5 Nano - On Target For Success
I'm just 115 words shy of 10,000 and I'm feeling pretty good about it.
I've struggled with myself to NOT go back and correct typos. Most of the 'the's in my story have come out like 'teh' which is so incredibly hard to just leave, and there are misspellings gallore! But I must stay strong. Now is not the time to edit, now is the time to write.
I'm three chapters down (though chapter 3 will need extending when it comes to editing), and its all looking good.
My heroine is dead.
And she's just about to realise it.
I'm going to aim for 2,000 words minimum per day from now on, and at least 5,000 per day on the weekends.
Fingers crossed I dont get the second-week-slump.
I still havent forgiven blogger for stealing posts off me. I'm going to beta later today (day #6).
I've struggled with myself to NOT go back and correct typos. Most of the 'the's in my story have come out like 'teh' which is so incredibly hard to just leave, and there are misspellings gallore! But I must stay strong. Now is not the time to edit, now is the time to write.
I'm three chapters down (though chapter 3 will need extending when it comes to editing), and its all looking good.
My heroine is dead.
And she's just about to realise it.
I'm going to aim for 2,000 words minimum per day from now on, and at least 5,000 per day on the weekends.
Fingers crossed I dont get the second-week-slump.
I still havent forgiven blogger for stealing posts off me. I'm going to beta later today (day #6).
Sunday, November 05, 2006
F***!!!!
Blogger you f***** bastard!!!
This f***** c*** of a stupid program deleted two of my posts!!
What the f***?!?!??!
I'm sooooo pissed off!!
No one deletes my words but me! I feel so up myself saying that, but even if it is the crappest thing I've ever written, no one deletes but me!!!
I f***** hate computers!!!!!
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!!!!
If anyone who views my blog sees the posts Day #3 & Day #4 please copy and paste them into an email and send them to katewheeler11 at hotmail dot com. Ta muchly! I'm going to go and kill something now.
This f***** c*** of a stupid program deleted two of my posts!!
What the f***?!?!??!
I'm sooooo pissed off!!
No one deletes my words but me! I feel so up myself saying that, but even if it is the crappest thing I've ever written, no one deletes but me!!!
I f***** hate computers!!!!!
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!!!!
If anyone who views my blog sees the posts Day #3 & Day #4 please copy and paste them into an email and send them to katewheeler11 at hotmail dot com. Ta muchly! I'm going to go and kill something now.
Day #5 Nano - Sunday Grace
I've started the day off with 2000 words, concluding chapter one. I think this book is going to be a bit more adult than intended. I've already used the words sex, asshole and bitch.
Oh well, that happens when you put in a goth-loving character and her flamboyant Graham-Norton-like gay friend.
I'm really enjoying developing the story. I thought I'd get bored with it having it all planned out. I'm not much of a planner and am more of a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants kind of girl, but the bare bones of the outline is bare enough to allow room for creativity, yet structured enough to keep me on the straight and narrow.
I'm hoping to crack the 10k barrier by the end of today and I'm looking forward to it. I'm going to kill my heroine in the next chapter or two. Cant wait.
But what is the rest of the book filled with if your heroine is dead? I hear you ask? Why, with her ghostly form trying to figure out life on the other side, of course!
In reference to Deep Thinker's post about blogger - I cant seem to access the last few of my posts to edit them or add to them etc. Wtf? Blogger has never failed on me since I've been signed up. Grrr. I wanted to add a lovely tarot picture to my previous post. Looks like I wont be able to. Oh well. Such is life I guess.. or should I say, such is blogger.
Oh well, that happens when you put in a goth-loving character and her flamboyant Graham-Norton-like gay friend.
I'm really enjoying developing the story. I thought I'd get bored with it having it all planned out. I'm not much of a planner and am more of a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants kind of girl, but the bare bones of the outline is bare enough to allow room for creativity, yet structured enough to keep me on the straight and narrow.
I'm hoping to crack the 10k barrier by the end of today and I'm looking forward to it. I'm going to kill my heroine in the next chapter or two. Cant wait.
But what is the rest of the book filled with if your heroine is dead? I hear you ask? Why, with her ghostly form trying to figure out life on the other side, of course!
In reference to Deep Thinker's post about blogger - I cant seem to access the last few of my posts to edit them or add to them etc. Wtf? Blogger has never failed on me since I've been signed up. Grrr. I wanted to add a lovely tarot picture to my previous post. Looks like I wont be able to. Oh well. Such is life I guess.. or should I say, such is blogger.
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Day #2 Nano Metro & the Jack-o-lantern
Today went a lot better with the chapter planning. I'm up to Chapter 11 now (thats 8 planned today), so I'm a bit happier today. Though I've got an annoying headache.I was just flipping through the Metro today, on my way home (I scavenged the paper after it was left on the seat) and I noticed a little article about Nanowrimo. My face flushed and I smiled. It felt like they were writing about me.. which is totally ridiculous because it mentions about 75,000 people world wide are participating. I cut it out anyway and I'm going to keep it with all my Nano stuff.
I carved a Jack-o-lantern this week for Halloween. I wanted to put up a picture of it earlier, but havent had the time.Anyway, here it is.
Day #1 - Nano Nightmare
What a crap day to start Nano on. I've been totally run off my feet and have so much stuff going on in my head I barely got three chapters planned out.
Firstly, we're finally doing something about the huge mould problem in our house - getting the landlord to fix it once and for all before we die of a million different cancers and diseases.
Secondly, I've got this stupid photography shoot thing that I 'won' for free, but dont want to do. I trudged all the way to the studio at lunchtime only to be told that someone was trying to call me to cancel. So that wiped out any chance at doing anything at lunchtime. And;
Thirdly, Wednesdays are piano lesson days. I was ill last week so I couldnt cancel this week as well. Especially since I have some new music for my student.
But all in all the day finally finished up quite nicely. Martin and I did plan on going to Bluewater to buy him some new shoes, which he desperately needs and obviously needs a shoe buff with him when he buys them - but I get home after 8.30pm from the piano lesson, so we decided to have fish and chips and stay in instead.
It turned into a nice evening. I showered and got my shit together, and watched a few episodes of House! (If you havent seen House before, then WATCH IT! Its awesome!!)
The only tragedy of the day is that I discovered my drawer full of all my handbags has been infiltrated with mould! NOT HAPPY! So I'm sure that'll take more precious Nano time away from me to sort that out.
But its ok. I've got three chapters planned. I've got the train journey to and from work to expand on that, and I've also got lunchtime. Its ok. I'm not completely off track. I hope to have it all planned out by Saturday. Then its writing time (of course, after we drive to Essex to pick up our wedding photos and go shoe shopping!).
Sunday will be my saving grace day. Its my aim to have at least 5,000 words done by Sunday eve. I'm hoping it will be more like 10,000.
Fingers crossed.
Firstly, we're finally doing something about the huge mould problem in our house - getting the landlord to fix it once and for all before we die of a million different cancers and diseases.
Secondly, I've got this stupid photography shoot thing that I 'won' for free, but dont want to do. I trudged all the way to the studio at lunchtime only to be told that someone was trying to call me to cancel. So that wiped out any chance at doing anything at lunchtime. And;
Thirdly, Wednesdays are piano lesson days. I was ill last week so I couldnt cancel this week as well. Especially since I have some new music for my student.
But all in all the day finally finished up quite nicely. Martin and I did plan on going to Bluewater to buy him some new shoes, which he desperately needs and obviously needs a shoe buff with him when he buys them - but I get home after 8.30pm from the piano lesson, so we decided to have fish and chips and stay in instead.
It turned into a nice evening. I showered and got my shit together, and watched a few episodes of House! (If you havent seen House before, then WATCH IT! Its awesome!!)
The only tragedy of the day is that I discovered my drawer full of all my handbags has been infiltrated with mould! NOT HAPPY! So I'm sure that'll take more precious Nano time away from me to sort that out.
But its ok. I've got three chapters planned. I've got the train journey to and from work to expand on that, and I've also got lunchtime. Its ok. I'm not completely off track. I hope to have it all planned out by Saturday. Then its writing time (of course, after we drive to Essex to pick up our wedding photos and go shoe shopping!).
Sunday will be my saving grace day. Its my aim to have at least 5,000 words done by Sunday eve. I'm hoping it will be more like 10,000.
Fingers crossed.
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
E-Book Challenge & HAPPY HALLOWEEN
Check out Pbackwriter's blog for the results of the E-Book Challenge!
49 free e-books for you to read at your pleasure!!
As soon as Nano is done I'm going to have a sift through them.
I finished reading Clan of the Cave Bear last night, and its left me wanting more. I so much want to start on the next book in the series, 'Valley of the Horses', but after the emotional journey I've been on I need the break, plus nano is only a day away.
I think I'll hold off finding a new book to read until Christmas because I'm getting the new Terry Goodkind book 'Phantom' and I am absolutely hanging out for it! So it'll be nice to be able to browse through the e-books on PBW's website until Christmas time rolls up.
HAPPY HALLOWEEN
I carved a pumpkin yesterday. It kinda looks really evil this year. I'll take a photo when I get the chance and post it for all to see (not that anyone in the world ever reads my blog. Hehehe.. I feel like I'm just talking to myself, really. Dear Diary - today blah blah blah. Haha.)
49 free e-books for you to read at your pleasure!!
As soon as Nano is done I'm going to have a sift through them.
I finished reading Clan of the Cave Bear last night, and its left me wanting more. I so much want to start on the next book in the series, 'Valley of the Horses', but after the emotional journey I've been on I need the break, plus nano is only a day away.
I think I'll hold off finding a new book to read until Christmas because I'm getting the new Terry Goodkind book 'Phantom' and I am absolutely hanging out for it! So it'll be nice to be able to browse through the e-books on PBW's website until Christmas time rolls up.
HAPPY HALLOWEEN
I carved a pumpkin yesterday. It kinda looks really evil this year. I'll take a photo when I get the chance and post it for all to see (not that anyone in the world ever reads my blog. Hehehe.. I feel like I'm just talking to myself, really. Dear Diary - today blah blah blah. Haha.)
Monday, October 30, 2006
The Clan of the Cave Bear
Clan of the Cave Bear by Jean M. Auel is one of the best books I've ever read. The characters and environment are sooo well described and researched that I feel like I know the era in which it is set so well that I could survive there just as the characters could. Its also made me re-evaluate everything that I've come to know about our modern existence! I dont think I'll ever look at the world in the same way again!I recommend this book to absolutely everyone. Its so well written that there is absolutely no way you cant fall in love with the characters. On the way to work I was reading a particularly sad and heart-wrenching part and I had to turn towards the window and wipe my tears away. I was effected all thoughout the morning and moped about with a morose look on my face. Even now, just thinking about it, the book is still effecting me.
I'm not far from the end and will probably finish it on the train journey home, but I'm not sad about it because to my delight I've discovered that there are at least 3 or 4 books following this one. Hoorah! There's even a film out with Daryl Hannah as 'Ayla', but I hear it was a crap film, so I'm not sure if I want to ruin the illusion, and will keep my visual version of the story stuffed up in my head.
Here's the blurb:
The Clan of the Cave Bear is the start of Jean M Auel's epic Earth's Children series. When her parents are killed by an earthquake, five-year-old Ayla wanders through the forest completely alone. Cold, hungry, and badly injured by a cave lion, the little girl is as good as gone until she is discovered by a group who call themselves the Clan of the Cave Bear. This clan, left homeless by the same disaster, has little interest in the helpless girl who comes from the tribe they refer to as the "Others". Only their medicine woman sees in Ayla a fellow human, worthy of care. She painstakingly nurses her back to health--a decision that will forever alter the physical and emotional structure of the clan. Although this story takes place roughly 35,000 years ago, its cast of characters could easily slide into any modern tale. The members of the Neanderthal clan, ruled by traditions and taboos, find themselves challenged by this outsider, who represents the physically modern Cro-Magnons. And as Ayla begins to grow and mature, her natural tendencies emerge, putting her in the middle of a brutal and dangerous power struggle.
I feel like I've had my head stuffed in the sand. I cant believe this book slipped past me until just a few weeks ago. Makes me wonder what others brilliant books I'm missing out on!
Suggestions on what to read next are welcome!!
Sunday, October 29, 2006
Prelude To Nano
I've cleaned the kitchen, bathroom, lounge and done some clothes washing. Anything else can wait until December.
I'm not planning on doing much Monday and Tuesday (except for carving a pumpkin for Halloween and heading out to the pub followed by a trip to some ancient stones to catch naked witches chanting in the night), so today was my only day to get my half of the house-cleaning out of the way before I slack off for a month and focus on writing.
I've got two days to finish reading the book I'm reading at the moment.. which I really really dont want to finish coz its really really good! (I'll devote an entire post to that later!), and I've gotta spend some time figuring out a rough timetable for the month ahead.
I can feel the nano buzz coming on already.
I'm going to finish this post, eat some chinese food and watch a couple of episodes of House. Sweet!
I'm not planning on doing much Monday and Tuesday (except for carving a pumpkin for Halloween and heading out to the pub followed by a trip to some ancient stones to catch naked witches chanting in the night), so today was my only day to get my half of the house-cleaning out of the way before I slack off for a month and focus on writing.
I've got two days to finish reading the book I'm reading at the moment.. which I really really dont want to finish coz its really really good! (I'll devote an entire post to that later!), and I've gotta spend some time figuring out a rough timetable for the month ahead.
I can feel the nano buzz coming on already.
I'm going to finish this post, eat some chinese food and watch a couple of episodes of House. Sweet!
Friday, October 27, 2006
Word Count 2
After lunch I counted up all the words I'd typed from lunchtime until home time and it came to 3873 (and I'm not including all the file closures I had to do).
So for a full day at work I typed 7761 words! Even if I take of 500 words to cover headers etc its still over 7000.
Such a damn shame that they're not my words but the words of boring corporate drones.
So for a full day at work I typed 7761 words! Even if I take of 500 words to cover headers etc its still over 7000.
Such a damn shame that they're not my words but the words of boring corporate drones.
Thursday, October 26, 2006
Word Count
I was just wondering how much I actually type while I'm at work. Although I didn't have a lot of files/tapes to do this morning I added up the words anyway and it came to 3888! And thats just for stuff I typed before lunchtime.
It definitely makes me feel less worried about reaching the Nano word count in 30 days. In fact it seems positively simple. *touchwood*
It definitely makes me feel less worried about reaching the Nano word count in 30 days. In fact it seems positively simple. *touchwood*
Wednesday, October 25, 2006
The Three C's
I was on my way to work this morning thinking about this whole writing thing. I'm pretty sure I'm still just an amateur, coz I'm hanging out for Nanowrimo to be my motivating force to stop procrastinating while PBW writes almost 200,000 a month and up to 9 books a year.
As far as I can tell there are the three C's to writing.
Confidence
Courage &
Commitment
I know I have the confidence to write a book. I'm getting there on the courage to actually write it (alcohol does wonders when you cant stop cringing at the fluff you think you're writing), its just the commitment factor that I havent quite got wrapped around my finger.
I know I can do commitment - I'm married. But commitment to see a book through to the end? I'm terrible with tying up loose ends. Thats my worry, that at the end of November I'll have a mostly written, almost finished, not quite there, book - and I wont have the three C's to finish it.
I'm thinking that I should probably spend a lot of time drunk at the end of November. If not to help boost my courage to finish the book, then to drown my sorrows at not finishing it.
Actually, scrap the above. The Evil Kate was sitting on my shoulder whispering that into my ear.
If I listen to the Good Kate, she is saying I should just stick with it. Be confident because I CAN do it. Have courage because I WILL do it, and be committed because I WANT to see it through to completion. I'm sure I can do it. ..I think.. Yes, I can.. Or can I?... Yes. I will do it. Umm... ...........The end of November shall show all I guess.
As far as I can tell there are the three C's to writing.
Confidence
Courage &
Commitment
I know I have the confidence to write a book. I'm getting there on the courage to actually write it (alcohol does wonders when you cant stop cringing at the fluff you think you're writing), its just the commitment factor that I havent quite got wrapped around my finger.
I know I can do commitment - I'm married. But commitment to see a book through to the end? I'm terrible with tying up loose ends. Thats my worry, that at the end of November I'll have a mostly written, almost finished, not quite there, book - and I wont have the three C's to finish it.
I'm thinking that I should probably spend a lot of time drunk at the end of November. If not to help boost my courage to finish the book, then to drown my sorrows at not finishing it.
Actually, scrap the above. The Evil Kate was sitting on my shoulder whispering that into my ear.
If I listen to the Good Kate, she is saying I should just stick with it. Be confident because I CAN do it. Have courage because I WILL do it, and be committed because I WANT to see it through to completion. I'm sure I can do it. ..I think.. Yes, I can.. Or can I?... Yes. I will do it. Umm... ...........The end of November shall show all I guess.
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
A New Light
Perhaps I was wrong about this job.
There is a communal internet computer that people can use, and it allows access to Hotmail and Blogger. Thats all I need to keep me happy during long boring hours of work.
I'm doped up on Lemsip today, so I'm a bit lightheaded and confused. At least there is absolutely zero work to do. I did a bit of work on the chapter outline for The Chocolatier, but I'm just too screwed up in the head today. I think I'll even cancel the piano lesson tomorrow evening. I'm sure my student can amuse herself with scales etc for another week. I've gotta get my head back into order before Nano starts!
There is a communal internet computer that people can use, and it allows access to Hotmail and Blogger. Thats all I need to keep me happy during long boring hours of work.
I'm doped up on Lemsip today, so I'm a bit lightheaded and confused. At least there is absolutely zero work to do. I did a bit of work on the chapter outline for The Chocolatier, but I'm just too screwed up in the head today. I think I'll even cancel the piano lesson tomorrow evening. I'm sure my student can amuse herself with scales etc for another week. I've gotta get my head back into order before Nano starts!
I'm Going Back To Bed
It started with a tickle in my throat ysterday, now its hit with a stuffy head, glands the size of boulders sticking out of my neck, and a weariness that could make me fall asleep standing up.
What a shit way to feel on the roll up to Nano. Is my body trying to tell me I shouldn't do it? Coz I aint listening if it is.
Perhaps its because I forgot my sister's birthday the other day, and will most likely forget my brother's birthday tomorrow. Ha.. its not like they're children anymore so what does it matter.
This sucks. The last thing I need is to go to work, pick up more germs, and type up loads of boring insurance stuff.
Perhaps I could have a nap in one of the meeting rooms at lunchtime. Yeah, that sounds like a plan. Gotta get my strength back asap. Nano is in SEVEN days.
What a shit way to feel on the roll up to Nano. Is my body trying to tell me I shouldn't do it? Coz I aint listening if it is.
Perhaps its because I forgot my sister's birthday the other day, and will most likely forget my brother's birthday tomorrow. Ha.. its not like they're children anymore so what does it matter.
This sucks. The last thing I need is to go to work, pick up more germs, and type up loads of boring insurance stuff.
Perhaps I could have a nap in one of the meeting rooms at lunchtime. Yeah, that sounds like a plan. Gotta get my strength back asap. Nano is in SEVEN days.
Saturday, October 21, 2006
Banging My Head Against a Brick Wall
Why is it that when we reach a certain age hangovers start hitting you like two bricks to the side of your head and a kick in the guts?
My cure is vegemite toast and berocca! Cant go wrong! (Berocca is a vitamin drink.. any Aussie would know what I'm talking about!). I'm not a coffee drinker, and I rarely have tea, so loads of water and the above two items are always the first things I have after a night out on the piss.
So today I'm not going to do anything.
Martin has woken up all excited about jamming with his mate Andy and getting the band up and running again and he wants me out of the house. No prob, coz I've been given the green light to buy some new clothes (WOO HOO!). Although, he's playing Queen's Fat Bottomed Girls at full blast. Is he trying to tell me something?
SO anyway, back to book stuff. I should be writing the above blubber on my other blog.
I walked past a chocolate shop the other day (yes I am a chocoholic but I did manage to walk past without buying any) and started daydreaming about owning my own chocolate shop not unlike in the movie Chocolat... then *smack* a book idea strikes me between the eyes. It'll have a working title of 'The Chocolatier' (not really sure if thats a real word but I dont care!) and it'll be along the same lines of Stephen King's IT. The Chocolatier will be some sort of ghost or evil spirit who feeds off children's souls and when the heroine moves back to the town (after her Grandmother dies and leaves her her house) she starts to investigate into it more and blah blah blah some exciting stuff happens and I think I might end it on a bit of low note. Happy endings are for chumps.
So, yeah. Thats it. On Friday at lunchtime I started planning out about 10 of the chapters, although I really should have done a complete outline first but oh well, and I think I'll continue working on it up until Nano starts and then do my other book with a working title of 'Fleeting Life'. Its about a girl who is killed and walks around as a ghost trying to figure stuff out and find her killer etc. I'll write more about it later.
Hmm.. methinks I've got a bit of a dark streak in me. I cant seem to come up with ideas for books that dont involve dead people. And come to think of it in my epic fantasy, 'Arkehdar', I've got a few grisly deaths planned. At least I've got a chidren's book lurking in the back of my head thats not so depressing or dark, and my book about the cloud people.
Ok, must go, Martin is waving his appendage in my face trying to get me off the computer. Yay, time to go shopping for new clothes!!!
My cure is vegemite toast and berocca! Cant go wrong! (Berocca is a vitamin drink.. any Aussie would know what I'm talking about!). I'm not a coffee drinker, and I rarely have tea, so loads of water and the above two items are always the first things I have after a night out on the piss.
So today I'm not going to do anything.
Martin has woken up all excited about jamming with his mate Andy and getting the band up and running again and he wants me out of the house. No prob, coz I've been given the green light to buy some new clothes (WOO HOO!). Although, he's playing Queen's Fat Bottomed Girls at full blast. Is he trying to tell me something?
SO anyway, back to book stuff. I should be writing the above blubber on my other blog.
I walked past a chocolate shop the other day (yes I am a chocoholic but I did manage to walk past without buying any) and started daydreaming about owning my own chocolate shop not unlike in the movie Chocolat... then *smack* a book idea strikes me between the eyes. It'll have a working title of 'The Chocolatier' (not really sure if thats a real word but I dont care!) and it'll be along the same lines of Stephen King's IT. The Chocolatier will be some sort of ghost or evil spirit who feeds off children's souls and when the heroine moves back to the town (after her Grandmother dies and leaves her her house) she starts to investigate into it more and blah blah blah some exciting stuff happens and I think I might end it on a bit of low note. Happy endings are for chumps.
So, yeah. Thats it. On Friday at lunchtime I started planning out about 10 of the chapters, although I really should have done a complete outline first but oh well, and I think I'll continue working on it up until Nano starts and then do my other book with a working title of 'Fleeting Life'. Its about a girl who is killed and walks around as a ghost trying to figure stuff out and find her killer etc. I'll write more about it later.
Hmm.. methinks I've got a bit of a dark streak in me. I cant seem to come up with ideas for books that dont involve dead people. And come to think of it in my epic fantasy, 'Arkehdar', I've got a few grisly deaths planned. At least I've got a chidren's book lurking in the back of my head thats not so depressing or dark, and my book about the cloud people.
Ok, must go, Martin is waving his appendage in my face trying to get me off the computer. Yay, time to go shopping for new clothes!!!
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
"I Turn To Type Again"
I wrote this while slogging away at a previous crap job. I think it fits nicely with the predicament I'm in now:
"As I sit and type yet another million words dictated by someone less interesting than me in an office with an atmosphere not unlike the ghastly gaseous and unbreathable venus, I watch the clock.
Tick tick tick...
Tick tick tick...
I watch it and wait, then turn to type again.
This existence sucks... it reeks of failure and stagnant servitude. I'm replaceable and unimportant, yet minute to minute I am extremely important.
If I dont type, letters dont go out.
If letters dont go out, people get irate.
If people get irate then they tell other people, who love to take it upon themselves to abuse any and all hapless, replaceable and unimportant servants of the system: Me.
*sigh*
My life is a wheel. It turns and turns, always getting somewhere, but never anywhere new. Punctures, like sneezes and hiccups, become an interesting and entertaining side show, splitting the mundane moments into exciting chapters which carry the day forward faster.
How sad it is to wish time to scurry along faster. Who in their right mind would crave for the days to fly by without depth and intrigue, all for the sake of ending the painful moments of hideous servitude? As time passes we grow older, and who wants to be an old clockwatcher?
Tick tick tick...
I turn to type again."
"As I sit and type yet another million words dictated by someone less interesting than me in an office with an atmosphere not unlike the ghastly gaseous and unbreathable venus, I watch the clock.
Tick tick tick...
Tick tick tick...
I watch it and wait, then turn to type again.
This existence sucks... it reeks of failure and stagnant servitude. I'm replaceable and unimportant, yet minute to minute I am extremely important.
If I dont type, letters dont go out.
If letters dont go out, people get irate.
If people get irate then they tell other people, who love to take it upon themselves to abuse any and all hapless, replaceable and unimportant servants of the system: Me.
*sigh*
My life is a wheel. It turns and turns, always getting somewhere, but never anywhere new. Punctures, like sneezes and hiccups, become an interesting and entertaining side show, splitting the mundane moments into exciting chapters which carry the day forward faster.
How sad it is to wish time to scurry along faster. Who in their right mind would crave for the days to fly by without depth and intrigue, all for the sake of ending the painful moments of hideous servitude? As time passes we grow older, and who wants to be an old clockwatcher?
Tick tick tick...
I turn to type again."
Crushed Under the Weight of Responsibility
It looks like this new job may be more permanent than I first thought. After briefly discussing it with the hubby, he's of the view that I can not take a job with a salary lower than this one. My dilemma - all the jobs I want have considerably lower salaries.
Bugger. I hate money.. and I especially hate this money-driven existence we have survive through.
I cant stand slaving away at the keyboard typing up stuff for someone else. It makes me feel crushed and caged.
All the more reason why this Nano book MUST be well written and ready to send off to prospective agents/publishers by Christmas. MUST MUST MUST!!!
I will not live my life as someone's bitch, typing up their boring corporate letters all day every day. Travelling in sardine cans with imposing pricks pressed up against me, rushing through the sheep-like hordes trying to abide by someone elses strict timetable!
F#%&@# H%##!!!!!
I WILL make it as a writer. I WILL be successful. I WILL work my own hours. And most importantly - I WILL be happy!
I hereby swear that by my 30th birthday (Its only 18 months away - oh f*** is it really that close!) will have at least one book published or in line to be published.
Monday, October 16, 2006
Burning Feet
I started my new job today as an audio typist, and I'm surprised that I still have the energy left to type.
I get an hour at lunch in which to concentrate on my book, and also the time spent on the train to and from work (at a reasonable hour in the morning! My hours are 9.30 - 5.30).
I've got two weeks to settle in before Nano time begins.
The new job is ok.. its incredibly boring work as all insurance/claims stuff is, but the people are nice and my desk is ma-hoo-sive!
One tragedy though - NO INTERNET!!!
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!!! I'm ok with no hotmail. Thats expected. But no other access??? That means no casual surfing at lunch time, and more importantly NO BLOGGING. Bugger. I suppose I could post via email, but if my email account is monitored then I dont want any work people seeing my posts when I should be working.
I suppose its a good thing, though. It means any spare time available I should devote it to my book!
Ok, I'll grudgingly accept 'no internet' as a positive point.
My feet hurt though.
I get an hour at lunch in which to concentrate on my book, and also the time spent on the train to and from work (at a reasonable hour in the morning! My hours are 9.30 - 5.30).
I've got two weeks to settle in before Nano time begins.
The new job is ok.. its incredibly boring work as all insurance/claims stuff is, but the people are nice and my desk is ma-hoo-sive!
One tragedy though - NO INTERNET!!!
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!!! I'm ok with no hotmail. Thats expected. But no other access??? That means no casual surfing at lunch time, and more importantly NO BLOGGING. Bugger. I suppose I could post via email, but if my email account is monitored then I dont want any work people seeing my posts when I should be working.
I suppose its a good thing, though. It means any spare time available I should devote it to my book!
Ok, I'll grudgingly accept 'no internet' as a positive point.
My feet hurt though.
Vodka
Drinking Vodka and Orange last night (The Screwdriver!) brought my early drinking years flooding back. It was when I was just a little innocent youngling starting out at university.
The main thing it has brought back from the darkest corners of my memory, is the nights of experiemental witchcraft, gothic nightclubs, and carving pumpkins for Halloween.
I had an email recently from my Uni friend who I used to drink with and do all of the above, and she seems to be doing well. It took until yesterday with a few drinks in my system to realise that there was a character staring me in the face! My friend Allison is so unique, and if I'm to write this book in a month then I need characters that are going to come easily. There's nothing easier than basing a character on an actual person.
So, having said that, I searched through the rough ideas I've got spinning around in my head for this book to see what other characers I could base on people (I cant believe I didn't think of this before. How daft am I!!). After reading The Lovely Bones the grandmother character stood out quite a bit as being a little bit similar to my own real grandmother. So, I've decided to work her into my story. I think it would also be nice for her memory, and for myself, to weave her into the book so that she becomes immortal.
I hope to get a rough synopsis fully formed in my head by the first day or two of November. But basically the story goes like this:
Introduce Girl, she works at a cafe. Life is ok, she's on the brink of starting new and wonderful things.
Girl is killed.
Girl doesn't realise she's dead.
Girl wanders around, trying to find her killer.
While wandering around and waiting for her killer to show himself, girl falls in love with boy.
Girl learns how to 'appear' to the living. Girl and boy meet and fall in love etc.
Girl finds killer as boy realises girl is dead...
Ummm.... and I'll leave it there. I wouldn't want to spoil the ending for you all. I think I've got a nice twist planned.
So, Vodka, thank you for your help. Thats two characters down - a few more to go!
The main thing it has brought back from the darkest corners of my memory, is the nights of experiemental witchcraft, gothic nightclubs, and carving pumpkins for Halloween.
I had an email recently from my Uni friend who I used to drink with and do all of the above, and she seems to be doing well. It took until yesterday with a few drinks in my system to realise that there was a character staring me in the face! My friend Allison is so unique, and if I'm to write this book in a month then I need characters that are going to come easily. There's nothing easier than basing a character on an actual person.
So, having said that, I searched through the rough ideas I've got spinning around in my head for this book to see what other characers I could base on people (I cant believe I didn't think of this before. How daft am I!!). After reading The Lovely Bones the grandmother character stood out quite a bit as being a little bit similar to my own real grandmother. So, I've decided to work her into my story. I think it would also be nice for her memory, and for myself, to weave her into the book so that she becomes immortal.
I hope to get a rough synopsis fully formed in my head by the first day or two of November. But basically the story goes like this:
Introduce Girl, she works at a cafe. Life is ok, she's on the brink of starting new and wonderful things.
Girl is killed.
Girl doesn't realise she's dead.
Girl wanders around, trying to find her killer.
While wandering around and waiting for her killer to show himself, girl falls in love with boy.
Girl learns how to 'appear' to the living. Girl and boy meet and fall in love etc.
Girl finds killer as boy realises girl is dead...
Ummm.... and I'll leave it there. I wouldn't want to spoil the ending for you all. I think I've got a nice twist planned.
So, Vodka, thank you for your help. Thats two characters down - a few more to go!
Friday, October 13, 2006
The Lovely Bones?
I just finished reading The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold and I'm not really sure what to think.
Personally I think it dragged in the first half, started to get a bit better, then had a wierd-ass bit at the end, and then just an ending. Its like things almost got explained, but then the story moved on to something else.
I dunno. I think I'm just a bit annoyed because I expected to be blown away. Dont get me wrong, the actual writing was really really good (and made me feel inadequate!), its just the plot etc that annoyed me. That whole falling to Earth thing in Ruth's body just made me screw my face up, and not in a good way.
This sucks. I dont want to write or think badly of a book. I'm not a reviewer, and I dont ever plan on being one. I think if I'm really honest with myself I'm not angry at this book at all, I'm angry at myself because I feel like I dont have the vocabulary to be able to pull together enough threads to weave a satisfying, cloaking book. I feel like that even with all the words in the English language stuffed in my head, its like they're stuffed in too tight.. or stuffed into separate rooms that I've forgotten about and I can seem to pull them out.
I'm going to try to write this NaNoWriMo novel using simple words to start with. Just so that I can get the story down. Someone once told me that that was how Hemmingway wrote, and that its really a lot more difficult than it sounds. I tried it once when I was particularly fired up about my Epic Fantasy, Arkedhar, and although it was difficult it wasn't difficult in the way I thought it would be.
In order to strip down a story to its barest bones you have to fight all the creativity in your head to stay back, like putting up a dam. That was the difficult part. I decided, though, to let through any creative descriptions/words that came easily to me. If I had to pause and try to think up the perfect adjective for a certain scene, then I stopped myself and just moved on with simplistic words. It was my sort of compromise, and I think it will work perfectly for my Nano book.
I'm hoping to start November with a few days of solid outlining and planning, plus a bit of research etc. Then have about 25-20 days of solid writing. I figure that if I do at least 3000 words a day then I should be able to cover it. Then the remainder of the month is for editing and adding in more creativity. I worry that this part is actually going to take the longest, but to be honest, the idea behind Nano is to write 50,000 words in a month. It doesn't state that it has to be perfectly edited and ready to send. If I finish the editing process within November, then thats fantastic, if I dont then I can still continue to work on it after November but the point is I actually achieved the 50,000 in that month. I hope thats right. It sounds right in my head.
I'm also hoping that I blitz the 50,000 and even go way overboard. Fingers crossed on that one.
Time will tell, I guess.
Other books I've read...
Personally I think it dragged in the first half, started to get a bit better, then had a wierd-ass bit at the end, and then just an ending. Its like things almost got explained, but then the story moved on to something else.
I dunno. I think I'm just a bit annoyed because I expected to be blown away. Dont get me wrong, the actual writing was really really good (and made me feel inadequate!), its just the plot etc that annoyed me. That whole falling to Earth thing in Ruth's body just made me screw my face up, and not in a good way.
This sucks. I dont want to write or think badly of a book. I'm not a reviewer, and I dont ever plan on being one. I think if I'm really honest with myself I'm not angry at this book at all, I'm angry at myself because I feel like I dont have the vocabulary to be able to pull together enough threads to weave a satisfying, cloaking book. I feel like that even with all the words in the English language stuffed in my head, its like they're stuffed in too tight.. or stuffed into separate rooms that I've forgotten about and I can seem to pull them out.
I'm going to try to write this NaNoWriMo novel using simple words to start with. Just so that I can get the story down. Someone once told me that that was how Hemmingway wrote, and that its really a lot more difficult than it sounds. I tried it once when I was particularly fired up about my Epic Fantasy, Arkedhar, and although it was difficult it wasn't difficult in the way I thought it would be.
In order to strip down a story to its barest bones you have to fight all the creativity in your head to stay back, like putting up a dam. That was the difficult part. I decided, though, to let through any creative descriptions/words that came easily to me. If I had to pause and try to think up the perfect adjective for a certain scene, then I stopped myself and just moved on with simplistic words. It was my sort of compromise, and I think it will work perfectly for my Nano book.
I'm hoping to start November with a few days of solid outlining and planning, plus a bit of research etc. Then have about 25-20 days of solid writing. I figure that if I do at least 3000 words a day then I should be able to cover it. Then the remainder of the month is for editing and adding in more creativity. I worry that this part is actually going to take the longest, but to be honest, the idea behind Nano is to write 50,000 words in a month. It doesn't state that it has to be perfectly edited and ready to send. If I finish the editing process within November, then thats fantastic, if I dont then I can still continue to work on it after November but the point is I actually achieved the 50,000 in that month. I hope thats right. It sounds right in my head.
I'm also hoping that I blitz the 50,000 and even go way overboard. Fingers crossed on that one.
Time will tell, I guess.
Other books I've read...
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