Off-Topic

I have a topic? Anyway...

Saw this yesterday on CNN, and I immediately tought of the Jewell Pack. How many years did we lust after David Duchovny? We analyzed every moment of the X-files, we watched the original Red Shoe Diaries... And now this. Ah Dave, we barely knew ya.

Seriously, if you're going into rehab, more power to you. But dude...say it was for drugs like everybody else. We seriously didn't need to know this.

Clarify

So, if an agent that has your manuscript e-mails you from their vacation to say they're enjoying what they're reading...that's good, right? Right? Come on, somebody throw me a bone here.

Progress, I haz it

I am not going to make my 60K goal by the end of the week, especially if they let us go from the Real Job(tm) early on Friday. (that happens pre-holiday weekend, sometimes. Please let it happen) But I am making progress, so I'm not too torn up about it. Better than missing a goal because I'm sitting there staring at the blinking cursor of doom.

Almost done with chapter 20. Ideally, I'd like another thousand words on it, but if I get another 700, I'll be happy. And I think I should be able to accomplish that fairly easily. Chapter 21 is going to at least start off with a bang, 'cause I know how I want it to start. How it proceeds from there, though, that's the mystery. And I'm not entirely sure that chapters 20 and 21 shouldn't be in reverse order. I'll have to let my betas hash that one out once I'm done with the writing.

I'm a few pages away from being done with Escapement. This would be the sequel to Mainspring by Jay Lake. (reminds me, I really need to update my "blogs read" list, 'cause I read Jay's all the time and he gets no credit here. Bad me, no donut) I have to say, I think I like Escapement better than the first one. Possibly because I spent so much of the first one struggling to let go of my preconceived notions of how the world should be and just accept the world he's invented. It's a WONDERFUL world, and part of me is a bit jealous that I didn't come up with something so intricately complex. (another part of me is using it as motivation to try and polish the world of Project 3 so it can at least compete respectably)

I have a feeling that this weekend is going to be a chaotic comedy of terror, and therefore I shall get nothing accomplished. There are a variety of festivals happening, birthdays occurring, and out-of-town guests descending. It should be just enough to remind me why I don't do well around humans, and I'll climb right back into my hidey-hole.

Oh, and for a last-minute side note: I received a form rejection on one of my outstanding partials yesterday. Even those have lost some of their sting. Either I've become immune, or...well...I don't know what the other choice is.

Small Update

Thanks again to the Intrepid Auggy and Gallant Little Brother (who both suggested the same solution), we have hubby's computer functional and now locked down tight against nasty diseases and such.

Rawr.

Make up your own title

I'm so...ugh, just...everything today.

Hubby's comp has some malware on it. No biggie, the same thing hit my comp last week, I clean it off just fine. But his computer is in such bad shape that half the time when we boot it up, it hangs, and even when it doesn't hang, I can't get it to even download the malware remover (and of course, trying to download it on another site won't work because said malware auto-redirects any searches or web-addies typed in). It also won't let us connect to update the removers he DOES have.

There's nothing quite so frustrating as knowing HOW to fix the problem and still being unable to.

Hubby says just wipe the drive and start over, and I'm at the point where I just want to do that.

Because I've been up since 4 a.m. this morning brooding about the stupid computer (because brooding is what I do), there was no writing done today. Therefore, to meet my 60K goal by the end of Friday, I have to write 1,000 words a day for the next four days. I don't see it happening, not with the mood I'm in.

We also have friends with a seriously ill newborn, and part of my mind is with them at all times. It's just a bad week to try and be creative. It's hard to believe in worlds of pure imagination when real life keeps jumping up and giving you the old right hook to the jaw.

The failure of goals

Once upon a time (ok, really about three weeks ago), I said I wanted to finish the first draft of Project 3 by the end of August.

Yeah...

That ain't gonna happen.

However, I have decided in light of my abyssmal failure in that regard that I must set a new goal. Therefore, by the end of next Friday, I shall break 60K words. I have about 4K to go to meet that, which is higher than my usual cumulative daily word goal. But on the way home tonight, I finally puzzled out the stuck part of this chapter that's been holding me up, and I think when I start in again, I'll be able to whiz through some stuff.

Unless I forget what I was thinking between now and Monday.

Short Post of Many Colors

No writing done today (bleh) but I did finish chapter 19 yesterday. I also ADDED a new chapter to the outline, so I'm still at 4 (possibly 5) remaining before I'm done. I think I'm defeating my own purpose.

I came home today to another request for the full manuscript on Project 2. Yay! With all this interest, surely someone will bite. Surely. (I know, I know, stop calling you Shirley)

Kiddo seems to be doing fine in school, though I don't know how much actual schooling they've had yet. She's mastered the lunch line, that much is clear.

Anyway, I'm scrambling to cook dinner before my WoW raid tonight (yes, I am THAT kind of geek).

For those who keep track

No, I did not suddenly receive an influx of rejections on Project 2. I simply decided to recategorize my "no-response" queries as rejections. Some of them have been hanging out there for quite some time.

It is possible that there was a spam filter incident, and that some of those queries were whisked away to the technological never-never. And maybe, in a few months, I might re-query some of those, just to see if I could get a response this time. But for now, I'll mark them as "no"s, and move on.

I did send out three new queries today. Let the drubbing commence.

First Day

Normally, I don't post pics of my kiddo, but I figure this is the only way for most of my long-distance friends to get a peek at her on her first day of school.

Good luck kiddo!



And no, I did not cry, contrary to popular prediction. But the day's still young.

Olympic Funny

I admit it, I've been sucked into the Olympic drama. I tried to go to bed at 10:45 last night, and at 11:30 realized that I never made it. (damn gymnasts brainwashing me!) Still, it's nice to see the country all riled up about something that ISN'T self-destructive (yet).

Got back in the writing groove today and pumped out a spiffy 2,400 words! Go me! Yes, I danced a little at the computer, no you can't watch.

My current diet seems to consist of the mozzarella and pepperoni left over from Chie's pepperoni rolls. We'll have to build an add-on to the house to hold my cholesterol.

That's my random brain-spew for the day. I feel a bit giddy and flighty, as I always do when I've had a good writing day. I never got into the whole drug use thing, but seriously, this has to be what being high feels like.

Put one foot in front of the other

Ok...vacation over. Chie was here, and much frivolity was had, and stuffs.

I have yet to resume my writing, but I really want to. Really. I DO want to.

My long submission silence was broken today by the rejection of one of my outstanding fulls. Nothing specific, just the "I wasn't as taken with it as I'd hoped" line. Still have high hopes for the other one, though.

Kiddo is starting kindergarten on Friday, and I'm a little wigged out about that. I have this horrible feeling that I'm going to forget something and she's going to wind up naked with no lunch money or something. Oi.

I did, however, sign up for the PTA. Let the mockery commence.

Something of Interest

Ran into this link here on Janet Reid's blog, and just had to take the test. (I fancy myself a mimic of accents, though some are harder than others)

I actually only got 6 correct, but oddly I learned that had I trusted my first instincts instead of rationalizing my answers, I would have answered four or five more correctly.

I'm officially on vacation, as of 4 pm today. Yay!

I need a nap.

The Week That Fell Into The Void

This is my annual week of doing absolutely nothing. (not to be confused with my OTHER weeks of doing absolutely nothing, which happen on an unofficial and unwelcome basis)

Today I took off work so my mother could take kiddo school shopping. Gita was nice enough to go with us, and much fun was had by all. (can't believe kiddo is starting school next week)

I'm working tomorrow and Wednesday, which may be my only opportunity to get any writing done at all, and I'm honestly not going to push it too hard. (reference the first line for explanation)

Then Thursday, Chie arrives for her annual visit, and we'll be running around KC doing various and asundry possibly improper things which will preclude any writing. Chie leaves next Monday, and then I suppose I might get things back to normal (whatever normal is)

(Can I possibly use more parentheses in one post?)