Not Writing

Inspired by Amanda Hocking's Things I've Done Today That Weren't Writing, here's a list of things from today keeping me from doing what I do:

• Inventory at work
• Chatting with hubby about moving and awesome apartment ads.
• Waiting 15 minutes to connect to the N train.
• Buying Chips Ahoy! cookies and having the clerk ask if I was having a chocolate chip cookie party tonight. Answer: no - went to work on my day off, therefore, they're all mine. He was satisfied with the answer.
• Watching the forced comedy of a recent Simpson's episode. Why do I do this to myself?
• Joined a new forum
• Watched some video clips on YouTube
• Heated up some tempura chicken from Trader Joe's
• Wasted time on various social media (which leads me here).

I had a great run of editing yesterday after work, and I was looking forward to doing it again today. However, counting some 1000+ hair products turned my brain to jelly, and I can't get in the groove. I did buy another proof copy of The Silent Treatment after making some adjustments to the last one I received. Probably not going to change anything else, regardless, because I can't afford to keep buying proofs. I think it's for sale on lulu.com, though, but won't distribute to Amazon until the proof is approved. Will let you know, as I'm sure you're all on the edges of your seats. I've had to price it much more expensively than I wanted to because the commission from Amazon is pretty low. So for now, I'm offering a 30% discount, which brings the price down to a reasonable $11.20.

So before I waste any more time, I'll go read, rest up for a long day of work tomorrow, and then go apartment viewing the day after that.

Please tell me: what did you do today?

Worth Lying For

GOOD LIFE 

Mary Minke knows she should be grateful: a mostly happy marriage, mostly grown kids and a mostly steady paycheck. But at forty, she finds herself fantasizing about sprawling Tuscan villas and fitting into ‘juniors department’ fashions. Instead, another twenty years in a two-bedroom ranch, sale-rack slacks and a receptionist job at Idid-a-Rod Auto Garage seem to be her destiny. Until… 

GOOD GRIEF 

Mary stumbles on a bag of cash in the car of two-bit drug dealer Jimmy Adler… and steals it. Confiding in best friend, Caryn, she vows to make good by playing Robin Hood in the sleepy town of Stillwater Village. Only she must keep the plan under wraps from devoted husband, Nick, who just happens to be the local sheriff. 

GOOD INTENTIONS 

As one unexpected event after another turns Mary’s once tapioca-bland life hotter than three-alarm chili, she is more than a little tempted to indulge in a few retail therapy sessions. Charity begins at home, after all, but where should it end? When the fate of her imperfect yet loving family is put on the line, Mary must decide what the good life really means, and if it is Worth Lying For.

When I got the chance to rub elbows with Lisa Cheney and Lisa Craig, authors of Worth Lying For, I asked if they'd be interested in doing an interview. They said "no." I bought them an expensive meal (and a few rounds), and I finally wore them down. 

You just released Worth Lying For, about forty-year-old Mary Minke, who ramps up her midlife doldrums by pilfering a big bag of money. Have you ever done anything illegal or immoral? 

Cheney: Never. Craig: Yes, but I used Cheney's name so my record is clear. 

What was your greatest inspiration for this book? 

Cheney: I have no idea, considering I've never done anything illegal or immoral. Craig: Wanting to write a book by, for and about 40-something Midwestern women. Particularly a book in which the protagonist is (mostly) happily married. How did the two of you meet? 

Cheney: It wasn't match.com? Craig: Ninth grade English class. We had to create a collage and we thought that was childish. We invented snarky, only we called it lisarky. It never quite caught on. 

Speaking of childish, you also write children's books -- what made you delve into the this genre? 

Cheney: My grandmothers used to read me Grimm's Fairy Tales and buy me Tales from the Crypt comic books. All children deserve such idyllic memories. 

Craig: I love writing children's books--the characters can be so silly and fun. And the books are usually shorter which is a boon for our fading middle-aged memory banks. 

So what's next for The Lisas? Any new projects we should look out for? 

Cheney: I'm taking up urban graffiti art. Craig: We are working on a novel about a fifty-year-old writer married to an NHL hockey coach. It's about 89% written and we should soon be in the grueling editing process. 

Music is a huge part of my writing process. What do you listen to while you work? 

Cheney: Does Hoda's playlist on the Today Show count? 

Craig: I never play music when writing. The quieter, the better. 

Writers are notorious for having multiple jobs in their lifetimes. What are some interesting things you've done? 

Cheney: Tossed a few pizzas in my day. Customers were not amused. I've also been a fruit picker, book packer and newspaper reporter. I can't keep a day job. 

Craig: Other than college jobs waitressing, I am the exception to the rule and have been a librarian and only a librarian.

... After that, things just got silly.

What the hell is up with Melanie?

(Yes, I stole and modified the title from my friend Jenny, but only because I love her.)

Unless you count spending far too much time on social networking sites trying to get people to pay attention to me like an ignored 5-year-old, there isn't much to report. If I don't go food shopping soon, I'll be eating cereal for dinner (not that there's anything wrong with that). The pile of clothes in the corner of my room hasn't diminished for quite some time.

On the plus side, I got some comments back recently for the 2nd book in the Kat Shergill series, so I've been working on that. Still trying to come up with a title. Maybe I'll hold a contest. This ties nicely into the "wanting attention" category.

Also a plus: I love my job! This is good because I spent a lot of money to get a job like this. It still amazes me that some days I think, "Maybe I'll go in to work and get some highlights," or, "My friend needs a haircut -- I'll take her to work on my day off." I would have shot myself if I'd ever thought, "you know, those reinsurance status reports aren't going to process themselves. I have some extra time on Saturday ... think I'll go in for free."

my tools are even pretty!

I also re-watched The Lord of the Rings recently. Not only is the imagery in that movie gorgeous, but the characters are so dimensional. I appreciate things like this more now that I'm writing with a fury: not everyone is completely good or bad. Take Frodo for example: he's the underdog who saves the world and destroys the ring. Hooray! Except it wasn't as simple as that. He starts out friendly, loving, slowly becomes untrusting and weary, identifies more with someone who's been through similar trials more than his best friend, makes Sam cry, changes his mind about saving the world, and succeeds BY ACCIDENT. It's so beautifully done. Even when Frodo shows his ugly side, we still know he's a good guy.



Not in the same category, but I also re-read Kyra Davis' Sex, Murder and a Double Latte. The humor in this book is nothing short of charming. Still suspenseful even though I knew what was going to happen. (It's always disappointing to go back to a book or movie I thought I loved only to find I just hyped it up.) When my little monetary slump is over, I'll buy her newest in the series (she's now indie like me!).

Back to editing.

Looking Forward

The updates have been sparse because I've had quite a lot on my plate recently (as referenced in the last post). Slowly, I'm finding things that ease the tension. In no particular order:

Aromatherapy

Looking forward to something

Doesn't have to be anything big like, "One day I'll eat baguettes in a French cafe in France every day." Something smaller like looking for pictures of French cafes, or watching a movie I haven't seen in a while, painting my nails, reading a book, or going to a store I like. Makes it easier to leave my hubby and kitty in my cozy, former apartment when I can think, "well, at least I can watch this chick flick when I get home."

Watch some funny videos

Sometimes you can fight your way out of something, look for a better job, or replace XYZ thing. Sometimes you can't. You make the best of it and listen to your body to tell you if you can take on anything else. If not, watch 10 episodes of The Monkees in a row because it makes you laugh like a 5-year-old.

If all else fails...

In other news ... 

I've been interviewed on Janiera Eldridge's blog: This is From My Heart. It's always great fun to talk to new people and share my love of writing with them. Sometimes it still seems weird that something so personal to me is even interesting to someone else.

Also just got my quarterly statement in from one of my works, and it will probably pay a (very small) grocery bill or one large pizza! But hey, I'm getting to do what I love, and isn't that worth more than all the money in the world? (... Maybe I should ask my husband what he thinks about that ...)

Help me order one more pizza or buy two bags of groceries next quarter by purchasing one of my books!

Finally ...

More Subway Art:

Life changes

There should be a minimum of things that can happen in one year. Certainly getting fired, changing careers, moving to a new city, beginning and finishing school, living away from one's spouse, getting a new job, moving twice, finishing and publishing a book should be spread into at least 5 years. Well, fortunately for those of you in the same boat, here are some pictures of things that make me a little less stressed when all those things build up to the "maybe I just won't get off the subway today" point.

love and cuddles

handful of these

a flock of geese at Eaton Centre in Toronto

flying kitties in a Toronto store window

a Frappuccino while I edit

coffee at home almost with the same name as hubby

wine with almost the same name as me

intricate Christian art

the place I'd rather be

this ridiculous self-portrait (by Ducreux)

Characters

I wrote a post a little while ago about how I prefer a great story to "delicious words." Today's topic is about how sometimes the story isn't anything stunning, but the characters make it work.

One of my favorites for a long time has been Alan Partridge (you'll find I have a soft spot in my heart for British comedy). In the series, the character is a late night talk show host who routinely insults his guests and generally makes an ass of himself. In this clip, he accidentally shoots one of his guests and carries on with the remainder of the show.


A more recent favorite is Roy from The IT Crowd, because he acts like he doesn't care about anything, but in almost every show, he ends up in some strange predicament, crying over a girl, or overreacting to something seemingly normal. One of my favorite scenes involves him learning (from a website) the exact date and time he will die. When that minute arrives, (in the congregation of a funeral) he mistakes his cell phone vibrations for a heart attack.

Sticking with the British theme, I've also started re-reading High Fidelity by Nick Hornby. (Can we all agree that the movie would have been better if they hadn't made it American? No? Just me?) I'd forgotten how much I like Rob, the main character. What makes him, and all of these characters (and so many others) memorable and enjoyable is that there's not just one side to them. Just like the rest of us, they're happy, sad, their hearts get broken, they're annoyed, they're good and evil, and all a little bit unhappy with the way their lives are turning out. Characters like this let us know someone else understands what we're going through -- that's why we love them.

Q&A

I've been tagged. And I'm going to tag you too.

THE RULES


1. You must post the rules.  

2. Answer the questions the tagger set for you in their post and then create eleven new questions to ask the people you've tagged.   

3. Tag eleven people (or as many as you can) and link to them on your post.

4. Let them know you've tagged them! 

It's always fun (for me) to be part of an interview, so when M. Nicole Cunningham tagged me, I was flattered. Here are her questions:




1. What is the oldest book you've ever read?
In terms of publication, probably the Bible. In terms of the age of a physical book, I've read several classics from the early 1900's. I liked the brittle pages and that the cover might fall off if I wasn't careful (no, really!)

2. What was the first story you ever wrote and what was it about?
My very first story was called The Bad Carwash. I probably wrote it when I was in kindergarten. It was about a woman who went to a car wash and got her dress caught in the door, thereby soaking her dress by the time the wash was finished. Started strong, but degraded into multiple car washes with various parts of the car falling off in the process. That's actually about how long the original was, too.

3. Who is your favorite author? If you have several, list them all out!
Always a tough question for me. Classically, I love Oscar Wilde and Charles Dickens. In the modern world, I'm pulled toward writers who take my mind off other things, like Kyra Davis and Jennifer Weiner.

4. Tell me a little story about the significance of your birth date.  Feel free to embellish. 
Well, I was born. That's pretty significant to me!

5. What tropes are beginning to annoy you in steampunk? I know you have a few; I certainly do. *coughairshippiratescough* 
Uh, I'm not entirely engaged in steampunk, so I couldn't say.

6. Do you think a novel needs an idealized hero?
No. The hero should be someone who's flawed -- someone people can relate to. Any time you idealize something, you run the risk of it becoming a parody or a "Mary Sue".

7. What do you think of gender roles in novels?  Should they reflect reality, an ideal, or something in between?  
Most often, they should reflect reality. I write everything from "the present" so the roles are what I see around me.

8. What makes a delicious villain?  
Someone who has 2 sides. Everyone has a little good and a little evil, so when the villain displays something good, something you can identify with and (possibly) agree with, it makes the character so much frightening (and believable).

9. Tell me about a lesser-known novel that made an indelible impression on you and why.  
I could probably sit here all day thinking of the "perfect" choice here, but I'm gonna go with Help! A Bear is Eating Me! by Mykle Hansen. Hilarious! It impressed me because voice can make or break a story. This story is more than a little morbid (a man trapped under a car has his legs slowly eaten by a bear), but the way the author handles the narrative and characterization makes the novel funny.

10. Earlybird or night owl?  
A little of both.

11. Favorite mythological being?  Feel free to pick an obscure one.  
Unicorns. They were a serious favorite when I was a kid, and they still make me a little happy. Although, if we could put some wings on a cat, that would be cool. My cat already hurls herself through the air, so I wouldn't have a hard time picturing that.

Now for the tagging! 

• Jenny Duggan
• Richard Pearson
• Megg Jensen
• The Lisas
• Veronica and Thomas
• Marcus Stricklin

Please answer the following questions:

1. What's the most annoying book you've ever read?
2. You're in a bookstore: what's the first section you visit?
3. What project are you working on now?
4. Are you a "plotter" or "pantser" (i.e. do you use an outline or just "wing it")?
5. What do you do when you're not writing?
6. Why did you choose your specific genre?
7. Who are your biggest influences?
8. How much of your writing is based on your own experiences?
9. Are you ever afraid you'll never have another book idea?
10. We all like TV (even if we don't want to admit it). What's your favorite TV show?