First, there's the Frye Festival. As the site says, it's "Atlantic Canada's largest literary gathering"- rough translation: mecca, for reader/writer-folk like me.
As if that weren't enough, my friend Rachel and I got tickets to the interview with all different writers, including awesome fellow Canadian, Margaret Atwood! She is like the Lady Gaga of Canadian literature- it's impossible to set foot in any bookstore or writing seminar, without seeing her work, or hearing about her. Her website is full of great advice for aspiring novelists (such as, say, Yours Truly), and I'm bringing in one of her books for the signing- maybe she'll even tell me who her agent is!
Mucho stoked for Saturday night!
Friday, April 29, 2011
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
On Slovakia, Lesbians, and Words That Rhyme With Orange.
Finally, after close to 3 days of staring at my computer, I managed to write two whole sentences. Getting this far has been a stretch of late, so I'm proud of myself- two sentences may not seem like much to most people, but it just so happens that every single, itty-bitty one counts, when you are a writer.
In truth, I owe those two sentences to the wonderful music I've been listening to lately. Learning the language helps, but speaking Slovak to yourself (with an Italian accent, no less) doesn't help much, especially if the first words you learned in it were "pork" (bravčové), "ugly"(škaredý/a), "secret" (tajný/a), "tomato" (paradajka), and a few obscenities. That said, playing with Audacity (my voice-changer toy) and the sound-recorder also works wonders- it gives my characters a voice, and it's easier to be 'in the moment' with them that way.
On a brighter note, I've recently discovered (thanks to Horkýže Slíže and their wonderful L.A.G. song) that Slovak has a lot of great words that rhyme with "lesbian" (that must mean that there's a word out there, other than door-hinge, that rhymes with orange, right?). Unlike most of the English-speaking world, I also know that Slovakia's 2010 Eurovision song is called Horehronie and, as M. says, has nothing to do with prostitutes.
Aiming for two more sentences before the night is out!
Writer's Blocked, Me Arse!
It's one-thirty in the morning; boyfriend is passed out drunk, and I am staring at my manuscript, trying to make it write itself. Not going to happen.
If I were awesome, like K., I would put my kick-ass imagination to good use and write an entire chapter about myself and how great I am. Alternately, were I like M. (read: moody, selfish, and practically bipolar), I'd drink myself into a stupor, then complain about how much my life sucks and write about that instead.
On that note, maybe I should just go back to my old job and stick my head in a fryer for inspiration- hey, it worked for both the title AND the tagline of this blog-thingy, so don't knock it 'til you've tried it. That, and it's a lot easier to channel your inner emo when your life actually DOES suck and you have something to whine about, like the cold and crappy weather we had last week- perfect for sparkly vampires; not so much for me.
Off to stare at the computer screen some more,
L.
If I were awesome, like K., I would put my kick-ass imagination to good use and write an entire chapter about myself and how great I am. Alternately, were I like M. (read: moody, selfish, and practically bipolar), I'd drink myself into a stupor, then complain about how much my life sucks and write about that instead.
On that note, maybe I should just go back to my old job and stick my head in a fryer for inspiration- hey, it worked for both the title AND the tagline of this blog-thingy, so don't knock it 'til you've tried it. That, and it's a lot easier to channel your inner emo when your life actually DOES suck and you have something to whine about, like the cold and crappy weather we had last week- perfect for sparkly vampires; not so much for me.
Off to stare at the computer screen some more,
L.
Friday, March 18, 2011
This Writer Has Been Wresurrected!
Hello, hi!
My apologies for slacking. Now that I have a (semi-regular) job, with steady hours and pay, and am not sick anymore, I'm back at it. Back to this, at least, since my little Atticus (code-name for the novel) is still going under the proverbial knife for some major reconstructive surgery- more commonly-known as editing.
I just wanted to say that I love this little hole in the wall (and the internet), and am looking forward to posting here once again. :) I will also be contributing regularly to Our Pink Thoughts, a blog that celebrates both women and eco-friendly lifestyles (K would love it!), and is owned by Catherine Brindley-Jordan. Click the link above to visit her page, or check it out on Facebook.
Until next time,
L.
-
Also signing off:
^_^ (this is K.)
>_< (and here's M., the emo genius)
My apologies for slacking. Now that I have a (semi-regular) job, with steady hours and pay, and am not sick anymore, I'm back at it. Back to this, at least, since my little Atticus (code-name for the novel) is still going under the proverbial knife for some major reconstructive surgery- more commonly-known as editing.
I just wanted to say that I love this little hole in the wall (and the internet), and am looking forward to posting here once again. :) I will also be contributing regularly to Our Pink Thoughts, a blog that celebrates both women and eco-friendly lifestyles (K would love it!), and is owned by Catherine Brindley-Jordan. Click the link above to visit her page, or check it out on Facebook.
Until next time,
L.
-
Also signing off:
^_^ (this is K.)
>_< (and here's M., the emo genius)
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Silly Writer- Hope Is For People With Realistic Goals.
Somewhere inside, my inner M. is sobbing openly.
I'm trying to be realistic about this. Rejection is a fact of life and, although I'm okay with them, I'm also counting down Jack King's projected twelve- that means there's a 'yes' out there somewhere, with my name on it, right? Of course, if I never hear back from anyone (or if it takes an annoyingly-long time for that agent to respond), how am I ever supposed to know whether it's the idea itself that sucks, or maybe something else?
My theory- it's the query.
Admittedly, I learned how to write one from a sample that I found on a published writer's website; I then filled in the blanks, and used her example as a template, which I'm beginning to think was a bad idea. I recently read that agents want your query to show off your personality, as well as that of your novel- upon rereading my own, of course, I have discovered the missing ingredient: ME!
This letter needs more ME! There's not enough of ME (or K, or M, or anyone else) in it- of course, that doesn't mean that I'm going to write them a note in my own blood, threatening to kill myself if they don't accept the book, or attempt to bribe them with cake and fluffy bunnies. It simply means that I'll change things around a bit, so that the proposal better reflects ME and sounds less like a template- I'm an Aquarius, and everyone knows that we Aquariuses love templates, just as much as we love surprise root-canals and the occasional UTI. You get the picture.
Sorry, K- no cake or fluffy bunnies for you, today.
I'm trying to be realistic about this. Rejection is a fact of life and, although I'm okay with them, I'm also counting down Jack King's projected twelve- that means there's a 'yes' out there somewhere, with my name on it, right? Of course, if I never hear back from anyone (or if it takes an annoyingly-long time for that agent to respond), how am I ever supposed to know whether it's the idea itself that sucks, or maybe something else?
My theory- it's the query.
Admittedly, I learned how to write one from a sample that I found on a published writer's website; I then filled in the blanks, and used her example as a template, which I'm beginning to think was a bad idea. I recently read that agents want your query to show off your personality, as well as that of your novel- upon rereading my own, of course, I have discovered the missing ingredient: ME!
This letter needs more ME! There's not enough of ME (or K, or M, or anyone else) in it- of course, that doesn't mean that I'm going to write them a note in my own blood, threatening to kill myself if they don't accept the book, or attempt to bribe them with cake and fluffy bunnies. It simply means that I'll change things around a bit, so that the proposal better reflects ME and sounds less like a template- I'm an Aquarius, and everyone knows that we Aquariuses love templates, just as much as we love surprise root-canals and the occasional UTI. You get the picture.
Sorry, K- no cake or fluffy bunnies for you, today.
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Badge of Determination #2.
Chalk another one up to the Wall of Rejection!
It's a little disappointing, but only because it's not even the book that's being rejected at this point- it's the idea itself, the query, and me/the writer. Clearly, one of the three of us needs fixing, and I'm not sure which one is the problem- maybe it's all of the above.
Back to the drawing... er, writing... board!
-
Acceptances: 0
Rejections: 2
Manuscript requests: 0
It's a little disappointing, but only because it's not even the book that's being rejected at this point- it's the idea itself, the query, and me/the writer. Clearly, one of the three of us needs fixing, and I'm not sure which one is the problem- maybe it's all of the above.
Back to the drawing... er, writing... board!
-
Acceptances: 0
Rejections: 2
Manuscript requests: 0
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Wanted: Inspiration
As you can see, my lack of posting has (probably) made it obvious that my inkwell is drying up. When you're a writer, whether well-known or not, this is never a good sign.
That all said, my main excuse for slacking is that I'm looking for a job (again), as I'm not getting many hours at the current one anymore and need something to supplement my paycheques there. If I could make money from writing on the side, that would be great (some literary journals pay $50-200 per article/poem/thing), but most of them take anywhere from 6 months to a year to reply- that doesn't help my cause right now. EI is a godsend- not just to me, but to anyone who lives away from home and needs to eat.
One of the things keeping me the most busy right now is editing the book... again. This was something that I was hoping to avoid, at least until I had enough rejection letters... I mean, badges of determination... to attest to the fact that the thing sucks; however, I did myself in by writing that awesome query-letter. Talk about shooting yourself in the foot- both literally, and in context.
It's interesting, though, how my characters have told me what to do over the years, rather than the other way around. For example, E. (M's girlfriend) was annoyed that she never got to tell her story, so I gave her a few chapters to herself; F. (K's uncle, and M's dad) has always been a meanie, but he somehow turned into a total d**chebag, who does all kinds of not-so-nice things to his family; and then there are B., D., (E's bffs), J. (all three are in M's band), T. (K's older sister), and L. (T's bff) who insisted on ruining every, single sappy scene that I wrote, with either their antics or ignorance.... Not fair! I am the allmighty Author, and you'll all do as I tell you, from now on!
(Not likely to happen- it never works that way.)
Clearly, these are desperate times.
That all said, my main excuse for slacking is that I'm looking for a job (again), as I'm not getting many hours at the current one anymore and need something to supplement my paycheques there. If I could make money from writing on the side, that would be great (some literary journals pay $50-200 per article/poem/thing), but most of them take anywhere from 6 months to a year to reply- that doesn't help my cause right now. EI is a godsend- not just to me, but to anyone who lives away from home and needs to eat.
One of the things keeping me the most busy right now is editing the book... again. This was something that I was hoping to avoid, at least until I had enough rejection letters... I mean, badges of determination... to attest to the fact that the thing sucks; however, I did myself in by writing that awesome query-letter. Talk about shooting yourself in the foot- both literally, and in context.
It's interesting, though, how my characters have told me what to do over the years, rather than the other way around. For example, E. (M's girlfriend) was annoyed that she never got to tell her story, so I gave her a few chapters to herself; F. (K's uncle, and M's dad) has always been a meanie, but he somehow turned into a total d**chebag, who does all kinds of not-so-nice things to his family; and then there are B., D., (E's bffs), J. (all three are in M's band), T. (K's older sister), and L. (T's bff) who insisted on ruining every, single sappy scene that I wrote, with either their antics or ignorance.... Not fair! I am the allmighty Author, and you'll all do as I tell you, from now on!
(Not likely to happen- it never works that way.)
Clearly, these are desperate times.
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