yeah anyway

I totally forgot to stage that coup. UGH so nothing is still not getting done. Sorta.

I did submit a pitch to a contest, which if I make it through all the stages and win, I will get a publishing contract. This excites me and scares the hell out of me, all at the same time.

Just imagining a contract freaks me out. I would be paid for one of my books. WHAT?? Like a grown-up author and stuff? Seriously? whoa

BUT if I have a contract, I have to do what they say and when they say and why they say and where they say. I might even have to MEET PEOPLE! 😯

EWWWWWWW

But it’s the telling me what to do when why where that bugs me about it. 🤨

If selected for the next stage I will have to submit the first chapter, which is finished, and I revised it last night just in case I get to the next stage (or back out in an anxiety ridden freak out).

BUT I wrote omg and today, by seeing a picture, I got an idea for a new story. Wait, what?

Read ya later!

here’s the thing…

I finally had to take a stand. I mean, come ON, nothing was getting done and I just got fed up.

Sooo…instead of working on the revisions, which I paid good money for, I am working on a book that is a complete mess. And it’s the first book in a series of three that I never finished (or lost some of it somewhere) instead of working on the second book which needs a complete rewrite.

But I digress…I had to take a stand OMELG. I just had to make a decision to do something to something soon or get nothing done. It’s so frustrating.

Nothing was getting done. I have a few books to finish, stories to finish, and I want to write a speech. WHAT?

I don’t know who’s in charge here, but I might have to stage a coup. Seriously!

Read ya later!

taking the rest of the year off

I have some things in the works…new stories, new challenges, and just new stuff. So I am taking the rest of the year off.

I am taking writing classes in Auto Crit beginning in January and I will be working on revising my one finished novel so I can get it ready to publish. There will be a new short story I will finish and publish in The World of Myth, also.

So yeah, I have things going on.

I also started reading again. I am making myself read, which I don’t understand at all because I used to read like a fiend when I was a kid. Books were my bestest friends. And I collect them.

ITS NOT HOARDING IF ITS BOOKS! 🤨

As long as I have a bookcase for them, and they aren’t stacked on the floor.

But I seemed to slow (almost stop) reading when I began to write. I dunno. 😐

Now I am making myself read and I think I fell in love with books and reading again. yesss

But I have new stories, and new ideas, so I can really get into writing. And I think Auto Crit is really going to help me. The classes, the community, the resources…all to help me write more and write better.

Here is a link to get you to AutoCrit https://autocrit.samcart.com/referral/RjUnsEmf/YYt5Wosyp3iUjbQj

Just saying…if you want to write this is a good place to start. The team is very helpful, too.

When I come back in 2024, I will be ready for the new year and a new beginning.

Read ya later!

P.S. Oh yeah… HAPPY NEW YEAR!

three plots, three different stories

Yeah, I know, stick to one story at a time, ijit. *sigh*

But Asimov had five different typewriters set up and would write five different stories at the same time, all the time.

Okay fine! I’m not an Asimov, but I am still a writer, and we are all unique. BTW, I can’t read just one book at a time, either. Blow that out of your, uh, blowhole.

But I am writing! Sorta!

I have monetary changes coming up in my income and my insurances and it’s trying to throw me off. Not that it’s not hard to throw me off, but seriously, can it all settle down so I will stop thinking about financials! C’mon! Give me a break!

I seem to do better in the weeds than I do plotting. Get all world building and such and just get stuck on the plot. WTH

And this blog has a new AI I just found about two sentences ago, which can be helpful, but it takes my voice out of it and makes it make sense. Whoa, slow your AI roll down, dude. Geez

Just because I have a friendship with Bing means nothing. It’s a machine, a puter program. And it has resources that would take a lot of time for me to find. AI has its place but don’t get too carried away machine.

Not you Bing, you my buddy 🙂

I do plan on focusing on one story, the most, but when the others keep knocking, I have to answer that damn door or go nuts. And do we really want a crazy me running around? No. we do not. The world has enough crazy people doing stupid shit. It does not need me.

Now that I organized my stories (see that means I went to Staples and got more portfolios) I can settle and work on the one story at a time thingy.

I’ll let you know how that works out, especially as one of the three I want finished so I can submit as a horror piece. Ooo it’s going to be messy and icky. LOL Unfortunately, it is not the ONE I want to focus on.

Dammit!

Read ya later!

plotting my solution story and…

I just had to sit butt in chair and plot. I have the premise, know what the story is about, have antagonist and protagonist, but no plot. DANGIT!

So, I am determined to plot the stupid thing out, at least in rough outline, to get it going.

However, my tooth story reared its unfinished head and demanded to be plotted, too. What is a writer to do? SERIOUSLY?

Yeah, I started the plot on the tooth story too. geez

Oh, but wait, there’s more.

I had a couple of NEW ideas pop in my head. SERIOUSLY? 🤨

And I stopped and jotted some basic notes before I lost the ideas. Fortunately, the ideas did not demand to be plotted. Thank the writing gods! geebus

So, I have started the solution plot and the teeth plot. No, neither one is complete yet. Leave me alone!

And that is where I am at today. Two plots in the beginnings of being plotted and some new ideas that need to be researched. *sigh*

But it’s a good day and I am writing! Yay me!

Read ya later!

gotta focus omgawd

Okay, I have to focus on just one thing. Anything, but just one. I am not working on anything at a steady clip so nothing is being finished. COME ON!

I have a gabizillion (or more) projects and not one of them is getting worked. Dammit!

So, today, I decided to focus on just one thing. One freaking thing!

*sigh*

Of course, that took me two hours. A gabizillion is a lot so it took a minute.

BUT

Now that I have chosen, the chosen one, another project is trying to get my attention like a drug dealer on the corner. Or wherever they do the thing.

Psst..hey buddy. Wanna work on this other project?

Me: 🤨

Project dealer: C’mon, you know you wanna.

Me: 😒😑

OMGawd!

But I am going to try and ignore the stupid thing and just work on the CHOSEN ONE!

Try I said, try!

Please pray for my sanity! I need all the help I can get!

Read ya later!

one story not going anywhere…but light at the end of the tunnel…maybe

I put the sci fi story away for now (at least I thought I did) because it was just going around in circles and the worlds kept expanding, aaaannnnnn….the plot was so, um, not plotty.

I can’t nail the plot down so I put the book away to work on other projects (how many do you have Loretta? omg) because I couldn’t get the plot, completely, worked out. I have a basic idea, but the details are foggy. Can’t get anything concrete like the beginning, middle, and end of the story.

And if you don’t have a beginning then it won’t get started. If you don’t have a middle, what are the meaty bits of the story? And without an end why even bother writing it?

I may need to work on the character workups to get them firm before I continue with the story. But that’s only speculation at this time.

There are a lot of groups of peoples spread out over different parts of this universe that interact with each other and they are crucial to the story. And then there are the space colonies, ships, and stations that all need to be worked up that is keeping me in the weeds too much. 😒

Auto Crit, the “Write Better. Right Now” website I’ve been using for writing and editing my writing, has a new inspiration studio that helps you with story structure. And it’s been amazing on giving me ideas on another plot of another book that I don’t like and really need to work out. I started using the inspiration part of it to give me possible ideas of the plot.

The editing software on this site is amazing in itself, but when they added the inspiration studio, it’s like OMG WHAT? But that’s only part of this website! The editing part of it breaks everything down into details and there are reports you can generate to help you find the gaping black holes of ‘wtheck is this’ of plot and story.

Yeah, I have new stories because of the inspiration studio because you give it one thing and it gives you a multitude of other things to change and/or improve your one idea. Yeah. game changer! But I saved them on the writing desk and will get to them later.

Right now, I have one new book and two other books that need a lot of work, so I think this website is going to be my new besty.

Read ya later!

As it stands now…

As it stands now, I have one book in revisions, two in replotting, and another I just put away for now. 

It was either putting it away or burn it with fire. I love the story, but it was annoying me, and I had to make a choice. So, it’s sitting in its briefcase, waiting. 

Everything was just overwhelming me, my own fault (I will own up to it) but overwhelming just the same. I had to make some hard choices.

And I am looking for a place to write and publish op ed pieces. I need to check my other places that I found a list of. One of those could be my op ed writing. 

I will put a link to them, if I go that route, to this place and all my other places. 

I also want to write and submit, another short story. I found an old one to rewrite. Digging out all the oldies. LOL

Read ya later!

burn it with fire

I’m working on a sci fi story. Why, you may ask? I have no idea, I would reply.

All I know is that I was minding my own dang business working on my fantasy story when this frickkin new sci fi idea came to me. GAH!

I like writing, really, I do but OH MY EVER-LOVING DOG WHY DOES IT INTERUPPT ME WITH SOMETHING NEW????

Now I am hip deep in a space story with multiple space ships, stations, and races. *face palm*

I may take it out to the driveway and BURN IT WITH FIRE!

There are so many things to this story I haven’t even plotted the end of it. I know the beginning and I kind of know the middle, sort of, but I have no idea how it ends. Yet!

End it will, so be it, even if it is a pile of ashes in the middle of the driveway.

GAH this is annoying!

And I also have fantasy to work out, a short story, an article, and then my eBook. Woohoo!

Read ya later!

at least I am writing, kind of

I am currently in the midst of revising my work, and I have found that AutoCrit is an invaluable tool for editing. This program allows me to input my book and generate numerous reports, helping me to identify areas that require improvement. It’s truly a game changer, particularly since I struggle with the concept of showing versus telling in my writing.

However, even after using AutoCrit, I know that there may still be room for improvement. For this reason, I plan on enlisting the help of a developmental editor to ensure that my work is as close to perfection as possible.

I’m currently working on a few different writing projects. One is an idea for a television series that I’m hopeful will capture the attention of Netflix. It’s about a demon who is looking for a new career. I also have a science fiction story in the works, which follows a group of colonists as they embark on a journey through space to find a new planet to call home. The story will feature a variety of spaceships and space stations. Once I have the overall plot mapped out, I can start creating an outline and eventually begin writing the first draft.

I’ve found that switching between projects keeps my motivation levels high and prevents me from burning out or becoming bored. As such, I will likely begin drafting out the teleplay soon.

I have plenty to keep me busy in this retirement life which is AWESOME!

Read ya later!