Skip to main content

What's Up in the Writing Life

I'm participating in Ready. Set. Write! this summer, a blogfest type thing where we all set writing goals and hold each other to them. I've tried for a long time to find a good way of setting concrete goals that I can stick to, and this will help me.

Weekly Writing Goals:

- Finish writing the revamped scene/section of The Book. I have about 500 words to go, so that's doable in a week. CHECK! I finished it Monday morning.
- Get back to editing the rest -- but only after the new part is done.
- Write at least two more Examiner reviews this week.
- Post here 3 times a week.

What I'm Reading

I just finished The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka, and I am now sufficiently depressed.

I also bought four ebooks for my NOOK on the computer, and I plan to raid the library later this week. I just finished reading House of Many Ways and The Game by Diana Wynne Jones, Stolen by Vivian Vande Velde, and the Paranormalcy trilogy by Kiersten White. Bleep, I loved those books. Although I did get a bit exasperated with Evie's unwillingness to do anything "wrong." That's par for the course for the hero, I suppose. That's why characters like Vivian exist, to do the hard things the hero can't.* And I was REALLY happy that Jack came back for the last book. And I even started to warm up to Reth, especially when he pointed out how selfish Evie is as long as she's happy and content. But I love it when characters have real flaws. Oh, look at me. I'm totally fangirling out, aren't I?

I have reading goals as well: Read all of Diana Wynne Jones's books (that I can get my hands on), and read more classic sci-fi. I'm easing into the sci-fi with Partials by Dan Wells, which I absolutely LOVE.

What I'm Writing

I'm editing, as usual. I just finished writing the new scene. Instead of going on a boring side trip to a jungle and failing at life, a character gets kidnapped in the jungle side trip and fails at life in much more interesting ways. Don't worry; I saved the old version in my "Discarded and alternate material" file. That's a lot of text to just delete. I'm still not sure whether either version fits in the fabric of the novel or whether the whole idea is a side trip waste of time and words.


I also wrote a practice piece for The Write Practice.

What Else I've Been Up To

I have a new job. I've been writing book reviews for Examiner. I'm also waiting on my cello to be fixed. While driving it to my lesson, it slid forward and bashed against the back of a seat, jarring the bridge and soundpost out of place. Luckily, it's an easy fix.

My blog, much to my surprise and delight, was also featured on Twitterific. They linked to the post, "Writing the Dreaded YA Love Scene." I recommend checking out their list of twitterific writers and blogs. It's a diverse list with something interesting for everyone. I particularly enjoyed the post about knives as murder weapons.


What Inspires Me Right Now

Gardening inspires me; I've always had a green thumb. I planted a seed I found in my grapefruit, and holy crap, it's actually growing. Good books are inspiring, though sometimes oddly discouraging. Occasionally I read something brilliant and sadly wonder if anything I write will ever have the power to move others as I was moved by it.

My cat is also inspiring. I firmly believe in his dream to become the next Pawvarati, although I wish he didn't have to practice at three in the morning.



*Also, Batman.

Comments

  1. Good work, Laura! Keep up the writing!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Great job finishing that scene. Sounds tricksy!

    Your fangirling over the Paranormalcy trilogy really piqued my interest. I've seen it around but it's never stuck out to me as something I'd want to read. I might actually check it out now :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! It took me longer than I expected. I tend to drag my feet more the closer I get to the end.

      You should totally check out the first book! Borrow it from the library if you're not sure, but I think you'll be pleasantly surprised. :)

      Delete
  3. I loved Paranormalcy and for some reason never read the rest of the series. Too many other books to read, I suppose. Very cool that you've been writing book reviews too. I hope you stay encouraged with your writing goals this week!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! I am very nearly finished with them, in fact. :)

      As for the next 2 books in the Paranormalcy trilogy, I hope you get to read them eventually!

      Delete
  4. Pawvarati lol. I've been having kind of a crappy night but that just made me laugh. It's the little things :P

    and it's exciting how far you are with your book. Go you! :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Glad to make you laugh :) "Purrvarati" was another pun I considered, haha.

      Delete

Post a Comment

Comments make me happy, so leave lots! :) I will usually reply to each one, so click Notify Me to read my replies.

Popular posts from this blog

Review: Hemlock Grove, ep. 1 and 2

Hello! I'm back from my blogging hiatus. I've been on a horror kick lately, and most recently, I watched the first two episodes of Netflix's Hemlock Grove. I'm a bit late to this series, but for what it's worth, here's my review. I have some...issues.  Pacing It's based on a novel, and you can tell. Once the show introduces something that might be interesting or lead to tension and conflict, it snatches it away like a precious plot-gem that it doesn't want you to see. There is way too much exposition and filler. The plot hangs together pretty well, but not much really happens. Case in point, it should not have taken two whole episodes to find out Main Character is a werewolf. Especially since everyone seems clued into this fact and accepts it as truth -- except the viewers. Then suddenly Rich Boy is asking if he can watch the transformation like it's understood that Poor Kid Main Character is a werewolf. No warning, no lead-up, nothing.

Kiffe Kiffe Tomorrow by Faïza Guène, a YA Book By A Young Author

Review time! Kiffe Kiffe Tomorrow is a young adult novel by a young adult, so I was very interested to read it. There's also a #MuslimShelfSpace tag going around, and this review is a nod to that. The idea is that there's been a lot of stereotypes and anti-Muslim sentiment spread around, so buying and boosting books about and by Muslims can help educate people and break down harmful stereotypes.  The author is French with an Algerian background, and  Guène  wrote Kiffe Kiffe Tomorrow when she was in her late teens. Although the novel is not autobiographical, she shares many things with its main character. Doria, like her creator, is the child of immigrants and lives in poor suburban housing projects.   Guène   wrote that she realized girls like herself weren't really represented in books, and felt that Kiffe Kiffe Tomorrow was a way to tell the stories of people in the suburbs who are ignored by the elites of French literature. Plot: Life Sucks, Until It Doesn

King Arthur Sucks.

I wrote a review of The Greenstone Grail by Amanda Hemingway , in which I applauded the book for being the first Arthurian adaptation I had read that I didn't despise. I mean, how could I? Despite the book's other problems, it had aliens riding motherfucking dragons!!! Aliens! Dragons! Parallel universes!  After reading my review, one of my friends asked me why I hate Arthurian legend so much.  Well.  Perhaps one of the reasons I liked The Greenstone Grail 's take on the Holy Grail myth was because it was so different.  Most Arthurian adaptations fall along the same lines. It's the same damn story told almost the same damn way all the time. But  The Greenstone Grail took place in modern times, borrowing from the Holy Grail and Arthurian myths without making it so central to the plot that there was no room for other stuff like imagination.  Say whatever else you want about this book ( and believe me, I did ), it had imagination. Its main character can dimension-