SATURDAY CHECK-IN

Current Project: Unnamed Fantasy
Status: See Below :-)

I have to admit I've been feeling a bit underwhelmed by my progress lately. However, this morning as I was trying to figure out what to put down for the status of my current project, I realized I'm further along than I'd been giving myself credit. The world I've been building is fleshed out enough to allow me to start writing—I'll fill in details as I need them. I've got the main characters thought out enough that I'm ready to get to know them better by seeing how they handle the trials and tribulations I throw at them. I've thought about and discarded several plot points, paring down to just a couple of seemingly unrelated ideas. And yet I've been kicking myself because there's still a big fat ZERO when it comes to words written.

Except...I realized that's wrong. I have been writing, just not typing on the keyboard in an "official" document. As ideas have simmered and I've been building the world, I've also been writing snippets of dialogue and small scenes in my notebook as they occurred to me. Some I've discarded for this project (though I've saved them for possible use in another story). In fact, two of the larger scenes have become the basis for the beginning of the plot. It's weird, too, because as I wrote each of them, I firmly believed that I was writing something that would go in a different story, but that I wanted to get down while the idea was fresh. It wasn't until later that I realized the scenes were connected, not just to each other, but also to the current story.

So, it looks like I'm further along than I'd let myself believe. I've written about 800 words, all told, and still have two more scenes already planned out that I just need to get down on paper. I think it's probably time to start that "official" document and begin writing on a schedule again. I'm ready. Who knew?

How about you? Any surprises this week, good or bad? Are you feeling stalled or are you racing through your story, eager to get to the end? Inquiring minds are dying to know!

SATURDAY CHECK-IN

Current Project: Unnamed Fantasy
Status: Working on Plot

Welcome to the all-new SaturdaySunday Check-in!

Ahem.

I could blame the permanent time-warp that seems to have descended on my head. Or, I could say that I was stuck in an iron suit while a TDESPHTL* replayed Friday. Or, I could claim I got caught up in the first beautifully sunny day we've had in oh so long. Or...I could just admit that I lost track of the days and didn't realize yesterday was Saturday until this morning. Yikes.

I am, once again, struggling with Plot Creep. My initial idea has grown from a tiny sapling "Save the Prince!" scenario into a giant "Save the World!" sequoia. And while it's a very attractive tree, I'm not sure I'm ready to tackle the forest that goes along with it. (I could struggle along with more forestry analogies, but let's just say I did and skip it, okay?)

You know what I mean though, right? It's never just saving the world. Oh, no. There's political intrigue and spying, strategy and battles. Good vs. Evil. *sigh*

The question is, would I be biting off more than I can write? Is it too ambitious to attempt a Big Book when you, technically, haven't finished any book yet? Should I pare it down and write a simpler story? I don't mean "simple" in a negative way, but as in "fewer intertwining threads."

I do recognize that this is one of the things I've been battling in my ideas--my tendency to want to throw every plot idea I've ever had into the mix. I know I can't do that. Well, not and have a story that makes any kind of sense. But can I handle a story that's complex (rather than just...complicated)? I don't know. I guess there's only one way to find out. Wish me luck, Ma, I'm going in!

Yeah, I'm in one of those moods.

So, how did your week go? You had an extra day--did it come in handy? (oooh, I shoulda used that as my excuse!)

* Gratuitous Tin Man reference—that's a Tri-Dimensional Energy Stored Projected Holographic Time Loop.

SATURDAY CHECK-IN

Current Project: Unnamed Fantasy
Status: Creating Maps

I had a hard time with this post. Not because I don't have anything to say. Nope, quite the opposite—for once I have too many topics rambling around in my head. Since that's sort of my problem with my current project, I thought I'd stick to talking about where I am right now. And where's that, you ask?

I'm stuck in Worldbuilding 101*.

I'm currently doing the Fluctuating Fox-trot with my story's setting. Here are the things I know. The story is a fantasy; Magic exists, but so does Science. I have a good idea of the inciting incident, though I'm leaving myself some wiggle room on the details, some of which will depend on, you know, the setting.

In some ways, the traditional High Fantasy genre would fit, but I really don't want to write yet another story in a world stuck in Medieval Stasis. Nor do I want to create kingdoms/societies that are really just a bunch of Planets of Hats. Okay, I thought, do a paradigm shift and set it in a more recent time frame, like the Victorian era (though I actually prefer the US period name of the Gilded Age), but then I realized to my chagrine that I'd be careening perilously close to writing Steam Punk. Don't get me wrong, I adore that genre—I just have no interest in writing it at the moment. So Victorian times, it seems, are out.

I (very) briefly toyed with using a contemporary setting, or even the near future, but the story that seems to be gelling in my head really doesn't work in those settings. I'm also not sure I want to write a story where the Real World(tm) is oblivious to the magical stuff happening right under it's nose.

I know, there are still a lot of possibilities I haven't explored. One setting I'm toying with is the Edwardian era, either at the start of or just before WWI. Another is the late 1920s-early 1930s—I've wanted to try my hand at Decopunk for awhile, though I think I may hold off on that for now.

Ah, well, at least it's a nice day, with clear skies and no rain. I think I'll go take a drive and mull things over. Maybe some fresh air and sunshine will air out my brain.

How was your week? Inquiring minds want to know. And if you have any suggestions on setting, they'll be cheerfully accepted!

* Why yes, I have been spending a lot of time lately reading TV Tropes. Why do you ask?

SATURDAY CHECK-IN

Current Project: New Project!
Status: Shiny!

I started a new project last week. It all started, as a lot of my ideas do, from a brief flash of a scene I had in my head just before I dropped off to sleep one night. It really was a flash — a 2-line conversation between two men on horseback. It stuck with me, though, because I woke up the next morning wondering who they were and what happened to bring them to that place and circumstance.

I was just fooling around; I didn't know it would be the start of a new project. I couldn't stop thinking about them. I thought about them when I went shopping and cleaned the house. I thought about them when I drove the car to Lake Oswego for a three hour career assessment class (and I thought about them during the class!). I realized they weren't who I thought at first and their story wasn't the obvious one I'd thought it was, either. And when other characters started showing up, I realized I might just have something worth getting excited about.

Right now I'm in what I call my "cautiously excited" phase. I've got a rough idea of the beginning of the story—maybe the first two to three chapters—and I know where I think it's heading, at least for now. As soon as I've finished meeting the characters and figuring out their names, I plan to dive right in and start writing.

I feel like I imagine Dorothy must have when she stepped from her sepia-toned world into the glorious technicolor of Oz. I didn't know that my world was becoming gray and washed out. Everything feels more alive and vivid at the moment and I can't wait to get started.

How'd your week go? Tells us your good news and share your troubles. We're all interested, and speaking from experience—it really does help!

SATURDAY CHECK-IN

Deborah and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day*

Confession time. I've been struggling for the last few weeks and I haven't wanted to admit it, to myself or anyone else. You see, I'd convinced myself that when the day job was gone that I'd be ready to blast away at the keyboard. I had grand visions of writing a gazillion words every day, easily finishing one book this year (if not two!). But the problem is, the day job deserted me—I didn't choose to leave the day job.

I've been ignoring (or trying to) most of the negative feelings that are natural to have as a result of this. Because while it's true that what happened really is the way that I was (mostly) hoping it would go, it still wasn't my choice. And it stings. More than I thought it would.

I've been all over the map emotionally and I haven't been making things better by constantly reminding myself that I'm not meeting the writing goals I set for myself. "Hey, it's been three months. Get over it, already!" Yeah, that helped. Things came to a bit of an emotional head yesterday. I won't go into the whys--they're boring and irrelevant. Let's just say I had a really—no, really—bad day and leave it at that.

The bright spot is that I finally acknowledged the elephant in the room. Getting him out in the open (and letting him wander off in search of romance) allowed me to take an honest look at what I've been writing lately. Let's just say that the current story is going on the back burner (way, way back) for now and leave it at that.

I'm allowing myself a bit of time to decide what I really want to write, right now. I already have a couple of ideas bubbling that I'm kind of excited about, but I'm going to think about things for a bit more before jumping right back in. I've given myself permission to do this without feeling guilty. I'm not sure why that was necessary, but, trust me, it was.

I doubt that it'll take long before I decide on a story. And I haven't changed my ultimate goals for the year: 1) finish a book, and 2) submit to the Golden Heart. But it's funny how free I suddenly feel.

How was your week? Tell us your ups and downs, your victories and stumbles. And if you see my elephant? Let me know if he's found romance yet.


* Maybe I should move to Australia

SATURDAY CHECK-IN

Out with the old, In with the new.

Did I mention a few weeks ago that we'd had a couple of trees removed in our backyard a few weeks ago? They were large trees: a 70 foot maple and a volunteer cherry that had to be nearly 50 feet. The maple had root problems (rot of some kind) and we decided to take it out before it took out our house or our neighbor's house. Preventive medicine and all that. The cherry was just a messy nuisance, though a decent shade provider. Not to worry, though, we still have the giant fir tree and a second (now trimmed) volunteer cherry.

Removing those trees opened up the backyard and allowed the morning sun in. We still have plenty of shade, especially in the afternoon, but that little bit of sun has made all the difference to the other plants in the yard. The rhododendrons, camellias and azaleas are thriving as never before and the lawn actually has a chance to grow grass instead of moss.

But the best part is that now we have the opportunity to put our mark on the yard. My husband has always wanted a japanese maple, so off to the nursery we went! No one will ever accuse us of thinking small--we ended up ordering seven trees. They were delivered on Thursday. I should mention that only two of them will be planted in the ground; the rest are destined for containers. The two we plan to plant in the ground are a beautiful Bloodgood and a Sango Kaku (Coral Bark). The others are a Autumn Moon (which may end up in the ground), a Golden Full Moon, a Katsura, an Orange Dream, and a Shaina (which came already planted in a wooden box). Even though planting is a bit of work, I love the smell of the rich loamy earth.

So far I've planted the Katsura:

and the Golden Full Moon:

What does this have to do with writing? Well, spring always makes me think of new beginnings. Of possibilities. Of change.

Change.

I know I'm generalizing and over-simplifying, but isn't change at the heart of most compelling stories? Finding the right change--or the right reason for change--for our characters is one of the things that makes story telling fun. And while I'm still getting used to thinking of myself as a writer, I have no problem at all calling myself a storyteller; human beings have been telling each other stories since the dawn of history.

This week I did a lot of thinking, mixed in with the planting (I planted other things, too, during the week). Not a lot of writing (again), but the characters are taking shape in my mind.

How did you do this week? Boast about your accomplishments, or let us commiserate with you on your setbacks. But either way, enjoy the lovely spring day!

SATURDAY CHECK-IN

I tried writing this post last night, but my brain was too mushy from the cold that's decided to take residence in my head. I waited for inspiration to strike this morning -- no such luck. So I'm afraid you're stuck with this rambling, non-sequitor, goofy stream-of-consciousness that are the thoughts rambling through my brain at the moment (and that I wish I could blame on my cold!).

I was (and still am) sick with the aforementioned cold. Even so, I managed to eke out over 1200 words. I imagine many of those words were barely coherent and will get re-written sometime in the future, but still! It felt good to move forward, albeit on shaky ground. I was reminded that I can't fix what I haven't written, so it's all good.

I thought a lot about dominoes last week. About how I hadn't realized that's how I thought of plot until I mentioned it (offhandedly) in my last check-in post. It's true, though. I used to think of plot as linear; as a line of dominoes ready to fall. Set everything up and tip the first block and everything falls neatly from there. If that's the case, I should be able to plan the line. Even if it meanders, I should know where it's going, right?

Turns out I'm more of a hindsight girl. I can't know where I'm going until I get there and look back at where I've come. (Yeah, I'm hoping that makes sense.) Thing is, I'm hoping once I get to the end, I'll be able to look back at that line of dominoes and make sure they don't peter out unexpectedly in spots or clump up in others. Plotting in reverse. I'll have to think about that some more when my brain doesn't hurt.

It's a beautiful sunny day here. I think I'm going to take the laptop outside for awhile. Who knows? Maybe I'll actually write a few more words before I fall asleep under the trees.

How was your week? Let us know how it went--great, good or indifferent. Hopefully I'm the only one who was laid low!

SATURDAY CHECK-IN

I started to write that this week has been a strange one and then I realized what a redundant thing that was to say. It seems that every week is strange for me these days. On the writing front, I didn't actually get any words down. I did do a lot of mental work, thinking about the direction the story has taken and whether it makes sense or if it's taken a wrong turn, that sort of thing.

We had more work done around the house this week, having the old tub/shower combo in the master bath replaced with a larger walk-in shower (without a tub). That meant taking the cats to the kitty hotel for a couple of days, which meant having to go to the vet to get flea treatment medication before that. It's funny looking at events in reverse, isn't it? I always get a mental image of an orderly line of dominoes with the first one getting tipped over so they all fall one after the other, just so. Funny how it never feels like that when you're living it!

The other thing that happened—the thing I really wanted to talk about—was that I started taking advantage of the career transition services that I received as part of my layoff package. Right now I'm in the "assessment" stage, figuring out my strengths and interests. One of the things I needed to do before my next appointment was to complete a couple of "self-assessment" exercises. I've done things like this before at various times and expected these to be similar, but the first one I took was new to me. It's called the Birkman First Look and it's supposed to help you "understand your strengths, motivational needs, and stress behaviors."

When I've taken other tests like this, I've always scored high in the analytical/technical areas and that's what I expected to see with the Birkman test. What's different about Birkman, though, is that they also score your areas of interest, not just what you may be good at. For the first time my scores in creative areas were very strong — artistic, literary and musical were all solid bars, scoring far higher, for example, than in scientific and numerical (where I usually score the highest).

The results were a bit of a shock at first. How could it be true? I've always been the science/math/tech geek! After thinking about it for awhile though, I realized that these results reflect how my interests and my focus have changed. Yes, I'm still interested in high tech, but my real interest—my burning passion, if you will—is in being creative...in writing.

Yes, I know what you're thinking: "Duh, big red truck!" Honestly though, even though I've been talking about writing as a, well, career, it wasn't until now that I understood just how strongly I felt about it. I hadn't really been looking forward to doing this career transition thing, but now I can't wait to see what else I learn about myself!

How about you? Did you experience any revelations this week? Was your week productive or did you run into roadblocks? Share your news, good, bad or otherwise, and let us cheer you on!

SATURDAY CHECK-IN

Today's Subtitle: "Help! My characters sound like actors in a 1930s screwball comedy!"

This week I seemed to be channeling my inner Howard Hawks*. Every bit of dialogue I wrote somehow morphed into words that would have felt at home in any screwball or British drawing room comedy of a certain era. I kept expecting my characters to break out with jolly good or pip-pip at any moment. Okay, so maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration, but really, what do you do with a character who insists on saying things like, "Say, I’m being an absolute dunce."??

The saddest part? I wish I could say I was writing the kind of witty repartee you'd find in those old movies. Unfortunately, my version is more the kind of stuff you wince at. Ouch.

Still, there's something about letting a character talk and say what they want that reveals certain things about them. For instance, I had no idea that my heroine was a master thief who only steals high end, high profile and very expensive objects at great risk. Not until, that is, she started talking to one of her rich "clients" at a party and her inner thoughts betrayed her. What started out as an easy way to have her introduced to the hero turned into a revelation that had me scrambling to rewrite my earlier scenes. Like tipping a line of dominoes, other things started to fall into place.

Now if I can only get them to stop sounding like they need to be walking their wire-haired terrier on the deck of the Queen Mary as they cross the Atlantic... Asta! Heel!

So, while my word count hasn't really budged, I'm satisfied with the progress I've made this week. How about you? Did things go your way this week or did you encounter any unexpected roadblocks? Fred and Ginger and Nick and Nora and I would all love to know!

* his early comedies

SATURDAY CHECK-IN

Good grief, it's Saturday again! I think the earth must be speeding up in its rotation, shortening the days just enough to give truth to the old saying...time flies.

Did that sound like the intro to a littany of excuses? Well...yes and no. It's true that I didn't write as much as I'd hoped this week. I did write, though not quite every day. Some of what I wrote isn't reflected in the total yet, because I wrote long hand and still have to transcribe those words to the computer. I'm quite satisfied with my progress in the past week and feel inspired for the coming week.

Last week was a week of spring cleaning, getting organized and fixing things. First, we had a new furnace and air conditioner installed. The old ones were the original units from when the house was built and were barely limping along (the AC wouldn't have made it through the summer, if it came on at all). So we decided to take advantage of tax credits and rebates and get them replaced now.

That prompted cleaning out the garage. It wasn't so much that we had a lot of stuff to get rid of (though we do have quite a pile for the junk run), but that we needed to get things organized. We cleared everything out, put up new shelves and repacked the contents of cardboard boxes into plastic bins. Whew!

I know what you're thinking. Yeah, that's lots of work, but what does it have to do with writing—other than taking up time you could have been at the computer. Well, for one, it's a chore that had to be done at some point—now it isn't looming over my head, freeing me to concentrate on writing. But I also discovered something while going through all those boxes. I came across folders I haven't looked at in years. Inside one was a stack of typewritten pages—bits of dialogue, character descriptions, and lists of plot ideas. When I say "typewritten" I really do mean "on a typewriter." I wrote those pages long before personal computers were available. I had forgotten all about them.

Memory is a funny thing. I know I've said that I've been writing for about 10 years. It's obvious that I've had writing (professionally) as a dream for a lot longer than that. I guess I put aside that dream for something "more practical." Well, I did the more practical and now I'm ready to go after that original dream. Discovering those pages I wrote so long ago was like filling up my gas tank with rocket fuel. I'm ready to go, baby! Check-in with me next Saturday and see how far I fly next week!

Time for you to share! How did your week go? Did you soar high or stall out of the starting gate? Inquiring minds want to know.

SATURDAY CHECK-IN

As you can see by the graphic, I didn't quite make my stated goal of 10,000 words this week. C'est la vie.

If that sounds like I'm shrugging things off—I'm not. In truth, the word count doesn't completely reflect the actual progress I made this week. It was another one of those "thinking" weeks, where I spent a lot of time mulling things over while doing other (non-writing) things. I worked out some initial motivations and backstory, most of which I wrote down in my notebook, but some of which is still just in my head. I've decided not to go too far with backstory, motivation, and plot at this point. I'd like to get to know these characters as the story unfolds (i.e. while I write it) in order to keep things fresh. Slowly, but surely, I'm learning what my "process" is—and detailed plotting it ain't!

My goal for the coming week? Well, this week I'm trying something different. I'm not setting a word count. Instead, my goal is to write something every day. I need to get back into the writing habit, you see.

How'd you do this week? Any news you'd like to share?

SATURDAY CHECK-IN

I don't know about you, but this last week went by way too fast for me. As you can see by the graphic, I didn't manage to write at all (and yes, that is my computer mocking me). So much for my 7150 word goal.

In the past, if I'd had a week like this I'd be beating myself up for missing my goal. I'd flounder around, trying to figure out if I'd set too high a goal or not high enough. I might even start questioning whether I really have what it takes to be a writer.

Care for some more melodrama, anyone?

Not this week. Perhaps it's because several things cropped up that I hadn't planned on that I had to take care of. Or maybe it's because I've written the next couple of scenes in my head and just need to get them down in the computer. Whatever the reason, I have an odd confidence that I'll make up the words and then some in the coming weeks.

Am I completely fooling myself? Should I go back to wailing my frustrations? Nah. I think it's time for a new song. This week was just a blip in a long process. There will be weeks when I write far more than my goal and weeks, like this last, where I don't write a single word. I'll still get to "The End," no matter how many words I write in a single week.

Now it's your turn. How'd you do this week? Did the course of writing flow true and sweet for you? Or did you hit a snag? Inquiring minds want to know.

My goal for the coming week: 10,000 words. Check-in next Saturday and keep me honest!

SATURDAY CHECK-IN

Welcome to Saturday Check-in!

I'll be your host for this soiree going forward. I'd like everyone to give a big cheer of thanks for Alice. She's been maintaining the check-in with little fanfare for a long time now. Even when I didn't get time to actually, er, check-in, I was always happy to read about everyone's progress. Even a lack of progress was an inspiration to get motivated (guess I'm a glass half-full type after all). So, Thank You, Alice, for being a rock and posting 'most every Saturday! You deserve a break--though I hope you'll check-in with your own progress whenever you can.

Some of you may know that I've been going back and forth between two writing projects, trying to make a decision about which one to work on exclusively. As you can see by the graphic* at the top of the post, I've made my choice. And it isn't the one I thought it would be when I was at the writing retreat in February.

I imagine some people would think the logical choice would be the novel I've written the most words of so far. In this case, though, there's a different kind of logic at work in my head. Time away from the first project has given me a chance to see where I was going wrong and to envision a reworked (and hopefully stronger) beginning. Therefore, I'm going to concentrate my efforts on project #1 and power my way forward to the end.

Then I'll be free to go back and work on project #2. In a way, I'm a bit relieved to know I have something waiting in the wings so I'm not floundering for what to write next. I know I'm getting a bit ahead of myself, but I honestly feel that this is my year to finish what I've started.

Not only that, but since I've taken on the Saturday Check-in duties, I won't have an excuse to shirk reporting my progress--or lack thereof. Just a little added incentive to keep my fingers flying over my keyboard!

Your turn. Let us know how your week went! Share your good news and triumphs so we can applaud. Let us commiserate with you on your difficulties and maybe someone will have some words of wisdom that will lift your spirits. So, how'd it go?

ETA: Ooops! I forgot to add my goal for the coming week! To stay on (my own) track, I need to write a minimum of 7150 words this week. Check back next Saturday and see how I do!

* Get your own free progress meter at http://www.writertopia.com/toolbox/meters