A Trip Down Memory Lane And A Row80 Update

This week has been so busy with attending softball and little league games for my niece and nephew that by Friday I was exhausted. But the one activity of my niece's that had stuck with me throughout the week was her chorus concert Monday.  She is in the 7th grade and auditioned at the beginning of the year for chorale, which is a select few of the chorus members from 6-9th grade.  Each group sang a set of songs and then her group, along with the 9-12th grade groups, combined for the final song.  As the first few notes played I couldn't help but grin.  I hadnt't heard this song in literally years but that didn't stop me from tapping my foot and humming along (okay, and singing quietly..but I couldn't help it! I still remembered all the words!). When it originally came out I was about 5 (or therebouts) and I can remember singing it in my mom's car: an old beige colored Nova that had a rusted out floor in the front passenger seat. Funny how certain songs bring back memories! (It also made me think of the Scrubs episode where JD is in the bath with the mango cocoa butter.)  Incidentally I can't get this song out of my head and  I've found myself singing it all week!  So if you're looking for some infectious early 80s music, here is your fix. (I linked the music video, and part of the Scrubs episode from vevo-cause well that show just rocks!):

Africa by Toto:

Scrubs:

And now back to our regularly scheduled program....My ROW80 progress:

Writing:  Knocked out of the park!  This week I worked on writing the scenes I added in the beginning to flesh out the characters and story a bit more.  This week the plan is to keep writing every day and updating my character list.

Reading:  Two books down for the week!  I am still going to keep my goal of one book a week, but...since I have fallen way behind on my goodreads challenge I actually need to read 2-3 books a week to make it by December.  Good thing I have a long TBR list and a lot of books on my Nook! (And my birthday is Tuesday so yay for more Barnes and Noble gift cards!)

Blogging:  I posted Monday (about when our characters have minds of their own) and Tuesday (about one of my favorite bands, Breaking Benjamin).  I didn't hit a post every day, but I am happy with what I accomplished.  

Being Active:  4 out of 5 for the week.  Not perfect, but still I like where things are heading.

Of all the progress the writing is what I am most excited about.  I am on target to finish this WiP by July 1st which is both terrifying and exciting. I just need to keep writing!  I hope everyone has a great weekend and good luck this week on the ROW80 goals! 

A New Place to Write

I have found a writing sanctuary which I can't get enough of lately. Heck, it's even becoming a place where I get a lot of my work done.  I live in a pretty old home, one that has been in my family since it was built about 100 years ago (maybe a bit older...I can never remember the exact year).  My grandfather's aunt lived here and raised him and his brothers here (along with her three children) when my great grandmother died.  Anyways I moved in a few years ago and have been slowly updating things, while also keeping much of it the same (it has the same moldings, inside doors and floors, even some amazing column things that separate the dining and living rooms...) It's been a lot of work, but worth it in so many ways.  

Anyways, back to my point.  One of the rooms I hadn't really gotten to doing much with was the fully enclosed front porch.  A door from the living room leads onto it and it has semi-new windows all around it, with a door at the center which leads to the front yard.  It needed (and needs) work though, and recently I decided to start in on it.  The ceiling needed fixing (which is done) and it needed painting (something I am still working on) and I need to get some new carpeting or something out here.  But the past few days I have focused on the clutter: going through it, organizing, cleaning, scrubbing and vacuuming.  There was a table and chair out there that was rarely used and after clearing it and scrubbing it clean, I now have a workable space where I can write, listen to music, get some work done, or just stare out the window (or a combination thereof!).  Either way, I am really starting to enjoy it and have gotten quite a bit of writing done out there.

Once it's painted and 'ready' for public showing, I will post some pictures, but until then all I have for you is my ROW80 mid-week check in.  Here's my progress:  

Writing:  On track for the week so far.  I've had the afternoons off lately which has been a huge help in getting my writing done.  Sunday I only got a minimal amount in; Monday it was just about 3500 words for the whole day; and Tuesday 993 . 

Reading:   My goal had been one book in 2 weeks-I read two books in three days last week.  So I changed this goal to: reading one book per week.  Well guess what?  I completed that goal last night when I finished Insurgent.  It was...OMG SO FREAKIN GOOD!  How I am going to wait until Fall of 2013 for book 3 I have no idea.  That's a long time to go without Four. *sighs* 

Blogging:  All good on this front. I blogged Monday (When A Character Goes In A Different Direction) and Tuesday (The Awesomeness of Breaking Benjamin).  I probably won't get another post out this week, but I'm happy with two. I am finding it easier to find things to write about and that was one of my goals with the Blog Me Maybe challenge. I wanted to make blogging a habit, and it is certainly becoming that.  

Being Active:  2 out of 5 so far and still have the rest of the week to go.  I have decided to keep up with my increased outdoor activity, and also to try and tame my general fear of nature (mainly bugs, and bees. I hate bees and they seem to not like me so much either).  This week I will be trying to start a small garden of herbs and some easy to care for veggies to go along with the blueberry bushes I started last year, and the ridiculous amount of blackberry bushes that grow on the property. If anyone knows any hints, tips, tricks, blogs, books, etc that could be helpful for my new gardening venture let me know in the comments below!

How about everyone else?  Are you accomplishing what you've set out to do this round?  Good luck this week! 

The Awesomeness That Is Breaking Benjamin

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Let me preface this post by saying that yesterday I got a lot of writing in.  Well a lot for me in one day anyways.  The grand total came to around 3500 words, which is, well a lot.  But I was on a roll with a scene and I just had to keep going.  And when I get that urge to keep writing (and have the time) I do it.  

So what does yesterday's writing have to do with today's Blog Me Maybe post you ask? Well that's simple.  The prompt for today is May I tell you something about me?" And so today I want to reiterate what I've said before about needing music to write and reveal my most recent inspiration.

Yesterday I was writing a scene in which the main character (I will just refer to her as MC for now) has this somewhat traumatic experience and in comes this guy, who up until this point has been a major pain in her ass.  He, like most of the characters, has a secret (actually a few), and isn't exactly the sharing type. But neither is my MC and she is stubborn as hell..so it makes for some difficult communication between the two. But while I've been able to get inside the head of my MC, he has been a bit harder to crack.  Until I heard a song (actually a few) that fit who he is and that was just the push I needed to fill in some much needed gaps where he was concerned. By the time I finished writing, I was both surprised and excited at the progress I'd made.

So who is the artist that that came over the speakers at just the right time?  The modern rock group Breaking Benjamin.  The lead singer is also the songwriter and I am anxious for new material, but I can live off the old for now. (The band has taken a hiatus because of a recurring illness he suffers from and a lawsuit or something among some former members; or so the interwebs tell me!)  Below are two of the videos that helped me flesh out just who the guy in my WiP is and just why he has so many secrets.  And seriously if I could have given Benjamin Burnley a hug for it I would have.  His songs pulled  me out of a serious block with this specific character at just the right moment. 

Breathe (Live):

I Will Not Bow:

So now that you know what has inspired me recently (in terms of music), is there any song or artist who has done the same for you?  What about the characters/books you've written--is there a 'soundtrack' to your writing?  Hope you enjoyed the music and happy writing!

When A Character Goes In A Different Direction

Recently I've come to the conclusion that convincing a character to do what I, the writer, want him or her to do sometimes just doesn't work well.          

As my WiP began I had a plan, or at least I knew how it was going to end.  But soon after getting into the meat of the story I noticed that the story was veering off in a direction I hadn't anticipated and was far off course of its intended ending.  While my gut tells me that this is the right direction to go in, (even though it throws my initial outline out the window) I'm still...what's the word...anxious?  This is a story I have been working on for awhile and I had always thought I knew just what the ending would be. But after looking at it again and really focusing on writing and developing my main character (I had put this WiP aside for awhile and for this round of ROW80 have now come back to it) I see a different ending and in many ways, even a different main character-or at least a different personality.  The choices I thought she would make changed as I've built and developed the setting and the other characters around her.  Needless to say, it's been an interesting ride though now when I look at my new and improved outline, I am definitely liking what I am seeing.

Of course I always have the option of going back and revising who my character has become, but I have to admit that I am not sure that the original ending fits into the type of person she is now.  It's almost as if somewhere a long the way, a tug of war has occurred between the characterization and the plot.  While I started out with the basics of both, at some point the character has developed to a point where the plot has to change to fit who she has become.  Each scene, each conversation, has brought her closer and closer to this point and to go back and  rip apart the tapestry I've woven to fit into the original ending just doesn't feel 'right' at this point.  

What about you? Is there ever a time that you've struggled with the direction you intended to go in a WiP and where the writing is actually taking you?  Do you stick to your original plan or go where the story takes you?  

A Weekend in the Sun

The weather where I am has been just beautiful: sunny and hot during the day with comfortable temps at night for sleeping. Usually when it gets hot I hole up inside my house because that means the dreaded humidity is here, but we've been lucky the past few days.  Because of the nice weather I've been hanging out with my family (we've had one cook out so far, with another scheduled for today!), going to softball and little league games for my niece and nephew, and just having an all around good time.  All this has been happening while  helping my mom and sister with their massive garage sale so although I haven't gotten much writing in, I still consider the week a good one.  Here's my update:

Writing:  4 out of 7. Not where I want to be, but it's a start.  This week I will once again try to hit it every day with hopefully a bit more success.  Word count was just under 4K so that, in my mind, is still progress.

Reading: The goal was to read a book in two weeks. I've read two in one week, and hope to finish the third today.  Divergent by Veronica Roth (as suggested by Lauren) was so, so, so SO good.  I started it Friday night at about 9pm and stayed up until 3am on Saturday morning to finish it.  It was that good people! I bought book 2, Insurgent, for the Nook yesterday.  I was going to wait until my birthday in 9 days but, I cracked. I just HAVE to see what happens! 

Blogging:  I wrote one blog post this week which is one of my favorites mainly because it is about Felicia Day and The Guild.  I love the web series The Guild and their new music video just cracks me up. I also squealed like the total geek I am when my blog was mentioned in the #webseries daily on Thursday.  (I know, I really am I total geek. I told you!)  I have a writing related post for Monday in which I ask about characters and what happens when they lead the story in an unexpected direction so hopefully I can schedule that later and Blogger will behave.  I will try to work on a few more for this week to get myself ahead.

Being Active:  6 out of 5! YAY!!! And let me just say, hauling boxes, unpacking, repacking, running up and down the stairs, chasing the dog when he got loose, and all other garage sale related activities are exhausting.  I've been so tired the last few days that every muscle in my body has been screaming at me.  I am so counting all this physical activity as part of 'being active'!

All in all it's been a mixed bag in terms of results, but even though I didn't quite hit all my targets, I am still happy with the progress.  As I said last Sunday, my goals are about forming new habits and I know that it won't happen overnight.  Hope everyone is having a great weekend and good luck with your goals!

To All the Geeks I've Loved Before

I am a gaming geek, and if I am not writing, and it's a weekend, it's usually cause I am slaying the horde in World of Warcraft. Or creating stories in Sims 3.  Or hanging around my amazing friends on Second Life who can write and create better than any other people I know (seriously, talk about creating whole worlds and characters and stories to go along with it?! It's a sandbox of possibilities, once you weed through the noobs and crazies).   So in honor of all the gaming geeks (and I say that with nothing but love) out there, I want to talk about the awesome-ness of The Guild and their latest video.

Their web series can be seen at their website, via youtube or the seasons can also be Netflix-ed (I don't think that is a word, but well, I made it one for my purposes!) The creator, Felicia Day, is amazing and has been seen in a bunch of TV shows (House, Lie To Me, and a ton more!), but especially those where Joss Whedon is concerned, including Buffy, Dr. Horrible's Sing A-Long Blog and Dollhouse!) You can check out her full list of credits here.  A blurb from The Guild website describes the show as follows:  

"The Guild is a independent sitcom web series about a group of online gamers. The show started in the late summer of 2007, and for the first season was financed solely by Paypal donations from LOYAL FANS. Since season 2, The Guild has been distributed by Xbox Live and Microsoft and sponsored by Sprint" (from   http://www.watchtheguild.com/about/)  

It has won a whole lot of awards and has developed quite the cult following, me included. Each episode is between 3 and 8 minutes long and cracks me up every time. 

But I am not going talk too much about their show, instead, it is their latest music video that has me going all fan-girl fanatic.  Their latest music video is called "I'm The One That's Cool".  It totally brought me back to my high school days, and even reminded me of how so often the nerds, gamers, bookworms, shy and awkward kids are often picked on in middle school and high school.  (And having a niece who is going through this at the moment because of her bookworm nature, it has brought the memories all crashing back -.- )  So many kids, past and present, have been picked on for liking things that other people found different,  like video games, reading, writing, anything unrelated to sports (well the so called cool sports anyways), or anything else that was considered 'uncool', which just seems to silly to me.  I mean who decides what's cool and what's not?!  Can't we all just be nice and embrace each other's uniqueness?! Who decides!?! *shakes fist in frustration*    

So I am dedicating this song, by The Guild, to all those kids of today and yester-year who are (or have been in the past) considered geeks, gamers, nerds, weirdos and otherwise 'uncool' by the so called popular kids.  This should be anthem for every person who ever got picked on.  And did I mention that this was even directed by Joss Whedon?! Yes, that Joss Whedon! *swoons*  He co-wrote it with Felicia Day (who was just on Supernatural and Eureka too!).  

I have moments where I'd love to sing this at the top of my lungs to the 'cool kids' I went to high school with who still think they are better than everyone (the joys of living in a small town and still seeing these people regularly).  But so far I've refrained. Talk about will power.  Any other Guild fans out there? What about fellow members of the Whedonverse? Let me know what ya think!

Some Mornings I Need To Be Dragged Out of Bed

Or it feels this way anyways.  I just did not want to get out of bed today.  Not that I ever have a morning where I am quick to rise (I am so not a morning person) but for whatever reason today was harder than usual.  However, after staring at the ceiling for a good half hour, I finally forced myself to move and here I am, sucking down the first in what will likely be several large cups of tea.

But, enough about my morning crankiness (or as my nephew calls it "...acting like a crabby patty."  Gotta love Spongebob...)  Since it's Wednesday that means check-in day and having revamped my goals at Sunday's check-in, this is where I am so far:

Writing Every Day: Done! Even though Sunday was only a couple hundred words, it was still writing. Monday I got about 1712 in during the afternoon word sprint and Tuesday I wrote 1319.  Sadly I won't be in the office for today's sprint so I will be getting my daily writing in tonight.

Reading:  My goal was to read one book every two weeks. I read an entire book on Monday night. :)  I will be starting another tonight and then hopefully this weekend I can read The Hunger Games and/or Divergent.  So many books, so little time!

Blogging/Social Media: Okay, well this is...mixed. I had a post scheduled for yesterday, but blogger (being the pain that it is) didn't post it.  So it's still sitting in my drafts. I will reserve that for next Monday.  And Tuesday I just...didn't post anything. I have a post lined up for Thursday though and possibly one for Friday.


Be Active 5 Days a Week:  Sunday I did a short 15 minute yoga routine.  But Monday it was 30 minutes and Tuesday another 30.  I'm sleeping better already and my back (which had been killing me the last two weeks) is finally feeling close to normal. Mornings are still rough--it sucks to feel like the Tin Man from The Wizard of Oz as I try to get out of bed--but it's improving and that is all that matters!

All in all I'd say it's been a really productive week so far.  I hope everyone's week is going well and happy writing to you all!