Tuesday, November 28, 2006

Thanksgiving day has come and gone and Christmas is upon us. Every writing prompt or contest has to do with the holidays. I imagine that there is some belief among quite a few people that the holidays inspire creativitiy. But not for me. I can never think of a thing to write about. It seems that I am stymied at every attempt at such a prompt.

I neither believe that there is too little nor too much conflict surrounding the subject. It's just that every story I come up with feels trite. My imagination just goes flat.

Ask me to write about things that aren't or things that could be. Then my brain begins to zoom. Sparks fly across the synapses. Nerve endings sizzle. I love thinking about possibilities or even impossibilities.

I wonder what it is like to be suspended within a cloud, to harness the raw power of thunder, to ride on the rays of the sun, or trap the wind within my hair. Haven't you ever imagined yourself doing the impossible? Shape-shifting, teleporting, whispering into the mind of another or using the mundane in extraordinary ways.

These are the shapes of things that race through my mind.

J

Thursday, November 23, 2006

Good morning and Happy Thanksgiving! Wow, another year. I have so much to be thankful for. Friends and family who love me and encourage me. A good mind, although since menopause the memory could use a little help. My health, give or take a cold here or there. Countless blessings! I pray that each one of you is blessed with all of the things you need and many of the things you want.

The first thing I do when I wake up each morning is look out of my bedroom window and enjoy the beautiful mountain view. It often brings me peace and revs up my imagination. That's where many of my stories are conceived.

The mountains in the distance become landscapes for other worlds. The squirrels bouncing in the trees become aliens with unknown talents. And those pesky woodpeckers are actually employed by terrorist cells delivering messages through ancient Morse Code.

I love writing and imagining. My mind is free to roam where ever it will. It is ruled only by the rules I set for it. My secret...? There are no rules.

Today's plan is to write, eat chili (my husband hates turkey), gorge myself on Dr. Pepper and sunflower seeds, and top it all of with cheesecake. What are your plans?
J

Tuesday, November 21, 2006

It looks like I am able to find my own blog intentionally and consistently. So, I will begin the true journal today.

I began writing several years ago. I thought it would be fun and that it couldn't be too hard. After all, I have a doctorate. It couldn't be harder than that, could it? Boy was I wrong. I thought I would start with picturebooks, something easy. Wrong again! I soon realized that my 'voice' isn't right for it. Then I moved on to middle grade novels. Better, but not quite a match. I thought I'd try young adult and found a really good fit. So I began writing a young adult science fiction novel.

It took me about nine months to complete. Then I did edits and rewrites, with the help of my critique group of course. I submitted it for critique to a group of writing professionals at this year's WorldCon. I got fairly good feedback, but...I soon realized what I thought was a finished product was a really good draft.

What I am learning is not only the craft of writing, but also the discipline of writing, sans the arrogance of the intelligent. Boy, do I have a lot to learn.

What about you? Please feel free to comment. I look forward to hearing from you.
J
What an interesting way to begin. I'm starting in the middle instead of the beginning. This is partly because I don't know where to begin and partly because there seems only to be a middle and no ending.
So here goes. I had planned to begin posting here some time ago, but I couldn't find my blog. I still don't really know how to get to it, I just happened to find it by accident. I'm not really sure that I am actually posting.
None of this has anything to do with writing or young adult fiction, but when I can focus on writing and not on finding this, I promise to post something of interest, to me at least.
I hope to be able to find this place again soon
J