Patti O'Shea's Blog, page 134
June 1, 2014
Colonizing Mars
This is a clip from National Geographic.
May 29, 2014
Pen Hoarder
I'm not sure if all authors are enamored by office supplies, but from conversations I've had and seen online, there seems to be a huge number of us who can go crazy in Office Depot or Staples or the office supply section of Target.
Pens, paper, folders... All bring on sighs of joy and bliss.
I have 8.5 x 11 notes pads in all kinds of colors, purple steno pads, an assortment of folders in a rainbow of colors, and I can do a super rainbow in all my gel pens.
And I can't forget sticky notes. I have more than I'll use in my lifetime, but I adore the different sizes and colors. Some have lines, some have no lines. It's actually rather silly how many office supplies I own and my pens will probably dry up long before I use them up.
I can't help it. Buying office supplies is as good as buying shoes and almost as exciting as buying a gadget. Almost. I'm still the queen of gadgets and not even paper products can overcome that love.
I have a wish list full of office supplies that I don't really need, but I can't help myself.
As much as I hate to admit this, part of the problem I'm having unpacking my office from my move to GA is all the extra office supplies I own. I have slightly less room in my new office than I had in my MN office. Ah, well, I'll figure it out. I'm not parting with my pens.
Pens, paper, folders... All bring on sighs of joy and bliss.
I have 8.5 x 11 notes pads in all kinds of colors, purple steno pads, an assortment of folders in a rainbow of colors, and I can do a super rainbow in all my gel pens.
And I can't forget sticky notes. I have more than I'll use in my lifetime, but I adore the different sizes and colors. Some have lines, some have no lines. It's actually rather silly how many office supplies I own and my pens will probably dry up long before I use them up.
I can't help it. Buying office supplies is as good as buying shoes and almost as exciting as buying a gadget. Almost. I'm still the queen of gadgets and not even paper products can overcome that love.
I have a wish list full of office supplies that I don't really need, but I can't help myself.
As much as I hate to admit this, part of the problem I'm having unpacking my office from my move to GA is all the extra office supplies I own. I have slightly less room in my new office than I had in my MN office. Ah, well, I'll figure it out. I'm not parting with my pens.
May 27, 2014
The Shoe Dilemma
As I was writing, it became apparent that my heroine needed a pair of shoes. Something casual that she could slip on fast. I thought about moccasins, but that didn't feel right for the character. She's just not a moccasin woman. There was nothing to do except go online and check out what Nordstrom had available.
A funny thing happened, though, just a few rows down I saw this super cute pair of comfort shoes. I'd never heard of the brand before, but I haven't been keeping up with them like I used to. High ratings. Much comfort mentioned by every reviewer. Hmm.
I hopped over to Shoebuy. They had the same shoe, and with their Memorial Day sale, it would have ended up being about the same price, but the two colors they had in that style didn't work for me.
My finger slipped to the buy button on Nordstrom.
But oh, sale at Shoebuy. I checked out a few more styles by the same brand and found one more super cute pair of shoes. My finger slipped over that buy button again. I couldn't help it.
It's all my heroine's fault that I bought all the shoes. And in the end, she suggested flip flops. If only she'd said something sooner.
A funny thing happened, though, just a few rows down I saw this super cute pair of comfort shoes. I'd never heard of the brand before, but I haven't been keeping up with them like I used to. High ratings. Much comfort mentioned by every reviewer. Hmm.
I hopped over to Shoebuy. They had the same shoe, and with their Memorial Day sale, it would have ended up being about the same price, but the two colors they had in that style didn't work for me.
My finger slipped to the buy button on Nordstrom.
But oh, sale at Shoebuy. I checked out a few more styles by the same brand and found one more super cute pair of shoes. My finger slipped over that buy button again. I couldn't help it.
It's all my heroine's fault that I bought all the shoes. And in the end, she suggested flip flops. If only she'd said something sooner.
May 25, 2014
Proof That Society Is Doomed
Keep in mind before you watch this that my pet peeve is when I'm talking to someone and they're checking their phone. I will stop and wait for them to make eye contact. I think this is extremely rude and disrespectful. I'm as hooked to online as anyone is, but there are times when that has to take a backseat to people. And this is coming from an internet addicted introvert.
May 22, 2014
Plotter Absolutism and the Panster
I saw a quote this week, something about how "most" writers don't sit down and simply write. That their stories are carefully plotted out beforehand so that they have a map of the story. Most writers? Really?
It's quotes like this that gave me fits when I first figured out I wanted to write stories. I've always leaned toward Seat of the Pants writing on the plotter - pantser spectrum. I was stronger on the pantsing before I was published, but I still only put together a loose synopsis. I call it a framework, not a map. It gives me a general idea of what I want to do and then I just aim that direction.
But all the how to be a writer books that I checked out of the library were written by plotter type people and they were all about how to create a story map. I contorted myself trying to be a plotter because I believed that was what "real" writers did. After a few weeks of torture, I realized plotting had made me hate writing and that I didn't want to do it anymore. I realized then I had two choices--I could either follow the writing books, hate wriing, and quit or I could toss the 3x5 index cards aside and have fun.
I decided to have fun.
So when I see quotes like the one I mentioned, it aggravates me. Believe it or not, plotter person, "most" writers don't have detailed maps of their stories. Many do. There are also many writers on my side of the pantser spectrum.
I wish when authors/writers gave advice they wouldn't be so absolute about it. Whoever said that quote I read could have conveyed the same message in different terms and still addressed their audience without adding to the pantsers' fears that something is wrong with the way they write. Because if I had to hazard a guess, I'd say there were many more pantsers thinking they have to plot to be "real" writers and very few plotters trying to force themselves to be pantsers.
Bottom line is whatever works for you to write is the way you should do it. No other writer can or should dictate your process.
It's quotes like this that gave me fits when I first figured out I wanted to write stories. I've always leaned toward Seat of the Pants writing on the plotter - pantser spectrum. I was stronger on the pantsing before I was published, but I still only put together a loose synopsis. I call it a framework, not a map. It gives me a general idea of what I want to do and then I just aim that direction.
But all the how to be a writer books that I checked out of the library were written by plotter type people and they were all about how to create a story map. I contorted myself trying to be a plotter because I believed that was what "real" writers did. After a few weeks of torture, I realized plotting had made me hate writing and that I didn't want to do it anymore. I realized then I had two choices--I could either follow the writing books, hate wriing, and quit or I could toss the 3x5 index cards aside and have fun.
I decided to have fun.
So when I see quotes like the one I mentioned, it aggravates me. Believe it or not, plotter person, "most" writers don't have detailed maps of their stories. Many do. There are also many writers on my side of the pantser spectrum.
I wish when authors/writers gave advice they wouldn't be so absolute about it. Whoever said that quote I read could have conveyed the same message in different terms and still addressed their audience without adding to the pantsers' fears that something is wrong with the way they write. Because if I had to hazard a guess, I'd say there were many more pantsers thinking they have to plot to be "real" writers and very few plotters trying to force themselves to be pantsers.
Bottom line is whatever works for you to write is the way you should do it. No other writer can or should dictate your process.
May 20, 2014
A Small Re-Read Binge
I'm on another re-read binge of some favorite books that I read maybe 10 years ago. They were long out of print when I found them--I'll spare you the epic search I had to go through to get copies--but they were worth the hunt. I rebought them a few months ago when I found them in ebook. The books are Jayne Ann Krentz's Guinevere Jones series. She wrote them as Jayne Castle.
First thing that jumped out at me was how dated some of the references were. No cell phones when the books were written in the mid/late 80s and other technology things, but that's to be expected. If I'd bought the books and found out they'd been updated to accomodate all the new things that have come along since they were written, they wouldn't be the same books I fell in love with.
Aside from this small thing and the 1980s/1990s thing where authors used characters names in dialogue every time they spoke to each other--sometimes mulitple name uses in the same paragraph of dialogue--the books held up very well. I'm enjoying them and I'm so glad I have a chance to revisit the stories.
I've read 2 of the 4 books in the series so far and I can recommend them if you're looking for romantic suspense.
Not every book I used to love has held up as well as these have to the passage of time, but when an old favorite remains a favorite, that's awesomeness!
First thing that jumped out at me was how dated some of the references were. No cell phones when the books were written in the mid/late 80s and other technology things, but that's to be expected. If I'd bought the books and found out they'd been updated to accomodate all the new things that have come along since they were written, they wouldn't be the same books I fell in love with.
Aside from this small thing and the 1980s/1990s thing where authors used characters names in dialogue every time they spoke to each other--sometimes mulitple name uses in the same paragraph of dialogue--the books held up very well. I'm enjoying them and I'm so glad I have a chance to revisit the stories.
I've read 2 of the 4 books in the series so far and I can recommend them if you're looking for romantic suspense.
Not every book I used to love has held up as well as these have to the passage of time, but when an old favorite remains a favorite, that's awesomeness!
May 18, 2014
10 Surprisingly True Facts
I knew about the coffee creamer. :-)
May 15, 2014
Hardcover versus eBook
One of my little quirks is that while I like reading my fiction on my iPad, I prefer reading nonfiction in paper. I'm not sure why this is, but every time I've bought a reference book for a project in electronic format, I've always wished I had the paper copy instead.
So there's this expensive book I'd been keeping an eye on for a while. It was over $35 in hardcover and the ebook version was $25. Right before Christmas I had a coupon that could only be used on paper books and I jumped on it, ordering this book which I'm sure will be great as a background reference for my current project.
Only when the thing arrived I'm like ugh! It was a hugely thick book. Hugely. Thick. I knew almost immediately that I would never read this thing in hardcover because it would hurt my arms/hands to hold it. I needed it electronically.
But paying $25 for an ebook? No matter how thick it is, that price point hurts and it's for a book I already own in paper. It wasn't an option to get the special Amazon deal or I would have been all over that.
Finally, I bit the bullet and paid the $25. I just hope that the reference turns out to be extremely helpful after I paid that much.
So there's this expensive book I'd been keeping an eye on for a while. It was over $35 in hardcover and the ebook version was $25. Right before Christmas I had a coupon that could only be used on paper books and I jumped on it, ordering this book which I'm sure will be great as a background reference for my current project.
Only when the thing arrived I'm like ugh! It was a hugely thick book. Hugely. Thick. I knew almost immediately that I would never read this thing in hardcover because it would hurt my arms/hands to hold it. I needed it electronically.
But paying $25 for an ebook? No matter how thick it is, that price point hurts and it's for a book I already own in paper. It wasn't an option to get the special Amazon deal or I would have been all over that.
Finally, I bit the bullet and paid the $25. I just hope that the reference turns out to be extremely helpful after I paid that much.
May 13, 2014
Twitter Mute Function
On May 12th, Twitter announced that they'll begin rolling out a mute function to all users. I don't know their timeline, but I know I don't have the feature yet. In an opinion piece mentioning this new feature, the author said that "you shouldn't need to use it."
Seriously?
The argument is you shouldn't be following anyone uninteresting anyway, and except in a few circumstances, you should just unfollow them.
Clearly the author hasn't had to deal with people who live tweet television shows or movies or--God help me--their workout at the gym. These are people I'm happy to follow most of the time, just not when they're doing this live tweeting thing. I give this a solid ten on the Annoy-O-Meter.
There are also authors I'm following who I can't unfollow for various reasons who tweet nothing except promo--either their own or another author's promo in a tit-for-tat exchange. I already skip past anything they tweet the instant I see their name or recognize their avatar. The mute button will save me even having to skim over their tweet.
Maybe an author is doing a Twitter chat. That's also very annoying and one of those things that would be awesome to turn off until the chat is over.
Shouldn't need to use the mute button? Please. I'm looking forward to the mute button making Twitter more pleasurable and it's already my favorite of the social networks.
Seriously?
The argument is you shouldn't be following anyone uninteresting anyway, and except in a few circumstances, you should just unfollow them.
Clearly the author hasn't had to deal with people who live tweet television shows or movies or--God help me--their workout at the gym. These are people I'm happy to follow most of the time, just not when they're doing this live tweeting thing. I give this a solid ten on the Annoy-O-Meter.
There are also authors I'm following who I can't unfollow for various reasons who tweet nothing except promo--either their own or another author's promo in a tit-for-tat exchange. I already skip past anything they tweet the instant I see their name or recognize their avatar. The mute button will save me even having to skim over their tweet.
Maybe an author is doing a Twitter chat. That's also very annoying and one of those things that would be awesome to turn off until the chat is over.
Shouldn't need to use the mute button? Please. I'm looking forward to the mute button making Twitter more pleasurable and it's already my favorite of the social networks.
May 11, 2014
7 of the Most Unpresidential Things Done By Presidents
My personal favorite is number 1. I can see the temptation with that. :-)
