Jennifer Crusie's Blog, page 8

Happiness is Reading During A Storm

What is it about storms that makes reading such a pleasure? Is it that I could be out in the snow or rain and instead I’m tucked in safe and warm with an alternate reality? It’s raining like blazes here this week, and while I am writing a good chunk of the day, when it gets stormy dark, I read something I didn’t write. Reading is always good, but a storm makes it better.

What made you happy this week?

This is a Good Book Thursday: Reading as Research

I’ve been reading romance this week, trying to figure out what’s going in the genre now, and I’ve come to the conclusion that it doesn’t matter, I can only write what I can write. I never did write to market (as in “What’s the hot trope now?”) but I did pay attention. Now, I don’t care. Which is good because Bob is still bombarding me with zombie ideas.

What did you read this week?

Working Wednesday: This Book Will Never Be Finished

There’s always a time in every book when I look at it and think, “I have no idea what I’m doing.” And then I try desperately to figure out. Meanwhile Bob is saying, “And then this happens and this happens and big finish and we’re done.” The fact that I am finishing books again is solely because I’m writing with Bob “I know what we’re doing” Mayer. So I know that even though I’m panicking at the moment, we will finish this book. And the next two. Everything’s gonna be all right.

Argh.

What did you work on this week?

(Oh, almost forgot. The Rocky Start series is out in audio now.)

Happiness is Walking at Midnight

I don’t know where you live, but where I live it’s hot. I’m still walking my dog three times a day, but where he usually dances the whole time, now he’s dragging toward the end and so am I. But our last walk is at midnight and it’s heaven. The air is cool and perfect, the streets all have streetlights, and the stars are out. It’s like a movie set, and Johnny dances the whole time.

Happiness is midnight.

What made you happy this week?

This is a Good Book Thursday, the Murder Edition

I’ve been reading Rex Stout, working my way through all the novellas and starting on the novels. It helps to read books where bodies are dropping regularly, that way I don’t get so freaked out about the body counts in the books we’re writing.

What did you read this week?

Working Wednesday: The Plotting Edition

Bob and I had gotten ourselves completely tangled up in our plot so we took today off writing and just tossed ideas back and forth. We tend to have a.lot of characters, and at one point, I said, “What are we doing with Mark? He’s sort of just lurking in the background with his finger up his nose,” and we discussed that. It ended like this:

Writing with Bob Mayer, always exciting.

What did you work on this week?

Happiness is Sleeping Late

. . . and then remembering you had a post to put up. ARGH.

What made you happy this week?

This is a Good Book Thursday: The Thrill of Preordering

I just got an e-mail from Amazon saying that my pre-order of the next Aaronovitch would be dropping in a couple of weeks. It’s like Christmas. The Rivers of London series has been going awhile, and it’s been getting harder to connect–I think Peter is just too powerful now, plus he’s the father of twins so he’s really settling down–but even lesser Aaronovitch is better than most writers’ best, so I’m sticking with him. Now all I need is a new Murderbot to look forward to. So instead, I’m reading old Nero Wolfe novellas. And the book we’re writing, of course.

What book thrilled you this week?

Working Wednesday: The Masterclass Edition

I’ve been having a heck of a time getting my head back in the writing game, so I decided to jumpstart it by watching some of the Duffer Brothers’ Masterclass. Masterclass is not cheap, but the wealth of programs available and the fact that I already had a subscription made me try their class, even though I’d never seen Stranger Things. And the classes I watched really were helpful at getting my head organized around the book. It wasn’t that I didn’t know a lot of it, it was that my mind was scattered, and watching the classes helped me focus. So this week I worked on focus.

What did you work on?

Happiness is a Plan

Sometimes I get overwhelmed. Okay, I often get overwhelmed. There’s this house that I still haven’t gotten sorted even though I’ve lived here for two years. And then there’s the book we’re working on, have been working on, have 50,000+ words done on, and when Bob said, in well controlled exasperation, “Well, what does Anna WANT?” I had no idea. However, whenever I have a plan, I’m fine. I’m much too scatter-brained and, at this point in my recovery, too tired to have a dog, but Johnny and I hit the road three times a day every day for at least fifteen minutes each time. Because he’ll explode if I don’t take him out, and I love him and want him to be happy. That’s a plan. So now all I need is a plan to keep my house and my heroine from exploding. I can do that. Planning makes me happy.

What made you happy this week?