Shanna Swendson's Blog, page 168
November 4, 2014
RIP my Old Computer (maybe)
I feel like I got back in the swing of things yesterday. I even accomplished everything on my to-do list, including housework. I still have some things to wrap up, including the author publicity questionnaire for the new publisher, which is pretty extensive. It feels like an employment application for a job with a high security clearance. I was having to dig around to find the names of all my foreign publishers because they want complete info on all my past books. I still have some work to do on that because I need to dig up review quotes from those books and articles that have been written about me in the past. They're compiling a dossier on me!
Then I need to start going into PR mode on the new books. And start writing another new book. That may be a pain because my old computer seems to have died. It was only ten years old, so I don't know what the problem could be. I just wrote on that one and used it as a kind of jukebox, so it's more of an inconvenience than a panic situation. I do have the system discs for it, so there are a few things I may be able to try to coax it back into life. There are a couple of files I want to grab. Everything important was backed up to the main computer, but there were a few things where I jotted down some information that I'm not sure got transferred, and I created a few playlists that aren't on the main computer. Mostly, it's just nice to not have to disconnect and haul one computer around the house. I can keep one off the Internet entirely for fewer distractions. This may spur me to finally get an iPod or even upgrade my phone to an iPhone (probably not the new one, but one of the previous generation phones that's now cheap) so that I can also use that as a music player to plug into the stereo.
Speaking of new book, it's now available for pre-order. Here's the Kindle version. I suppose that also counts as a cover reveal if you follow the link. I'll do an official reveal later this week. It's also available for pre-order at the Apple store, but I think you have to go within their app rather than having a regular link.
So, I guess this is a real thing now and I have to let people actually read it. I've been working on this book since 2009, so it's been a long time in development.
Then I need to start going into PR mode on the new books. And start writing another new book. That may be a pain because my old computer seems to have died. It was only ten years old, so I don't know what the problem could be. I just wrote on that one and used it as a kind of jukebox, so it's more of an inconvenience than a panic situation. I do have the system discs for it, so there are a few things I may be able to try to coax it back into life. There are a couple of files I want to grab. Everything important was backed up to the main computer, but there were a few things where I jotted down some information that I'm not sure got transferred, and I created a few playlists that aren't on the main computer. Mostly, it's just nice to not have to disconnect and haul one computer around the house. I can keep one off the Internet entirely for fewer distractions. This may spur me to finally get an iPod or even upgrade my phone to an iPhone (probably not the new one, but one of the previous generation phones that's now cheap) so that I can also use that as a music player to plug into the stereo.
Speaking of new book, it's now available for pre-order. Here's the Kindle version. I suppose that also counts as a cover reveal if you follow the link. I'll do an official reveal later this week. It's also available for pre-order at the Apple store, but I think you have to go within their app rather than having a regular link.
So, I guess this is a real thing now and I have to let people actually read it. I've been working on this book since 2009, so it's been a long time in development.
November 3, 2014
What I Did on My Vacation
I'm back from vacation, and I did actually manage a restful, relaxing time so that I came home refreshed and almost eager to dive back into work. Now that I'm home, I can reveal that I went to Hot Springs, Arkansas.
But first, I spent some time getting into vacation mode at home and getting ready. I got out the sewing machine I got for Christmas and did some sewing because I thought engaging in other forms of creativity would be a good mental change of pace. I used to sew when I was a kid and even had my own machine, but I haven't done anything but hand work in years. I decided to start with something simple and made a nightgown. I've been looking for a long, long-sleeved gown that wasn't flannel. During the transitional times of year, I want something covering but not heavy. But I can't seem to find anything like that. I even had trouble finding a pattern that was what I wanted. Where I finally found it was in the costume section, so now I suppose I have an Official Gothic Novel Heroine nightgown -- a white, floaty thing. If I ever need to flee a spooky castle in the middle of the night, I will have the right thing to wear. It turned out to be very comfortable for sleeping and lounging around, just the right weight for the weather.
Sunday I did something wild and crazy and went to Starbucks (or as the people at church call it, St. Arbuck's) between services with some of the other people in the ensemble I sang with. Usually I hide in the choir room, drink tea and read the newspaper, but I was social for a change.
After a couple of days of shopping (new tires, new jeans) and preparation, I hit the road on Wednesday. It turned out to be a longer drive than I anticipated, the kind where it takes all day to get there and you're tired when you arrive, so I don't know if this will go on my list of relaxing getaways, but there was nice scenery, especially once I got off the freeway and headed into the mountains. I was hoping for more fall color, but even as I got into the foothills of the mountains, it was mostly green with some bits of red and yellow. I had a hotel on a nearby lake, with a lakeview room with balcony, and one of the first things I did when I arrived was get some takeout catfish and eat dinner while looking at the lake. I was facing east, so I got up the next morning hoping to see the sun rise over the lake. Instead, everything was wrapped up in fog. I sat on the balcony with some hot tea and watched the fog lift as the sun rose higher.
After the fog was gone, I went into Hot Springs itself, did a stroll down Bathhouse Row to the visitor center to get a hiking trail map, and then I drove part of the way up Hot Springs Mountain to a trailhead and spent a few hours hiking around the mountain. There were some great trails that were rather strenuous, but at the top the views were lovely. It's only a "mountain" for this part of the world and people from Colorado would point and laugh, but it's more elevation than I'm used to hiking. I don't have a camera that really enables selfies, but here's my attempt at getting a picture of me near the top of the mountain with the view behind me.
Then I went back to my hotel and collapsed. Friday, there were several things I'd thought about doing, but I was tired and a bit sore, and I didn't really want to drive anywhere. So, I took advantage of that balcony and just sat and looked at the lake and read. This was the view from my balcony, so you can see why I enjoyed just sitting there all day.
And then on Saturday I made the drive home, just in time to change gears entirely and go to a Halloween party. If only I'd had that little blue box for travel. It would cut out all that tedious driving.
Now to get back to work. I've got a lot of business stuff to deal with, and then I need to start work on a new book.
But first, I spent some time getting into vacation mode at home and getting ready. I got out the sewing machine I got for Christmas and did some sewing because I thought engaging in other forms of creativity would be a good mental change of pace. I used to sew when I was a kid and even had my own machine, but I haven't done anything but hand work in years. I decided to start with something simple and made a nightgown. I've been looking for a long, long-sleeved gown that wasn't flannel. During the transitional times of year, I want something covering but not heavy. But I can't seem to find anything like that. I even had trouble finding a pattern that was what I wanted. Where I finally found it was in the costume section, so now I suppose I have an Official Gothic Novel Heroine nightgown -- a white, floaty thing. If I ever need to flee a spooky castle in the middle of the night, I will have the right thing to wear. It turned out to be very comfortable for sleeping and lounging around, just the right weight for the weather.
Sunday I did something wild and crazy and went to Starbucks (or as the people at church call it, St. Arbuck's) between services with some of the other people in the ensemble I sang with. Usually I hide in the choir room, drink tea and read the newspaper, but I was social for a change.
After a couple of days of shopping (new tires, new jeans) and preparation, I hit the road on Wednesday. It turned out to be a longer drive than I anticipated, the kind where it takes all day to get there and you're tired when you arrive, so I don't know if this will go on my list of relaxing getaways, but there was nice scenery, especially once I got off the freeway and headed into the mountains. I was hoping for more fall color, but even as I got into the foothills of the mountains, it was mostly green with some bits of red and yellow. I had a hotel on a nearby lake, with a lakeview room with balcony, and one of the first things I did when I arrived was get some takeout catfish and eat dinner while looking at the lake. I was facing east, so I got up the next morning hoping to see the sun rise over the lake. Instead, everything was wrapped up in fog. I sat on the balcony with some hot tea and watched the fog lift as the sun rose higher.
After the fog was gone, I went into Hot Springs itself, did a stroll down Bathhouse Row to the visitor center to get a hiking trail map, and then I drove part of the way up Hot Springs Mountain to a trailhead and spent a few hours hiking around the mountain. There were some great trails that were rather strenuous, but at the top the views were lovely. It's only a "mountain" for this part of the world and people from Colorado would point and laugh, but it's more elevation than I'm used to hiking. I don't have a camera that really enables selfies, but here's my attempt at getting a picture of me near the top of the mountain with the view behind me.
Then I went back to my hotel and collapsed. Friday, there were several things I'd thought about doing, but I was tired and a bit sore, and I didn't really want to drive anywhere. So, I took advantage of that balcony and just sat and looked at the lake and read. This was the view from my balcony, so you can see why I enjoyed just sitting there all day.
And then on Saturday I made the drive home, just in time to change gears entirely and go to a Halloween party. If only I'd had that little blue box for travel. It would cut out all that tedious driving.
Now to get back to work. I've got a lot of business stuff to deal with, and then I need to start work on a new book.
October 24, 2014
On Vacation
It's the final day before vacation, and I have a ton to do. Since I'm treating this like a real "day job" vacation, I'm starting to think that one of the reasons a vacation seems so relaxing is the contrast with the last day in the office before you leave, when you're desperately trying to get everything done. Today I need to proofread the last 85 pages of the book, send some stuff to the person handling the electronic publishing with my agent and complete the author publicity questionnaire for my new publisher. Then I have some errands to run and I need to get the house in quasi-company condition for a TV watching marathon this evening.
I think vacation is one of the downsides of being self-employed. On the one hand, you can generally take off whenever you like, but that tends to mean you never get around to taking off. You're more likely to just go on light duty, where you're still dealing with the day-to-day stuff but not pushing yourself to do major projects. As a result, you never really get out of the "work" mindset, and since you're home all the time, trying to take a "staycation" means you don't really shake up your routine. In this case, I'm making a conscious effort to truly be away from work for a week, even in the part of the week when I'm at home. That's why I'm frantically trying to finish up everything today.
Even when I had a regular job, I wasn't good about taking vacations. I used my vacation time to go to writing conferences. There was one time in the mid 90s when I took a long weekend to go to the Renaissance Festival near Houston. I drove down on Friday, spent that day driving around the national forest nearby and went shopping at the outlet mall, then spent Saturday at the fair and drove home Sunday. And then there was a trip to England in 2000. Otherwise, my major trips have involved visiting friends, which doesn't have quite the same effect as a real vacation, or scheduled events. I've never done a "relaxing" vacation that wasn't really about going and doing a lot of stuff. We'll see how this works for me or if I get twitchy. I'm planning to do a lot of reading, but I'm not sure what I'm in the mood to read. There may be a library or bookstore trip next week.
I may do some Facebook updates during the week, but part of the vacation will be no keeping up with a work schedule, so I won't be posting any blogs until Nov. 3. Then I will make a full report (of the things I want to share). Now off to go do some proofreading. See you in a little more than a week!
I think vacation is one of the downsides of being self-employed. On the one hand, you can generally take off whenever you like, but that tends to mean you never get around to taking off. You're more likely to just go on light duty, where you're still dealing with the day-to-day stuff but not pushing yourself to do major projects. As a result, you never really get out of the "work" mindset, and since you're home all the time, trying to take a "staycation" means you don't really shake up your routine. In this case, I'm making a conscious effort to truly be away from work for a week, even in the part of the week when I'm at home. That's why I'm frantically trying to finish up everything today.
Even when I had a regular job, I wasn't good about taking vacations. I used my vacation time to go to writing conferences. There was one time in the mid 90s when I took a long weekend to go to the Renaissance Festival near Houston. I drove down on Friday, spent that day driving around the national forest nearby and went shopping at the outlet mall, then spent Saturday at the fair and drove home Sunday. And then there was a trip to England in 2000. Otherwise, my major trips have involved visiting friends, which doesn't have quite the same effect as a real vacation, or scheduled events. I've never done a "relaxing" vacation that wasn't really about going and doing a lot of stuff. We'll see how this works for me or if I get twitchy. I'm planning to do a lot of reading, but I'm not sure what I'm in the mood to read. There may be a library or bookstore trip next week.
I may do some Facebook updates during the week, but part of the vacation will be no keeping up with a work schedule, so I won't be posting any blogs until Nov. 3. Then I will make a full report (of the things I want to share). Now off to go do some proofreading. See you in a little more than a week!
October 23, 2014
Spooky Things
I did my annual spooktacular choir lesson last night, in which we made tissue ghost puppets so we could make them dance to spooky music. Only the kids got so enthusiastic about making ghost sounds that they drowned out "Night on Bald Mountain" playing at full blast. So instead we focused on making the ghost sounds up and down the scale, since that's what the choir does in warm-ups. We also went out to the fellowship hall to haunt the people getting dinner ready. I didn't get around to everything I had planned, but there were enough kids who were really crazy (apparently it's field trip week at school) that actual teaching wasn't going to happen. I was turning attempted lessons into activity games on the fly.
But I get a week off next week and am going on vacation. Have I mentioned that? :-) I think I need it.
If I'm going to take that trip to New York in December, I guess I'd better start planning it. I've certainly had enough reminders of the last trip on TV this week, as the hotel where I stayed this summer has shown up on both Gotham and Person of Interest. They used the main lobby as an image for the entrance to a swanky event on Gotham, and then the registration desk, elevator lobby and mezzanine were the site of a major shoot-out on Person of Interest. I must have stayed there the one day it wasn't being used as a filming location. In case you're wondering, that's the Roosevelt Hotel near Grand Central. The lobby is really gorgeous, but the rooms aren't any ritzier than the cheaper tourist-class hotel where I usually like to stay.
I may have to rewatch the Person of Interest episode because I was so busy spotting exactly where in the hotel they were that I missed a lot of the details of the climactic scene.
I'm about a third of the way through proofing this book, and then I need to revise the cover copy, and then I should be just about ready to turn my attention to vacation preparations. The plan is to switch into vacation mode at about 5 p.m. tomorrow and stay that way until 9 a.m. Nov. 3. I know, it's laughable, but I'm going to try. I'll probably have a brilliant idea for the next book while I'm gone, but that's okay. That's one reason for a vacation, to clear the brain so it can be refilled. If it sparks creativity, that's good. I'm just not going to be trying for it.
But I get a week off next week and am going on vacation. Have I mentioned that? :-) I think I need it.
If I'm going to take that trip to New York in December, I guess I'd better start planning it. I've certainly had enough reminders of the last trip on TV this week, as the hotel where I stayed this summer has shown up on both Gotham and Person of Interest. They used the main lobby as an image for the entrance to a swanky event on Gotham, and then the registration desk, elevator lobby and mezzanine were the site of a major shoot-out on Person of Interest. I must have stayed there the one day it wasn't being used as a filming location. In case you're wondering, that's the Roosevelt Hotel near Grand Central. The lobby is really gorgeous, but the rooms aren't any ritzier than the cheaper tourist-class hotel where I usually like to stay.
I may have to rewatch the Person of Interest episode because I was so busy spotting exactly where in the hotel they were that I missed a lot of the details of the climactic scene.
I'm about a third of the way through proofing this book, and then I need to revise the cover copy, and then I should be just about ready to turn my attention to vacation preparations. The plan is to switch into vacation mode at about 5 p.m. tomorrow and stay that way until 9 a.m. Nov. 3. I know, it's laughable, but I'm going to try. I'll probably have a brilliant idea for the next book while I'm gone, but that's okay. That's one reason for a vacation, to clear the brain so it can be refilled. If it sparks creativity, that's good. I'm just not going to be trying for it.
October 22, 2014
Ramping up the PR Machine
I learned at ballet class last night that two of the dancers in the production I saw grew up at my ballet school, including the "Aurora" in the production. If I get to class early next week, I'll have to check out the various Nutcracker photos on display to see if I can spot them as kids.
In book-type news, we settled on a lot of things about launching the new series. The first book in that series will be coming out December 3. That will be both print and e-book, and we're checking with Audible to see if the audio will be available at the same time. That's also around the time that Random House is supposedly going to do another limited-time 99 cent promo on the first Enchanted Inc. book and the time that the entire Enchanted Inc. series will be available on audio in hard copy (CDs, I guess). So, December will be a big month for me, and I'm hoping that brings about some synergy, with the boost from one thing boosting other things.
And we decided to keep it simple and call the new series by the first book title, since the first book is called A Fairy Tale, which fits the whole series. So it's the Fairy Tale series. The second book will be out early next year, but some of that depends on when the copyeditor can get to it. She's got a lot of projects coming, but some of them are late, so mine may be able to be squeezed in.
So, after next week's vacation, be prepared to start getting info about the new series as I ramp up the publicity machine. Or, the way I operate, force the publicity machine to sputter into some kind of life. You'd think I would be better at it, considering that was my day job career, but there's a reason I no longer have that job and was willing to spend years eking out a living rather than go back to it. Having to do that work again makes me twitchy, and it seems even worse doing it for myself. At least when I was working at the agency, it was like "Hey, here's this thing that people are paying me to promote." Now it's like "Like me! Like me! See, look what I did!" And that's rather uncomfortable. I need minions. Then they could go out and tell the world how awesome I am while I sit back and blush awkwardly.
I finished going over the page proofs for next summer's book, and now I need to finish proofreading book 2 in the Fairy Tale series. Then I need to tinker with the cover copy for the first book. And then I'll be getting ready to go into vacation mode. Because, of course, the vacation has its own to-do list.
In book-type news, we settled on a lot of things about launching the new series. The first book in that series will be coming out December 3. That will be both print and e-book, and we're checking with Audible to see if the audio will be available at the same time. That's also around the time that Random House is supposedly going to do another limited-time 99 cent promo on the first Enchanted Inc. book and the time that the entire Enchanted Inc. series will be available on audio in hard copy (CDs, I guess). So, December will be a big month for me, and I'm hoping that brings about some synergy, with the boost from one thing boosting other things.
And we decided to keep it simple and call the new series by the first book title, since the first book is called A Fairy Tale, which fits the whole series. So it's the Fairy Tale series. The second book will be out early next year, but some of that depends on when the copyeditor can get to it. She's got a lot of projects coming, but some of them are late, so mine may be able to be squeezed in.
So, after next week's vacation, be prepared to start getting info about the new series as I ramp up the publicity machine. Or, the way I operate, force the publicity machine to sputter into some kind of life. You'd think I would be better at it, considering that was my day job career, but there's a reason I no longer have that job and was willing to spend years eking out a living rather than go back to it. Having to do that work again makes me twitchy, and it seems even worse doing it for myself. At least when I was working at the agency, it was like "Hey, here's this thing that people are paying me to promote." Now it's like "Like me! Like me! See, look what I did!" And that's rather uncomfortable. I need minions. Then they could go out and tell the world how awesome I am while I sit back and blush awkwardly.
I finished going over the page proofs for next summer's book, and now I need to finish proofreading book 2 in the Fairy Tale series. Then I need to tinker with the cover copy for the first book. And then I'll be getting ready to go into vacation mode. Because, of course, the vacation has its own to-do list.
October 21, 2014
At the Ballet
I took a long weekend, but it's back to normal today.
I did end up going to the ballet on Saturday, but drove instead of taking the train just because of the schedule (it takes a bit longer to take the train, and the train timing doesn't always fit). It turned out that the traffic nightmare I wanted to avoid by taking the train wasn't an issue because they finally finished the construction.
And I was so glad I went. I can't believe that this was only the second professional ballet I've ever been to, and the first with a live orchestra instead of recorded music. It was rather expensive, but I figure it was a two-for-one since it was a symphony and a ballet. I came out of it inspired to work harder on dancing. Not that I'll ever be at that level, but I have a better sense of what it's supposed to look like when it's done properly. They're doing all the same steps we do in class, but at an entirely different level. I enjoyed it enough that I'll have to do it more often. It's a splurge, but there aren't that many shows in a season.
I also realized how long it's been since I've been to downtown Fort Worth. They've re-done a lot of it. I may have to do a day trip sometime, take the train and spend some time exploring (weekday traffic and parking would be worse than on a Saturday). It's a smaller city than Dallas, but the downtown feels more like a "real" city than Dallas does.
Then on Sunday I went to visit my parents for a quick trip, and was home yesterday afternoon. Now I have to really get back to work because I have a lot to wrap up before next week's vacation and then a lot of stuff to do to prepare to travel.
I did end up going to the ballet on Saturday, but drove instead of taking the train just because of the schedule (it takes a bit longer to take the train, and the train timing doesn't always fit). It turned out that the traffic nightmare I wanted to avoid by taking the train wasn't an issue because they finally finished the construction.
And I was so glad I went. I can't believe that this was only the second professional ballet I've ever been to, and the first with a live orchestra instead of recorded music. It was rather expensive, but I figure it was a two-for-one since it was a symphony and a ballet. I came out of it inspired to work harder on dancing. Not that I'll ever be at that level, but I have a better sense of what it's supposed to look like when it's done properly. They're doing all the same steps we do in class, but at an entirely different level. I enjoyed it enough that I'll have to do it more often. It's a splurge, but there aren't that many shows in a season.
I also realized how long it's been since I've been to downtown Fort Worth. They've re-done a lot of it. I may have to do a day trip sometime, take the train and spend some time exploring (weekday traffic and parking would be worse than on a Saturday). It's a smaller city than Dallas, but the downtown feels more like a "real" city than Dallas does.
Then on Sunday I went to visit my parents for a quick trip, and was home yesterday afternoon. Now I have to really get back to work because I have a lot to wrap up before next week's vacation and then a lot of stuff to do to prepare to travel.
October 17, 2014
Series Names
I got to the end of the rewrites, and now I want to go back over the section I rewrote and make a few tweaks. I'm sure there are still some rough edges that need to be smoothed out. I do think this has been an improvement, but I'm not sure that I've yet taken full advantage of the improvement.
I got a start on looking at the interior of the next book. It's a really nice design, so that looks good. I just need to check for any weird little quirks that might have happened, like funky hyphenation.
I may indulge myself tomorrow, though. A local ballet company is doing Sleeping Beauty. I've never seen that one, but I love the music, and ballet counts as research for the books I'm working on. I can even take the train to downtown Fort Worth so I don't have to worry about the drive. Too bad they closed the Barnes & Noble across the street from the performance hall. That used to be the best way to kill time before or after a show. I haven't pulled the trigger on buying a ticket yet, though. There's a good chance that I will have a sudden case of hermitism and just want to stay home and work, since I have so much to do. It depends on how much I get done today, I suppose. I'm making a quick trip to visit my parents on Sunday, so there's a lot to be done before then.
One thing I'm still struggling with is a name for the series as a whole. My agent thinks it's important and is concerned about how easy it is to say, especially when combined with the titles of the individual books. I don't think it's as big a deal because people are going to call it what they want to call it anyway, and it's probably either going to be the name of the main character or the name of the first book. Since I don't think it's that big a deal, I guess my heart hasn't been in it to come up with names. One that I liked and that seemed to fit turned out to be awkward if you insist on phrasing it like "BOOK TITLE, Book one of the SERIES TITLE series." But who really talks like that? Is this something that you actually care about or pay attention to? Do you notice if there's an official title for a series? How do you refer to a series?
I got a start on looking at the interior of the next book. It's a really nice design, so that looks good. I just need to check for any weird little quirks that might have happened, like funky hyphenation.
I may indulge myself tomorrow, though. A local ballet company is doing Sleeping Beauty. I've never seen that one, but I love the music, and ballet counts as research for the books I'm working on. I can even take the train to downtown Fort Worth so I don't have to worry about the drive. Too bad they closed the Barnes & Noble across the street from the performance hall. That used to be the best way to kill time before or after a show. I haven't pulled the trigger on buying a ticket yet, though. There's a good chance that I will have a sudden case of hermitism and just want to stay home and work, since I have so much to do. It depends on how much I get done today, I suppose. I'm making a quick trip to visit my parents on Sunday, so there's a lot to be done before then.
One thing I'm still struggling with is a name for the series as a whole. My agent thinks it's important and is concerned about how easy it is to say, especially when combined with the titles of the individual books. I don't think it's as big a deal because people are going to call it what they want to call it anyway, and it's probably either going to be the name of the main character or the name of the first book. Since I don't think it's that big a deal, I guess my heart hasn't been in it to come up with names. One that I liked and that seemed to fit turned out to be awkward if you insist on phrasing it like "BOOK TITLE, Book one of the SERIES TITLE series." But who really talks like that? Is this something that you actually care about or pay attention to? Do you notice if there's an official title for a series? How do you refer to a series?
October 16, 2014
Happy Bosses Day to Me
I went out this morning to get milk and a flu shot (since my pharmacy is at the grocery store), and I didn't realize that it was Bosses Day until I got to the grocery store and it was full of people buying balloons, flowers, cakes, etc. I've always thought that was a really weird "holiday." Yes, let's celebrate our torturers! They get more money and lots more perks, so the people down the ladder should totally buy them gifts! But then, I've had very few good bosses. The other ones may have found their way into my books …
But I decided to celebrate by buying some dark chocolate. I had to kill time in the store anyway. Last year, the pharmacist wouldn't give me the shot because of my allergies and insisted on the FluMist. This year, they didn't have FluMist, but the pharmacist said the shot problem only applied to one formula of the shot, and he had a different formula that should be okay. After double checking and making some calls, he gave me that shot, but suggested I hang around the store for about ten minutes and come back to the pharmacy if I started feeling weird. Of course, the moment you're told to notice if something feels weird, you become hyper aware and everything feels weird. So, even though I just needed milk, I browsed the aisles until it had been about ten minutes and I ended up buying more than milk (aha, it was an evil scheme!). Fortunately, I caught a sale on some things I needed to stock up on anyway, so it's not like I bought stuff I didn't actually need. They were just things that hadn't made it onto my grocery list, but I remembered them when I saw them on special. I was still breathing and hadn't collapsed by the time I was ready to check out, so I figured it was safe to leave the store.
The setting appointments with myself thing seems to be working. So far this week, I've taken care of a lot of things that have been sitting on my to-do list for weeks (like the flu shot), and setting a time has made me get them done. I've also done a fair amount of writing work. I just have about twenty pages to rework today (and I mean really, really rework), then I need to make another pass to tinker and smooth over the seams after the major surgery. In the meantime, I have page proofs/layout checks to do for two other books and a lot of pre-production stuff to take care of for one of them. I guess I'm going to earn that vacation because I'm going to be really busy until then. And then after the vacation, I'll have a new book to write.
But I decided to celebrate by buying some dark chocolate. I had to kill time in the store anyway. Last year, the pharmacist wouldn't give me the shot because of my allergies and insisted on the FluMist. This year, they didn't have FluMist, but the pharmacist said the shot problem only applied to one formula of the shot, and he had a different formula that should be okay. After double checking and making some calls, he gave me that shot, but suggested I hang around the store for about ten minutes and come back to the pharmacy if I started feeling weird. Of course, the moment you're told to notice if something feels weird, you become hyper aware and everything feels weird. So, even though I just needed milk, I browsed the aisles until it had been about ten minutes and I ended up buying more than milk (aha, it was an evil scheme!). Fortunately, I caught a sale on some things I needed to stock up on anyway, so it's not like I bought stuff I didn't actually need. They were just things that hadn't made it onto my grocery list, but I remembered them when I saw them on special. I was still breathing and hadn't collapsed by the time I was ready to check out, so I figured it was safe to leave the store.
The setting appointments with myself thing seems to be working. So far this week, I've taken care of a lot of things that have been sitting on my to-do list for weeks (like the flu shot), and setting a time has made me get them done. I've also done a fair amount of writing work. I just have about twenty pages to rework today (and I mean really, really rework), then I need to make another pass to tinker and smooth over the seams after the major surgery. In the meantime, I have page proofs/layout checks to do for two other books and a lot of pre-production stuff to take care of for one of them. I guess I'm going to earn that vacation because I'm going to be really busy until then. And then after the vacation, I'll have a new book to write.
October 15, 2014
Plot Issues: Believable Characters
In my writing posts, I've been talking about some plotting issues, and I've noticed that a lot of plotting problems I see actually come down to character problems. It's not so much that the characters themselves are the problem, but rather that writers aren't taking characters into consideration when developing plots. But no matter how plot-driven a story might be, it's still bound by the characters. You end up with a bad plot if it requires the characters to go against the personalities that have been established or to otherwise act in a way that isn't realistic or believable.
The "Idiot Plotting" I referred to a few posts ago is a subset of this -- in order for the plot to work, the characters have to lose all common sense or knowledge and act like idiots. It's not restricted to idiot plotting, though.
In court cases, they often talk about the "reasonable person" standard -- would a reasonable person believe this or act this way? That standard also applies to fiction. Would a reasonable person respond this way? Too many plots crumble because they require characters to behave in a way no reasonable person would. They trust someone who's sending off massive "don't trust me" signals, they forgive too quickly and easily for the harm that's been done to them, they panic or refuse to panic in a way that doesn't fit the situation. I also see this in conjunction with the Mary Sue problem I mentioned before, with the other characters not responding to the Mary Sue in a way that normal people would, either loving her in a way that doesn't match her actions or hating her unreasonably so she can be a misunderstood victim who'll show them all.
Or there's the characters suddenly losing their characterization in order to make the plot work -- the cautious to the point of paranoid person suddenly trusting someone, the rational person panicking, the adventure seeker walking away from danger, etc. The more three-dimensional and well-established your characters are, the worse this problem is because your readers will know these people would never do these things.
The best way to avoid this is to make a point of considering what your characters would do as you develop your plot. Or, if you plot first, reverse engineer your characters to fit the story you've developed so that in other parts of the story they're behaving consistently with the ways they behave in plot turning points. If you need a character to do something to keep the plot going, you need to establish that either that's something this person would really do or something they might do in that particular situation. Lay the groundwork by showing the tendency or trait earlier in the story or show why this one situation is different. People have weaknesses and blind spots, and even someone fairly rational may have that one thing they're not rational about.
This also applies to the "reasonable person" problem. Even generally reasonable people have their non-reasonable moments. You just have to provide the proper motivation. The more unreasonable you need someone to be, the stronger the motivation has to be or the more extreme the situation. If you need people to panic, you need to give them something likely to make them panic. If you need them to not panic in a panic-worthy situation, you need to hide some of the bad info from them or give them an experience that makes them think maybe this situation isn't so bad. You can also establish that this particular person isn't a "reasonable person" by showing elsewhere in the story that he always reacts in ways you wouldn't expect him to. That way, when it becomes critical to the plot, the reader is saying "There he goes again" rather than "Yeah, right."
As with so many plot issues, the place to fix the problem may be elsewhere in the story rather than at that critical point. It's not so much the critical point where you need to make changes. What you need to do is set up the critical point in a better way.
The "Idiot Plotting" I referred to a few posts ago is a subset of this -- in order for the plot to work, the characters have to lose all common sense or knowledge and act like idiots. It's not restricted to idiot plotting, though.
In court cases, they often talk about the "reasonable person" standard -- would a reasonable person believe this or act this way? That standard also applies to fiction. Would a reasonable person respond this way? Too many plots crumble because they require characters to behave in a way no reasonable person would. They trust someone who's sending off massive "don't trust me" signals, they forgive too quickly and easily for the harm that's been done to them, they panic or refuse to panic in a way that doesn't fit the situation. I also see this in conjunction with the Mary Sue problem I mentioned before, with the other characters not responding to the Mary Sue in a way that normal people would, either loving her in a way that doesn't match her actions or hating her unreasonably so she can be a misunderstood victim who'll show them all.
Or there's the characters suddenly losing their characterization in order to make the plot work -- the cautious to the point of paranoid person suddenly trusting someone, the rational person panicking, the adventure seeker walking away from danger, etc. The more three-dimensional and well-established your characters are, the worse this problem is because your readers will know these people would never do these things.
The best way to avoid this is to make a point of considering what your characters would do as you develop your plot. Or, if you plot first, reverse engineer your characters to fit the story you've developed so that in other parts of the story they're behaving consistently with the ways they behave in plot turning points. If you need a character to do something to keep the plot going, you need to establish that either that's something this person would really do or something they might do in that particular situation. Lay the groundwork by showing the tendency or trait earlier in the story or show why this one situation is different. People have weaknesses and blind spots, and even someone fairly rational may have that one thing they're not rational about.
This also applies to the "reasonable person" problem. Even generally reasonable people have their non-reasonable moments. You just have to provide the proper motivation. The more unreasonable you need someone to be, the stronger the motivation has to be or the more extreme the situation. If you need people to panic, you need to give them something likely to make them panic. If you need them to not panic in a panic-worthy situation, you need to hide some of the bad info from them or give them an experience that makes them think maybe this situation isn't so bad. You can also establish that this particular person isn't a "reasonable person" by showing elsewhere in the story that he always reacts in ways you wouldn't expect him to. That way, when it becomes critical to the plot, the reader is saying "There he goes again" rather than "Yeah, right."
As with so many plot issues, the place to fix the problem may be elsewhere in the story rather than at that critical point. It's not so much the critical point where you need to make changes. What you need to do is set up the critical point in a better way.
October 14, 2014
New Beginnings
That scheduling thing worked well for me yesterday, so I'm giving it another go today. We'll see how long this lasts. I have a bad tendency to come up with new systems, get very enthusiastic with them, and then have them fall by the wayside after maybe a week. I also tend to have a natural aversion to schedules. I love a day with nothing on the calendar and start to feel trapped when there's too much on the calendar, so I don't know how having a day full of scheduled items will affect me. On the other hand, having those nagging little items scheduled takes away the stress of deciding when to do them and makes me less likely to keep putting them off for another day or two (or more). What may help with the scheduling aversion is that these things aren't on my calendar. I'm just putting times on my to-do list.
I got my page proofs yesterday, and the inside of this book is going to look so cool. They did some neat stuff with the chapter headers. Here's a peek at the opening of the book:
I haven't yet delved into it beyond that. I want to get this round of rewrites done before I shift gears. I spent most of yesterday on a single scene, but it was the big turning point in changing events, so it took a lot of work to combine multiple scenes from various points in the book into one scene at this point in the book. I also realized that I need to develop a character. There's a character whose introduction I'm moving to earlier in the book so she plays a greater role, and I had just let her come to life without figuring out anything about her, including her name (she's the grandmother of a character, so I just was using the name the other character calls her). So that meant an epic search for my "name your baby" book and some time flipping through that. Now I just have to look at each scene in terms of what this character would do now that she's been added. Already I can see that her dialogue will be a ton of fun to write.
Now that I'm past that initial hump, the rest may go smoothly, though there may be some resistance at the "but I liked this scene the way it was, how can I save it?" points.
Two weeks from tomorrow, I go on vacation (and I'm hoping to go into vacation mode two weeks from yesterday), so I have a lot of work to get done in the next week and a half.
I got my page proofs yesterday, and the inside of this book is going to look so cool. They did some neat stuff with the chapter headers. Here's a peek at the opening of the book:
I haven't yet delved into it beyond that. I want to get this round of rewrites done before I shift gears. I spent most of yesterday on a single scene, but it was the big turning point in changing events, so it took a lot of work to combine multiple scenes from various points in the book into one scene at this point in the book. I also realized that I need to develop a character. There's a character whose introduction I'm moving to earlier in the book so she plays a greater role, and I had just let her come to life without figuring out anything about her, including her name (she's the grandmother of a character, so I just was using the name the other character calls her). So that meant an epic search for my "name your baby" book and some time flipping through that. Now I just have to look at each scene in terms of what this character would do now that she's been added. Already I can see that her dialogue will be a ton of fun to write.
Now that I'm past that initial hump, the rest may go smoothly, though there may be some resistance at the "but I liked this scene the way it was, how can I save it?" points.
Two weeks from tomorrow, I go on vacation (and I'm hoping to go into vacation mode two weeks from yesterday), so I have a lot of work to get done in the next week and a half.
