Kelly McCullough's Blog, page 117

Twittering for Writers

I suppose this falls under the much debated topic of self-promotion for writers, but some time ago I joined Twitter. I'll be honest. I don't really know how to use Twitter effectively. I just post the occasional lame tweet about my life. Apparently, there's more to it than that. Someone on another list I belong to pointed me to Inkygirl's blog post: Twitter Guide for Writers. I'm sure most of you techno-savvy kids already know all there is to know about Twitter, but for the few that don't......

Friday Cat Blogging on Wednesday

Several websites have declared today, September 9, as a Day Without Cats. There is only one correct response to this: MORE CATS!

East Facing Windows in the Morning.

What's in Window 1? ...a cat!



What's in Window 2? ...a blurry cat! (no really)



What's in Window 3? ...3 cats!



1...



2...




and 3!

My Problem with Polemicals against Happily Ever After

Over at SFNovelists Alma Alexander is talking about her problems with Happily Ever After endings. The parts of her argument that touch on her tastes in fiction as a writer and reader I have no problem with. The parts where she seems to be talking about absolute values on the other hand I find to be genuinely and deeply troubling. (Note: she has now clarified what she means to a greater extent and her post bothers me less, but I still think that there is an argument in there that needs refutin...

Monday Morning WIP

I'm in LaCrosse, Wisconsin, my hometown visiting my folks. In about forty minutes, the family is going to head up the street to watch the local union members carry flags and toss candy in a Labor Day parade.

Then it's the long drive home. I have no idea if I'll get much writing done, but perhaps tonight.

How about you? What are you doing this Labor Day Monday?

Adaptability

There have been various posts about a writer's adaptability and flexibility on this blog before. About how kids and work and life's unexpected twists (and twits :) can really pound a writing routine. We all know the drill:

Take head (A), apply Nose (D) to Grindstone (G), making sure that hands (B, C) and other critical bits ( E, F, and H - W) do not inadvertently come into contact with G while Power Switch (Y) is in the "On" position (X).

We also know that sometimes, events (Z) make steps A - Y...

What Truepenny Said:

Truepenny:

"Dave Freer could use some help. He and his family are emigrating from South Africa to Australia, and their definition of "family" rightly includes their dogs and cats. As Dave says in his FAQ:

They had always been part of moving budget: we're selling our home to do this, and will have to start afresh in Australia. The part we didn't figure on was currency fluctuation and quarantine costs. Thus we have some money towards moving them, but simply not nearly enough.

Dave is putting his n...

Readings

I did a bookstore reading here in small town Wisconsin a week or two ago. 10-12 people showed up and listened to me read a chunk of a new book that I'm hoping will be the next series from Ace. I sold a half dozen books. At my level on the publishing feeding chain that's actually really good for the venue and wouldn't be bad for any non-science fiction bookstore or anywhere outside of a major metro area. I made about six dollars and it would have been less if the book store hadn't run out of one

Monday Morning WIP Thread—New Counter-Tops

What I've been doing this week, cutting down surplused lab tables to make new butcher block kitchen counters:

The kitchen before, overview:

On the left you can just see the edge of the breakfast bar. Center, the desk. Right the dishwasher counter. Not that the last does not come all the way to the trim and that the ledge shelf is a different wood and has no end cap.



After, overview. Unfortunately taken from a slightly different, but more features will show in the close ups.



During, pre-oiling, you c

Smart Things

Jeri Smith Ready talking about the different levels of editing that go into a novel.

Jeremiah Tolbert: five lies writers believe about editors.

Lilith Saintcrow. On not responding to reviews. On truth in fiction, I'm less sanguine on this one, but I can see it's validity on some levels. On the fact that, yes, if you want to be a professional writer they are going to be judging you. On the stages of deadline acceptance.

Julie and Julia

I went and saw Julie and Julia with my now on sabbatical wife yesterday. We biked up to the theater and got in about two minutes into the movie, thus possibly missing something. Overall it was a fun sweet movie.

The thing I liked the most about it was it got the little moments of publishing exactly right: The hit in the gut as you prepare to open what you're sure is going to be the umpteenth rejection for something you love. The sheer jubilation of an acceptance or seeing that first book. The lit