Katherine Villyard's Blog, page 17

Blast from the past!

I finally reached the central conflict on the story in progress!  As one of my nieces’ other aunts pointed out, some add clay to an armature and some chip at stone.  I’m usually the former.  Which is why the amount of whacking I’m going to have to do on this one is so disconcerting.

In other weed-whacking news, it occurred to me that the hurricane story I was working on in 2007 anticipated the Occupy Wall Street movement, and I may have to fish it out and try (again!) to finish it with that in mind when I’m finished with this one.  Note to self:  Less (or no) cyberpunk, more politics.

Those Special Moments

I’ve already had that special moment when you realize that you’re probably going to cut 6,000 words from your short story in progress. Today I had that special moment when I realized that I’ve written 13,000 words and haven’t reached my central conflict yet.

This is the point where my ex would traditionally inform me that I was writing a novel. Nope. I think it just took me this long to figure out where the hell this thing is going.

I’m in the BroadPod again!

I read an excerpt from “The Last Wasicu” in the Broadpod, here.  It’s one of my favorites of mine.

New Author Photos!

These were taken by Luke McGuff at Wiscon this year.  You can see the entire collection here:  Wiscon Photo Booth.

Daily Words Redux

Lunchtime and right before I leave work are apparently not-so-much times for writing.  I think it’s because, as Douglas Adams said, “Time is an illusion.  Lunchtime doubly so.”

I’ve been resisting writing in the mornings because I’m really a great big ginormous ditz in the mornings, but it’s working so well for running that maybe I need to try it. I could spend some of my social media surfing time on writing.

Similarly, I think my daily writing goal is insufficiently ambitious.  On the other hand, I can’t seem to make that insufficiently ambitious goal, so maybe it’s plenty ambitious.

I wrote on the plane back from Wiscon.  That was interesting.

In other news, current spreadsheet estimates suggest my story in progress will end up being 16163 words long.  I have difficulty believing this.

Back from WisCon

High Points:

Haiku Earring party: Every year Elise Matheson throws a party where you pick a pair of earrings you like, she gives you a prompt, and if she likes the haiku you write in response she gives you the earrings. My prompt was, “What Faeries Did in the Renaissance”:

Keep your iron, your steel.

Your art, your plays, your poems.

We’ll take your children.

New earrings: awesome.
I was tragically forced to shop. *back of hand to head*
My reading went well.
The GenderFloomp Party: You’re encouraged to do something to mess with your gender presentation. There were a lot of women in suits and men in lumberjack boots and red satin negligees. They were one of the two best dance parties. We floomped until we dropped.
Seeing awesome people I only see in person at WisCon!

My cats missed me.