Titles still aren't my strong point...

...regardless, surprise!  I'm writing again...or at least, attempting to.  Let's just say, I'm in the frame of mind and properly motivated to get back into the swing of things.  Now, given that it's been two years since I attempted to write so much as a sentence, I'm spending a lot of time going back and trying to reacquaint myself with where I left off, and more importantly, reconnect with the characters I created.  (They are quite displeased with me at the moment since I've left their stories hanging for so long and some are upset that I killed them off, even though I never really intended for them to die - they will be very happy when I unkill them...well, some of them anyway.)

So, that is where I stand.  Dusting off the storyboard that I've been storing behind the bookshelf and trying to reorganize myself.  Hopefully, I'll be able to give a more substantial update in the near future.

In the meantime, at a friend's suggestion, I'm reading The Enemy, by Charlie Higson.

Book Recommendation

For those of you looking for a new read, I suggest the following:  Good People, by Kelly Adamson.  This is the first novel released by this author, who happens to be from my home town.  The book was just released a few months ago.  (I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to read it before it made it to print. ;) )

Happy Reading!

Happy Holidays!

If you follow me on Twitter, first of all, thank you!  Secondly, you may have noticed that I've been entertaining myself (and others, apparently) by celebrating random holidays.  I was asked to add this to my blog, despite the fact that it has NOTHING to do with writing or tips or anything of that nature.  I was told by a few coworkers and colleagues that while they enjoy reading about my progress as an aspiring author, they feel like the world is missing out on my unconventional randomness and that it would be great if I shared this entertaining part of my work days with the world to fill in the gaps while I work on my literary masterpiece.  (Ha ha ha, eh, if you say so.)

So let me offer a shortened explanation of what started all of this.  My coworker made the comment last week that 'Christmas would be here before you know it.' The very thought of that nauseates me.  (I mean, I still have so much shopping left to do!)  So I made the proclamation that I was going to forgo the holidays that stress me out this year, starting with Christmas and Valentine's Day.  (But I'm keeping Halloween, because I like free Chocolate!)  Jokingly I said that I would be celebrating all of the lesser, overlooked holidays instead. My other coworker--let's call him Freeman because, well, that's his name--thought this was a great idea and jumped on the bandwagon to help me spread holiday cheer around the office everyday.  Then, the conversation took a rather silly turn.  (That's right, because it wasn't silly enough already.)  And long story short, I have now been instructed that I must recap our weeks of celebration for all the world to see and pass judgment on.

So, without further adieu, for those of you who are still with me after that pointless rambling, allow me to bring you up to speed on the holidays YOU all overlooked.

We kicked off the festivities on Wed Aug 1st with....National Spider-man Day!  (Seriously, look it up.)  Now this excited me as I have loved Spider-man since I was a kid, waaay back since the days of The Electric Company (gotta love public television) and long before anyone had ever heard Toby McGuire.  So to commemorate this hero, Freeman and I changed our PC wallpapers:

At lunch, while killing an hour in the park, I contemplated trying to climb a wall.  However, there were no walls in the park.  I would have had to settle for the ballpark's announcer's stand and I just didn't think it would be the same.  Also, there was no one around to call the paramedics when I severely injured myself.  (Not that that would have happened.)

On to Thurs, Aug 2nd--National Ice Cream Sandwich Day
I mean, is there really any question as to how to celebrate this one?  Freeman enjoyed his ice cream sandwich.  He enjoyed it right in front of me.  For once I was able to find the will power to ignore an excuse to eat a dessert in the middle of the day.  But I did graciously offer my own ice cream sandwich to another coworker who looked hot and in need of a tasty snack.  And my phone runs on the ice cream sandwich operating system, so I really celebrate it every day.

Fri Aug 3rd--National Watermelon Day
My initial intent was to pick one of my own home grown from seeds watermelons from my garden to take to work for everyone, just so I can brag about yet another mad skill that my husband insists I don't have.  (He's in denial and very jealous.)  Unfortunately, none of the watermelons were ripe for the taking, so Freeman and I settled for watermelon flavored Sour Patch Kids instead, which honestly, I think I enjoyed more anyway.

We shared.  That's all that matters.  Now here's the thing.  I was told that the local radio station was discussing the fact that it was Watermelon Day.  I personally think that they knew that because they read it on my Twitter shortly beforehand because what are the odds that more than two people would actually know that, right?  At least, that's what I'm going to tell myself for now.

So until next week, when I bring you more exciting holiday adventures...um, celebrate something or make up a holiday.  Or help me think of a more witty ending next time.  (Or send me pictures of YOU celebrating holidays to mjstafford@rocketmail.com and I'll share them with the world too!)

Uh-oh...Disaster

Things are looking a bit grim for this chick.  For the past year, I’ve been under the impression that my power cord was shot.  Last night, 3 power cords and a trip to Radio Shack later, it’s looking like the problem is not the cord, but my computer itself.  Unfortunately, the infernal machine is holding about 2/3 of my book hostage because I, of course, failed to back any of my files up elsewhere.  (Which I honestly thought I had done.)  So now the frantic search for hidden files begins.  Between my editor and digging through my emails, I’ve managed to find several chapters.  I know (or at least hope) that worst case, I can have the hard drive recovered to get the rest, but I’m really REALLY hoping it won’t come to that.  Aside from being what I imagine to be a costly task, at that point I’ll have to face the need to buy a new computer—the thought of which makes my stomach queasier than that nachos and ice cream I gorged on for supper last night in an effort to drown my frustrations.

Lesson learned for this gal:  Back up your stinking files!  In more than one place.  

Status Update

Just wanted to give a little update as to where my project stands.  I am happy to say that despite STILL being sans power cord (really, getting a replacement should NOT be this hard) I have made a good deal of progress in the past few weeks.  I have finished my rough outline for--drum roll please--the REST of my book.  I estimate I have around 6-7 chapters left to wrap things up.  Still trying to push having it complete in time for Killer Nashville in August, but sadly I'm also a realist and know that's probably a very lofty goal.  In any event, the creative juices are flowing, which means I'm in full swing tormenting my poor characters.

In the meantime, a book I have been anxiously awaiting hit shelves this weekend.  If you have followed my blog before, or checked out my suggested reading page, or been anywhere within a 5 mile radius of me recently, then you are probably already aware of how obsessed I am with Cassandra Clare's The Mortal Instruments series.  The 5th book was released this week.  I cannot wait to get started on it as I'm sure it will not disappoint!

The Best Lines

Just wanted to share a random thought--something to kick around in your head when you have nothing better to do.  A fellow author mentioned a topic to me that was discussed in one of her writer's groups:  Who has the best lines?  Is it your protagonist?  It should be.  He/she should always have the best lines.  But many times, people tend to "give them away" to a witty side kick or villain.  So who has the best lines in your story?  It's certainly something I'm going to think about as my character continues to lead me down his path of growth.

Status Update

I am happy to report that I seem to have found my mojo again.  (Like I'm really going to pass up the opportunity to use the word "mojo" in a sentence!)  I spent around 5 hours reviewing notes and writing yesterday and managed to get nearly an entire chapter done.  On top of that, I managed to finalize (I hope) my outline for the next chapter I'll be working on.  I've got bits and pieces of outlines and notes and segments written, so I'm working on trying to get them organized and pieced together, which is proving to be quite a challenge!  On the bright side, the more I put together, the further along I see that I really am with what remains.  Looks like a lot of writing connecting pieces more than anything, which is a nice discovery to make.  So, going to stay on the track I'm on for now and hope that soon I'll reach my chapter-per-week goal that I've set for myself.