Internet Outages Are Not So Bad

We had a neighborhood Internet outage that lasted over twenty-four hours, and we thought the world was coming to an end.  Then I realized I could use the time to work on 2011 goals, and they're done.  WHOO HOO!!

One of the things I did today was sort through all the short stories I never finished.  It gave me the idea to focus on completing some of them in 2011.  Reason?  My main goals are editing the 3 Courier novels next year, so rather than get involved with another full-length novel, cleaning up the mess of unfinished short stories and writing new ones seems to make more sense.  Should also help me get in the mindset for writing the collection of short fairy tales for the 3 Day Novel Contest and NaNoWriMo next year.

I also took another look at this years goals.  Have to say I'm pretty darn happy with what I've achieved.  Big lesson learned on keeping better track of progress throughout 2011 though.

Until next year...28,000 more new words to write and lots of holiday baking.  How are you wrapping up 2010?

The End of One Road...

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And so NaNoWriMo ends for me, one day early.  Final word count is 70,191 and 317 pages.  How do I feel about it ending?  I'm a little sad, but also beaming, knowing that I've written two more novels in The Courier series since the beginning of September.  I'm no longer complaining about what I've accomplished this year.

What's next?  I've decided to continue the story I started about a highly structured society that exists without creativity.  It's titled Nova's Magic and is about a 12 year old girl who discovers her imagination, and as a result she is cast out of her village.  I'm not writing it for publication.  It's one of those stories this writer just has to tell for herself.  And it's a perfect choice to fill in my daily 2000 words because I'm writing it as the story comes to me. 

I'm also planning on hitting the editing of The Courier pretty hard through the holidays.  I'll be popping in here to complain about my progress periodically, so stay tuned.  You'll also find me & R.J. writing about vampires over on the Bloodlegger's blog again, now that NaNoWriMo is over. 

But first, I need to do some house cleaning.  What are you doing now that NaNoWriMo is over?

One Definition of Flight

There are four books sitting on the left side of my desk, between two brass eagle bookends:  a dictionary, The Artist's Way, Writing Down the Bones, and The Elements of Grammar.  As I reached to pull out The Artist's Way to complete a few assignments this morning, I instead pulled out the dictionary and opened it to a random page.  The first word and definition for that word I read...

flight - A soaring above the ordinary. 

What an wonderfully inspirational message to start my week this early Monday morning.

No More Social Networking...For Now

I've finally given in to a series of synchronistic events that have tirelessly directed me to lay off the social networking for awhile.  Until 2011 to be exact.  I'm the one that threw that date out and so far I haven't gotten any flack back from The Universe about it. 

Yeah, I know, I keep going back and forth about networking and blogging, and you're probably not taking me seriously.  I expect that response.  Like a lot of writers, I've unfortunately felt that I have to keep my face out there if I want to successfully market The Courier when it's finally published.  That's where the vacillating comes into play.  NO MORE!

Bottom line, social networking expends writing time, and I'm beginning to resent the process.  Another good reason to lay off it for awhile.  So as I make the announcements on the social networking sites I frequent, I'm feeling a sense of relief that I can concentrate only on writing for the next three months.  

I still plan to check in here periodically about my progress with Bloodleggers and The Courier series.  I've been checking in regularly over on The Courier's website too.

Oh, and I enjoy writing about my adventures in clearing writer's block using The Artist's Way.  I've also added another book, Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the Writer Within by Natalie Goldberg.  Harley King suggested this book in my Morning Pages post a month ago.  Requested it from the library right away, but it's a popular book so I had to wait until Sunday to get my turn reading it.  I've been devouring it and will definitely get my own copy soon. 

Manuscript Mailed...Bottle of Wine Opened

YAY!!  I just got back from the post office about 30 minutes ago.  My manuscript is off to Canada, and I'm breathing a few sighs of relief.

I underestimated how long it would take me to type in the hand written stuff, so I finished typing up the longhand around 1:30 P.M. today.  Won't be doing that again. 

Now I wait for confirmation the 3-day Novel Contest has received the manuscript and a certificate I completed the contest.  I won't be holding my breath, waiting to see if I've won.  I submitted a second novel in a series and expect whoever reads Warrant for Damnation to be lost a bit because I still need to write in A LOT of the background from the first story.  Doesn't really matter though because I entered for the experience and to catch up on writing I should have finished earlier this year.  And being caught up FEELS SO GOOD!!

What am I doing next.  Well, Disneyland is out because, as an adult, I hate amusement parks!  Gotta do some work on the next part of Bloodleggers so R.J. can get to editing.  And I've already started writing the outline and describing new characters for the next in The Courier novel, which is still nameless.  NaNoWriMo here I come.

No writing this weekend though.  I plan to sit in a comfy chair and read God Emperor of Dune.  HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND ALL!!

Countdown to the 3-Day Novel Contest

This is a repost from The Courier's website.

Just wanted to quickly note that I've officially entered the 3-Day Novel Contest and am finalizing the outline today and tomorrow for the second book in The Courier Series.  

I've been thinking about posting how the contest is going on The Courier's website once or twice a day, but haven't made up my mind.  If I need to vent, I figure posting there is as good as in my journal, so drop by Saturday night if you'd like to check out how I'm doing.

I love the storyline I came up with for the second novel.  It is much different than book 1 and filled with lots of new characters.  It's all pretty exciting and I can't wait to get started on Saturday!

Ladybug Sightings

I couldn't remember the last time I'd seen a ladybug when I found one crawling through my hair over the weekend. Then I found another one this morning. It met me by the refrigerator as I gathered rice milk for my cereal and orange juice.

When something catches my eye and grabs my attention, I can't help but wonder what spiritual message I'm being sent.  So this morning it was off to the Internet to search for the meaning behind ladybug sightings.  I was pretty happy with what I found because it so perfectly suits where I am in life at the moment.  In summary, I feel my funky block melting away and now is the time for renewed creativity.  I felt it this morning, even before the second ladybug sighting, when I woke up to sparks of ideas for three new characters and more of the storyline for Warrant for Damnation. Exactly what I need while I finish preparing for the 3 Day Novel Contest.

If you are interested in learning more about ladybugs, here are a few things I've found:

"LadyBug Life, Rebirth, Abundance, and Hope. Lady bugs, a type of winged beetle, is a gardener's friend in keeping other more harmful bugs out of the flower beds. Lady bugs with their bright red shells and black spots carry the magic of rebirth. Red and black are the colors of thoughts and manifestation. Often Ladybug will appear to us when we have an opportunity to succeed, grow, and start something new. All of the beetle family transforms from larvae to adult, showing us we too can transform our lives. Ladybugs can consume large quantities of aphids and other harmful bugs which eat and destroy plants. When we garden with more conscientious we can be aware of this balance within the garden. Allowing nature to show us how it takes care of the pests, without the use of harmful pesticides and chemicals. So as Summer begins to fade into Fall watch for Ladybug to fly into your life. Let Ladybug consume your unwanted fears and encourage new adventures."  -- Raven Medium Website

"The Ladybug is associated with spirituality and religious devotion. The name Ladybug originated in Europe during the Middle Ages, when insects were destroying the crops. Catholic farmers were said to have prayed to the Virgin Mary for help. Soon after, Ladybugs appeared and began eating the pests and saved the crops from destruction. The farmers began to call the Ladybugs “the Beetles of Our Lady” and eventually they were known as Lady Beetles. The Ladybug's red wings are said to represent the Virgin's cloak and the black spots her joys and sorrows."

The Ladybug is widely considered a symbol of luck and is seen as a good omen when it comes calling. In Sweden, it is said that if one lands on a young woman's hand, she will soon get married. In France, it is said that if you are ill when one lands on you, it will fly away with your illness.

Ladybugs are also considered to be symbols of fire and the Sun.

Ladybug teaches life is short and it teaches to let go of ones' worries and fears, to trust in spirit and enjoy life. It brings the gifts of renewal and regeneration. The message of the Ladybug could be asking you to “Let go and let God”."  -- Montana Dreams Website

Are You Listening to His Messages?

Yesterday I began reading week 2 of The Artist's Way.  It's all about recovering a sense of identity.

"This week addresses self-definition as a major component of creative recovery.  You may find yourself drawing new boundaries and staking out new territories as your personal needs, desires, and interests announce themselves..."

I got to a section on crazymakers that I found as entertaining this time through as the last time I read it some ten years ago. 

"...those personalities that create storm centers.  They are often charismatic, frequently charming, highly inventive, and powerfully persuasive.  And for the creative person in their vicinity, they are enormously destructive.  You know the type:  charismatic but out of control, long on problems and short on solutions."

Rather than quote more of the book, I found this fun blog post, Five Traits of a Narcissist or 'Crazymaker' you must drop by and read.

I've tried to steer clear of these types of people, but I've sure put up with my fair share, some way longer than I should have.  Lately though, I've cut them out of my life as soon as I've figured them out.  It almost became a necessity after I started dealing with some health issues, thank you God, that are almost gone.  So I figured I wouldn't have much to work on in the crazymaker arena. 

LOL!!  I ran into one the very next morning.  A few doors down from our home.  Now ROFLOL!!

It was almost like God sent her to me to say, "Hey!  Wendy!  I guided you back to The Artist's Way for a reason.  Now go back and read that section again." 

I don't really feel it's necessary to go into the details of the crazymaker encounter because the message was sent and received.  Am now headed back to read that section again.

Morning Pages

The first thing you've gotta get used to doing while following The Artist's Way are the morning pages.  Every morning the program requires that you write three pages of the first things that comes to mind.  I'm three days in and wondering why I stopped the brain dump journaling so many years ago. 

I used to do my morning pages on the bus ride into Downtown Denver every workday morning and with coffee on the weekends.  I think I still have the notebooks around the house somewhere.  I remember working for Qwest (U.S. West at the time) as a project manager back then.  It was the most stressful and irritating job I've ever had.  In hindsight, doing the morning pages probably saved my sanity.

Anyways, after dumping just 9 pages, I can feel the clutter in my brain chipping away, WHOORAY!  Funny thing is though, I don't remember what I wrote.  You're not supposed to go back and read over it.  So I have to ask myself, how insignificant is the stuff I let clutter up my brain?

Okay, I'm Blocked...Now What?

If you read Tuesday's post, I complained that another year has passed and I'm not happy with my publishing progress, like I complain most years around my birthday.  By the way, it was an amazing birthday.  Thanks you so much to everyone who sent me happy birthday wishes.  You're all wonderful!!  Anyways, it turned out to be the best birthday gift I could have given myself, being critical that is.  It finally got me to admit that I'm going through the dreaded "writer's block," which I prefer to call "the funk."

Hey, we all go through it at least once in our careers, right?  For me this is trip number two through the thick gunky dark bottleneck of writer's block.  I didn't recognize it at first because I've still been writing, which is why I feel this is more of a funk than a block.  It's the low number of new words and frustration with editing that were the first clues I ignored.  The second clue is the pages of The Courier that are sitting in the word processor, ready for release on Twitter and the website, but I just can't bring myself to copy and paste it in.  Third clue, doing lots of research for Bloodleggers and avoiding connecting with my main character, Miss Regina Todd. Oh, yeah, and there's the whole wanting to quit thing I've written about in the Bloodleggers and The Courier blogs.

So what now? I asked myself before I rolled out of bed yesterday.

First thing I did was pull one of my favorite books off the shelf that I keep handy for such emergencies.  It hasn't seriously come off the shelf for ten plus years though. The Artist's Way got me through a pretty "funky" rough spot back then.  All it took was a quick read through the introduction and I realized that I have more than writer's block.  This is also a spiritual disconnect.  This quote alone in the margin of the book spoke to me and confirmed it.

"I myself do nothing.  The Holy Spirit accomplishes all through me."

--William Blake

I don't want to go into too many details on the spiritual disconnect today, but after reading the introduction to The Artist's Way, I needed some spiritual guidance.  So I went searching for the nearest spiritual book I could find, which around here could be connected to about any religion.  Beside me was Jefferson's Bible and The Koran and neither were quite appropriate for what I was seeking out.   So I walked into the living room and found a quick read, The Essence of Happiness, A Guidebook for Living by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Howard C. Cutler, M.D.  This is a tiny little book my sister gave me years ago.  It sits on an end table in our living room between a statue of Jesus and The Buddha.  I try to read this book whenever I feel my life path is being distracted by anger or other negative emotions.  I read it, and to make a long story even longer, I found this passage inspiring.

On a personal level, being open and sharing things can be very useful.  Because of this nature I can make friends more easily, and it's not just a matter of knowing people and having a superficial exchange but of really sharing my deepest problems and suffering.  And it's the same thing when I hear good news, I immediately share it with others.  So, I feel a sense of intimacy and connections with my friends.

So I've decided to share my journey in the midst of my "funk" here in my blog.  Mostly it'll be connected with 12 weeks of following The Artist's Way, which is also, as the title states, "a spiritual path to higher creativity."  I'll be sharing lots of the negative, lots of the positive, and lots of spiritual talk that will be connected to about every religion and philosophy on Earth, past and present.  It all depends on where The Universe and God decide take me. 

I don't want to make this just about me though.  If any other writers out there are experiencing what I am, and you want to pick up a copy of The Artist's Way and join me, let me know.  I'd love to include links to your blog or make my blog available to you if you need a place to vent.

And so the journey begins...

Domain Names Finally Moved to Blogger

I finally made the big move.  This blog, The Courier, and Bloodleggers are now on their respective domans pointing to the Blogger blogs at:

• http://www.wjhoward.com
• http://www.thecouriernovels.com
• http://www.bloodleggers.com

And FYI, I'm not updating the Wordpress blogs anymore.  Unfortunately I can't forward them here, but there are links to the Blogger blogs over there.

I Think I Need a Vacation from My Computer

In case you hadn't noticed, the blog design has changed. Did it Friday. Just couldn't bring myself to get on the computer for most of the day. Then when I did, I could only concentrate on doing something distracting. So I paged through the btemplates.com website for nearly two hour.  After I turned the darn thing off on Friday, I didn't turn it on all weekend.  So I actually forgot I changed the template, duh, and it still needs a few changes to the CSS, like the link colors, which blend in with the other text.  I'm not sure what some web designers are thinking.

Anyways... What'd I do instead?  Glued my attention to the TV, watching movies and a Law and Order marathon.  By the way, loved From Paris with Love with John Travolta.  What FUN!  Like Jason Stratham's movies.

I've actually been spending more time away from the computer since I started a strenuous workout regiment--three plus hours of exercise a day--about a month and a half ago.  I think it's harder to sit in one place for an extended period of time when the body conditioning improves. 

Besides that, sitting in front of the bright screen, switching between windows, writing new storyline and editing can kinda give me Restless Body Syndrome. 

I realized this morning, after turning on my laptop and letting out a long hard sigh, that I've not been using some of my other techniques for writing and editing:

• I've written most of my first draft novels on a hand held recorder I take out with me on dog walks.  Months ago I replaced the recorder with books on CD, which has been a great way to do research at least.  I'll be doing some book reviews over on Bloodleggers this week on the great books that are really getting the creative juices flowing.
• I used to do most of my editing on paper before sitting down with the word processor to make changes.  I've got a notebook sitting next to me just filled with red pen.  Actually purple.
• All my ideas for a story were once written in a paper notebook.  Used to write drafts (mostly short stories) in a paper notebook too while on the bus or in a coffee shop.  Lately all I put on paper are notes and shopping lists.

I'm always crabbing about all the distractions on a computer.  Going on a computer vacation might not be such a bad idea, at least for part of the day.   Only problem is I feel like I'm doubling my work by writing it on paper and then transcribing from there.   More sighs.

But then again, I now have bouncing globe telling me to update my computer, and I just posted a link over on Vamplit Writers.  I won't mention all the other stuff I also did while writing this post.  Even more sighs.  And now I'm back here, finishing up the post.

I'll end this by saying the last paragraph just proved my case.  I'm off to find some paper.

I'm Lovin' Tumblr

Just wanted to let everyone know that I've settled into tumblr at http://wjhoward.tumblr.com/.  

Funny, but after I announced that I'd only be posting my writing status here in my blog, I found that Tumblr is the perfect replacement for the Writer Wednesday Blog Hop.  So as I find interesting blog posts and articles, I'm posting a link over on my Tumblr page, which automagically posts on my Twitter and Facebook accounts as well. 

If you have a Tumblr account, drop by and follow my page and I'll follow you back.

I've Been Thinking

I was up kinda late last night, thinking about what I'd write about today. No...make that over thinking about what to write. So I didn't actually fall asleep until around midnight. After the fact, I probably should of gotten up and just wrote this damn post, but I didn't, and now it's 9:30 A.M. and I'm finally writing it. Let me warn you in advance that you might get snared in the babbling a bit.

So what did I think about. Mostly about not writing in this blog anymore. Lately I've seen a lot of posts in other blogs with advice on what to write in a blog. Number one (or maybe two :-)), don't write about yourself. I have to say I can't argue with this way of thinking. I also have to say I glance over other blogs where people rant on like I was or just talk about themselves. This includes writing about the struggles of writing. It's what I do for a career, right? So by writing about writing, I'm essentially writing about myself. Except of course if I'm writing about writing from a technical perspective, and guess what? There are lots of other people who write about writing and publishing, and I love reading their blogs, but I personally have no interest in doing it myself.

So I thought about how much time I spend blogging, yet again. If you've read my blog in the past, I've been complaining about this for awhile. And the answer is TOO MUCH TIME! I get sick to my stomach when I think about the amount of time lost on blog posts when I could be writing fiction. But, I've decided not to dwell on it. Reason? I also thought about popular writers who've written over ten books. Not many of them feel the need to blog regularly, yet here I am with three blogs. Well, technically two. The Courier's blog is the actual book. Another reason I've decided to not sweat it is because I'm a toddler when it comes to fiction writing. I'll admit I don't like to always think of myself as such a youngling because I wrote nonfiction for so many years, but they are completely different animals. So trying to portray myself as a seasoned author or give advice about fiction writing really seems absurd considering I'm not even published.

I really sorta figured it out last night while finishing up the parts of Mary Kay's book I wanted to read. These are some of the wisest words I've ever heard:

"We fail forward to success."

I'm not a professional blogger. I'm a fiction writer. I want you readers out there to read my fiction, not my life story. So, struggling every week to add content to this blog is one of my failures because I'm not producing what I want you to read. Admitting your failures is a huge step, and so now I breath a sigh of relief and give up this blog. Well kinda. The whole format will basically change/return to a home base with links to my fiction accomplishments. Sorry, but this also means the Writer Wednesday Blog Hop ends, although I'll add influential links as I find them.

So, in closing, I leave you to go do what I long to do...write fiction...

You Can Do It!

A few pages into Miracles Happen, The Life and Timeless Principles of The Founder of Mary Kay Inc., Mary Kay Ash tells a story about the responsibilities she had to take on during her childhood as a result of her father's illness. At the age of seven she had to take care of the household while her mother worked long hours outside the home. I don't know about you, but at the age of seven my greatest worry was the next outfit I'd put on Barbie. So reading her words, that her mother would "go through every step, one at a time, trying to think of everything I need to know. I hadn't been raised to be a complainer, but I'm sure she knew that my job sometimes seemed overwhelming. Because when she was through with her instructions, she always added, 'Honey, you can do it.'" was inspirational in so many ways. Hearing those four words over and over again, day after day, how could she grow up and not succeed?

When I read that excerpt, I highlighted the text and marked the page. I've gone back and read her quote at least fifty times in the past couple weeks. I especially find it helpful during editing, when I'm ready to walk away from a paragraph I just can't get right. I go back and give it a tenth or twelfth try and eureka, it comes out right.

The Goals Thicken

Sorry everyone, but no more whining and complaining on Mondays, which means the Weekly Whine has officially retired. I have to thank Mary Martinez on Mysteries and Margaritas in her post Mary's Rants - Take the whine out of writing. Basically, complaining gets us nowhere, so I'm shifting my Monday focus to the positive.

What better place to begin that looking to the future. Now that half the year is essentially over, I've decided to focus on my goals for the remainder of 2010. I did a crappy job of following through on 'em the first half of this year and don't want a repeat for the second half. So I'm sharing with you the start of the goals I've set.

#1 - Finish releasing book #1 of The Courier by July 31st. I actually have the damn thing done, but it needs some minor editing for the first release on Twitter and the website.

#2 - Finish editing The Courier by October 31st. I'd prefer to get this done by September 30th, but added in another month just in case.

#3 - Complete Bloodlegger parts at least one month prior to its release on Blood Reads. R. J. and I made this promise together so that we don't get stressed out with each new deadline and release. FYI, the first part, written by R. J., releases in a couple days, on June 30th, and I'm pretty excited. The part I wrote release on July 14th.

#4 - Enter the 3 Day Novel Contest and write the second of The Courier novels. I know, I know, I said no more contests. This is different though. I'm doing it to get the first draft of the novel written and could care less if it places in the contest.

I've got a few others I'm still working through and will share them next week.

Oh, I'm also starting a blog hop support group for us crazy writers to help each other reach our goals. More to come tomorrow.