i missed Writing Prompt Monday again. *sigh* and i HAVE a calendar. and a cell phone. this is embarrassing.

okay, well, dwelling in the past only leads to carbuncles, so let's pretend i'm not a complete shillyshallier and move on:

this week's writing prompt:
http://pixdaus.com/?sort=tag&tag=lighthouse

ah, yes. the iconic lighthouse. lighthouse legends are romantic, ghostly, and the keepers swathed in a mist of nobility and sacrifice, not to mention eccentricity. all kinds of ripe for storytelling. peruse these photos and see if you don't start musing on something with hooks and crannies--and i'm not just talking about the salty sailors. ;) (http://pixdaus.com/single.php?id=73948)
 

here's what i wrote on my facebook page after a friend goosed me about neglecting my prompting duties:
"ack!! i completely forgot--it's House's fault. i blame him and his stinking 2-hour premier that had me all weepy by the end. okay, here's one: you discover that the one quality that makes you different from everyone else is actually caused by a parasitic fungus growing in your brain. it will kill you eventually--and horribly--if you don't have it eradicated through invasive chemotherapy, but if the treatment's successful, you're stuck with the possibility of brain damage on top of losing that special something about yourself.
okay, i watch too much House. :)"

yes, yes. not only did i forget to find a proper prompt for the week, i decided to cut and paste the one i pulled out of my ass. now THAT's lazy.


 

i've moved my computer back into the second bedroom, where i fudged together an office of sorts to write in a couple of years ago. i had shifted out to the living room months ago because i missed hanging wih my honey, but my productivity's for crap. i'm one of those people who can't concentrate with distractions, it seems. i feel isolated spending time in the back bedroom, but i have to choose priorities, and i keep putting writing on the back burner.

my output dribbled to a stop, and now my confidence suffers with it. i have the potential to be a strong writer, but i'm not there yet with story structure and discipline, and i'm not sure at all i'm going to beat the odds and end up a working novelist.

along with the flaccid productivity, i've enrolled in a writing class at the community college. i haven't submitted my best work, but still i hoped to find encouragement and some notice from the instructor, but that's not happening, either. i'm feeling pretty puny in the world of writing, to be honest.

what's interesting, though, is i feel no hesitation with hanging in there. quitting writing has crossed my mind, but only in a fleeting wisp--a mental fart that wafted away and good riddance to it. i'll never be satisfied as a hobby writer--i want to sell stories, to get my work out there to as many people as possible--but it's comforting to realize i'm unafraid to stick it out for the long haul. i may not publish my first novel before i finish school and find a teaching position at some small university somewhere, but i have faith enough in myself to believe i can make it happen if i really want to.

so, i'm back in my lil office--with my electric buddha, my desk fan, my lumpy footrest. back to climb back on that fiction pony and ride until it bucks me off. giddyap, motherhumper.
 

hi, all--

this month's writer's digest special issue is on writing prompts and creativity. woop! here are a few to hold you until you can get to the store and check it out for yourself:

"During his third night out of town, a traveling businessman discovers a voodoo doll in his hotel room."

"Out of curiosity, a medical student attempts to reanimate her dead cat."

"While on a camping trip, a little boy strays from his family and happens upon a carnival in the middle of nowhere."

"A little girl turns into an elephant."

i'll probably be listing more a few at a time--let me know if any of them strike you.

 

you've probably heard of (or participated in, even) the National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo)? if not, check it out here:

http://www.nanowrimo.org/

the founder and organizer, Chris Baty, also wrote a guide to writing a novel in 30 days: "No Plot? No Problem!" (isbn#0811845052): http://www.amazon.com/No-Plot-Problem-Low-Stress-High-Velocity/dp/0811845052/ref...

gimmicky, right? but it works. if you follow the guide and the spirit of the adventure, you'll have a complete story arc reaching 50K words by the end of november. it'll need a lot of work before it's a finished novel, but you'll have written down the bones of the thing--amazing. several well-known writers have completed novels this way, and even better, published them. (you'd have to visit the nano site for details on that.)

i've completed NaNo projects for the past two years, and i'd assumed i'd be working on editing the two novels i have, rather than racking up yet another unfinished novel to store away and stare at. i sigh a lot, staring at my unfinished novels. i kept telling myself that i need to buckle down, get these done before haring off on any new, exciting writing adventures.

but then, i asked myself, "why be so hard on myself, self?"

so, what? i've got two unfinished novels waiting for me. november comes around once a year, and the momentum i get from sharing the crazy with hundreds of thousands of people all over the world results in huge amounts of writing. it's stressful, and grueling, and . . . fun!

plus, professional writers often gross a higher daily word count than the nano requires (about 1700 words a day, i think--don't trust me to get the math right), and experiencing that level of output is invigorating. even if it is crap. doesn't matter!! (well, it matters in the long run, but in the first-draft stage? naw. not so much.)

so, what'd i decide for this year? i can feel november looming, its domed head breaching the calendular horizon. what should i do? splurge in another month of abandon, of creative whimsy and ludricrous plot twists? or buckle down, be responsible, trudge along on my existing novels which cry out for help in feeble whimpers from my laptop files? i think we all know which way i'm leaning right now.

and you know what? i can always buckle down eleven months of the year. that's where i need to improve my work ethics, dammit. November's for NaNoWriMo!!!! who's with me???
*picture me astride a fidgety horse with my face in war paint, a tartan draped over my shoulder*
 

http://video.msn.com/?mkt=en-us&vid=264135ad-9838-437c-a3cd-fd11a5bffe0...

working in retail most of my adult life, i haven't spent many labor days at home. it's a pity, because i believe labor day should be a holiday for every single worker in the country. i think we can last a day without gasoline, groceries, movie theaters, restaurants and shopping. the idea that labor day is a great day for blockbuster sales is insulting to me.

labor day is the one day of the year americans remember the effort and sacrifices working folks made to improve life for the common man--reasonable working hours, better wages, restricted child labor, SAFER working environments. the weekend didn't exist before the labor movement demanded one. people worked twelve+ hour days seven days a week. imagine what your life would be like now if these people hadn't stood together and demanded better from their government. hurrah, labor day!!!

i hope you're able to relax and enjoy this day of remembrance and celebration for working people all over the country. and if you're working today, i salute you, and invite you over for a nice brat when you're done.
 

one of the courses i'm taking is a beginning short story writing class. i started the same class five years ago--which resulted in the beginning inklings of my nascent novelling efforts--but dropped out before the end of the semester. i was afraid to find out i wasn't really a writer; i couldn't face the possibility of failure. i'm better at failing now, having worked hard enough and developed writing skills to the point i can accept sucking in the short term if that means i'll eventually reach competence in the long term. so, i'm taking the class again.

yesterday, we received our second assignment: the internal monologue.

so, five years ago i breezed through this one. if you goto my portfolio and look for "clean dead steve", you'll find my first effort. this time, though, i'm having trouble staying inside the character's head. i keep wanting to jump outside and set scene, or move plot forward. is that a sign i'm more or less developed as a writer? or neither? maybe i'm just more opinionated as a writer, now. hunh. we'll see how it turns out. i imagine i'll post whatever drivel falls out onto the page.
 

okay, not so much. i mean, have you seen my teachers? but damn, am i excited to be taking classes again!! i'm a little freaked, taking on 4 classes on top of my measly part-time slacker job and keeping the writing going on top of it. i haven't tried this much since, well, ever. i don't think. i've taken classes before, while working full-time, but the writing variable is the killer. how to keep enough juice in the tank to write after a long day of slogging? haven't figured it out yet. but, i'm only a week into the semester. i'll get there. i've noticed i historically respond well to a larger workload--gets me off my ass and going. color me . . . ACTION GIRL!!!!
 

i like writing that sinks me into another perspective, one that i might not experience on my own. i was trolling poetry sites, and came across this one:

"I, too, sing America.

I am the darker brother.
They send me to eat in the kitchen
When company comes,
But I laugh,
And eat well,
And grow strong.

Tomorrow,
I'll be at the table
When company comes.
Nobody'll dare
Say to me,
"Eat in the kitchen,"
Then.

Besides,
They'll see how beautiful I am
And be ashamed--

I, too, am America."


"I, Too" by Langston Hughes


I'd forgotten about this poem, but it hits just as hard as the first time. Love it.