%%USERNAME%%    %%ACCWORDS%% %%ONOFF%% |
 |
A place for random thoughts, ideas, and fun! |
|
What really goes on in Amy's brain? I'll use this space to share more about myself and my interests, journal some of the more exciting goings-on in my life, and work through some of the writing ideas and dilemmas I'm wrestling with. Enjoy! Movie Review Mondays . . . if you watch a film after reading a review, please come back and let me know what you thought!    |
| Here's a snippet of the project I've been working on for ... ohhhhh 5 years now? It's nearly finished! Contemporary YA retelling of As You Like It (Background to scene: earlier that day their melancholy philosopher of an English teacher had initiated a discussion of determinism vs. free will) Gabe sat, warming his hands on his latte mug and staring at the milky leaf design. “But seriously, was it really free will?” he asked, picking up the thread of Touchstone’s earlier exchange with Jaques. The debate had shifted focus and they’d never quite finished it, but it hadn’t been far from his mind since leaving class. It wasn’t something he’d ever thought about. He hadn’t been raised with any sort of religious background, so the idea of a deity determining his fate was unfamiliar and even uncomfortable. Now, he’d spent the whole day thinking about gender and determinism versus free will, like some kind of teenage philosopher. “What do you mean? Didn’t we already do this?” A raindrop fell from Touchstone’s hair and plopped onto the tabletop. Huffing, he swiped at it with his sweatshirt sleeve. “I mean, how could it be, if it was predetermined? We talked about sexuality in class, but you know I was thinking about gender identity. Maybe it’s free will that leads us to act on our feelings, but think about it. Genes may have caused my body to grow this way. I can’t change anything on a genetic level, I know that much. But the rest of it? Was it predetermined that I’d be trans? Is there something in my DNA that said, ‘we gave you this body, but it’s not who you really are’?” “Pffft, don’t get me started with the whole ‘God doesn’t make mistakes’ bulls***,” Touchstone said just a bit too loudly. A pair of young moms with squirmy toddlers turned and glared at them. “I’m not sure that’s what he meant—” Orlando started. Touchstone leaned in and whisper-yelled, “Oh, come on! That’s exactly where that argument stems from. God gave you the DNA, the DNA made you who you are, end of story, you blasphemer!” Gabe kicked him under the table. “Calm down, Señor Quixote.” “Well let’s say God didn’t make a mistake, and you were meant to be trans all along?” Orlando added. “And that’s where the question of determinism versus free will comes in,” Gabe reminded them. “Nope!” Touchstone chirped, popping the p sound. “Because choosing to hide or act is still free will.” The dregs of Touchstone’s Frappuccino rattled through his straw as he slurped. With deft fingers, Orlando flicked a chocolate chip across the tabletop. “Getting dizzy from the circles over here, guys,” he said. Touchstone picked up the rogue chip, which had skimmed across the table and bounced off his knuckles. He inspected it, then popped it in his mouth, chewing thoughtfully. “But isn’t that the whole purpose of philosophical conversations?” Touchstone asked. “Gross.” Gabe cringed. “Not if you’re trying to actually find an answer.” He leaned closer to Orlando in their booth, letting their shoulders brush together. “Awwww. So cute! Uncle Touchstone is so proud.” “Shut up.” He kicked Touchstone under the table again. “Ow! Don’t bruise the merch!” Touchstone pouted. “What I really want to know is how many other kids sit around after school talking about f***ing philosophy?” Orlando rolled his eyes, but he was laughing. “Only the elite, my friend. Only the elite.” Touchstone blew him a kiss. |
| I've been AWOL from writing.com for several months. Life, writing, and work have all exploded for me ... mostly in a good way! I was hard at work, editing Like It or Not, when a Facebook friend posted that her independent author services company was looking for proofreaders and beta readers. Wait ... what!? Get paid for doing what I love? So I applied, and was asked to complete two samples--one for proofreading, and one for beta reading. After looking at the samples, she offered me a job doing developmental editing, which is like a dream come true for me! They don't get too many dev edit projects, so I've been doing beta reading in between dev edits, but I'm absolutely LOVING my work! My editing has taken a bit of a back seat, as I have a tough time balancing everything. I'm between jobs right now, and I've been trying to get Like It or Not finished, after getting a beta read from my friend who co-owns the company I work for. Soooo ... LesCourt Author Services specializes in gay romance, so that's how I've been spending my days.  In my personal life, I passed a milestone birthday that left me feeling off-kilter. It was mitigated somewhat by the sense of accomplishment I feel from my work, but it brought up a lot of anxiety. So I let it pass without marking it in any way. I've become very involved with our local Shakespeare Festival. Not on stage, though I did have a cameo in The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) [revised] this summer. That has been amazing for building community, and is just a ton of fun. My kids are ... whew! Growing up! Dr B has a wonderful boyfriend and is making plans to move with him sometime in the next several months. Goldilocks is at our local community college, studying early childhood development. She's matured so much over the last few years. Her explosive emotional meltdowns are gone, though emotional moments and anxiety still bubble up. She's finally driving (yesssss!) and also has a part-time job at a frozen yogurt shop. Her goal is to transfer to a 4 year school in another year or so. Slow going, but she needed to get her feet under her, get her emotions under control, and learn how to be a successful student. Monkey has his driver's permit!!! He's so freaking grown up I can't stand it! He's a sophomore in high school, goes to the gym regularly, and is thinking about doing pre-med in college. His first choice is MIT (not aiming too high!) and then UCLA. He needs to get his own social/emotional drama under control if he wants to have any chance at that, but we'll see. I honestly was NOT expecting the social drama from him but ... wheeeeeew! I think he's been worse (or at least more consistently emotionally wrought) than Dr B or Goldi ever were! What else? Oh! We got a cat. We were not getting a cat. But last summer a mama cat had kittens under a bush in our friends' yard. I took the kids over to see them, because Monkey is cat crazy. And I fell in love.  I was having anxiety attacks over not seeing this kitten again. His name is Oliver (he came to us with the name Speedy) and he's a partially long-haired tabby. I don't know why the photo I tried to upload keeps uploading upside down, so no photo for now because I'm out of time!  And Dareng  has been living with us since November. He moved back out here for a job, and is still working on getting his feet under him. We love having him here.  Of course! |
 Log in to Leave Feedback |
View Portfolio
Visit Notebook
Send Gift Points
Awards
Badges
Send Email
Community Newsfeed
General Discussion
Sponsored Items
Book of Trinkets
Static Items
Books
Groups
Interactive Stories
Audio
Campfire Creatives
Community Notes
Crossword Puzzles
Documents
Folders
Images
In & Outs
Madlibs
Photo Albums
Polls
Product Reviews
Quizzes
Survey Forms
Web Pages
Word Searches
Oliver.