One of Abby's favorite shows is The Wonder Pets. For those of you not hip to the toddler TV trends, The Wonder Pets are three preschool classroom pets--a duckling named Ming Ming, a turtle named Tuck, and a guinea pig named Linny--who rescue baby animals from various quandaries after the preschoolers have gone home for the day. There's lots of singing--it's sort of opera-ish, where they sing instead of talking (though not always) and the theme of the show is always teamwork--they always work together to save the baby animal, and always employ some outside-the-box solution which they used previously to put together the Fly Boat. It's a cute show, overall, despite the disturbing hints of gender identity issues Linny (supposedly a girl, but not quite) displays.
Anyway, I've been noticing lately how much Abby has picked up from this show. Anyone claiming kids aren't influenced by what they watch should just observe her for a week and see just how much--good and bad--she soaks up from this show. Some samples:
1. She's BIG into teamwork, which overall is a good thing, though not when you're trying to sweep or change the baby's diaper. She'll say, "I need some teamwork over here!" when she wants help, and while you're working together she'll make you sing the teamwork song from the show.
2. One of the episodes involved helping a baby rooster who didn't know how to crow loud enough to wake the farm. After they give him some suggestions, he says, "Okay! I'll cock-a-doodle do it!" This is now Abby's favorite thing to say.
3. Lately she's talked about "being in trouble." I was confused for the longest time about what she meant since we never refer to her as being in trouble and, as far as I could remember, none of the shows she watches have characters who get in trouble, either. But just the other day I remembered one of the lines to the theme song is "There's an animal in trouble somewhere!" I realized she always says it when she's stuck or unable to get something to work right--like today, when trying to get her shoe on. "Mama, I got my foot in this one, but I in trouble with this other shoe because it keeps closing!"
4. In one of the shows, Ming Ming and Tuck get in a fight and Ming Ming sings, "I'm not going to talk to you anymore!" Well, now every once in a while Abby sings the same thing, complete with dismissive head-toss. Oops.
5. The Wonder Pets always reward themselves with celery after a successful rescue. Now she eats celery. Woohoo!
6. Dozens and dozens of "Hey! Like on Wonder Pets!" that occur throughout the day--animals we see (like the cranes at the Wild Animal Park), instruments (there was a mouse in a saxophone once, then we saw a sax on Riverdance), etc. I'm stunned sometimes by the details she remembers. Just one more reminder to watch our p's and q's around her. She's soaking it ALL in.
Thursday, September 04, 2008
Catching up
My apologies for all the spotty blogging lately; there's been a ton on both my mind and my plate and I just haven't had the energy to sit and write anything. But now that we're back from our vacation in La Jolla (which, in all honesty, wasn't all that relaxing) I feel ready to at least post some updates.
First off--make sure you received my newsletter from August 17th. If you know you signed up but don't think you got it, check your spam and it should be there. If you aren't sure if you signed up, go ahead and do it again--the system is smart and won't list you twice, so if you're already signed up you're not going to start getting multiple copies of the newsletter. And if you haven't signed up, then you can do it right now--just put your email address in the little box up there in the right-hand column and click the wee button. When your submission goes through I'll send you a copy of the August newsletter, and if you want you can read the the June issue in the archives.
Second off--I have officially begun working on book #4, and since I'm sick and tired of calling it Book #4, I hereby dub it with the working title of "Guilt." Though, to be completely accurate, I actually haven't started working on the book itself--I've just started the marketing for it. That's a kick--filling out a marketing packet for Zondervan for a book that doesn't exist yet except in my snowflake notes. Which ROCK, by the way: of the 5 things Zondervan (hereby called Z) requested in the marketing packet, 3 of them were steps in the snowflake and are thus already completed. A little cut-n-paste and I'm done. Woohoo! Unfortunately, one of the other things it asks for is 15-20 pages of completed manuscript that is representative of the whole of the book, and since I haven't started writing yet I am not only short 15-20 pages, I am clueless as to what section of the book would actually *be* a good representative of the whole. The marketing stuff is due in to Z on Oct. 1 so I've got some time to sort it out. And who knows--given how comprehensive the snowflake is, I may have half the book done by then! Wouldn't that be a trip?!
Third off--If you're ever in San Diego, you've GOT to go to the Wild Animal Park. We went the other day and had so much fun! Though I did learn some things:
1. The Wild Animal Park is nowhere near the Zoo, which is, of course, in San Diego. It is in Escondito, which is inland quite a bit. Therefore...
2. ...when planning a trip to the Wild Animal Park, do NOT check the weather in San Diego and get all excited at the thought of a nice day in the mid-70's and decide to wear jeans. Because when you get to Escondito it will be 93 degrees and you will feel like a giant sweating pig by hour #3.
3. Bring strollers for ALL children. Do not assume that the forward-facing carry you read about online will work with your sling and that your baby will want to be in it all day, thus freeing up the stroller for your toddler. And when you're on the Safari Walk for 45 minutes and are going up the third hill, your toddler is going to want to ride, or else be carried, and then you're really stuck.
4. Prepare to be pleasantly surprised by the prices. No, it's not cheap, but it's not highway robbery the way some places are. And their kids' meal is awesome! (Though the bees will want to sample everything, too, which makes for a sort of dicey eating experience.)
Giant sweating pig-ness aside, it was a fantastic day and we can't wait to go again. It's only about an hour from us here in RSM, and since we have annual Zoo passes we get free admission and parking, so there's no reason for us not to go back a bunch, especially before the crowds start picking up. We went on the day the public schools all started classes, so the place was really empty, and the parking attendant said it's usually pretty empty through October. We're going to just keep an eye on the Escondito weather and head down there on cool days.
The only two things Abby said she wanted to see while we were there were, "a cat and a giant chicken." All the big cats were in hiding because of the heat, but we did see some meerkats, which she seemed happy with:
And while there were no giant chickens to be found, there were flamingos aplenty:
We also saw gorillas during feeding time--the trainer was atop their rocky enclosure and dropped whole bell peppers, corn on the cobs, and carrots to them, prompting Abby to say, "I want to be a monkey so you can throw food at me!" And there were tons of elephants, including one giving himself a bath, which Abby really enjoyed watching. Next time we go we're going to take the safari bus tour--can't wait for that!
First off--make sure you received my newsletter from August 17th. If you know you signed up but don't think you got it, check your spam and it should be there. If you aren't sure if you signed up, go ahead and do it again--the system is smart and won't list you twice, so if you're already signed up you're not going to start getting multiple copies of the newsletter. And if you haven't signed up, then you can do it right now--just put your email address in the little box up there in the right-hand column and click the wee button. When your submission goes through I'll send you a copy of the August newsletter, and if you want you can read the the June issue in the archives.
Second off--I have officially begun working on book #4, and since I'm sick and tired of calling it Book #4, I hereby dub it with the working title of "Guilt." Though, to be completely accurate, I actually haven't started working on the book itself--I've just started the marketing for it. That's a kick--filling out a marketing packet for Zondervan for a book that doesn't exist yet except in my snowflake notes. Which ROCK, by the way: of the 5 things Zondervan (hereby called Z) requested in the marketing packet, 3 of them were steps in the snowflake and are thus already completed. A little cut-n-paste and I'm done. Woohoo! Unfortunately, one of the other things it asks for is 15-20 pages of completed manuscript that is representative of the whole of the book, and since I haven't started writing yet I am not only short 15-20 pages, I am clueless as to what section of the book would actually *be* a good representative of the whole. The marketing stuff is due in to Z on Oct. 1 so I've got some time to sort it out. And who knows--given how comprehensive the snowflake is, I may have half the book done by then! Wouldn't that be a trip?!
Third off--If you're ever in San Diego, you've GOT to go to the Wild Animal Park. We went the other day and had so much fun! Though I did learn some things:
1. The Wild Animal Park is nowhere near the Zoo, which is, of course, in San Diego. It is in Escondito, which is inland quite a bit. Therefore...
2. ...when planning a trip to the Wild Animal Park, do NOT check the weather in San Diego and get all excited at the thought of a nice day in the mid-70's and decide to wear jeans. Because when you get to Escondito it will be 93 degrees and you will feel like a giant sweating pig by hour #3.
3. Bring strollers for ALL children. Do not assume that the forward-facing carry you read about online will work with your sling and that your baby will want to be in it all day, thus freeing up the stroller for your toddler. And when you're on the Safari Walk for 45 minutes and are going up the third hill, your toddler is going to want to ride, or else be carried, and then you're really stuck.
4. Prepare to be pleasantly surprised by the prices. No, it's not cheap, but it's not highway robbery the way some places are. And their kids' meal is awesome! (Though the bees will want to sample everything, too, which makes for a sort of dicey eating experience.)
Giant sweating pig-ness aside, it was a fantastic day and we can't wait to go again. It's only about an hour from us here in RSM, and since we have annual Zoo passes we get free admission and parking, so there's no reason for us not to go back a bunch, especially before the crowds start picking up. We went on the day the public schools all started classes, so the place was really empty, and the parking attendant said it's usually pretty empty through October. We're going to just keep an eye on the Escondito weather and head down there on cool days.
The only two things Abby said she wanted to see while we were there were, "a cat and a giant chicken." All the big cats were in hiding because of the heat, but we did see some meerkats, which she seemed happy with:
And while there were no giant chickens to be found, there were flamingos aplenty:
We also saw gorillas during feeding time--the trainer was atop their rocky enclosure and dropped whole bell peppers, corn on the cobs, and carrots to them, prompting Abby to say, "I want to be a monkey so you can throw food at me!" And there were tons of elephants, including one giving himself a bath, which Abby really enjoyed watching. Next time we go we're going to take the safari bus tour--can't wait for that!
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Checkpoint 2
I'm so psyched. I just emailed my editor with my manuscript two days early! I didn't think I'd get it done before mid-September, but I miscalculated the number of chapters I had (if by miscalculated you meant 'mistook the 3 in "Chapter 23" to be an 8') so I didn't need as much time as I thought I would. But coming down to the condo definitely sped up the process. It's not like I don't have to make meals, or do laundry (diaper laundry, anyway), or take care of the kids, but for some reason I find more time here to work.
So the next step is to start working on the marketing pack for book #4--and actually start writing book #4. FINALLY.
So the next step is to start working on the marketing pack for book #4--and actually start writing book #4. FINALLY.
Sunday, August 24, 2008
Did you get it?
So it's been a week, and through the mighty powers of newsletter tracking, I can tell that some of you still haven't read your August issue of "Life in the Balance" yet. It's totally cool with me if you just haven't had the chance, or if you changed your mind and deleted it on sight, but I wanted to mention it in case it went to your spam without you knowing it. And if you haven't signed up for it yet and want to see what you're getting into when you register for it, then click here to read the latest issue.
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Mental illness and the church
A fellow writer and blogger, Julie Fidler, is currently working on a book about mental illness and the Christian church and needs a little help:
I'm writing a book about mental illness & the Church - what the Church has done right, what they've done wrong, what mental illness is, what it isn't, and how they need to improve in reaching out to the sick.
I'm looking to interview people with mental illness (depression and/or everything else!) who have stories to tell about their experiences with church and other Christians, both good and bad.
If you fit that description and would be willing to talk with her, you can contact her at julie.fidler@live.com. She also posted about this on her blog. She's pretty open about this on her blog, so I think it's okay for me to tell you that Julie herself has bi-polar, so you won't be talking to someone who is only working from a theory standpoint--she's been there, done that. Knowing that might make it easier for folks to contact her; you know she will relate to you in a way most of us never can. Good luck, Julie!
I'm writing a book about mental illness & the Church - what the Church has done right, what they've done wrong, what mental illness is, what it isn't, and how they need to improve in reaching out to the sick.
I'm looking to interview people with mental illness (depression and/or everything else!) who have stories to tell about their experiences with church and other Christians, both good and bad.
If you fit that description and would be willing to talk with her, you can contact her at julie.fidler@live.com. She also posted about this on her blog. She's pretty open about this on her blog, so I think it's okay for me to tell you that Julie herself has bi-polar, so you won't be talking to someone who is only working from a theory standpoint--she's been there, done that. Knowing that might make it easier for folks to contact her; you know she will relate to you in a way most of us never can. Good luck, Julie!
Saturday, August 09, 2008
five years
Today is Dan's and my fifth wedding anniversary. We agreed no presents, but he got me one anyway, the goof--a silver linked-heart necklace that Penny has not once tried to grab while nursing, long may it last. Like it?
We're in Ventura for the weekend, and right now we're watching the Angels (yay!) versus the Yankees (boo!) but my friend's husband is pitching for the Yankees (yay!) so its kinda hard not to cheer for him. He's doing really well, too (yay for him, boo for the Angels). Since we've gotten rid of cable we've never had the chance to see him pitch, so it's been a treat to see him on TV.
Thought I had wedding photos on this computer, but I guess not. I'll post one when we get back from Ventura...
We're in Ventura for the weekend, and right now we're watching the Angels (yay!) versus the Yankees (boo!) but my friend's husband is pitching for the Yankees (yay!) so its kinda hard not to cheer for him. He's doing really well, too (yay for him, boo for the Angels). Since we've gotten rid of cable we've never had the chance to see him pitch, so it's been a treat to see him on TV.
Thought I had wedding photos on this computer, but I guess not. I'll post one when we get back from Ventura...
Monday, August 04, 2008
Deep thought of the week
Mothers are proof that evolution did not bring us to where we are today. If it had, then by now we would have four arms, eyes in the back of our heads, and the ability to function on three hours of sleep.
Saturday, August 02, 2008
Toddler Spirituality, Part 2
Yesterday I took the girls to the RSM lake to meet up with some friends. While we were there we ran into a woman I was in a small group with back before Abby was born. After she left, Abby said, "Who that?"
"That was Miss Lori. Mommy knew her before you were born."
"Oh. I was with Jesus before I was born."
*boggle* "Um...really?"
"Yeah. Penny Jane was, too."
"PJ lived with Jesus too?"
"Yeah."
"Before she was born?"
"Yeah. He's gone now."
"Jesus is gone? Like, he's up in heaven?"
"Yeah."
We've never said anything to her about her living with Jesus before being born. I have no idea where she came up with the idea. Unless...
"That was Miss Lori. Mommy knew her before you were born."
"Oh. I was with Jesus before I was born."
*boggle* "Um...really?"
"Yeah. Penny Jane was, too."
"PJ lived with Jesus too?"
"Yeah."
"Before she was born?"
"Yeah. He's gone now."
"Jesus is gone? Like, he's up in heaven?"
"Yeah."
We've never said anything to her about her living with Jesus before being born. I have no idea where she came up with the idea. Unless...
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Toddler Spirituality
Abby's really into Jesus these days. One of her bedtime books is a collection of Bible stories about him written in very simply language. For the last week or so it's been the only book she wants to read at night (we typically read two), and she'll pick to a random title in the table of contents and we'll start there and read three of the stories. And then the other day she told Dan, "Jesus is coming over today. He's going to give me a hug."
I'm teaching her the Lord's Prayer. We were praying it at naptime, and then praying our usual prayer at bedtime, but now she asks for the "Our Father prayer" anytime we pray. I say a line and she repeats it, but she's getting a few of them a little wrong. It's so cute. For example, every time I say "thy" she says "my" (for some reason I memorized it in King James language). She also says, "deliver us from eagles." And every time I say, "Lead us not into temptation" she'll say, "Like Larry Boy!" (Thank you Veggie Tales.) And I started pronouncing "Amen" as "Ahmen" when we did the Lord's Prayer, and now if I say it with the long A sound like I used to, she'll say, "No, it's AH-men!"
Abby has heard me sing Penny Jane's lullabies enough that she's learning the songs (plus she's heard all the songs on her Praise Baby DVDs for the last year or so), so now she sings them whenever the mood strikes her. One of the songs' lyrics is "Hallelujah, hallelujah, God is love." Abby pronounces it, "Haba-you-yuh," and when she sings along with me while I'm trying to put PJ down it's always a struggle not to start laughing, I just love how it sounds.
I'm teaching her the Lord's Prayer. We were praying it at naptime, and then praying our usual prayer at bedtime, but now she asks for the "Our Father prayer" anytime we pray. I say a line and she repeats it, but she's getting a few of them a little wrong. It's so cute. For example, every time I say "thy" she says "my" (for some reason I memorized it in King James language). She also says, "deliver us from eagles." And every time I say, "Lead us not into temptation" she'll say, "Like Larry Boy!" (Thank you Veggie Tales.) And I started pronouncing "Amen" as "Ahmen" when we did the Lord's Prayer, and now if I say it with the long A sound like I used to, she'll say, "No, it's AH-men!"
Abby has heard me sing Penny Jane's lullabies enough that she's learning the songs (plus she's heard all the songs on her Praise Baby DVDs for the last year or so), so now she sings them whenever the mood strikes her. One of the songs' lyrics is "Hallelujah, hallelujah, God is love." Abby pronounces it, "Haba-you-yuh," and when she sings along with me while I'm trying to put PJ down it's always a struggle not to start laughing, I just love how it sounds.
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Pens, highlighters, and notecards at the ready...
Guess what this is?
That is my third novel, Reinventing Rachel, all 192 single-spaced pages of it. It is due in two months. Tomorrow I'm going to begin my edits. Woohoo! I love being this far ahead of the game. All I need to do before I start is three-hole punch it, buy some highlighters, and pick up the editing flashcards (a.k.a. the checklists at the end of each chapter of Self-Editing for Fiction Writers) I had laminated today at Staples.
Now, if you've been paying attention, you know that I wasn't supposed to start editing until next week. Well, I decided to tweak my schedule a little. I finished the snowflake method for the fourth book a couple nights ago, but I decided not to start writing because I have a feeling I'm going to get really into it, and I didn't want to set myself up for frustration by starting something I wasn't going to be able to finish. I'd rather set the snowflake aside, edit ReRa, and then come back and reread the snowflake and insert the information I've gathered from the research I still need to do and then start writing. I also decided to take on a sewing project because I'm just not busy enough.
Wish me luck!
That is my third novel, Reinventing Rachel, all 192 single-spaced pages of it. It is due in two months. Tomorrow I'm going to begin my edits. Woohoo! I love being this far ahead of the game. All I need to do before I start is three-hole punch it, buy some highlighters, and pick up the editing flashcards (a.k.a. the checklists at the end of each chapter of Self-Editing for Fiction Writers) I had laminated today at Staples.
Now, if you've been paying attention, you know that I wasn't supposed to start editing until next week. Well, I decided to tweak my schedule a little. I finished the snowflake method for the fourth book a couple nights ago, but I decided not to start writing because I have a feeling I'm going to get really into it, and I didn't want to set myself up for frustration by starting something I wasn't going to be able to finish. I'd rather set the snowflake aside, edit ReRa, and then come back and reread the snowflake and insert the information I've gathered from the research I still need to do and then start writing. I also decided to take on a sewing project because I'm just not busy enough.
Wish me luck!
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Checkpoint 1
Today was the first checkpoint on my six-month schedule. I am happy (and surprised, frankly) to announce that I indeed finished mapping out the scenes for Book 4! (I really have to figure out a title for this book.) I didn't think I'd make it since I'd missed a big part of the process and had to set the scene stuff aside to go do it, but I actually finished it Thursday night. However, when I made that schedule I did so assuming I was going to skip the last step in the snowflake process, but I've decided to really stick to it and do it all the way. So I doubt I'll get the first 10% done by August 2 like I'd planned. But, then again, this whole experience has been one happy surprise after another so far, so who knows, maybe it'll work out.
Dan's brother-in-law is here with his family for the weekend. They're Las Vegas folks (North Las Vegas, to be specific) but they're Disneyland fanatics, so they're in town to purchase season tickets. I'm going to get pictures while they're here of their son Simon (who's 5) with Abby, because they look so much like siblings; same with their 6-month-old Gavin and Penny Jane. It's bizarre, really, how much they look alike. There is zero resemblance between me and my cousins, so it really cracks me up.
All the kids are in bed, Dan and Andrew are holed up in Dan's office playing XBox games, and Amber is, I think, tucking herself into the Aerobed, so I'm going to take advantage of the solitude and get going on the last step of the snowflake process. I can't say enough about this concept--if you're a novelist you absolutely MUST check it out. It's ten bucks and worth every penny.
Dan's brother-in-law is here with his family for the weekend. They're Las Vegas folks (North Las Vegas, to be specific) but they're Disneyland fanatics, so they're in town to purchase season tickets. I'm going to get pictures while they're here of their son Simon (who's 5) with Abby, because they look so much like siblings; same with their 6-month-old Gavin and Penny Jane. It's bizarre, really, how much they look alike. There is zero resemblance between me and my cousins, so it really cracks me up.
All the kids are in bed, Dan and Andrew are holed up in Dan's office playing XBox games, and Amber is, I think, tucking herself into the Aerobed, so I'm going to take advantage of the solitude and get going on the last step of the snowflake process. I can't say enough about this concept--if you're a novelist you absolutely MUST check it out. It's ten bucks and worth every penny.
Monday, July 14, 2008
What Abby said today
Abby: "I want a baby."
Me: "You want to *be* a baby? Or you *want* a baby?"
Abby: "I want a baby. In my beebo (bellybutton, a.k.a. tummy). I want to be a mommy."
The look on her face when she said it...oh my goodness, I nearly cried. It was so precious. She just looked so sincere.
Me: "You want to *be* a baby? Or you *want* a baby?"
Abby: "I want a baby. In my beebo (bellybutton, a.k.a. tummy). I want to be a mommy."
The look on her face when she said it...oh my goodness, I nearly cried. It was so precious. She just looked so sincere.
Check your email!
Go ahead, go take a look, I'll wait.
*insert elevator music here*
Did you see the friendly reminder from me and my newsletter? You didn't?! Oh dear--that means either:
A) It went in your spam folder--quick, go check! Is it there? Mark it as not spam so you don't miss anything else!
*OR*
B) You're not signed up for my newsletter. And really, what excuse do you have? You don't *like* insights into the writing process, or hearing about awesome women who are doing cool things to stay home with their kids, or entering ridiculously easy contests to win fantastic prizes? Maybe you just missed the sign-up box in the right-hand column of the blog, and just didn't happen to see the posts back in June about the first issue being sent out. It's okay, we all make mistakes. Go sign up and I'll forgive you. Then check out the archives to see last month's issue and to enter the contest!
And if you're thinking, "Waitaminit--I *did* sign up for the newsletter, but I never got it!" then that means it went to your spam, just like my reminder most likely did. Oops! The next issue releases in mid-August, so be on the lookout for it so you don't miss it. And until then, you can check the first issue at the archives.
*insert elevator music here*
Did you see the friendly reminder from me and my newsletter? You didn't?! Oh dear--that means either:
A) It went in your spam folder--quick, go check! Is it there? Mark it as not spam so you don't miss anything else!
*OR*
B) You're not signed up for my newsletter. And really, what excuse do you have? You don't *like* insights into the writing process, or hearing about awesome women who are doing cool things to stay home with their kids, or entering ridiculously easy contests to win fantastic prizes? Maybe you just missed the sign-up box in the right-hand column of the blog, and just didn't happen to see the posts back in June about the first issue being sent out. It's okay, we all make mistakes. Go sign up and I'll forgive you. Then check out the archives to see last month's issue and to enter the contest!
And if you're thinking, "Waitaminit--I *did* sign up for the newsletter, but I never got it!" then that means it went to your spam, just like my reminder most likely did. Oops! The next issue releases in mid-August, so be on the lookout for it so you don't miss it. And until then, you can check the first issue at the archives.
Saturday, July 05, 2008
The itch
Two nights ago I completed the last character sketch for my next book. I even modified the approach by writing each character's backstory in their own voice starting at the point where they enter the story. I think it helped me to create a unique voice for each one of them; I tend to make all my characters sound alike. (At least, I think they do.) The next step is to actually plot out every scene in a big spreadsheet. I love spreadsheets. I'm excited to have a reason to open Excel.
But.
The itch to start writing has begun to, well, itch. This is the point when I gave up on the snowflake method when writing Reinventing Rachel. Actually, if I'm honest, I slapped together some pretty half-baked character sketches for ReRa because of the dang itch, so it's safe to say I've gotten much further this time. I've never outlined with this much depth, and my little inner voice is complaining that this is too formulaic and all the creativity is getting sucked out of the process. Which is so not true. If anything, I'll be able to be MORE creative because I won't have to stop every five minutes to figure out where exactly I want this or that scene to go, what's going to come next, etc. But regardless, it's getting more and more difficult to focus on the process because I want to write already!
It's also not helping that I'm completely stuck as to how to start the story. I'm eager to get out my spreadsheet, but I don't have any idea what to put in it yet. Actually, that's not quite true--I do know about some of the scenes, but they're further on in the story, and I have a very hard time approaching a book in a non-linear way. (Diana Gabaldon, who writes the unputdownable Outlander series, supposedly writes her books by just writing random scenes and assembling them together later. I CANNOT fathom that process. Talk about messy!) Even though I have those scenes in mind, I can't bring myself to enter them into the scene spreadsheet until everything that's supposed to come before them is there. Maybe I'll be able to push myself in that area with the next book, but not yet.
So I'm wracking my brain to come up with the right entry point into the story, but I think once I do the story will unfold pretty easily. My revised schedule for the rest of the year (I can't believe I'm planning out six months worth of work; I've never planned out more than a couple weeks at a time!) is as follows:
July 19: scene spreadsheet completed
August 2: First 10% of story completed
August 3-31: edit ReRa and work on marketing ideas
September 1: turn in ReRa to Cook Publishing
September: 1-30: write 20% more of story (30% cumulative) and complete marketing pack for book 4
October 1: turn in marketing pack to Zondervan
October 1-31: write 25% more on book 4 (55% cumulative), work on ReRa edits with editor
November 1-30: write 25% more on book 4 (80% cumulative), work on ReRa edits
December 1-31: complete book 4, work on ReRa edits
If I can stick to this, then I can set book 4 aside for all of January, start outlining book 5, and then come back to book 4 in February to edit before turning it in March 1. Am I completely insane for thinking I can do this? Especially given holidays, and travel, and parenting, and life in general? I don't know, truly. We'll see. Right now, however, I need to figure out my opening scene for the book--and my next move on Scrabulous. Kari is kicking my butt.
But.
The itch to start writing has begun to, well, itch. This is the point when I gave up on the snowflake method when writing Reinventing Rachel. Actually, if I'm honest, I slapped together some pretty half-baked character sketches for ReRa because of the dang itch, so it's safe to say I've gotten much further this time. I've never outlined with this much depth, and my little inner voice is complaining that this is too formulaic and all the creativity is getting sucked out of the process. Which is so not true. If anything, I'll be able to be MORE creative because I won't have to stop every five minutes to figure out where exactly I want this or that scene to go, what's going to come next, etc. But regardless, it's getting more and more difficult to focus on the process because I want to write already!
It's also not helping that I'm completely stuck as to how to start the story. I'm eager to get out my spreadsheet, but I don't have any idea what to put in it yet. Actually, that's not quite true--I do know about some of the scenes, but they're further on in the story, and I have a very hard time approaching a book in a non-linear way. (Diana Gabaldon, who writes the unputdownable Outlander series, supposedly writes her books by just writing random scenes and assembling them together later. I CANNOT fathom that process. Talk about messy!) Even though I have those scenes in mind, I can't bring myself to enter them into the scene spreadsheet until everything that's supposed to come before them is there. Maybe I'll be able to push myself in that area with the next book, but not yet.
So I'm wracking my brain to come up with the right entry point into the story, but I think once I do the story will unfold pretty easily. My revised schedule for the rest of the year (I can't believe I'm planning out six months worth of work; I've never planned out more than a couple weeks at a time!) is as follows:
July 19: scene spreadsheet completed
August 2: First 10% of story completed
August 3-31: edit ReRa and work on marketing ideas
September 1: turn in ReRa to Cook Publishing
September: 1-30: write 20% more of story (30% cumulative) and complete marketing pack for book 4
October 1: turn in marketing pack to Zondervan
October 1-31: write 25% more on book 4 (55% cumulative), work on ReRa edits with editor
November 1-30: write 25% more on book 4 (80% cumulative), work on ReRa edits
December 1-31: complete book 4, work on ReRa edits
If I can stick to this, then I can set book 4 aside for all of January, start outlining book 5, and then come back to book 4 in February to edit before turning it in March 1. Am I completely insane for thinking I can do this? Especially given holidays, and travel, and parenting, and life in general? I don't know, truly. We'll see. Right now, however, I need to figure out my opening scene for the book--and my next move on Scrabulous. Kari is kicking my butt.
Monday, June 23, 2008
What's going on here right now:
Abby is cleaning the family room. No one asked her to, we weren't talking about how it needed to be tidied--we were just sitting here and she started picking things up and putting them away. And in the right places! Well, most things, anyway--the towel doesn't belong on PJ's playmat, but whatever. Dan and I are biting our tongues trying not to laugh or to catch her eye--she almost always stops doing cute things as soon as she discovers she's being watched.
Anyway...I can't believe she's doing this. Adorable. And very helpful.
Anyway...I can't believe she's doing this. Adorable. And very helpful.
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Vote for Tiffany!
I know Tiffany Hull from my days at Axis, the now-defunct Gen X ministry at Willow Creek. Her husband was my boss when I was the Axis administrator, and Tiffany sang with the band. I just reconnected with them of Facebook, and just found out Tiffany is this up-and-coming awesome singer/songwriter! (Not that I'm surprised.) Anyway, there's this big vote going on right now for bands to play at Lollapalooza, so go here and vote for Tiffany right now--the deadline for voting is tomorrow, June 22. There are four rounds and this is just the first--if she makes it to the next round I'll be sure to post so we can all go vote again. :)
Go Tiffany go!!!
Go Tiffany go!!!
Recording them for posterity...
Abby toppled off her training potty (which gets a lot more use as a stool than a potty), and said, "Whoa--that was scary."
Me: "Oh yeah?"
Abby: "Yeah--my tummy jumped!"
We walk into Dan's office the other morning and Abby points to the print he'd hung on the wall the night before after she was in bed (same picture shown on this t-shirt) and says, "Hey--that's Ron Paul!"
Abby and I had lunch with my mom the other day and Abby tried some of Mom's salad. When Dan asked her later what she had for lunch she said, "I had salad, but I didn't like it."
Dan: “No?”
Abby (leaning in close and whispering): “It was too juicy.”
Priceless. I love it.
Me: "Oh yeah?"
Abby: "Yeah--my tummy jumped!"
We walk into Dan's office the other morning and Abby points to the print he'd hung on the wall the night before after she was in bed (same picture shown on this t-shirt) and says, "Hey--that's Ron Paul!"
Abby and I had lunch with my mom the other day and Abby tried some of Mom's salad. When Dan asked her later what she had for lunch she said, "I had salad, but I didn't like it."
Dan: “No?”
Abby (leaning in close and whispering): “It was too juicy.”
Priceless. I love it.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Book tour: Copper Fire by Suzanne Fisher
Suzanne Woods Fisher’s just-released historical novel Copper Fire, is the sequel to the three-time award-winning Copper Star, a World War II love story inspired by true events. That wasn't her first writing gig, however. Fisher was a contributing editor to Christian Parenting Today magazine. Her work has appeared in Today’s Christian Woman, Worldwide Challenge, ParentLife, and Marriage Partnership. She has contributed to ten non-fiction books, including Chicken Soup for the Soul: Children with Special Needs. A wife and mother, Fisher lives in the San Francisco Bay Area and raises puppies for Guide Dogs for the Blind. The best thing about being a writer, she feels, is that all of life becomes material for writing. It’s all grit for the oyster.
Suzanne can be found at www.suzannewoodsfisher.com.
During the month of June, Suzanne is running a book-a-day-giveaway contest. To enter, scoot on over to her blog (www.suzannewoodsfisher.blogspot.com) to pop her an e-mail: Suzanne@suzannewoodsfisher.com
And now, for some random questions for our visiting author:
Q: Tell us about Copper Fire.
SWF: Copper Fire is the sequel to Copper Star, picking right up at the very end of World War II. On a summer day in 1945, my main character, Louisa, receives a telegram from the International Red Cross Tracing Service. She discovers that her cousin, Elisabeth, has just been released from Dachau. Louisa is determined to go to Germany to get Elisabeth…and that’s where the story begins.
Q: Who was the naughtiest kid in your elementary school and what did he or she
do?
SWF: A boy named Hugo who had hair like Bozo the Clown. He argued with everybody, including teachers. He’s probably a brilliant diplomat by now. All of that experience with conflict resolution.
Q: How do you get yourself out of a funk?
SWF: I try to distract myself so that I can see the situation more objectively. I pray a lot, too, and find that I receive wonderful counseling advice that way. Free, too!
Q: What is your motto?
SWF: “Everybody is talented, original and has something important to say.” Brenda Ueland, If You Want to Write (published in 1938), Graywolf Press
Q: Can you tell us what’s on your desk right now? What can readers look forward to?
SWF: In late August, Grit from the Oyster: 250 Pearls of Wisdom for Aspiring Writers, will be released from Vintage Spirit. I wrote Grit with three other very talented authors.
And another piece of great news! I just received a contract from Revell/Baker for a non-fiction book called Amish Peace in an English Life. It won’t be out until 2010…but ‘everything Amish’ is filling up my head right now.
Thanks for letting me visit, Alison!
Find Suzanne on-line at www.suzannewoodsfisher.com
Copper Star (ISBN: 0-9793327-4-5) and Copper Fire (ISBN: 978-0-981-5592-0-9) are available at Amazon or other on-line booksellers, at Suzanne’s website, or can be ordered through your favorite bookstore.
Suzanne can be found at www.suzannewoodsfisher.com.
During the month of June, Suzanne is running a book-a-day-giveaway contest. To enter, scoot on over to her blog (www.suzannewoodsfisher.blogspot.com) to pop her an e-mail: Suzanne@suzannewoodsfisher.com
And now, for some random questions for our visiting author:
Q: Tell us about Copper Fire.
SWF: Copper Fire is the sequel to Copper Star, picking right up at the very end of World War II. On a summer day in 1945, my main character, Louisa, receives a telegram from the International Red Cross Tracing Service. She discovers that her cousin, Elisabeth, has just been released from Dachau. Louisa is determined to go to Germany to get Elisabeth…and that’s where the story begins.
Q: Who was the naughtiest kid in your elementary school and what did he or she
do?
SWF: A boy named Hugo who had hair like Bozo the Clown. He argued with everybody, including teachers. He’s probably a brilliant diplomat by now. All of that experience with conflict resolution.
Q: How do you get yourself out of a funk?
SWF: I try to distract myself so that I can see the situation more objectively. I pray a lot, too, and find that I receive wonderful counseling advice that way. Free, too!
Q: What is your motto?
SWF: “Everybody is talented, original and has something important to say.” Brenda Ueland, If You Want to Write (published in 1938), Graywolf Press
Q: Can you tell us what’s on your desk right now? What can readers look forward to?
SWF: In late August, Grit from the Oyster: 250 Pearls of Wisdom for Aspiring Writers, will be released from Vintage Spirit. I wrote Grit with three other very talented authors.
And another piece of great news! I just received a contract from Revell/Baker for a non-fiction book called Amish Peace in an English Life. It won’t be out until 2010…but ‘everything Amish’ is filling up my head right now.
Thanks for letting me visit, Alison!
Find Suzanne on-line at www.suzannewoodsfisher.com
Copper Star (ISBN: 0-9793327-4-5) and Copper Fire (ISBN: 978-0-981-5592-0-9) are available at Amazon or other on-line booksellers, at Suzanne’s website, or can be ordered through your favorite bookstore.
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Happy Father's Day!
Happy Daddy Day to all the papas out there. Hope you got lots of hugs and breakfast in bed. Or whatever floats your boat. :)
Saturday, June 14, 2008
The newsletter launches tomorrow!
We have articles! We have inspiration! We have contests! Really, what else could you ask for in an author newsletter? Readers and writers alike will find something of interest and benefit in this bi-monthly offering. Sign up here on the blog (check out the right-hand margin) or on my website. You don't want to miss it!
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