Monday, October 30, 2006

Getting there.

Well, my hand is cramping, so I'm taking a break from copying down my notes. I'm about to start copying down my religion, which, hopefully, shouldn't take that long. Then I have to copy down character notes. Then, I'll finally be able to put some pencil to paper.
Still on the down side, but on a different subject: I have to work today...ugh. I'd rather be writing. Or reading. Or watching tv. Or smashing my hand with a mallet until my fingers turn purple.
And now, for a spot of sunshine! Tomorrow is Halloween! Tomorrow afternoon I'll be donning my pirate gear and swashbuckling my way over to my friends house. We will have fun, and I won't have to work and we'll have a blast. I might be so hyped up on sugar that when I log into my freewebs account I actually demolecularize my body and enter the system, becoming nothing but an electronic pulse, flying through my computer before bouncing to someone else's and soon all over cyber space, and taking on viruses with a slash of my plastic pirate sword and a force of will that could move a house, but I'll try to post a coherent entry.
So, to everyone, have a Happy Halloween. And be hospitible, let the boogeyman under your bed have some punch.

Ah, crap!

I was going through my worldbuilding notes on my computer yesterday, changing this, editing that, fixing the little problems with cultures that clashed where my ideas changed from when I started to when I finished--my mind does that...I think it's normal...I hope it's normal. Finally, I finished it, and sat back to read over what I'd added. I thought, Wow, I'm pretty close to getting started on this book. That was when the realization hit me.
I don't have a printer.
I DON'T HAVE A PRINTER!!
I've always known this. Don't get my wrong, I'm not crazy. All I do is spend most of the day playing out stories of fictional characters in my head and listening to voices. Nothing crazy about that. Sometimes, I get in a broody mood because something in my fictional world isn't fitting right, and I don't talk much for a couple of days. That's perfectly normal.
But I got off subject. What I was saying was, I don't have a printer. When this realization hit me, I let out an aguished cry of fury so loud that Dumbo--locked away in that secret Disney vault--had to put corks in his flappy ears.
See, without a printer, I can't print off my notes. Without notes, I can't write my story. The same problem presents if I write my story on the computer. I can't print it off. Besides, I can't write at home. When I'm a home, my parents, my brother, and several thousand other distractions affect the way I write, my coherency, and my concentration. So I had to hand copy all of my notes--around 30 pages!!--into what was originally meant to be my idea book, which was cast aside the minute after I said, "Okay, this'll be my idea book."
The moral: Don't tempt fate. If you say something will be, absolutly, the nasty lady will figure out a way to make it not so.
Now, back to copying things down by hand.

Saturday, October 28, 2006

Victory!

I'd be dancing right now if I weren't so tired. I finally--yes, finally!--finished the Zhivtor religion. It's now at least useable. I've got to finish my world map and design the characters and then I get to actually write!! I'm so excited. And the best news, I might be able to start soon, tomorrow's my day off.

Thursday, October 26, 2006

Update!

Hey everyone! I just wanted to pop in a let everyone know that I'm adding two links to the Links page. One is to a website called The Seven Stones. The other is called The Silent Woods. Both are awesome sites run by authors my age. Aurelen and her friend, Annie Bananie, are both working on novels and they post updates every now and then about how it's going so far. If you like finding out about people who write, you'll think these sites are cool. It's interesting to see how they come up with ideas and how they get work done. Check out their sites--it's worth the look. Well, that's all for now. I've got to hammer down some details in my characters' religion and language and go to the store for food.
Oops, forgot to mention I updated my profile and fixed my age. Now it's right!

Wednesday, October 25, 2006

With a big sigh, I push ever onward.

The internet is not good for people who should be writing. I've spent most of the day tweaking something here or there on my site, making it up to look nice and pretty, and because of this, the only thing I've done today is come up with a few words for Zhivtor's language.
Today has been pretty busy anyway. Besides having to go to school until noon, I had to give someone a ride home, then go to the store for groceries, then go to work for a couple of hours. I've only been getting a couple of hours at work a night. On the one hand, I'm glad about it, because I get to go home and I don't feel like I wasted the whole night, but on the other hand, I wish that things would pick back up. We need to money to pay the bills, which are piling up faster than I care for.
Hopefully things will pick back up soon and I won't have to worry about it, which will let up some of the writer's block I've been suffering. With so much pressure at school and home, my mind can barely think of anything to write, and it's driving me crazy. Oh well, worrying over.
By the way, is the new layout spiffy or what?

Monday, October 23, 2006

Progress, but little.

With a deep sigh I report that I got very little done. I had to work today. I can't wait until I have more free time. Hopefully my schedule will clear up in the near future. Wish me luck.

Saturday, October 21, 2006

Real Life...what a drag.

Well, I was clipping along, doing pretty good with my story. I started hammering down my characters religion, and I was about to start developing characters when Life called. I've been doing homework and slaving at my job. *Sigh*, I just hope that this lets up eventually. I want to get back to work. I miss writing. I've even got to work tomorrow. Well, wish me luck.

Monday, October 16, 2006

A Moment to Rant

I was surfing the internet today and I saw article by several writers. They talked about how they wanted write, how they wanted to publish, and then they followed up with how they say it's impossible to get published today.
That is the biggest load of bull I've ever heard in my life.
I agree with this article, and it's by one of my favorite authors. She's been an inspiration for me when I get down and I can't seem to get the words I need.
I'm tired of people who whine and complain that the odds of publishing are impossible. Your damn right they are! They are so large, that it sometimes frightens me to think about what attempting this career means. I might have to sacrifice a lot of time, a lot of energy; I'll have to face rejection many times, I'll cry over rejections, I'll stress and fear that I've lost my ideas, that I don't have any talent, that I'm a hopeless cause that will never make it.
But I'll keep on.
I'll keep on because I've dreamed of being a published writer since I was seven when I drew my little booklets and gave them to my mom. I'll keep on because it's my dream and I'll get it. I'll persevere, and I'll never give up. I'll take every rejection and file it away and I'll take any suggestions and I'll hone my talents and I WILL NEVER GIVE UP. You see, to reach your dreams, you have to persevere. If you do this, you'll make it. You just to believe. Read the above linked article for more on this subject, and a nice perspective on the publishing odds. Trust me, it's worth the read.
Remember, you have to believe, you have to persevere, and you can't give up on your dreams.

*comment is from Holly on Dec. 31, 2006 at 10:53 AM--transferring the old blog over to blogger wouldn't fix comment times.

Friday, October 13, 2006

STILL No Writing

The worldbuilding on my world is fun, but I actually can't wait to write the story. On the plus side, I designed the outfits of the mineral miners and a basic idea of the Holy Ones and the Rock Creatures. This is coming together nicely. Now, when I do some character building, some design some more to the cultures--at least as much as I'll need for now, and do some outlining for my story, I'll be good to go. But now, sleep. It's been a long day, and I'm tuckered out.
Oh, and more good news, tomorrow is my first day off of work all week, and I'm going to see our local football team. They've got a homecoming game on Friday the 13th--how unlucky can you get? And then, one of my friends is coming over, so this weekend I might not get anything done. But I'm not worried. It's coming together so good, I'm actually kinda scared. What if I run out of steam before I actually start writing? What if I develop this amazing world, and I can't come up with a good storyline to go along with it, or strong, believable characters? Well, with fingers crossed and a prayer on my mind I sign off--I guess I'll just have to hope and see.
By the way, HAPPY FRIDAY THE THIRTEENTH!

Tuesday, October 10, 2006

I also took the Personality quiz.

Your Personality Profile

You are dependable, popular, and observant.
Deep and thoughtful, you are prone to moodiness.
In fact, your emotions tend to influence everything you do.

You are unique, creative, and expressive.
You don't mind waving your freak flag every once and a while.
And lucky for you, most people find your weird ways charming!

I took the brain test.

Your Brain is 47% Female, 53% Male

Your brain is a healthy mix of male and female
You are both sensitive and savvy
Rational and reasonable, you tend to keep level headed
But you also tend to wear your heart on your sleeve

Deep Stories

Wow. All I can say is...wow. I've been building my story. It's developed into a really complex and--hopefully--interesting story. It's about old magic that's been lost, lies, and the struggle for freedom. I'm really liking what I'm getting. Now, if I can finagle out a nice, deep cast with as many twists as the story seems to have, I'll be in business. I'm really excited about this one!

Monday, October 9, 2006

School, work, and life...*sigh*...

Well, it's one of those days. I'm not going to get much done on my work today, because I've had to go to school, and I've still got to hit a nap before I go to work. But, my goals are high and my hopes are higher. Hopefully, I'll be able to wrap up my worldbuilding and all my pre-novel work and get to actual writing by the end of the week.

Eureka!

Just when I thought that my story was about to crash and burn, I started getting frustrated. I went through my old files and found a story that had started going no where because the world was flat and lifeless. Then, BOOM!, suddenly I got an idea. What if the two stories could be combined together to make a whole new story? And I tried it. The two stories fit together and offer a lot more history, a lot more background, and a lot more depth to the world. Now, if I can pull this off, I might have a winner here. Wouldn't that be fun?

Sunday, October 8, 2006

More Worldbuilding

I'm still worldbuilding. I got a lot done today. I got a lot of culture done, designing the peoples religion and their history. That's important for the story. I also started on designing a language. I have to design two and make a variant off of the first.

Everything's going good, but I've got some trouble hammering out the details of the history. I know there's a way to get it all to work together, but everything I come up with sounds really cliche, so I scrap it and do something else. Ugh. Oh well, back to the grind stone. I won't get any work done over the next two days. I've got school and work. Ugh, again.

0 Work Today...

I didn't get anything done today. I decided to spend the day with the family, since I have to work tonight, and it's one of my few days off. Anyway, hope I get some work done tomorrow.

Saturday, October 7, 2006

Cool! it works!

Awesome, it works! Well, I got a great idea for a story while I was working on my other one. I got straight to work on it, drawing the map, developing the history of the world, creating cultures, conflicts, and all that good stuff. I'm exhausted though. I got off work at 9:30, and spent from then until now working on my story. I finally stalled out, and my vision is blurry. I'm tired, so I'm going to bed. More tomorrow.