Writing and Vomit...

If you can imagine it you can create it. If you can dream it, you can become it. - William Arthur Ward

It's amazing how different working with a story you like is from working with one you don't. I didn't like my NaNo story, and it was agonizing to get the words I needed. I'm working on a short story right now and had received some feedback that I wanted to incorporate -- it gave me an idea for a scene that would expand the story by a couple of pages -- so I sat down to write it.

At first, it wasn't easy, but this was the time I'd set aside to write, so I wrote (&^$%#&$). I got the general idea for the scene down, even if the words weren't perfect, and then went upstairs for coffee (yes, it was the afternoon - but I'd been up since 2:30 a.m. and was getting a little fuzzy - have I mentioned that I hate my husbands job?).

When I came back downstairs and settled in, I had one line in my head that I wanted to write that changed the timing of the scene a little. So, I wrote it and then I wrote more and more and virtually vomited words onto the screen. They just flowed (and, ugh, I got a serious visual just now).

The thing is, I really like this story. WW rejected it, but I wasn't ready to let it die. I like my characters, I like the general idea. I didn't like the fact that there wasn't as much conflict as I'd prefer, but that's being fixed.

When you have good characters that you love and that seem to click together, everything begins to fall into place, doesn't it?

But, speaking of vomiting, do you ever feel like doing so when you send your work off for critique to someone whose opinion you deeply respect (I ♥ you, D...)? Do you dread its return? Do you look at the document for a really long time and consider never opening it because you don't want to see what they say (because you're certain that your writing is all crap)?

Tell me it's not just me. Tell me I'm not the only completely neurotic person in the room... please?

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Note to Charity: Yes... send the snapshot and then tell me how the heck you did it.

Note to readers re: Note to Charity: She told me that my story at Wild Rose Press is the bestseller in its line, and took a snapshot of it! Woo!

I looked, and it's the number six bestseller overall. Not too shabby... I went over there yesterday and bought several stories (research for submission to a different line -- at least that's what I'm claiming when DH asks). Unfortunately, I paid using PayPal's eCheck, and can't get the downloads until it "clears" -- geez, use cash, get punished. Next time, it's all about the credit card.