Monday, October 22, 2007

Finished!

I still find each day too short for all the thoughts I want to think, all the walks I want to take, all the books I want to read and all the friends I want to see. ~John Burroughs

I wrote 968 words yesterday and have finished my short story, "Kitchen Matches". Phew!! I was so worried, and I didn't know how I wanted it to end. I hope it's believable that the H/H fell madly in love so fast, as I'm not a big fan of that particular plot point, but it seemed to be what the characters wanted.

So... 12,658 words long. And I'm sending it off to my wonderful writing buddy shortly to tear apart. If it doesn't work, she'll let me know.

Just wanted to celebrate.

Note to Dru: You asked me, "After you've finished with the two writing challenges, what do you do with the stories? Do you send it out to publishers?

My answer? Sometimes.

My 2005 NaNoWriMo novel is the one recently contracted by Samhain. It needed much editing prior to submission, but NaNo helped me get down the bones -- a sh***y first draft (to quote Anne Lamott). My 2006 NaNo novel was finished, but just didn't work for me. I didn't like the heroine. And if I didn't like her, it's doubtful a reader would. BUT, I loved my hero, his roommate and a few other secondary characters. I even loved the town I created. So I'm giving him a new lady (A cat lady, to be precise) and he will once again star in my 2007 NaNo novel, with a working title of "The Cartoonist and the Cat Lady".

This short story I just finished will be submitted to The Wild Rose Press. I think it's a good story, and I want to share it. Do I submit them all? No. But I don't ever completely abandon something. There was a reason I liked it, so I just have to dig around until I find it and then use that particular thing in another piece of writing.

And that was probably far more than you wanted to know!!

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I just got my second round of edits for Liv, so I'll be working to get those out by the end of October (pre-NaNo... my editor **waves to Eve** is very understanding about my desire to NaNo, so is helping to work around that. I owe her flowers and chocolate--deep, dark chocolate). Don't know what I'm going to work on for Sven today -- instead of one of my novels (I've been away from them for a bit, so would really have to reaquaint myself, and I don't know that I want to do that for only 8 days of work), I may pull out one of my many unfinished short stories and see what happens. 8000 words on a short or two could be a big deal!

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There's a new contest starting today at LASR Romance Reviews -- the author we are interviewing tomorrow has donated THREE things for the weekly giveway! What a lovely lady. And, psssttt.... one of them is an AUTOGRAPHED book!

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What Your Halloween Habits Say About You

The scariest thing on Halloween is you! You definitely don't want any kids in costumes crossing your path - and you're willing to scare away any who do.

You like to think of yourself as naughty. But compared to most people, you're actually quite mild.

Your inner child is open minded, playful, and adventurous.

You truly fear the dark side of humanity. You are a true misanthrope.

You're prone to be quite emotional and over dramatic. Deep down, you enjoy being scared out of your mind... even if you don't admit it.

You are picky and high maintenance. If you wear a Halloween costume, it's only when you really feel like it. And it has to be perfect.


Okay, some of this is true. I DO fear the dark side of humanity -- deeply. I do tend to be emotional and dramatic, lol. I don't think I'm naughty, tho. And high maintenance? Ha. Not even. My DH tells me regularly that he's glad he's married to me and not to most other women because I'm easy to deal with.

You?

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

I got:

The scariest thing on Halloween is you! You definitely don't want any kids in costumes crossing your path - and you're willing to scare away any who do.

No one quite understands you, but everyone also sort of worships you. And that's exactly how you like it.

Your inner child is stubborn and a bit bossy.

You truly fear the dark side of humanity. You are a true misanthrope.

You're prone to be quite emotional and over dramatic. Deep down, you enjoy being scared out of your mind... even if you don't admit it.

You are picky and high maintenance. If you wear a Halloween costume, it's only when you really feel like it. And it has to be perfect.


Some of that's true. Some is just laughable. *g*

Melissa McClone said...

I got the same as Marianne and Tori:

You're a friendly person, but not the life of the party. You like making someone else's day - and you'll dress up if you think of a really fun costume.

Sneaky and devious, people should really watch out for you. You are usually underestimated and forgotten.

Your inner child is open minded, playful, and adventurous.

You truly fear the dark side of humanity. You are a true misanthrope.

You're prone to be quite emotional and over dramatic. Deep down, you enjoy being scared out of your mind... even if you don't admit it.

You are a traditionalist with most aspects of your life. You like your Halloween costume to be basic, well made, and conventional enough to wear another year.


Yep, some of the stuff is very close!

Brandy said...

I got the same thing as Melissa. It was neat to have a Halloween quiz. *g*
I don't think it'll hurt you if you don't "work" for Sven one day! After all, it's something you voluntatily do, not something you are contracted to do.

Have a pleasant evening!

Allie Boniface said...

Congrats on finishing your story!!

Dru said...

Congrats to finishing your story.

Thanks for explaining what you do with your writing challenges.

For the quiz, I got

A bit of an introvert, you like the special occasions just as much as everyone else. You just have your own unique way of celebrating Halloween.

You like to think of yourself as naughty. But compared to most people, you're actually quite mild.

Your inner child is full of wonder and very sweet.

You fear people taking advantage for you. You are always worried about protecting your own interests.

You're logical, rational, and not easily effected. Not a lot scares you... especially when it comes to the paranormal.

You are picky and high maintenance. If you wear a Halloween costume, it's only when you really feel like it. And it has to be perfect.

Ceri Hebert said...

Because I Said So...Diane Keaton and Mandy Moore. The "model" is Gabriel Macht. Totally adorable.

Congrats on the writing! I'm soo stuck!

Jen said...

Congrats on finishing Kitchen Matches!