(no subject)
May. 1st, 2011 01:48 am | |
Like to write? Love writing poetry? Great! There is a new challenge, called ![[profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small} lastpoetstanding, where you write a a poem every week based on a different style of poetry prompt! Then they get voted on and the person with the least votes is out that week and the person with the most is safe the next week till you have one author standing who wins! What do you win? A snazzy graphic and 3 free skips for the next round if you sign-up! You don't even need to be a GREAT poet! | |
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Like to write? Love to write Original Fiction? Great! There is a new challenge, called originalfic_las, where you write a story of at least 100 words every two weeks based on a different prompt and where all pairings, including slash, is allowed! Then they get voted on and the person with the least votes is out that week and the person with the most is safe the next week till you have one author standing who wins! What do you win? A snazzy graphic and 3 free skips for the next round if you sign-up! You don't even need to be a GREAT writer! | |
Last poet standing is starting up soon, and I'm ready and geared to go. Here we go... again!
(no subject)
Apr. 6th, 2011 07:08 pmLast night, after what felt like weeks, I was laying in my own bed again and unable to sleep, again, and the combined tiredness and lack of anything else to do made my thoughts wander. I thought about how I had just managed to get my phoenix badge, something I'd been working at and waiting for forever, which lead to me thinking about writing, which lead to me thinking about the past and the future and myself.
Whenever my Grandma starts telling people that I write stories and such, she brings up how when I was a little kid, before I could even write a long sentence, I'd pace back and forth in the kitchen and she'd write down what I was saying. She'd listen and write for me, and half of those stories I think she kept. Maybe she kept all of them.
Which lead me to thinking about how I had once been unable to type quickly, resorting to a finger-pecking type of writing, a rather slow and painful process. Since I would write long things, it would take forever and be rather annoying during it. I couldn't write as fast as I could think. It was rather annoying, in many respects.
But then I took a computer class, in Monroe Middle School, and if only one good thing came from that place, it was that typing. I began learning how to properly put your fingers, and how to look at the screen and not the keyboard and to just trust my fingers. I learned that the J and F keys had the little bumps on them, and those were my two steering wheels. I finally managed to play the keyboard like a pianist. It was wonderful.
So Mom told me about a word program and I found it, and pulled it up, and soon I was typing. A lot. Most of the stories never were finished, maybe never will be finished, and perhaps the characters have changed their faces and names and hide in new, other stories of mine. I wouldn't doubt it - they were very clever characters, and sometimes I am a very stupid writer.
But I wrote, and wrote and wrote and read, and sometimes my resolve would waver. But one thing remained - I wanted to write. I wanted to be a writer. I was afraid I'd lose my stories, so I'd start another one as soon as it came to me, but now I know differently.
I was thinking about one day, when I was working on a story, maybe one of the few that got half-finished, and I remembered the enthusiasm I had as I wrote. It got to the point that I felt like I was flying. I was grinning the entire time.
So I laid in bed, eight or nine years later, wondering about that girl. Has she died, and like Clive Barker says, is but a tombstone now, or is she still there, running and laughing in the forests of my mind? Has she turned into a bird and spread her wings, flying away from me in search of some new person to roost in? Or is it more than that? Maybe a part of her still clings to me, a droplet of idea from a sea of stories.
It made me think, as well, of a town Mom and I went through when we were going to Traverse City. A small town, the main street looked a little like Monroe's downtown, maybe when it had been more alive. It was by a large river, and we were waved at by a person. And it made me wonder if I'd ever see it again, if the town was still well, who else had passed through it, who had waved at me. If they were well.
And I had the thought of just growing wings, of feathers bursting from all my body and my feet turning to claws and shape shifting into a falcon and just flying, flying over the town and all over America and finding towns and cities and all those places that so many people don't get to see. I would fly until I'd seen it all, flown down every highway with nothing to stop me, until I made it back to Monroe.
But then I still wouldn't be content, and I'd have to see every one of my favorite places as a human, and still, I would have to travel all my life, and every last second of it I'd be happy, knowing I was free.
I don't know why that one line of thought lead to the other, but as I was in bed, dog next to my legs and snoring peacefully, cats on either side of me and quiet as shadows, I felt like I could almost feel it, almost feel wind under wings and laughter as I didn't have to stay in one place, not any more.
Maybe that's what happened to that girl, the girl I was eight or nine years ago. Maybe a little piece of me broke free and grew wings, laughing as she did it, and flew and flew and is still flying.
Maybe one day I'll catch up with her.
Whenever my Grandma starts telling people that I write stories and such, she brings up how when I was a little kid, before I could even write a long sentence, I'd pace back and forth in the kitchen and she'd write down what I was saying. She'd listen and write for me, and half of those stories I think she kept. Maybe she kept all of them.
Which lead me to thinking about how I had once been unable to type quickly, resorting to a finger-pecking type of writing, a rather slow and painful process. Since I would write long things, it would take forever and be rather annoying during it. I couldn't write as fast as I could think. It was rather annoying, in many respects.
But then I took a computer class, in Monroe Middle School, and if only one good thing came from that place, it was that typing. I began learning how to properly put your fingers, and how to look at the screen and not the keyboard and to just trust my fingers. I learned that the J and F keys had the little bumps on them, and those were my two steering wheels. I finally managed to play the keyboard like a pianist. It was wonderful.
So Mom told me about a word program and I found it, and pulled it up, and soon I was typing. A lot. Most of the stories never were finished, maybe never will be finished, and perhaps the characters have changed their faces and names and hide in new, other stories of mine. I wouldn't doubt it - they were very clever characters, and sometimes I am a very stupid writer.
But I wrote, and wrote and wrote and read, and sometimes my resolve would waver. But one thing remained - I wanted to write. I wanted to be a writer. I was afraid I'd lose my stories, so I'd start another one as soon as it came to me, but now I know differently.
I was thinking about one day, when I was working on a story, maybe one of the few that got half-finished, and I remembered the enthusiasm I had as I wrote. It got to the point that I felt like I was flying. I was grinning the entire time.
So I laid in bed, eight or nine years later, wondering about that girl. Has she died, and like Clive Barker says, is but a tombstone now, or is she still there, running and laughing in the forests of my mind? Has she turned into a bird and spread her wings, flying away from me in search of some new person to roost in? Or is it more than that? Maybe a part of her still clings to me, a droplet of idea from a sea of stories.
It made me think, as well, of a town Mom and I went through when we were going to Traverse City. A small town, the main street looked a little like Monroe's downtown, maybe when it had been more alive. It was by a large river, and we were waved at by a person. And it made me wonder if I'd ever see it again, if the town was still well, who else had passed through it, who had waved at me. If they were well.
And I had the thought of just growing wings, of feathers bursting from all my body and my feet turning to claws and shape shifting into a falcon and just flying, flying over the town and all over America and finding towns and cities and all those places that so many people don't get to see. I would fly until I'd seen it all, flown down every highway with nothing to stop me, until I made it back to Monroe.
But then I still wouldn't be content, and I'd have to see every one of my favorite places as a human, and still, I would have to travel all my life, and every last second of it I'd be happy, knowing I was free.
I don't know why that one line of thought lead to the other, but as I was in bed, dog next to my legs and snoring peacefully, cats on either side of me and quiet as shadows, I felt like I could almost feel it, almost feel wind under wings and laughter as I didn't have to stay in one place, not any more.
Maybe that's what happened to that girl, the girl I was eight or nine years ago. Maybe a little piece of me broke free and grew wings, laughing as she did it, and flew and flew and is still flying.
Maybe one day I'll catch up with her.
(no subject)
Apr. 1st, 2011 08:46 pmHello, wow, yeah, I still use this. I'm tired as all hell, but whatever.
Still working at the nursing home! It's not bad, a lot of the ladies seem to like me. I've had one person even say I'm really good at it. So it was a good little ego boost.
I'm reading The Art of War for Writers and it's really helpful. It makes the whole getting published thing seem like a possibility, and I know I can finish novels, NaNoWriMo helped with that. So yeah.
I mentioned I was a writer to a lady at the grocery store, and she seemed really impressed. It kinda gave me a little ego boost, which I really needed today. I read on Advice for Writers that most people saw writing as a kind of magical thing, and maybe they're right.
I have to stop writing about writing, now, and actually get to writing.
Still working at the nursing home! It's not bad, a lot of the ladies seem to like me. I've had one person even say I'm really good at it. So it was a good little ego boost.
I'm reading The Art of War for Writers and it's really helpful. It makes the whole getting published thing seem like a possibility, and I know I can finish novels, NaNoWriMo helped with that. So yeah.
I mentioned I was a writer to a lady at the grocery store, and she seemed really impressed. It kinda gave me a little ego boost, which I really needed today. I read on Advice for Writers that most people saw writing as a kind of magical thing, and maybe they're right.
I have to stop writing about writing, now, and actually get to writing.
(no subject)
Dec. 10th, 2010 10:54 pmEvery day it seems like it gets darker. I know why it is, and I know that it'll lighten up eventually, but it's lazy and depressing weather. It's finally started to actually snow - not a lot, and it doesn't stay on the ground for long, but maybe we'll get a White Christmas. I'd like that.
I'll probably do the Christmas Meme - I'll always feel a little guilty/shy when I do that, though. I know it's silly, other people do it without batting an eye, but I don't know if I'll be able to get other people presents.
I've felt kind of stalled with my writing, but I've started trying to get back into it. It's not a lot, and it's nowhere near the stuff I wrote on NaNoWriMo, but dammit, I'm working on it. I guess it's just showing that Writers are lazy creatures and that we're as easily distracted as a butterfly with ADHD.
I've been sleeping at odd hours, but... well, I don't have a job, so it's not as horribly inconveniencing as it could be.
Could be worse. But I'm starting to get a bit of cabin fever. Mom's going to a union meeting tomorrow, so I'll tag along and probably bring a book and read. Dresden will probably get left at home, since it's winter and getting colder out.
I've been playing Echo Bazaar. It's excellent and engrossing.
I'll probably do the Christmas Meme - I'll always feel a little guilty/shy when I do that, though. I know it's silly, other people do it without batting an eye, but I don't know if I'll be able to get other people presents.
I've felt kind of stalled with my writing, but I've started trying to get back into it. It's not a lot, and it's nowhere near the stuff I wrote on NaNoWriMo, but dammit, I'm working on it. I guess it's just showing that Writers are lazy creatures and that we're as easily distracted as a butterfly with ADHD.
I've been sleeping at odd hours, but... well, I don't have a job, so it's not as horribly inconveniencing as it could be.
Could be worse. But I'm starting to get a bit of cabin fever. Mom's going to a union meeting tomorrow, so I'll tag along and probably bring a book and read. Dresden will probably get left at home, since it's winter and getting colder out.
I've been playing Echo Bazaar. It's excellent and engrossing.
(no subject)
Dec. 4th, 2010 09:15 pmOh dear god, I haven't posted in a few days. That's sad.
First things first - I. Won. NaNo. I hit 50k, and while I haven't finished the story, I'm going to. NaNo kind of burnt me out - it does that - and right now I'm just trying to recover. It's been dark and gloomy, and it hasn't even snowed enough to make it look a little shiny, but it has started to snow. So of course, my mood is the same - lethargic and dreary.
So whooo. Snow!
I'm going to try to post more in this, so it's not boring. I was thinking about posts I want/need to make, and it's basically a lot.
Anyway, it occured to me that I have basically a huge amount of layouts, so tomorrow I'm going to be fiddling around with layouts, I think. Why shouldn't I?
Also, it's pretty sad when it looks like 9 o' clock at five. Yeah, love you too, Michigan.
First things first - I. Won. NaNo. I hit 50k, and while I haven't finished the story, I'm going to. NaNo kind of burnt me out - it does that - and right now I'm just trying to recover. It's been dark and gloomy, and it hasn't even snowed enough to make it look a little shiny, but it has started to snow. So of course, my mood is the same - lethargic and dreary.
So whooo. Snow!
I'm going to try to post more in this, so it's not boring. I was thinking about posts I want/need to make, and it's basically a lot.
Anyway, it occured to me that I have basically a huge amount of layouts, so tomorrow I'm going to be fiddling around with layouts, I think. Why shouldn't I?
Also, it's pretty sad when it looks like 9 o' clock at five. Yeah, love you too, Michigan.
(no subject)
Oct. 29th, 2010 04:05 pmAaand it's nearing WriMo time. I'm writing a sequel to my first WriMo novel, and I think it'll be a bit better than the first one. I can expand the world a little, and there'll be more characters, since it won't be the road-trip novel the first one was. As well, it'll be a kinda snark/deconstruction of horror movies - basically the stuff that makes you go "Seriously WHY ARE YOU DOING THAT, DON'T BE AN IDIOT" and the whole "I can see ghosts!" once an episode.
I'm considering getting some caffeine products from ThinkGeek, since I might have some spare cash soon, and this time I'm actually free to go nuts this month.
I'm also starting to think I have season-affected moods, since it's autumn and getting darker faster, and soon it'll be so that we don't see the sun for a few months, like Alaska.
Anyway. I'm checking out the fourums, and already I feel... I don't know. Uncreative. Gah. Maybe it's just the depression...
Oh well. I don't know.
I'm considering getting some caffeine products from ThinkGeek, since I might have some spare cash soon, and this time I'm actually free to go nuts this month.
I'm also starting to think I have season-affected moods, since it's autumn and getting darker faster, and soon it'll be so that we don't see the sun for a few months, like Alaska.
Anyway. I'm checking out the fourums, and already I feel... I don't know. Uncreative. Gah. Maybe it's just the depression...
Oh well. I don't know.
(no subject)
Oct. 10th, 2010 11:24 pmHappy Ten Ten Ten, everyone! I hope your day was good.
Now for the interesting part of the post. I've been reading The Hunger Games Trilogy, and holy carp, good books. Strong female charaters, action, fighting, dystopias, and more!
Anyway. I've been writing quite a bit, which makes me feel pretty proud of myself. For a while I haven't been writing a lot or writing very well, but lately I've been catching up. It feels like I'm getting ready for NaNoWriMo, which I intend to participate in this year. I just hope that I haven't forgotten my password.
Speaking of writing, I... may have found something that could be a source of income. It's by Barnes & Noble, called PubIt! and I've checked it out, and to be honest, it looks legit. You don't have to pay for the service, you get royalties, and if someone had a phone/ipod/whatever that can get the Nook app, they can get the e-books. It's not paper and spine, but still. My idea is to make a collection of short stories I've written and a couple of poems and put it on there when I've gotten people to edit it.
On the theme of typing until your fingers are blue, I found this thing called 'last author standing', and it... looks really good. You get a prompt, you write a story, send it to the mod, they post it anonymously. Then people vote - if your story gets the most votes, you are immune from being voted off for the next week, if yours gets the least, you get kicked from the contest. The last author standing gets a banner and ten dollars for Amazon or Barnes & Noble. Is this too much writing for me, or is it something I should try? I can't decide. Part of me wants to, but what if I get over stimulated and stressed? But still. So terribly tempting. Tomorrow I'm going to make a decision and I think it's going to be yes.
Now for the interesting part of the post. I've been reading The Hunger Games Trilogy, and holy carp, good books. Strong female charaters, action, fighting, dystopias, and more!
Anyway. I've been writing quite a bit, which makes me feel pretty proud of myself. For a while I haven't been writing a lot or writing very well, but lately I've been catching up. It feels like I'm getting ready for NaNoWriMo, which I intend to participate in this year. I just hope that I haven't forgotten my password.
Speaking of writing, I... may have found something that could be a source of income. It's by Barnes & Noble, called PubIt! and I've checked it out, and to be honest, it looks legit. You don't have to pay for the service, you get royalties, and if someone had a phone/ipod/whatever that can get the Nook app, they can get the e-books. It's not paper and spine, but still. My idea is to make a collection of short stories I've written and a couple of poems and put it on there when I've gotten people to edit it.
On the theme of typing until your fingers are blue, I found this thing called 'last author standing', and it... looks really good. You get a prompt, you write a story, send it to the mod, they post it anonymously. Then people vote - if your story gets the most votes, you are immune from being voted off for the next week, if yours gets the least, you get kicked from the contest. The last author standing gets a banner and ten dollars for Amazon or Barnes & Noble. Is this too much writing for me, or is it something I should try? I can't decide. Part of me wants to, but what if I get over stimulated and stressed? But still. So terribly tempting. Tomorrow I'm going to make a decision and I think it's going to be yes.
(no subject)
Oct. 5th, 2010 10:44 pmI got the guts to post a fic-let on a comm! And the person liked it! alkdfj!! I did it!
I might try some other things. Maybe. But still! This is a huge step for me!
Okay, another one I've written. Trigger warning - domestic violence, not written about in detail, but still. Leverage, Parker, she knows love isn't supposed to feel like this.
More, hopefully cheerful/funny ones tomorrow. I'm going to start getting loopy if I keep writing at this time of night.
I might try some other things. Maybe. But still! This is a huge step for me!
Okay, another one I've written. Trigger warning - domestic violence, not written about in detail, but still. Leverage, Parker, she knows love isn't supposed to feel like this.
More, hopefully cheerful/funny ones tomorrow. I'm going to start getting loopy if I keep writing at this time of night.
(no subject)
Sep. 7th, 2010 06:50 pmI'm kind of tired right now, and I've been suffering allergies for the last few days. This is taking pretty much everything out of me and I've basically just wanted to curl up and stuff. Feeling like I'm about to drown in my own mucus is kinda sucky.
I've also been having trouble with recalling my dreams. It's just - I don't know. It feels like I've been struggling to recall, and I can't really write anything down before I have to let the cat in or the dog in, the cat because it's climbing on the house and the dog because it's barking. Maybe writing down my dreams on paper isn't the right way for me. I had a good job writing it on my iPod, but sometimes the notes would lose them. There's the dream diary app. for my iPod, but that's expensive as apps. go...
Also, I've been really cold when I've been sleeping. The dog and the cats have been actually helping when they hog my bed now.
I'm trying to write more constantly now. I've been stuck in a rut of sorts, and I've decided to just write, dammit. If I have to use plot ninjas to move a plot forward, I will. The first step to becoming a writer is getting the damn words out.
I need to use my journal more. I guess that that's part of the whole 'rut' thing.
I've also been having trouble with recalling my dreams. It's just - I don't know. It feels like I've been struggling to recall, and I can't really write anything down before I have to let the cat in or the dog in, the cat because it's climbing on the house and the dog because it's barking. Maybe writing down my dreams on paper isn't the right way for me. I had a good job writing it on my iPod, but sometimes the notes would lose them. There's the dream diary app. for my iPod, but that's expensive as apps. go...
Also, I've been really cold when I've been sleeping. The dog and the cats have been actually helping when they hog my bed now.
I'm trying to write more constantly now. I've been stuck in a rut of sorts, and I've decided to just write, dammit. If I have to use plot ninjas to move a plot forward, I will. The first step to becoming a writer is getting the damn words out.
I need to use my journal more. I guess that that's part of the whole 'rut' thing.
(no subject)
Feb. 2nd, 2010 11:43 pmOkay, here's a meme, so whee! From arabel.
Respond to this post with "WORDS" and I will give you five words that remind me of you!
( Repo!, kittens, Ren Faire, your RP universe, steampunk. )
... also, on the RP front - how sad is it to seriously consider playing a character from a game on your iPod? It's just - so beautifully steampunky and wonderful and and and... *whimpers* Sooooooo tempted, guys.
arabel. Respond to this post with "WORDS" and I will give you five words that remind me of you!
( Repo!, kittens, Ren Faire, your RP universe, steampunk. )
... also, on the RP front - how sad is it to seriously consider playing a character from a game on your iPod? It's just - so beautifully steampunky and wonderful and and and... *whimpers* Sooooooo tempted, guys.
(no subject)
Aug. 23rd, 2009 09:45 pmDid a lot of shopping today! I'll have to take a few pictures of me in my new clothes. I kind of like them.
I got a pair of Sketch-ups, Fitness, which should help me lose weight and stuff. I got a pair of steampunk-y boots, but they're being ordered, since the only ones in that size that were in the store were grey, and I liked the black ones more.
Also -
'I Know I'm
Not Normal'
At 13, Andrea Struggles to Overcome
Autism's Grip: Tactic That's Helping
First faux pas - saying 'struggling to overcome Autism's Grip', like Autism is a scaaaarrry monster that will steal your kid away. We get that enough, kthx.
Second faux pas - 'An estimated 1 in 150 American children has some form of autism. There's no known cure.'
This makes it seem like autism is a disease and that is the easiest freaking way to make an autistic person want to let the air out of your tires. Swear to god.
Anyway. Need to tag people and write a lot.
Also, go tell my Mom happy birthday - she's one year older!
I got a pair of Sketch-ups, Fitness, which should help me lose weight and stuff. I got a pair of steampunk-y boots, but they're being ordered, since the only ones in that size that were in the store were grey, and I liked the black ones more.
Also -
'I Know I'm
Not Normal'
At 13, Andrea Struggles to Overcome
Autism's Grip: Tactic That's Helping
First faux pas - saying 'struggling to overcome Autism's Grip', like Autism is a scaaaarrry monster that will steal your kid away. We get that enough, kthx.
Second faux pas - 'An estimated 1 in 150 American children has some form of autism. There's no known cure.'
This makes it seem like autism is a disease and that is the easiest freaking way to make an autistic person want to let the air out of your tires. Swear to god.
Anyway. Need to tag people and write a lot.
Also, go tell my Mom happy birthday - she's one year older!
(no subject)
Aug. 2nd, 2009 11:51 amWhen the RP plot is done, I gotta start reading and writing more. I have to.
Partly because I have a few more story ideas, one that's just burst into my head called "The Necromancer's Daughter." (I get ideas from anywhere and everywhere, if the person whose icon I got it from guesses.)
Partly because I have a few more story ideas, one that's just burst into my head called "The Necromancer's Daughter." (I get ideas from anywhere and everywhere, if the person whose icon I got it from guesses.)
(no subject)
Jul. 22nd, 2009 03:57 pmI'm starting to consider something.
A lot of authors do the whole 'plot out the story before it starts.' I never... really liked the idea of it. I liked the idea of just planting a seed and then seeing where it went, more. But maybe that's how I'm supposed to be writing - maybe that's my specific way to make what I want to happen happen.
I've never really been fond of doing it, partly because of in school, we were practically forced to lay out the story before we wrote it. It left a sour taste in my mouth.
With short stories, they come out the way I want them to come out. Something longer, though, that generally gets me stuck.
Maybe I should try to do that, though. It could work, for all I know.
A lot of authors do the whole 'plot out the story before it starts.' I never... really liked the idea of it. I liked the idea of just planting a seed and then seeing where it went, more. But maybe that's how I'm supposed to be writing - maybe that's my specific way to make what I want to happen happen.
I've never really been fond of doing it, partly because of in school, we were practically forced to lay out the story before we wrote it. It left a sour taste in my mouth.
With short stories, they come out the way I want them to come out. Something longer, though, that generally gets me stuck.
Maybe I should try to do that, though. It could work, for all I know.
(no subject)
May. 19th, 2009 04:11 pmSo, yeah, final exams are coming up. These are the first of 'em I've ever had. So a bit nervous.
We got some graded papers back, and I got good grades mostly, but some were depressing. (Given that I'm a perfectionist, anything below an A is depressing. Especially in a class I like.)
Gonna take a nap, and then Grandma is apparently going to kidnap me and take me to Sears to get me shorts and stuff. Maybe I can convince her to get me the new Tori CD, or at least a copy of Soldiers of Halla.
TVTropes is giving me Ideas. I kinda like it. :D
On Writing... I still don't have a style yet. Part of me wants to be snarky and funny, but some of me wants to be serious, but... I don't know. Nnngh.
Nap now.
We got some graded papers back, and I got good grades mostly, but some were depressing. (Given that I'm a perfectionist, anything below an A is depressing. Especially in a class I like.)
Gonna take a nap, and then Grandma is apparently going to kidnap me and take me to Sears to get me shorts and stuff. Maybe I can convince her to get me the new Tori CD, or at least a copy of Soldiers of Halla.
TVTropes is giving me Ideas. I kinda like it. :D
On Writing... I still don't have a style yet. Part of me wants to be snarky and funny, but some of me wants to be serious, but... I don't know. Nnngh.
Nap now.
