a little update

I just wrapped up two days at BEA, and it was great! Loads of books, and a few good tote bags. I spent most of the time with a couple friends from the office. Saw a couple other people I know, met a lot of book bloggers, a few great authors, and one really nice literary agent. Full update to come, possibly with pictures, but for now I'll just say that it was every bit as good as previous years, and my shoulders are SORE from carrying bags of books. But the soreness? Totally worth it.

take a look around

Somewhat lazy Saturday so far. I've done some freelancing, ran some things to the thrift store, tidied that apartment. That's about it. Starting to feel nibbly, but haven't played my clarinet yet, but my partner-in-crime is asleep on the couch so instead of making noise I'm here, talking to you. Went to yoga yesterday after work; that felt really good. After, I sat in a cafe with LG and did a smidge of writing. Banged out an outline for the third short story on my list for this year, and did some brainstorming for my radio play episodes. The remainder of the evening was spent drinking, which was a little foolish but fun, so oh well. Oh, read another book!
24. Mathilda Savitch by Victor Lodato. It was weird. The writing was distinctive, and consistent, and quirky. The main character, Mathilda, has some ISSUES. To be fair, so do her parents. Mathilda's older sister dies about a year before the events of the book. It is interesting to watch Mathilda deal with her grief, and see how she deals with her life. But I don't think it's a keeper for me. It somehow just didn't quite draw me in enough.
I think that's all I've got for today. I turned the computer on to do some writing, but all I've done so far is bum around on the Internet. Time for some discipline, and some teen superhero action!
Happy Saturday, everyone!

state of the honeydew

Time for a spring check-in on my to-do list for the year. Here's the list I posted for writing goals in January:

• submit Nor -- DONE (although I could do it more, with different agents)
  
• write cupcake truck Western novel -- now the superhero novel instead, and I'm 18,650 words in. I'm really behind, but still gunning for my deadline for draft one, which is end of June. Whole thing is outlined, that's a step in the right direction!
  
• write first novel in urban fantasy series -- this will happen in the fall
  
• outline entire urban fantasy series -- working on it. I've got partial ideas for each book, but need to come up with the underlying big story.
  
• write three short stories -- one mostly written, one outlined, one is still just an idea
  
• edit the two shorts I wrote last year -- edited one, will edit the other this summer!
  

So that's not bad. There's been progress on everything. I feel pretty good about it. Non-writing goals for this year include:

• yoga regularly
• running regularly
• finish Buffy
• take some clarinet lessons
• two-bedroom apartment!

The yoga is happening. The running is beginning to happen. Buffy . . . well, I'll have more time for that once summer Fridays kick in. Clarinet lessons are in discussion currently, and the two-bedroom really depends on how well we save money for the next few months. So we'll see.
Book! 23) The Affinity Bridge by George Mann. Steampunk! Airships! Victorian England! Zombies! AWESOME! I adore this book. The tone is consistent, the steampunk elements great fun, the characters solid . . . No complaints. If you like fantasy, or steampunk, or historical fiction, run out and get this one! The trade paperback was just released April 27, so you don't have to shell out for the hardcover.
Well, there is more freelancing to do, and some grocery shopping and checkbook balancing that needs happening as well. I hope everyone's Sunday has been as peaceful as mine!

someone like me

So, this weekend, here's the plan. I will go running both days. I will work on my novel both days. I will practice my clarinet both days. I will finish one freelance project and put in some time on another. Today, I will also go hang out with LG while she moves, and clean the apartment. Sounds busy? A little. It's not so bad, really. Mostly I want to make sure I get some good writing in. I haven't been good about making the time for it, so I'm not as far along with this draft as I would like to be.
What's everybody else up to this weekend?

everybody else's girl

Here I am again, another beautiful Saturday and I'm frantically freelancing. I just caught myself getting really angry at it, so I'm taking a break for a while. Go for a run, get my laundry going. Go to the bank. Maybe read for a few minutes before I dive back into it. I know I talked the other day about balance, and I am really working on it. I just need to finish all the freelance work I'm committed to before the balancing can really begin.
I did do a little writing last night, and I'll do some more tonight. Tomorrow we're going on a hike with a couple friends, and that's going to be great! Some good outdoor time; that doesn't happen that often here in the city.
I've been dreaming like crazy lately. Twice in the last week it's been about my work-spouse. Those tend to be relationship dreams, which is funny because I really don't think of him that way. I think the point of the dreams is more about the comfort of the familiar, and what I want versus what I don't want on an emotional/mental level. I don't think they're about him. Another fun recent one was a big houseparty I was at. Neil Gaiman was there, and complimented my T-shirt, which was gray and a little long and said "jail warden" toward the bottom, with a funky pattern thing above it. I was a little in awe and didn't talk much. Then later I was looking for Neil to talk to him more, but couldn't find him. Instead I found me and my twin sister's best friends from living in Washington sitting at a table playing cards.
No more books to report right now. I'm in the middle of reading four different books, but mostly I've been taking freelancing on the train so there hasn't been much reading time.
This coming week, I don't want to make any plans at all except yoga/writing, and our neighbor J's play. There's been too much going on lately. I know that sounds silly since I'm never really that busy, but there's a lot I want to do with my time that involves the quiet of being at home. Or at least the time to take for myself, even if I do it in a coffee shop or something.
Anyway, time to go running, before another thunderstorm blows through. I hope everyone is having a great Saturday! Ta!

once upon a sunday

Well, here we are, May already. Happy Beltane! Slightly belated, as the holiday was yesterday, but ah well. Yay for spring and fertility and the coming of summer!
Big news that I somehow completely forgot to mention last time I wrote here: My promotion FINALLY happened on April 27. Hurray! Only three and a half years later, I'm no longer an assistant! I'm glad to have it happen, at long last. No more offsets for me; just domestics from now on. Thank goodness!
Three more books for you. 20) Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier. This is a retelling of two fairy tales in combination, set in Transylvania. I loved it! Great, strong-willed characters who don't back down from their responsibilities or their mistakes. Multiple challenges for the heroine(s) to overcome. And beautiful writing. Definitely a keeper, and definitely recommended to anybody who reads. 21) The World's Wife by Carol Ann Duffy. Interesting collection of poetry from the perspective of big-name wives throughout history/mythology. Mrs. Midas, Mrs. Tieresias, etc. plus a few other strong women such as Medusa. If you dig poetry, check this one out. It's a keeper for me. 22) The Music of Razors by Cameron Rogers. This is a hard book to explain, and a hard book to read. It's about a girl named Hope whose life is kind of awful. A mysterious man named Henry is trying to recruit her for a mission involving something called the Third Option (as compared to Heaven or Hell), and her comatose brother, Walter, is trying to protect her from Henry. I was really into reading this at first, even though it's emotionally rough. It got great blurbs from big novelists. But . . . there's no redemption at any point for any of the characters. Things just keep being hard, and they keep making mistakes, and the end is not really a finishing. It's an ending, but not a conclusion, if that makes sense. Anway. I struggle with books like that, so for me, this isn't a keeper, but if you don't mind the lack of redemption, then you should check this one out.
Anyway, I'm still struggling with getting through all the freelancing on my plate, although I did get through a good chunk already today. It's a slow process to achieve balance, but I think as long as I hold the goal in my mind I can achieve it. I am getting back on top of my life, slowly but surely. My checkbook is finally up to speed, I've managed to keep the house tidy, I did some good brainstorming on the next short story I'll be writing. I've been getting better about exercising. The rest of today involves a run, another chapter of freelancing, and some writing on my superhero book. And then having dinner outside, perhaps with some bubbly. Oh, and did I mention it's gorgeous out?
Happy weekend, everyone!