I’m slowly getting used to the fact that it’s November. I *may* have been, for a few days, entirely paralyzed with fear at the thought of buying Christmas presents but my friends talked me down. So, November, I have sort-of the hang of you. December, I’m almost prepared for you too.
What’s Up Wednesday is a weekly meme geared toward readers and writers, allowing us to touch base with blog friends and let them know what’s up. It was created by created by Jaime and Erin. Want to join the party? Go right ahead, and remember to leave a link to your What’s Up Wednesday post in the widget on Jaime´s blog.
What I’m Reading
*looks around guilty*
I… I haven’t been reading much lately. I’m so sorry!
What I’m Writing
So, you remember how last time I talked about my editing process? It’s changed. Again.
I’m still doing a big picture edit but the “go offline, edit using Kindle and notebook” stage of the plan has fallen by the way-side. I know some artists think using computers all the time can mess up the creative juju, and I get honestly believe they’re right, but for now it’s working for me.
As I said last week, I’m learning to just let whatever works, work.
Editing is progressing steadily now, though as observed with my last first draft I don’t do well working in constant daily amounts. I work in a burst, have a day where my writing is dull and lifeless and the words just won’t come, and then the next day I’ll have another burst of work.
Is their a name for our kind? Sprint writers? Exhausted cheetahs? Flying greyhounds? If I think of something catchy, I’ll let you know.
What Inspires Me
Right now my main driving force is my other projects. Is that odd? Let me explain: I’m being motivated to finish this edit because I know, when I do, I can take on ALL THE BROKEN THINGS and turn it into the beautiful, kick-arse story I now know it can be.
I’m so excited to sink my teeth into that. The sooner, the better.
What Else I’ve Been Up To
I SAW THOR: THE DARK WORLD! I went to it expecting a fun, plot-lite movie, and what I got was a very fun movie with a surprisingly sharp sense of comedy.
It was really great. I recommend it.
I’ve also been studying for an Open University course, which is great fun. Scots get a small allowance towards learning each year, so I used it for a small, relatively low-stress course that appeals to my interests — “Start Listening to Music”, a foundation course in music composition and history. I get to listen to classic jazz like Ella Fitzgerald’s “Mack the Knfie” immediately followed by Queen’s “We Will Rock You”! It’s a great wee course.
It also means I get to study in a Pikachu onesie, because every little bit of entertainment helps.
That last image is AWESOME XD
I need to see Thor! I just have to find the time.
Get that story to the point where it kicks ASS and then send it my way! I’m going to be sending Space!Story to you really soon ^_^ I’m so curious to know what you’ll think of it!
Have an amazing week, Emma!
*bounces* Yesss! I can’t wait!
Have an amazing week too. :D
I still need to watch Thor! I’ve been hearing so many good things about it. I find editing daily to be challenging, too – I have inspired days and not-so-inspired days, and it can be really frustrating trying to be consistent! Also, LOVE the last gif (I wish I had a Pikachu onesie! :P). Have a great week!
You too! :)
http://i.imgur.com/D0bVsg0.gif
Thank you honey.
FirstBorn took ThirdBorn (and my wife–someone had to drive!) to see Thor for ThirdBorn’s birthday. They all came back very positive about it (FirstBorn was the most squee-some… kept blubbering something about Loki… ;) ). I haven’t even seen the first one yet, but I daresay I’ll see them both at some point, if my kids have any say in the matter!
And don’t stress about not getting much reading done. I know, you should read more than you write, but remember–that’s a general rule. I’m pretty sure Stephen King and J.K. Rowling have weeks where things like novels, screenplays, and family keep them away from the books. I take rules like that as encouragement to those who want to write but make excuses for not reading. I doubt very much you fall into that category, Emma, so relax and enjoy all the words you’re pouring into (and editing out of) the WIP. :)
Thanks for the encouragement, Colin. :)
I don’t write every day either. Sometimes it leads to long stretches of not accomplishing anything, but I have always been a write when I feel like writing type of girl. Fortunately, when I do feel like writing, I can usually write pretty fast. If the exhausted cheetah method is working for you, I’d say stick with it.
Thanks Kate, glad it’s not just me! Hope you stop by again. :)
Ha! Love the Pikachu onesie. :-) That course sounds pretty great, too. It’s funny, I used to be able to sit down and churn out a regular chunk of words each day, but now I think I work more like you do in bursts of productivity. You know, when I’m actually writing. O_o I hope your editing is coming along nicely. I know what you mean about other projects inspiring you to get the editing done. Have a great week, Emma!
You too, Jaime!
I want a Pikachu onesie! I get to wear mine for work this Friday. ^^
Thor 2 was amazing! I loved the comedy in it. They gave Loki some fantastic lines and I don’t care that he’s the villain, he’s so darn gorgeous! I’m not usually the bad boy type. Tom Hiddleston <3
Your workplace seems fun. :D Loki was SO GOOD in Thor 2. I was so happy with the comedy moments he had, as well as the serious ones.
Sometimes reading has to take a backseat when you’re trying to write or edit. My editing process is…oh yeah, I don’t have one! Whatever works for you is awesome, and I hope you can get it done.
Thanks for stopping by Prerna! Good luck with NaNoWriMo! :)
Looking forward to Thor 2! I’ll have to see that this weekend. Is it also directed by Kenneth Branaugh like the first? I feel like I’m so behind with the movie biz. I’m loving all the Tom Hiddlston gifs :)
Different director, I’m afraid! Alan Taylor did this one.
Thanks for stopping by Stephanie. :)
I’m going to Thor this weekend and I can’t wait!!! Great gif!
Oooh, I hope you enjoy it!
Awesome. I think for some people working on the computer can mess with your creativity, but it really is just a question of what system you’re used to. I wrote my first full novel on paper before typing it out. Whew! After translating the whole thing I swore never to do that again. I love being able to grab text from one place and drop it elsewhere without having to make all kinds of crazy notes that remind me of my changed sequence. Anyhow, like I said–you have to do what works for you, and straight computer works for me.
Yeah, I agree! There are situations when paper works best for me (at work, at 3am when I can’t sleep, or when I’m writer’s blocked) but most times writing on the computer is worlds better for my process.
Some weeks you read and some weeks you don’t– that’s normal, right? As for editing– whatever works is definitely my motto! Have a great week!
It’s definitely normal for me. :D I wish I could balance out equal reading time to writing time but it never works that way for me. I hope you also have a great week!
I’m so looking forward to the next Thor movie! I haven’t seen it yet, but Loki — how can i not want to see it?
I like doing most of my editing process on my computer as well. I’m trying to do more by hand/off the computer but I’m not sure how long I’ll stick with it. I just know that when I’m doing final line-by-line, checking for typos/etc, I do print it off.
Kim
Oooh, let me know what you think of Thor 2! And good luck with editing by hand, I’ll be interested to find out how that goes.
I sometimes edit using the red pen technique, but I’ve learned not to do that too early on since I end up with lots of hard copies of my manuscript. :P I’m a sprint writer too. Last week, I had a day where I wrote almost 8k, but since then I’ve been lucky to get 2k. I don’t even think I hit 1k yesterday.
And yes, Thor was awesome. I’m going to find a reason to use that gif! Good luck with your editing!