December 18, 2015

Enjoying my WOTF badges! It helps me to feel like a creative writer when Corporate Job makes me feel like a technical person.

Plans for the Christmas break include trying to get back into my novel and also writing a pitch up for the Women In Film Horror script contest More on that at: Women in Film (Canada) genre writing contest.

HONORABLE MENTION

What we do instead of writing….

There are writers who produce 12 books a year. The rest of us have developed various stratagem to avoid writer’s cramp.
This weekend I’m at VCon 38 in the quite decent, clean, good- natured, and very understanding Delta airport hotel in Richmond BC.
It can be argued that it’s a useful thing to come and sup with friends of like mind; all of whom know what a Bjoran ear cuff is, or who wrote SandKings, and why we weren’t surprised at the success of Game of Thrones.
I listened to some new authors read from their works. Due to this con, I now know who Mur Lafferty is and will be picking up her book – The Shambling Guide To New York – which sounds very amusing.
I supported other artists by buying handmade jewelry and- fabulous stone coasters with Buck Rogers space ships painted on them!
I have wish lists of art I can’t buy yet – love Lynne Taylor Fahnestalk’s metal sculptures – my fav is Benny!
Also child purchased excellent crocheted Koshi Stuffy by Cat.

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Morning Pages aka how we keep sane

Not every morning, but definitely by late evening, I write in a journal. It’s an old habit – Anne of Green Gables did not have a diary but Miss Emily of Emily Climbs did, so like a lot of girl writers, I owe a lot to PEI’s fav writer.

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Many decades later, I’ve kept it up. Once I read Julia Cameron’s work, I realized it wasn’t just useful for basic sanity, but that it could help to focus my writing.
Now, it’s not always the gorgeous Westside coffee shop Butter, where the photo’s from, but this May be the ideal spot. The sky is visible as are busy people walking by. The interior’s amazing- sweet and flowery. Okay, it doesn’t suit a bad mood, but it can raise your spirits with the amazing baked goods.
What about the writing, you may ask?
Hmmmm

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Just stupid….

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When it rains, it pours in Vancouver. Sort of like my week . Dance and coffee shop corner inundated just now.
The level of ‘just stupid’ things happening was high for the past 2-3 days, so having to wade through a foot of water here, when the rest of the city’s sewers work is not unexpected.
Writing suffers when this happens.
The live screen-savers experienced an irretrievable failure of environment – which is developer-speak for ‘the fish tank leaked’. We’re still considering whether we buy another tank or give them away. Gotta decide soon as the hurricane glass candle holder they’re in isn’t ideal. Temperature is an issue – but child came up with an excellent temporary solution. We use the magic bag (cloth filled with barley) heated 3 minutes in microwave, then wrap it around the bottom of the container. It heats up gently thus delivering that couple of degrees the fish need.
So, I guess the truth is just like the fish situation, I must seek solutions to my ‘writing time and energy’ dilemmas.

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