1. Coming up with good character names in the midst of cranking out 50,000 words in 30 days is not my strongest suit. My fabulous critique partners were commenting on some of my lesser characters and when I said their names aloud, I just closed my eyes and shook my head. I’d named two of my characters Hans and Leah. (Cue the Star Wars theme music.) How had that even happened? I’m not really sure, and granted “Leah” isn’t exactly “Leia…” Time for me to use that magic “find + replace” feature. 2. If I took out all of the “he nodded” or “she nodded” in the manuscript, I’m pretty...
The flood of January 2012
January 2012 is not yet over, but in the past five days, there has been a flood of epic proportions. I’m not only talking about rain. This is the flooded creek in my neighborhood. Normally it is only around three or four feet wide and a foot or two deep. All over Oregon, there are flooding streets, backed up drains and even closed schools. Earlier this week, Washington and Oregon were hit with ice and snow. But the flood I’m referring to is less literal. Two of my dear friends received exciting news and I’ve been really happy for them. It’s been a true flood of emotions this week and...
Pulling words and thoughts out of the air
Ever have those days where you just aren’t sure where your words and thoughts are even coming from? I’ve been struggling a bit with coming up with blog topics for this week, yet I’ve been sending others handfuls of ideas for them to write in other areas. Why is my well of creativity overflowing in some areas and not others? So, I decided the one thing to do when you don’t know what to blog about…is blogging about not knowing what to blog about. Make sense? Sometimes the hardest thing in the world is to pull an idea out of nothing and putting that idea on paper. As a freelancer,...
Our most precious resource
In my rodeo queen days, I competed for the title of Miss Teen Rodeo Washington. This was the most intense pageant I’d entered and I have to confess I certainly couldn’t resist comparing it to the movie “Miss Congeniality.” There were many similarities. But all the girls tended to joke about it and yet we all took it very seriously. For us, the chance to represent rodeo and ride our horses as our talent was worth it. However, I’d constantly joked about talking about “world peace” when it came to the on-stage, impromptu questions. In Miss Congeniality, that’s what all the contestants answer when “Stan Fields” asks them “What is...
The real reason those resolutions never happen…
Did you set some goals for 2012? Perhaps 12 for 2012? (I’m seeing that everywhere.) It’s the beginning of the year. Hopes are high. Energy renewed. This year, you’ll make it happen. Will you? The past few years, I’ve accomplished almost every goal I’ve set. Those I didn’t accomplish fully, I’ve still made good progress on. So what is the trick? What makes the difference between people who make their resolutions a reality and those who don’t? Excuses. It all comes down to excuses. You don’t have time. You don’t have the money. You don’t have the talent. If your resolutions are realistic measurable focused you can make it...