The Coffee Shop - SEPTEMBER

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Sommer Leigh
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The Coffee Shop - SEPTEMBER

Post by Sommer Leigh » September 1st, 2012, 12:28 pm

Many writers have found participating in the All Things Writing thread to be very motivational, but it is also very difficult to give encouragement, tips, and advice easily, or just to chat, gossip, or unload our frustrations when it doesn't fit in with any given topic. This is a companion thread where anyone needing a pick-me-up or wanting to offer some words of encouragement to a friend, can.

Consider this an "open writing chat" sort of thread. Tell us about your current work in progress, your fears, goals, hopes, irritations. Share your silly writing mistakes or your awesome one liners. Whatever helps keep you from going crazy.

If you have a specific writing question, however, it should probably have its own thread. Use your best judgment.

Good luck, writers.
May the word counts be ever in your favor. http://www.sommerleigh.com
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Re: The Coffee Shop - SEPTEMBER

Post by trixie » September 1st, 2012, 10:05 pm

Hey gang.

Okay, dish--what's everyone working on right now? NaNo 2012 plots? Finishing stories? Care to share?

Speaking of sharing, my writing group asked what I was working on when we met on Thurs night. I started telling them about the story I've been working on outlining and they wanted to hear about it. Okay, so I started telling them the bones of the story, understanding that clearly, I hadn't worked everything out yet. But they blew so many stinking holes into my story that I almost want to can it. It was so disheartening and I'm not sure I'll do that again. Talk about knocking the wind out of my sails. :( Pity party, party of one...

So right now, I'm going to spend some time digging in to the few elements that really made this story exciting for me. If I can recapture the parts that made me so eager to start in the first place, maybe that will help.

I also think I'm going to keep working on the outline and start writing this in November. For the next 2 mos, I will finish the outline and also put an ending on my last year's NaNo. That story is good, once I peel away the rough patches. I'll work on that for now.

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Re: The Coffee Shop - SEPTEMBER

Post by Claudie » September 1st, 2012, 11:05 pm

Tricia, your story is at the baby idea phase. It's normal to have a bunch of holes in it. I'm five drafts in mine and I still run into HUGE plot holes which makes me want to throw it all on the wall and run away. Going back to your Love List of why you wanted to write that story is very good idea. I suggest you note down the potential holes your group found and set them aside while you develop your idea. They'll always be at the edge of your mind and chances are, your brain will work around/with them on its own.

I am not likely to write much in September. I have decided, however, to do two things.
1) Work out my Part 4 problems in my current WIP
2) Work out a general outline for another project (post-apo dystopia ish project. In French)
3) Write the Part 4 of my current WIP, or however little words I'll manage.

And that^ ? It's worth for September and October. When NaNo comes around the corner I'll decide what project I want to push during that month.

--

Oh, this week my Creative teacher asked the class who kept writing during the summer. And on the 20-25 people gathered, we were only two to raise our hands for "wrote more than 20 pages" (both of us had 200 something pages). I have to say, I was ridiculously proud. Same teacher also told me (and two others) in a later class that, if we ever had questions about writing, or the industry, or anything vaguely related, at any point in our careers, we should ask. And that he was very eager to read us in an actual paper book. :) Needless to say, that was all very encouraging!
"I do not think there is any thrill [...] like that felt by the inventor as he sees some creation of the brain unfolding to success... Such emotions make a man forget food, sleep, friends, love, everything." -- Nikola Tesla

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Re: The Coffee Shop - SEPTEMBER

Post by klbritt » September 2nd, 2012, 12:59 am

A week ago I finished my first draft of my WIP - The Phoenix: A Gathering. So now I am letting it sit for another couple days before digging into it and starting to fix plot holes and revisions. In the meantime, this past week I started another project and tried to do the outlining bit. Um, that is not for me -- right now. I've never been an outliner, in fact, even back in school, outlines were difficult for me. I'm such a pantser it's not funny.

So September, I'll be spending my time divided between the two projects, trying to write at least 10K words per week on the new WIP and then editing the other.
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Re: The Coffee Shop - SEPTEMBER

Post by Aimée » September 2nd, 2012, 11:35 pm

I'm planning on finishing the first draft of my novel by the end of 2012, which means I'm really going to push my way through it for these next few months. Hey, does somebody want to pop on and ask me at the end of September if I'm at least 1/4 of the way through? ;)

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Re: The Coffee Shop - SEPTEMBER

Post by Sanderling » September 4th, 2012, 12:09 pm

trixie wrote:Okay, so I started telling them the bones of the story, understanding that clearly, I hadn't worked everything out yet. But they blew so many stinking holes into my story that I almost want to can it. It was so disheartening and I'm not sure I'll do that again. Talk about knocking the wind out of my sails. :( Pity party, party of one...
That's so frustrating, Trixie... At those early stages, when you're coddling this newborn idea, you really don't want to hear how imperfect it is. This is the only time when it's going to be fresh and sparkly and new and you want to enjoy that for a while. The holes and stuff can come later. It's sorta tough when you're just looking for someone to share your excitement with and they end up being a wet blanket. Hope you can rekindle that love for it. As Claudie suggests, draw up a Love List for the project, if you haven't already. I find thinking about that usually reenergizes me on on my projects.


As for my own stuff, I'm currently in revisions on my main WIP. Waiting for a couple more critiques to come back to me before digging in again, but I really hope to maybe make one more big pass and then be able to start thinking about querying it. We'll see!

I've also been brainstorming my next project, although I'm a pantser so there's only so much pre-planning I can do without risking losing that spark. NaNo is still two months away, I haven't even started to think about that yet. ;)
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Re: The Coffee Shop - SEPTEMBER

Post by CharleeVale » September 4th, 2012, 8:07 pm

So a lot of you know I've been working on my graduate thesis, which is a stage play. And it's the hardest [many expletives here] thing I've ever had to write.

I really like my concept. It's just flowing like molasses. For whatever reason, the words don't pour out of my mind the way they do when I'm writing a novel. It's extremely frustrating, and kind of discouraging.

I also probably feel frustrated because I can't use my normal writing process with it. Normally, I'm a non-linear pantser. But you literally CANNOT do that with stage plays. Because there's a lot more structure that you have to be aware of, and you can't just write and hope that it works out. Plus there's all kinds of expectations riding on this etc. Guess it's my own taste of what writing under contract will be like.

I'm on page 52. I need to make it to at least 90 for it to be a full length play.

*sigh* Back to the grind.

CV

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Re: The Coffee Shop - SEPTEMBER

Post by trixie » September 4th, 2012, 9:15 pm

Charlee, I *TOTALLY* understand your pain. To this day, my thesis was the hardest thing I've ever written. Give me a story to write ANY DAY OF THE WEEK and I can do it. But an academic paper (my was non-fiction, on the use of fear appeals to promote health-related behavior change in teens [think: Brain on Drugs campaign]) about killed me. My dining room turned into Thesis Central, complete with poster boards taped to the wall to chart the damn thing out.

I should've taken a picture. It was pretty epic.

Hang in there, Charlee. You're more than half way done. :)

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Re: The Coffee Shop - SEPTEMBER

Post by LurkingVirologist » September 4th, 2012, 10:40 pm

I don't know about anyone else - but there was this magical point when I was grinding through my dissertation and assembling my defense presentation (1-1.5 hour open lecture + closed committee meeting) when I just kinda went.... **** it! If they don't ****ing like it then too *** ***** bad!

Strangely enough, right after that, everything just kinda came together.

I may or may not have gone into the presentation with a slightly manic glint in my eyes suggesting a willingness to headbutt anyone who tried to get between me and my degree. Either way, it worked out. You couldn't pay me enough to do it again (well, that's not entirely true), but looking back, you'll be surprised how quickly it becomes old history ;) .
"Books break the shackles of time, proof that humans can work magic." -Carl Sagan

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Re: The Coffee Shop - SEPTEMBER

Post by Sanderling » September 5th, 2012, 1:25 am

LurkingVirologist wrote:Strangely enough, right after that, everything just kinda came together.
Haha. It's funny how much easier things get when you stop caring so much about what other people think.

Reading about everyone's thesis experiences (and knowing people offline, too), I kinda don't regret that my attempts at post-grad fell through (not for lack of trying; the universe trying to tell me something, perhaps). There's been much less general stress in my life since I left school.
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Re: The Coffee Shop - SEPTEMBER

Post by Sommer Leigh » September 5th, 2012, 2:29 pm

Ok, so I've been feeling sick most of the summer. Not sick like, I have the flu sick, but sick like I just don't feel WELL. I've been sleeping a ton and despite the fact I hit the gym 4-5 days a week and eat healthy, I haven't lost any weight. My concentration has been crappy and I constantly feel tired.

Friday afternoon my father-in-law had emergency quintuple bypass surgery. He's fine, or will be soon, but it kind of got me freaked out enough to go to my doctor on tuesday. He'd been putting off warning signs and I thought maybe I was too.

As it turns out, I wasn't being paranoid. I found out there might be something structurally wrong with my heart. I'm having an echocardiogram on friday to find out. THAT is freaking me out like you have no idea.

I don't even know how to wrap my head around the concept that my heart might be broken, and not in the cool poetic way that has you writing sweeping poetry of passion and destruction at two o'clock in the morning. In my head I know it's too soon to worry, but I'm worried! I mean, it's my heart. You only get one of them, you know? I promise I'm not throwing my personal pity party with balloons and cupcakes (well, maybe cupcakes). I just needed to vent. This is the place for venting right?
May the word counts be ever in your favor. http://www.sommerleigh.com
Be nice, or I get out the Tesla cannon.

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Re: The Coffee Shop - SEPTEMBER

Post by dios4vida » September 5th, 2012, 2:55 pm

Sommer, I don't even know what to say. Hugs. Cupcakes. Prayers. You got it. <3
Brenda :)

Inspiration isn't about the muse. Inspiration is working until something clicks. ~Brandon Sanderson

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Re: The Coffee Shop - SEPTEMBER

Post by wilderness » September 5th, 2012, 3:06 pm

Sorry to hear that, Sommer. We're all rooting for you. Hoping that the only thing that can mess with your heart is a good book. Good luck!

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Re: The Coffee Shop - SEPTEMBER

Post by trixie » September 5th, 2012, 4:27 pm

Sommer, I am SO proud of you for taking the leap and going to your doctor to find out more. Most people wouldn't even do that.

Consider this the research phase of your novel. You're going to learn some new information and you'll spend some time figuring out how all the pieces fit together. Information is power, so you'll be an even BIGGER superhero come Friday, regardless of the results. (However, we'll be here pointing our Positive Vibes ray guns directly to Omaha.)

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Re: The Coffee Shop - SEPTEMBER

Post by Sommer Leigh » September 5th, 2012, 5:09 pm

Ha! Thanks guys. I'm not freaking out completely yet. My doc made sure I knew that if she thought there was something serious happening, she'd have sent me to get the test immediately. While it might be serious, I don't need to spend a lot of time worrying just yet. Small comforts. And you guys! You all rock thank you. Honestly I'm hoping I get to make a post that says EVERYTHING IS COOL CAN I HAVE CUPCAKES ANYWAY PLEASE.
May the word counts be ever in your favor. http://www.sommerleigh.com
Be nice, or I get out the Tesla cannon.

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