Writing and sailing
I haven't updated in a whole month, and I've been woefully neglectful of my friends list. Part of that is because I've been busy with my summer course, and part because I've been out of town. But my interests have also shifted, recently, away from fandom and towards some other interests, and I think that's contributed to my decreased presence on LJ.
The thing is, that's not how it has to be - and not how I want it to be. I love LJ for helping me stay connected to old friends, but also for helping me make new ones. So just because I've taken a fic break for the time being doesn't mean that I should fall off the planet. :) Ergo, concordantly, vis-a-vis... friends list, please accept my apologies for being incommunicado recently.
This summer has been interesting in a lot of ways. Lisa was in NM, so I had to figure out how to live alone, again. I took up sailing. I drank too much beer. I cried over the end of Harry Potter. I came up with a good plot for a lesbian romance novel. I played a lot of Halo. I learned how to play poker, and how to read Latin.
It's the sailing and the writing that have really stood out, though. I haven't written anything "original" in far too long, and it feels very, very good. Plus, Lisa has been an invaluable help. She brainstormed characters with me, and we spent hours on end outlining the plot while driving back from NM. I've been *reading* a bunch of lesbian romance novels as well - mostly the ones written by Radclyffe (see http://www.radfic.com) - and they've been such a blast. I think I was getting bogged down by the idea that my next piece of original *something* had to be the great American novel - that it had to be brilliant and insightful and able to stand against Booker prize-winners.
But that's silly. The whole point is to write what you love. And this idea that Lisa and I have - the plot and the characters and the whole *scenario* - shows a lot of potential. I have two novels under my belt, both of which were very enjoyable and wonderful learning experiences, but maybe - just maybe - third time's the charm. Maybe this is the one I'll try to publish. There are several small GLBT presses that I have my eye on, and I know more are out there. And sure, yes, I realize that thinking about publication is premature when I haven't even got close to a full manuscript, yet... but having a mission like that makes me excited. Gives me purpose. We all know how important purpose is - right, Matrix girlz? ;)
Besides, one of the best things about this book is that, while it's most certainly a love story between two women, it's also very much about sailing. And sailing is awesome. See icon at left. SO. MUCH. FUN. :D
In short - in the foreseeable future, anyway, this LJ will probably focus a lot on the joys and perils of sailing boats on Lake Mendota, and on the progress of my latest work of fiction. In fact, I plan to post a few chapters soon in case anyone's interested. No one should feel any pressure whatsoever to read what I put up here - I just thought I'd offer up some excerpts to a bigger audience than my lovely (and insightful) wife. :)
Righto. Back to reading for fun, while I still can. September celeriter venit.
The thing is, that's not how it has to be - and not how I want it to be. I love LJ for helping me stay connected to old friends, but also for helping me make new ones. So just because I've taken a fic break for the time being doesn't mean that I should fall off the planet. :) Ergo, concordantly, vis-a-vis... friends list, please accept my apologies for being incommunicado recently.
This summer has been interesting in a lot of ways. Lisa was in NM, so I had to figure out how to live alone, again. I took up sailing. I drank too much beer. I cried over the end of Harry Potter. I came up with a good plot for a lesbian romance novel. I played a lot of Halo. I learned how to play poker, and how to read Latin.
It's the sailing and the writing that have really stood out, though. I haven't written anything "original" in far too long, and it feels very, very good. Plus, Lisa has been an invaluable help. She brainstormed characters with me, and we spent hours on end outlining the plot while driving back from NM. I've been *reading* a bunch of lesbian romance novels as well - mostly the ones written by Radclyffe (see http://www.radfic.com) - and they've been such a blast. I think I was getting bogged down by the idea that my next piece of original *something* had to be the great American novel - that it had to be brilliant and insightful and able to stand against Booker prize-winners.
But that's silly. The whole point is to write what you love. And this idea that Lisa and I have - the plot and the characters and the whole *scenario* - shows a lot of potential. I have two novels under my belt, both of which were very enjoyable and wonderful learning experiences, but maybe - just maybe - third time's the charm. Maybe this is the one I'll try to publish. There are several small GLBT presses that I have my eye on, and I know more are out there. And sure, yes, I realize that thinking about publication is premature when I haven't even got close to a full manuscript, yet... but having a mission like that makes me excited. Gives me purpose. We all know how important purpose is - right, Matrix girlz? ;)
Besides, one of the best things about this book is that, while it's most certainly a love story between two women, it's also very much about sailing. And sailing is awesome. See icon at left. SO. MUCH. FUN. :D
In short - in the foreseeable future, anyway, this LJ will probably focus a lot on the joys and perils of sailing boats on Lake Mendota, and on the progress of my latest work of fiction. In fact, I plan to post a few chapters soon in case anyone's interested. No one should feel any pressure whatsoever to read what I put up here - I just thought I'd offer up some excerpts to a bigger audience than my lovely (and insightful) wife. :)
Righto. Back to reading for fun, while I still can. September celeriter venit.