It's been a while...
...and have I been busy!
First, it was the official end of the line for the seniors yesterday at 3: graduation! Finally!
Which means that the past few days in my room at school, after yelling at dumb asses to line up right and frickin' walk, I've been cleaning out. Totally. All my file cabinets have been emptied out onto my new, grouped desks (gone are the straight rows of singles I have always used. Want to try something new!), and I have been getting rid of my three copy file folders in the interest of saving space. I have been taking a master, an answer key, and putting them into binders.
I have also been giving things away that I have hoarded for years, like inflatable dollar store globes. If I haven't figured out a way to use them in class yet, I don't need them. It feels good to jettison and neatify, because it certainly isn't happening at home. SIGH.
At graduation itself, my seniors made me cry. First, one of the biggest pain in the asses that I had for 3 classes this year (as well as his freshman year for English), gave me a flower during the "Thank you" ceremony (seniors are given two flowers to give away to thank someone for their help/support, one for a family member and one for a staff/faculty member, during a song.) Then, another student had brought large carnation arrangements for a few of us, in lieu of the single flower. And, finally, my senior officers gave me a plaque to thank me for my dedication to the class, during the ceremony itself. I had to admit, on stage, that yes, I was crying (which I tell them I won't do because I never do, all year) and that I would miss them (which I tell them I hate them and can't wait for them to leave- jokingly, of course- for most of the year.) It was very touching.
Now, of course, my reputation as a hard-ass bitch is shot to hell, and the VP is making fun of me for giving her the title back. Dammit.
Second, I'm an officially paid writer!
I attended the Philadelphia Writer's Conference this past weekend with Writing Buddy while my poor Hubby stayed at home to contend with my Flowers. There were some excellent workshops- Romance with Susan Meier, Flash Fiction with Randall Brown, and Magazine Writing with Larry Stains. I felt really energized about writing the entire time. I got a couple ideas for flash fiction pieces, filled a hole/figured out an ending for a short story based on my grandfather who just died, and made a connection with an agent.
The meeting with the agent was a fluke, a determination to just try it out because I could and make the best of my $200 investment. I signed up, pitched a book that I am well underway with (its a fan-fiction conversion; I already had 80 some pages) but not finished, and the agent was interested. Wants me to e-mail her the synopsis and three chapters. I was so excited and nervous talking to her that I'm not sure that I mentioned that it wasn't finished. I didn't realize it had to be finished to talk to an agent. So it's great she interested, but now I have to face the fact that this will probably pan out to nothing in the end. Still cool though. I just haven't gotten the time/nerve to compose my e-mail to her yet.
But I did bring pieces to hang up for the Word on the Wall contests in non-fiction, poetry, and fiction. My non-fiction didn't win, but Writing Buddy read it for the first time, suggested some changes, and I think I will be sending it out. My poem was about Elder Flower, and won first place. My first PAID writing, and it turns out to be poetry. What I gave up in college (partially) for lack of pay. Ironic. That same morning I found out about that the fiction piece I entered to the contest was picked up for publication at lucreziamagazine.com.
I mean, I've only been sending out fiction for publication since January. This is pretty impressive, rapid growth. My head is a bit in a tizzy, especially because I've also been in contact with an editor that I was working with in January for an erotic vampire novella for a now-defunct e-publisher. It looks like this time, with her new e-company, that it will go through. As well as some sequels set in the same universe. We are already talking promotion ideas, as the piece is being edited (nothing is signed yet, though, so....I try not to get TOO excited.)
First, it was the official end of the line for the seniors yesterday at 3: graduation! Finally!
Which means that the past few days in my room at school, after yelling at dumb asses to line up right and frickin' walk, I've been cleaning out. Totally. All my file cabinets have been emptied out onto my new, grouped desks (gone are the straight rows of singles I have always used. Want to try something new!), and I have been getting rid of my three copy file folders in the interest of saving space. I have been taking a master, an answer key, and putting them into binders.
I have also been giving things away that I have hoarded for years, like inflatable dollar store globes. If I haven't figured out a way to use them in class yet, I don't need them. It feels good to jettison and neatify, because it certainly isn't happening at home. SIGH.
At graduation itself, my seniors made me cry. First, one of the biggest pain in the asses that I had for 3 classes this year (as well as his freshman year for English), gave me a flower during the "Thank you" ceremony (seniors are given two flowers to give away to thank someone for their help/support, one for a family member and one for a staff/faculty member, during a song.) Then, another student had brought large carnation arrangements for a few of us, in lieu of the single flower. And, finally, my senior officers gave me a plaque to thank me for my dedication to the class, during the ceremony itself. I had to admit, on stage, that yes, I was crying (which I tell them I won't do because I never do, all year) and that I would miss them (which I tell them I hate them and can't wait for them to leave- jokingly, of course- for most of the year.) It was very touching.
Now, of course, my reputation as a hard-ass bitch is shot to hell, and the VP is making fun of me for giving her the title back. Dammit.
Second, I'm an officially paid writer!
I attended the Philadelphia Writer's Conference this past weekend with Writing Buddy while my poor Hubby stayed at home to contend with my Flowers. There were some excellent workshops- Romance with Susan Meier, Flash Fiction with Randall Brown, and Magazine Writing with Larry Stains. I felt really energized about writing the entire time. I got a couple ideas for flash fiction pieces, filled a hole/figured out an ending for a short story based on my grandfather who just died, and made a connection with an agent.
The meeting with the agent was a fluke, a determination to just try it out because I could and make the best of my $200 investment. I signed up, pitched a book that I am well underway with (its a fan-fiction conversion; I already had 80 some pages) but not finished, and the agent was interested. Wants me to e-mail her the synopsis and three chapters. I was so excited and nervous talking to her that I'm not sure that I mentioned that it wasn't finished. I didn't realize it had to be finished to talk to an agent. So it's great she interested, but now I have to face the fact that this will probably pan out to nothing in the end. Still cool though. I just haven't gotten the time/nerve to compose my e-mail to her yet.
But I did bring pieces to hang up for the Word on the Wall contests in non-fiction, poetry, and fiction. My non-fiction didn't win, but Writing Buddy read it for the first time, suggested some changes, and I think I will be sending it out. My poem was about Elder Flower, and won first place. My first PAID writing, and it turns out to be poetry. What I gave up in college (partially) for lack of pay. Ironic. That same morning I found out about that the fiction piece I entered to the contest was picked up for publication at lucreziamagazine.com.
I mean, I've only been sending out fiction for publication since January. This is pretty impressive, rapid growth. My head is a bit in a tizzy, especially because I've also been in contact with an editor that I was working with in January for an erotic vampire novella for a now-defunct e-publisher. It looks like this time, with her new e-company, that it will go through. As well as some sequels set in the same universe. We are already talking promotion ideas, as the piece is being edited (nothing is signed yet, though, so....I try not to get TOO excited.)