01.07.10 - Such a lazy day.

I had a nothing day. And it was amazing. I spent the majority of my day relaxing, though I should have most definitely been packing. Definitely should have been packing. I'm taking a six day vacation from work. I'm calling it my palette cleanser. Two days with my grandfather, twoish? days with my cousin and time to myself, cleaning out my brain. I want to start fresh with something to write.

Today's laziness was broken when I enjoyed some sushi with my friend Sara. Interestingly enough, I got an idea for the elementals book I'd thought of when I was still in college. Those characters are starting to attack my brain. So I'm not sure what will happen, if the sirens will beat out the elementals, but we shall see. I'm curious.

Okay, short entry for I need to pack. I will be mostly MIA until I get back, but there will be journals cause it's my New Year's Resolution.

Three things I rediscovered today:

1) I love the idea for my first book and I want to maybe go back to that before all the index cards on my doors

2) I'm obsessed with many things and am a huge nerd

3) I want a Flip camera. Real bad.

01.06.10 - One minute writer: laughter

One Minute Writer: Blog Prompt - What do you want to rediscover?

"I would love to rediscover how I laugh. It's evolved so much since I started laughing. I'm sure it was some childish giggle as a baby, maybe with some gurgling. Now it is more cackle like… with a little Betty Rubble. It's cute, but I forget how I natural laugh sometimes."

Everyone has a different laugh. I forget what mine started as. I remember trying to tone mine down at one point because I cackle. I'm since just accepted it and moved on. I'm loud when I laugh. Get over it. Everyone knows I'm enjoying myself. :)

In other news, I'm totally looking forward to the days off from work I have next week. I just need to relax and get my head back on straight. Then hopefully I should have new stuff written and I will feel accomplished.

01.05.10 - Friends are honestly the best thing in the world

And I'm sure everyone knows that. So when my friends show up at my house with Chinese food, it makes for a nice evening. No matter how tired I am, the bond I have with my girls is priceless. Singing random songs, laughing, reading texts and watching movie trailers actually made my night.

Everyone has this point in their lives, when there are people in their lives, the people that shape them, bring them joy, sadness. Right now, for me, those people are my friends. But what are they for my characters? That's a big question. Are they friends? Past lovers? Wives? Children? What makes a character tick. It's a big thing for me when I figure out backstory for my characters.

So what makes you tick? What makes you smile? Cry? Laugh until you cry?

01.04.10 - A hard day [an addendum]

When I started this, it was supposed to be about my writing. Just about the writing. But I realized something, looking at my past entires just now. It has to be more than that. So I shouldn't feel weird posting about my life, or how I was feeling one day. That is part of what makes me a writer, the ability to feel and the desire to communicate those feelings to others. So here it goes.

New Year's Resolution Number Three: Write what I feel here, not what I think you all want to hear.

01.04.10 - A hard day

Today was probably harder than it needed to be. Not because of work or anything really bad, per say. Today was a hard day because I missed my grandmother. More than I really have since Christmas. And I know that I'm trying to live with less regrets, but sometimes they creep up and surprise you, remind you that you could have done more, spent more time with someone. If only we had the gift of foresight. So when I think about what kind of super power I would like to have, it would probably be that one. To know, in my gut that I should do something because I might not have the time to do it otherwise.

Anyone can quote something hopefully, say something encouraging or offer a story where they felt the same way you do. But grief is a mysterious thing. It isn't something that we can figure out. Should I be over it by now? Why do I still cry? These are questions that no one has answers to, ones that aren't really possible to answer. What may be enough time for me, might not for others. Do I feel selfish some days, like I'm the only one who still grieves so deeply? Sure. But then I talk to my grandfather and I hear sadness in his voice and I can't imagine losing someone I'd know for almost my whole life. I don't have anyone in my life I've known that long, save for my family.

So I suppose today's food for though is if you could see the future, know when people would leave, when you would leave, would you want to know? As much as I say I want to know, I'm not sure I really do. I'm not sure I could handle that. The knowledge that she was going to die over the summer was enough to literally have me sobbing on the ground. Could I handle knowing when I would lose my grandfather? My mother? My sister? My dad? My little brother? My best friend? Probably not.

But it's still something to think about.

01.03.10 - A New Year's Resolution

Okay, this is something that I'm sure happens a lot in the beginning of the year, but I'm making a resolution. I've made several over the past three days. Some of which I'm going to list here. But my main resolution is to blog every day. No matter how tired I am. No matter what I write about. I need to blog, to actually keep writing. It's hard and it will be a challenge so, here it goes.

Anyways, other solutions:

1) Never regret something that once made you smile.

2) Take a picture every day. At the end of the year, I'm going to compile them together. At the moment, I have no idea what to take for today's picture. I'm off and I have spent the day watching movies and napping. Totally a lazy Sunday. But lazy Sundays are good every once in a while. I needed this one.

Okay, I have to get back to the long list of things I have to do this evening, including make dinner, but expect blogs every day! My total of like two readers.

Precious Fragile Little Thing...

I have made my NaNoWriMo account. I'm excited and nervous. I really want to win this and accomplish something so we shall see. It's over here. Also, my website is updated with a new picture, new playlist and a link to my NaNo profile. :) (That's over here.)

The new journaling idea has been working out so far. It's actually helping with plotting, so I'm gonna be keeping that up. It's been fun. I try to take some time out of my lunch hour to do some writing and it's been successful. Also, I try to do something writing related when I get home too, so that I'm not all distracted by the internet. Trying to get ready for next month. I'm seriously doing this and I wanted to try this for a few years now. Last year was a half-hearted attempt. This year, I'm going to do this.

So for now, I'm going to write away from the computer and that temptress, the internet, while I'm waiting for dinner to be ready. Wish me luck!

New thoughts!

So, I'm going to be attempting a new writing exercise inspired by Amie. Her prompt last week to write a letter from your character. Well, since I've got more than my fair share of characters rolling around in my brain, my idea is to write a journal as the character. I had done this a long time ago as part of a role playing game I was playing online at the time. The character had lost her boyfriend and suddenly she was just lost and that wasn't like her. So she went on hiatus from the game and I write a private journal for her. It worked out really when and when she got back to the game, she was more like herself. Yes, there was heart break still, which was obvious since she'd lost her love, but she was the character in my head, not the one who had managed to come out of my fingers. So that's my new idea. We'll see how well it goes. :)

A random burst of inspiration

So I was sitting at my computer, admittedly goofing off and listening to music and something hit me, a little bit of my new novel. I know that I haven't shared anything of that here so here it is. A little for those of you who read this. It comes from last Monday's prompt from The Writer Chick.

Izzy sat at her desk, computer on in front of her and her headphones plugged in. Looks like her iTunes had it in for her, a sappy love song with a waltz beat to currently blasting in her ears, making her heart tighten. She still missed him and it had been a year. School was going to start in a couple of weeks and all she had on her mind was the boy she'd killed. Her fingers were poised over the keys but nothing was coming out. She couldn't get out a word, not even in her journal. It was killing her to keep this all inside.

Suddenly, from the world outside the earbuds, a hip hop beat. Frowning, she pulled one out of her ear and glanced at her closed bedroom door. That couldn't have been Helene. She didn't listen to that kind of stuff. Pausing her music, Isadora stood and moved to the door, tucking her hands in the pocket of her hoodie. The music was coming from the spare bedroom down the hall.

The door was cracked open and she could see someone swaying to the beat, leaning over the bed. Curious, she pushed the door open and the redhead whirled on her.

"Miranda."

"Hey, cousin!" The other siren smiled at her, the smile that meant trouble, plain and simple. This was not good. "Guess who's moving in!"

“She’s just staying with us for a little while. Her mother miscarried again. And I thought you liked your cousin.” Tessa looked at her youngest daughter, a slightly annoyed look on her face. “Besides, she’s soon to be marked, like you. It’s time you started to spend time with sirens your age, talked about getting ready to join the council. There is so much in your future, little one. It’s time you started to get ready for it instead of hiding in your room.”

“I go out, Mom.” She flopped down on the bed as her mother was getting ready to go out. “Lena and I went out two nights ago. I even picked up a sailor.” It wasn’t something she was proud of, but she knew her mother worried. Helene had all but forced her on the boy and she knew she had no choice. She couldn’t disappoint them.

“Is it really that bad that I don’t hang out with girls from the coven?”

Her mother looked at her in the mirror as she put in her earrings. “It reflects poorly on me, little one. I’m one of the prominent members of the coven’s council of elders and my own daughter wants nothing to do with other sirens. It is that bad.” Tessa smiled sympathetically and spritzed perfumes on her wrists and neck and moved to sit next to her daughter. “I’m sorry, sweetie. I’m going through a lot right now. I have to get pregnant, Randa’s here and my sister is having a hard time with this miscarriage. You know how bad I got last time. This is worse for her.”

She knew her aunt Aria had three in a row and her mother only had one. At least the birth before that had been a boy. That was excusable. Poor Aria. Sighing, Isadora pushed herself off the bed. “Alright. I’ll see if any of the girls want to go out with us tonight.”

Tessa smiled. “That’s my girl.” She stood and kissed her forehead before heading out of the bedroom and towards the stairs. “Make sure you watch out for each other. And try not to get blood on your dress, little one!”

Now it's time to go...

Oh, look. Another month went by and I haven't posted. I promise you that I have been writing during that time though. I'm putting together a new novel idea and it's working out pretty well at the moment. It's unique (or so I'm told) so we shall see. It's taking the Greek mythology surrounding sirens and modernizing it. So all of my fingers and toes are crossed on this one.

Real life has been a bit of a pain in the butt. Working and paying bills and trying to find a roommate have occupied my thoughts. I'm hoping once things settle down again that my blogging and writing will take a more regular turn and we'll have weekly updates again instead of quick monthly ones.

Also, new blog picture thanks to the wonderful Michael Abella. He is my hero. That is all as it is time for work. :)