Monday Musings

Before I launch into my thoughts today, I think I should explain a key difference that is to be very obvious because it is relevant to my life. It is not, however, what I would consider common knowledge.

In college, if you get a major in creative writing and are in a fiction writing class, you don't write novels. First, there's not really enough time (I mean, according to professors. As we NaNo veterans know, that's bullshit) and second, a very small percentage of people in fiction writing classes are capable of finishing a full length novel. (I plan on writing a post about why that's true at a later date.)

So instead, you write short stories, which basically pushes you right smack into what is called literary fiction. Literary fiction is the difficult to read, not a good beach read, sort of stuff. Think Hemingway's short stories. That's not to say literary fiction is unpopular because I'd call Anthony Doerr's All the Light We Cannot See literary fiction and it's obviously very popular. But literary fiction aligns more with poetry when it comes to attention to language and the conflict/drama is downsized considerably.

Basically, the fiction I write for my advanced fiction class, is the exact opposite of my novel(s). Which brings me to today's episode of writing thoughts, specifically about my first short story which is due on Thursday.

It's almost done, so that's good. I mean, the first draft is almost done. Hopefully there will be one revision before I turn it in for workshop.

It's been a really long time since I wrote with a first person narrator (or, in narratology terms, an extradiegetic, autodiegetic narrator) and it's proving...let's say interesting instead of difficult.

Writing a character who's a little bit of a bitch is a lot of fun but not as easy as I thought. Maybe that means I'm not as mean as I think I am? *she wondered hopefully*

Besides when I write in the morning with my coffee, the time inspiration is most likely to strike is twenty minutes before I plan on going to bed. 

And last, but not least, my neck still hurts from hunching over the LSAT on Saturday and I am not thrilled.

Some Random Updates/Future Plans

Hello there and welcome back!

I'm afraid I don't have a lot of writing related news for you today. Revising has taken a back seat to studying for the LSAT (which I take in T-minus 5 days) and getting settled in to a new semester. I keep catching myself thinking it's my last fall semester but that's not true, because law school.

But I seriously adore fall. I think it's probably my favorite unless winter behaves itself and snows a few inches regularly and stays cold enough to justify boots-hats-scarves-and oodles of coffee. It always motivates me to get my butt in gear. So I'm predicting after the LSAT, I'm going to get a lot of work done on Black & Gold. Which is good, because then it will be November and you all know what that means.

NANO WRIMO!!!! 

Or, for those of you who don't, National Novel Writing Month.

See what I did there? Yeah, I'm very helpful. Once it gets closer I'll write out the correct phonetic pronunciation. 

After NaNo, I think I will do a quick revision of Throne & Fire before I dive into a real revision of Sky & Steel. I'm hoping I can give it to those who are all caught up by spring break-ish but that's probably overly optimistic of me.

And of course I will resume querying once I have a shiny new draft of Black & Gold all pretty and mature.

I'm thinking I might try to branch out with my blog posts. Is that something you all think I should do? If so, what sort of posts would you like to see? Coffee reviews? Book recommendations? Advice for LSAT prep? Haha, kidding. I don't know what I'm doing. Running? Food?

In closing, happy Monday! You got this.