tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15981896533921756402024-02-21T08:50:45.049-08:00Shhhh... Pammie's WritingWriting about writing. Pammiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08480551808640140799noreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1598189653392175640.post-5689687911200179892015-08-26T19:21:00.003-07:002015-08-26T19:21:23.500-07:00A favorite description<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Rabbi
Steve came with us on our first day on the ropes. He was the kooky uncle I
never had and didn’t know I wanted. He always carried a clipboard, always had on
his Arizona Cardinals <i>yarmulke</i>, and
always wore shorts that didn’t quite cover his knobby knees.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">#amrevising</span></div>
Pammiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08480551808640140799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1598189653392175640.post-71992237181431532502015-08-25T17:23:00.003-07:002015-08-25T17:23:25.608-07:00Revision WinOver the weekend I reminded myself how much I love the revision process. It's like a win/win/win.<br />
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Win: I get to re-read my manuscript. And I still love my manuscript. It still makes me laugh and cry.<br />
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Win: I get to make my manuscript better. As I read - now that I'm months removed from it - I notice ways in which I can make minor adjustments to make it flow better and come alive.<br />
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Win: I get to go back to that exultant feeling I had every time I'd finish a writing sprint for #writeclub and looked at my word count.<br />
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Revisions are, of course, a much slower process. I find myself thinking over single words, and simple sentences. It's helping me hone my craft and to the Nth degree, and every time I finish a round I feel good. Better than a marathon.<br />
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Because if I ran a marathon, I'd be dead.Pammiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08480551808640140799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1598189653392175640.post-42214032708990294562015-08-20T17:50:00.000-07:002015-08-20T17:50:35.949-07:00Forgiveness - and making time for my manuscriptIn school we're doing this new initiative where we have each class come up with its own social contract, describing outlining the behavior they wish to see in the classroom.<br />
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My first group (13 seniors) took about 45 minutes.<br />
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My second group (16 kiddos, a mix of sophomores, juniors, and a few seniors) took about 70 minutes today and we're not finished yet.<br />
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I bring this up because I had an actual lesson plan for today. I was planning on teaching actual history today, so that by the time the course ends in January, I might have actually taught my students U.S. History up through, you know, at least the year 2000.<br />
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Instead, not only did I not get to my lesson for today, but we're probably also not going to get to today's lesson tomorrow, or tomorrow's lesson tomorrow, because we're invested in this social contract and darn it, we're going to finish it and we're going to do it right.<br />
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I feel that way about my writing most of the time. I start out the day with a plan. I'm going to go to work, I'm going to stay until four or four thirty. I'm going to go home and have a small snack and then work on revisions, and then I'm going to read and then I'm going to go to bed.<br />
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But I can't do my stuff for me because I'm too busy helping students and other teachers and administration. So I push back my own work and take that home. I have an early dinner, take care of grading and planning and what-have-you until it's time to get ready for bed.<br />
<br />I climb in and look at my book, then realize I should check some social media, to show support to my friends and see if there are any interest writing things I need to know. Because that's what we're told - find your agents, follow them on twitter, learn about them, get to know them, so that you'll make a better query.<br />
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I fall asleep without ever actually doing any personal reading or writing, and then I get up and I do it all over again.<br />
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And I LOVE my life. I really do. I help and inspire. And I help TO inspire. My kids and peers look up to me - even while they're all looking down AT me.<br />
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Today I get to make revisions, because I forgot my students' assignments in the classroom, and I'm going to enjoy every moment I have doing it, and I'm so glad that I have this time. Because it will remind me - now that school has started - how important it is for me to make time for me and my manuscript. Ultimately that's still most important.Pammiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08480551808640140799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1598189653392175640.post-28210175016768692962015-08-18T21:02:00.003-07:002015-08-18T21:02:53.321-07:00Teaching LifeHere's the thing.<br />
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I had every intention of continuing to update this regularly now that I've come back to it. But it's nine o'clock at night and it's the first time I have available to me to actually sit down and write anything out.<br />
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And really, I sat down in order to work, but I saw the link to the blog and thought I would say something instead.<br />
<br />I think that's why I just can't subscribe to the belief that to be a writer I have to sit down and write everyday. I want to sit down and write everyday, or otherwise work on my manuscript. I'd actually LOVE to sit down and revise every day. But most days I just can't.<br />
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I could let this get to me - but I won't. I have to take care of me, and sometimes "taking care of me" means allowing myself to step away to take care of my have-tos - grading and planning and facilitating - so that I'm better able to take on the want-tos.<br />
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And when it comes down to it, I'll be a better writer and editor and reviser - and TEACHER - when I allow myself to drop the ball sometimes. Because the ball is always there and ready for me to pick it back up.<br />
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I won't grow to resent the thing I love most - my writing - or the career that I truly believe is a calling - teaching.<br />
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And soon I'll have a rhythm to my schedule and it will be easier for me to carve out time for what really matters - me.Pammiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08480551808640140799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1598189653392175640.post-77074913412544019622015-08-16T18:26:00.000-07:002015-08-16T18:26:15.191-07:00This is me! #PitchWars mentee bioI'm a little in shock that it's been two years (and one month) since I've last written in my blog, but then again, I'm not. I stopped writing in this blog EXACTLY when I moved to Lake Havasu City and started teaching again.<br />
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Here's my new(ish) home:<br />
<a href="http://retiremaxcdn.retirethere.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/arizona-lake-havasu.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://retiremaxcdn.retirethere.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/arizona-lake-havasu.jpg" height="227" width="640" /></a><br />
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(Photo credit: http://retiremaxcdn.retirethere.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/arizona-lake-havasu.jpg)<br />
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I honestly don't believe it, either.<br />
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During the day I teach all of the high school Social Studies classes (World History, United States History, Government, and Economics) at a charter school. I'm my own department and collaborate really well with myself. Yes, I believe that teaching is as much a "calling" as it is a career. I love what I do even when it's difficult, and I live for the light that shines in my students when they make connections.<br />
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I just got the shivers - did you?<br />
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By night I write young adult novels, typically contemporary, but as a history teacher, you can bet I want to branch out into historical as well. Here is my WIP Wish List:<br />
<ul>
<li>Historical set during the Glorious Revolution </li>
<li>Historical set during the Salem Witch Trials</li>
<li>Historical set at the Buffalo Exposition (where President McKinley was shot)</li>
<li>Contemporary marching band <strike>rock opera</strike></li>
<li>Sequel to Prom, my debut novel</li>
</ul>
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I graduated from high school some time during the 21st century and went to Arizona State University where I majored in Broadcasting. I was a member of the Arizona State University Sun Devil Marching Band in the Auxiliary (flag line) for one year, but a mistake in my original construction caused me to quit after that first year. I worked at Borders Books, Music, and Cafe (light a candle) while earning my degree and then put my broadcasting skills to good use making closing announcements on Friday nights as the Merchandising Supervisor at my store.<br />
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I also volunteered as a teen crisis counselor while earning my degree, and then took a part time supervisor job there, where I worked until I started teaching in 2009. I miss it every day.<br />
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After a year I left to work as an assistant at the Office of the Governor for a year, and then a communications staffer for another year. To that end I've been published many times, but never under my own name, as I wrote on behalf of my boss.<br />
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I left the Office of the Governor to go grad school and earn a Master of Education, Secondary Education Curriculum and Instruction - or in layman's terms, I went to teacher school. I graduated in 2009 and taught for less than a year, and then threw in the towel in the hopes my students would be willing to learn something by anybody who wasn't me. I worked at a university for three and a half years as an academic counselor and earned a Bachelor of Arts in History in the process.<br />
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Miraculously, in 2013 I was offered a teaching job for the 2013-2014 school year, months before all of my paperwork expired. I moved to Havasu from Phoenix and never looked back. (I look back sometimes - those memories are often the foundation of my writing, and my teaching failures and successes remind me of the importance of perseverence.)<br />
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Here is a list of things I love, because this bio is getting to be way too long:<br />
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<ul>
<li>My cats, <a href="https://twitter.com/pammiewrites/status/633044354995585025" target="_blank">Pippin</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/pammiewrites/status/622900730286882816" target="_blank">Lucy</a></li>
<li>My family</li>
<li>My Ryan Adams Pandora playlist</li>
<li>Once Upon a Time</li>
<li>LOST</li>
<li>Sarah Ockler, Morgan Matson, and Jessi Kirby (their writing and their friendship)</li>
<li>Arizona State University and the Sun Devils</li>
<li>Arizona sports (even you, Rattlers and Mercury!)</li>
</ul>
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My goal is to write here more often, if for no other reason to continue to review the books I'm reading when I'm finished reading them. And I may just document the process of writing the next WIP and (hopefully) querying/agenting/revising/selling Prom.<br />
<br />Pammiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08480551808640140799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1598189653392175640.post-76456842274410542182013-07-16T18:59:00.001-07:002013-07-16T18:59:12.784-07:00If my life were like a novel...<p>I'd meet the man of my dreams while eating this sandwich. Every time I take a bite I get all this goop all over my face. It sends fitting and not at all outside of the realm of my existence.</p>
Pammiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08480551808640140799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1598189653392175640.post-21030914951458766432013-07-05T17:23:00.002-07:002013-07-05T17:23:19.135-07:00I'm Not Actually Writing...... but I felt compelled to check in anyway. I've been doing a ton of reading late late late into the night so I can walk around like a bleary-eyed monster during the day. I've been taking an online economics course that fiiiiiiiinally finished on July 3. YESTERDAY WAS MY INDEPENDENCE DAY!!! (This is why my reading was limited to late late late into the night.) And I've been looking for a place to live, as I start a new job in three weeks and I still have no place to live. :[<br />
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If I've read once, I've read a gabillion times that writers need to write, and we need to make time to write, and so-and-so wrote her first novel by getting up at 3am and writing for two hours straight while, I'm assuming, she was hooked up to an IV of coffee and meth. I'm assuming it's in my genes to feel guilty about things I'm not doing, like getting up at 3am to write for two hours before I trudge off to work or for not setting aside my econ homework after two hours in order to read notes for an hour.<br />
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The thing is, the more I feel guilty about it, the less likely I am to come back to it, because I'm going to hide from whatever it is that's making me feel guilty. So instead I'm facing my guilt and my writing head on and I'm saying that I need to focus on finding a place to live, because my book will either be published or it won't... but whether I get up in the morning hours after I've turned off the light or not, it will be published or it won't.<br />
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So I can either make myself feel like crap about it, or I can focus on things I need to focus on and stay out of the bubbling cauldron of self-loathing that is typically created by all that guilt.<br />
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I've made my choice, and I'm sticking with it.Pammiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08480551808640140799noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1598189653392175640.post-86412152285148025652013-05-29T21:22:00.000-07:002013-05-29T21:22:45.159-07:00Book Rec: Amy & Roger's Epic DetourSo last week I went to <a href="http://www.changinghands.com/" target="_blank">Changing Hands Bookstore</a> for the Summer Lovin' 2013 book tour primarily so I could hear Suzanne Young talk about her amaze-balls novel "<a href="http://pammie-writes.blogspot.com/2013/05/book-rec-program.html" target="_blank">The Program</a>." But she's a super awesome local teacher here and wasn't able to go, so I was forced to hear other amazing authors talk instead. Of the bevy of books I purchased while I was there, the first I opted to read (to be honest, the one I picked up without hearing anybody talk about it), was <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Rogers-Epic-Detour-Morgan-Matson/dp/1416990666/ref=tmm_pap_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1369885602&sr=8-3" target="_blank">Amy & Roger's Epic Detour</a> by <a href="http://www.morganmatson.com/" target="_blank">Morgan Matson</a>.<br />
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In the book, Amy's been left home alone for a month in California while her mother moved to Connecticut to start a new life and her brother went to North Carolina for some *ahem* academic enrichment. While alone Amy finished the last month of her junior year, starred in one last school musical, and turned into the veal that Sandra Bullock was afraid of becoming in <a href="http://www.amazon.com/While-You-Were-Sleeping/dp/B0060CX1TO/ref=sr_1_1?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1369886618&sr=1-1&keywords=while+you+were+sleeping" target="_blank">While You Were Sleeping</a>. Amy's mom decides she needs the car that was left in California, and enlists her friend's college-age son Roger to drive the car and Amy across the country, in the kind of naive mistake we all wish our moms had made when we were 17. As the title suggests, Amy and Roger have an epic detour on their journey that sends Amy's mom into a fury, Roger's <i>ex</i>-girlfriend into a tizzy, and Amy into situations she wasn't ready to face. Also, the detour sent them on a food journey that should be recreated as a special on the Travel Network, which I would totally watch.<br />
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Matson did an amazing job toeing the line of pathetic, but not too pathetic with her characterization of Amy. She's sad, and she's angry. She's lonely, but she doesn't want to deal with people either. She's pretty, and she used to know it, but now she doesn't feel pretty, so she's not pretty anymore. Matson could also teach workshops on the slow build and slower reveal of a trauma. I'm sure I'll return again and again to this book for personal enjoyment and for a reminder on how to Do It Right.<br />
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Also, as I wrote about Amy, I thought of my favorite Jessica Riddle song, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFhArJDaJHw" target="_blank">Indifference</a>.<br />
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I promised myself I'd read a few of the other books I picked up at the Summer Lovin' Tour, before buzzing through my other Matson purchase right away, so I won't be reading <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Second-Chance-Summer-Morgan-Matson/dp/1416990682/ref=tmm_pap_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1369887041&sr=1-2" target="_blank">Second Chance Summer</a> right away. But I'm excited to read it, and I'm excited to read whatever Matson has next up her sleeves.<br />
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GO NOW. Read this book. <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Amy-Rogers-Epic-Detour-ebook/dp/B003IQ1610/ref=la_B0034PNLF4_1_1_title_0_main?ie=UTF8&qid=1369886366&sr=1-1" target="_blank">Kindle link</a>. <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/amy-and-rogers-epic-detour-morgan-matson/1100365091?ean=9781439157497" target="_blank">Nook link</a>. <a href="http://www.sheldonsquote.com/217-hes-so-zazzy-gif/" target="_blank">He's so zazzy</a>.Pammiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08480551808640140799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1598189653392175640.post-73541568738534129862013-05-06T21:53:00.001-07:002013-05-06T21:58:19.474-07:00Book Rec: The ProgramI actually finished <i>The Program</i> almost a week ago. It was released on April 30 and I devoured it in two sittings. Well, layings. Whatever. It's taken me this long to find it in me to talk about it, and I'm still not sure if I can do the novel justice. To be perfectly honest, I've had this window open for over an hour, and I just keep struggling to find the right words to use to talk about it. With my friends I can just shove my hands in their faces and say "read it" a lot and that works.<br />
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This is a little trickier...<br />
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In <a href="http://suzanne-young.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Suzanne Young</a>'s novel, suicide is the epidemic and The Program is the solution. <i>The Program</i> takes place in an Oregon school district where The Program is being used as a pilot to combat the teen suicide epidemic that is spreading all over the nation and all over the world. We follow Sloane as she navigates an increasingly dangerous high school landscape doing what she can to stay home with her friends and family. But will she be able to hold on until she turns 18 and can refuse to go into The Program?<br />
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To make a long story short, <i>The Program</i> punched me right in the feels. As someone who has struggled with depression all her life, I found the characters real and their world devastating. I'm pretty sure at one point I fell asleep reading it, because I couldn't put it down to go to bed. A week later I'm still haunted by the characters, their story, and the damned epilogue that kicked me in the face while my feels were still hurting. .<br />
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Do yourself a favor and read this one if you can. Obvious triggers for suicide, depression, self-injury, and the like, so it's not a book that everybody's going to be able to get through... But if you can, you should. If you've never this type of crippling depression, read it so you can get a better understanding of it. If you <i>have</i> suffered, read it as a reminder that you are not alone.<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Program-Suzanne-Young/dp/1442445807/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1367897735&sr=1-1&keywords=the+program" target="_blank">BUY THIS BOOK. </a><br />
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Here's the trailer, which I pulled form Suzanne's blog and is also found on Youtube.<br />
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<br />Pammiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08480551808640140799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1598189653392175640.post-72750735228855983252013-04-21T20:57:00.000-07:002013-04-21T20:57:02.137-07:00InspirationI was watching the PBS presentation of Les Miserables (and sobbing my eyes out) today and it occurred to me that I may have gotten my obsession with revolutions from that musical. Hear me out! What's my favorite moment (after every single Eponine moment)? "Do You Hear the People Sing" and how they're all RAWR let's go make a revolution! Since then I've enjoyed learning about revolutions and people changing governments. Which inspires my current manuscript and my reading choices. It's not so much the idea of a dystopia or utopia or anything else - it's the fascinating idea that there's a way to say, "Things are wrong, let's change them." And I'd rather read about it in fiction than know that people are getting hurt fighting that same battle. (I'm looking at you, Syria.)<br />
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Anyway, that reminded me that I haven't written in the blog for a little while, which also maybe slowed down because I haven't been as inspired to write in general as I had been. But not writing here felt a little like hiding - since I hadn't been working vigorously on any particular works in progress, I should somehow not bring myself around here to say anything.<br />
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But after watching today's performance (I wish I had found it on youtube!), I at least want to get back to writing some more. Or maybe it was just watching Eponine singing again. Who knows?<br />
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<br />Pammiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08480551808640140799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1598189653392175640.post-22997144208073183532013-03-18T21:43:00.002-07:002013-03-18T21:43:45.396-07:00One and (not) doneI finished the first major revision of my novel last night. This morning I immediately jumped back in and began cleaning things up. Little things like making sure that I'm following the <a href="http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~mslee/format.html" target="_blank">rules </a>for eventual manuscript submission, and big things, like making sure that I'm not using a dozen words to say what should only take five.<br />
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It's been an interesting transition, coming from a place where the constant upward motion of my word count was a point of glee. Now the opposite occurs - as my word count falls from 66- to 65- to 64- to 63-thousand words, I feel that same glee knowing that I'm making the remaining words stronger. I'm forcing myself to send the draft over to beta readers without doing a third run-through, because like many beginning authors, I can probably go through and re-edit until I wheeze out my last breath.<br />
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That got depressing.<br />
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Lest I be concerned about leaving this world behind, as I go through on this second revision and figure out exactly what my characters are supposed to be doing and saying, the sequel is already developing in my head. Which is great, because I'm not ready to say goodbye Elleigh, Zee, and Officer Ray just yet. Oh no, we need another 60k words together, at least. Pammiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08480551808640140799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1598189653392175640.post-16904458503503747362013-03-13T21:04:00.002-07:002013-03-13T21:04:28.822-07:00Book Rec: "The Selection"I read a lot, too. I had every intention of doing some writing on the plane, but I've been holding onto this book for several weeks now just WAITING to open it up and read it while on vacation. Plus I shoved my laptop bag into the overhead compartment and it also had all my writing notebooks in it.<br />
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So instead I devoured "<a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Selection-Kiera-Cass/dp/0062059947/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1363231974&sr=8-7&keywords=kiera+cass" target="_blank">The Selection</a>" by <a href="http://www.kieracass.com/" target="_blank">Kiera Cass</a> and uh mah gawd y'all. I was blown away. I was a little hesitant at first because I haaaaaaate any and all dating reality shows (including dating reality shows featuring people with whom I used to be friends). But if all dating reality shows were as well-written as "The Selection" I might actually consider watching them. (Not really.)<br />
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In the novel, the selection refers to the televised reality event wherein Prince Maxon must choose his bride from 35 selecteds. We follow America Singer, a musician from Carolina province, as she (spoiler alert) is selected and goes to the capitol city to "vie" for Prince Maxon's heart. I was a little iffy about the subject matter - I'll admit - but I downloaded the Kindle sample and after I zipped through the few chapters I was allowed I immediately purchased the book and then purchased the unpublished (at the time) "T<a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Prince-Selection-HarperTeen-ebook/dp/B008O8I8KY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1363231974&sr=8-1&keywords=kiera+cass" target="_blank">he Prince</a>," which like Veronica Roth's "Free Four," is a look into the story from our male hero's eyes. (It was also delightful.)<br />
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Much like other *ahem* reality show genre'd novels I've read, this book has an engaging lead character who is as awkward as I am, a cast of likable supporting characters (including characters who may even seem more likable than our heroine), and a hero who in my head is played by Ryan Gosling. Take my advice and read this book. And while you do, picture America looking like Castle's <a href="http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lp1wbyGXpf1qhaagao1_400.jpg" target="_blank">Molly Quinn</a> (and then do yourself a favor and picture her dad as <a href="https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTs1wnV_HQEF4AhulJqkg6jY1Cs-rUxk7REhAG42a94Ja6Nvp85" target="_blank">this rakish gentleman</a>).<br />
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(picture obviously from Amazon.com)Pammiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08480551808640140799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1598189653392175640.post-36586134351908685672013-03-10T21:29:00.000-07:002013-03-10T21:29:03.914-07:00DevelopmentThis blog post has been bouncing around in my head for quite a while, which is going to be my excuse for shying away from writing in a blog that nobody actually reads anyway. I've been working in earnest to better develop my characters. I'm using background exposition, dialog, and action to do this, and I'm enjoying where this new information about my characters is taking me and this novel. I also like the direction that this new information is taking the novel.<br />
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Better yet, I'm feeling more and more confident with the novel. As I flesh things out I have more and more instances where I can sit back and be <b>proud</b> of what I've done. I'm also finding that in a lifestyle full of revelry and merriment, hanging out with girlfriends, and cleaning up at pub trivia, I'm at my best when I'm sitting in front of my laptop and fleshing out my characters. I feel at my best, at my most comfortable, the most <i>alive</i> when I'm developing my characters. This feels like personal character development - I'm developing my me.<br />
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My 40-hour a week job leaves me cranky and crotchety and hating the world. It feels good to come "home" to something that I love and that I feel like I'm genuinely good at. I feel better and more like myself when I'm working on my novel, so even if it never goes anywhere, I'll still have gotten the world out of writing it.Pammiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08480551808640140799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1598189653392175640.post-25117300217283111852013-02-27T20:29:00.001-08:002013-02-27T20:29:46.430-08:00Delete delete deleteYesterday I did some major cutting, which hurt my heart. I was so proud and, I'll admit it, so in awe of my brilliance. I carried around the scar on my heart all day afterward, and into the morning. Then today I revised one of my favorite scenes, cleaning it up and giving it some style. Today I know that this favorite section of mine is stronger for the cutting that I did yesterday.<br />
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It's a good reminder that when we take out passages that don't belong - no matter how UH-MAY-ZING we think they are when we're writing them or re-reading them. By removing what doesn't belong, we're increasing the value of what <i>does</i> belong. So I'll delete delete delete to my heart's desire!<br />
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And if I can't delete delete delete, then I'll at least cut and paste into a blank document to slip under my pillow for the too-much-detail fairy.<br />
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<br />Pammiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08480551808640140799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1598189653392175640.post-92058776056814857782013-02-25T12:07:00.000-08:002013-02-25T12:16:07.329-08:00Show & TellI'm struggling right now with showing and not telling. I have this whole world built up in my head, with a constitution (no amendments, it was done right the first time), and a social order, and a judicial system, and castes and... and everything. It's all there, in my head and scribbled into my notebooks interspersed in scenes. I already know that the best way to get this information across is to do it slowly, in bits and pieces as the reader moves through the novel. This is easier said than done.<br />
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I'm also having difficulty with being a lady, and not showing too much. Just because the information isn't part of a three-page expositional word-vomit (new phrase!), that doesn't mean that it's suddenly okay. As I go through and make my revisions, I find myself highlighting and deleting one and two paragraphs at a time - yes, just one and two. They're these little gems of information that put the characters into more of a context, but this isn't a history textbook, this is a novel.<br />
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My response to this is to go through and find new places to put more action and dialog. I'm not talking about using dialog to tell this same information, but to put more actual action into the pages. Right now the characters are shackled by my own world building, so really, these revisions are a rescue mission to save my novel from early burial.Pammiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08480551808640140799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1598189653392175640.post-29978033141825531312013-02-23T13:18:00.000-08:002013-02-23T13:18:51.043-08:00Satellite officeI like leaving the house so I can get work done. When I'm home I don't feel guilty for wasting my time like surfing through Facebook, cleaning out my Kindle account, or looking for new employment. Sitting in the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf or Paradise Bakery I feel like I have to justify my butt being in the seat. Empty tables all around me, nobody waiting to order, and still I feel like doing something that isn't part of the writing process is somehow a blow to whatever place I happen to be patronizing.<br />
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On the other hand, if I stay at home I usually don't get any work done because it offends Pippin. If Pippin is one of the best things to ever happen to me (he is), he's also one of the worst things to ever happen to my writing. I can be wandering around the house, knitting, playing computer games, reading, whatever and he leaves me alone. As soon as he sees me writing in a notebook or typing on the laptop, he needs to stake his claim in me.<br />
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Don't get me wrong. I love having his furry little body curled up on my lap. When I first adopted him, I assumed that he'd sit at the end of the couch, or behind me, or maybe <i>maybe </i>he'd curl up beside me and sleep. Instead I spend most nights with a mound of black fur and a few sparse spots sprawled out on top of me. He's really the most precious.<br />
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So I end up contributing to the service sector of the economy by grabbing a table somewhere and getting my writing done. And usually drinking way too much coffee. So if you need me, I'll be the one in the back of CB&TL bouncing off the walls and sometimes landing on the keyboard.<br />
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<br />Pammiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08480551808640140799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1598189653392175640.post-36478505212316494862013-02-12T20:33:00.003-08:002013-02-12T20:34:15.307-08:00Now what? I finished the first draft of my novel this weekend. I'm walking around a little numb, knowing what I need to do next and feeling nervous about starting the next step. Really what's on my mind is finding some beta readers who aren't going to be worried about hurting my feelings.<br />
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Really what I need to do is sit down and seriously work on editing and adding. I know what I want to include in there and all that needs to be added, and now I just need to get to it. I just wish I could carry around a notebook and do that, like I'm used to doing.<br />
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(picture from http://www.todayandtomorrow.net/2009/04/06/the-end/)Pammiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08480551808640140799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1598189653392175640.post-17867445406839147732013-02-10T10:24:00.003-08:002013-02-10T10:25:08.694-08:00Mood musicThe initial inspiration for my novel was a B-side song by Jimmy Eat World. In 2007 I worked on a NaNoWriMo, which turned out to be a "first draft" that would be eerily similar to the Hunger Games. I guess it was a good thing I never finished it.<br />
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When I started working on the revamped version of the novel I spent very little time listening to the inspiration music and a lot of time listening to peaceful folk-esque music. The novel took a very different turn and after a while I wasn't happy with it. I liked the writing, but it wasn't where I wanted my novel to go.<br />
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So I went back to the original inspiration album and BABOOM. The novel takes another turn, going exactly where I want it to go. I didn't realize the importance of going back to the original inspiration so that I would be able to write the novel that I wanted to write. I'm at 53,600 words, and I'm most excited to finish the first draft so that I can go back to the beginning and weave the original music back into the pages.<br />
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<br />Pammiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08480551808640140799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1598189653392175640.post-80957289903477292172013-02-02T16:23:00.000-08:002013-02-02T16:23:02.174-08:00Outline to FreedomI've never been a fan of outlining. Even as I taught my students to write five paragraph essay by outline, in my head I was poo-pooing the idea of outlining. Then last night, when I was starting at my notebook trying to get myself into my protagonist's shoes, I thought... why not?<br />
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Boy, have I been wrong! An activity that took me fewer than thirty minutes, put me onto the path to completion. I would pull out the notebook for some specific examples of how this helped my writing, but Pippin is napping on my wrist. Trust me. It was very helpful.<br />
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Now I know how many chapters my novel's going to be, who my protagonist is going to meet along her journey, and how I'm going to include exposition. Now all I need to do is go through and make sure I'm following the rules that I just made up.<br />
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<br />Pammiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08480551808640140799noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1598189653392175640.post-25237776658605719282013-01-27T10:04:00.001-08:002013-01-27T10:04:51.933-08:00Pam and EggsI'm trying to type with my laptop on half of a thigh and a snugglebug cat sprawled out on my lap. Today's goal is to learn more about egg farming, which includes having a sit down with my mother. She inspired me with the concept of egg farming by never letting me forget my own familial egg-farming past, Verbin's Farm Fresh Eggs.<br />
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If I play it right, today will not be rotten.<br />
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(Photo from cnn.com)Pammiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08480551808640140799noreply@blogger.com1