Not writing enough, either?

Well do I have a solution for you!

It's called, "Write or Die," and it's the brain child of someone called Dr Wicked (related to Dr Evil, I'm sure). It's been helping me write when I can't, I just can't. Suddenly, it seems... uh, I can, I can! Look, I actually can!

Why? Because I'm as good as a lab rat in an experiment and avoid punishment like you wouldn't believe. When forced to, I make my fingers type something, and before I know it, that something turns out to be a scene in my story and I keep going and by the end it mostly works and makes sense.

Click here to check it out.

Here's how you use the website:

• Locate the "Write or Die" fields at the top of the page.
• Enter in the amount of words you want to achieve.
• Choose the time frame that you'd like to achieve this goal within.
• Choose the harshness of your punishment.
• Choose the grace period you'd like it to allow before implementing nasty punishment!
• Click on "Write" and away you go! Start typing in the field it gives you. It will show you a how much time is left and how many words you've achieved.
• It implements consequences only if you stop writing beyond a set time frame. It gives you a warning though--it begins to count down, by changing the colour of the screen, before dealing out the punishment.
• You can hit pause once if you need it.
• Once you're done, copy and paste the whole lot into whatever document you're working on and look over your word count with glee! (And rock yourself gently to sleep that night to forget the harshness of the punishments... Just kidding! They're not that bad at all, I swear.)

I won't tell you what the punishments are! I didn't bother to find out and got a bit of a shock on my first go. All I'll say is I went hard first and would recommend that you don't leave the computer or look away from the screen for too long if you choose "Kamikaze mode" and "Evil grace period" too, or else you may let loose several swear words attached to my name.

"Mother of s**#! dfh@#)*%$#, of all the *&a**##&^fk, Nae!"

:D

Firstly, some bad news. Apparently story writing and assignment marking make use of the same part of the brain: the thinking part.

True story.

And right now, after seven days of NaNo, my... err, "thinking part" is worn out from all the use (it's not accustomed to such activity). In fact, in defiance, it's ground to a spectacular halt.

Hence the quality of this post. (Don't ask me to explain why all other posts are of as poor a quality.)

So, to address this problem, I intend to stop writing--just for a bit--and rest my weary mind so that my "thinking centre" can get back to what it never does best.

But now to some great news! I've reached 11, 500 new words! 11, 500 words of utter shite! Of course, the shite-ness is due to the loose style in which I'm writing--I'm just mapping out new scenes (who did what, who said what, etc) and planning to come back later and fix up the Grade 2 writing. (Grade 4 writing, here I (eventually) come!)

I'm also yet to cull any of what I wrote pre-November, so that will come later too. Macro first, micro later.

( Rewrite (not quite) spoilersCollapse )

So, all in all, November is giving me exactly what I need: I'm playing in a big sand pit, making a mess and seeing what comes. And somewhere, amongst all the wonky castles that keep toppling over, I'm actually liking a bit of what I see.

In my sleep, that is. On paper, however, um... not so good.

(Damn, but I write well in my dreams! Of course, by "writing", I really mean live through, experience and envisage sentences, speech and scenes. And, yes, my assessment of how good these bits are is also being carried out in the same theta state in which the creating has occurred, so really, it might not be a very reliable time to assess it.)

Never mind!

NaNoWriMo is all about quantity over quality, right? And I'm well and truly achieving that. In fact, lookey at my pretty graph! Ooh, pretty.

EDIT: the graph isn't working. Damn overloaded NaNoWriMo site. To check out my progress, go here.

Ha! That equates to 6000 new words which is pretty much right on target for me by Day 4.

And you know what? The crap writing really isn't an issue for me right now: I'm still mapping out the overall story and adding in loads of new scenes, here and there, to thicken the plot. I can attend to the quality of those scenes later. Erm, much later. :D

I've been watching my friends' progress with interest! Sharon and Kathy are writing like the wind.

Alaina is suspiciously quiet on the NaNo front, but that could be because she's decided to do a series of short stories instead of a novel and doesn't need to use the NaNo site to do it. Either that or she's run off with her new boyfriend and they're having a wild time in... Vegas. :D

My friend Nat is starting tomorrow due to two untimely 30th birthday parties over the weekend and now, the race that apparently stops an entire nation--except for me--the Melbourne Cup. (For non-Aussies, this is when people watch a two minute horse race on TV, and get really drunk for several hours either side of it. They also bet on which horsey they think will be the winner, (hopefully) eat a lunch, and dress in their spiffy "Race Day" best.)

TOD looks like he is still in denial about doing NaNo, though I'm certain he's writing--just covertly. Either that or he's writing some awesome short stories in his sleep. I hear ya, TOD, I hear ya. Dream-writing; it's the way of the future. Qui's also giving it a go: rewrites seem to be the theme this year.

My other real life friends, Ben and Julie, have either gotten even more shy about their writing, or have decided to not do NaNo at all as they are yet to: a) sign up and buddy me on the NaNo site, and b) respond to any of my "well, well, are you doing it or what?" emails.

Of course, a third option is that they decided to dump me as a friend, but considering they've stuck with me for years and years now, I suspect not. But, well, I could be wrong. :D

I found myself rereading two lj friends' fics and they were so good I realised I needed to pimp them to you and pimp them good. :D

If you're keen for a bit of off the wall reading, I strongly recommend you give two of cikka's fics a read. They're quick but packed with the most fascinating of characters!

The stories are related, so read in the following order:

Scream Therapy

The Language of a Taxi Man

Secondly, read pearls_and_blow's short little piece called In Blue Ink.

Just... gloriousness'ness'ness!

That is all, except--how good is wii Fit?! We borrowed my brother's wii for my Girls Night In but didn't even turn it on. Last night I decided to give it a go--the wii Fit in particular, never thinking in the least it would amount to anything (standing on a bit of plastic and pointing a clicker at a tv screen...? That can't equal exercise!). But I'm sore, really sore, and all I did was 6mins of Yoga and 6mins of Muscle Strengthening exercises. Damn. Oh and it works out your wii Fit "age". I... was spot on at 30! Not bad for a self-confessed slob who'd rather lie when she can sit and recline when she can stand.

FYI, we raised $200 for women's cancers! And, yes, ate and drank ourselves silly. I'm still trying to work out what the hell was in that green drink (but I daresay Kylie, the maker of said green drink, doesn't know either). Twas enormous fun.

So, November is... argh, FOUR days away!

Bloody hell. Where did the year go? Oh that's right... TOD stole it, what with all his talk of making Christmas puddings and shopping for presents. :D

So, I was planning on doing NaNoWriMo this year! The "National Novel Writing Month". Heard of it? It's when aspiring authors sign up here and then they try to write a 50, 000-word novel in the space of a month and not kill themselves. I'm... mildly confident that I'll be able to avoid that.

My pen name is "Naesy". If you want to give NaNo a try too, please sign up and add me as a "buddy"!

I was hoping to write something new come November; specifically, a YA sci-fi/fantasy, with a female protagonist. But I'm just not feeling it. I wanted to have done more world-building than I have, but right now all I've got sorted is half a character, the climate, the clothing and swear words. Important, yes, but I might have to put this one on the backburner until NaNo '09.

Instead, I've decided to rewrite my Art and Patty story. I know, I know; this means I'll be a NaNo-rebel as I won't be starting afresh with a blank page. But the story is crying out for a major rewrite that includes some actual plot. In fact, I'm treating what I've already written as a character development piece. (I might only count the "new" bits I write during November for NaNo or not use the NaNo word counter at all, but use the NaNo emails and buzz around the event to push me along.)

Now I need your help. Yes, both those that have read what I've written and those that have not.

If you've read it, what were your hopes? (Apart from: give me some plot, stop using italics, stop overwriting, and will you please learn the proper use of punctuation?) 

I'm talking about the plot. Any plot ideas? Did you really want Art to do this, or Patty to do that? Did you really want me to add in this twist, or exclude that?

Do you have any great, wild, ludicrous ideas?

Would you like it to end happily? To be a tragedy? To somehow involve a dancing nun?

To be a mystery? To have Mrs White, with a lead piping, tickle Patty, in the conservatorium? (Heh; board game joke.)

To be a fantasy? To have Art apply for and get accepted by NASA and their lunar program? (Heh; Art-joke.)

Even if you haven't read it, please throw me some story ideas or challenges anyway! Even if it's, I bet you can't include a smoking gun held by that dancing nun in a romantic comedy about two guys. With three days to go, I need something to get my grey matter working and I think you guys could be the much-needed catalyst.

So... JUST GIVE ME SOMETHING! Please?

Just finished marking 80 assignments. Then, I have to pick up 25 new assignments on Monday to mark, followed by 45 counselling tapes, transcripts, and essays on Tuesday. I'm hoping to have them all marked before the exams flow in which is in about 3 weeks time.

Err, yeah, it's not going to happen. Plus I'm already as tired as buggery. (An Aussie saying; not to be taken literally.)

But, BUT... I'm taking the day off today! Heee. I'm gonna head to my favourite bookstore and have a coffee and read for a bit. Then I'm off to buy some clothes for summer and will not care in the least when my winter stomach says to me, "Whoa! Watch how I bounce out as soon as you press a finger into me. Heh. Do it again! Heh. Heh. That... that feels funny."

Then, THEN... tomorrow night I'm hosting an event started by the Cancer Council over here called "The Girls Night In". The idea is to have a chicks' event (a party, a movie night, whatever), and while doing so, everyone that is able to donates money for research into women's cancers.

We're gonna throw money into a big bowl, destroy plenty of songs on my friend's SingStar, and watch bad movies from our favourite era--the 80s. We shall also eat junk food until we can't move, and drink dubious cocktails (made haphazardly with random ingredients), all in support of women's, erm, good health! (Hey, don't knock the process. Besides, what we lack in physical health, we more than make up for in mental.)

So, it's not all bad. I'm taking two weeks off in two months time and my other committments are starting to quiet down: my research sites close over Christmas, my PhD supervisor is away for a few months, and my classes have ended for the year.

Besides... assignments can always be marked a little late. Right? :D

(*ducks all the keyboards thrown at her by her lj (student) friends*)

"For Letterstories to begin!"

(Well, he didn't say exactly that. Instead he might have said something about it being a time to speak of "shoes and ships and sealing wax". But I like talking about letterstories better. Erm, sorry Mr Walrus and sorry Mr Lewis Carroll!)

Yes, the time has arrived. I am calling all interested authors to put up their hands and say, "Yay!" for the next round of letterstories.

If you don't know what letterstories is, go here. If you do but haven't reviewed the guidelines and rules in a while, then click here too. (Don't worry, they haven't really changed. Just a few additions such as rough time-lines of 1mth per story and a process, pre-story, of finding out if you've any "squicks"/genres you won't write in.)

If you want a good idea of how it works, read the first letter story. (This is where you'll find all the letters for this story--just be sure you start at letter #1 and work upwards from there.) Being a part of the first story was so much fun. It was such a rollercoaster ride!

I know a few of you have expressed interest before, so in order to get the recruitment started--yep--I'm gonna name names and refresh your memory!

Elfie (cikka ) has already put her hand up and recognised the brilliance of letterstories and how she could not live without it. (Right?)
TOD (theotherdibbler ) has said he is potentially interested. I think with the right arm-twisting and peer pressure (I'm totally open to name-calling), he could come on board.
Bree (bree_bee22 ) is another potentially interested person and if I have to wave a picture of that guy who played Prince Caspian in front of her face to entice her, I will. (I'll even play a Coldplay song in the background. She'll be none the wiser.)
Last time around, somewhatlacking was feeling... somewhat busy, and therefore, somewhat unable to join in (which lead me to these "somewhat" appalling jokes.) Will this time prove different for her? We'll have to somewhat wait and see.
bryoneybrynn  has expressed interest before, but will her kick-arse new job be of a greater priority? We'd all assume not, but you can never tell. :D

Anyone else?

The wonderful pearls_and_blow is also seeking authors on her lj. And here's some big news: if we get six to eight authors, including the two of us, we've decided to have TWO letterstories on the go at once!

This will be AWESOME as it will give everyone something else to read while waiting for their own letter story to update. It will also mean (well, I hope it will mean) helping each other out with story reviews! I really hope the two teams will support each other in developing as good a story as they possibly can!

Don't forget to "friend" letterstories if you haven't already. Even if you can't sign up as an author right now, please considering adding us as a friend and then reading and reviewing the stories that come.

Lastly, a reminder that letterstories is a community; it's a collaborative project. This means, if you've any suggestions, questions, or concerns, let us know! You can help develop the sort of writing community you'd want to belong to.

Nae

The Mighty Boosh might be my new love. I stumbled upon it one night while flicking through the sad offerings on TV, and just based on this small snippet (which is actually from episode 3, season 3--I don't know if we got the earlier episodes here in Australia, but I'm going to hunt them down!), I fell in luuurrve.

Here it is for you all to enjoy. The two main guys are in a band together and the scene is set in their shaman-friend's shop. Watch it, watch it, watch it!


"If I don't talk in fashion terms, I get confused."

"I can't express myself like you. I haven't got a pencil case story."

Heee!

Probably because... they're not even getting to the recreation of the big bang until weeks (or months) from now. Wasn't the first use of the Hadron Collider just to send a particle around one way? To test it out? And then, in a few weeks, they'll send a particle around the reverse way, to test that out too?

I'm no physicist, but I'm guessing turning the machine on and then making a particle move really fast is not likely to end the world, never mind that not one physicist has come out and confessed such concern for the world's safety when the main event--the smashing together of two particles--finally happens. But who am I to say such things?

And who needs accurate news when cries of, "The end of the world is nigh!" are so much more entertaining? Sometimes it's hard to tell the difference between tabloids and our TV and newspaper news over here. God, some of our headlining stories crack me up:

"Nicole Kidman arrives in Australia with husband and baby, Sunday Rose."

That beats all wars, atrocities, scientific discoveries, and little kiddies saved from house fires. It's of critical importance, a life and death matter, to learn that a couple, and their baby, took a plane flight to Australia.

Here's some news:

• I... didn't get the lecturer position. BUT I was told it was because the other two shortlisted already had their PhDs. And I'm still working very hard on my PhD. Mostly. When I can be bothered.
• Not having a PhD also limits me from having a few professional memberships that are becoming increasingly important in the profession, so that reduced my competitiveness as well.
• There's good news, though. They want to keep me on as a sessional lecturer and "nurture" me towards a permanent position. Apparently that was the condition my boss put forward when those above her decided on another applicant. I'm honoured she went to that extent. I really am surrounded by quality people and I can't be thankful enough for that. It's wonderful to know that the people around me not only like the work I do but will do what they can to keep me.
• The day after quietly hearing I did not get the job, a student came up to me and asked if I would be teaching a particular unit next semester. I said I was not sure at this stage (the system for unit allocation changes each year) to which she replied that she'd only enrol in the unit if I was teaching it. Aww. Yay for uplifting comments after getting knocked back!
• Other good news: I'm going into private practice! A wonderful woman whom I respect greatly has a booming private practice, situated in medical centres, and has invited me to join her. Hoorah!

All in all, it's looking good. A year ago I had a contemplative period in which I revisited what it was I really wanted to do with my life--nothing! Or lying on a beach somewhere? Reading books? Watching the sunset each day and taking out-of-focus photos of the view, no matter how bad? Finding the best recipe for chocolate cake?--and I came back with the answer of teaching and private practice. With sessional teaching continuing and this new private practice work, I'll get both!

So I'm glad the world didn't end. It's pretty good this life, suits me just fine.

I'd still like to find the perfect chocolate cake, though. I feel that would be a worthy cause.