I attended a writer’s conference last week and I’ve been spending a lot of time thinking about my writing career, such as it is. With my full time job, full time family, and full time school, it’s been really hard to find time to be writerly.
Continue reading “State of the Elle”
So, I’ve missed a few months of updates. Oops. I’ve been busy with school and personal issues. So much so that I have made some changes to my schedule to accommodate all the fun adulting I have to do now.
My early years were spent in the 80’s and like most kids I had some favorite movies. These movies catered to my love of fantasy and magic. Even today, I watch them with my kids on DVD in hopes they feel inspired by the stories. These are in no particular order.
I am spending the weekend with family. My mother in law is now under the care of hospice so I am dedicating time to visit. My writing projects are on hold for now except items under contract.
I’ll return to Rocker Next Door soon. I won’t be able to win NaNoWriMo but that doesn’t mean I’ll abandon the story. I’ll be back at it as soon as I can.
![IMG_0794[1]](https://elleclouse.files.wordpress.com/2013/09/img_079411.jpg)
My husband and I enjoy Thai take out almost every Friday night. They always throw in fortune cookies along side the napkins and forks. I very rarely eat fortune cookies. The few that I even bothered to crack open normally have some silly phrase that we jokingly add ‘in bed’ to the end. Now I suppose that could be said about the fortunes I have pictured to the left but they mean a tad more to me.
The fortune on the top reads ‘You will obtain your goal if you maintain your course’ and I received this right about the time I decided to seriously consider publication for my novel. I was in full edit mode and getting frustrated and questioning everything I was doing. This came at just the right time to seal my conviction. I thought that it was very fitting so I kept it at my desk and I refer to it when I’m frustrated.
Just this past weekend, I cracked open another cookie and received the fortune on the bottom which reads ‘Your fondest dream will come true within the year’. That’s rather specific and again right on target with what I am trying to do. I am trying to get my novel published and I guess you could categorize it as my fondest dream. I used to think that I was a patient person but I’ve never had to wait to hear from publishers before. It’s almost torture. So this fortune came at just the right time to soothe my nerves and reassure me. It now keeps my first fortune company at my desk.
I hope that it’s true, although I know that they are random. They arrived right when I needed them, lets hope that they are correct. I look forward to seeing my novel in print.
Or winning big in the lottery. That’s my fondest dream too.
So I need to bolster my online presence and someone suggested blogging more. Well, duh. The problem is that I am not the best at coming up with topics. So I Googled it. It’s what I do, when in doubt, Google. It suggest some things and I decided to share with you my three most favorite books and why.
Now this is a very short list. There are a lot of books that I loved and liked and recommend to others. These three, however, have somehow changed my life.
What are some books that you hold dear to your heart and why?
As some of you may know, I used to dabble in fan fiction. It’s actually how I got into writing in the first place. I even have some fan fiction out there on the old inter-web from years ago. It is mostly gathering dust but every once in a while I get a review. The other day, someone sent me a private message about a fiction I had started and only posted one chapter.
This is the PM, posted with permission from the sender:
Hello, my name is Sataria. I read your blog and share in your desire to become a published author. I have three books I’m working on at the same time and one is just about ready for me to find an agent. But enough of that. . .I am begging you to write more of Legacy of Darkness. I reviewed it asking for you to continue and I know you started it a very, very, long time ago. You killed me with just leaving it hanging. I just adore it and need more, anyone who reads it will also say so. I know how it is to be busy with original works, and if you can’t write more then you can’t. Just know how much the Legend fanfic readers love it and want more.
It just really grabbed my attention. You’re on my favorite stories list and I check it all the time in the faint hope that there will be more. Anyway! Thank you for the single chapter all the same. Take care. (Do you get pm’s asking
for this alot?)
Some days I wonder why I beat myself up so much to keep writing and to keep editing and then I receive a review or a comment and it’s all worth it. I’m not here to make a fortune (although it would be nice), I’m here to tell a captivating story of love conquering all odds. It’s encouragement like this that makes me feel like I just might be able to do it. Thanks Sataria. Thanks to everyone who has ever supported me. It means the world to me.
I haven’t updated in a little while so I thought that I would correct that.
I don’t have a lot going on. Due to the fact that I am not recovering as quickly as I anticipated, it has kept my productivity low. I’m doing what I can here and there but even with an incredibly supportive family, not a lot is getting done.
I am currently working on my synopsis so that I can submit my novel for publication. One would think that summing up the entire novel in three to five pages would be easier than writing the whole novel itself but it is not. I think as far as progress, I have summed up about 3/8’s of the novel. Yes, 3/8.
I also purchased Scrivener. I played around with the demo for a while and since I’m a chronic NaNoWriMo winner, I took advantage of the ‘goodies’ section for winners and digitally downloaded my copy at half price. I love a bargain. Once I have gone through all the tutorials and possibly a Camp NaNoWriMo or traditional NaNoWriMo I will give you all a complete run down. I am hoping that the software helps me keep better track of my notes and research since my current method isn’t working for me at all.
And that’s it. That is all that I have right now. I hope that as the dust settles from our new addition and as I heal up the rest of the way, my productivity will once again elevate to a higher level. Thanks for your patience.
