Outside, in the rain

Hello from sultry Virginia! It’s been warm here, but tonight there are glorious thunderstorms, the likes of which we just don’t get in southern California. Occasionally, briefly, but that’s it. We get a fair amount of winter/spring rain on the coast, but it’s cold and grey. Here, the water droplets are fat and warm, and I kept going outside into the dark night and just standing, smiling, exulting. Amazing cloud-to-cloud lightning, with the storm’s center about 3 miles away. The air hummed with energy; the energy hummed through me.

This evening, before the storms, Sarah and I escaped to a Starbuck’s and plotted out our next two novels as well as figured out how to expand an existing story for another market. Our next collab book will be Designed for Love, the contemporary erotic romance I got 40K into before just losing the threads. I think the problem is the hero; Sarah agrees. It won’t take incredibly much to tweak him, and much of what I’ve written can stay. We hope to finish this in the fourth quarter of the year, for the January 2008 novel workshop in Oregon. (I’m trying to write my urban fantasy, tentatively titled High Spirits, for the October workshop.) I also brainstormed a couple of short story ideas.

Tomorrow we’re either off to the zoo (if it cools down a bit) or a museum. We decided not to try for the caverns, which are 3.5 hours away. Saturday is our book signing and the Styx/Foreigner/Def Leppard concert, and then Sunday afternoon I head home. Ken may actually be there to greet me. I can’t think of anything better. Except that then we’re going to Missouri, where we will explore caverns, as well as visit friends and go to our annual bike get-together, and then we’ll hit Arkansas to visit Ken’s 93-year-old grandmother and Texas to visit his brother before heading home.

I’m going to read for a few minutes now, then turn off the light and listen to the distant thunder…

---

Currently Reading: Hell With the Ladies, Julie Kenner, Kathleen O’Reilly, Dee Davis
Lately Listened To: Greatest Hits, Eurythmics
Recently Watched: Gowan concert and videos (I know. Shocking.)

For another 100 days...

30 / 100 (30.0%)

Somehow, I’ve always thought Monday the 13th should be scarier than Friday the 13th…

So, many of the workshops I took at RWA had titles like Killing Your Inner Critic and Figuring Out Your Creative Process and Overcoming Discouragement. I was in a weird place, because in the past I’ve never had a problem with the inner critic/internal editor/etc. But, anyway.

One of the ideas that sparked with me was the “100 For 100” challenge: a minimum of 100 words a day for 100 days. I know that the longer I go without writing, the easier it is not to write (until, at least, I hit the point where I’ve turned into the snarling Tasmanian Devil because I’m not writing). I started this personal challenge the day I came home from RWA.

Now, someone said to me, “I have to write a hell of a lot more than 100 words in a day!” Yes, absolutely, so do I! But the minimum challenge was to get my butt in front of the computer. I was rather surprised to discover how well this challenge works for me. If I set one that’s “I need to write 1000 words a day to finish this novel by X date,” it’s easy enough to miss a day (or a full day, and write something less than 1000 words) because I can make it up later, right? Whereas this challenge, if I miss a day, I have to start over.

Hell, no!

That's apparently my trigger. Who knew? Starting over is just not acceptable.

I started a concurrent challenge to further push myself, 500 words in 50 days, although I’ve missed that once already and have had to start over, which is truly irksome. But my stats for the basic challenge are above, so go me!

<>-<>-<>

I’m off to Virginia tomorrow for a book signing with Sarah, and a plotting of our next novel, and my only Styx concert of the summer (damn those Def Leppard fans stealing all the good tickets!). We’re also going to caves! Caverns! Underground goodness!

<>-<>-<>

Recent writing stats:

• Received comp copies of H is for Hardcore, which contains the Sophie story “Don’t Move” as well as a solo story of Teresa’s. These are the cutest damn books I’ve ever seen. I’m going to have to buy all the ones I’m not in because I must have the full set.
  
• Received the contract for “Party Favor,” which will appear in Dirty Girls.
  
• Submitted a number of returned stories.
  
• Received payment for “Behind the Masque” in Sex With Strangers and for the reprint of “Slow Burn” in Black Lace Quickies 2.
  
• Received a rejection from e-Spice for “Memories for Sale.” I have a couple other stories to shoot out to them, but they all have to be tweaked a little. [Adds note to To Do list.]
  

<>-<>-<>

Thanks to everyone who’ve sent e-mails telling me how much they’re enjoying A Little Night Music!

---

Currently Reading: just finished a book, ready to dive into a new one!
Lately Listened To: The Wedding Album, Duran Duran
Recently Watched: Masters of Science Fiction