Reflections: Incubate, Health Debate, Educate

My confession: I was not a virtuous writer this weekend. Bryon and I had date day Saturday. And yesterday, the errands had stacked up. So I didn't do it.

I'm guessing that it's because the brain needed a little time to process some ideas. Like how to hide some information from all of you that you don't need to know up front, and how to create better misunderstandings.

Tonight we go home and we begin the great draft struggle again.

***

I'm trying to pull my thoughts together on the health care bill that passed yesterday. I'm progressive, and I believe it's a move in the right direction. The most interesting conversation I've had today is with my tai chi instructor, who is a Green, who feels betrayed by the whole bill. He is especially aggravated by Kucinich casting a yes vote.

Whereas, philosophically, I'm more at the foot in door stage. There's a lot left to be done, but yes, the foot is in the door. I think the most interesting implication is this: if you wanted to leave your work to create, theoretically you could.

Given that in 10 years, I'll be eligible for a chunk of retirement change I don't want to lose, I'll probably not leave my work. If this had been 10 years ago, it might have changed the direction of my life.

It's good to FINALLY give people options.

***

There is the other reason I didn't write this weekend--conference prep. I am now ready to do my academic thing at the Midwest Institute for Intercultural and International Education in Springfield, Il this weekend. Which might be why I'm quiet on those days. My partner in crime and I drive down Thursday and drive back Saturday. It's my last year on the board. Next year, I intend to begin attending TESOL instead. Go figure. That's my job.

Class planning time? I say yes!

Catherine

Mirrored from Writer Tamago.

That Novel Progress Thing

Tonight I cut two scenes. They were DULL, and things are much more interesting if I don't blurt the obvious and/or the stereotypical at you. I made two scenes more ambiguous and precise at the same time. Then I moved a scene from chapter six into chapter four that should result in wonderful misunderstandings.

Chapter 3 is now ready for my chapter readers. Tomorrow I leave the college at 11 for my writing session (11-2 out writing tomorrow). I intend to do the first modified version of trolls versus dwarfs (the moved chapter six scene), as well as spiff up the troll/godmother council of war, with already suggested clarifications from Yolanda.

In chapter 5, there will be four revised scenes which should be easy to fix. So, while chapter 4 will not be ready until Wednesday, chapter 5 may well be ready tomorrow. It would be nice if I could get the next three chapters ready for reading before I go off to Springfield. That would mean I was halfway finished with the novel, draft 2. I would accept that as progress to be happy about.

There's a lot of emotional tension and clarifications to be done to chapters six, seven, and eight, the chapters that need the most work, especially given the modifications in chapters four and five. I don't want to ignore the emotional angles, but I don't want to get bogged down in them either.

There's that big battle sequence for chapter nine too. Which needs to be streeetttched...

Oh well. Those are problems mostly for April.

At least I'm not Earbrassing, as I was Friday. I was really down because my rough draft is so crappy. At times like these, I've got to remember Professor Boston's fertilizer analogy.

Time for vegetation.

Catherine

Mirrored from Writer Tamago.

Justine Larbalestier: Writing as a Career v Writing as Identity

Justine Larbalestier's great link about the ongoing philosophical considerations between being a writer and being an author. I like her dichotomy very much.

What do you think being a writer is? Being an author is? Some of my thoughts are in my response to Justine's post.

Catherine

Mirrored from Writer Tamago.