Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween everybody! I can't wait for the little kids to start coming by.. they are really the best, even though some of the teens have some great costumes!

After that..... well, we all know that at 12:01 NaNoWriMo starts... and it's about time I have to say... it seems like it takes so long to get here. I wonder if I will be saying that at the end of the month though *lol*...

Well, off to finish getting the house and costumes ready.... have a great night and Good Luck as you begin your Novel...

Inner Editor Lounge..

I'm working on the type of book that I would like to read. I love sitting in a room surrounded by books and a nice warm fireplace. I love a good book that will remove me from the elements and embrace me from cover to cover. I love a book that will make you forget every detail of your real life, for as long as you are able to escape. Or even better, make you stay longer that you had planned and even interrupt your sleeping time because you have to know what is going to happen and how it all ends.

I think it is important to know the feel of your book, almost as much as you know your plot, outline and characters. You can escape into any books whether they are Romance, Murder Mystery or a Sci-Fi - the genre doesn't matter. It is how it is written and what you want your readers to see, feel, taste and touch with your words.

Every day we tell stories - I don't mean lies or fabrications, I mean the stories of our lives and the moments within them. When we are relating our day to our spouses or relaying information to a friend or a child. The way we tell the details are what provides the fabric of what we are trying to say. Writing is the same - except we are typing the words that are in our heads and we must wait much longer for any feedback. Perhaps that provides us with a security blanket to say all the things we really want to say, because time will create enough distance to get us through any sort of criticism.

What would you write today if you knew that nobody would edit it or provide feedback for 30 days? Would you be more free than if you were verbally speaking to someone? Think of how much easier it is to have bad conversations over the phone or even via email. How much easier then is it to silence the inner editor by putting words down on paper that they won't even know about for an entire month?

Sounds like fun to me... and I can't wait to get started.

Power of Inspiration

We all wonder what makes us tick - perhaps almost as much as we wonder about what makes other people do what they do.

I'm still working on my outline and it made me think about the power of our inspirations. Some people call them muses, some people call them by names, human or etherial... but without them, can we ever come up with a solid idea? A solid storyline? A solid character or plot?

I'm posting a picture of elephants - because I love elephants and while my current story is not of animal nature I cannot help but think that if I am being made happy by viewing and thinking of something that I love so much, that it won't work its way into translating into a part of my story. I just need to turn off my internal editor and let the thoughts come and sort them out later.

What do you do to get your inspiration? Do you know the sources to turn to? Do you know what makes your heart happy so your mind can be free to explore what is inside? It's a fairly incredible process and an even more wonderful gift. I'm going to sign off now because I feel the need to feel some joy and cannot wait to see where that takes me.. and my story.

I hope you try it too...

Plot Direction

Today I am working on my plot and obviously some direction within the story to get me to Point A, Point B and ultimately Point C.

I think sometimes that people who don't write, do not understand how challenging this can be. Or perhaps more correctly, doing this in a way that is interesting to us the writers but also interesting to the readers.

You have to manage to keep the story going - at a fairly decent pace, while having enough detail and intrigue to move the story forward yet not give it away. Introducing new people, new places, new concepts and new theories is all good, but if their reasoning to be there doesn't make sense, it won't work.

I do however love that you can take a general idea, one comment, one piece of artwork and build an entire world around it. That is part of the fun - the challenge of creating something from nothing. That is what I am doing today.. but I'm also looking for some sort of compass to help me get there.

It's a good thing there are still 7 more days until the contest starts... I'll need each and every one of them.

Well, until tomorrow... happy writing!

Memories of my future...

Well I'm back and feeling great. My head is clear and I am able to hear my characters once again.

I am working on the outline for my NaNoWriMo and it's all starting to gel.

The working title is "Memories of my Future" and as you can see from the banner above, the artwork for it is borrowed from Salvador Dali's painting called "Rose Woman". I'm going to leave the banner at the top of my blog to keep me inspired.. and yes, as always I am open to comments in this regard.

I can hear the main character talking to me, I can hear her voice saying... "Walking towards my future with the gifts of my past. It's all so beautiful but why do I feel like I have been here before?"

A story about a woman's journey through her past to see where she has come from that explains her present and prepares her for what comes next. She imagines she has lived many lifetimes and knows this is her last incarnation as a human being. Always a curious and open minded person she searches all realms and all possibilities to obtain her of information.

Her current relationships, health situations, hobbies, lifestyle and career choices are all seeming to be pointing her in one direction. So she takes her inspirational muses of Mozart, Monet, Dante (among so many others) and begins to explore the world discovering among other things, the significance of the number 7 on the planet. She also realizes that everything she is learning (aka the gifts) relate to a specific linear time line in history ie: Knights Templar, Crusades, Mayas and War of the Roses to mention but a few.

During this historical journey she realizes that she needs these gifts now to move forward on her personal path... not that she has any idea yet, just what that is.

As I work through the outline and make it more clear and concise.. I'm sure I will be able to explain the ideas better, but for now... you have an idea.

Got to get back to my research... see you soon.