Happy Sunday, friends! I’m currently feeling a touch under the weather, so it’s going to be a Josh Groban, tea, and fuzzy socks sort of morning for me. 🙂
I want to extend another welcome to the bloggers who are visiting from the SheWrites Blog Hop. It’s gotten bumped down a bit, but my official welcome message is here. I’m looking forward to getting to know you all! For those of you who haven’t checked it out yet, please do. There are many of wonderful writers who have joined up.
I’m slowly trying to give this blog a bit more structure and life instead of only using it for ROW80 updates, so over the next few weeks you will see more posts on non-check-in days, covering a wider variety of topics. I’m toying with the idea of book reviews, wee blurbs about the historical research that I’m doing, discussions of world-building (which is one of my favorite past-times), and maybe a post or two on how I’m using philosophy and sociological theory in my work.
I added my first “experimental post” yesterday — a few idle musings about love and romance in the Odyssey, one of my favorite works out of ancient Greek literature. I’d love to hear any feedback that you may have!
Now then, onto my update:
The Life List Club: I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about the ways that I can strive for a more balanced and healthy life, and so I am throwing my hat in the ring for the Life List Club. I’ve created a page for my list, which includes ten goals that I will pursue over the next year. I’ll try and report in on these, maybe during my Wednesday check-ins.
Social Networking: I downloaded TweetDeck on Thursday! I think I spent the first twelve hours just staring at it, because it is so very pretty. I am now learning the ins and outs of hashtags, and twitter communities, and lots of other awesome stuff like that, and I am having an absolute ball chatting with people.
Relevant to this: the Pew Research Center has found that spending time on social networking sites actually leads to a strengthening of interpersonal bonds, and helps to foster trust in others.
Writing continues on. I’ve been meeting (and, at times, exceeding) my goals over the past few days, which is awesome. Strange Bedfellows is coming along quite well, and I’m basically forcing myself to throw down words for Path to the Peacock Throne. I’m trying to lay down the overall skeleton for the final half of the book, and I am ignoring the perfectionist inside of me that keeps wailing that it isn’t absolutely perfect. I’m also struggling to find my MC’s voice, so I’m doing lots of writing exercises in the 1st person… and wondering if the story might actually be better served as a 1st person tale, rather than 3rd person.
Today’s goal includes finally getting around to tell me no lies, the story that is starting to feel like the neglected middle child (yes, my stories have feelings). I’d like to have the first chapter laid out — just the action and the dialogue. I’ll fill in the blanks with description and whatnot later.
Finally, the thesis is slowly taking form. My thesis advisor sent along a list of helpful suggestions and critiques yesterday, and she and I are meeting today to chat about my progress. I think I am going to approach this draft the way I do my fictional work: put the words onto paper, finish the draft, and then sit back, review, and figure out how to make it amazing.
And that’s all from me! I’m off to drink more tea and grade the rest of these papers before I have to dash off to meet my advisor. Enjoy the rest of the weekend, all!
November 29, 1999 at 5:00 pm
Impressive accomplishments. Sounds like you are mastering social media (you’ve inspired me to finally download TweetDeck)! Best of luck going forward.
Can I just say how much I love the peacock header!?!?
July 25, 2011 at 12:02 pm
Yay, glad to hear that you’ve downloaded TweetDeck! I’d love hear what you think of it after you’ve had some time to play around. I’m having a blast setting up new columns and following different hashtag chats and whatnot. I think I’ve read more blog posts in the first couple of days than i have in the past week!
Oh, and thanks for the header love. My fantasy WIP is titled “Path to the Peacock Throne,” so the peacocks pay homage to that. 🙂
November 29, 1999 at 5:00 pm
Wow the life of a student. Oh how I miss those days…sounds like you got everything organized and under control. I’m also a “She Writer.” 🙂
July 25, 2011 at 12:05 pm
I have to say, I do love being a student, though I occasionally shudder when I consider how many years I’ve been in school. Overall, though, it suits me, as I seem to be really good at reading scholarly articles and writing about them. :p
July 24, 2011 at 11:48 am
Sounds like you are quite busy. I’ll have to check out the Life List Club. You’re the 2nd person whose mentioned it today. Glad to hear the writing is going well. Look forward to reading your posts about this, that and everything else. Always interesting to hear what other folks have to say about books and writing. Good luck with your thesis! What is your topic? You may have mentioned it somewhere but I haven’t gotten that far yet. 🙂
July 25, 2011 at 12:09 pm
Thanks for stopping by, Robin! I actually haven’t talked about my thesis at any great length, so you haven’t missed anything. 🙂
I’m working on a sociological study of etiquette books published in the 1920s. It’s grown and changed a lot over the past few years (as projects, academic and fictional, inevitably do), but at the moment I’m studying (1) the ways in which etiquette writers worked to justify the project of manners and etiquette, as well as asserted their own authority as “cultural arbiters” and (2) how the ritual of the wedding can be looked as a way in which manners were embodied and “done.”
Whew, that’s it in a nutshell, I suppose. I’m at the place where it’s actually starting to take shape, and where it seems like it might actually be something interesting that others will want to read, which is fantastic.
July 24, 2011 at 1:23 pm
Great job on your goals! Keep up the good work!
July 25, 2011 at 12:09 pm
Thanks, Lauralynn! Have a great week!
July 24, 2011 at 1:46 pm
You’re the second writer today to mention the interest in writing from 1st instead of 3rd. I’ve always gone third and favor third on all the books I read. But for some reason with my newer WIP, I’m toying with the idea of taking it from the 1st person perspective. Keep us posted. Sounds like you love your writing and that will show in the final product! Very good check-in!
July 25, 2011 at 12:11 pm
Hi Wendy,
Yes, it does seem like this 1st vs 3rd person debate seems to be going around! I’m glad to see that I’m not the only one. I know what you mean, though — I have always tended towards the 3rd person, but with my fantasy WIP, I just can’t wrap my head around my MC’s personality. All of her internalized chatter just sounds sort of flat and cardboard-like, and it’s driving me up a wall. The few experimental scenes I’ve written in 1st person are interesting — she’s actually a little different than I originally expected. Right now I’m trying to weigh what I’ll gain and lose if I switch the whole story over, but indeed, I’ll keep you all posted!
July 24, 2011 at 2:01 pm
Hello – sounds like you’re busy but it all sounds like interesting projects to be busy with. I am visiting from the She Writes blog hop, and am looking forward to your experimental posts. I think I might like to look into the Life List Club.
July 25, 2011 at 12:14 pm
Hi Carol!
Thanks so much for dropping by. I really do recommend the Life List Club — I think it is so easy for many of us to stretch ourselves thin (especially because I know most of us are writing on top of our day jobs and other responsibilities). It’s a nice thing to be able to publicly announce our goals to balance ourselves out, and to also have a community around to support us while we do it.
July 24, 2011 at 3:01 pm
Hi busy busy bee! Glad you’re making your way through it all. Saw that you, Em, and I are all having the same issues with 1st vs. 3rd lol! I like reading and writing both, so at the moment I’m trying to figure out what better serves this story and which feels most natural. Thanks for sharing the SheWrites blog hop and good luck this week!
July 25, 2011 at 12:20 pm
I think you, Em, and I should start a club, lol! That’s pretty much what I’m doing — writing out scenes in 1st person, converting them to 3rd, peering closely, switching them back, pondering. :p I was almost ready to declare this story 1st person only, until I reread the first 5 chapters (all in 3rd person) and started thinking that maybe they’re not as bad as I originally thought. Ugh.
Good luck working all of it out in your WIP!
July 24, 2011 at 3:32 pm
Hi, Jamila. I’m here from She Writes. Sorry that you’ve been feeling under the weather – I hope you’re better now. All the best with your writing, and with your blog, too.
July 25, 2011 at 12:22 pm
Helen, thanks so much for dropping by! I’m feeling a lot better — I think I was just low on sleep. Have a good week!
July 24, 2011 at 3:37 pm
Much progress in many arenas. Congrats!
July 25, 2011 at 12:23 pm
Thanks so much, Ruth! Have a great week!
July 24, 2011 at 5:10 pm
Wow! You are one busy woman! Good luck meeting, and exceeding, your goals!
July 25, 2011 at 12:26 pm
Many thanks! Same to you!
July 25, 2011 at 1:01 am
YAY, on your goals and on downloading TweetDeck! You’re going to love it. It’s hard to beat Patrick Thunstrom’s Learning Guide on TweetDeck…check it out:
http://pathunstrom.wordpress.com/tweetdeck-learning-guide/
July 25, 2011 at 12:27 pm
Oooh, this learning guide looks fantastic! Thanks so much for sending it along, Jenny, and you’re right — I think I’ve already become addicted after 4 days! :p
July 25, 2011 at 2:03 am
I am so glad I am not the only one struggling over the 1st/3rd person dilemma! I am going to try both and see what happens! From your updates you seem to be balancing all your commitments well…you do inspire me that I should be able to cram more writing related activity into my day, especially as I am on holiday from work!
Have a great week!
July 25, 2011 at 12:44 pm
Haha, I was telling Lauren above that we should totally make a club! I’ve also come to the conclusion that this story might end up half written in 3rd person, and the other half written in 1st person, just so I can see what works best, lol. But I’m definitely interested to hear which perspective you end up choosing. Oh, and I can’t remember if I told you already, but enjoy the holiday!
July 25, 2011 at 5:09 am
Hope you feel better soon. I saw your tweet about your meeting with your advisor, woo-hoo! You’re doing great on your goals.
The last two short stories I wrote were in first-person perspectives; it doesn’t always work, but it helps get into the characters’ heads. I’ll have to read your Odyssey piece soon, and look forward to more posts. I’m trying to do the same on my blog–reviews and such.
Have a great week!
July 25, 2011 at 10:15 pm
Thanks so much, Nancy. I’m really over the moon. I think the biggest compliment my advisor gave me is that she “has so much fun” reading each chapter of my draft.
Looking forward to the new posts coming up on your blog as well!
July 25, 2011 at 12:33 pm
Sounds like you’re moving forward. Well done!
July 25, 2011 at 10:16 pm
Thanks, Anne-Mhairi!