Writing-wise, the past week has been good. I submitted one story, and wrote two, none of which currently in submittable state, but hopefully I’ll have enough feedback mid-week to send at least one out.
Also, today I flashed, after a long time, over at Liberty Hall. I had forgotten how much fun flashing is, especially when the Muse comes up with something unexpected. (While the Mews are totally predictable and *whinewhimpercomplain* the entire time I’m trying to write). And I really like the little story I produced. It’s highly unlikely it will remain at flash length (very few stories of mine do), but I like it anyway.
On the other hand, writing has been extremely frustrating in the last year. For starters, I haven’t sold anything in the last six months or so. This is, for the most part, due to the fact that I haven’t been writing many stories up to a submittable stage. And then, most of what I have out is still with the editors, who take forever to get back to me.
Only adding to my frustration is the fact that, of all the stories I sold last year, only two have seen print. The others are still waiting publication. For some, like ASIM and the Quiet Shelter There anthology, I knew that they wouldn’t be out until Summer 2012. Others, like Warrior Wisewoman #4, have encountered financial issues. Others, I have no idea where they’re at.
It’s not a money issue for me. Well, at least not *just* a money issue. I just feel that the initial joy of getting that acceptance letter got flushed down the drain by circumstances beyond my control.
I’m guessing that the best cure for this is to write more. Send more stories out. Balance the scales over these “unfortunate” stories. But there are times when this is getting very, very hard.
Little Shorty (Stumbos in Greek) is currently on my lap while I’m trying to finish that darned story. He is, of course, purring at road construction level. What do you think this purring can mean?
a. You saved me from the gutter and certain death! I love you, Mommy!
b. You saved me from the gutter and certain death! Now it’s your DUTY to pet and cuddle me and give me noms and pet me again, until the End of Days! (Yours, not mine. I have nine lives. NEENER, NEENER.)
…yeah, I’m pretty sure it’s #b.
*headdesk*
One of my goals this year is to be more consistent with my writing. Moreover, I aim to rediscover the Lost Fun of Writing. And, by goal, I don’t mean a New Year’s Resolution. My kittehs laugh at those. And then pee all over them. Which what generally happens to them, by the end of the year, figuratively speaking. Or not.
Anyway, I’ll give another go to this Write 1 Sub 1 thing. I tried it last year, and then Life happened, which included computer woes, sick cats, health issues and ongoing financial troubles. On the other hand, a large part of 2011 consists of empty days: I cannot recall what I did during those times, especially from February to May. But I do recall how every one of my stories came to be, even though it was painful at times: I had to endure heat without a/c, my back and shoulders hurt, I came out of my study (or back from my coffee shop) to find kitteh chaos but, in the end, I had my stories.
I don’t want any more empty days.
So I’ll give that W1S1 thing another go. Pretending, of course, that Week One did not exist.
Week 2:
Write 1: Expanded a Liberty Hall Flash from 1000 words to 4000. Historical Dark Fantasy, based on a mix of Aegean myths and inspired from the works of Greek poet Nikos Kavadias. It was a challenge to write: First Person POV, present tense, and a male POV at that. The setting was also a challenge: early 16th century Barbary Coast. I had to research a gazillion little things for every other line: food, spices, currency, clothes, expressions, evil eye traditions, naval terminology (shoot me now), and many more. But I loved the outcome. 
Sub 1: The above-mentioned story. But I won’t say where. All this research about the Evil Eye rubbed off some superstition on me. I fear that if I say more, I’ll jinx it.
Anyway, off to work on my Week 3 assignment. And I hope I’ll be able to keep it up.
Until, that is, Diablo 3 comes out. Oh, hello there, Black Hole of my days… :/
In one of my writers’ forums, there’s an ongoing game where one replaces word(s) from films and books with ‘bacon’. The results are quite often hilarious.
And, last night, my Muse (Mews) came up with this:
On a skillet hot and greasy, cooking eggs just over-easy,
Adding bacon and sausage, breakfast for my sweet Lenore,
By my stove I’m almost napping, suddenly there was a tapping,
Clawing, scratching, mewing, rapping, rapping on my kitchen door.
Cats and kittens came a-lolling, rolling on my kitchen floor.
Tails erect and claws expanding, lolcats bacon demanding:
“Can haz bacon! Fry sum moar!”
(With my sincere (not) apologies to Mr. Poe. The cats made me do it).
An update om random (but not trivial) new things:
1. I now am an Associate Member of SFWA. *purr*
2. I can haz Interview in a friend’s blog. *moar purr*
The last couple of weeks have been of the “Writing? What writing?” type, due to a number of factors, mostly health issues. And now we’re entering heatwave season here, so writing won’t be as easy.
And I have three deadlines in June, including WOTF. I have no story for them. Unless something fitting comes back, I might have to sit this quarter out. As for the other two, one story is researched and outlined save for a few details, and the other has a 1000-word opening that I may or may not keep.
On top of that, RBE is having their annual fundraising challenge (details here, check it out!) with a cool theme and awesome art, and I’ve already been bitten by a plot-kitten for that one. At least the deadline for them is far in the future, alongside next quarter’s WOTF, so I have time for this. I hope.
Oh well. At least I flashed (sort of) this week over at Liberty Hall. I’ve given up hope that my stories will remain at flash length.
When I’m sitting down to write, the cats line up to sit on my lap.
They watch the cursor blink and the letters appear with great fascination, occasionally pawing at the screen (spellchecking?), purring and kneading my thighs. Ouch. During my last check-up, the doctor thought that those scars were from cutting myself. *sigh*
What really fuels the Muse, though, is when they start to purr. Then I know I’m doing something right in the story, that the setting has come to life, my characters’ motives make sense, and that the plot holes are filling up. Or, perhaps, a cat just crossed the story’s background.
And then I got last Fall’s kittens, especially Purrpurrita and Brunhilda. Those will purr at road construction level, giving me a much needed boost to write more. They’ll lie belly up, kneading the air, purring… and then they’ll fart. Plump, exposed bellies, and hind legs that work as gas-releasing levers. Oh, and yes, kitten farts smell like lavender.
Not.
And I have no idea what those Editors-on-lap are insinuating about my writing.
Welcome to the homepage and (somewhat) serious blog of Christine Lucas, writer of historical fiction, fantasy, science fiction and their occasional blend-ins. Oh, and cat stories too.
She was born and raised in Athens (of the country of Greece). The English language found her when she was five years old via her mother with an English Lit background, and stayed with her ever since, insisting on daily sacrifices of poetry and prose. She grew up in a pre-Internet era and in a society where the aspiration of becoming a writer attracted many funny stares. Very much like telling people that you’re off to Hollywood to become a star. Yeah.
So a career in the military seemed like the sane thing to do. Well, not to Christine, but let’s not go there. Long, painful story.
Twenty years of service later, with a honorable discharge due to medical reasons (that ‘sane’ thing mentioned above) she decided to start typing the stories that played on inside her head (‘sane’, you said?). She even joined writing workshops and took writing lessons.
Hmm, cat stories, you say? Fantasy cat stories? Hon, you’ll never get published writing that sort of stuff.
She heard that comment, and variations of it, many times, from many people. Thankfully, there were editors out there who thought otherwise. Or, perhaps, editors with cats that thought otherwise. Including awesome editor Ellen Datlow, who chose Christine’s short story “Dominion” (from ASIM #37) to feature in her cat-themed anthology “Tails of Wonder and Imagination” for Night Shade Books (out now – February 2010).
And Christine never regretted her choice to write fantasy, historical fiction and science fiction. Oh, and cat stories too.
And that was the sane thing to do.
