• Savannah, GA
• New Orleans, LA
• Some place close to sister in NC
• Some place in CA
• Scotland
• New Zealand

Labels: knitting, love life, work, writing

Writing is at an all time low. I was doing SO WELL, getting an average of 4 hours in a day. I was starting to think I was a "for real" writer and then... nothing. Nothing for the past three weeks. WTF. I have free time today, as I have no work scheduled, but now I'm waging a battle between what I'd like to do (write) and what I should do (clean). Days, nay weeks, like this make me feel like why even bother? Like I'm never going to be successful and I might as well just give the fuck up right now.

Looks as though I'm not going to be switching blog platforms. I'm so not in love with Blogger, but it allows me to change the look (assuming I can figure out the new *improved* Blogger) if I so choose--which I do--whereas Wordpress does not. Well, it does but I have to pay for it. And I definitely do not get enough traffic to warrant paying for a little corner of the internets to call my own.

I've been going to the gym for about three weeks now and all it has managed to do is prove to me that I am no longer 23 and thus my body does not bounce back into shape as quickly. In the last two to three years, I've managed to gain about 20+ pounds, which for me is a lot. I've never been athletic perse but I do have an athletic build (0r at least I used to). In my teens and early 20s I could lose weight at the drop of a hat, thus I could eat and drink my face off. Well, not so much anymore. I joined the Y and have been working my ASS off... figuratively not literally. WTF.

*Sigh* Suppose I should clean... or write. Or something.

Labels: exercising, rant, working out, writing

Labels: whining, writing

• I get up, usually around 9/10 a.m. I don't sleep well these days--I seem to be falling asleep around 12 a.m. only to wake up three hours later, unable to fall back asleep for about 2-3 hour OR can't fall asleep until 3 a.m.--so honestly, this isn't that late for me as mathematically it amounts to the same amount of time any normal person would be sleeping.
• I shower. Its my coffee.
• I check my email, read some blogs, update my blog/twitter, check in on the websites I contribute to, sometimes work on a piece for said websites, etc. As the Internet in my current humble abode is craptacular, this sometimes eats up 2 hours of my morning. I could cut this, but here's the thing: I approach it as my writing warm up. Some people go to the gym to exercise their bodies and get themselves going for the day. I read/write for a couple of hours to get the juices flowing.
• I eat lunch at 12:30/1:00 p.m.
• At about 1:00 p.m., I sit down to write. I set a timer for FIVE AND A HALF HOURS and write (which isn't nearly enough time BUT at least its some time, and I'm guess that when my "real" job kicks back up in August, that's about all the time I'll be able to write anyways). No freakin' T.V., no fun reading, no playing games... just writing.
• At 6:30 p.m. I take a HALF HOUR break. I pee, I catch up with my mom (she's usually home by then) decide if she's making diner or if I am and re-read some of what I've written.
• If I'm making diner, I won't get back to writing that day. If not, I'll work for another 2-3 hours (usually reading, revising and adding to what I've written that day).
• Watch 2-3 hours of T.V. depending on what day of the week it is. I need a brain break and I love my programs.
• 11:00 in bed. I usually use this time to free write or outline an idea for a chapter.
• 12:00 asleep: the cycle begins anew.

The only time this schedule changes is if, like today, I've got other sh*t to do. Today, I need to clean my room, clean my rats, run to Ithaca to GET my package items together and mail them, procure a membership to the library so I can start researching some elements for my novel... and all of this will probably eat up my writing time.

Let me clarify something. Writing is a full time job, one that (currently) I am not getting paid for. Its not some little hobby that I've developed, its not me finding a way to be lazy about housework or other obligations. Its me doing what I KNOW I was born to do. It requires just as much dedication to routine and discipline as any other job out there. And despite talent and that stupid M.F.A. it's still freakin' hard. If I want to get good at it, if I want to move up the metaphorical ladder of success, if I want to get promoted, I need to practice it every single day.

Labels: rant, writing

1. I hate my current job. This hate is no longer confined to just my boss and the institution that that employs me. Rather, this hate is directed towards the kind of work I'm doing. I love (most of) my darlings from this year. I just hate being told what and how I've got to teach. I'd rather I was given a check list of skills I had to impart and granted the lassitude to teach those skills as I saw fit. Furthermore, I had the chance to teach a creative class Term III and...loved it. I mean REALLY loved it. I felt alive and engaged and creative. Each and every day I got to teach what I wanted, what I felt was important and most importantly saw those lessons validated by the work my students produced in and out of the classroom. Which leads to point no. 2...
   
2. I need to get published. If I want to teach creative classes vs. instructional, I need to get published. However...
   
3. I haven't written in a year. After I completed and received my MFA I was totally burnt out. I tried to write and every time I sat down in front of the computer or with pen and paper, my mind ran screaming in terror. I just couldn't do it. I tried revising some stuff I'd written before, but convinced myself it wasn't good enough to even bother. Truthfully, I was scared shitless of rejection. If I was rejected, it meant I had wasted my time, and money, on a worthless degree. But then I got to thinking about it: I liked, no loved, writing before those three little letters graced the tail end of my name. I NEEDED to write... just write... without worrying about publication or failure.
   
4. Yet... publication is vindication. And without this vindication, and acknowledgement of my peers in academia, I can't teach what I feel in my bones I'm supposed to teach. So publication is key. Growing a pair is in order....
   
5. Which means I need a schedule. Finding time to write can't wait until "later" or "when I'm free." It must be found.

Writing is easy, folks. Any monkey with a typewriter can do it. Writing well, however, takes immense practice, patience, and guts.

Wish me luck.

Labels: revelations, teaching, writing

1. At what level would you describe yourself as a writer (for instance, just starting to take myself seriously; searching for a graduate program, etc.)? I'm a graduate of an MFA program seeking for motivation to keep writing with publication in mind.
2. What genre(s) do you write? Fiction (both "literary" and "speculative"), non-fiction, and script/play. The current novel idea is a touch speculative around the edges (there is a ghost and some medium type/type powers involved).
3. How do you fit writing into your life right now? I'm trying to find time. My job eats up a lot of hours, and I am decidedly NOT a morning person. Mid-morning is the best for me, so I try to spend an hour each morning writing and one to two hours in the evening.
   What is your goal for this project (June 1-Aug. 31)? My goal is multi-level and is as follows:
   *Revise 2 peices from my thesis and submit one by August 31
   *Finish an outline of the new novel idea by June 30th
   *Write a minimum of 500 words a day, five days a week (July and August)
4. What steps do you plan to take to reach that goal? I've done some free-writing to get an idea of what the story is as well as some character sketching. I'd like to map out the chapters and story arcs before starting to write the actual chapters. I am currently using a screen writing technique (scene shot mapping) to flesh out chapters.
5. How do you reward yourself (or how would you like to be rewarded) when you meet a goal? I shop, I knit, I treat myself to dinner, bottle of wine, movie tickets, etc. I'm not really picky... I like thoughtful items.
6. What writing craft books do you have/like? Writing Shapely Fiction, Self-Editing for Fiction Writers, Hot Property (script writing), that Vivian Gornik book, On Writing, and few others I'm sure.
7. Any craft books you’re interested in checking out? I'm sure there's a few! Any good suggestions?
8. What inspires your writing? Real life stories, questions with impossible answers, sometimes music without words, things/people I see on the street, things I over hear/quotes, etc.
9. How would your author’s blurb read? College instructor by day, frenetic writer and knitter by night, the author resides in Ithaca, NY. When not kow-towing to the every whim of her ever growing menagerie ( two cats, two fish, three rats and counting...), Tina day dreams of the perfect surfing vacation: warm, tropical beaches stretched as far as the eye can see; white sandy shores devoid of tourists; popping up to ride wave after perfect wave gracefully into the shore without falling ass over teakettle a single bloody time.
10. Tell us about your family (partners, kids, pets, etc.) I'm blissfully single yet ruled by my two Siamese cats (Tai and Pretty Kitty) and my three ratlings (Sinead, Harriet, and Josie Roo).
11. Have you ever participated in Nanowrimo (finished or not!)? Yes--and I totally punked out 2 weeks in because working three jobs while trying to finish a thesis and find a full time job kinda got in the way.
12. What can you do to make it easier on yourself to meet your goal for this project? Create a schedule, with deadlines and stick to it. I thrive on deadlines.
13. What are you looking for in terms of support from a writing partner (ex. Exchanging work for critique, being held accountable for meeting a word count goal, etc.)? I need a partner who is going to hold me accountable. If we make a deadline to exchange work, I need a partner who will push me to meet the deadline without being overly pushy. I also need a partner who isn't afraid to honest, or to receive an honest critique (I can be quite blunt, even though it is meant in the most loving and supportive way imaginable). I would like if my partner could be open to critiquing a few of my ideas (specifically revisions).
14. What crafty pursuits do you enjoy when you’re not writing? I knit and doodle.
15. What other hobbies/past times do you like? Sports, running, reading, movies, gardening, orchids, and recently I got into surfing (which is hard to do when you're landlocked and living the Northeast....)
16. What non-writing-craft books have you enjoyed? I have Stitch n' Bitch. I like most knitting magazines (Vogue, Interweave, Knit1)
17. What else would you like to share with us? I haven't been serious about my writing since I received my MFA. I was totally burned out post-thesis and until VERY recently felt like all my creativity was dead. That being said, I've been told I'm pretty funny.... and honest and open. So... if there's anything you want to know, just ask!
    

P.S. Please, no international writers (this time out). I'm on a limited budget :(

Labels: writing

Labels: writing

Labels: publishing, writing