The No News is No News Purgatory Thread, Volume 9
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Mr. Maryn and I went over the line edits for Act II of the play we co-wrote. One person just. Didn't. Get. It. Everyone else did. We debated whether we should beat the audience over the head by explaining and reiterating the rules we've established for time travel and how the characters repeated five minutes of time, or let the ones who can't follow fall behind, to be eaten by wolves.
Although it's kind of funny that she thinks we have an important character who's been shot and is unconscious, perhaps dead, while others are posing for pictures. WTF?
Maryn, snarky because she'll never see this
Although it's kind of funny that she thinks we have an important character who's been shot and is unconscious, perhaps dead, while others are posing for pictures. WTF?
Maryn, snarky because she'll never see this
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I've never asked anyone for reviews. I'm 
like that. 
One of the many reasons SPing isn't a good idea for me right now.
Maryn, sometimes you run across people who just don't get it. In my experience they're the outlier.
like that. One of the many reasons SPing isn't a good idea for me right now.
Maryn, sometimes you run across people who just don't get it. In my experience they're the outlier.
Become a Vermont resident, then we'll talk! (That's our one iron-clad requirement, which makes it easy to ignore the book publicists pushing their clients from all corners of the globe.)I've got no problem with people requesting a review — it's when they expect one for whatever reason... I've had writers contact my boss to complain because I didn't review them. Luckily my boss gets that choices must be made.
ETA: One more thing not to do (because I just got an email where this happened): Please don't say, "XYZ [a friend of the author] has volunteered to review my book for you! Shall I tell him it's a go?" Please. No. (Sorry for the venting. I know no one here would ever ever do that. And yes, I live in a smallish town, which is why people feel comfortable approaching me in these ways.)
Maryn, don't dumb down your play if the majority of readers get it! Some people just aren't used to following stories that include time travel and the resulting complications. (I am and I still need to watch the movie Primer again 'cause I didn't get it, but that one's an extreme case.)
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Evening, Purgs!
Sorry, crazy busy week here, new semester and whatnot!
Suki, hugs on the stupid smoke alarm and the lost sleep. Hope your meeting went well!
I'm already dreading reworking my query, pitch and maybe even synopsis for Pikes Peak and well, maybe at some point the actual query wagon, for exactly that reason. It's like writing: Yay! This book is fun and stuff happens! Query/pitch/whathaveyou: What is this nonsense drivel I have wrought?!!
What Lily said. Wow.
Btw. finished NTS and really enjoyed it. Except for the placenta art. Ew.
Lack of sleep must be a theme these days. I stopped by a student who works at a local coffee shop and really, really wanted me to come by and get coffee, so student-made coffee (which was delicious aside from it being adorable how happy she was that I actually came by) was what got me through this evening's class.
Tiredness aside though, the last two days of school have been pretty awesome, apart from me fretting about the semester-induced shrinkage of my journalism staff. Had my first day of my creative writing class yesterday and they actually didn't even realize when the (lunch) bell at the end of the period rang, because they were having so much fun writing! It's those moments that make all the craziness so worth it.
Now to live up to high expectations. Meep. But, this class, and basically everything I am teaching this quarter (lots of informational writing, which means I'm teaching a lot of journalism and media literacy to my English peeps) are going to be awesome and lots of fun, so I'm having high hopes for this quarter.
Anyway, me+book+bed+cats=happiness at this point. Maybe some writing (aside of my writing with my creative writing class) will happen by Friday, too.
Sorry, crazy busy week here, new semester and whatnot!
Suki, hugs on the stupid smoke alarm and the lost sleep. Hope your meeting went well!
I'm already dreading reworking my query, pitch and maybe even synopsis for Pikes Peak and well, maybe at some point the actual query wagon, for exactly that reason. It's like writing: Yay! This book is fun and stuff happens! Query/pitch/whathaveyou: What is this nonsense drivel I have wrought?!!
What Lily said. Wow.
Btw. finished NTS and really enjoyed it. Except for the placenta art. Ew.
Lack of sleep must be a theme these days. I stopped by a student who works at a local coffee shop and really, really wanted me to come by and get coffee, so student-made coffee (which was delicious aside from it being adorable how happy she was that I actually came by) was what got me through this evening's class.
Tiredness aside though, the last two days of school have been pretty awesome, apart from me fretting about the semester-induced shrinkage of my journalism staff. Had my first day of my creative writing class yesterday and they actually didn't even realize when the (lunch) bell at the end of the period rang, because they were having so much fun writing! It's those moments that make all the craziness so worth it.
Now to live up to high expectations. Meep. But, this class, and basically everything I am teaching this quarter (lots of informational writing, which means I'm teaching a lot of journalism and media literacy to my English peeps) are going to be awesome and lots of fun, so I'm having high hopes for this quarter.
Anyway, me+book+bed+cats=happiness at this point. Maybe some writing (aside of my writing with my creative writing class) will happen by Friday, too.
Price: $2.99
Price: $0.99
Price: $8.69
P
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Thanks for the links, tri. BUT anyone who wants to read Changing Habits DON'T buy it at Amazon! Go to iTunes or Google Ay or Kobo where it's free like it's supposed to be. Amazon is being uncooperative.
Dys, sorry about the placenta art. Really.
So thrilled you liked NTS! 
*wonders how Suki's meeting went*
BUT anyone who wants to read Changing Habits DON'T buy it at Amazon! Go to iTunes or Google Ay or Kobo where it's free like it's supposed to be. Amazon is being uncooperative.Dys, sorry about the placenta art. Really.
So thrilled you liked NTS! *wonders how Suki's meeting went*
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My meeting went. I did not stick to my plan of saying nothing about larger implications given boss absented himself and the two managment team members leading the meeting weren't really the ones to deal with the implications (but hey, they started it by brushing aside the minimal issues raised!). But, overall, it went better than expected in a lot of ways, and we all got through it -- even if the two department managers leading the meeting were defensive, condescending, and not at all on the same page about what the new approach entails. So, new approach should be loads of confusion and idiocy, but it will be on them, not us.
Then I got a long, solid night sleep. I'm still tired, but today is better.
Dys -- so glad to hear classes are going well, even if making you fret about expectations.
~suki
Then I got a long, solid night sleep. I'm still tired, but today is better.
Dys -- so glad to hear classes are going well, even if making you fret about expectations.
~suki
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Hi, everybody. Unusually busy day today, with work on the play whose deadline is coming up fast, turning in forms for cover art and marketing, turning in the proofs, and a doctor's appointment.
Something awesome happened this morning. I had my annual OB-gyn appointment and dreaded it because the doctor was sure to scold me about my weight. She was surprised last year that I was in Weight Watchers because she was, too, and it worked, so I needed to buckle down, yada-yada-yada. No questions about my dietary habits or exercise, just negative judgment.
This year, my weight is the same, and she apologized. She never struggled with her weight until the last few years and her first attempt to lose it was quite successful. She'd been at her WW goal weight, smug about it, and has since put back on 15 pounds despite her efforts. She acknowledges that it's hard, really hard, and since I do exercise and eat good choices, just too much, with good blood pressure and general health, she hopes I will continue to try to lose but sympathizes with the difficulty.
Maryn, who left feeling encouraged, which was weird
Something awesome happened this morning. I had my annual OB-gyn appointment and dreaded it because the doctor was sure to scold me about my weight. She was surprised last year that I was in Weight Watchers because she was, too, and it worked, so I needed to buckle down, yada-yada-yada. No questions about my dietary habits or exercise, just negative judgment.
This year, my weight is the same, and she apologized. She never struggled with her weight until the last few years and her first attempt to lose it was quite successful. She'd been at her WW goal weight, smug about it, and has since put back on 15 pounds despite her efforts. She acknowledges that it's hard, really hard, and since I do exercise and eat good choices, just too much, with good blood pressure and general health, she hopes I will continue to try to lose but sympathizes with the difficulty.
Maryn, who left feeling encouraged, which was weird
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I like it when a doctor's willing to learn something new and not necessarily stick with his/her assumptions and rules of thumb. Guess you could say that of anyone in a professional position to lecture people.
Yesterday was weird. I spent morning at the ice rink, afternoon at the tax guy's place, and evening at the new roller rink reporting a story. Then I went home, wrote a (work) blog post till 3 a.m. and crashed.
I still like ice skating better, but the disco atmosphere at the roller rink is the best. So many kids and teens with their parents there, all loving it. Rarely do I meet so many enthusiastic people.
Yesterday was weird. I spent morning at the ice rink, afternoon at the tax guy's place, and evening at the new roller rink reporting a story. Then I went home, wrote a (work) blog post till 3 a.m. and crashed.
I still like ice skating better, but the disco atmosphere at the roller rink is the best.
So many kids and teens with their parents there, all loving it. Rarely do I meet so many enthusiastic people.
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Maryn - Yay for realistic and positive doctors. And sounds like you have a lot of work going on, but are getting it done.
I had a really rough day at work yesterday, but today was better. Hoping for a good and restful weekend, and that work next week is less messy so that I can take next Friday and the following Monday off for a writing weekend.
~suki
I had a really rough day at work yesterday, but today was better. Hoping for a good and restful weekend, and that work next week is less messy so that I can take next Friday and the following Monday off for a writing weekend.
~suki
I am making OtherLisa's roasted root vegetables. Since she took off, never to be seen here again, I'm not sharing with her, only with you all.
Maryn, who diced a white Jersey yam, a sweet potato, two turnips, three parsnips, a Yukon gold potato, two purple potatoes, some butternut squash, and carrots--Wegmans had no rutabagas
Maryn, who diced a white Jersey yam, a sweet potato, two turnips, three parsnips, a Yukon gold potato, two purple potatoes, some butternut squash, and carrots--Wegmans had no rutabagas
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Maryn -- the roasted veggies sound yummy. What do you do to them? (I tend to drizzle mine with olive oil and whatever herbs I feel like, then salt and pepper. But I'd welcome new ideas).
And yes, sometimes I wonder how some of the old purgies are doing. Sad things blew up in a way that I guess some people didn't feel comfortable poking back in sometimes.
P.S. I've never had rutabagas...I don't think.
~suki
And yes, sometimes I wonder how some of the old purgies are doing. Sad things blew up in a way that I guess some people didn't feel comfortable poking back in sometimes.
P.S. I've never had rutabagas...I don't think.
~suki
Tonight, I tossed them with Wegmans basting oil, which includes seasonings and leaves of some spices, then sea salt and cracked pepper. After all that peeling and chopping, I need the rest to be easy.
I have recipes for other bastes, one with honey, one with balsamic vinegar, but I always get lazy.
Kid Two still hasn't figured out what's eating data, but she's used 20% of what the whole family gets for a month in four days. I dug around a bit online and found places with tips, which I sent along to her.
Maryn, who wanted some data, too!
I have recipes for other bastes, one with honey, one with balsamic vinegar, but I always get lazy.
Kid Two still hasn't figured out what's eating data, but she's used 20% of what the whole family gets for a month in four days. I dug around a bit online and found places with tips, which I sent along to her.
Maryn, who wanted some data, too!
Ok, I need to pick the collective brain.
I really REALLY need to come up with a new title for Muse. Both "Muse" and my second choice "Elysia" have been used to death. I don't think many of you here have read this one, but here's a blurbish type thing:
The war among the Greek gods lasted for over three decades and when it was ended, the sun was snuffed from the sky, Artemis sat on the throne, and the muses were murdered.
Without the power to create or invent, the human race languished for generations, trapped within the walled city of Elysia, their lives governed by the steady tick of the great world clock and the watchful eye of their increasingly erratic goddess.
But in the lower wards, far from the shining beacon that is Olympus tower, a crippled boy named Geoff has grown to manhood, unaware of the legacy contained in his own mysterious bloodline. When his loved ones are threatened, the world will finally wake under the power of the muse, and the insane goddess Artemis will remember the very dangerous power of human imagination.
I really REALLY need to come up with a new title for Muse. Both "Muse" and my second choice "Elysia" have been used to death. I don't think many of you here have read this one, but here's a blurbish type thing:
The war among the Greek gods lasted for over three decades and when it was ended, the sun was snuffed from the sky, Artemis sat on the throne, and the muses were murdered.
Without the power to create or invent, the human race languished for generations, trapped within the walled city of Elysia, their lives governed by the steady tick of the great world clock and the watchful eye of their increasingly erratic goddess.
But in the lower wards, far from the shining beacon that is Olympus tower, a crippled boy named Geoff has grown to manhood, unaware of the legacy contained in his own mysterious bloodline. When his loved ones are threatened, the world will finally wake under the power of the muse, and the insane goddess Artemis will remember the very dangerous power of human imagination.
With the understanding that titles is not among my strengths...
Power of the Muse
After the Gods' War
Trapped in Elysia
The World Wakes
Maryn, fairly meh about them all
Power of the Muse
After the Gods' War
Trapped in Elysia
The World Wakes
Maryn, fairly meh about them all
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Song of Blood
Power in the Blood (this is a deliberate riff on a Christian hymn)
The Clock Stops
Power in the Blood (this is a deliberate riff on a Christian hymn)
The Clock Stops
Spark in the Ashes?
Rekindled?
Waking the Muse?
Mind's Dawn?
Twilight of the Muses? (stolen from Nietzsche and Wagner)
I dunno, I keep thinking of imagination = divine spark imagery, but nothing catchy springs to mind. I like the blurb, though!
I worked all weekend, and it's catching up with me. Both day job stuff and book stuff, though I haven't received notes or started actual revisions yet. Hearing about the end of Egm0nt USA was scary and sobering, and I'm trying to keep my thoughts and expectations for the publishing process realistic, while not jumping the gun into pessimism.
Rekindled?
Waking the Muse?
Mind's Dawn?
Twilight of the Muses? (stolen from Nietzsche and Wagner)
I dunno, I keep thinking of imagination = divine spark imagery, but nothing catchy springs to mind. I like the blurb, though!
I worked all weekend, and it's catching up with me. Both day job stuff and book stuff, though I haven't received notes or started actual revisions yet. Hearing about the end of Egm0nt USA was scary and sobering, and I'm trying to keep my thoughts and expectations for the publishing process realistic, while not jumping the gun into pessimism.
Anybody here affected by the storm already begun in the northeast? (I'm not, but one of our daughters is.)
There has been some fun mockery of panic shopping in NYC--the fresh kale is sold out, although you can still get bread and milk. Apparently laundromats have been extremely busy, too, I guess in anticipation of losing power. I dunno, when the power's out and the house/apartment is growing ever colder, clean laundry is pretty low on my list.
Maryn, whose power was out for 13 days once
There has been some fun mockery of panic shopping in NYC--the fresh kale is sold out, although you can still get bread and milk. Apparently laundromats have been extremely busy, too, I guess in anticipation of losing power. I dunno, when the power's out and the house/apartment is growing ever colder, clean laundry is pretty low on my list.
Maryn, whose power was out for 13 days once
Sun's blazing up here, with pretty minor snow forecast for tomorrow. Guess the storm is passing us by. Hope your daughter stays safe and warm!
It's soooooo cold, though. We had one blissful 30-degree day when I could jog, and now it's back into the teens.
It's soooooo cold, though. We had one blissful 30-degree day when I could jog, and now it's back into the teens.
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