YAHOOOOOOO!

I did it. I did it. It took me to 10:15 PM tonight, but by God, I did it.

I finally let the inner editor take over, because she had a great idea. Just write. Who cares if it is truly, completely coherent? No... not quite. But the inner editor has had the great idea to stretch this thing out a little more, so the last bit of the novel is actually from that idea .... it doesn't make perfect sense in the original flow of the story, but it's another place to start.

The thing is, I can see the novel really take form. This initial portion of it is just the beginning. There's going to be a lot of editing as I go along to get it to the form I see for its future.

If you are one of the thousands who've also done the NaNoWriMo with me this month, CONGRATULATIONS! WE DID IT! And if you've never done it, then think about it for next year. It's crazy fun!

Quick NNWM update....

Roughly 41,500 words (give or take a few), and 2 days to go. I have figured out ways to stretch my story out a little, and to keep it rolling into the future. Right now, I'm just going to concentrate on making it to 50K, but I definitely see some additional plans for this book after November is over.

As I've said before, the characters have become very dear to my heart. I am trying hard to make them and their story realistic, not contrived. Right now, with these few words, it's a little too ... well, too fast and furious for it to be real. They have a great story -- one that is going to take more than 50,000 words to tell.

But time constraints are pushing in, and my inner editor is fighting to get out. I've suppressed her as much as I could for time's sake. So if you don't see me around much over the next couple of days, don't be surprised. I'm either working in real life, or off in my novel-world.

Ta!

Another NaNoWriMo update

35,000 words. Nearly 100 pages. And I'm not stuck, but just wondering how to wrap things up.

As much as I'd like to call it "chick lit" the truth is that it's more a romance novel. But a modern one -- none of this "Baron LeDark gazed at Sabrina, his eyes taking her in, from her heaving chest to the short hem of her satin gown. Sabrina knew that she wanted him more than anything..." blah blah blah. No talk of "manly warriors" (wink wink) and "forbidden passions."

The main characters are adults over 35. The time for being coy and cute is long past. They are walking wounded, but also surprisingly strong in their own right. They know who they are, where they've been, how they've overcome, and are at ease with their place in life. Hey, there's an idea -- using normal people to tell a story!

So far, there's been no big external conflict -- no crazy exes back in the picture, no arguments between the main characters. Must there be a conflict? Can't there just be a happy ending for once? I have an idea of where something could happen. But it would be more of a ... downturn? (is that the right word)? Something that will keep the characters apart for a while, with hope for the future, but a little uncertainty too.

The thing is, this whole story could happen in real life (maybe not in mine but in someone's)... it's plausible enough.

And NO, HEATHER -- NO DEAD BODIES!!!! (ha ha ha)

My coworker keeps asking, "Yeah, but when is the dead body going to appear in the lake and they have to solve the mystery?" I can't write about dead bodies. Not that I'm any more qualified to write about a decent, well-working relationship.... Mysteries are not something I could write well -- I sucked at Clue as a kid. Badly. I can read mysteries, watch them on TV (I am a crime drama junkie), but to actually attempt one myself would be horrific. Sorry, Heather -- maybe some other time.

Roughly 15,000 more words to go in 4 days (or so). I'm working as much as I can on it today and tomorrow, because I know I'll have no chance at all on the 30th (working late).

I can do this.

No turkey coma for me!

I'm shocked. For once on Thanksgiving, I wasn't part of the Blow-Up of the Day. Mom and my brother got into it, briefly. I shouldn't be surprised -- they are two peas in a pod. There are times I am like her too, but not to the same extent as my brother. Anyway, around 11:30, Angel Boy was yelling and decided to go for a ride. Fine by me. I was just glad I wasn't getting blamed for something for a change. Once Angel Boy calmed down and came back, it was a fairly reasonable day.

Nor did I fall victim to the famous Turkey Coma. They all collapsed under the influence of tryptophan, but for some reason I didn't. Of course, I also didn't really load up my plate either. I decided to forgo counting points yesterday, but to eat in moderation and to enjoy what I put on the plate. I stuck to smaller portions, and it was all good.

Then I spent part of the day working on my NaNoWriMo stuff. I'm still below 30K words with just under a week to go, so most of today and the weekend will be spent feverishly trying to reach that goal. I'm loving these characters and where the story is going. I was telling a friend about it and she is now all excited, and wanting to read the finished product. Well, that's going to be a long way off, but getting closer. I still can't believe I'm at 80 pages and still under 30,000.... holy mackerel!

And tomorrow marks the annual rivalry: Clemson vs. South Carolina. Now, I am a Carolina girl through and through. If we lose to Clemson again, I swear, I will just sit here and bawl like a teething child. I have a feeling this is our year. We can do it!!

Very blessed indeed.

It's almost Thanksgiving, and naturally I'm in a little reflective mood. Rather than a laundry list of "what I'm thankful for" that would just bore you to tears, suffice it to say that I am indeed very blessed. I have family, fantastic friends, a good job, happiness, and some measure of inner peace. I have laughter, love, and joy.

Can't beat that.

Enjoy your holiday!

NaNoWriMo update

I'm at 18,000 words (give or take). Yeah, that's slightly behind pace, but I'm actually okay with that. There's always time to play catchup over the Thanksgiving holiday.

So far, I'm getting really invested in the characters and the story and where it's all going to lead. "C" and "E" have become awfully close to my heart. Even if this thing never gets published, I'm happy with knowing I've written more than I ever have before. Most of my short stories have been about 15 pages or so. I'm up to 50 so far. WOW........

To all my friends who are doing this -- KEEP AT IT!!!!

Color me quite happy -- and also heartbroken!

Ahhh! I am sitting here typing to you from my new PC. Or more correctly, my "newsed" PC. There is a locally-owned company who sells used PCs from upgrades that they do for a local business. I got one of them today, and I couldn't be happier. It's much faster, stronger, better -- it's the Six Million Dollar PC, instead of Major Steve Austin prior to the accident.

(insert the bionic sound here)

Big huge sigh of relief. I still have a LOT of work to do in order to get it back up to running speed. But those are minor things, and I'm just thrilled!

***

And yet my heart is just broken. We were oh-this-close to beating Florida. Three blocked kicks, any of which would have won the game. Oh my......

PS to Bolivar: I intend to nurse said heartache over a nice plate of BBQ -- you might have beat us last week, but by God, I was alllllll Hawgette this week. Enjoy the win!

Shiny, happy people: my big ol' butt!

Well, I've done a little research into the airwave robbers. Seems there's a "Christian alternative" station licensed to a church in a city between where I work and Charlotte. I know they're licensed to 104.1 FM ... but their repeater signal on 95.7, I'm not so sure about. I am just-this-close to calling said church, and saying some very non-church-like things.

I have no problem per se with Christian radio. It's not my cup of tea. I know -- that sounds so weird, especially considering I sing in church and so forth. But as far as listening to "contemporary Christian" I can't stand the stuff. I call it "Yippee Skippy For Jesus" music -- because, you know, "it's all so beautiful" (and forgive me, Faces, for stealing a line from your music). Don't worry, be happy for the Lord.

(insert wretching noise)

With a couple of notable exceptions, most of these singers and songwriters forget that a good part of the Psalms -- the original Top 40 (or in this case, Top 150) -- are full of complaints and even prayers along the lines of "God, will you PLEASE smite my enemies?" And quite frankly, that might appeal to me. People who are open and honest and admit to struggles and frailties and temptations (and occasionally giving in to temptation), people who aren't afraid to say, "Yes, I struggle to believe. Yes, there are times I question God, even to questioning his existence or his care for us." That, my friends, I would be far more apt to listen to.

Anyway, they're still effing with my wa. This is not boding well. Something must be done.

The 11th commandment oughta be....

"Thou shalt not harsh Nettie's mellow."

One of my very favorite radio stations is 95.7 FM The Ride out of Charlotte NC. It reaches over to my house (albeit somewhat fuzzily), but gets stronger as I drive east toward work. It is independent radio, which makes me love it automatically, and they are classic rock as it is intended to be: not the same seven or eight favorite artists singing the same 15 songs. They have streaming online, so I definitely suggest checking them out.

A few weeks ago, the harshing of my morning mellow began. Seems a little LPFM in Greenville (that's "low power FM") was dropping itself in at 95.5 FM. Fine, but it overpowered the Charlotte signal just as I was going through downtown. Over on the Eastside, where I work, you couldn't even begin to pick up this little LPFM. I had given some serious thought to calling the DJ (who gave his name on the air), and telling him to quit "f---in' with my wa!" (thank you, Jax, for that phrase, I do love it so!).

So you can imagine my extreme glee this week when, praise be, the little LPFM seemed to be off the air, and The Ride came in loud and clear through downtown. No more cutoffs in the middle of "Layla" or "Let It Bleed" or any other fantastic song.

And you can also imagine my intense horror when, later this week, I began to pick up some stuff that definitely did NOT fall into The Ride's playlist, playing on their frequency. Seems that some "positive alternative" station (a/k/a Yippee Skippy for Jesus Metal and Rap) has hijacked this frequency on the Eastside.

I am not happy. In the least. My mellow has most definitely been harshed. My wa is beyond effed.

*****

Adding to this, the two local big A/C stations are falling all over themselves to be the first in the area to play Christmas music. I am aghast. Halloween was just this past week -- why the holy hell do I want to start hearing Bing sing "White Christmas"???? For God's sake, can't you wait till Thanksgiving?

When are stations going to realize that a large segment of the population has no interest in holiday tunes right now?

So, Lord -- what's the judgment on all these 11th-commandment breakers? A finger on the "SMITE" button?

Killing you softly with my keyboard

Or at least I hope not. Today I started with the NaNoWriMo thing -- and in just two hours, I did about 2000 words. That included breaks to catch a moment of VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of the 80s. That's been fun to watch but OH! what has happened to some of the hotties from then!!! YIKES!

Anyway, it seems to be flowing for now. I'm not sure how it will all pan out. I'll keep you updated.

And Kate...Naturally asked if anyone else was having trouble with the NaNoWriMo site -- count me in. I can't even get to the main page, let alone log in and upload. It's weird, I tell ya. Weird.