under the weather

Not much happening over here since I've been under the weather. Finished draft '9' of my picture book THE GOODNIGHT KISS and want to try and get two editor queries together for it this week.

This week's B&N session will probably be interrupted because I'm trying to get ready for a local art fair that happens on Saturday. Next week I'll be back to writing as usual. :D

k

Reading Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott

Not much to report around here. Busy on various projects, including my latest WIP. Halfway through the *new* first chapter, and have turned it in to my writing group for critique. Busy editing this week, and trying to prepare for a local art festival.

Reading Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott, which was given to me for my birthday by a writing buddy, and boy, do I connect with her.

I always think it's just me, when I sit down to write and nothing happens for the first hour of it but my brain rebelling, my internal critics raging, the internet distracting me, the feelings of failure. But I'm not alone.

I know dozens of artists have written that they go through the very thing, but I always forget and think it's just me, and that I'll never overcome it. But look! I'm not alone in my writer crazies! Here's what Lamott says about it:

"So you sit down at, say, nine every morning, or ten every night. You put a piece of paper in the typewriter, or you turn on your computer and bring up the right file, and then you stare at it for an hour or so. You begin rocking, just a little at first, and then like a huge autistic child. You look at the ceiling, and over at the clock, yawn, and stare at the paper again. Then, with your fingers poised on the keyboard, you squint at an image that is forming in your mind--a scene, a locale, a character, whatever--and you try to quiet your mind so you can hear what that landscape or character has to say above the other voices in your mind. The other voices are banshees and drunken monkeys. They are the voices of anxiety, judgment, doom, guilt. Also, severe hypochondria. ...

...Yet somehow in the face of all this, you clear a space for the writing voice, hacking away at the others with machetes, and you begin composing sentences. You begin to string words together like beads to tell a story. You are desperate to communicate, to edify or entertain, to preserve moments of grace or joy or transcendence, to make real or imagined events come alive. But you cannot will this to happen. It is a matter of persistence and faith and hard work. So you might as well go ahead and get started."

I need to trust in the process, accept the hard work, find the strength to chase away the inner critics and persist. But above all, I need to find that faith she talks about. I have to have faith that no matter how agonizing and difficult the writing is, when I sit down, and quiet my mind, the words will come.

Because they do come, even if it's at a snail's pace. :D

-k.


You can check out here book on Amazon (disclosure: this is an affiliate link). Or pick it up at the library, or wherever you like to get your book goodies.

New scene

I missed my weekly writing night at B&N due to car trouble this week, so I made up for it last night. Went over to B&N and wrote about a thousand words on a new opening scene. Basically I'm just pushing my first two scenes of chapter one to chapter two. I have a feeling it might wreck my plot, but I'm trying to not to 'judge' and just let the inspiration roll.

k

almost ready to go

Just finished tweaking draft 7 of my picture book, The Goodnight Kiss, and have sent it out to my writing buds for a last look. I'm at that point where I'm starting to just take out and put back in commas, so I'm going to send it off to some editors, hopefully next week and see what shakes out.

Due to car trouble, I missed my weekly writing session at B&N, but the car should be fixed this evening, so I might head over there tonight.

NPR's Audience Picks for Top 100 Thrillers

Recently, NPR asked it's listeners to choose the top 100 "Killer Thrillers", and they nominated about 600 titles to the list. Today, after 17,000 ballots, NPR announced the results.

I'm a late-comer to the thriller genre. My latest forays in this area have been to catch up on all of Preston and Child's books and all of the Bond books. But in general, I read thrillers only occasionally, and I don't know why I don't read them more often, because I almost always enjoy them.

The one caveat to this is  The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson. I've got it on my Kindle, and I've started reading it, but I just can't engage with it yet. The opening was boring me to tears, and I put it down before it had a chance to be, well, thrilling. I need to give it another shot because I'm sure if everyone is raving-gaga-in-love with it, it must be worthwhile.

I've posted NPR's list below, and for my own amusement, I've added an "X" next to the titles I've read. And now I have some nice recommendations to put on hold at my local library. :D

NPR's Top 100 Killer Thrillers

• [X ] 1. The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris
• [ ] 2. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
• [X] 3. Kiss the Girls, by James Patterson
• [ ] 4. The Bourne Identity, by Robert Ludlum
• [ ] 5. In Cold Blood, by Truman Capote
• [X ] 6. The Da Vinci Code, by Dan Brown
• [X ] 7. The Shining, by Stephen King
• [ ] 8. And Then There Were None, by Agatha Christie
• [ ] 9. The Hunt for Red October, by Tom Clancy
• [X ] 10. The Hound of the Baskervilles, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
• [X ] 11. Dracula, by Bram Stoker
• [ ] 12. The Stand, by Stephen King
• [ ] 13. The Bone Collector, by Jeffery Deaver
• [X ] 14. Jurassic Park, by Michael Crichton
• [X ] 15. Angels &; Demons, by Dan Brown
• [ ] 16. A Time to Kill, by John Grisham
• [ ] 17. The Andromeda Strain, by Michael Crichton
• [ ] 18. Mystic River, by Dennis Lehane
• [ ] 19. The Day of the Jackal, by Frederick Forsyth
• [X ] 20. Rebecca, by Daphne du Maurier
• [ ] 21. Eye of the Needle, by Ken Follett
• [X ] 22. It, by Stephen King
• [ ] 23. The Count of Monte Cristo, by Alexandre Dumas
• [ ] 24. The Girl Who Played with Fire, by Stieg Larsson
• [X ] 25. Jaws, by Peter Benchley
• [ ] 26. The Alienist, by Caleb Carr
• [X ] 27. Red Dragon, by Thomas Harris
• [ ] 28. Presumed Innocent, by Scott Turow
• [ ] 29. The Maltese Falcon, by Dashiell Hammett
• [ ] 30. The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest, by Stieg Larsson
• [ ] 31. No Country For Old Men, by Cormac McCarthy
• [ ] 32. Gone Baby Gone, by Dennis Lehane
• [ ] 33. Gorky Park, by Martin Cruz Smith
• [ ] 34. Rosemary's Baby, by Ira Levin
• [ ] 35. Subterranean, by James Rollins
• [ ] 36. Clear and Present Danger, by Tom Clancy
• [ ] 37. Salem's Lot, by Stephen King
• [ ] 38. Shutter Island, by Dennis Lehane
• [ ] 39. The Spy Who Came in from the Cold, by John Le Carre
• [ ] 40. The Poet, by Michael Connelly
• [ ] 41. The Boys from Brazil, by Ira Levin
• [ ] 42. Cape Fear, by John MacDonald
• [ ] 43. The Bride Collector, by Ted Dekker
• [ ] 44. Pet Sematary, by Stephen King
• [X ] 45. Dead Zone, by Stephen King
• [ ] 46. The Manchurian Candidate, by Richard Condon
• [ ] 47. Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, by John Le Carre
• [ ] 48. The Talented Mr. Ripley, by Patricia Highsmith
• [ ] 49. Tell No One, by Harlan Coben
• [ ] 50. Consent to Kill, by Vince Flynn
• [ ] 51. The 39 Steps, by John Buchan
• [ ] 52. Blowback, by Brad Thor
• [ ] 53. The Children of Men, by P.D. James
• [ ] 54. 61 Hours, by Lee Child
• [ ] 55. Marathon Man, by William Goldman
• [ ] 56. The Woman in White, by Wilkie Collins
• [ ] 57. 206 Bones, by Kathy Reichs
• [ ] 58. Psycho, by Robert Bloch
• [ ] 59. The Killing Floor, by Lee Child
• [ ] 60. Rules of Prey, by John Sandford
• [ ] 61. The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins
• [ ] 62. In the Woods, by Tana French
• [X ] 63. Shogun, by James Clavell
• [X ] 64. The Relic, by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child
• [ ] 65. Intensity, by Dean Koontz
• X[ ] 66. Casino Royale, by Ian Fleming
• [ ] 67. Metzger's Dog, by Thomas Perry
• [ ] 68. Timeline, by Michael Crichton
• [ ] 69. Contact, by Carl Sagan
• [ ] 70. What the Dead Know, by Laura Lippman
• [ ] 71. The Shadow of the Wind, by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
• [ ] 72. The Cabinet of Curiosities, by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child
• [ ] 73. Charm School, by Nelson DeMille
• [ ] 74. Feed, by Mira Grant
• [ ] 75. Gone Tomorrow, by Lee Child
• [ ] 76. Darkly Dreaming Dexter, by Jeff Lindsay
• [ ] 77. The Secret History, by Donna Tartt
• [ ] 78. The First Deadly Sin, by Lawrence Sanders
• [ ] 79. Cryptonomicon, by Neal Stephenson
• [ ] 80. The Brotherhood of the Rose, by David Morrell
• [ ] 81. Primal Fear, by William Diehl
• [ ] 82. The Templar Legacy, by Steve Berry
• [ ] 82. The Hard Way, by Lee Child [tie]
• [ ] 84. The Last of the Mohicans, by James Fenimore Cooper
• [ ] 85. Six Days of the Condor, by James Grady
• [ ] 86. Fail-Safe, by Eugene Burdick and Harvey Wheeler
• [ ] 87. Strangers on a Train, by Patricia Highsmith
• [ ] 88. The Eight, by Katherine Neville
• [X ] 89. The Lost Symbol, by Dan Brown
• [X ] 90. Goldfinger, by Ian Fleming
• [ ] 91. Bangkok 8, by John Burdett
• [ ] 92. The Kill Artist, by Daniel Silva
• [ ] 93. Hardball, by Sara Paretsky
• [ ] 94. The Club Dumas, by Arturo Perez-Reverte
• [ ] 95. The Deep Blue Good-by, by John MacDonald
• [ ] 96. The Monkey's Raincoat, by Robert Crais
• [ ] 96. Berlin Game, by Len Deighton [tie]
• [ ] 98. A Simple Plan, by Scott Smith
• [ ] 99. Child 44, by Tom Rob Smith
• [ ] 100. Heartsick, by Chelsea Cain

Kind of pathetic! I apparently need to read more thrillers! But look how many of these I've seen in movie version. Still not very impressive, and I can see that my taste for them has dropped a bit, since I haven't seen many of the recent movie versions that have come out in the last couple years:

• [X ] 1. The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris
• [ ] 2. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
• [X ] 3. Kiss the Girls, by James Patterson
• [X ] 4. The Bourne Identity, by Robert Ludlum
• [X ] 5. In Cold Blood, by Truman Capote
• [X ] 6. The Da Vinci Code, by Dan Brown
• [X ] 7. The Shining, by Stephen King
• [ ] 8. And Then There Were None, by Agatha Christie
• [X ] 9. The Hunt for Red October, by Tom Clancy
• [X ] 10. The Hound of the Baskervilles, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
  
• [X ] 11. Dracula, by Bram Stoker
• [X ] 12. The Stand, by Stephen King
• [X ] 13. The Bone Collector, by Jeffery Deaver
• [X ] 14. Jurassic Park, by Michael Crichton
• [X ] 15. Angels & Demons, by Dan Brown
• [X ] 16. A Time to Kill, by John Grisham
• [ ] 17. The Andromeda Strain, by Michael Crichton
• [ ] 18. Mystic River, by Dennis Lehane
• [ ] 19. The Day of the Jackal, by Frederick Forsyth
• [X ] 20. Rebecca, by Daphne du Maurier
• [ ] 21. Eye of the Needle, by Ken Follett
• [X ] 22. It, by Stephen King
• [X ] 23. The Count of Monte Cristo, by Alexandre Dumas
• [ ] 24. The Girl Who Played with Fire, by Stieg Larsson
• [X ] 25. Jaws, by Peter Benchley
• [ ] 26. The Alienist, by Caleb Carr
• [X ] 27. Red Dragon, by Thomas Harris
• [X ] 28. Presumed Innocent, by Scott Turow
• [X ] 29. The Maltese Falcon, by Dashiell Hammett
• [ ] 30. The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest, by Stieg Larsson
• [ ] 31. No Country For Old Men, by Cormac McCarthy
• [ ] 32. Gone Baby Gone, by Dennis Lehane
• [X ] 33. Gorky Park, by Martin Cruz Smith
• [X ] 34. Rosemary's Baby, by Ira Levin
• [ ] 35. Subterranean, by James Rollins
• [X ] 36. Clear and Present Danger, by Tom Clancy
• [ ] 37. Salem's Lot, by Stephen King
• [ ] 38. Shutter Island, by Dennis Lehane
• [ ] 39. The Spy Who Came in from the Cold, by John Le Carre
• [ ] 40. The Poet, by Michael Connelly
• [ ] 41. The Boys from Brazil, by Ira Levin
• [X ] 42. Cape Fear, by John MacDonald
• [ ] 43. The Bride Collector, by Ted Dekker
• [ ] 44. Pet Sematary, by Stephen King
• [X ] 45. Dead Zone, by Stephen King
• [ ] 46. The Manchurian Candidate, by Richard Condon
• [ ] 47. Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, by John Le Carre
• [X ] 48. The Talented Mr. Ripley, by Patricia Highsmith
• [ ] 49. Tell No One, by Harlan Coben
• [ ] 50. Consent to Kill, by Vince Flynn
• [ ] 51. The 39 Steps, by John Buchan
• [ ] 52. Blowback, by Brad Thor
• [ ] 53. The Children of Men, by P.D. James
• [ ] 54. 61 Hours, by Lee Child
• [ ] 55. Marathon Man, by William Goldman
• [ ] 56. The Woman in White, by Wilkie Collins
• [ ] 57. 206 Bones, by Kathy Reichs
• [X ] 58. Psycho, by Robert Bloch
• [ ] 59. The Killing Floor, by Lee Child
• [ ] 60. Rules of Prey, by John Sandford
• [ ] 61. The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins
• [ ] 62. In the Woods, by Tana French
• [ ] 63. Shogun, by James Clavell
• [X ] 64. The Relic, by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child
• [ ] 65. Intensity, by Dean Koontz
• [X ] 66. Casino Royale, by Ian Fleming
• [ ] 67. Metzger's Dog, by Thomas Perry
• [ ] 68. Timeline, by Michael Crichton
• [ ] 69. Contact, by Carl Sagan
• [ ] 70. What the Dead Know, by Laura Lippman
• [ ] 71. The Shadow of the Wind, by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
• [ ] 72. The Cabinet of Curiosities, by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child
• [ ] 73. Charm School, by Nelson DeMille
• [ ] 74. Feed, by Mira Grant
• [ ] 75. Gone Tomorrow, by Lee Child
• [ ] 76. Darkly Dreaming Dexter, by Jeff Lindsay
• [ ] 77. The Secret History, by Donna Tartt
• [ ] 78. The First Deadly Sin, by Lawrence Sanders
• [ ] 79. Cryptonomicon, by Neal Stephenson
• [X ] 80. The Brotherhood of the Rose, by David Morrell
• [ ] 81. Primal Fear, by William Diehl
• [ ] 82. The Templar Legacy, by Steve Berry
• [ ] 82. The Hard Way, by Lee Child [tie]
• [ ] 84. The Last of the Mohicans, by James Fenimore Cooper
• [ ] 85. Six Days of the Condor, by James Grady
• [ ] 86. Fail-Safe, by Eugene Burdick and Harvey Wheeler
• [ ] 87. Strangers on a Train, by Patricia Highsmith
• [ ] 88. The Eight, by Katherine Neville
• [ ] 89. The Lost Symbol, by Dan Brown
• [ ] 90. Goldfinger, by Ian Fleming
• [ ] 91. Bangkok 8, by John Burdett
• [ ] 92. The Kill Artist, by Daniel Silva
• [ ] 93. Hardball, by Sara Paretsky
• [ ] 94. The Club Dumas, by Arturo Perez-Reverte
• [ ] 95. The Deep Blue Good-by, by John MacDonald
• [ ] 96. The Monkey's Raincoat, by Robert Crais
• [ ] 96. Berlin Game, by Len Deighton [tie]
• [ ] 98. A Simple Plan, by Scott Smith
• [ ] 99. Child 44, by Tom Rob Smith
• [ ] 100. Heartsick, by Chelsea Cain