Beginning of a good week...

Its been a weird week, yet highly productive. The writing been good, as the editing too! I feel a great conviction to my writing. But there has been a shadow creeping over everything. Maybe it's the begins of the END OF SUMMER, maybe I am missing long or newly gone friends, or maybe I am just having a week off of my usual jovial self.

I mean, last week was birthday week, lots of fun stuff happened. This week, it was busy as usual and maybe I am missing the thrill of being busy. Music Man auditions are coming in a few weeks, will be stage managing for that. The cats have beaten the yearly bout with fleas (going to stick to a year around treatment to avoid this issue next year. It is clear autumn is not far away, but I am not ready to give up summer, just yet.

This week I was editing my NaNoWriMo Novel and I realized that as I was reading and taking notes, I was finding new snippet, bigger arcs, and more details about the characters. The characters are talking to me again. Feels good. So, question, Dear Readers, do you find that as to read your novels (when revising), or stories, or plays that you find more story to tell, or is it when you are making the edits  that more story reveals itself? Or maybe it is a bit of both? How do you work best at editing? I seem to read along and make notes as I go. But I am curious to hear how you all edit.

Now onto the check-in...

This Week:
      *Reading: making progress on each of the novels. Nothing completed, yet, but I have crossed the halfway mark with The Amber Spyglass (Phillip Pullman), and The Festival of Bones (James A. Owen), and almost to the halfway point of Murder Comes Ashore (Julie Anne Lindsey). Seriously, Patience Price is so stubborn, but I really like that in her character. Will have review upon complete of these three books.
threshold on two of them. I am over half done with
      *Writing: wrote Monday (about 700+ words), Tuesday (838 words), and Wednesday (979 words) and this ROW80 post. Pretty proud of that. Going for 5 days this week!
      *Editing: The Real Road Trip, Monday edited 4 pages and Tuesday about 3 pages. It is a daunting project, but I am determined. I want to edits completed by end of August. Will work on typing the edits and fleshing it out in September.
      *Blogging: I posted my WIPpet Wednesday post yesterday, because I was excited to share my other new WIP Modern Muses.
      *Social Media: visited 4 blogs and sponsor duties daily. I am keeping up with this more often and its beginning to become habit now. w00t!!

This (upcoming) Week:
      *Reading: finish The Festival of Bones and Murder Comes Ashore.
      *Writing: write daily, at least 300 words. Not ready to bump it up. I want to solidify that I can consistently write 700+ daily for at least a month.
      *Editing: 4 pages of The Real Road Trip (NaNoWriMo 2014) daily.
      *Blogging: 1 new non-Row 80. I did it earlier this week, let's try again.
      *Submission: 2 new submission. I will figure out why I am not get this goal each week.
      *Social Media: 4 blog visits daily from both ROW80 and WIPpet Wednesday. I missed checking in with those peeps!

A Round of Words in 80 Days is a blog challenge that knows you have a life. Why don't you join us? Got a blog? Set up some goals and check-in twice a week. Learn a bit about writing, meet some new friends, and write!!! :-) Come on in to the Blog Hop!

Renaissance Faire and Progress

Okay, so I was out and about this weekend and I didn't get much done Friday night until today. But I regret nothing. NOTHING, I SAY!!!

Yesterday was Ren Faire day, she up early and donned the fantastical costumes that Sara made for us, sans wings (we ran out of time). It was a day of turkeys, armoured joists, and bawdy poets and horny monks. I ask you, Dear Readers, if you are from NYS, are you are familiar with the Sterling Renaissance Faire? It's a fun time, but involves A LOT of walking. Daymn!!! The hubs and I took Sara, Ryan, and Kaylara to their first visit. It was a good day!! More pictures to follow...

We be Sexy, Biches!!

This means that nothing got done yesterday, and very little tomorrow. I went to see theatre folk perform Happy Days the Musical. A fun little take of the classic TV show of the same name. Not I am writing this update and completing the long week ahead of me. The evil day job has been keeping me busy during the day. Le sigh!

This Week:

     *Exercise: walked a lot at the Ren Faire on Saturday. I think at about at least 5 to 6 walks. Was very tired by day's end, so I was sufficiently exercised out.
     *House Tending: I am feeling that I am taking better care of the house in the last week. Today I mowed the lawn, finished laundry, and took out the garbage. Also, I trimmed the cat's nails. BONUS POINTS FOR ME!
     *Social Media: visited 4 blogs daily since Wednesday (okay I may have scrunched 8 into today). And I kept up with my sponsor duties. Cpent a little time on twitter.
     *Editing: i may have got to some more pages, but can't remember, so I will leave it alone.
     *Reading: did not finish Murder Comes Shore (Julie Anne Lindsey). I think I am over a third of the way through it though. Spent more time on The Amber Spyglass (Phillip Pullman) and The Festival of Bones (James A. Owen). Festival is a different story than Owen's Imaginarium books, but he has a flare for language and creates some amazing characters. Read most of Thursday away, not a bad choice of the days activities! :-)
      *Writing: wrote my ROW80 post Wednesday. That's it! I feel bad. I want to write 6 days out of the week (at least). Last week was Sunday- ROW80, Monday and Tuesday - Writing blitz and poetry, Wednesday - ROW80. Thursday was recovery from Weird Al, and nothing until today with ROW80. Need to be better on this! Monday through Friday, write, write, WRITE!! Also, need to not be hard on myself!!

This (upcoming) Week:
     *Reading: continue with The Amber Spyglass, The Festival of Bones, and Murder Comes Ashore. I am liking all of these thus far.
     *Writing: write daily, at least 300 words, Monday through Friday. This is my priority and the big focus for the rest of August.
     *Editing: at least 4 pages of The Real Road Trip (NaNoWriMo). I want the first revision done by August 31st. The next biggest goals.
     *Blogging: 1 new Non-ROW80. Need to create a schedule. I think that will help with this.
     *Submission: 2 new submission. Got a rejection a few days after last submission. That bummed me out. Thinking I need to try something different on my approach. Looking for suggestions on submitting, Dear Readers?

A Round of Words in 80 Days is a blog challenge that knows you have a life. It's where you set some goals, post them to your blog, and check-in twice a week at the Blog Hop. Come on in for a visit!!

   

WIPpet Wednesday and Cucumber Soda

Actually spent time with the hubs tonight. I took a little bit of time and made a picnic for David and I. We headed up to Spencercrest Nature Center for a dinner/picnic and some us time. It felt good! We both needed a moment or two to chill. Both of our weeks have been rather hectic and it was much needed. Armed with roast beef sandwiches, sweet pickles (David loved those), birthday cake Oreos, and cucumber soda. Yes, I said cucumber soda. It was surprisingly good.

 And then on the drive home saw some deer having their dinner.

What's coming up, well, improv show this Friday! And my birthday is on Sunday. Not quite sure what I am doing for it, but I'm sure it'll be a good weekend. This coming week is the Weird Al concert in Williamsport and then there's the Sterling Renaissance Faire on Saturday. My friend Sara is making Faerie costumes. Will post picture. August is turning into a busy month. I am almost at the end of my three month hiatus from theatre. In the fall I start stage managing a production of The Music Man. So, I will be a busy bee again. After this summer I have found a balance with many of my goals and it is only gets better.

This Week:

     *Reading: started Murder Comes Ashore (Julie Anne Lindsey), continuing through The Amber Spyglass (Phillip Pullman), and almost done with Smoke and Mirrors (Neil Gaiman). Neil's stories are always interesting and enchanting, even when they are a bit strange.

     *Editing: pretty proud of myself this week. I edited about 8 pages of The Real Road Trip, my NaNoWriMo from last year and a story about two friends on a Road Trip. I had been fighting with trying to get through a  first full edit/revision. I kept putting it aside and putting it aside. I finally decided that I needed to edit it. I thus picked the draft up and begin to read. I changed how I made my edits. My practice is not perfect, but I am making more progress.  I would read a section and jotted notes on the side, sometimes correcting some of the minor spelling and grammatical, or slashing whole sections. Also decided I am going to wait until I finish going through the script before typing the edits in. I feel this is making the revision reading move faster. Also, I revised and edited a flash fiction piece for #writestuff monthly challenge. You can read it Maybe its Time.

     *Writing: wrote on Sunday a ROW80 post, did a 15 minute writing blitz (about 414 words) on Tuesday, and writing today's ROW80 post. Been busy with other goals, but feeling better about my balance all the goals.

     *Blogging: see above. Posted the story Maybe its Time.

     *Social Media: visited 4 blogs daily and my sponsor duties since Sunday. One track!

This (upcoming) Week:

     *Reading: finish Smoke and Mirrors and Murder Comes Ashore.

     *Writing: write daily. At least 300 words.

     *Editing: at least 2 pages of The Real Road Trip.

     *Blogging: 1 new non-ROW80 post.

     *Submissions: 2 new submissions.

     *Social Media: visit 4 blogs daily and sponsor duties.

A Round of Words in 80 Days is a blog challenge that knows you have a life. Come see what fellow blogger and writers are up to at the Blog Hop.

It's also WIPpet Wednesday. Created by K.L. Schwengel, where the WIPpeteers share a bit from their current WIP. You take Today Date (7/29/2015) and use some math to relate back to the snippet. Today I give you 7 paragraphs for the 7th month from my new story Once Upon a Cloud.... With a little more banter between Cumi and Strat sitting down to lunch in Chicken Bliss.

Chicken Bliss was not very large of a business. An occupancy sign read Maximum of 25 persons within. It looked so much bigger on the outside. 

Stratus crossed back to the table with two tall plastic glasses of something, “Here. Drink up, Kid.” Cumi eyed him, he was still calling her a kid and she wasn’t a kid. Her face twisting into a frown as she took the glass.

“The name is Cumulus, Strat. Cumi for short, you should know that.” She took the glass, “What you get me anyway?” The moment had passed as she looked into the glass. Knowing she should ask before she drank anything down here. 

That was how Stratus often got into trouble, drinking before he knew what he was drinking, especially amongst the Terrans. Cumi eyed the kitchen staff suddenly feeling unsure, and then Stratus. There was no one else here and who else would know she was here, except Stratus and who of the Terrans would know to give her something bad. She was over re-acting. No one. Still she took the glass and sniffed the contents.

“It’s pop, Kid. Soda, cola, carbonated beverage. Relax! I got you a Coke.” Stratus said, smiling his goofy grin. Lifting his glass in the air, “A toast, to the …to the…:” shaking his head, “I don’t remember the words…ah ha, yes I do. To Life. Litcheim!”

“You are weird.”

“Thank you.” And he guzzled down his glass of Coke. “Another Marty!” he called over his shoulder.