Goodbyes

I'm back! I've been completely MIA for the past few weeks and I apologize! 


As you guys are surely aware of by now, the favorite podcast of all the bloggers on this page has come to an end. I've been wallowing in self-pity for the past couple days (Exhibits A, B, and C) and so I thought I'd write about goodbyes today. 


Goodbyes are always hard, whether in real life or whether it's with characters you've read or written. In terms of characters, you grow close to them and it's like you know them and they are a part of you, whether you're the writer or the reader. You get used to having these characters around and you feel like it's going to be such a long time before you'll have to say goodbye. However, in the blink of an eye, the moment comes where you have to let go of everything that's become a part of you. It's a heartbreaking moment. 


Now, I am not the one you should really listen to in order to find out how to move on and let go, because I haven't figured it out either. However, I can tell you that whether you wrote the characters or read them, they will always live inside you. You can take comfort in the fact that while the journey is over for you, you can still share it with others and give them the gift of being able to go on the journey. And finally, whether you are the writer or the reader, you will always have everything you gained from the story and characters.

Author: Cory Doctorow

Burn Out

Tonight was the last episode of Hogwarts Radio podcast. This is the podcast that brought together the bloggers of this page. This is the podcast that helped me find real friends in the Potter world. This is the podcast that I will always remember and cherish.

Endings have been somewhat of a theme with me lately. The end of the Potter series, the end of my fiance being in school(he graduated recently), the end of the year, the end of the Hunger Games series which I finished yesterday, and the end of life as I knew it. I have been noticing a rather large change in my life lately and I have realized that a new chapter has begun. I have officially lost touch with my high school friends and moved on to more. I have begun to start thinking about the future more and how I am going to handle. It is hard to explain but I have felt like a whole new me here lately. So, it is the end of the old me.

Endings are, in my opinion, one of the most important parts of a story. My old choir teacher used to say "It is was the audience hears first that gets them interested but it is what they hear last that will be remembered." This I believe carries over into everything in life, including stories. The end is the thing the audience looks forward to, becomes anxious about, seeks, craves, needs. The end is what will tie everything up with a pretty bow and the audience can have closure. With Harry Potter the end was long awaited for and was very sad but it let me know that all was well. With The Hunger Games the end upset me quite a bit but reminded me that I must move on whether it takes five, ten, fifteen years to agree. With Hogwarts Radio the end came as a shock at first but slowly made me realize how precious that podcast really was to me.

Eventually all things must end. But you need to make your story end with a bang. As quoted by Mary who quoted Kurt Cobain "It is better to burn out than to fade away." Don't let the end of your story fade into nonexistence. Make the audience remember it as a great end to a great story. Make the audience remember it as the part they can't wait to get to but don't want to see. Make the audience remember it.

Author: Cory Doctorow

Wands Raised for Hogwarts Radio. Always.

The chaos of Christmas

When I first read Marissa's post on Monday, I had the perfect idea for what I was going to write about. Then the next day, Sydney wrote about presents, and I had to start thinking about what else I could tie into writing that had to do with Christmas. I went through a lot of things in my mind (even a nice warm fireplace!) before I decided that I was going to write about shopping for presents. I felt I could do that some form of justice. So here it goes.

I find writing to be extremely similar to shopping for presents. You either know what you're looking for, or you don't. Or in the case of writing, I suppose you know where your story is going, or you're just waiting to see where the words take you. I know whenever I go out shopping for Christmas presents (I usually start around October) I usually don't know what I'm going to get anyone. I'm just fishing for ideas. That's what I feel I do whenever I read a really good book. It inspires me with ideas for my own writing, and similar elements usually find a way to trickle themselves into my work. And with shopping, I'll eventually get some kind of ideas for what I want to get people. Then I start to make a list of what I'm going to get everyone. In my writing, I guess that'd be my VERY rough outline, that's pretty much just what my story will be about. I'm not one to outline at all unless it's required.

After making my list, it's usually around Thanksgiving time that I finally start to figure out where I can get what I want for people at the best bargains. It's a family tradition to sit around while the turkey is cooking and shop the Black Friday ads. That's usually where I come up with any last minute ideas for gifts. It's actually where I got the idea for my gurrrls' presents. And yes, I am one of those insane people who go to stores and wait outside for them to open at all ungodly hours of the night/morning. I compare Black Friday to the days before I actually sit down and start writing. I'm still trying to come up with any last minute plot ideas before I start.

Then December comes and Christmas comes ever closer until it seems as though it's snuck up on us (heck, last week Christmas felt so far away, and now it's 2 days away!). Christmas Eve is typically the last day to get all of the presents you haven't gotten yet, or more likely forgot to get. In my family we celebrate on Christmas Eve, so today's our last day (and yes, my mom and I are heading out later today to finish our shopping). For writing, I feel Christmas is like the deadline that's looming over your head. It seems so far away until one morning you wake up and it's right on top of you. Everything becomes chaotic and it feels like it's going to be impossible to finish anything. It can be a publisher's deadline, or your own personal deadline. But deadlines always find a way of sneaking up on us, no matter what. So I always try to get the majority of the work out of the way early (in both shopping and writing), so that if the "deadlines" do sneak up on me, at least I'm close to being finished.

I'm sure I could come up with more ways that writing relates to Christmas shopping, but I don't want to be a bore. But I do have one more thing before I go, a challenge to my gurrrls, and myself as well, because I don't have an answer for my question yet either. I want them to write about their New Year's resolutions. I'll be looking forward to seeing what we're all going to resolve to do. :)

My author: H. P. Lovecraft

Let It Snow

I know I didn't post last week and I don't have an excuse other than I've been working non-stop at two jobs and don't have a day off either of them until Christmas. The crazy thing is that I haven't even had the will to write, which I always find time for no matter what. This really isn't okay for me.

Anyways, it's snowing here today, which reminded me about a conversation with a co-worker. She's a college graduate with a degree in English and we both share this strange love of stories (so hard to believe, right?). Anyways, we were discussing the snowflake method of writing that's been all over the internet.

We've both read about it and, honestly, it's just a step-by-step instruction guide to what anyone who writes already knows. You start with a basic idea and you expand on that idea to turn it into something more than just a sentence. I really don't get how this person makes money off of the program that you could scratch out on a piece of paper.

I will give the "creator" of this method a pat on the back for making me think of this analogy. Something that writing and snowflakes have in common is that each is different. Just as each snowflake is different, each story idea is different. Sure, you have all of the ones about vampires and werewolves and unexpected love, but each has a special thing that makes it different. Where would we be without differences? We wouldn't have JK Rowling, which is how most of us met. We wouldn't have Stephen King or Shannon Hale or Eric Kripke (script writer but it's the same idea). We wouldn't have computers or telephones or all of these crazy inventions.

So before you give up on your story because it reminds you of something that's already out there, change it up. Make it your own. Give it something special that separates it from all the other books out there.

For my challenge of writing a journal, I'd just like to say one thing. Writing a journal in the point of view of a character is one thing, but writing for myself is something else entirely. I don't write journals that are paper and ink; those generally tend to turn into notebooks where I can sketch out story ideas. THIS is my journal. This is someplace where I can come to write down my thoughts and what's going on in my life.

Author: J.D Salinger

Christmas Tree

So since this will be my last post before Christmas and since I post first every week I thought I would create a theme for this week. Challenge to the gurrrls: Tie in something about Christmas to your post this week. Simple, right? Of course.

So my tie in is more of a metaphor. A Christmas tree metaphor. This tree is your story. your initial idea is the tree itself. The strong truck, the green branches, this it the meat and potatoes of your story. You have to have the tree before you can have a Christmas tree. But, it is only a tree at this point.

Lights come next. This is your story line. The lights wrap around your idea tree to create the events that make your story shine. But you need to have the right amount. Too many and your lights may get bunched up. Too few and the lights become stretched and may not even reach the top (or bottom depending on where you start). Don't let the lights get tangled and make sure you don't blow a fuse. By this I mean keep the story straight and don't add too many "ghost plots" and JKR would probably say. They might take away too much attention from the main story. Just make sure everything is spaced out right and everything is plugged in. Once this is figured out you can begin to add your ornaments.

Ornaments are your characters. Some ornaments you buy yourself. I believe that everyone has their stock characters that they put into every story. For instance, my MC always seems to have red hair. Boy, girl, young, old, there is always a MC that has red hair. Then there are the ornaments that other people give you. Ideas you take from from other books or people you base your characters off of. These are not ornaments you would have bought yourself but they are one that will fill out your collection over time. Finally there are the ornaments that seem to have been on your tree your entire life. The hand-me-down ornaments that are always there. These pertain more to the personalities of your characters. There is always the mean one, the funny one, the really smart one, the hero, the villain, the annoying one, and so on. You must take these different ornaments and move them around your tree so they are spred out in just the right mixture.

Once all of your ornaments are in place you can fill in the more bare spots with tinsel. This will be all the fluff stuff of your story. Whatever extra details that will really make the story make sense and flow well. Make it pretty. But just like the lights and the ornaments make sure that the tinsel is spaced well and covers the places it needs to without clumping up.

Finally, you can add the topper. My family always uses an Angel. This will be your goal. Whenever you believe all the lights, ornaments, and tinsel needed are in place you can then add the Angel. Whether this is publication or just saying "I'm done" this will be your Angel.

Finally, the presents can go under the tree. Show your friends and family or whoever you want. The presents will be their comments. The good and the bad. There are always some presents that you believe are better than others. But take them all with a smile and say "thank you" and go merrily on your way.

Once that is done you can take a step back and be proud of your tree. Sit on the couch, turn on some Christmas music, sip some cider, and just enjoy the view.

Oh! Christmas Tree. Oh! Christmas Tree, how lovely are your branches.

Author: Isaac Asimov

Well Crap...

So as I sat around earlier in the week when I should have been studying for finals, I started wondering what I was going to post about this week. Then I started thinking about my book and how I haven't written a single word since the middle of November. Needless to say, I did not win NaNoWriMo this year. And then I decided that I was going to write about either A) getting writers block and not knowing what to write, or B) not feeling like writing. Because lets face it, every author feels both of those things sometimes, and if they try to deny it they're lying to you.

I have had a serious case of the laziness going on when it comes to writing lately. I think it might have had to do with all the junk I had to do for school, with finals coming up. But regardless, I neglected my book. But it's okay, because no matter how long I wait to write another word, at least I've started, and I know that I can do it. True, I wish I could go back and keep writing when I wasn't, but the past is the past and I can't change it, so I'm not going to worry about it. In fact, I've decided that as soon as I finish up this blog post I am going to open up my document and continue where I left off. Because now I'm ready to continue. I'm through with school for the year, and now I am ready to devote countless hours to writing all day, every day, and drink way too much coffee than can possibly be good for me.

As far as writers block, it happens all too much. But the way I get around it is by writing as much as I can, about whatever comes to mind, whether it makes sense or not. I just keep writing, until I can't possibly think of anything else to write about. Most times that works for me, to get all of the junk that I'm thinking about out of my head. Then I can start fresh and continue working on whatever important thing it was I wanted to work on.

Well that's all I can think of to say, so I'll stop before I start rambling. My author I got for this post is David Foster Wallace.

Life

So I know what you are thinking. "What! Today is Wednesday. Why is Marissa posting? Wasn't she supposed to post Monday? She is late!" I won't deny it. I actually forgot. Shameful I know. And there are no excuses worthy of it. But I will give you mine anyway. Life. Yes, my life got in the way. I spent Monday with friends from college shooting a potato cannon and riding horses and baking cookies and watching movies and reading a wonderful book. I spent Tuesday with my fiance Christmas shopping and and wedding ring shopping and reading that same wonderful book. I have spent the last two day with some of the the most wonderful people in my life celebrating our lives and the time we have with each other. And I got some great material to add to my book.

In my opinion, sometimes you just need to step away and forget about your writing. You can't let it consume you. If you do you will end up hating it. Don't try to rush your writing. Just let it happen naturally. Some days you can probably sit and write for hours. Other days you may not write a single letter. Don't let it get you down if you are having writer's block. Take advantage and just set the story aside for a while. Don't forget to live your own life, too.

And as a catch up on my other gurrrls challenges:

• For my journal I have come to the realization that this is my journal. Although there are four other people that contribute to this blog I look to it to be the place that I go o get my idea out and look for inspiration. This and my skype conversation that is perpetually going with these same lovely ladies.
• Outlining: I sort of use it. I start out with a very (VERY) rough idea of what I want to write but then just let the words take over from there. I know where I want the story to go but I have no idea how it is going to get there. And I like that. I believe that if a is going to shock the reader then it must also shock the author as well. If I am not laughing, crying, screaming, or anxious about my characters then my reader won't be either.

Author: Stephen King