Opposite Problems

You know that obnoxious jerk who says his or her "big problem" is that they're too rich to work and too young to retire? It's not me.
But I took some obnoxious pride at the Surrey Writer's Conference in hearing about problems I could and don't have as a storyteller. For one, blogging is apparently a dangerous addiction. I can understand why, especially if you have an audience for it. And especially because any major work is a major amount of work (hence the term), and delays gratification for a job well done, well, a long time. Nevertheless, I am one who must remind myself to blog at least once every five or six months. Necessary? Debatable. But let's pretend for a second that someone someday will be madly interested in every brewing monologue I cooked up while not in another world. At least I can deliver without losing control.
I can write description that doesn't bog down. To be fair, this is because it's my least favourite part of the writing. Look at almost any chapter of mine in its final stages of completion, you'll see flowing dialogue with {some kind of mountain} or {pretty tree} still in note brackets. The established author who did my Blue Pencil (editing your manuscript in front of you) approved my single-sentence setting of a "noisy, crowded bar," saying so many writers would have gone on in detail before starting their story, and she'd been waiting to see that so she could tell me not to do it!
All in all, a very encouraging Writer's Conference and way more relaxing than last year. Drescopata took a backseat, and I pitched a couple of storybooks to a publisher. I am convinced I have more of those, plus a stand-alone novel to do before I'll really have a chance with the big series.
On the way home from the Conference, I met a writer who has kids I might get to babysit;-) We had a good, long talk and of course I had to admit how many books there are going to be in my series. A scene from "Cheaper by the Dozen" comes to mind: Steve Martin on the phone, trying to find all sorts of don't-scare-the-help-off ways to say he has twelve kids. I've done the exact same thing with my books.
And...random brag...I think I just aced an interview to be a substitute childcare worker!

Quote from Writer's Conference: "If you never leave the house, you'll have nothing to write about."

Song from Early Childhood Education (to the tune of Frere Jacque): "I hear thunder, I hear thunder, Hark don't you?, Hark don't you?, Pitter patter raindrops, Pitter patter raindrops, I'm wet through, I'm wet through. I see blue skies, I see blue skies, Way up high, Way up high, Hurry up the sunshine, Hurry up the sunshine, I'll soon dry, I'll soon dry."

Currently Writing: Chapter 10 of Diamond (second Drescopata novel), Chapter 1 of stand-alone (still in rough notes).

Other Quotes:
"Writing is a socially acceptable form of schizophrenia." -- E.L. Doctorow
"Science fiction is no more written for scientists than ghost stories are written for ghosts." -- Brian Aldiss
"The pen is mightier than the sword, and considerably easier to write with." -- Marty Feldman

What is the longest word in the English language? "Smiles" — because there’s a mile between the first and last letter.

Big City Student

My roommates and I moved to Vancouver a couple weeks ago. I am attending classes in which we practice the important career skills of making games out of blocks and drawing faces in shaving cream. What do you mean you need me to elaborate? What do you all do in your higher education? No way, really?
Confessionally speaking, I have been academically resistant since grade 12 and recently decided to embrace the fact that I just miss preschool. So I'm learning to teach them, and hopefully I'll learn how to write for them too. You know, before Robert Munsch got published, he worked in Daycares and just told his stories for the fun of it, to entertain the kids. His boss found out about it and made him take time off to write his stories down and try to get them published. Amazing, huh? He sent 10 stories out to 10 publishers and got 1 accepted. Since I'm pretty full of myself when it comes to the publishing ambition, I guess I'll be doing it backwards. Take time "less" (not "off") writing while I see if there's anything to this teaching ability people think I might have. I think I might have it too, but it's like Munsch and the way he first did storytelling (career potential? Ummm...really?)
Don't get me wrong: I know I'll teach for years before writing starts looking anything like a survivable alternative. Doesn't mean it won't be my career. And it doesn't mean that I won't love teaching preschoolers so much that I'll want to stick with it.
I want to thank my 40-hour work week cleaning flooded concrete floors and soot-stained white walls for getting me back into school. As you can tell by this post, my time is not so used up that personal project time can't thrive and be happy. This might change when I get a part-time job (to pay the bills while I'm in school), but the longest I'll let that mess with me is until next April. By then I will be certified to work in Daycares and Preschools, and work in them I will.
I'm adding some info snippets to the end of these posts. If details in my "Currently Writing" list stay exactly the same from one post to the next, anyone who cares to is strongly encouraged to scold me for my slow, lazy progress.

Quote of the Month: Jon says "Computers are somebody’s drunken third cousin."

Favourite Joke: The children were lined up in the cafeteria of a Catholic elementary school for lunch. At the head of the table was a large pile of apples. The nun made a note, and posted on the apple tray: "Take only ONE. God is watching." At the other end of the table was a large pile of chocolate chip cookies. A child had written a note, "Take all you want. God is watching the apples!"

Coolest Dream: I outran an elephant to the skytrain station, only to pop back to the same spot at home to repeat the run after the skytrain had taken me safely away. By the time I started this second run, the elephant was a carnivorous T-Rex, so rather than just being crushed, there was this added danger of being eaten. The T-Rex was chasing a smaller dinosaur at the skytrain station. I crouched on the train tracks and watched over the edge. As far as I know, I was not electrocuted, caught by the T-Rex or the oncoming train. Yay!

Currently Writing: Okal Rel anthology story (public promise, mom!), chapter 9 of Diamond (2nd Drescopata novel), poems for kids (eventual book-length collection), and brainstorms for new stand-alone sci-fi novel.

Raindrops on Roses

Warning: there have been pre-theme posts. That's right. This is now my happy blog. Run while you can if those morning dewdrops look like soggy, damp roses to you. Glorious Mud at http://hicups.wordpress.com/ is for my muddier what's-wrong-with-life sarcasm (such as my first post here about freelance scams). This way, my online presence is well balanced, so...
Whiskers on kittens. "Misser Mischeif" — as I call him to his cute little whiskered face, "Moon Cat" as he's known to my housemates — has been fixed. He's being a pretty good sport about the cone-collar he has to wear around his neck. It reminds me so much of the bulky retainers some kids get stuck with. When Misser Mischeif is not trying to get his off, he's very cuddly, rubbing his poor coned-off head against my face, touching his nose to mine, and purring at the top of his lungs whether I choose to pet, hold, or tolerate him. He either really enjoys my company, or figures I'm the weak link for violating his vet orders out of sympathy.
Bright copper kettles. Hey, I love our plain plastic kettle! Unless you're crazy about shiny things, I think the real sentiment behind must be the joy of hot water.
Warm woolen mittens. It's not winter here (ha-ha, Prince George;-)
Brown paper packages tied up with strings. Ah, now these always could be anyone's favourite thing. What would be in mine? Well, the obvious answer is my free copy of my published novel. In the meantime: food, always a good thing. And I like soap. You know, I once dreamed that I was rich enough to own a limosine and guess what my clueless dream self did with it? Hired a guy to drive her back and forth to PriceSmart so she could buy cheap, bare-minimum groceries!

I finally found a joke I liked in my e-mail this morning:
A photographer, a journalist and an editor rub a magic lamp together. The genie says he'll grant them each one wish. The photographer wishes to spend the rest of his life in a big house far away with no money problems. The journalist wishes to live in a yacht far away with no money problems. The genie grants both their wishes and asks for the editor's wish. The editor says: "I want them both back after lunch; we have a deadline."

Hasty Update

Ahh! I took a five month break. Lazy, bad posting slacker! I have no excuse, really. Except, well, I moved to Surrey, had to file a complaint regarding unpaid wages from that Buffet job I got (resolution still in progress), learned the wonders of living close to the skytrain and Vancouver, signed up to be an Extra in films and television (best job I've ever had!), met an aspiring screenwriter (now aspiring novelist), joined a choir called Maple Leaf Singers until I realized I had neither the money nor the Monday nights to make it work, helped kitten-sit our household cat's unplanned litter (two left to go to homes next week and one we're keeping), moved into the back suite of the place where my friends and I are living when the side suite we were renting lost it's plumbing, joined a temp agency when my Extras gigs were getting slow, and...pitched Drescopata at the Surrey Writer's Conference!
As usual, waiting to here back, so I can't start counting my e-mails before they hatch, but...ooo, she asked for the first fifty pages and now she just has to like it! Conference definitely is the closest I've gotten to getting a literary agent so far. If this one doesn't come through, I'll definitely go again next year.
As an Extra (love that job!) I've so far been a lesbian at a charity dance, a tourist at an amusement park, a protesting fanatic, and a nun. In temp work (NOT head-over-heels with that job!) I've been cleaning flood and/or fire damaged furniture. Word of advice: don't damage your furniture in fires and floods. It's just not pretty. Ah, there I segwayed into the theme word for my second Drescopata book. I've decided to put more time into that and less into scrambling to complete short stories for contests and magazines. I have enough of those now I can just keep sending them out, while my poor neglected novel gets the tender loving care it's been begging me for.
Merry Christmas, in case I don't post again before then. Happy New Year!

New Month Babble

Happy new month!  I love and hate them the day they start.  Fun to change stuff like the monthly collages on this blog (which, by the way, are all from a family-photos themed calendar I put together years ago). Scary to feel a whole month closer to deadlines, or notice my 
savings are a whole rent payment lower.
Then there's the evaluation I inevitabley put myself through: did I get enough done last month? Well, I finished my Queen Cor lines!  Check it out— http://librivox.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=11562  Little worried about recording my next project, because the house sounds like there's squirrels in the walls.  Bad background noise.  But sooner or later, I'll catch those critters at rest.
Band news starting to fill my big, gaping music void.  Song to learn!
Oh, and job, yes.  Might have one now.  Buffet's supposed to call me.  Also looking into greeting card writing.  It can't be harder than trying to get a novel published, and I'm already doing that.
What I love about the first of the month is initiating all my new plans.  I make monthly lists of research, writing, life stuff to get done and whenever I start a new one, anything seems possible. 
If perchance there is someone here who reads this, know I plan to open a new blog in June—one that allows visitor comments without registration.
Meanwhile, it's: learn to rock sing, to write "sparkling" thank-yous and get-wells, to negotiate with squirrels, and to deliver a contest-winning short story about an incorporeal girl.  And I'm proofreading my mom's novella.  Helping my friend convert it to youtube.  Thanks for the employment!
Have a good May:-)

Public Diary

Okay, so this is more like my public diary.  Thanks to everyone who commented and thanks for dropping by just to look around too!  I am open to suggestions on how to make the best use of this online form of expression which I'm still learning so much about.  Actually, I've been wondering if I chose the wrong spot.  There are other blogs that allow visitors to comment without having an account first.  Anyone think that's a good idea?  Or is it not really a major factor in why people don't comment?  I'm just as happy with e-mail, by the way.  And thanks to those who did that too.  Should the whim take you, you can contact me quite conveniently through my website (http://members.shaw.ca/jcmlott).

So, in public diary news: I got my first reading part at Librivox.  Voice of Queen Cor in Frank Baum's Rinkitink of Oz.  I'm increasingly grateful that the Oz books are in the public domain and that Librivox hasn't recorded them all yet. It was sweet listening to other readers' finished lines calling me
"your majesty," quailing or grumbling before me as earnestly as though I were there.  Come to think of it, it's like a bluescreen; actors having to react to things that will be added in later.  I know it'll be amazing, when the book is finished, listening to my part playing off the others'.
Reading Me is very happy.  Singing Me: still feeling deprived.  I miss you, Bel Canto!  Why, why, why are all the best new opportunities in Vancouver?!  Too much travel, too much stress, too much...which brings me to money.  Money-Obsessed Me is happy because she might be getting a new job soon.
Waiting to hear back.
The waiting game goes on for me the writer, as well.  So, "hopeful."  Writing Me is hopeful.  Man, if I didn't have so many of me, I don't know what I'd do.
Practical Me's off to Canadian Tire now to buy a skipping rope.  I've decided that between that and my badminton set, I'm covered for recreational exercise.  Oh, and my friends have finally started playing badminton with me!  And helping me make fruit slushies in my vitamix.  Social Me happy:-)

Some Quick Q & A

Here's just a little more about me.  Answers from a chain letter I took the time to fill out:

1. What is your occupation? Starving Artist.
2. What color are your socks right now? White.
3. What are you listening to right now? Shania Twain.
> oops, lost 4, seems to be a formatting error since there's no 4 in
> the original
5. Can you drive a stick shift? No.
6. If you were a crayon, what color would you be? Purple.
7. Last person you spoke to on the phone? ING Direct Associate.
8. What color is your car? Camouflaged. Blends in everywhere and you can even walk through it like air; no one knows I have it.
9. How old are you today? 20.
10. Favorite drink? Freckled lemonade.
11. Favorite sport to watch? The kind where they don't complain if you bring a book and use it to ignore them.
12. Have you ever dyed your hair? No.
13. Pets? Cat--not mine.
14. Favorite food? Pumpkin pie.
15. Last movie you watched? Blood and Chocolate.
16. What do you do to vent anger? Write vengeful fiction.
17. Favorite Day of the year? Day I get an agent. It will become my annually remembered national holiday.
18. What was your favorite toy as a child? Friend--green beanbag monster.
19. What is your favorite, fall or spring? Spring.
20. Hugs or kisses? Hugs.
21. Cherry or Blueberry? Blueberry.
22. Do you want your friends to mail you back? Constantly.
23. Current living arrangements? Renting house with two friends and two wer-hyenas.
24. When was the last time you cried? Three months ago--homesick.
25. What is on the floor of your closet? A scale, black shoes, my old pillow, my fancy leather handbag and my laptop backpack.
31. What inspires you? People, books and my subconscious mind.
32. What are you afraid of? Giving up.
33. Plain, cheese or spicy hamburgers? Vegetarian.
34. Favorite car? My own very special non-existent one, of course.
35. Favorite cat breed? Non-vomiting.
37. How many years at your current job? You mean pertaining to question #1? Let's see: Animorph Ending, Drescopata, one, two--about three years.
38. Favorite day of the week? Saturday.
39. How many states have you lived in? None. Ooo, that must mean I live in outer space, right?
40. How many piercing? Not even the ears.
41. How many tattoos? None.