The Dangerous Business of Adulting

After thirty one years, you'd think that you'd know yourself. But then you find out things about you that really surprise you. What thing, you ask? Well, I found out that I'm terrible at writing at night and on the weekends.

Yep, I tried to write this weekend and it was more or less a disaster. I could not focus very well and most of the stuff I wrote I ended up deleting because it didn't make much sense. Then I came home last night and thought, well, I guess I'll try to repair the damage and write for an hour or so. Looking back at it this morning, I'm just giving myself more grief than anything. A lot of the stuff doesn't make sense or doesn't quite fit in with the story, and a lot of it was rushed. That's what happens when I know I can go to bed, but I feel the need to write.

The sucky thing is that I write best in the morning. Why does that suck? Because what's going to happen when I get a job where I work normal people hours? What's going to happen when I leave my house at eight in the morning and don't get home until five? Does one learn how to be a nighttime writer? I don't know how this works. Adulting is hard.

Besides the adult crisis I seem to be having, the story is going pretty well. I'm at about 64,000 words with plenty more story to write. I figured out a major plot hole in my story, so that was exciting. I realize that it sounds like I'm just making this up as I go along, and while some parts I am, I've had the entire plot figured out for the last six years. I know where I'm going, I know what the characters are going to go through, but there were some things that I didn't quite know how to get around. Those things have been a process, and now that I've figured them all out, I think the rest of writing will go rather smoothly.

Can you imagine? Something going smoothly!

But, for now, I may take the day off so I can make pumpkin bread and watch Once Upon A Time. I know, I'm very dedicated to writing. But, honestly, my fingers feel like they're about to fall off from the marathon writing sessions I had last week. Besides, I'm going to see Against Me! tonight, so I'm too excited to do much of anything. Other than bake and watch TV, of course.

Of course.

Week O' Writing!

There was a concert this week. A new South Park episode. Knotts Scary Farm opened last night. The only night I didn't do anything was on Monday (I go to my boyfriend's to watch TV since I don't have cable, and South Park night turned into Gotham night, as well). This is the point in the blog post where I'm supposed to tell you that this is going to be a short post since I didn't get much writing done.

Oh really, suckers??

I don't know what's wrong with me. Sorry.

Anyway, I think on Monday I had about 25,000 to 30,000 words. Now I'm at 52,000 and not even done. How did I do that, one may ask? I totally cheated. Not really. I used the old Frankenstein method. Some parts I wrote this week, and then other parts I pasted in from the first manuscript. It sounds terrible, I know, but there were certain parts of the first manuscript that I thought were really well written and I really liked them. So I wanted to include them. While that also meant a lot of rewriting and gluing together of the old and new, it was worth it. I'm already liking this version a lot more than the old one. I think my main problem with the first manuscript was the fact that there was so much time between scenes. For example, one scene I was looking at this week took place months after the last scene. I almost hit myself. Months! You understand that we're in the middle of a war, right, Bree? I'm pretty sure the other side isn't going to wait around for months while their enemy prepares themselves and their land. So, among other goals, I've tried to tighten up the timeline, to make everything happen as quickly as possible. So far, I think I've done a pretty good job.

Another huge change from this manuscript is that a certain character has been turned into a good character. In the first manuscript, he/she inexplicably went from being super evil to such a sweetheart. He/she was another big reason I wanted to rewrite. I realized that I really had no endgame for him/her. I didn't know what I was going to do with him/her. So I thought about it most of the summer, because, in my original ideas, I was planning on killing one of the main characters at the end of the series. But then I started having cold feet about that. I wasn't sure if it would work and I didn't know how my heart would handle it. So I started looking for a scapegoat of sorts. And I found one. And the ending, all of a sudden, made sense. But I had to get this character to be good. And that's when another idea came to me, one that I sort of kind of loved. So now I'm following that line of thinking, and I really like it. I'm not sure how it'll work with readers, but I adore it. So take that.

But that's it! I've been writing! Yay! Now I should get going so I can prepare lessons and think about why Knott's Scary Farm feels like sucking this year. Seriously, if any of my readers live in Southern California, let me warn you: we waited in one line for about an hour and fifteen minutes, and then another one for about an hour. We managed to get through two mazes before fifty billion people came in the park. I don't know what happened this year, but it was a mess. We usually go the first night and are able to go through all the mazes before 11 p.m. We left around that time after waiting for an hour for Trapped, which we got a refund for because "people were vomiting and freaking out and that takes time to get everything cleaned up".

Right. Well, I can't fault them for their scare tactics!

The Weekend Lazy Monster

This post was supposed to go up so long ago, but I've been trying to fix this stupid neckache (thanks to the cat deciding that she wants to be a contortionist while she sleeps and that I should work around her) and it finally just went away. Also, I may have needed some time to myself after watching Emma Watson at the HeForShe launch (I swear, this lady. Gorgeous all around).

So. It's Monday. What did I do with my weekend, one may ask? I did absolutely nothing! It was really exciting. So, that means I got a lot of writing done, right? Ha. Haha. Hahahahahahaha. Right. I spent the entire weekend reading (hey, I finished two books, so the weekend is going down as a win) and watching my boyfriend and his dad build part of a deck. Then I ate a ton of pizza. Did you really expect me to get any writing done with any of that going on?

Okay, okay, so I may have messed up a little this weekend. I know that I should write on the weekends because I have hours and hours of time, and I don't have to feel guilty spending those hours doing nothing but writing. But, for some reason, when the weekend comes, I'm out. My entire body feels like if I do anything more strenuous than reading and eating pizza, I might just die. Dramatic, I know, but each time I think about grabbing my computer and writing, a rather obnoxious voice in my head tells me, Um, no, this is the weekend. We're not supposed to do anything more strenuous than read and eat pizza. (Can you tell that I really enjoy reading and eating pizza?) It's like I get writer's block, but only on Saturday and Sunday.

But after the last post on Friday, I did manage to get a lot of writing done. I think I got a couple thousand words, so that's not bad. At least I'm out of Donnie's oceanside village and into a much warmer climate. This is kind of a tricky part, so I have to dedicate some time to getting it right, because the last time, these chapters were kind of muddled and confusing. It's a lot of referring back to the first book and then matching it up with everything that everyone has been saying in this book and...It could be a mess. So, I have to take my time on this part. 

The only time I have to myself this week is the mornings, so I'm going to try to fit in some writing while I go about everything else I have to do. I have a tentative schedule in my head of everything I need to do and fitting writing into that mix, so hopefully I'll get more done this week. 

I guess I could just stop playing The Sims 4 for a week.

Ha. Haha. Hahahahahahahaha. I'm hilarious today.

Updates and Setbacks

Since Mordor conditions have persisted this week, I haven't been writing as much as I would like. For reals, it's been about a thousand degrees here this whole week. No exaggeration. My poor air conditioning has been running like mad this whole week and it's finally getting some kind of rest since it's only 71 degrees today with 57% humidity. That's a good day, people! It's supposed to get up to 81! Break out the wool sweaters, fall has arrived!

My sarcasm makes even me roll my eyes sometimes.

Also, remember that little picture I shared of the books I still have to read? It was adorable, right? Good, because I went back to the library and they had two books on hold for me and then I bought three more books on Kindle and help I think I have a problem. Where is the closest Bookaholics Anonymous meeting?

I was going to surprise everyone and share a release date that I thought I had worked out, but this week has thrown it for a loop. Still, the general time frame that I'm looking for is sometime after the new year. Originally, I was going to make it for March because of NaNo, but I think I'm pushing it up. Unless I find something to do for NaNo this year. Then it'll be pushed back again. I'll know more for sure around the end of October, because I have to remember that I'm also moving the beginning of November.

Sometimes I wish that the future was now and we had robots to do all these things for us. And these robots weren't super expensive.

Anyway, things are going to get back to normal this weekend since we only have one thing to do on Saturday and I'm actually going to buckle down. My dad asked me the other day how my book was going and I felt like an idiot telling him that I hated the first draft so I started rewriting it. I mean, that part was okay, but then when I told him that I was only a few chapters in, I had to smack myself on the head. I started rewriting this thing so long ago and I feel like I should be almost done. I've been so distracted by other things (THANKS SIMS 4) and stressed about other things (THANKS WORK AND MOVING). But I've been slowing organizing everything and trying to work on relaxation with work and finding a new job, so I think it'll be okay. That's why I was going to share the release date, because I thought that I had worked it all out. Sigh. I'm a failure once more.

Oh wells!

Oh, another quick note before I go off into the mess that is my apartment. After the new year, I'm looking to move to another website and maybe adding some book reviews. I signed up for this book review website and I post my reviews on Goodreads, but sometimes the books that I want need a for reals website or else they won't give me ARCs. Rude. If I have time, I'm thinking about doing that. Sorry. I mean, if you don't like book reviews. Or reviews. Or books.

Um....what the hell are you doing here?

What Frodo and I Have In Common

The plan for today was to post this around nine, after I finished cleaning out my closet (now I hope Eminem is stuck in your head), but I guess I got a little nuts, because I still haven't finished cleaning out my closet. This has been going on since about 7:30, when my apartment decided that being hot is the way to go. Honestly, this 90-whatever degree weather is stupid.

So this weekend wasn't as busy as I thought. We skipped some things and relaxed most of Sunday, so I should have had plenty of time for writing, but that didn't really happen. Really, it was so freakishly hot that I spent most of Sunday relishing my boyfriend's air conditioned condo and trying not to melt into a puddle of goo. Sure, I could have also stopped playing the Sims long enough to type out a chapter, but...oops. I did manage a little writing on Friday after I posted the last blog, so that's something. But, really, between the weather and me being stupid, I'm surprised I get anything done. What did I do that was stupid, one may ask? Let me show you...

I may or may not have gone a little crazy at the library and placed several books on hold. Lucky me, they all decided to come in this week. Two of those books are mine, one is for a student, and the other two are from the library. I have two more waiting for me at my local library and about ten waiting for me on my bookshelf. Whoops.

But the plan right now is to stop organizing my closet (because, let's be honest, I wasn't really cleaning as much as I was organizing), maybe take a shower so my hair can be dried by the Mount Doom weather in about five seconds, and then write a little. Really, it's all just an excuse to turn on the air conditioning because my cat is being dramatic and I can only wear my hair in a ponytail for so long. I also have to sort some things out and then I might have another (tiny) surprise for Friday. No promises, though, because I'm not entirely sure about some things. We'll see.

I should change the blog name to that.

Wake Me Up When September Ends

Oh my goooood, is September over yet? Even though my boss made the smart decision to hire two more teachers (because it's just been me for a little over a year), I feel like I've had way more work to do. Most of that work has spilled over into my time at home, so I haven't had much of a chance to write. This would be a good time for any boss to get more organized and not expect the workers to do it for her or him.

No more rants. I think I filled my quota last time.

But that doesn't mean I haven't fit in a little writing time here and there. Since I know that this weekend is going to suck again (for free time), I tried to push the story along, but I'm still stuck at Donnie Grace's house. Not that it's a bad place to be stuck! It's very interesting and exciting, but I feel like half of the book is going to be in his village and then I'll just add a random ending. In truth, I'm a bit over 15,000 words (50 pages in Microsoft Word), but, in the last attempt of this story, this is the time that I shunted Amory out of Donnie's presence and into another place. So I'm going to try and get her out of there before 20,000 words, but I kind of like introducing everyone to new characters. It helps me because I'm not sure what I'm going to do with the old characters.

Sort of.

I guess there's just one place I'm a little terrified of. I wrote about it last time, but it felt like it was just any other place, when it definitely wasn't. It's the next place that Amory's going to, so I have to figure it out, but it's difficult. I'm not sure if I want to go the traditional route or if I want to create a whole new place like I sort of did with Heaven. But I guess it shouldn't be like Heaven, right? I'm excited, though, because the other new character (sort of) that I introduce in this place was so much freaking fun to write. She's such a bitch, but in one of those sweet, Regina George type ways. Next to Donnie, she was my favorite character to write.

So, I guess, that's where I am. After I finish this, I'm going to get up and finish cleaning my apartment. Then I'm going to get ready for the day and sit down here to write for a little while. I miss it. I didn't realize how good I had it during the summer. But, hopefully, now that I have organized everything that I need to and set some lesson plans far into the future, I'll have some more time to do the things I want to do. Writing and Sims 4, here I come!

PS - I wrote that title and then realized that it was that one Green Day song that dealt with Bille Joe's father's death, and I'm using it because I hate September. I don't even care. I'm keeping it.

Writing Takes a Backseat Today...

This weekend was a total bust on writing. I'm just getting that out first thing! We had a concert on Saturday and that pretty much wiped me out for Sunday, too. But what about Saturday day, Bree? Well, I played the Sims until about 2:30 in the morning the night before, so I slept in a bit that day. Yes, I have a problem. Someone send me to Sims rehab. I've already been to Triple Town rehab and it's worked wonders on me.

So. You might have guessed that I'm not going to talk about writing in this post. If you haven't, guess what? I'm not going to talk about writing in this post. Warning: this post might get a little serious, but that's only because I'm kind of angry and my cat can only listen to me for so long before she walks away.

Something you might not know about me is that I believe in feminism. Not the feminism that some women get twisted in their heads: the one where certain woman think that we want to take down men and oppress them, or that we don't like it when a man opens a door for us. That's just being polite; why wouldn't I appreciate that? No, I believe in equality for the sexes and that we should all treat each other with kindness and appreciate each other. I don't think that's so much to ask for, right?

I don't know how many of you watch football. My boyfriend loves football. I love Sundays because that means I get an entire day of hanging out with him and doing absolutely nothing. But over the last year, we've both come to question some of the dealings of the NFL. Especially when Ray Rice decided that he wanted to knock out his wife and then the NFL acted like it was no big deal. The whole video has finally been released and it shows exactly what we all knew: Ray Rice, vying for the title of Scum of the World, punched his wife into unconsciousness.

Slow clap for a wonderful human being, anyone?

Now, before anyone jumps on me for just going off on Ray Rice, I have to say something about his wife, Janay Palmer. She came out after the incident and apologized for her part in it all.

Sigh.

My boyfriend and I used to fight. Like, super angry and everything. But no matter what I said or he said, we never physically hurt each other. We understood the fundamental wrongness of that. Still, I could never imagine if one of us punched the other so hard that we blacked out, and then wanting the other person to apologize for provoking the other. Like, really? Janay Palmer must have woken up in another time, because that apology set women back a million years.

Where's Ray Rice now, one may ask? Oh, maybe practicing with his team because all he received was a measly two-game suspension. There's about a thousand articles out there asking the NFL commissioner to give Ray Rice a harder punishment. Um, how about sending his butt to jail, would that be a harder punishment? This man does not deserve to play in the NFL.

Listen, women (and significant others). According to the NFL, beating us up is only slightly more offensive than smoking weed. How are we punishing people for smoking a drug that's legal in some places and not for hurting fellow humans?And the NFL players get two chances to hit us before they're out of the league...for one year. So harsh.

This league is so backward. I told my boyfriend that I'm not watching football with him anymore. It makes me sad. There's some players that I truly love, players that stand up for what's right, but I can't watch something that degrades my gender so completely. Even my boyfriend said that he's lost his excitement over the game. I can't blame him, though. This incident has not shed wonderful light on men or women. We're kind of all losers.

Okay. Rant done. Sorry. That's been building up in my head for weeks now, and with the release of the rest of the tape today, it pushed me over the edge. If I wasn't such a good, moral compass (I had to take a break right there because I couldn't stop laughing), I would say something truly terrible about Ray Rice. But then he might punch me and I'd have to apologize, and I don't apologize well.

Sorry, I had to get a little punch in. (Ba-zing. Make sure to tip your waitress.)

Friday is back to writing! I'll try to get something done so I'm not just wandering uselessly around that post. I promise. And no more angry ranting. Well, maybe. Who knows? It's the fun that is this blog!

TGIF

My brain is so awake today that it only took about five minutes to realize that I'd been writing this blog in a Microsoft Word document. I'm going to mark today down as a good day.

So it's Friday. Summer spoils me. I woke up this morning and promptly thought to myself, It is far too early, I don't even have to work today! Ha. Haha. Hahahahahahaha. Not only do I have to work today, but I also have to clean up my apartment, pack a back for the weekend, and do about eight hours of work for two kids that don't appreciate what I do for them and a parent that treats me like a slave. Ah, work! Isn't it the greatest?

Mini rant over. I thought I would start this blog off by saying, Oh, sorry, The Sims 4 has been on my computer all this week, so of course I didn't get any writing done! But how wrong I am. I've done pretty well managing my time this week, and that includes running around to all the school districts to get substitute packets and seeing about jobs. I managed to fit an hour or so of writing into my day, and I'm counting that a victory. I'm hoping to get more done this weekend, but knowing me, I'll probably type out a page and then say I've done a good job so I will reward myself with eight thousand hours of The Sims 4. You might be laughing at that number, but I wouldn't. If it hadn't been for my humongous migraine last night, I would probably still be playing that game.

All in all, I'm not as progressing as quickly as I want in the story, but I am trying to take my time with things. I've noticed in my writing that sometimes I get impatient when I have a good idea and try to get to it as quickly as possible. If that means skipping some parts that seem pretty vital to the overall story, oh wells! That's what editing is for, right? The problem with that is I sometimes forget those vital things when the editing process comes along. When do I remember them? Once I've pressed published or send, and then I just mess everything up. So now I'm trying something new where I actually write down the good idea and then continue on with the story. Novel idea, right? Well, to me it is. I wrote down an idea the other day and kept typing away, and then when I put in the good idea, I was duly impressed with myself. It doesn't take a lot, folks.

I suppose I should get back to hour seven of mini lessons. Then two whole days of relaxing. Sort of.

(PS - I usually write a title to the post after I finish writing the post. Now that I wrote the title, I can't stop thinking about Family Matters and Step By Step. Just a little tidbit to share with all of you so you can realize how old I am.)

Sims Vs. My Attention Span

You know what I hate about long weekends? The fact that they have to end sometime. 

Sure, we spent most of our weekend in a sweatbox of a hall, watching sweaty men wrestle with each other (it was a wrestling show, I SWEAR), but it was nice to get away for a little while. It was even nicer to not have my computer and worry about a little thing like writing. So, yes, no writing was done this weekend, but I think I more than made up for it this morning. I'm planning on getting some more done before I have to go to work (UGH), but there's the teensy matter of The Sims 4 installing on my computer right now. Yeah, you read it right, The Sims 4. I know you're all bursting with jealousy, but, please, reign it in.

Yes, I still play The Sims. I'm not good at competitive video games. My competitive streak is a mean one, and I get frustrated easily. I know my weaknesses, and The Sims accepts those.

So, for now, there's no real update on the writing front. I'm going to try and get something done since it's only 11:15, but I make no promises after The Sims has finished installing. Hopefully it takes a long time and I can actually focus for more than five minutes. And maybe my internet will stop being a butthead so I don't have to keep stopping to scream at it.

Anywho!

I hope you all enjoyed the little snippet I put up last week. There's so much more to that scene, but I had to cut out a lot because I didn't want to spoil things or have to explain some of the stuff that came before and after. There will be more of those in the future, so watch out! I guess I should get back to writing so I have something to put up on this thing again. 

Oh. The Sims is almost done. Hm.