Merry Monday!

I've been thinking...I need to make some changes to my blog. It seems so...boring. I want to make it more interesting, but how can I make it interesting when I don't do anything but write and catch up online every day? Anyone have any suggestions?

Anyway, I finished my screenplay outline! :D I'd like to proclaim it from the mountain tops, but it's just the outline. I'll settle for posting about it, for now. ;) Today, I'll start revising it. I need to make sure the story flows. It needs to make sense, after all!

Jeff and I watched Blue. It starred Akshay Kumar (from Singh Is Kinng), Sanjay Dutt (from Shootout At Lokhandwala), Lara Dutta, and Zayed Khan (from Mission Istaanbul). Kylie Minogue and Katrina Kaif (from Singh Is Kinng) made special appearances, too.

It was a really fun movie with some great music and awesome underwater scenes. It also had some exciting chase scenes. You can read more about it at the above Wikipedia link.

From left to right: Sanjay Dutt, Akshay Kumar, Zayed Khan and Lara Dutta


The movie had some incredible underwater scenes.

The sun is out again. This time I don't see any clouds in the distance, but there's a big Flowering Bradford Pear Tree obstructing part of my view, so there could be some that I can't quite see. I'm not going to get my hopes up until I look at the sat/rad on Weatherbug. ;)

I'm still really loving the music of Atif Aslam. I'm anxious for Prince: It's Showtime to come out...and I really, really want to buy the soundtrack. His voice is so powerful and so filled with emotion. I love it!

Okay, I've fallen behind, so I'd better hurry up and finish posting.

Have a great day!

Lois

I've Been Busy!

I got a lot of stuff done yesterday, but it wasn't all on my To Do List. I washed dishes in the morning, fixed omelets, fixed breakfast for my mom, washed her hair, washed and dried four loads of laundry, then got caught up on LJ and the writing forum.

Jeff came home early and took a nap. He had to go back to work around 2:00 or after. As he was heading out, I was beginning a character development chat with some friends over at the writing forum. I got some great ideas for Kangee's story. He's one of my new characters, and eventually, he'll have a Greek name, as well: Angelo Demetrious. It may not make sense, but it will. ;) He's an Apache and a lot of his story takes place in the 1800s, but most of it will be much more modern. The other two male characters will play a huge part in the same story, too, but we just worked on Kangee yesterday. I pretty much already had his character all fleshed out. I just needed a story arc for him. I also need to think up some character and physical weaknesses. I have some, but they're somewhat general. I need something specific.

Oh! I also wrote the final feedback for my final student! :D Today, I'll be sending her a congratulations e-card. :)

I also heard from one of my other students. I'd sent him "Indebted" and "Mysteries," and he loved them. He signed up for a WordPress account so he could read my Native Heroes character journal. :)

Speaking of...I added Kangee's first entry to Native Heroes. I need to write entries for Hassun and Abooksigun, since their stories start a good hundred years before Kangee's.

Chelsey picked up some extra lights for the Christmas tree last night, so we'll probably decorate it today. I also need to get the Christmas cards ready. I have to make a list of the things I still need to get for Leah, too.

I'd better run if I want to get things accomplished. :) Have an awesome day! :D

Lois

I Did It!

I reached my goal of 10K words for yesterday! :D I participated in a couple of 30-minute writing sprints, which got me started around 11:30 am (a late start). Then I had a 1 1/2-hour sprint of my own, then had a 20-minute sprint with Patti and another 45-minute with M. Then I had my own for about 2 1/2 hours or so, finishing with a word count total of 10,206! *happy dance*

Today, I've got two feedbacks to work on. I'll be doing the rough drafts for them. I'm also planning to work on my novel. I'll be going to a write in down at Sweet Bay and I'll be there for several hours. I'll be shooting for 3K for today.

I never got a chance to unwind last night and ended up waking up a little after 2 am. I had a hard time getting back to sleep. Tonight, I plan on spending a lot of time relaxing after I get home. I'll also have some Celestial Seasonings Sleepytime Extra tea.

I'll be sending the money order to Keith today. It's all ready to go. I'm excited! :D

And now I need to hurry up and finish here, post to Blogspot, then to the writing forum. I've also got to send out a brief e-mail to my Nanowrimo mentees. :)

The sun is shining and I'll be spending a good part of the day with other writers. This could turn out to be a really great day! :D

Have a good one,

Lois

Saturday!

So far, I have no feedback to do, but I'm relatively certain I'll have some before the end of the day.

Jeff and I will be going to the bank shortly to do the night deposit (unless the drive through should happen to be open). I'm not sure where or when I'll be able to get a money order (in Canadian funds), but I need it soon. I really want the new Forever CD!

Speaking of entertainment, Jeff and I watched some of The Indian Tomb, starring Conrad Veidt (1921) last night. He started feeling sleepy a little before nine, so we went to bed. I can't wait to see the rest! It's not nearly as creepy as Nosferatu, at least not yet, but I'm enjoying it. :)

We're going grocery shopping after we go to the bank. Chelsey wants us to go to the one where she's working. ;)

I'm not sure what we'll be doing after that, but I'm going to try to get caught up on my Friends Pages on LJ and Blogspot. I may get some more writing done, or it may be a day off. I'm not sure yet. I'll just play it by ear.

The sun is shining and it's nice and cool at only 51°! :D

Have a great day!

Lois

Busy Schedule from Here On Out

I was able to work on two character journal entries yesterday and I've posted them to the journal. I worked on Lucky Raven's and Zane Greywolf's. I plan on working on some today too, but it depends on my other work. I have a lot to do, but I have a list right beside me. I'll have to keep a list here every day and stick to it if I want to keep up with everything.

That said, I'll still be posting my dailies and my regular post in the mornings, but I won't be able to catch up with everyone until sometime in the afternoons or evenings. I'm sure I'll miss some, but I'll try to keep up.

I have a Skype business call today at ten and I need to make sure everything's in working order beforehand. I also need to post to my Blogspot blog, the Writer's Support Group (it's now public!) and work on more feedback for other writers. I'll be alternating feedback with the character journals after the business call is over.

I'm planning to start meeting with the Fort Smith writing group this coming Tuesday night. That will add another item to my schedule through the rest of October into early December, but it'll be a fun item. :)

Anyway, I've got to get a move on.

Have a great day!

Lois

Character Journal Updates:

I've updated all my character journals.

Lucky Raven: Cataviña
Zane Greywolf: Mercy & Unsettling Feelings (Caution: Two Instances of Strong Language)
Fox Redman: Where We've Lived
Sawyer Redman: Taima and Dane Redman: The Rest of the Story

Check them out and let me know what you think! :D

Lois

Wednesday Writing Sprints

I think yesterday was Tuesday Writing Sprints Day! :P Well, today I'm going to work on my character journals. I'm going to start with Zane Greywolf's entry, then take it from there.

Chelsey seems to be doing better. Thanks for all the prayers!

I just ordered a used copy of Return to Fairyopolis (Flower Fairies), by Cicely Mary Barker. I love her artwork! I got it for $2.50 plus shipping for a total of $6.49! :D

Our flock of birds seems to be coming back. I'm not sure what all the birds are called, but I know some of them are Common Grackles. There's also another type of bird in there that looks a lot like the Common Grackle, only it's head is more of a reddish brown. We've also had some kind of blackbird mixed in there.

And the Barn Swallows have built a new nest outside our front door again. The babies are already getting big. :)

I've also been seeing a lot of Scissor-Tailed Flycatchers this year. :D

Anyway, that's about all that's going on here.

Have a great day!

Lois

Character Journal Updates:

I've updated all my character journals.

Lucky Raven: Grief
Zane Greywolf: Xander
Fox Redman: Margret (Warning: Strong language)
Sawyer Redman: The Day Fox's Poker Winnings Saved My Life

Note: I made the above icon of Billy Wirth from screenshots I took from American Gladiators. It's supposed to be animated. I don't know why it's not. I don't hold the copyright to any of the screenshots.

X-Posted to LJ: I'm Making Progress

I found this picture of the Maine coastline on the Internet.
I don't hold the copyright and I don't know who does.

I've written some more of the new version of Zane Greywolf's novel. I accidentally overwrote what I'd last written with a previous version...I could have kicked myself when I discovered it! I'd written a good two pages, most of it about the Mi'kmaq Glooscap creation story. I had to rewrite it, then wrote a bit more. I plan on working on it more tomorrow during Wednesday Writing Sprints.

Then I worked more on the cottage novel. Here's a very short excerpt:

...I felt pretty cheerful until I stepped into the living room. The air felt heavy and thick and I had the eerie feeling that someone was watching me. I shook myself, hoping to rid myself of the feeling, but it wouldn't go away. It was as if some unseen pair had been arguing and I had unwittingly interrupted their quarrel.

I searched high and low, but could find no evidence that there was anyone else in the cottage with me...

There's another ghostly scene at the end of today's writing, but I won't be posting it, just because I don't want to post too much online. But I can tell you that today's writing went a lot better than 10K Day's writing went, in spite of the problem with the overwrite and the distraction of texting with my old friend in Vermont. I guess I had the blahs then, but I sure don't today! :D

In fact, I'm about to start work on the character journal entries.

And off I go...

Lois

New Character Journal:

Click the above image to view it larger.

Just wanted to let you know I've got a character journal up over at LiveJournal.

I'm in a bit of a hurry, but wanted to post a link here so you can check out Sons of the Wild Frontier: The Blog.

Now I'm off to spend some time with my hubby.

Have a great evening!

Lois

Note: The photo above is a compilation of pictures I found online. I don't own the copyrights to the photos and I don't know who does. This graphic is for entertainment purposes only.

I'm A Featured Writer! :D

A friend of mine, Patti Stafford, has featured me on her Writing 101 blog. It's about being a passionate writer.

To read the short feature about my blogs, check it out here. :)

And if you're interested, you can read all about Lucky Raven and Zane Greywolf in their blogs. They've changed a lot over time, but that's how writing is. It's always changing and evolving as the writer grows and gains experience.

I'll be creating a character journal for my two new characters, too, and I'll post a link to it when it's up and has an entry or two. Be watching for it! :D

Have an awesome afternoon!

Lois