396 Books and Other Resources Writers Recommend

Over at Writers Village University (which you should join, if you're able of course), Grumps posted this PDF by Holly Lisle.  It turns out it's free to redistribute, so I am doing that. :)  I haven't had a chance to read it yet, but Holly's one cool chick, so I'm sure it's excellent!

396 Books and Other Resources Writers Recommend - by Holly Lisle

There's No Place Like Home - BDCWB Flash Fiction Challenge #2

Response to the DCWB Flash Fiction Challenge

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Splat.

Splat, splat.

Splat, splat, splat splat splat.

The rain began to fall.  First a drop, then two, then a handful.  I turned my head to the sky, mouth opening wide to drink in the heavens.  My nose filled with the pungent mixture of rain, freshly tilled soil, and cow manure.  Arms spread wide, I embraced the storm, inviting its gift to soak into the dirt.

Crack.  Boom!

In a single motion my back arched and I levitated three feet above the ground, then returned to earth with a thud.

Flash! Crack! Boom! Splat splat splat splat splat!

I dove for cover, threading my way between the towering stalks.  I started to choke, breathing in a gagging mixture of water, dirt, and air.  I ran.  The field seemed infinite and the day seemed endless.  At last, hunched over, hands on muddy knees, I stopped trying to escape the tempest.  My initial panic gave way to an eerie calm.  The palpable electricity caused goose bumps to rise and tiny hairs to stand on end.  The heavens cracked again and with them a great rift moved through the middle of the rows.  Not five feet away, Shoeless Joe Jackson appeared.  The electricity seemed limitless, and the awe seemed boundless.

As the rain lessened, I looked down at the ground, once so dusty and arid, now a teeming mud hole, a veritable oasis for our pigs.  Through wet lashes weighed heavily with rain, I could see my shoes.  My ruby red slippers.  My feet moved of their own accord.

Perhaps I *am* Daft

When I posted the Lester story link on my Facebook page, I included the writing prompt and the comment "lest you think I'm daft". Predictably, people felt that my writing wasn't the sole indicator. They also hinted that they already knew my level of daft-itude - the nerve!

Why, you may ask, do I bring this up tonight? Because I found a new (to me) e-zine - Enchanted Conversation: A Fairy Tale Magazine. They have a very narrow timeline for submissions:

Issue Three: "Cinderella" theme, submission window opens at 12 a.m., EST, June 27, and closes at 11:59 p.m., June 30.

Predictably, I've decided I simply MUST write a story for this issue. 1,500 words, one week - obviously I can do that! I've also figured out that I stand zero chance of having anything accepted for publication if I don't write and submit something - genius, right? It's ok, you don't have to tell me, I already know. ;)

I started the story earlier today - actually went outside, sat on the patio, and used pen and paper to jot out some notes. When I returned to my computer, I started writing. About 45 minutes later, I'd written myself into a corner. I've let it stew since then, but I think I've now thought my way out of that predicament and am ready to get back to the typing part. That may have to wait until tomorrow, since I'm here typing this instead of there, writing that.

There's a Merry Go Round in my head

All of my writing thoughts keep going around in circles all the while moving up and down, up and down. I'm sure if I tuned in, I'd be able to hear that silly carousel song that goes along with it.

I made a vision board today for exercising/fitness. As I was tearing things out, I started tearing out things for a story telling board. They made me smile. All day long, I've been on the edge of something... something in my head, riding that carousel, singing a song, needing to be heard. I don't think it's Riley and Suzy. It might not even be adult fiction. But there's a story in there, and I hope I find it before it explodes (that'd be messy).

It may have something to do with dogs. Or maybe princesses. Or knights.

Possible Themes/Titles:

Spacemen of Alcatraz

Ol' Red, A Martian's Best Friend

Marooned on Venus: Blizzards, Not Just for Dessert Anymore

The Pirates of Purchance

I seem to have an outer space theme going. hmmmm

Venturing away from the kid theme for a moment:

A Knight in the Lady's Boudoir (Comedy of course!) - ohhhh, I'm going to have to write that one!

I'm having fleeting thoughts of Heinlein's Job: A Comedy of Justice although I'm not sure why. Now that I think of it, it's been in my head for a while. I read it for the first time a few years ago, might have to go back and read it again.

Lester

This is in response to a writing prompt at Writer's Village University. But first, an oldie but a goodie that someone reposted on FB today:

If a man talks in a forest and there's no one around to hear him, is he still wrong?

:D

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"Lester, my leafy friend, you think it's not easy being green? Being green's a cinch these days! Open a can, toss it into the recycle bin. Done with the newspaper? Toss it in the bin. Eggs all gone? Throw the carton in. Why, you can even recycle the shells. Ever heard of composting, Lester? I could compost you if I wanted, but I won't, of course. But you can compost all sorts of things. You can even compost newspapers! And egg cartons!

"I try to tell people that sometimes. I say 'you know, you can put that in the compost pile'. They just look at me like I'm speaking another language. You ever have that problem, Lester? Like you're talking and the words are coming out but the other person doesn't answer? I mean, I'm a quiet person after all. I don't talk much, mostly I listen. People talk back and forth and I sit and I watch, my head going left to right like I'm at a tennis match. Then, when they stop talking, I speak up. I say what I think. You know what happens, Lester? You know what happens when I do that? Absolutely nothing, that's what happens! It's like I never said a word. People just stare at me. Sometimes I think I have a disease. You know about diseases, right Lester? Well, ok, you know plant diseases, but maybe not people diseases, but still. I mean, maybe I don't talk right. Maybe I think there are words coming out of my mouth, but instead all I do is grunt. Or even worse, maybe I make no sound at all. Maybe I only hear myself in my head. Maybe the reason they stare is because my mouth is moving but nothing comes out. You think that's it, Lester?

"Lester?"

Not actually the beginning

Many journeys start before you realize they've started. They begin in your mind. You watch something on television, you read something in a magazine. Soon you're searching on the 'net, trying to find out more information. You begin to look into the details, you start to learn about your destination.

Life's a journey, not a destination - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Before you get the incorrect idea that I'm well read, I didn't know that was a quote by him - I was thinking about the Aerosmith song and looked it up.

Here's the Aerosmith song if you're interested.

Anyway, this is not the beginning of my writing journey, I just felt like I needed to have a place to write about writing (!). So sometimes, when I'm not working on a story, I'll sit and ramble - I have a half hour a day goal that I have to meet. Other times, I will probably share what I've written, sometimes in hopes of gaining valuable feedback, and other times just for validation. Oh, and sometimes just because I've found that looking at a story when it's formatted differently makes it read differently. Weird, I know, but I never said I wasn't. ;)

F2K is officially complete until August. I'm pretty happy with how the session went. I made the commitment to write in earnest - that's a big one. I also feel like I learned a lot, most notably in the value of feedback, both giving and receiving. My wonderful mentor Granny picked one of my lessons to feature one week, and also picked my final story as the one to represent our room in the session-end contest. I was very happy about that, it felt like validation. The story did not fair well in the voting, and I'm not sure why. It may be that it's the wrong audience, it may be that the story was too ambitious for only 1,500 words, or, it may be that it sucked (of course, I don't believe that for a moment. HAH!) . I don't want to believe it sucked. I don't believe it sucked. But that doesn't mean it didn't! But it didn't! HAHAH! I will post it and let others decide!

Final item worth noting: if I post something, I would love feedback. If it sucks, I'd love to hear that - but if you're going to type that it sucks, then you have to play along and tell me why. You want me to improve, right? I know you do!