My book is almost half way edited. This is good. Very good. My carpal tunnel is acting up. I'm glad for the two foam writ rests my chiro recommended.
Tomorrow, I think I'll go over the book, The Art of Styling Sentences. This book is a good book. So simplistic, yet so thourough. I swear, this book has increased the diversity of the sentences that I use by at least fifty percent.
Saturday, 27 August 2011
Tuesday, 16 August 2011
Well, I'm 1/3 through the edits of my book
It's HARD. And yet easy. There are points within the creative process which are elating...points where I believe it all comes together. Its funny how you can go over it again, and say...there it is...another mistake. Another adverb or adjective or gerund or negative or "to be" verb, to clean and recompose.
Tuesday, 19 July 2011
Editing my book
Well, I'm at page four of my book, in terms of editing. It takes longer, sometimes, to edit, then to write.
On a side note: Why do dogs bark? What, specifically, is the psychological process which goes through their mind...is it insecurity....a show of bravado....genuine concern for their owners property? I've explored these questions in Magnum and Me, and Canine Consciousness...the mind of the canine is a strange thing to behold...
On a side note: Why do dogs bark? What, specifically, is the psychological process which goes through their mind...is it insecurity....a show of bravado....genuine concern for their owners property? I've explored these questions in Magnum and Me, and Canine Consciousness...the mind of the canine is a strange thing to behold...
Thursday, 14 July 2011
Wednesday, 29 June 2011
A washout day
I didn't sleep well last night. The neighbours dog kept on barking. There was a bang at the side of the house at 4:00 am.
The thing I don't like about sleepless nights are the lack of, or decrease in optimum productivity the following day.
oh well...tonight I go to bed early.
The thing I don't like about sleepless nights are the lack of, or decrease in optimum productivity the following day.
oh well...tonight I go to bed early.
Monday, 27 June 2011
Trance music New Order Music
Lately, I've been listening to trance music in the morning - Paul Van Dyk, anything I can find on youtube.com Also, New Order, some stuff from the early 2000 is good...its good for exercising and skipping and jumping.
One more week and I'll begin the edits to my book.
Right now I'm reading Bird by Bird, by Anne Lamont which is proving to be a an amusing book...I rather like her twisted, deranged sense of humour - a humour I share.
One more week and I'll begin the edits to my book.
Right now I'm reading Bird by Bird, by Anne Lamont which is proving to be a an amusing book...I rather like her twisted, deranged sense of humour - a humour I share.
Thursday, 23 June 2011
editing a novel
Right now, I'm editing someones novel. Its an interesting process. I rather like it. She gave the book to ten different people, and is compiling our feedback. Its a book, my favorite type, with mystical elements, and vatican, religious intrigue.
I think its rather good (ha ha, rather good is a terrible, unclear abstraction that I prune, like a awful weed, out of my writing), except, some language needs to be tightened - passive verbs, gerunds, too many adverbs and adjectives and cliches.
Right now, I see a bunny rabbit out my window. The other day, my dog got her teeth into a juicy rabbit. I pulled it (the rabbit)out of her mouth....then, since it was half dead, I decided it had to be put out of its misery....so I had two decisions: me, with a dull axe, or Ema, with her strong Rottweiller jaw, to finish the job.
I chose the ladder. Boy did Ema love to finish off that bunny. Then, I gave the rabbit a uncermonial burial, over the side of the creek. I'm a vegetarian. I don't like blood, mayhem and murder. It made me sad, but made Ema's day, which made me happy.
I think its rather good (ha ha, rather good is a terrible, unclear abstraction that I prune, like a awful weed, out of my writing), except, some language needs to be tightened - passive verbs, gerunds, too many adverbs and adjectives and cliches.
Right now, I see a bunny rabbit out my window. The other day, my dog got her teeth into a juicy rabbit. I pulled it (the rabbit)out of her mouth....then, since it was half dead, I decided it had to be put out of its misery....so I had two decisions: me, with a dull axe, or Ema, with her strong Rottweiller jaw, to finish the job.
I chose the ladder. Boy did Ema love to finish off that bunny. Then, I gave the rabbit a uncermonial burial, over the side of the creek. I'm a vegetarian. I don't like blood, mayhem and murder. It made me sad, but made Ema's day, which made me happy.
Tuesday, 21 June 2011
The Riots
The riots in Vancouver were crazy. I thought (or had hoped) the Canucks would win - but they didn't. People went balistic. Peoples reactions, on facebook, towards the perpetrators of the riot, were pretty "intense." The thing about the rioters...I think there are some who are "bad seeds" among them...the really nasty people, with Narcissitic or Psychopathic personality disorders...but I think there were a lot just caught up in the madness...guys in their late teens who've listened to too much NWA. But how do you separate the "real" baddies from the followers who aren't really all that bad...I don't know.
Punishment? Well. I think it should fit the crime....you could hit them with a hefty fine...but the thing about fines are they effect everyone differently, depending on ones socioeconomic status...so, I'd say a whole dollup of community service would do them good...
It would be a poor idea to send the rioters to prison. For one, prisons are terrible for rehabilation...they can be schools of crime, and also, once someone has been to prison, its harder for them to get a job, and also, they have had their self image branded with that of a criminal...and of course, self image is a big deal. People act as they see themselves to be. You don't want to add to societies crime problem, by precipitating a teenagers fall into crime, all because he made one stupid mistake...
...so, I guess the best option is community service. Lot's of it. Thousands of hours of sweeping, weeding, painting, pruning...they must pay their karmic debt for what they have done to our city, tarnishing it physically, as well as emotionally, and reputationally....not sure if reputationally is a word...but oh well.
Punishment? Well. I think it should fit the crime....you could hit them with a hefty fine...but the thing about fines are they effect everyone differently, depending on ones socioeconomic status...so, I'd say a whole dollup of community service would do them good...
It would be a poor idea to send the rioters to prison. For one, prisons are terrible for rehabilation...they can be schools of crime, and also, once someone has been to prison, its harder for them to get a job, and also, they have had their self image branded with that of a criminal...and of course, self image is a big deal. People act as they see themselves to be. You don't want to add to societies crime problem, by precipitating a teenagers fall into crime, all because he made one stupid mistake...
...so, I guess the best option is community service. Lot's of it. Thousands of hours of sweeping, weeding, painting, pruning...they must pay their karmic debt for what they have done to our city, tarnishing it physically, as well as emotionally, and reputationally....not sure if reputationally is a word...but oh well.
Tuesday, 14 June 2011
Finished Rough Draft
Several weeks earlier, the rough draft of my book was done. But, it is a very, very rough draft. I'm intending that I start work (or play) on it in July. The edits. The multitudes of corrections, red pen marks, slahes. Ahhh, editing, my favorite part of the writing process.
Monday, 30 May 2011
Wednesday, 18 May 2011
Robert Munsch and addictions
For some reason, today, I thought of Robert Munsch. He is the children's author who admitted to cocaine and alcohol addiction, years after his books became wildly sucessful.
What struck me about this, was peoples reaction. People suffer from all sorts of addiction, be they addiction to alcohol, addictions to sex, addictions to heroin, ecetera. I, personally, have, in the past, had an addiction to chocolate, food, pasta...people may laugh at this...an addiction to food - trust me, its possible.
I don't know, at times, how I kept my size normal. Once, a friend asked, how the hell do you stay so thin, you should be a blimp? An aunt said, you should be obese by now, when I was in my early teens.
My family, extended and immediate, were worried. Perhaps they were justified. But now, I no longer have that addiction. I have closed that emotional hole within me. Don't get me wrong, if there is icecream in the fridge, I will have a scoop, but I don't have to. Years, perhaps even a year ago, I would have gone insane if I had to leave ice cream, or other treats, untouched. Now, I have no problem with this. Once or twice a week I allow myself a sweet treat, but I don't have a voracious, obsessive need for it.
I think a lot of people struggle with food addiction, partly because its not black and white. With cocaine, you have to stop cold turkey; with food, you do not have that option. With food, there are various shades, nuances, gradiations, of greys and hues of murky oranges, blues and pinks.
I read a book in the last several months by Sue Silverman "Love Sick" about addiction. Her specific addiction was sex, but I think the message could be pertained to other addictions. Her messege was that addiction comes from a hole inside - from childhood, in her case - which needs to be filled, and gets filled in an imbalanced, as aposed to healthy, manner.
I'm looking forward to Ross Laird's book on addiction, I think it is called Labarinth? Because this is a subject I have been fasinated for a long time. When does an addiction become too much? I heard somewhere, that addiction is anything that you use to avoid your issues, your real self...so even positive things, such as running, working, writing, can become an addiction, if used to avoid yourself. But...
...anyways, I went a tad off in a tangent. What I was going to say was that what surprised me about peoples reactions to Robert Munsch was that people became so judgemental. People talked of throwing out his children's books, even though they were beloved by the family. They said he showed a "bad example".
I think this is idiotic. He came "clean" (parden the pun) about his addiction, told people about it, was honest, and sought help - what more do you want? I could understand if he was a child rapist, then I would throw out his books. But he was simply a man who had a problem, and was honest about it. His drug addiction did not show he was a bad person, he only had an emotional hole, he had to fill, and cocaine seemed to be the trick - at least for the time being.
Anyway, it astounded me, people's judgmentalism towards him. You'd think they could use it as an avenue to teach their children about the perils of drug use. Its not like they'd become drug users simply because their beloved children's author did drugs...I've known people addicted to drugs, and believe me, its not because they had poor literary role models. It generally came down to poor parenting.
One individual I knew years ago, referred to ectasy, as "giving him a hug", hugs, in other conversations, I learned, he lacked from parents (amongst a childhood mirred, unfortunately, in worse than devoids of affection).
One of my professors, ironically, for my Drugs and Behavior class, said he tried cocaine, and "felt like a God"; one might presume, at that time, he felt a lack of personal power in his life, and cocaine was the balm which met that need, at least temporaily.
Me? I've never done hard drugs (I did once, unintentionally, but that's a long story, involving a slight mix up; a belief that weed was only weed, but was, in fact laced with other, more "interesting" and "complex" substances; another blog, or perhaps, a full essay to expound on that incident) . I've done BC's bud, occasionally, far back in the past, but havn't for years - I never really felt its appeal. Alcohol used to be my main "drug of choice," along with food. I liked the warmth of alcohol, how it always seemed to fill my insides with warmth and light. But now, alcohol does not appeal to me. And food, holds a much more "healthy" balanced appeal to me.
Anyways, I've gone on and on and on much more then I intended. I don't know who even reads this. Thus far, I have only one follower. Oh well, I find this writing strangely cathartic.
What struck me about this, was peoples reaction. People suffer from all sorts of addiction, be they addiction to alcohol, addictions to sex, addictions to heroin, ecetera. I, personally, have, in the past, had an addiction to chocolate, food, pasta...people may laugh at this...an addiction to food - trust me, its possible.
I don't know, at times, how I kept my size normal. Once, a friend asked, how the hell do you stay so thin, you should be a blimp? An aunt said, you should be obese by now, when I was in my early teens.
My family, extended and immediate, were worried. Perhaps they were justified. But now, I no longer have that addiction. I have closed that emotional hole within me. Don't get me wrong, if there is icecream in the fridge, I will have a scoop, but I don't have to. Years, perhaps even a year ago, I would have gone insane if I had to leave ice cream, or other treats, untouched. Now, I have no problem with this. Once or twice a week I allow myself a sweet treat, but I don't have a voracious, obsessive need for it.
I think a lot of people struggle with food addiction, partly because its not black and white. With cocaine, you have to stop cold turkey; with food, you do not have that option. With food, there are various shades, nuances, gradiations, of greys and hues of murky oranges, blues and pinks.
I read a book in the last several months by Sue Silverman "Love Sick" about addiction. Her specific addiction was sex, but I think the message could be pertained to other addictions. Her messege was that addiction comes from a hole inside - from childhood, in her case - which needs to be filled, and gets filled in an imbalanced, as aposed to healthy, manner.
I'm looking forward to Ross Laird's book on addiction, I think it is called Labarinth? Because this is a subject I have been fasinated for a long time. When does an addiction become too much? I heard somewhere, that addiction is anything that you use to avoid your issues, your real self...so even positive things, such as running, working, writing, can become an addiction, if used to avoid yourself. But...
...anyways, I went a tad off in a tangent. What I was going to say was that what surprised me about peoples reactions to Robert Munsch was that people became so judgemental. People talked of throwing out his children's books, even though they were beloved by the family. They said he showed a "bad example".
I think this is idiotic. He came "clean" (parden the pun) about his addiction, told people about it, was honest, and sought help - what more do you want? I could understand if he was a child rapist, then I would throw out his books. But he was simply a man who had a problem, and was honest about it. His drug addiction did not show he was a bad person, he only had an emotional hole, he had to fill, and cocaine seemed to be the trick - at least for the time being.
Anyway, it astounded me, people's judgmentalism towards him. You'd think they could use it as an avenue to teach their children about the perils of drug use. Its not like they'd become drug users simply because their beloved children's author did drugs...I've known people addicted to drugs, and believe me, its not because they had poor literary role models. It generally came down to poor parenting.
One individual I knew years ago, referred to ectasy, as "giving him a hug", hugs, in other conversations, I learned, he lacked from parents (amongst a childhood mirred, unfortunately, in worse than devoids of affection).
One of my professors, ironically, for my Drugs and Behavior class, said he tried cocaine, and "felt like a God"; one might presume, at that time, he felt a lack of personal power in his life, and cocaine was the balm which met that need, at least temporaily.
Me? I've never done hard drugs (I did once, unintentionally, but that's a long story, involving a slight mix up; a belief that weed was only weed, but was, in fact laced with other, more "interesting" and "complex" substances; another blog, or perhaps, a full essay to expound on that incident) . I've done BC's bud, occasionally, far back in the past, but havn't for years - I never really felt its appeal. Alcohol used to be my main "drug of choice," along with food. I liked the warmth of alcohol, how it always seemed to fill my insides with warmth and light. But now, alcohol does not appeal to me. And food, holds a much more "healthy" balanced appeal to me.
Anyways, I've gone on and on and on much more then I intended. I don't know who even reads this. Thus far, I have only one follower. Oh well, I find this writing strangely cathartic.
Monday, 16 May 2011
weird coincidence - of which there seems to be many
I called my friend, who is (was) pregnant, last night. I had this feeling I should. It turns out she had her baby (two weeks early) that weekend, and was about to call everybody (she had not told anybody when I called.)
It was a weird coincidence that she called.
I've had, (and I'm sure many others have had) other such coincidences.
Like calling someone to see a specific movie, and they were just about to call me to see the same movie.
Weird. I guess to figure out the statistical probability of these coincidences, you would have to compare it to all the hypothetical chance of other days where it occured, compared to the amount of movies, the amount of days, how many times me and this friend saw movies together, and create a advanced series of mathematical formulas to ascertain the formula...I don't know. Something like that. I'm more of a right brained person. I was not too enthused with the stats class I took in university. I dropped out of it once, then did well the second time, with many, many hours of study.
It was a weird coincidence that she called.
I've had, (and I'm sure many others have had) other such coincidences.
Like calling someone to see a specific movie, and they were just about to call me to see the same movie.
Weird. I guess to figure out the statistical probability of these coincidences, you would have to compare it to all the hypothetical chance of other days where it occured, compared to the amount of movies, the amount of days, how many times me and this friend saw movies together, and create a advanced series of mathematical formulas to ascertain the formula...I don't know. Something like that. I'm more of a right brained person. I was not too enthused with the stats class I took in university. I dropped out of it once, then did well the second time, with many, many hours of study.
Wednesday, 11 May 2011
Writing to the Bones
I'm reading "writing to the bones"...or is it? I don't remember it its writing to the bones, or writing down the bones, but nontheless, it is a zen-inspired book on writing by Natalie Golberg. I rather enjoy it. It is divided into multitudes of short, easily digested, chapters. One of the things she says, is that ones must write first thoughts. The first thoughts are the thoughts which have the juice. It is important to keep the creator, and the editor, separate. Write first. Edit later.
I read that some writers edit while they write. I think Dean Koontz is one of those such writers. Whatever works best, I guess.
I read that some writers edit while they write. I think Dean Koontz is one of those such writers. Whatever works best, I guess.
Monday, 9 May 2011
Skipping and 80's music
I've recently taken to skipping. I obtained a (hopefully) longlasting rope...and, have taken to skipping to 80's music, specifically Duran Duran and New Order. I was too young in the 80's to appreciate such music, and am making up for it now.
Tuesday, 3 May 2011
1st Journal entry
Two people have told me in the last several months that I should get a blog. So...I've decided to take their advice. I used to have a blog, years ago. A live journal blog that is no longer.
A weird coincidence: I sent in my piece to Alimentum, in Janurary, and queried on its submission about a week ago. That day, about one hour after I sent my email query, I checked my mail box, to find the SASE from Alimentum...
...a strange...spooky, coincidence.
A weird coincidence: I sent in my piece to Alimentum, in Janurary, and queried on its submission about a week ago. That day, about one hour after I sent my email query, I checked my mail box, to find the SASE from Alimentum...
...a strange...spooky, coincidence.
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