ravenofiernan

Twitter is @TheIWSG Hashtag: #IWSG

The awesome co-hosts for the January 6 posting of the IWSG are Ronel Janse van Vuuren , J Lenni Dorner, Gwen Gardner Sandra Cox, and Louise – Fundy Blue!

Slumps and Spurts #IWSG 12/02/2020

December 2, 2020 By ravenofiernan Leave a Comment

Monthly Status Report

So first off, I missed an IWSG post for the first time last month. I should have done it at the end of October, but I was working on the stories for the Storytime blog hop (mine and V. S. Stark’s – not writing hers, obviously, but getting it set up), which were due October 31, and then suddenly it was November.

And November is National Novel Writing Month. I did write something for IWSG, but I never got around to revising. And because the first Wednesday of December is the second… Well, it is STILL November, but this time, I am writing directly on my website and being careful so it actually gets done.

On the upside, November is National Novel Writing Month, and probably my favorite time of the year! This year got off to a slower than usual start, but I am making up for it. I may not get to my 111,111 word dream goal, but I am currently at 82,000 and nearing the end of the novel, so it’s been a good month.

I also discovered something else about myself this month. I don’t actually want to write better first drafts. I mean, I do, but not that much. I received an email newsletter containing some advice about when to write description, and my immediate response was to dismiss it — not as bad advice, but as advice for revision. I started thinking of all the times I have needed to write badly in order to get a better story, and I realized that I’m not actually willing to let go of that. My fear of stifling my writing into boredom is stronger than my desire to have less revision work. It was an eye-opener to be sure, but a valuable one. Of course, that does mean I need to actually finish my revisions, yes?

I also started streaming on Twitch. I will need to add a button alongside the other social icons I have on this website, but in the meantime, you can catch me at https://www.twitch.tv/ravenofiernan where I will be streaming writing sessions and answering questions. Overall, November has been a fun and productive month.

Optional Monthly Question

December 2 question – Are there months or times of the year that you are more productive with your writing than other months, and why?

If you have gotten this far in the post, you can probably guess the answer. YES! I am NOT a tortoise in the writing world. I am definitely the hare, and I have to agree with the moral of that story: slow and steady WOULD be better. I have serious spurts and slumps, even within the month. Yesterday was my wordiest day of the year so far at 13,645 words, but on the 19th, I only wrote two words. And let’s not talk about the rest of the year.

As for why? I don’t know actually. I think I just go through cycles. There are times when I am very productive with writing, and then other times when I am more productive with other things (cooking, modding Skyrim, doing cover/website work, etc.), and still other times when I just want to curl up and do nothing but read or watch TV/movies, or consume fiction in other ways.

I would like, at some point, to actually level these out a bit, but in the meantime, I enjoy my process. I am never truly bored!

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Twitter is @TheIWSG Hashtag: #IWSG

The awesome co-hosts for the December 2 posting of the IWSG are Pat Garcia, Sylvia Ney, Liesbet @ Roaming About Cathrina Constantine, and Natalie Aguirre!

II – The Priestess

October 31, 2020 By ravenofiernan 10 Comments

Welcome to the October 2020 Storytime Blog Hop!

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This October, I am happy to present the next installment of my Tarot project, II – The Priestess. I hope you enjoy it, as well as the other stories featured during this month’s blog hop, including V. S. Stark’s A Perfect Match, which I am also hosting and which you can find below in the list.

If you want to read my Tarot stories in order, here are the two previous entries:

0 – The Fool

I – The Magician

And now here is the new one:

II – The Priestess

As the sky turns golden, then crimson, then turquoise, the crescent moon appears in the western sky. A silver trail, too bright to have come from the moon, sparkles off in the distance. A howl rises in the night. Somehow, I know it is still the same dog I’ve been following, now enchanted by the moon. What mystery is this? I need to know, and something in me knows I just need to listen.

Crickets, owls, the rustling of leaves, distant yips and howls from wolves or coyotes accompany me down the silver path. These sounds are the expected music of nighttime in the woods. But as I walk the trail, I hear a chant. Dissonant and ethereal, it grows louder the further along the path I go.

Eventually, I arrive at a cave. A small stream flows out of it, back down the mountain, growing from a slender tendril of water into a raging river. A sense of the tides and waves rising and falling in my blood awakens me to the ancient primordial flow of river to sea to clouds to rain to streams to river . . . One of the Mysteries I needed to learn — but the longing still drives me forward along the silver path, right into the large opening of the cave.

No, not a cave. A cathedral. The walls rise high, to a point, with elaborate stalagmites and stalactites reaching toward each other, the sacred pillars of the Earth. Water drips, and the sound echoes off the earthen walls, giving percussion to the chant, which continues to grow while the other sounds of the night are hushed, smothered by the darkness. And I too am smothered, devoured.

In the center of this cavern is a small pond, the source of the stream. An opalescent stone seat faces me from across the pond, drawing me forward. As I approach, the mournful melody surrounds me.

It is too much; I fall onto the stone, the song infusing me, somehow nowhere and everywhere. Trapped, and yet longing, I begin to sing, my voice creating a descant harmony rising above and below the melody of the stone. My vision blurs; I no longer see the cave, but something beyond. Shapes form in the water of the pond as the light of the moon dances across the surface. A blue ball becomes green, gardens grow, my mother smiles as she stirs soup, the spotted dog leaps from the cliff — I see everything up to this point, and then the dog again, now in a lush green garden, jumping and bouncing at the skirt of a golden-haired goddess clothed in red.

I am leaning too close to the pond. As I fall in, the world dissolves, and I know where I am going. I have been granted a Mystery of the future: the Garden of Life.

The End.

A note on beta reading: I had several beta readers for this story, and the comments ranged from needing to change everything to it being perfect the way it was. I say this because while I did make a new version trying to compromise between the two camps, it failed among some of those who liked the original, so I have gone back to the original. I realize this may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but I did not want to dilute it only to be unsatisfactory to everyone. Please note that any remaining mistakes are mine and that things you may consider to be “sub-par” were deliberate choices on my part after seeing all of the different comments.

A Perfect Match by V. S. Stark

October 31, 2020 By ravenofiernan 6 Comments

Welcome to the October 2020 Storytime Blog Hop!

This October, I am happy to present a darkly humorous short story by V. S. Stark, A Perfect Match. Perfect for Halloween in the time of COVID, too! I hope you enjoy it as much as I do, as well as the other stories featured during this month’s blog hop! I even have one of my own this time!

A Perfect Match

“I’d been worried that Jerry would have nothing to do when he retired” Shelly said. “but he’s gotten so into gardening and cooking, I just can’t believe it.” The other women nodded politely, utterly bored by now with stories about Jerry’s latest creation. Shelly smiled to herself. The shelter-in-place order was starting at midnight. She was going to look after her “invalid” sister for the duration, as domestic help was not considered essential. The freezer here at home was packed with lovely meals, all garnished with a little bit of the “herbs” from the garden snipped over the top. Jerry never cooked or gardened, just watched tv and drank beer. She would be at her sister’s when he died. With the expected death toll, nobody would look too closely at a heart attack in an overweight, middle-aged man. All of her friends would confirm that he did the cooking since he retired.

Jerry settled back into his recliner. He’d done a good job on her capsules. You couldn’t tell that he’d tampered with them. She’d die at Alice’s house, serve her conniving snake of a sister right. All of his buddies would commiserate with him, given how often he’d told them about begging her not to buy supplements on the internet. Besides, all eyes were on the Covid numbers right now.

“Goodbye, darling!” they called to each other as Shelly drove away.

What is a Working Writer? #IWSG 10/07/2020

October 7, 2020 By ravenofiernan 2 Comments

Monthly Status Report

It seems odd that a whole month has gone by. I got an idea for NaNoWriMo, so there is that, but otherwise, really nothing much happened at all. Life was pretty much the same, both writing-wise and in general. I had off for a whole week for my birthday, but mostly just relaxed and enjoyed myself. The food situation has gotten off track, so I definitely need to tighten up there in October. I have a lot of food in the freezer, but it wouldn’t hurt to have more. I also started working on mods for Skyrim again, and have been enjoying that.

Optional Monthly Question

October 7 question – When you think of the term working writer, what does that look like to you? What do you think it is supposed to look like? Do you see yourself as a working writer or aspiring or hobbyist, and if latter two, what does that look like?

When I think of the term “working writer” I generally think of someone who works at the business of writing every work day, and for “work days” to be at least four per week, probably the same days each week, as if it were another type of job. I think it can coincide with another job, so it does not have to be full time to be considered “working”, but it does need to be more than 10 minutes a day or just on week-ends or during NaNo or something.

I think the work can and should include things other than actual first draft writing, things like revision, editing, promotion, book covers (if doing them yourself), formatting, cover letters, synopses, etc. In other words, the business side as well as the creative side. If you have a platform and fans, this would also include maintaining the platform and engaging with fans.

Where I fall? Well, lately, more of an aspiring writer or hobbyist… I have not been working consistently. But there have been times in my past where I would say I absolutely was a working writer. It’s probably something I should get back to, but not sure when or how. I will be doing NaNo, but for me this year, that definitely doesn’t count since I will be writing something that will actually take me away from my current “working writer” goals and adding to my pile of more revision work. I might do some “working writer” work in October, but since it is only one month, that’s not really consistent, so maybe December as a good, real starting place? I guess we will see.

Wishing everyone a great month!

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Twitter is @TheIWSG Hashtag: #IWSG

The awesome co-hosts for this posting of the IWSG are Jemima Pett, Beth Camp, Beverly Stowe McClure, and Gwen Gardner!

Qualities I Look for in a Beta Reader #IWSG 09/02/2020

September 2, 2020 By ravenofiernan 4 Comments

Find out more at The Insecure Writer’s Support Group

Monthly Status Report

This was a very scatterbrained month. Maybe I am not cut out for self-directed work. I have not gotten much done on the writing front at all, though I have spent every day doing at least some reading/analyzing of The Firm. Very minimal progress, though, and nothing of my own writing. I still have the two short stories I finished in June sitting on my table to read and revise. I also signed up to be a Municipal Liaison for NaNoWriMo, this year, which I’m excited about, and starting to learn about. Lots of new stuff, just very little actual writing.

As for food, I did much better this month than last month, but as usual, still struggling with food prep. I did get some frozen vegetables, which might help in that department, but haven’t actually used any yet since, well, it’s summer, and there are so many good fresh vegetables.

Optional Monthly Question

September 2 question – If you could choose one author, living or dead, to be your beta partner, who would it be and why?

I don’t know, honestly. I don’t think I know anyone well enough to know if they would be a good beta partner. I look more for personality traits than writing traits, to be honest. And my writing goals are very personal. My number one reason for writing is to write the stuff I want to read, but that doesn’t exist because everyone is convinced no one wants to read it, so advice on what will increase my readership based on what “everyone is reading” is not going to be at all helpful, and I could see it leading to conversations that make me look like I am not interested in improving or not willing to take advice from people who are more successful, when that’s not the issue at all. I do want to improve, I just want to improve in a way that leaves my core values and core reason for writing untouched. I think that’s probably true of most writers, but I think a lot of people are afraid to say so.

So, understanding that motivation and willing to put up with my countless “Yes, but what about . . . ?” types of responses would be at the top of my list. I don’t want to just take a suggestion that might end up messing up a different part of the story. It doesn’t mean I don’t want to solve the initial problem, it’s just that I’m not likely to take the very first suggestion I get. I want to be able to have a lot of give and take and discussion to find the very best solution, rather than just the first one.

I’m also highly sensitive. I have a post on why I think writers don’t need thick skin, because I take the metaphor to mean not letting things affect you in the first place, and I think part of what makes us good writers is the fact that we DO feel things, we ARE affected. We need to learn not to act unprofessionally based on our feelings, but to me, this is very different than not feeling it at all. So, another quality I would look for in a beta reader is someone who understands that I will probably be upset when I get their feedback, and to give me time to process it, rather than chiding me for not having “thick skin”. Granted, I tend to throw it back on myself first (“I’m a terrible writer, there’s no point in fixing this because it still won’t be any good,” etc.) rather than aimed at the critique-giver (I don’t think I’ve ever had a reaction of “You’re so stupid to not see how brilliant this is” — though I was flabbergasted once when I was told my secondary character wasn’t believable because he drove a truck, and the vehicle he drove was a Dodge Spirit, which is a sedan), but it’s something I need to get out of my system before I can look at it with a clear head, so I would want a beta willing to get that out of my system without thinking I’m a “special snowflake” who can’t take criticism.

I guess these are similar in that I don’t want to be pegged as a defensive crybaby just because I don’t immediately agree with everything they say and might specifically ask if there are any good points that make the story WORTH revising, rather than just throwing out.

I didn’t think I was going to have much to say about this topic, but I see I was wrong! Have a wonderful September, and let me know your own thoughts on finding a good beta reader, and whether you look for similar or different qualities. Thanks for reading!

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Twitter is @TheIWSG Hashtag: #IWSG

The awesome co-hosts for this posting of the IWSG are PJ Colando, J Lenni Dorner, Deniz Bevan, Kim Lajevardi, Natalie Aguirre, and Louise – Fundy Blue!

Another Quick Update #IWSG 08/05/2020

August 5, 2020 By ravenofiernan 4 Comments

I had a lot of overtime at work and have been extra involved in my Bright Line Eating program, so here I am on August 2, knowing that this short time while my laundry is in the washer is all I really have to write before the post is due on Wednesday. So, this one is even quicker than last month’s, and doesn’t have all the bells and whistles I usually like to have. Luckily, I can copy a lot of it from the previous post and the IWSG sign up page.

As for writing, my July Camp NaNo goal was to analyze the book The Firm by John Grisham. I did not finish, but I got over half-way, and have had a lot of great moments of understanding that I will be able to use in my book once I get back to revising it.

So, that is the first plan for August. If I finish that before the end of the month, I plan to go back to finishing up all the covers for the Hazel Kanetzki short story so I can get feedback on them. So August is looking to be very much a “loose ends” kind of month, and I hope I can get it all done by September, so I can get on to something new. But we will see.

I also have decided to forego traditional publication of my Tarot series, so expect to see those begin to pop up here again, starting with a re-post of 0 – The Fool for the October Storytime Blog Hop. That one will always be available for free on my website. The others will be available for free at first, but then removed over time. I have not yet decided whether to leave them up until I publish the first collection (which will be the Major Arcana) or to take each one down as soon as the next one goes up.

With that, here are the important links for the Insecure Writers’ Support Group! May you all have a wonderful month!

INSECURE WRITER’S SUPPORT GROUP

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Twitter is @TheIWSG Hashtag: #IWSG