Writing Board

So the spousal unit and I chatted about my writing. I’ve been having a rough go lately, so we talked about my process.

When I was teaching, I would take index cards and write down topics, activities, homework for each class period. I could rearrange the cards as I saw fit so that it would make sense for the students and the class progression.

So, my brilliant spouse said “why don’t you do that with you novel?”

Like duh.

So, here it is:

Makes a ton of sense. I have my acts laid out. The green cards are chapter ideas (a la an “outline”). The red cards are dialogue ideas. The orange cards are plot points. And the purple cards are love notes from my spouse.

Underneath the three acts are my random notes. I have a map of the town, random dialogues ideas (without a designated act), random plot points, character ideas, “bad guy” ideas, etc. As you can tell, I have a lot of ideas at random times in my day – notice the different papers.

It’s making sense to me. I’m still working on a few ideas and plot points today. No writing. It’s weird, but I really need to have most everything lined up so that I can write.  I usually do that in my head, but I’ve been having too many “brain farts” that I don’t trust my memory.

So, all you writers out there, what does your process look like?

Have fun, whatever you do.

Monday’s Ramblings

Dialogue

I was thinking the other day about what makes a good TV show and book for me. And I decided that the one crucial ingredient for me is good dialogue.

The TV show that I enjoy over and over again span genres and storylines and they have KICK ASS dialogue.

For example, Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I haven’t watched an episode of BTVS for over a year, but I can still remember bits and pieces of the dialogue.  Spike (a baddie vampire) is trolling around the city looking for something (someone) to eat. He comes across a crowd of people and comments that they are “Happy Meals with legs.” CLASSIC. And character appropriate. He’s a smart ass and loves to throw zingers around.  The big baddie was the “Anointed One” but he dubbed the kid the “Annoying One.”

Pirates of the Caribbean: Jack Sparrow is chatting with a member of the British fleet who says that he is the worst pirate he’s ever heard of. Cap’n Jack’s response? “But you have heard of me.”

The new show Fringe is a classic example of wonderful lines. In the pilot episode, the “mad” scientist (he was in a psychiatric hospital for 17 years) is sitting in the back seat of a car on his way out of the hospital (he is helping the heroes). “Oh damn.” “What?” his son asks. “I pissed myself.” Groans of disgust from the front seat. “But only just a little.”

Lost. A group of survivors find a shipwrecked hull that has dynamite in it. A survivor named Arnst is holding some of the pieces when they (and he) blow up. A few minutes later, Hurley (the KING of oneliners) comments to a colleague “Uh, dude. You have a little piece of Arnst on you.” Darkly HILARIOUS!

Anyway, this is a lot of what I am trying to do in my books as I write them. Dialogue is crucial! And to do it in written form is more difficult because there is a certain lack of visual aid.

Any good lines pop into your mind?

Have a good one – whatever you do.

Monday’s Ramblings

Knit and Crochet Show

Totally awesome! Mum and I arrived at 9:30, but the exhibit and sales floor didn’t open until 10:00 so, we hung around and watched knitters and crocheters GO TO TOWN with their projects. We also picked up our free goodie bag sponsored by Coats and Clark. We got two skeins of sock yarn and one skein of a cotton yarn (with appropriate patterns for each). We also got dpns (for the socks) and a crochet hook (for the cotton). And a million patterns.

We were at the show for 3 hours. Once the doors opened, we were busy, busy, busy shopping, groping (the yarn), sniffing (again, the yarn), and enjoying the heck out of ourselves.

Then, we went to lunch at a FANTASTIC restaurant: Old Wives Tales. They make the BEST Hungarian Mushroom Soup. De-li-cious!

All-in-all, a great day. And we were pooped. It took me a day to recover.

So, here’s the stash:

All of this cost me around $180. I’ve discovered that I am a total yarn snob. The acrylics just don’t pass muster with me anymore.

This bag, made by the Nantucket Bag Company, has a zipper that unzips all the way around so the bag goes flat. I can turn it inside out (which it is in this picture) and have the gazillion pockets on the outside, or zip it inside-right and have the pockets on the inside.  It can also become a backpack. FANTASTIC bag.

Our free yarn. The sock yarn is pretty yummy. And the cotton is fabulous. I am going to try my hand at socks with the Red Heart – the pattern they included is fairly easy.

This yarn was my best deal: $4 a skein. And it’s a cotton. Yummy. The regular price was $18.00. I’m going to use two yarns held together to make a hat for myself. The variegated and the tan will be one hat and the greens will be something else.

I picked up this fun little cotton yarn for $6. They gave me a free pattern for a market bag so that’s what I’m doing.  It’s a simple pattern: k1, yo, k2tog until the end of the row.  And the first 10 rows are garter stitch. Tres simple, n’est-ce pas? I’m nearly ½ way through the pattern right now.

Isn’t this delicious??!! It’s Manos del Uruguay yarn, which I love. This going to be a hat for my hubby (and he loves the yarn, too). I’m sure there will be yarn left over, so I think I’ll make him fingerless gloves or something. It depends on how much I have left.

Okay, I paid WAY TOO MUCH for this yarn, but I LOVE IT. I paid $24. But this yarn is going to be the most amazing pair of socks that I will ever own. It’s soft, but strong – and the most amazing colours. AMAZING!

Yummmmmmmy! I walked past a booth where a vest was hanging from the top of her enclosure. And I FELL IN LOVE! I am a lover of everything vest-y! And the pattern is easy – it’s done in one piece. This may actually be my next project – after the market bag. MADLY in love with this one.

*           *          *

For BoureeMusique

A picture of the ear warmers modeled by my biker hubby:

The helmet is mine (he left his at work), so it doesn’t quite fit correctly, but you get the idea. I also think he folded them weirdly. Ah, well. Check out menknit.net because there is a good photo there, too.

Have a good one – whatever you do.

Knitting and Crocheting

I have been crafting like a maniac lately. I have been enjoying the weather, relaxing, and crafting.  Yeah, baby!

So, here’s one project that I worked on: bike helmet ear muffs.  If you ride your bike (or know someone who does), it can get a little chilly on the ears in fall, winter, and spring.  So, I stumbled across a set of “ear muffs” that you can attach to your bike helmet to keep your ears warm.  I found the pattern in the Fall 2006 issue of Men Knit (www.menknit.net). The pattern was written by Amy O’Neill Houck.

There were a few mistakes, but I managed to get them working nicely. And my spouse loves them.

You knit 4 of these triangles and attach them together. In this photo, the top triangle is an ear muff stitched together.

Here’s a close up:

It’s quite attractive and works well. Of course I have them upside down, but you get the idea.

Frog Pile

So, with crafting, comes mistakes. I have a nice little frog pile going in a bag in my craft room.  Here they are:

Crocheted socks.  I followed the pattern exactly and these ended up being HUGE! I didn’t think I had a loose crochet hand, but apparently I do.

Ribbitt.

I fell in love with this pattern from Red Heart. The pattern went well and it’s a dreamy tank. But it looks HORRIBLE on me.

Ribbitt.

Finally, I found this t-shirt pattern using Bernat Bamboo. I thought “yeah, a baggy t-shirt pattern in a dreamy yarn.” GADZOOKS. It’s so boxy that I look awful in it. And the collar droops so much that I look like I time-warped out of an episode of Fame. But the yarn IS dreamy. I may rework the pattern to make it more form-fitting. But LATER.

Ribbitt.

The Knit and Crochet Show

Mum and I bought tickets to go to the annual Knit and Crochet show held in Portland this weekend. We’re going tomorrow (Friday). It’s co-sponsored by TKGA and CGOA so it promises to be a good show. www.knitandcrochetshow.com.

We have free goodies promised to us – and yarn, yarn, yarn!!! YUMMY. We opted not to do any of the classes because of cost (they start at $40 + supplies). But we are going to shop ‘til we drop. I’ve saved my allowance for a while and am ready to buy some yummy yarns.

Some of our favourite knitting and crochet stars will be there, too. Lily Chin, Cat Bordhi, Janet Szabo, Mark Tosca, and Drew Emborsky (the crochet dude), to name a few.

It’ll be a full day of yarn, food, knitting, crocheting, and good times!

I’ll let you know how it goes.

A Place to Sell Your Books

I was wandering through one of my favourite magazines this week and I stumbled across an article about saving money. Always wanting to find a way to save a buck, I thumbed my way through the article.

There were a few ideas that are recycled: shop for cheaper insurance, lower your credit card’s interest rate, drink tap water versus bottled water. You get the idea.

However, one idea SLAMMED me in the head and I went “yay baby!!”

It’s an online company that wants to buy your books. Here’s what you do:

* Go to their website (www.cash4books.net)

* Type in your ISBNs

* Click “price my books”

* Give them your contact information

* Ship the books to them using their PRE-PAID shipping label

* In 3 business days, after they receive your books, you will have money. Cheque or PayPal account – you choose.

And for me they are LOCAL!! I sent them an email asking if they would like me to drive the books there – or mail them.  I’m anxiously awaiting their reply.

So, all you book-philes who are running out of space, this might be a good idea.

Have a good one – whatever you do.