Happy Halloween!

Hello everyone,

I'm just writing this blog early since I know this week is going to be crazy busy, and I know I need to keep up with this better than I have been. So, here we go with more adventures in the world of Nancy.

Wow, this is going to be such an awesome week! I get to go to the Muse concert on Tuesday, play Rock Band three on Wednesday, carve pumpkins on Thursday, see RiffTrax live for "House on Haunted Hill," Thursday night, have my Halloween Party Friday, go to (possibly) two Halloween Parties on Saturday, and maybe go by the church for a Halloween celebration Sunday. (A run on sentence for a run on week...) The point is, though, I probably won't have a spare second. Even now, I'm taking a break from working around the house to write this. I'm hoping to have as many of my chores done as possible now so that I just have to touch up a few later in the week when I'm working out the final preparations for the party.

I'll be sure to blog later about the Muse concert. Even if I don't get a chance to blog on that this week, I will be sure to next week. I'm very excited about it. It's been a long time since I've gotten to see a good concert and Muse is one of my favorite bands. It makes me wish I had enough money to buy a decent souvenir. I'll try to buy a small one anyway. Hopefully I'll still get to go to bible study Wednesday night, but I'll have to see how tired me and my husband are when we get back. Not only will we be up late on Tuesday for the concert, but we'll be driving back from North Carolina on Wednesday morning. We'll see. At some point that day, probably shortly after we get back, we'll also be rocking out to Rock Band three. That will take some energy as well.

Even though it isn't looking like I'll be able to write much this week, I'm not complaining. I'll be busy with lots of fun, and sometimes a week of fun is enough to spark a little bit of inspiration, especially when you're writing a horror novel and it's around Halloween. We'll see about that as well.

Well, since I probably won't get to write again before then, everyone have a happy and safe Halloween!

What's Up?

Well, sorry I didn't get around to blogging last week. I've been working very hard trying to finish up my summary of "Everburn" so I can finally start submitting it to publishers and agencies. I should have it done by the end of this week, or the beginning of the next. I have higher hopes for this book, and I'm really not sure why I didn't start working on the submission process sooner. I guess I've had other things on my mind. The writer's block also was making me feel down on myself again, which never helps.

I still have writer's block, by the way, but it's starting to go away. I was able to pick up my horror novel last week and managed to add another chapter. I know that doesn't sound like much, but for someone who hasn't written a story in at least a month (I think it's been more like months), it was heaven. I swear, it's like my creativity took a swan dive off of a cliff and now is looking for footholds to crawl it's twisted zombie ass back up, but can't quite find any. I really hope the writer's block ends soon.

Still, I guess this is a good month for it. It's October, which means I've got several things coming up to look forward to that would normally eat into my writing time (if I wasn't having trouble writing). For one thing, my friend Gini's annual Halloween party is coming up. It's always fun and I'm really psyched up about it. Then the Muse concert, then my annual Halloween party, and possibly one other. I've got lots of decorating to do this week. I also really need to think about the details of my party, like what theme I'm going to use, what I'm going to carve on the pumpkins, what I'm going to serve in terms of food, and possibly about making another Halloween song mix as well.

There's always a lot to do in October. I'm a little sad that I won't be able to attend Halloween Horror Nights this year, or Walt Disney World, but it's for the best. We're saving money for more important things, and sometimes you have to be responsible. I'll get back there one day. Probably not next year, but sometime soon enough I'm sure.

In the meantime, I'm going to finish the Everburn summary and submit it, work on my new book, keep my house clean, decorate for Halloween, finish reading the Dresden Files (I'm on book 6) and get back into my exercise routine (I've gotten a good start on that the last few weeks). Wish me luck. Keep reading and writing!

Writer's Block and Some Thoughts

Well, I'm still fighting the writer's block. This has been the worst few months that I've had it in a long time. I'm glad to say I'm finally feeling the spark again. I just need for it to catch fire. I'm going to try to write today as best as I can. I've already missed the opportunity for several anthologies simply because I can't come up with an idea. ::sigh:: I guess I should turn back to my unfinished novels and try to see if I can brainstorm some ideas. Oddly enough, even when I don't feel up to writing, usually ideas come and I can at least jot them down for later. It occurs to me that I love Halloween but I've never written a story that takes place during that time. I think that maybe I'll start there.

I still haven't heard from the two agencies that seemed interested in the concept. Still, according to them I should hear something by the end of the month. I'm just hoping that at least one of them wants to read the entire manuscript. I think the fact I haven't heard anything is a good sign, but sometimes it's very hard to say. Still, I have to be confident that my book can speak for itself. After all the changes I've made, I think that it's finally more than ready. And, according to my harshest critic, it's now a very good book. Honestly, the waiting really is the hardest part. I just want to hear something soon.

Halloween is almost here. It's hard to believe how quickly the time has passed. I'm done with my decorating. Still, I need to think about pumpkin designs and start making a party supply list. I also need to narrow down my choices for the movies I'm going to show this year. I'm expecting a pretty good crowd this year, thankfully. I was very careful to not plan over someone else so everything should be good. I'll keep you posted about it.

Well, I'm off to try to add some kindling to the tiny glowing ember of creativity I'm starting to feel. Wish me luck.

Proofing, Thinking, and Rambling

Well, I couldn't think of anything for the new anthology. I tried, but I'm running out of time so I don't think I'll be able to come up with a good enough outline. I think it would be better to not write it than to write something pathetic just so I could turn something in. Still, that's okay. Like I said, lately I've had a bit of writer's block.

It's odd, but I've noticed I get into different things when I have writer's block. It's like my imagination needs to wander to prepare to write again. I get more into video games during that time, sometimes trying to look through the main character's perspective (in RPGs or adventure games).

For instance, since I've done just about every quest in Oblivion, I've picked of Morrowind and found myself immersed in the story. Also, during these times, I'm much better at planning out table top role-playing games. It's like a different side of my brain is working. I even get more into the symbolism of movies, novels, etc. I guess I kind of get a little OCD-like too, because the house stays immaculate most of the week. Even though it's kind of annoying because I feel like I'm not working, I won't complain. Thankfully my writer's block is usually about two weeks to a month, rather than for months on end.

I started proofing the third book, "DeKryptian" today. Hopefully Joel will enjoy "Blood Ties," the second book of the series. I'm kind of glad he hasn't started it yet, because it can be a little tedious to read the same book over and over again, proofing it several times in a row. This way, when he gets through reading "Blood Ties" I'll be tired of "DeKryptian" and welcome the break. Lol.

A few nights ago, I beheld the wonder of Netflix. That is awesome. We ordered "The Crow" since we've never seen it, and Joel is streaming tons of movies and TV shows through his X-box. We watched "Arachnophobia" the other night. That was fun. I had forgotten how much I like that movie. I first saw it in high school, and because I'm terrified of spiders something about that movie gave me enough courage to try to kill them. I'm not scared of all bugs, but roaches and spiders give me the creeps.

We're also watching Inspector Gadget at night before we go to sleep. Even though the cartoons are much worse than we remember them, it still gives me a warm fuzzy feeling of nostalgia to see them again. Lots of cartoons are like that, though. I'm just glad to have the luxury of watching TV again occasionally. I don't like to do it often, but the main reason we gave it up entirely was because cable is way too expensive. We pick up our news via an antenna in the attic and the internet. That's the way I like it. But, having movies at our disposal is nice. When your focus is media arts in college, you tend to like movies.

Anyway, I'll keep you updated on the writing and the agent hunting. Thanks for reading.