Work In Progress

So I looked back through my old posts this week and realized that my writing has deteriorated into a sort of list format with pictures. I don't tell stories anymore. I'm not really sure when that happened. In all honesty, I feel like I've been running out of stories to tell. It's ridiculous, I know.

Okay, so maybe I'm not running out of stories. I mean, every time I leave the house I have a new story. I think that over the past year or so I've fallen out of love with writing stories. I haven't been reading much either. Yet my whole existence is collecting stories; my own and from the people around me, so you can see how I've been having a bit of an existential crisis.

It has been a transition moving back home, more so than I thought it'd be. I've also been here for longer than I had anticipated. The past year has felt like being in limbo. I'm just waiting to move forward with school and time is stretching out so far I can't see my goals clearly anymore. When I moved back, I had a plan. These days I'm a little lost.

The point of all this (there is a point, I promise) is that I need to stop waiting around for things to happen. I need to keep my momentum even when things are up in the air. I also need to learn how to not let every broken heart completely devastate me, but that is another story.

On the bright side of all this, I have been drawing more. Granted it is mostly fan art of the comics I read, but its still art. At least I like to think so. I've been experimenting with my Prismacolor markers (though not as much as I'd like to), but I still have a ways before I'm comfortable with them.















As you can see, I've been mostly drawing sexy ladies. These things just happen. Especially since comics are filled with them. Anyway, I quite like how they turned out, despite the fact that markers are tough to use.

In other news about writing and projects, I decided to write a graphic novel that will be illustrated by my very talented friend Blair  and lettered by Yano (even though he knows we won't be able to pay him). The working title is Delirium, and I am pretty excited. I'll post more info as we progress. 

So yeah! Gold stars for me posting on time. Now I am off to a magical night of geek trivia and beer. 

Thanks for the support everyone~

Back from Hiatus

I am a little embarrassed at the state of my blog. Never before have I gone such a long time without posting.

It's been six months.

Six months.

I can't even think of a valid excuse to why it has been so long. All I can say is that a lot of life stuff happened and my brain stopped being able to process my experiences into writing. No, I'm serious. I took a Creative Writing class this last semester and wrote one poem. And it was a breakup poem. Yeah, pretty bad, I know.

So what was I doing the last part of 2013?

Well...

I finally got the coveted winner's badge.

 

I transformed my bedroom. 

I painted.

I baked some amazing things.

(except the cupcakes with hearts, those are Jenny's)

Spent some quality time with my brother.

And got a bow for Christmas. 

Six months is a lot of time. I had quite a few adventures and some disappointments. There were many lessons to be learned (such as how difficult DIY home projects are or don't forget to send in your transcripts) and too many tears (no, you don't get examples). It was clear that I needed some time to hide inside myself, but now I am ready to move forward with my life.

Oh, and this blog too.

It might be a slow process, but I want to get back to posting every week. Even if it is just the crappy fan art I've been doing lately. 

So here is to picking up the pieces and changing my story.

Winner!

 

I've finally done it. After three years and five writing challenges, I have accomplished my word goal. Mind you, it did take a flexible word goal to get there. At the beginning of July, I was aiming for 30k, but about half way through the challenge, I realized it wasn't a realistic goal for my pace. 

Which may have had something to do with those few days of not writing at all.

So I knocked it down to 20k. But an average of 650 words isn't so bad! That is about a page a day.  Yeah, I took out 10k words and yeah I probably could have made it if I buckled down and did absolutely nothing except write. Honestly, I really needed a win.

There is something really satisfying about winning the NaNoWriMo writing challenges. I mean, it's not like you physically get a prize (unless you count the print out certificate).

It felt weird getting more excited the last week instead of despondent. It was such a high though, rushing the last hour, blasting My Chemical Romance to get pumped to finish on time. It was kind of amazing.

Camp NaNo Update

Today I wrote over 2,000 words!

Now if I can just do that for the remaining fourteen days of July, I will crawl out of this 10,000 word deficit and catapult to the finish line of 30,000. The only problem is that I literally did nothing but write today, which is not always possible nor conducive to my sanity. Sitting behind a computer screen all day makes me a little stir crazy.

What I don't understand why I can't just write every day. I mean, it shouldn't be that difficult. It is what I love doing more than anything (other than baking) and I have so many  ideas. And I'm constantly thinking about my story. I dream about it.

So on days that I am feeling less creative, I research, I visualize. The other night I created my characters using the Sims 3. It was helpful in a way, but kind of frustrating because they didn't turn out exactly how I envisioned them.

Especially since one should have floating blue hair and other horns. 

Or the fact that you can't give Sims scars or make them shorter.

However, it did spark the idea that they all had the same iridescent silver-blue eyes. In the story, they are all the offspring of the same deity, but don't know that until they all meet as adults. Having the same eyes will help them recognize each other.

So it wasn't a complete waste of time (though I am not proud of how long it actually took).

Stats Update:

• 6643 words written

• 3 of 4 main characters introduced

• 0 antagonists

• 14 days left to write 23,357 words and have somewhat of a plot going.

Woo! Sounds like a challenge. I can't wait to see how it all turns out.

Building Stories

 

Over the long weekend, I learned how to gut and fillet an albacore. I also shot a gun for the first time. These are the sort of adventures one has in the hidden hills of Wilits; among tall trees and coastal winds. As we went up the winding gravel driveway to the dark wooden house shaded by moss covered oak trees, all I could think about was how perfect a place it would be for writing.

After spending four days of being lulled to sleep by the songs of frogs and crickets, I found that I had spent little time writing. Instead I watched my niece learn how to mimic the sound frogs make and play with bubbles. I listened to stories of how the house was built a little at a time. I climbed across rocks and logs to explore a creek that housed little newts that looked like dragons. I learned that I was really really bad at croquet.

Even though this month is another writing challenge (and I should be pumping out 1000 words a day), I didn't feel like my time was wasted. There was so much new material being absorbed into me with every breath. Everything around me felt like there was magic hiding underneath. So okay, I only managed to squish out about 800 words, but I was invigorated.

July is my month of creativity. Absorbing the magic around me is just as important as the act of creation. Sometimes you have to spend time exploring creation (and destruction) to find inspiration. I am learning to let go of what I think the story is about. It will form naturally by pulling pieces together from my experiences and dreams.

 

My story knows where it wants to go. I just need to move aside and let it.

Off To Camp!

Okay, not actual camp.

This summer, I will be participating in the less intense version of National Novel Writing Month. So this July I will be (virtually) grouped with a handful of like-minded writers marching toward the not-so-intimidating goal of 30,000 words.

That's only 1000 words a day. Totally doable.

In other news, I am now officially unemployed. With a slightly broken heart, yesterday was my last day with the wonderful kids and coworkers I spent the last ten months with.

  I did leave with a few parting gifts.

However, I am now free to enjoy the rest of the summer. Or, more likely, spend my time fixing up my room.

For the year or so I've been back home, I have avoided fully unpacking. My reason for this was that it was a temporary situation; thinking I would be off to San Francisco by now. Well, after reality set in (in the form of a rejection letter from SF State) I realized I will be here a while longer than I originally planned.  So I might as well make it my own.

Since I have all this free time now I will be able to focus on my latest attempt at a literary adventure. This time, I will be fleshing out (... such an odd phrase) a story that my younger brother thought of for a comic. My siblings have such great minds to plunder for ideas.

After I finish the story, we can start the wonderful process of turning into a comic! Woo!

Hopefully with the lowered word count I won't get so despondently discouraged as per usual. Also, Mom has decided to participate as well, so I'll have a writing buddy.

Wish me luck!

I just can't get enough of these logos.

Sundae Challenge #2

Memorial Day means Monterrey. Monterrey means Cannery Row. What's in Cannery Row?

(Other than the aquarium...)

The Ghiradelli Ice Cream Shop!

Now, some of you might remember the sundae challenge a few years ago. This year I decided to hang out with the boys for the day, for which I would suffer the consequences. Luckily, I wasn't the only one eating this time.

The Earthquake:

 Eight scoops of various flavored ice cream topped with whipped cream, fudge and cherries. 

 It was a mountain of ice cream.

Between the four of us, we decimated it. 

Now keep in mind we had stared drinking at 11:30 am (feeling like alcoholics standing outside Bullwhackers waiting for it to open...) AND went out to eat before finding our way to the magical ice cream shop.

Needless to say, once we stumbled back to where we were staying in a booze/sugar induced daze, we all crashed for a couple hours. 

Monterrey also means awesome crayon drawings on the paper tablecloths at our favorite lunch place (called...something...). We always have quite some interesting artwork. 

Johnny's was...interesting.

Dylan's was creepy (as usual). 

 

Dom's was pretty exceptional. 

Now, I know it has been two months since my last post, which is inexcusable. So now that school is out, I'll have more time to do ridiculous things and blog about them. 

Pinky Swear.