Alone but not lonely..

When I read from blogs, twitter and author websites that writing is a solitary job, I nodded my head.. Do you know why? 

For that, let me explain a bit of my writing process... I need to be alone to write. I cant write when my parents visit or even when DH is back from work. Am I weird? No doubt. I guess my next sentence would confirm that.  Forget people, I need even the television to be silent and of course, no music (See, I told ya).

With such a schedule, I assumed I understood the "solitary" part. How wrong I was... 

To some extent, my perception was right in the initial stages, since I needed the full concentration to get into the groove of writing, to learn to write....and that cannot happen with external disturbances. 

But as time passed by, I realized that the book needs a lot of research put into it, sometimes searching the net helps, sometimes not. So I tested the waters of e-viewing the e-world to create the e-paranormals. Then came social networking. Am by nature an introvert, until I get to know a person ;) (After which, the way I talk their ears off is a different story ;) )

Needless to say I was hooked.. by my own blog ;) then other blogs, twitter, facebook etc...and met so many wonderful friends online. Wham! No longer is "alone" a word in my vocabulary... It is fun, sweet, interesting to chat with so many people who are in the same boat and not... We discuss everything under the sun (and the rain, moon and so on ;) ) and .... well... I realized that it isn't a solitary job after all... 

Bonk ... How wrong I was proved.. once again.. Due to my sudden addiction, I realized that.. valuable time with my characters are reducing.. If they wanted to speak  - I seemed to be busy.. when I wanted them to speak, they gave me the cold shoulder.. and by the time I could coax them to cooperate... the day was over...

Thankfully my DH pointed out this simple fact (refer to more facts he pointed this post. ) and it struck me then.... Whatever I do (spending more time on net on research), however I feel (happy with lots of new friends) culminates in the story that first has to be written. The story is an entity in itself. I need to build a relationship with it and only I can give time for it. It means, I need to pull up that chair, allow the words to flow without distractions and tie all the threads till THE END, on my own ! 

It is also then that I realized, I have to be alone in writing the story (solitary) , but not necessarily be lonely (wonderful people are there who are in the same journey). Only thing is, we need to find the right balance between the two..

What's your take? Is this already a common knowledge that has descended very late on me? How do you find the right balance?

Slacking,

when am not a slacker. 

I hate having things pending on my plate, especially when they should have been done yesterday. If this statement makes you wonder if am a busy bee - who buzzes from task to task, erase that thought. Now. 

On a weekend, I love lazing around, curling up with a good book to read or day-dreaming - in middle of a perfect weather and the sun that spills into the tiny balcony of our flat. Well, nowadays watching HBO is another favorite pastime for catching up on my "to learn" point : dialogues.This weekend, I had specially planned to catch up on all the "Let's talk blogfest" entries !

To get a few hours to do the above said activities, I have to do a lot of preparation. 

The day to day chores accumulate till the weekend and leaves me with gaping (an overtly exaggerated expression, cos I should have been expecting it) at a messy house. Clothes, dishes, dust bunnies and some sand - especially when it had been raining a few evenings - stare back at me, daring me to clean them "within the stipulated time". Sounds familiar :) ??? 

I say "How dare you stop me from my favorite stuffs. Here, take this, that..." House is clean ! Yay !

Then comes the cooking.. How is it that on a weekday, I manage to prepare breakfast and lunch to pack (along with some cereals for mini-breakfast) before 7AM? Dinner takes about half an hour in the evenings. But on a weekend, I seem to be in the kitchen most of the day... First milk + cereals + a fruit.. when I get up. Then the actual breakfast an hour later and by the time I could blink, pre-lunch time arrives. Around 3pm or 4pm, when in home, I get the urge to snack - so get back to kitchen, try to make something healthy. Then whoa, time to make dinner !!! Is it only me???? 

I try to say "Eating out or the easily reachable fritters is going to create an upset stomach. Do you want to clutch your stomach in pain while enjoying your favorite book? Nah! Whip up that food, quick." And I do ;) (Er.. Sometimes DH helps ... )

Those are from an household front. Coming to writing.. I realize that I have to complete my revisions, my novella for the anthology, along with sending back a few critiques. On a weekday, if one of them slips, I immediately relegate it to the weekend, in hopes that I can complete everything and well, give an hour (2 hrs in 48 seems so easy, right?) on Sat / Sun each and voila, I can complete. 

I am like "Come on, reading and critiquing CP's is a great inspiration. Do it, soon!" Mostly, I do ;)

But then the weekend begins.. I realize I have overslept by half an hour... Saturday morning right, I can take it light. Then I get around to each of the things we have planned (like paying bills, buying groceries etc) and by and by each task gets done.. leaving room for the next..and so on. 

I also catch up on a fav movie.. wow, gives me enthu to do the other chores.. Somehow there are days when everything goes nice :) smooth and we end up doing everything with time for more.  Great, aren't I???? (Shameless self-praise)

By and by I am finding that such "days" aren't coming up as often, even though I remain the same. I hate having things to do and I do it immediately. 

But there are tiny things that slip (due to time), accumulates till it becomes a huge OBSTACLE and suddenly am too overwhelmed. This one thing results in a massive collapse and I am tired, irritable, slacking and well, in short - a grizzly bear.

Everything seems huge (remember the OBSTACLE? Think of it as magnifying glass).. The writing doubts nag me, revision tensions assail me, the writing I have to critique seems like greek and latin.. And don't even get started on the housework front.... Movie or a book doesn't really hold my attention too...And most importantly, the blogfest entries remain untouched.. That is slacking! Am so mad at myself.....

You tell me? What are the ways around to overcome this obstacle - either destroy it or go around it.. How? Join me in this quest to find a way out and throw me your best pointers and ideas.... 

Your reward? A buddy filled with thanks and to remind you of the same thing, when this "obstacle" takes a peek into our lives..

My first blogfest entry..

After a really looooong weekend, that included a trip to in-laws and utterly butterly no access to internet, am back. Tired and ready to fall on my feet. But got loads to complete this month... well, that's a different story.


One of the things I must attempt is my first blogfest that I signed up at Roni's blog. This is about a sparkly dialogue that happens within a story... and without much ado, let me post my entry before the deadline :)


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“Aren’t you going too far with this, this… - ”

Sasha Alvarez supplied the missing word to her friend, with a chuckle. “Robbery?”

Eliza stared, hands still over the coat button she was removing. Fear and anger shone in her eyes masking the steel beneath. Without missing a beat, she retorted back in a low whisper, “This whole Robin Hood thingie, I mean. Care to educate me?”

“On what?”

Eliza gave an unladylike snort at Sasha’s feigned innocence. “You’ve got a decent job. As far as I know, you’ve also got some inheritance tucked away. Why on earth would you do something so risky?”

“Thrill of the chase?”

“Cut the crap Sash. Why the hell should it matter to you, if some rich idiot behaved rudely with a waitress or with the bell boy?”

Sasha, refusing to comment, picked her handbag in silence after changing into her regular jeans and tees. The empty corridor echoed the click of their heels, as they let themselves out through the employee’s entrance. For a few seconds, she savored the wind whipping her face and combing hair into an unruly mess. Her nostrils flared with hints of upcoming rain.

Checking once to make sure, no one was within hearing distance, she continued where they left off. “The bell boy juggles two shifts along with his studies. The pregnant waitress dropped a spoon. Because of the same rich idiots, they lost their jobs and …”

Eliza interrupted, completing the sentence. “And the great housekeeping manager here jumps to their rescue. By stealing.”

She’d always admired Eliza’s sharp wit and tongue. Her no-nonsense attitude coupled with an inner fire in her eyes made Sasha, the one who didn’t have friends, trust a person for the first time in her twenty-six year old life.

“An expensive trinket lost here or there is no big deal to them. Of course, the money coming in does help.”

“What if you get caught?”

“Trust me, I won’t,” she assured as they boarded the employee bus to get back to civilization.

A witch couldn’t get caught.


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PS : This is a starting scene from one of my WIP's... So while this may remain on my blog for a few days to a few months, I might remove it later, if I complete the book and submit it. Thanks Roni for hosting such a nice event :)

Happy Dancing on hot coals...

Last week : was great in many aspects :) 

I crossed the half way mark in my novella that I am writing under a self imposed deadline, that um, happens to coincide with a publisher's anthology call. This time, I am letting my mind take free control to decide and write how much it wants to and not constraining myself with stringent word count goals. Uh oh! A round of introspection follows...

Q : Am I doing the right thing? Will I even complete? 

A : I'll know only when I am done.. right? (Insert a grimace here)

Q : Is this the bane of being a pantser? 

A : I don't think so. It's just me, trying to find my niche and comfort zone in writing. Has anyone else done something similar?

I guess that's enough questions for a day..... for I want to reveal something far far important... Something momentous happened while I was debating over my writing style and daily goals...

I got a revision request for my novella !!!

At least I think so, since the letter was so nice, addressing me by name and outlining what's wrong in my story and with some of the aspects of the hero and heroine. Along with the word 'revise' in it. I emailed the editor, thanking her for the time and checked with her "if I can contact her if I have doubts." and she replied in positive. 

So I guess that's a YAY moment....if not for the fact that am still shocked... Stunned, shocked -- the words are too mild to describe what am feeling. A curious mix of elation and dread, all coupled in one.

Now, am trying to recall every bit of advise that has been given over the forums on editor's advise being worth its value in gold. 

If only I could calm myself down a bit...The task really seems too 'daunting' when I think about it.. Oh God!!! What am I doing? Can I even do it? Am not sure... Please remind me of all things good...

Men are from Mars....or so they say...

I've read this somewhere and well, had a smile..Thought I'd share : 

Behind every successful man, there is a woman

Behind every successful woman, there is a surprised man ;) 

In my case, I just hope that my DH is happy more than surprised when I get some good news to share. 

And well..coming to the ever juicy topic of men.. I noted down a few pointers.. from real life to understand better... ;)

1) My DH is very supportive - in the sense, he nudges me to take breaks, especially when am harried and in a full blown panic over some thing.. Grrr..

2) I should say he is my calm in a sea of storm.. i.e., he gets very upset when things don't go according to his plan and I have to calm him down, in turn, calming myself. LOL.. Fun isn't it?

3) How can I not add that he is my voice of reason.. ahem::coughs:: Whenever I sit, staring at the blogs, twitter, he watches the TV. The moment I start replying to mails, he reminds me that it's his turn with the computer... and gives that slight nudge..see point (1)

4) We're a good epitome of Yin and Yang.. when I want to relax is when he decides on cleaning and when I have the sudden enthu to clear the resident dust bunnies is when he realizes that we have missed something important to do.. outside ! Dang, how could I have forgotten that one item on my list ???

Hmm.. the list could go on..but due to a heavy lunch and a beautiful weather here making me lazy, let me just leave a question to day-dream, er.. ponder on..

In our books, we write heroes and heroines who are like fire and ice, their clashes produce sparks and well, they initially don't realize they are destined to a HEA..but we know, they would get theirs.. 

So, how opposite can the hero really be than the heroine? Can he really be from Mars and the heroines from Venus? Shouldn't there be some sort of a bridge where they connect and realize they aren't too different either? Where should we draw the line? 

Opinions and some of your favorite movie / book as examples ?? Do share..