March 25, 2012

Instert crafty title here

Things are looking up. I'm back to work on chapter twenty-eight and making some progress as I untangle the mess. The going is incredibly slow, but I've run through the important bits of my problem scene with a few people who know a thing or two about wounds and trauma. I've taken what they've told me and started applying it to the sticky bit. It's helping to clear out the bits that were seriously bothering me(no wonder, they didn't belong anyway), and now I just need to finish deciding how to rework another bit before I can call this thing done.

So, upside and downside, but more on the upside. I mean, progress trumps sticky bits, right?

In the meantime, I better head off to get some of those sticky bits cleaned up. I intend to make a serious dent in my art project list today, and I can't do that sitting at the computer. If I can get my digital art program figured out and create a watermark for my work, I'll share some artsy stuff with you guys.

But first I'm going to go raid the fridge. My latest batch of goat yogurt won't be ready for pick-up till tomorrow, but there's some leftover steak and plenty of salad fixings. I don't know about you guys, but I work better on a full stomach.


~Sun and Moon 

March 18, 2012

Luck 7 Meme and a little something extra

I meant to write this post last night, honest I did. However, seeing as I crashed right after I got off work, maybe it's better I didn't. You probably wouldn't have been able to understand a single word.

Anyway, when I got up this morning I discovered I'd been tagged twice for the same meme directly, and then yet again in a more indirect fashion. So I decided to not only do the meme, but share some of my favorite snippets from my MS as well. I'll try to keep each one to the seven lines as per the meme, but I make no promises. :)p

Let's get this party started, shall we?



 Here are the rules:

1. Go to page 77 of your current MS.
2. Go to line 7.
3. Copy down the next 7 lines/sentences, and post them as they're written. No cheating.
4. Tag 7 other writers.






This is the bit I found via the meme rules. It's a bit of dialog from one of the chapters in Kristal's point of view:


    I shrugged. “Not really.” He chuckled and I stuck my tongue out at him. “Be nice, ok? I just figured we’d follow the bike trail to the park and decide from there.”

    Ricardo grinned and turned in the direction of the wide, asphalt path. “Sounds good to me. Let‘s go.”

    It didn’t take long to reach the park, but it was late by the time we got there. The evening breeze was a little brisk and I found myself wishing I had grabbed a jacket before we left. The basketball courts were empty, and there didn’t seem to be anybody in the park but us.

    “Is that…police tape?”



The next one is one of my favorite scenes from a chapter in Shadow's point of view:



As Kristal began to explain how to draw on his person magic to weave a defense, I went to sit in the dappled shade of a nearby tree. The grass was still damp from the morning’s dew, the moisture making my tail glisten in the bright sunlight shining through the leaves overhead. Idly I flipped the tip back and forth behind me as I spread my wings to catch the sun. A rustle to my right had me looking away from my sister giving Paul a lecture on shields that lacked adequate power, to see Ricardo taking a seat beside me. He was very cam, and not even the wet grass soaking his clothes seemed to disrupt his tranquil mood. Smiling to myself, I turned my attention back to the lesson before me.
     “I couldn’t help but notice you always seem to know how I’m feeling. Sometime before I even know myself.” I blinked and turned my head to see him watching me with those golden eyes of his. “Are you reading my thoughts?”


Last of all, here is a bit from the beginning of chapter twenty-eight, the current pain-in-the-butt I'm trying to edit these days. This one is in Kristal's point of view:

For a long moment, I felt horribly stretched as the orb sucked me in--and then we were standing on a dusty plain.
     We were in.
     Sudden nausea hit me like a kick in the gut, and I swallowed hard as my stomach rolled. Dropping to my knees as my legs gave out, I braced myself against the gritty soil under my hands. A cold, wet nose nudged my cheek and I looked over to see Bretta watching me, her golden eyes worried.
    “I’m ok,” I said, swallowing hard again as my stomach twisted and then settled. “I’m just feeling a little sick, that’s all.”
    “It should pass soon, sister,” Shadow murmured, kneeling beside me as I looked around to see Paul stumbling to his feet. “Here, let me help you.”



And that's it for me. This post is late enough as it is and the fair weather outside my window is calling my name. As are several art projects and the pile of dishes in the sink. So I'm going to cheat a little. What does that mean? Well, if you're a writer and you're reading this...consider yourself tagged. ;D



~Sun and Moon

March 11, 2012

Do you smell something burning?

This week has been hell and I have the scorch marks on my backside to prove it.

Seriously though, it has been one headache after another and I'm feeling more like a piece of burnt toast, then a human being. None of the issues I've face have to do with chapter twenty-eight, though. Mostly because I decided to go back and read from chapter one onward to help me find my feet. This means I get to reread all my favorite scenes and remember what I got right. It also means I'm realizing just how much work I need to put into those beginning chapters. Trust me when I say it's not pretty.

That will have to wait a while yet, however, as I don't plan to tackle those bits until I've managed to finish my current round of edits. Hopefully I'll be done with my reread and be putting twenty-eight to bed this wensday.

In the meantime, I managed to blow off some steam yesterday without damaging anything other then a hay bale or two. My husband and I grabbed our bows and headed to the farm to see just how bad we were. To be fair, my husband is a pretty good shot with his compound bow. I shoot a long bow, and let me tell you...I can hit what I'm aiming at about half the time. The other half is me chasing down the arrows that managed to miss the target. One of these days I'll get some lessons and shoot for real, but until then, it's a good way to burn off your frustrations.

It's also a way to get some serious exercise, because when we weren't drawing our bows or chasing down stray arrows, we were shooing the farm cats away from or hay bale target. Also, the goats kept getting in the way. After the millionth time of shooing them away, I told my husband that maybe we should get a foam hunting target for this kind of thing. He just smiled and pointed out the fact of how our place of employment hasn't had any in stock for a while. The hay bale would have to do for now. I just sighed and went back to chasing cats and goats.

So there you have it. A week of hell followed by a sunny day filled with bow, arrows, nosy cats, and hungry goats. It's been a while since I've posted late, but considering the circumstances, I'm just happy to be posting at all.

And on that note, I'm off to relax with my husband before I head to work.

Later, guys.



~Sun and Moon
  

March 4, 2012

When procrastination is a good thing

Yesterday I was cringing at the idea of posting yet another blog of how I'm stuck in chapter twenty-eight with little or no progress to report. So instead of writing my post last night and posting it this morning, I put it off in favor of Sims 2 and a good night's sleep. After sleeping in for the first time in about a week, I decided to do edits while I ate breakfast. I'm glad I did.

Every now and again, I have these moments when the part giving me trouble resolves itself and everything falls into place. Today it didn't go quite that cleanly, but the fight scene that was giving me trouble? Yeah, it's taken care of thanks to a little perspective from my husband based on his own experiences as a teenager. So now I just have one chunk of drama to resolve and the ending to polish up, and then I'll be done.

That will have to wait, however as today is the first day I've had off with my hubby in two weeks. I might still do more edits today, but the hardcore stuff will have to wait. Besides, I have two sculptures to paint and some merfolk to finish up, not to mention a bit of birthday fanart for one of my online pals to get done. I'll be back to work on edits tomorrow, but until then I'm off to play with paints and pencils while I watch Mythbusters episodes with my hubby and try to keep the cat's nose out of my brush tub.

Later guys,


~Sun and Moon