Ello was glitching yesterday. I could get in, but not post. Urgh.
As I’m developing material for the Legerdemain website, I’m working on the history of the city (two thousand years’ worth, which, you know, takes a while). I’m also working on the origins of The Fathomless Library (hint: there’s a book loving hermit with a busy sex life, his bluestocking daughter, and pirates who steal/rescue books).
Yesterday, I wanted to dive into the next Process Muse post on the list, and the Ink-Dipped Advice post which appears today, but I knew I had to draft the next Legerdemain episode first. I need to stockpile episodes.
So I sat down and drafted the Legerdemain episode. I realized, later in the day, that I have to rename a character in the episode, because his name is too close to the name of another character, and, since it’s not a plot point or part of a theme, I need to change it.
I wrote, revised, polished, uploaded and scheduled today’s Ink-Dipped Advice episode, which is about the need to have your own website, not a social media page posing as a website. You can read it here.
Did the social media rounds. Not having an episode of Legerdemain to promote cut off a lot of time. I REALLY need a scheduling tool that crosses all platforms. The only platform on which I can schedule posts right now is Twitter, and by mid-month, that will be useless. I need to be able to upload the post once and schedule it across ALL my channels. One big block of time once a month, and I wouldn’t have to worry about it. Much more efficient that the couple of hours a day I now have to put aside for it. That will also enable me to use each platform for the best engagement with a piece’s audience. Then I can spend quality time on the different sites interacting.
I’m willing to pay for it, but it has to be ONE tool that connects to EVERY platform I want with UNLIMITED posts per month.
Anyway, in the afternoon, I turned around two coverages. And was done at a reasonable time. Went back to the Cornell biography. I may just need to purchase a copy. There’s too much information I need for too many projects. And it’s an old book, likely to get weeded.
Changed for yoga and walked to class. It’s just under a mile, and the weather was fine, so it wasn’t that big a deal, but it made me realize how out of shape I am, and how I sit too much. Yoga itself was great. The walk back was somewhat of a challenge, though. I’m hoping it will get better if I do it more often. I want to walk back and forth, at least in nice weather.
I came home to find the check from Llewellyn for the 2024 almanac, which puzzled me. Usually, we don’t get paid until October. I sent an email to my editor this morning, double-checking (yes, I checked my contract first). I want to make sure it wasn’t a mistake before I deposit it.
The toilet is giving us difficulties. The tank alternates between leaking and acting like a geyser. I have to clean the bathroom this morning and put in a call to the maintenance guy. Later, I have to do a library run. I have a big stack of books to return, and a big stack of books to pick up.
I have one coverage this afternoon, and I need to get next week’s Legerdemain episodes uploaded. I have to find a notebook for the big nonfiction project, since most of the early drafting will be done in longhand, and I realized I can start the project on Friday, when I’m on the location around which most of it centers. I need to do the social media rounds to promote Process Muse, Ink-Dipped Advice, and Episode 19 of Angel Hunt, which drops today.
I doubt I will get much writing done, thanks to the toilet tank issues, other than the Essay Camp assignments. Ordered a copy of the Cornell biography.
But that’s why I freelance; so I have flexibility for stuff, although I’d prefer it to be fun stuff and not plumbing. But that’s life.
I’m not as sore as I expected (I actually was in more pain last night), so that’s a good thing.
I had a weird dream about a creature who was a mix of lynx and jackal on tall, skinny four legs that brought him to face-to-face height, stalking me through the streets. He wanted the bag of fast food I had, but I was afraid if I gave it to him, I’d be next on the menu. Weird.
I may be done with script coverage for the week. Seriously considering not taking on any more until Monday, which will give me tomorrow to catch up on anything derailed by today’s plumbing issues, and prepare for Friday’s grant reception. I need to figure out what I’m wearing so I can figure out the makeup. I’ll print off one of the monologues from WOMEN WITH AN EDGE that I know works (because it’s been performed all over the world, and even I can pull it off). We were told all we needed to do is show up, but I’ve heard that before, and I want to be ready.
We need to buckle up, my buttercups. Retrograde season will start in a few weeks, with Mercury going retrograde on the 21st. Could we just NOT, this year? It’s been so nice not having retrogrades.
Hope you had a grand weekend and are ready for our Tuesday natter.
A slew of submission calls hit my desk on Friday morning. I submitted two ten-minute plays to one of them. Another call was interested in radio scripts, but the guidelines made my eyes cross, so I skipped it. Maybe I’ll go back and re-read them some day when I’m not jugging sixteen kajillion things. I saw a call that a friend’s work would fit, so I sent that off to her.
I lost way too much time dealing with my mother’s health insurance. Again. Which meant I lost the writing time I’d put aside for Legerdemain, and that put me in an unsettled mood.
I picked up a big stack of books at the library, got in some groceries from Big Y (another snowstorm predicted for the weekend), mailed some stuff and bought stamps at the Post Office (and chatted, because, around here, the Post Office is the happening place), and swung by the liquor store to replenish.
I read some more in the Katharine Cornell biography – it’s good background on Jessie Bonstelle, Rachel Crothers, and, of course, inspiration for the serial in development, REP. It’s a little on the fawning side, but if one digs past that, there’s some good theatrical history in there.
In the afternoon, I turned around two script coverages, and then went back to the Cornell bio. In the evening (and late into the night), I read a book getting a lot of attention. It’s billed as a thriller, but it’s also a horror novel. It’s very well-written, a page turner. But, at the end, it didn’t give me a feeling of catharsis, just sadness, because of the unnecessary brutality. I mean, the brutality was necessary on the author’s part, but I felt sadness for the deaths of those brutally murdered in the book. It’s well done, and I’m glad I read it, but saying I “enjoyed” it would be a stretch.
Tessa and Charlotte are now BOTH sleeping on the bed with me. Tessa is on one side, down near my feet, and Charlotte is on the other side, curled up against my chest. Charlotte always considers being a pill to Tessa when she jumps up, and I tell her that if she’s not nice to Tessa, she will be kicked out; we’re here to sleep. She considers it, decides sleeping on the bed is more important than being a brat, curls up, and goes to sleep.
I figured out how much I need to write each day on FALL FOREVER for End Of Play in April. A full-length play is 90-120 pages (with the sweet spot being a little less). Over the course of 30 days, that’s 3-4 pages, and do-able. In fact, that’s a reasonable, stable pace, although there may be some days where I write more, in order to capture the entire scene.
I also came up with a large, nonfiction project made possible by the grant (once the money ever gets here). The initial phase of it would take an entire year of a block of time devoted to it each week, and polishing it after would take a few months. But it would be a good way to show gratitude for the grant, and have a tangible project by the end of it. Well, the first draft of a tangible project. I made some notes on it, and will set up the files for it once the grant money arrives, and I can actually take action on it. Because it’s non-fiction, I can write a proposal before the draft is finished, once I have a better idea of how the idea actually works as a real piece. It’s also something I could work on in residencies, if I didn’t want to apply to residencies next year with a fiction project.
The project has a nice resonance in the heart, which indicates it’s on the right track. The right thing at the right time is like a tuning fork. You can feel when it matches the tone.
Saturday morning, I woke with the pre-storm headache, which was just not fun. Once the storm started, it eased a bit, but the weather cycled from snow to sleet to rain and back again, and it was yucky.
I drafted another episode of Legerdemain. I uploaded the next couple of episodes. It wouldn’t let me schedule today’s episode, so both of this week’s episodes are dropping on Thursday, and I have an apology graphic making the rounds. I’ll get next week’s episodes uploaded and scheduled by tomorrow, to make sure there are no glitches. I did the log lines and the episode graphics.
A friend sent me a submission call, and I had a short play that might fit, so that went out the door.
I rewrote the opening of “Labor Intensive” and then did another pass on “Plot Bunnies.” I put the opening of “Labor Intensive” in as a teaser, and added in teasers for “Just Jump in and Fly” and SAVASANA AT SEA, along with information about the serials. I kept finding little copy edit glitches, so I proofed it a few more times – and KEPT finding little niggly things. But I think it’s finally clean, and that’s uploaded and scheduled for April 4 release. I’ll be doing graphics and pre-order information and updating websites and doing a big push for the next couple of weeks on that.
But it was a full day’s work.
I did a bunch of work on contest entries, too, along with a bunch of admin work that needed to be done on them.
I dug through some books I’d ordered from the library as background for the Heist Romance. I scanned some information, and I also ordered a copy of one of the books, because I can use it as research on more than one project, and it will be useful to have on hand.
I went back to the Katharine Cornell biography and learned about Minnie Madden Fiske and the company she ran with her second husband, Harrison Grey Fiske. She’s listed in the book of American Women Theatre Directors of the 20th century, so I can do more digging on her, too.
I need to start putting together a timeline of some of these interesting women and see where they intersect. Because there’s a project in there, even if I don’t yet know what it is.
But I was tired by the end of Saturday. Really tired.
Tessa was the only one who slept on the bed on Saturday night, and I overslept on Sunday. But the cats got breakfast and I baked biscuits.
I drafted an episode of Legerdemain, and started the next episode. I finished, polished, uploaded and scheduled this week’s Process Muse, and then went ahead and wrote, polished, uploaded, and scheduled next week’s Process Muse. I’d like to get all of April’s posts written, polished, uploaded and scheduled this week to take the pressure off me in April.
I watched/listened to the prep video for the April yoga/eco challenge, and a lot of it resonated with me, which is a good thing.
Worked my way through a stack of contest entries in the afternoon. In the evening, I went back to the Cornell bio and made some notes for several different projects. I love it when one resource has multiple uses.
Had weird dreams Sunday into Monday. First, I was driving along a highway and had to keep stopping because people crossed in front of me. Pulled myself out of that dream, and was in the midst of fretting. Then, I realized I’m slipping back into the sense memory from before the move. I kept reminding myself that the feelings are real, but the reality has shifted to something more positive.
I hope, as I mentioned in yesterday’s “Intent” post, that I can use the pillars of End of Play and the yoga practice to ease that and prevent me from sliding back into that physical and mental state. It made April-May-June and even into July last year tough.
Finally fell asleep again and fell into more weird dreams, which fled as soon as I woke up.
Instagram no longer lets me cross post to Twitter and Tumblr. I can only post to IG & FB. Urgh.
I need ONE scheduling tool that lets me schedule unlimited posts to ALL my social media channels. But that doesn’t exist. Most tools only integrate with FB, IG, and Twitter. Some add Tumblr or Pinterest. That’s not good enough.
Did some admin, drafted an episode of Legerdemain, wrote a 3-page insert for GAMBIT COLONY. Scheduled the promos for this week’s episodes of Legerdemain and Angel Hunt.
Turned around three script coverages. I started them on the front porch, but it was too chilly. However, our yellow tulips are starting to bloom! So that’s lovely.
Completely forgot I’d signed up for Summer Brennan’s Essay Camp workshop, which started yesterday. Thank goodness for emails. I managed to get in both the writing assignment and the reading assignment.
Soup class was a lot of fun. Poor Jeremy. It’s gotten a little bit like herding cats for him.
After soup class, I had another idea for the Essay Camp assignment, so I did it. I think this one might be a stronger choice, but it’s always good to have options.
I went back to the Cornell bio. The chapter on the year-long rep tour by train (ROMEO & JULIET, THE BARRETTS OF WIMPOLE STREET, CANDIDA) was amazing and funny and difficult (among her co-stars were Basil Rathbone and a young Orson Welles). Maude Howell, the first female stage manager on Broadway, helped general manager Gert Macy set things up, before heading out to California to direct films. Minnie Fiske’s niece, Merle Maddern, was an actress in the company and a skilled tarot reader. They traveled with their own train cars with 50 actors, a crew, pets, spouses, scenery, props, and costumes. The Christmas performance in Seattle, where the train was delayed by storms, but the audience waited, watched them set up, and then they performed until 4 AM is a wonderful story in itself.
There’s a project in there.
What and when, I don’t know, but I’m gathering information. The research will be tons of fun. I can also use some of this as inspiration for the REP serial, even though REP’s premise is very different. I’m not sure when it can fit into the schedule (probably next year), but it is very much my kind of project.
Dreamed I was part of a very busy writers’ group overnight, which was fun, but I felt like I’d put in a full day before I woke up.
FALL FOREVER is definitely ready to be written. I’m feeling that pull of “come on, now, tell my story” and I’m looking forward to April 1. I’m attending the virtual kick-off party on Friday night. I can’t attend Sunday’s virtual New England event because it conflicts with yoga AND with Sunday supposed to be my day of not going online, and, in this case, the yoga needs to come first.
Twitter’s only putting those who pay for blue checks in the “For You” feed (which is where the people I follow show up, rather than in the “Following” feed). That starts April 15. I think, that week before, I will lock my account. I need to shift my focus to building community on other platforms, and remind myself that it took years. But I need to put attention there, because, although Twitter used to fuel sales (especially for the Topic Workbooks) and reads and other things, it hasn’t the last few months. I need to figure out where my audience has shifted, and establish myself there.
The “Plot Bunnies” launch will end just as that’s happening, so I’ll be able to get some good metrics about the shift in a couple of months.
Speaking of “Plot Bunnies” it’s starting to go live for pre-order. I will post more info when I get relevant information up on the website, in the next few days. It re-releases on April 4, which is next Tuesday.
On today’s agenda: working on Legerdemain, working on tomorrow’s Ink-Dipped Advice post, prepping the launch info for the re-release of “Plot Bunnies,” turning around two scripts (one of for which I was requested), and then, tonight, yoga.
There’s no episode of Legerdemain going live today because of the glitch; again, my apologies. Have a good one!
I already feel myself slipping back into the pre-move tensions, reliving the stress in both my body and my mind. It made sense last year, because it was still relatively close to the move.
But it’s unnecessary this year.
I keep reminding myself, when the feelings rise up, that yes, the feelings are real, but those stresses are no longer my reality, and I’m building something new.
I hope that April’s pillars of the increased yoga practice and Dramatists Guild End of Play program will help in that build, so that my body and my brain will accept this new, better reality.
Meditation was good yesterday (it always is) and gave the day a cheerful start, in spite of the weather.
My Llewellyn editor got in touch yesterday morning and offered me a slot in the 2025 SPELL-A-DAY. Yay! I’m happy to be a part of any of their almanacs, but that one is my favorite. I’m in this year’s (under the Cerridwen Iris Shea byline), and they like to give different authors on their roster a chance to participate, so I didn’t think I could do it again for a few years. I’m so happy. I’ll get the contract and the assigned dates in a month or so. And I don’t have to worry about saying anything before signing the contract, because they’re good about this stuff. I mean, I’ve been writing for them since 1994!
That means I’ll get started writing/working on material toward the end of April/beginning of May, just as I’m finishing up Dramatists’ Guild End of Play and finalizing the contest entries/winners. So that dovetails well.
I drafted an episode of Legerdemain. I did a revision on “Plot Bunnies” which included updating technology, along with general tightening up and making it read better. I created the Series Bible for the Twinkle Tavern stories and entered in the information from this tale. It’s a novelette, just over 7K. I found the opening of “Labor Intensive” – the second TT story — I’d written a few years back, and can tweak that. I have to decide which other teasers to put in. Definitely something from “Just Jump in and Fly” and probably something from SAVASANA AT SEA, since they are both under the Ava Dunne name. I might put in blurbs for Legerdemain and Angel Hunt.
Wrote and submitted my book review; got my next two books for review. Did the social media rounds to promote yesterday’s episode of Legerdemain.
The last expected box of office supplies arrived, and also the kitty litter. Nothing like hauling 45 pounds of cat litter up the stairs to make one feel old.
There was a 4000-word hit piece on author Brad Sanderson in WIRED magazine that made the rounds. It said more about the so-called “journalist” than it did about its subject, and was nothing more than a badly-written, bitter word salad. The guy spent five months visiting the author, talking with him, meeting his friends and family, attending conferences – and all he could say was the guy is boring, makes a lot of money and he’s Mormon? First of all, it’s not the interview subject’s job to entertain the journalist (although many subjects, especially performers, feel that need). It’s the journalist’s job to come up with interesting, engaging questions to make the subject think, and then take whatever comes out of it and use the writing craft to MAKE it interesting. The “journalist” came in already disliking Sanderson’s work (so why accept the assignment?), resenting the money the VERY POLIFIC AND DEDICATED writer EARNS (nothing is handed to Sanderson, he puts butt in chair and does the work), hating the guy’s religion, and says the guy and his fans are “boring.”
First of all, in my years of doing this (and I’ve probably been interviewing subjects since before Bitter Boo was born), almost everyone has something interesting about them if you just give them a chance. That’s why interviewing is so much fun. You find the key and unlock what they’re passionate about. And then you get out of the way and let them shine.
In addition to just being a mean piece, it meandered, it whined for 4000 words (4000 repetitive, whiny, BORING words that were about the author instead of the subject, not a feature piece), and it was simply badly written, which is one of the most unforgiveable things about it (along with many of the other unforgiveable things about it). Any self-respecting editor would have killed the piece, or reassigned it, or demanded massive rewrites. And the editor should have handed Bitter Boo a stack of NEW YORKER magazines so he could see how a good profile is put together.
That’s the best you can do after FIVE MONTHS with your subject? Says a lot about the lack of skills and craft on the part of Bitter Boo.
It also dunks on the SFF fan community, which is ridiculous and uncalled for. Stop ridiculing people for finding joy in their lives, because they like something you don’t.
Now, I’ve been doing the conference circuit for more years than I like to admit, at least I was, pre-plague. There’s plenty of inappropriate and/or predatory behavior, no matter what the genre. There’s also a lot of kindness, laughter, and people finding joy. You learn to set boundaries, you learn to mash down those who won’t respect your boundaries, and you gravitate toward the joy.
Sanderson posted a gracious, kind, and classy response over on Reddit. I’m not a Reddit user, but writer Garth Powell was kind enough to post the link for us to follow. Sanderson defended Bitter Boo, calling him a “colleague” and “sincere.” I disagree with that – the only thing Bitter Boo was sincere about was his jealousy. Sanderson was as bewildered as many of the readers of the article as why loving one’s work and one’s friends and family is boring. Bitter Boo probably wanted dysfunctional family drama, with screaming and thrown drinks; in other words, the way Bitter Boo would behave if he had money. It was a very smart move on Sanderson’s part, because it made Bitter Boo look even worse by using kindness as a weapon. AND it was well-written, which showed the lack of skill in Bitter Boo’s writing in even sharper contrast.
There’s a reason Sanderson makes a fuckton of money. He’s smart, as well as prolific.
Good for him.
By the time I finished reading the response, I was laughing my ass off, because he was so darn clever about it.
With all of that going on, I only got about half a coverage done yesterday, which means I have a script and a half’s worth of coverage to turn around today.
I continued reading the biography of Katharine Cornell, and got so frustrated. Why weren’t we given information on Jessie Bonstelle, Rachel Crothers, Clemence Dane, et al, as part of our history? When we work shows, the history of what the theatre held before us is part of our story, and we become part of the theatre’s story. So why didn’t I know about these women?
Well, I know now, and will make up for lost time.
When I started reading Susanna Centlivre’s plays (as one of the most popular and produced 18th Century playwrights) in order to write “By Her Pointed Quill” I was delighted with her skill and humor and angry that I hadn’t come across her before.
Too much of mediore white men’s work is passed down and celebrated through history, while more talented women and POC are pushed to the side. I’m sick of it. Imagine how much richer our arts and humanities would be if that wasn’t the case? I have no problem with good work living on, and even lesser work remembered and enjoyed. But I do have a problem with work being shoved aside and buried under the mediocre because it wasn’t created by a white dude.
I’m going to work on Legerdemain this morning, and then give “Plot Bunnies” a final polish. I’ll upload, then give it a proof in the correct format probably tomorrow, before scheduling it. I’ll add “Labor Intensive” to May’s writing schedule, so I can draft it in May/June, let it sit in June/July, then revise, upload, and schedule in August. While percolating the third story, which will be built around President’s Day and need to release next February and be written this autumn.
I also have to do a library run. Nothing to drop off, but plenty to pick up. Grocery run, too, and then it’s back to script coverage.
Episode 18 of Angel Hunt drops today. I hope you enjoy it.
I have a busy weekend of serial work, “Plot Bunnies” polish, and, sadly, taxes. Urgh.
Yesterday went a little catawampus. I hoped the maintenance guy would show up sort of on time, and did all kinds of tasks, like folding the laundry and putting it away. And do the social media rounds to promote The Process Muse and Angel Hunt.
When he still wasn’t here, I sat down and got back to work on Legerdemain.
Which meant, of course, that he showed up, after I’d written about a half a page and was just getting into it.
But he’s very nice and knows what he’s doing and the dishwasher is fixed. Thank goodness. I didn’t want it to get swapped out for something not as nice.
It was hard to settle back to the page, and I didn’t get much else done.
It was nice enough to work on the porch in the afternoon, so I did the script coverage out there, and then I finished re-reading THE TREES WHISPERED DEATH and made some notes. I have to do some research on the Korean War. I gave one poor character three different first names over the course of the book, and have to fix that. I put the library in a separate building when I needed it in a different one, for plot reasons, and have to fix that. I gave one character a wife early on, and then had him in a relationship with someone in the park (for both plot and character arcs). Since he’s not the type of guy who’d cheat (and I don’t want to turn him into one), I’m going to make him a widower at the start of the book already. Both his marriage and his current relationship (that he’s trying to keep quiet) will escalate the conflict with his sister-in-law. I want to re-choreograph the climactic sequence; it reads a little rushed without having enough tension, and there are a variety of characters who must be effectively juggled in it. And there are plenty of basic revision/edit bits to clarify, tighten, clean up sloppy language, add in some more textural detail, etc.
These are all typical mistakes during the course of writing quickly during National Novel Writing Month, and not keeping tracking sheets at the end of each day’s work.
I’ve got my work cut out for me, but I’m definitely happier with it than I was when I finished the draft.
And it has to wait its turn until CAST IRON MURDER’s edits are done. Which aren’t going back into the schedule until May, unless I work on it at the laundromat in the interim.
We were notified that the grant payments will be delayed by 2-4 weeks, because the state is taking longer to process the paperwork than hoped. I’m disappointed; it means pushing back a writing research trip I’d hoped to make in April. But I appreciate that they let us know, so we can plan accordingly.
Finished reading the book for review last night. Will write up the review, send it off, and let them know I’m ready for the next assignment this morning.
I was going to run some errands today, but it’s raining, so I think I’ll wait until tomorrow. It’s nothing that can’t wait another day. I’d rather stay in and write, without breaking the flow for errands. I have two scripts in my queue for the afternoon. I want to work on Legerdemain and “Plot Bunnies” this morning.
Meditation this morning, and then back to the page. Episode 70 of Legerdemain drops today. 70 episodes! Feels like a milestone, somehow, although I’m sure 100 will feel even more so.
The latest Process Muse, about physical space, dropped this morning. You can read it here.
I had trouble settling into the page yesterday morning. I thought doing the dishes would help focus me, but I sat down and there were a million little fidgety things demanding my attention. Since I was in that kind of headspace, I did the social media rounds for yesterday’s episode of Legerdemain. I answered emails. I’ve got all but one email account down to manageable levels, and I’m working on that last one, while doing upkeep on the others. That one’s a little rough because I got on an email list for a “media company” that bulk sends sales emails, and every time I “unsubscribe all” they just send it from a different “publication.” I think I’m going to start reporting them as spam. I’ve put in multiple requests to take me off everything, and they ignore it. And they’re mucking up the email.
It’s not where I get my main business/writing email, thank goodness.
Hoopla is finally distributing The Topic Workbooks et al; I have so many links to add to my various pages. I need to block in time to get on top of that.
I’m getting another bonus for the serials, which is nice. I’m working on some paid advertising for them this spring.
I have Process Muse topics planned into next January! I managed to do a little bit of work on an upcoming post, but I need to fact check a few things. I will finish it up tomorrow or Friday and schedule it.
Put in a request to have maintenance come and take a look at the dishwasher. I’m pretty sure it needs a new power board; hopefully they’re willing to do that, and not just switch it out with whatever subpar dishwasher they have on hand. The guy was going to stop by either yesterday afternoon or this morning; it wasn’t yesterday afternoon, so I hope it’s this morning.
Turned around a coverage in the afternoon. It was warm enough to work out on the porch, with hyacinths and cats.
I’m looking forward to April, with the DG’s End of Play providing the emotional space to write FALL FOREVER, and then I’m doing an eco/wellness challenge with the yoga studio. I mean, daily life and script coverage and the rest is in there as well, but I’m really looking forward to those two pillars of the month’s structure.
Yoga was great last night. The woman behind me grew up on the street where I currently live, so we had a lot to talk about. Her daughter is opening a vintage clothing shop within walking distance, so I look forward to checking it out when it opens. I had some good conversations with several people there. The studio draws a really interesting, eclectic group. I’m looking forward to spending more time there.
Picked up takeout on the way home (I need to stop doing that). And someone was in my parking spot. I moved over two slots, to a space that’s usually free, because I didn’t want to take anyone else’s.
Slept well, although I had busy dreams. I was in an office I remembered in the dream from another dream. It had to do with horse racing. It was something about jockeys being drugged without their knowledge/against their will. I need to make a few notes, because there’s the seed of something there (and I haven’t written about horse racing in a long time).
Up early. Off to the laundromat (believe me, it was necessary). I was the only one there, which was glorious.
While the laundry went through the machine, I started the first read-through of THE TREES WHISPERED DEATH since I finished the first draft in December. When I finished the draft, I was relieved that it was finished, but I was discouraged. However, starting the read, there’s a lot I really like, especially when it comes to voice, dialogue, and character. Don’t get me wrong, there’s plenty to do on it, PLENTY, before it’s submission-ready, but there’s a good foundation. Both this and CAST IRON MURDER, I think, are suitable for agent/traditional submissions rather than small publisher submissions, as long as I don’t get boxed in to “cozy.” TREES is definitely historical mystery (1957) with an older, amateur female sleuth AND deals with the issues of the day, so it would be difficult to try to push it into a cozy box. CAST IRON deals with contemporary social issues; it could be heavily revised to be a cozy, but that would destroy the book, in my opinion. Both have strong, older female protagonists at the center. Both have long-term series potential.
I will sit down and write a series overview for each as I work on revisions, and have that ready, in case it’s requested. I have thumbnails of the first three books in each series. I have publishers in mind that I think would work for each of them, but I will probably query agents first, although I don’t think that will happen until autumn for CAST IRON and probably not until next spring for TREES.
But both are stronger, overall, than I thought they were when I finished the original drafts. They definitely need both a developmental edit and a multi-colored draft edit to clean up sloppy writing, but they are nowhere near the hot messes I thought they were when I finished them, and that’s a good feeling.
I’m waiting for the maintenance guy to come and take a look at the dishwasher; I don’t want to get caught up in writing Legerdemain and then get interrupted; at the same time, if he doesn’t show up on time, or is hours late, I don’t want to lose that writing time. I guess I could fold laundry first, right? And then, if he’s not here by the time it’s folded and put away, I’ll sit down to write and hope he doesn’t show up until afternoon!
I have one script in my queue today and two tomorrow, so I’m in decent shape.
Episode 17 of Angel Hunt drops today. I hope you enjoy it.
My interview with the Boiler House Poets Collective went live on The Rumpus yesterday. You can read it here.
I hope you had a lovely day. It’s time to curl up for our regular Tuesday catch up.
I booked my hair appointment online on Friday for yesterday.
I also ordered my saucer chair online. At first, I got a confirmation that I could pick it up around noon. Then, I got a confirmation it was ready to pick up – about five minutes after I ordered it. The problem was that, in order to do the curbside pickup, I had to download the store’s app. Which made me furious. I do not want everything run by app. And that should have been clear when the selection for “curbside pickup” was made; then I would have just had it shipped.
Anyway, swearing the whole time, I downloaded the app, drove up the street to pick up the chair, brought it home, and deleted the app from my phone.
The chair is wonderful. It’s a lovely turquoise, and detailed to look like a shell. It’s comfortable, lightweight, and folds, which means it’s my official “residency chair” that I can take when I do residencies to which I drive.
I revised the two micro comic noir radio plays and submitted them, per the email exchange I had with the producers over the past couple of days. The third play, one of the Declan Shane plays (where the detective has his office in a Broadway musical rehearsal hall), doesn’t work as a two-hander. I will expand it back into a three-hander and send it when they open their ten minute call, which they told me opens in a couple of weeks.
I uploaded and scheduled next week’s promos for both Legerdemain and Angel Hunt. I thought I’d written the loglines for the set of Angel Hunt episodes I uploaded a couple of weeks back, but I guess I didn’t. So that’s on the agenda for the week.
I booked tonight’s yoga class.
I had to trudge back out to pick up some of my mother’s prescriptions. Even though Aetna Silver Script was paid through the end of March, it was cancelled once Compass was entered – but Compass hasn’t bothered to send the insurance cards with the information. So they tried to charge me the full, uninsured price for the drugs. I said no, there was a screw up. They did some magic on their own computers, and it wound up being a ZERO co-pay. So much better than on Cape Cod, where every month’s prescriptions were a fight, and they tried to sell you pills “by the pill” under the table for cash only while they “investigated.”
Insurance in the United States, especially Medicare “supplemental” insurance is a scam.
I finished the script coverage on the novel a production company wanted me to read, and sent that off.
The first box of office supplies arrived, with the stack of yellow pads. So I’m fine with writing in longhand on yellow pads for this next bit.
I was happy to hear that the ICC issued a warrant for Putin’s arrest. About damn time. This country needs to charge The Narcissistic Sociopath. It’s been promised for years, and the indictments never come.
I started reading a Major Book by a Major Author (that was written/published in the 70s). While it’s well written, I wasn’t in the mood for male 70’s whatever, so I put it aside. I started reading Mary Gordon’s SPENDING instead, which I’d come across when researching and writing The Process Muse post about muses a few weeks back. That’s definitely more what I’m looking for right now. It deals with the theme of the male muse, and, in this case, it’s a wealthy man who underwrites an older female artist’s career.
I actually slept well Friday going into Saturday. I was still a little disoriented by the time change – between that and losing a few days due to the storm, I was never really sure what day it was last week.
We left the house on Saturday and headed down to Pittsfield. We stopped in a shop on a whim, and found a few fun things, including a cake pan that makes little cakes in the shape of trains. We checked Re-store, but what I hoped for wasn’t there. Checked another favorite store and found a trio of gorgeous valences. Not that I know what I’ll do with them, but they are so beautiful and well-made that I grabbed them.
All the mail that had stacked up during the storm arrived in a flood: magazines, cards, my mom’s new insurance cards (finally), and the tarot deck I ordered.
It’s a pair of tarot decks, interpretations by Barbara Moore, art done by several artists. One deck is “As Above” and the second is “So Below.” They are different from each other and different than I expected, and it will take time to work with them properly. They do make sense for the coming year’s year-long reading that I do on Samhain, which takes two decks out of regular usage for an entire year.
A pair of white dudes were roaming the neighborhood pounding on doors, like incoming SWAT team. They said they were “checking the equity of the electrical company” and wanted copies of our electric bills. No lanyards, no company information, nothing. Do they really think we’re that stupid? I shut the door in their faces and refused to answer again when they started pounding. A legitimate company/nonprofit would have contacted the residents in writing ahead of time and had employees or volunteers with clear identification and some sort of professional whatever, even if it was a clipboard. Not dudes in climbing jackets pounding on doors asking for copies of utility bills. Not acceptable. And even with a clipboard and a lanyard, I wouldn’t have turned over my utility bill. Identity theft much?
Finished up the ironing from the latest fabric seasonal refresh and put everything away.
Read a lot. Mary Gordon’s SPENDING is giving me a lot to think about. It’s an exceptionally well-written book, and, especially in terms of what we were talking about on THE PROCESS MUSE a few weeks back about Muses, makes me think I’ll revisit the topic. Because, of course, the female artist/male muse experience is very different than the traditional male artist/female muse, and the book isn’t just a flip of that trope.
Sunday was a lethargic day for me, even though it was sunny. I need to remember that the day before the dark moon I have zero energy. Zero. And plan accordingly.
I did go out to a store to see if they had something I wanted; they didn’t, but they had a sale, and I got some cute summer shirts I can use for yoga and errands. Some went into the laundry basket; others have to be handwashed, and I got started on that.
Tried re-reading a book that had been a Big Deal back when it came out. While there’s some good stylistic work, it’s too much self-involved white boy, on the part of the protagonist and the author, and I just don’t care. There’s a lot of pretentiousness that was touted as brilliance at the time.
Ordered a pizza, because I was too tired to cook. I need to stop ordering in food so often. I can cook, and there’s food in the house.
Slept well Sunday into Monday, in spite of a series of weird dreams that Charlotte pulled me out of several times in the night.
I’d made peace with the fact I wasn’t going to get much of anything done at my desk in the morning, and that the afternoon would be all about script coverage, which took some pressure off me.
Plus, packed up everything I needed for errands Sunday night, which made me feel like I was six years old starting school.
Out of the house early on Monday, arriving way to early at the hair salon in Williamstown, but that was fine. I’d brought a book with me (I almost always have a book with me), and they were all very friendly and laid back. And masked. No signs, no fussing, people just did it, and that, too, made me feel more confident about the choice of salon. And the conversations all centered around the arts, rather than what I’ve heard so often at other salons, where it’s petty, vicious gossip.
The appointment took the full hour. I’ve never had a hair appointment that long that wasn’t with one of the Broadway hair dressers who used to cut my hair in my Broadway days. The longest appointment I ever had on Cape was twenty minutes. But then, only two haircuts in ten years there didn’t make me cry, so. . .
Anyway, the stylist was very nice. We figured length first, then she cut off the ponytail. I mean, the last time I got my hair cut was May of 2021, two weeks after my second vaccine shot. It was a lot of hair. If you saw the photo I posted on Insta/FB/Twitter – it was a lot of hair. They asked if I wanted to donate it and I said sure; they’re taking care of it. Then, it was a wash and condition, and the stylist got to practice her art. And it really was art. We’d gone over some photographs for basic ideas, and then she wanted to try something a little different, and I said, go for it. So she did, and it looks really good.
I feel like myself for the first time in years. YEARS.
It’s flattering, will grow out well, and not need a lot of fuss/product/styling in the day to day.
And it’s done before next week’s grant reception.
I was ever so pleased and gave quite the big tip, because she was worth every penny.
From there, I headed to my mom’s doctor’s office to update her insurance information. I went to Wild Oats to pick up a few things and use my member/owner credit from last year’s profits. I went to the pharmacist to make sure the insurance info was all updated, but the computer magic they did the other day held, and it’s all good.
I ran into Big Y to pick up small tomatoes, which I’d forgotten to get at the Wild Oats (although I managed to get curry paste at WO). Then it was a library run, to drop off/pick up books, mostly from Commonwealth Catalog. Love me some Commonwealth Catalog!
Stopped at the bank to deposit some unexpected checks (always love those). And home.
Found out that the article went live on The Rumpus, so I grabbed the link, created a PDF, and sent the link and the PDF to the poets interviewed, and over to MassMoca’s press office, and Assets for Artists. I also pulled an article off Clippings.me and added this one to the online portfolio, and put the link over on the Fearless Ink website. And, of course, saved it to my Clip files.
That took time, but it’s always better to do it right away. Putting it aside to get to “someday” means too much stacks up at once. Plus, I want to make sure that the interview subjects and sources get the link and their PDF copy for their own files before they come across the piece n the wild. It’s just basic courtesy.
Did the social media rounds to share the article link.
Turned around three coverages in the afternoon/evening. I was interrupted a few times to deal with some other stuff that came up, so it took longer than it would normally, and I wasn’t finished until 9 PM. I was able to spend some time working out on the front porch, because it was sunny and mild enough, and the hyacinths are starting to bloom. Willa and Charlotte were out there, too. Tessa had regained control of the sofa and was not about to give it up.
The dishwasher decided to stop working. I hope it’s just a fuse, because I LOVE this dishwasher, and if they have to replace it, it’s not going to be with one this good. But we’ll empty it this morning after breakfast, do the dishes by hand and put them away, and I’ll get in touch with the maintenance guy and see if he can swing by in the next few days.
Made a frittata in honor of the Equinox, and did a simple ritual at night, before I went to bed.
Up early. Weird dreams, including something about a teashop. As I was coming up out of the dream, I kept telling myself to remember the name of the teashop, but, of course, I lost it by the time I was fully awake.
Tessa has decided that she is sick and tired of Charlotte and Willa eating her food, so now she marches into the kitchen and eats their food, especially right in front of them. It’s all the same food, but it’s the principle of the plates and bowls that’s the issue.
After doing the dishes, I will get back to the page. I’m looking forward to the start of the Dramatists’ Guild End of Play, staring April 1. I realized, over the weekend, that the work I’ve done on FALL FOREVER is solid, and the play is ready to be written. It’s not screaming at me that if I don’t start RIGHT THIS SECOND I’ll lose it. But it’s ready to go on April 1. The percolating and note taking I’ve done has set the foundation. I haven’t made a detailed outline, but I know the shape and the emotions and the themes and the characters. It feels ready, in a calm, grounded way, and that feels good and right for this project.
I need to get ahead on Legerdemain; by the end of this week, I have to upload more episodes, and while I have those, I’m running a little too close to deadline on it right now. I also want to do some work on the “Plot Bunnies” revision and re-release. I want to make sure it’s uploaded and scheduled by the end of the week. Later in the day, it’s social media rounds to promote today’s episode of Legerdemain, and then a script coverage. I only have one so far; I hope some more come in for the rest of the week. If not, I’ll switch my focus to the contest entries.
I have yoga class tonight, and then I will work on the next book for review.
I should have planted yesterday, but didn’t. The next planting day is Friday. I’m getting a late start this year. Oh, well. There’s still snow on the ground, so I’m not going to worry about it too much.
Today the light and dark are in balance, and then it tips toward the light for the coming months. Days get longer.
The past few years, I feel like I lost a lot of myself, and that parts got fragmented and/or shattered.
My intent this week is to choose the shards I want, and to leave behind those I do not. I want to reclaim my self-esteem, sense of adventure, sense of being grounded in my work, optimism, and determination (among other things).
I want to leave behind much of the negatives of not just the years at the previous location, but negative patterns that I acquired beforehand, which may have served me early in my career, but no longer serve. Among those are demands for constant and unrealistic productivity, especially when it benefits only others; the projections others tried to force on me for their own convenience; the bewilderment at the hostility with which I was met at the previous location for my commitment to my work; the pain of constant self-defense to those who daily tried to tear me down to make themselves feel better; and the demand that I am the one who always has to comply/accommodate/defer to those who have not earned mutual physical and emotional space.
I’m aware these changes will take longer than a week, and are an ongoing process. But I want to use this day of balance as the moment where I step back into the parts of myself I like best, and choose to leave behind other parts.
It was sunny, off and on, yesterday, so at least that made the errand-running pleasanter. But good golly, did people want to TALK! You’d think we’d been trapped inside for months instead of a couple of days. It was pretty funny. And I’m not in that big a rush that I can’t stop and chat here and there. Even though yesterday, it wasn’t just here and there, it was everywhere.
Did some of the social media rounds before errands, and then did the rounds to promote Legerdemain after I came back. People like to start the day reading the blogs, article links do better late morning, and the fiction links do best in the afternoon or evening.
One of these days, there will be a scheduling tool that actually lets us schedule posts across more than FB/Twitter/Insta and then it will save me hours. Some of that time I can spend on sites you know, actually interacting more.
Polished and uploaded next week’s Process Muse post.
The library weeded out reference books about children’s art illustrators. I gathered up the three volumes they let go, covering 1744-1966. I have a feeling they will come in handy for various projects. Even though I don’t yet know which ones.
Bought more at the grocery store than I planned (gosh, I bet you’re shocked, SHOCKED), along with buying coffee AND restocking the “emergency coffee.”
What, pray tell, is emergency coffee?
Since I often buy small-batch, locally-roasted whole bean coffee and grind it for the Magic Coffeemaker, that’s become “regular coffee.” But if the power is out, or, for some reason, I can’t get to the store, I keep “emergency coffee” on hand. That is ground rather than whole bean, and usually one of the brand name espresso strength coffees. I use it when I make Vietnamese coffee. And, when the power is out, I can heat up water on the gas stove and use it in either the French press or the Melitta pot.
I am not a big fan of St. Patrick’s Day for oh, so many reasons. Back in my NYC days, I’d started taking it as a personal day and staying in, because people come in from all over to celebrate and are drunk and sexually harassing anyone in their path and puking in the streets by 8 AM. Cape Cod has some pretty intense celebrations, so I always made sure, if I was doing site work, that I was home by mid-afternoon, and then stayed put.
Last year was the first time we were here in the mountains for it, and it seemed pretty low key. Even the bar down the street (which has since closed), wasn’t too rowdy. I expected the college students to be out of control, but, for the most part, they weren’t too bad, even at the frat house down the block.
We’ll see how it goes this year, since so many people think the pandemic is over.
Charlotte is trying to learn how to play. She came to us not really understanding toys, except for the catnip banana and a few catnip sticks. Which is weird, because she came with a whole box of toys. Most of the time, she just watches Willa and Tessa play from a safe distance. If one tries to engage her, she backs away slowly.
But Wednesday night, she picked out a couple of toys and tried to play with them. It was a bit awkward, but I kept encouraging her, and she kept trying, until she realized that Willa and Tessa stopped what they were doing to watch her. But it’s progress. Let her get comfortable in her own time.
Willa loves mice and stick toys, and sometimes the balls with the bells in them. Tessa loves mice, pom poms, and stick toys. Considering Tessa is the Grande Dame of the household at age 12, it’s amazing how much she likes to play. And whenever she wants play time, she gets it.
I have three scripts in Monday’s queue, so that’s a good thing.
I did the social media rounds for yesterday’s episode of Legerdemain. I edited, polished, and uploaded two more episodes, wrote their loglines and made their episode graphics. Today I will schedule the promos, along with next week’s episodes of Angel Hunt.
Updated the tracking sheets. Tried to set up character cards for Legerdemain in Scrivener, since there’s a lot to track. While I have the character sketch thing down, the only way I can work plot arcs is via “Untitled Document” or some such shit. Even creating a template, there’s no place to put the damn thing. Unless I completely work from a blank binder, but then I can’t mix and match the character, location, and plot arc cards.
Just fucking let me choose/create my categories and create new index cards. I hate it when software micromanages me. I looked up a few sets of instructions to “create new index card” and the way it’s shown and what’s coming up on my screen are, of course, different. I’ll play with that. It’s not that big a deal.
Or, I’ll go back to my old-school tracking sheets, which, you know, actually work the way I need them to because that’s how I created them.
A book on AMERICAN WOMEN STAGE DIRECTORS OF THE TWENTIETH CENTURY arrived (fast, I only ordered it a few days ago). I bought it for the chapter on Jessie Bonstelle, but flipping through it, there’s information on a lot of the women with whom I’ve worked in theatre throughout the years. I’m very excited to sit down and enjoy the book.
I heard from a theatre to which I’d submitted a play about a month ago, acknowledging receipt. I heard from another company, to whom I’d submitted formatting questions for the one-minute radio plays and never heard back. They answered, I thanked them and said I’d watch for the next open call (since I missed this submission call because I hadn’t heard back). They responded and said they felt bad that they hadn’t responded in time for me to make the deadline, and I could go ahead and submit this week; even though they got a lot of submissions, they’re interested in looking at mine.
Which means my focus changes this morning to getting those micro-plays polished and out the door today.
Their call for 10 minute plays opens in two weeks, and I have something to submit to that, too.
I need to look at the science fiction horror western that used to be called “Severance” and find a new title, get a new cover, and re-upload it as a Delectable Digital Delight in the coming weeks/months. It was ahead of the fashion when it first came out, Of course, researching the titles that make the most sense, there are pieces out there with those titles. Even though one can’t copyright a title, I’m trying to come up with something different (and why I’m changing the title it released under before, because of the TV show of the same name).
Put in an order for office supplies, and ordered a double tarot deck I absolutely do not need but wanted (and will make use of, in writing and articles).
By accident, I found an article I wrote a few years back, and I need to add it to my portfolio. Clip file, and up on the site.
Soup class (which had been postponed from Monday) was a lot of fun. Someone’s cat was being very vocal, and then my three had a few choice opinions, and then someone’s dog added to the mix, so it was a very pet-friendly class.
Finished reading the material for the coverage and will write it up today. I did not sleep well last night; the time change is still messing me up, big time. I have to put in an order at a nearby store for curbside pickup today, and hopefully, I can finally schedule my haircut for next week. I want to get it cut before the grant reception, and there’s about 14 inches of hair to hack off.
I will polish and send off the short radio plays, and then get back to Legerdemain. This weekend will be a lot of work on Legerdemain, and also the polish/re-upload of “Plot Bunnies.” I want that to release the first week of April, which isn’t all that far away. And by re-releasing “Plot Bunnies” it means I’m committing to writing “Labor Intensive” and having that ready by the end of summer. So I need to get back into that world, set up the series bible, tracking sheets, etc. (not in Scrivener, but in my own system).
And, you know, get going on spring cleaning that I didn’t do because of the storm, and maybe, just maybe, starting to work on taxes, although I’ll probably push that off to next weekend.
Last year’s taxes shouldn’t be too complicated (famous last words). This year’s will be more so, with the grant and the residency and some other stuff, so I will utilize the help that’s offered in this region for working artists. I’m diligently tracking everything used for the grant down to the smallest detail as it happens, instead of just dropping it into a file and compiling it next winter, so that will help, too.
There’s an artist meetup next Tuesday, but it’s indoors, and I’m not comfortable with the (lack of) COVID protocols in place, so I’ll skip it. Thursday is a tossup between a theatre open house and MASSMoCA’s open studios. A lot will depend, again, on the weather.
Monday is the Equinox. It will BE spring, even if it doesn’t yet feel like it. Hopefully, I can do some planting this weekend, too. Sunday’s the next planting day.
Power was on, and internet worked. I blogged. I did the social media rounds to promote Legerdemain, Angel Hunt, Process Muse, and the Topic Workbooks. With Twitter in its death throes, the Topic Workbook sales have gone down, and since they pay a decent amount of bills, I better come up with a good marketing plan for them.
I tried to figure out Scrivener’s Corkboard, so that I could do Character and Plot notes. I have a system of Tracking Sheets, but I wanted to see if anything in Scrivener could do it more efficiently. It’s most vital for GAMBIT COLONY, but if it works, I can do it with other projects, too.
But of course, it’s Fucking Scrivener, so the way the tutorial says it works and the way it actually works are two different things. I looked at four different tutorials raving about how “easy” it is. None of the screenshots and directions were relevant to what was on my screen, and this was AFTER I downloaded the update.
I could only use the “Character Sketch” template once, which annoyed me. The ways it claimed to create a new one did not work the way shown. I tried a workaround in the Character file because I can corkboard there, and create blanks for the other characters and do them how I would in a series bible instead of using the Scrivener template which has too much that isn’t relevant. But having to do a workaround annoys me, because I should be able to use the function in the software.
For the plot arcs, I will use the “Places” file and name the plot arcs and do it that way.
I looked at DramaQueen, but it only has list features, not index card/corkboard features, even at the Pro level. Final Draft has pretty good story boarding and index card features, so it’s more and more likely I will use some of my grant money for that. I can export from DramaQueen to Final Draft, so I won’t lose anything I’ve done so far in DramaQueen.
By the time one figures out how to workaround Scrivener’s regimented crap, there’s no creative energy left to actually DO anything.
I might just buy a few more corkboards and do it old-school, with pushpins and index cards.
And then Windows11 decided it “had” to update, so there was that. And DramaQueen “had” to update (which was painless, as pretty much everything is with DramaQueen. Which is why I love DramaQueen so much).
But man, there went my creative time. I got a little bit of work done on Legerdemain, but nowhere near what I hoped.
I went outside to dig out the car from 3 feet of snow. Only it was more than three feet, because the cars on either side of me had left, and the plow plowed the snow up against my car on both sides, all the way up to the windows.
Fortunately, a kind neighbor walked by, saw I struggled, grabbed a shovel, and helped. I am so grateful. I will have to discuss this with the landlord. There’s got to be a better way. I am the oldest person with a car in the parking lot. I shouldn’t be the one shoveling the most snow.
I came back in, and my friend Diane, over in the UK, who is a Scrivener whiz, helped me figure out how to do what I need to do to create the character board for GAMBIT. I trashed the first hot mess project file, ahem “binder”, because it was beyond salvation, and created a new one, but now I have a rhythm. It has nothing to do with the way any of the tutorials I found explained it. I need write up notes to myself, so I don’t forget the steps. To get it in my physicality, instead of just thinking it, I set up the sketch names for everyone in the first chapter (a whole lot more people than should be in any first chapter, but necessary for a chapter auditioning actors in London). Anyway, those sketch templates are set up, so when I go back for the next revision, I can fill in details and start the plot arc board, so I can track where I’m ending arcs, and which arcs are series-long.
I mean, I oughtta be able to use Scrivener for SOMETHING, since I bought it and all, and if it works for this, great. Once I started working with the board, I enjoyed it. Whew! A tool that actually works, imagine that.
A fellow freelancer shared an article by a whiny bitch of an NYU student who hated her semester studying in Florence. FLORENCE! She whined that her SEVEN roommates travelled on weekends and she was “left alone” in the apartment to cook and walk around and go to museums (which sounds like heaven to me). She found people “hostile” toward her. Considering I wanted to bitch slap her just from reading the article, I’m not surprised. What a whiny, entitled waste of space who squandered a semester in FLORENCE. One is never alone when one is among art.
And that whole damn city is art.
She decided to be miserable, for a whole semester, and instead of making an attempt to turn the things that she found difficult into positives, she dug down deeper to be as much of an awful American as she could. She even boasted about how she embodied the Ugly American. The entitlement and cultural ignorance and lack of self-awareness in the piece, so she could justify being miserable, was appalling.
But then, most of us, especially in the arts, have a rich inner life which is further enriched by new experiences, and this individual does not.
I’ve traveled all over the world on my own, and been met almost always with kindness. Where there times when I was sad and lonely? Of course. I’m human. But then I made a choice to DO SOMETHING to make it better. In many cases, it was as simple as going to a bookstore or a museum or an historic site or a theatre production, and that cheered me right up. It allowed me to see and experience the place in new ways. And doing those things, I met with terrific people from all over the place that I might never have crossed paths with otherwise. I’ve made friends decades ago that are still my friends. I learned wonderful things and had amazing experiences. The whole point was that it was different from my life at home. Jeez, if you want it to be just like home, then STAY HOME. Don’t take a slot that someone who could have benefitted from it should have had, because you’re spoiled and entitled. What a shame this individual is an NYU alum.
Unclogged the bathroom sink because, you know, life as a writer is SO glamorous! 😉
Polished the next Process Muse post, so I can upload it today, and started the one after that.
Turned around a script, my first coverage since the end of last week. Started the novel they want me to cover.
Attended a virtual session with a chef Surbhi Sahni via NYU Alumni last night. It was a lot of fun, and the chef has a Michelin star for her restaurant down at South Street Seaport, Tagmo. It was a really interesting class, and she’s a lot of fun. Her former roommate, who’s now based in Paris, attended the virtual session to surprise her. What fun! I want to order some of their mithai.
My back hurt a bit from the shoveling, but it wasn’t too bad. I overslept, because I’m still on Standard time, not DST. Tessa Was Not Amused.
Meditation was good, as always.
I’m going to do some admin, and then head off to the library and grocery store. I’m out of coffee again, and that has to be remedied. Wild Oats was open during much of the storm, and offered themselves as a rest stop for the plow drivers. As an owner/member, I’m so glad we’re doing that.
Then, it’s back to the page. The only coverage I have for the rest of this week is finishing and writing up the analysis for the novel. Even if I finish that today, I will let that be my all for the week, and concentrate on getting ahead on Legerdemain and Angel Hunt, finishing the revisions on “Plot Bunnies”, and working on contest entries.
There’s sun, so maybe I can do some of my reading on the porch!
Episode 68 of Legerdemain drops today. I hope you enjoy it.
It still snowing. Sorry I didn’t post yesterday, but the power fluctuated, and the internet was out most of the day.
I hope you had a great weekend. We get a Wednesday catchup. Curl up with a beverage. This is a long one, because it’s been six days since we were last in contact.
Friday was a lovely, sunny day. I went out early in the morning to pick up my cake.
Then, we headed over to The Clark Art Institute in Williamstown. They have free admission for the month of March, so it seemed like a good time to check them out.
What an amazing space. It’s huge, and a little overwhelming. In addition to the multiple museum buildings and the research library, they have 140 acres of trails with sculptures.
Definitely something that needs more than a day.
We spent most of the time at the Promenades on Paper exhibit, sketches on loan from the Bibliotèque Nationale de France. Wow. The curation was exquisite, including the color choices for the walls. I was especially fascinated by the Opera sketches and the sketch of a “private theatre” that looked like it was a railroad car. I need to learn more about it. I wish I’d taken notes.
We wandered over to the permanent collection, but there was just too much to take in, all at once.
Definitely going back. Often.
The reception for regional grant awardees is there at the end of the month, so now I know where to go.
I bet the gardens and trails are gorgeous in spring, summer, and fall. Probably a good place to go and write.
We came home and I ordered A Whole Lot of Chinese food, just in case the weather was so bad on Saturday that I couldn’t get my birthday dinner.
I read in the afternoon, re-reading a book about the antiquarian book trade (my copy’s in storage). It was so nice that we could sit and read out on the front porch. All three cats joined us.
I did some research on the two antique books I picked up at Thursday’s book sale for a dollar each and it looks like they might have some value. Not the kind of value pristine first editions would have, but value, nonetheless. One is by James M. Barrie, who is most famous for PETER PAN, but wrote a bunch of other stuff, too. They are also earlier editions, probably closer to the turn of the twentieth century or late Victorian printings, rather than the twenties I’d figured. And one of the publishers had apprenticed with the other, so the two books are connected.
I will get some archival white cotton gloves to handle them when I read them, and then put them in a safe place while I do more research. Neither book fits the first edition descriptions, but they are nicely made pieces I will enjoy.
I had a leisurely reading evening, too. I want to know more about Anne Baldwin, who ran a print shop in the 17th century.
Slept fairly well. Had weird dreams about clay figures that had been slathered with a particular type of red paint. A former toxic boss was in the dream, asking for forgiveness. That’s how I knew it was a dream; she’d never do that in real life!
I somehow hurt both wrists in the dream, and woke up with sore wrists.
Saturday was my birthday, and it was snowing when I woke up.
I made smoked salmon eggs Benedict, which we had with Prosecco.
I did a library run, dropping off and picking up books ahead of the storm.
I started working on the revision for the upcoming “Plot Bunnies” re-release, and then I thought, why am I working on my birthday?
So I stopped.
I read. I’m reading a biography of actress Katharine Cornell that’s very fawning, but it has necessary information on Marian de Forest and Jessie Bonstelle. I can’t believe how few people remember Jessie Bonstelle, when she was such a force in touring companies and creating regional theatre as we know it.
I made notes for a couple of upcoming projects.
I re-read THE MOVING FINGER by Agatha Christie, which is the March “Read Christie” choice. It’s been years since I read it (it’s the one about poison pen letters). Christie is remembered for Poirot and Marple, and, although this is, technically, a Marple story, it’s told through the first person POV of another character, Jerry, and the structure is interesting.
I ordered and picked up dinner from a local restaurant I wanted to try, that touts itself as an upscale farm-to-table place. Um? When I went to pick up the food, the restaurant itself is small, dark, and dingy with cheap furniture, and the staff was more interested in talking about their dating lives than in their customers. The food was okay, but I wanted better than okay. I had a supposed “Bolognese” sauce that was more of a Roman-style meat sauce without the tomato sauce, but definitely not “Bolognese.” There wasn’t even a smidge of cream in it, and none of the seasoning that sets apart a Bolognese sauce. I mean, it was an okay meat sauce over a glop of overcooked spaghetti (not even fettucine). Not great (mine are better). But it wasn’t a layered Bolognese, and for that price, I expected layered taste.
My mom had what was supposed to be cordon bleu chicken in puff pastry, with sides of mashed potatoes and green beans, with a cheese sauce over it. There was chicken wrapped in pastry, with maybe a thin slice of ham and cheese around it, like deli-sliced. It was in some sort of dough sheet, but not the puff pastry stated in the description. The mashed potatoes were heaped over the pastry, and a basic alfredo sauce poured over it, with four undercooked green beans sticking out of the bottom. Huh?
The ”garlic bread” that came with my pasta was a few tiny (I’m taking 1/8” wide, and maybe 2” long), limp slices of leftover narrow baguette which had been dumped in warmed garlic-infused olive oil and wrapped in aluminum foil. It was dissolving and nearly inedible when I unwrapped it. That is not how one makes garlic bread.
And there was zero presentation. I mean, yeah, it’s a pickup, it’s going to be in containers (I’d brought an insulated bag). But don’t just glop it in the dish. At least try to make it look nice? A spring of parsley isn’t going to break the bank.
It’s not like they were overrun with customers.
It’s not that the food was bad. It was serviceable diner food. If I’d ordered it from a diner, I would have been satisfied. But it wasn’t a diner, and I didn’t want diner food. I wanted something special. This wasn’t it.
I won’t be eating there again any time soon.
But the cake made up for it. I’d bought a chocolate truffle bomb cake from a different place, and we’ve been eating the cake all weekend. It’s very rich, so we only have a small slice at a time.
Overall, it was a lovely birthday, filled with good wishes from friends online and off (and a package, from one friend, with a cat toy the cats love). I have such a tumultuous relationship with my birthday, it was nice to genuinely enjoy it and not work to enjoy it for anyone else’s benefit.
We “sprung ahead” for Daylight Savings Time on Sunday, which always screws me up for weeks.
Sunday was bright and sunny. I did a run to the post office to mail some stuff that needed to get out. We sat on the porch and read. I did some re-reading of GAMBIT COLONY material. When I do the next (and hopefully final) editing pass on these first sections, I need to set up better tracking sheets and do a more detailed Series Bible. I’m losing important elements, especially as I layer in other important elements.
I always wind up blocking a lot of oafs on social media on Oscar, Emmy, and Tony Award nights because they start pontificating about the business when none of them could last an hour on an actual set or backstage. It’s WORK, that requires enormous physical and mental capacity, so others can play. If the result isn’t your bag, that’s one thing. You like what you like, you don’t like what you don’t like, and that’s part of the risk creatives take when putting work out there. Not everyone will like it. But when they act like creatives don’t work for a living, and it’s not “real work” and they can pass judgement on what it’s like to DO the work when they’ve never spent a day on set, or done anything creative with high stakes to it, I’m done. They know nothing, NOTHING, about what it takes to get it done, so shut the fuck up you lazy, untalented, snarky coward.
Of course, when they show their asses like that and get blocked, my overall life is better without them, so better knowing sooner than later.
As a wardrobe person, I was a little unsettled with some of the red carpet choices. I’m all for wearable art, especially for something like the Met Gala. But award shows are about the creative artists who did the work, and too many of the choices on the “champagne carpet” (how pretentious was that?) were about the stylist’s ego and not about making the creative artist look good. There were some wonderful gowns and radiant individuals, but there were also choices that were not about making the wearer look their best, and often the hair and makeup didn’t work with the gown. And one could tell who used the same stylists, because the looks were too similar and about the stylist, not about the individual being styled, which I disagree with. On the positive side, I liked that there were many bold color choices. Too often, the palette is too similar, and people wear colors that don’t suit them because that’s the color trend for that year.
I read the book for review, and sent off the review on Monday morning, before the storm got too intense. Emails came in steadily, with cancellations and closures in the area for most of the week.
The storm started just after 8 AM. It started as snow, got heavier, then switched over to rain for most of the rest of the day.
Tuesday’s yoga class was cancelled, and Monday night’s soup class was moved to Thursday, because Jeremy had to travel and decided to get out while the storm wasn’t so bad.
I could not get my act together on Monday. I got through a lot of email. I updated my Creative Ground profile. I did some social media networking. I wrote up some project notes. I managed to get the first 20 episodes’ worth of Legerdemain graphics up on Pinterest. It’s such a pain, because when I try to arrange them in the correct order, after about 5 minutes, I have to log out and log back in. Getting all 60+ episode graphics up will be a PITA.
A director who’s worked on a bunch of my radio plays emailed me to say they miss me and would like more, so I sent off two they haven’t yet done. I still owe them a dirigible play. I guess I should get back to that. I haven’t heard from the other producer in absolute ages, so I’m not sure what’s going on with the play he has, and the other ones he wants. I’m assuming there’s a delay.
I finally gave up on getting anything on the “should” list done. I’m fine on my deadlines, so I didn’t have to worry.
I buried myself in another re-read of the GAMBIT COLONY material. Which of course, means taking the red pen and cutting or adding or making adjustments. There’s a vital position in the production team that I’ve ignored in all these drafts, and I have a feeling I have to suck it up and layer in another character. I also worked a big chunk before I realized that I was working on THE WRONG DRAFT. I’d picked up the wrong binder. When I got back to the correct draft, I’d already put in most of those changes! At least I know I’m on the right track.
It hadn’t started snowing by the time I went to bed on Monday. I woke up around 3:30 (feline shift change), and it had just stared; there was about an inch on the ground, but it came down hard.
When I woke up again just before 6, the power was out. I figured, because there was no scent of coffee.
The cats, however, Weren’t Having it, so I hauled myself out of bed and fed them, then went back to bed for a bit, watching the snow. The lights were on at the college, because they have emergency power generators, so I use the sound of the heaters (or lack thereof) to know if the power is on or off. That, and the fact that I don’t hear the hum of the downstairs neighbor’s television, which is on 24/7.
I finally dressed in layers – fleece-lined leggings under velvet leggings, oversized handknit sweater over turtleneck, thick socks. The snow was intense!
The gas stove still worked, when I lit the individual burners, so I made coffee in the French press and made tea for my mom. We could have a cooked breakfast and all, so it wasn’t too bad.
I’d unplugged the laptop the night before, and I powered it down. There was no internet, but occasionally the phone signal was strong enough to post a picture. The power went off and on all day.
We bundled ourselves under layers of blankets and cats in the living room, so we could watch the snow come down. I had the binders with GAMBIT COLONY and just kept reading. I layered in the missing character (this is a cast of Many, dealing with life behind the scenes shooting a large television series), and, by the time I got to re-reading the latest draft of book 3 in the series, realized I had to change her name because it’s too similar to that of two other characters. While one often works productions where multiple people have the same name, I only do that in this series when there’s a plot-or-character related reason for it, and I try to keep the names of people who are often in the same scenes together different enough not to be confusing.
The original GAMBIT COLONY Series Bible is a hot mess with all the drafts over the years. I know I need to start a fresh one. I’m also considering doing a corkboard type of document to track characters and make sure I’m following through on arcs, much as I would if it was a scripted series. I did a little digging, and it looks like there’s a way to do that in Scrivener. Since I own Scrivener software, and it doesn’t work for me to draft (since it won’t let me draft in standard manuscript format, and that’s a deal breaker for me), maybe I can at least use the corkboard function. I found a tutorial on creating a binder and ditching the document file so it allows one to just use the corkboard, so when I get to that point, I will try.
I’d hoped Office had an index card format, but it only has one for Windows10. I’d have to buy the NoteDex app, and it doesn’t have the flexibility I need. No, thank you. I’ll figure out how to use the board in Scrivener. I’ll also look at DramaQueen, the script software I use, and see if my version has one. I’m still dithering whether I should just suck it up and use some of the grant money (when it arrives) for Final Draft. That would be the professional thing to do. I know Final Draft has the board option. Plus I’d use it for, you know, scripts.
It was great to submerge myself in that GAMBIT COLONY world for a couple of days, but now I need to finish books 5 & 6, and do a big overall revision/organization, because they are all of a piece, and all have to be done before any of them can release, much less get submitted. I have stacks of notes on what happens next; I just have to work it into the schedule.
I heard from a market I’d forgotten I’d contacted that yes, I could submit to them in radio format. Now, I have to go back through my notes and figure out what it was I meant to send them.
The snow is still coming down hard, and will be all day. I expect the power and internet will continue to fluctuate. If it does, I’m still on top of deadlines. If I can get some work done – on Legerdemain, and making the rounds for yesterday’s episode of Legerdemain, and today’s episode of Angel Hunt and the latest Process Muse (which is about research), I will do so. I have one script in the queue due Friday, and a novel they asked me to read and comment on for adaptation due Saturday, which I hope to finish by Friday. So we’ll see.
I feel guilty that I was in GAMBIT COLONY world during time I could have been working on the Heist Romance, but since the power was out and the internet was out, I couldn’t have accessed the software anyway.
I HATE cloud-based everything. I want it in my damn computer, so I can work offline.
Anyway, breakfast, then back to the page. I need to get back to work drafting new episodes of Legerdemain. I have episodes for the next couple of weeks, which I’ll upload later this week, but I want to get farther ahead.
I am NOT looking forward to digging the car out from nearly three feet of snow. If it lets up mid-day, I’ll start. Otherwise, I’ll wait until tomorrow and take as much time as I need to do it, in sections. The car looks like a baby igloo, with al the snow piled over it.
Another snowstorm is set to come in tonight, and yet another one early next week, which could well derail plans. But that’s okay.
Did the social media rounds early, and got some other stuff done, including getting my email box down to something manageable on at least one account.
Had trouble settling into meditation. The leader was late, and I got caught up in something while waiting, and was distracted.
Someone I’ve known for a long time showed (again) what a misogynist he is. I shouldn’t be surprised. Not my problem. I don’t have to engage. Disappointing, but hey. When someone shows you who they are, pay attention.
I have to say, I’m optimistic about Saturn in Pisces (and I hope I don’t get my ass kicked for that optimism). The last time that happened was 1993-1996, which were years of huge positive growth for me. I look forward to taking what I learned then and since, and applying it to this period.
In the afternoon, I pulled myself together and headed to Pittsfield. It was a lovely day to be out and about. The sun had come out, and warmed things up.
Even though I was early, the place was packed, and parking was a nightmare. I played a hunch and went down a street in a different direction and made it work. I parked under the parking sign, so there was no mistake I was in a legal spot, and hiked a couple of blocks to the library. I paid my membership, got my number, and in I went.
It was packed. Just as packed as if I’d come in with the regular population. I found a few things, some CDs, some books for my mom. The cookbooks were ones I either had or didn’t want. I found two old books (from the 20s, I believe) that I have to do some research on provenance, that I picked up because I thought they were nicely made.
I couldn’t get near the art books or the history books because dealers had set up boxes blocking regular people from getting to the shelves and were just shoveling books in.
Dealers shouldn’t be allowed in the member preview, at least not if they’re preventing people from getting to the shelves. I get that they need to make a living and it’s hard, but if they can’t behave with grace, they should have to wait until the end of the sale.
I realized I didn’t want to be in a crowded room full of pushy people (even though I was masked). So I took what I had and checked out and came home.
It took me longer to find a parking spot than I spent at the sale.
But it was a nice drive there and back, and nice to be out.
The seeds came from Eden Brothers, so I will do some planting this weekend. I ordered mostly medicinal herbs, but also zinnias.
I went to bed very early last night and slept for nine hours.
Today is bright and cold, in spite of snow predictions. I will run out this morning to pick up my cake and a few other things. Later this morning, we’re headed to the Clark Institute. I’ll do the social media rounds probably in the afternoon, promoting Episode 14 of Angel Hunt.
According to a notification, today is my Twitter Anniversary. I joined in 2009, so it’s been 14 years. That’s centuries in tech time. What a shame it’s such a dumpster fire lately. But I’m grateful for the fun I’ve had there in the past.
Tomorrow is my birthday. It will probably be a fairly quiet day, especially if it’s snowing. I’d hoped to bring in dinner from a local farm-to-table restaurant, but if the weather’s awful, I’ll wait a few days.
Have a good weekend, and I’ll catch you on the other side!
GWEN FINNEGAN MYSTERIES
Archaeologist Dr. Gwen Finnegan is on the hunt for her lover’s killer. Shy historical researcher Justin Yates jumps at the chance to join her on a real adventure through Europe as they try to unspool fact from fiction in a multi-generational obsession with a statue of the goddess Medusa.
Buy links here.
When plans for their next expedition fall through, Gwen and Justin accept teaching jobs at different local universities. Adjusting to their day-to-day relationship, they are embroiled in two different, disturbing, paranormal situations that have more than one unusual crossing point. Can they work together to find the answers? Or are new temptations too much to resist? For whom are they willing to put their lives on the line? Available on multiple digital channels here.NAUTICAL NAMASTE MYSTERIESSAVASANA AT SEA
Yoga instructor Sophie Batchelder jumps at the chance to teach on a cruise ship when she loses her job and her boyfriend dumps her. But when her boss is murdered, Sophie must figure out who the real killer is -- before he turns her into a corpse, too. A Not-Quite-Cozy Mystery.
Buy Links here.COVENTINA CIRCLE ROMANTIC SUSPENSEPLAYING THE ANGLES
Witchcraft, politics, and theatre collide as Morag D’Anneville and Secret Service agent Simon Keane fight to protect the Vice President of the United States -- or is it Morag who needs Simon’s protection more than the VP?
Buy links here.THE SPIRIT REPOSITORY
Bonnie Chencko knows books change lives. She’s attracted to Rufus Van Dijk, the mysterious man who owns the bookshop in his ancestors’ building. A building filled with family ghosts, who are mysteriously disappearing. It’s up to Bonnie and her burgeoning Craft powers to rescue the spirits before their souls are lost forever. Buy Links here. RELICS & REQUIEM
Amanda Breck’s complicated life gets more convoluted when she finds the body of Lena Morgan in Central Park, identical to Amanda’s dream. Detective Phineas Regan is one case away from retirement; the last thing he needs is a murder case tinged by the occult. The seeds of their attraction were planted months ago. But can they work together to stop a wily, vicious killer, or will the murderer destroy them both?
Buy link here.
Full Circle: An Ars Concordia Anthology. Edited by Colin Galbraith. My story is “Pauvre Bob”, set at Arlington Race Track in Illinois is included in this wonderful collection of short stories and poetry. You can download it free here.
Archaeologist Dr. Gwen Finnegan is on the hunt for her lover’s killer. Shy historical researcher Justin Yates jumps at the chance to join her on a real adventure through Europe as they try to unspool fact from fiction in a multi-generational obsession with a statue of the goddess Medusa.
Buy links 
When plans for their next expedition fall through, Gwen and Justin accept teaching jobs at different local universities. Adjusting to their day-to-day relationship, they are embroiled in two different, disturbing, paranormal situations that have more than one unusual crossing point. Can they work together to find the answers? Or are new temptations too much to resist? For whom are they willing to put their lives on the line? Available on multiple digital channels 
SAVASANA AT SEA
Yoga instructor Sophie Batchelder jumps at the chance to teach on a cruise ship when she loses her job and her boyfriend dumps her. But when her boss is murdered, Sophie must figure out who the real killer is -- before he turns her into a corpse, too. A Not-Quite-Cozy Mystery.
Buy Links 
PLAYING THE ANGLES
Witchcraft, politics, and theatre collide as Morag D’Anneville and Secret Service agent Simon Keane fight to protect the Vice President of the United States -- or is it Morag who needs Simon’s protection more than the VP?
Buy links 
THE SPIRIT REPOSITORY
Bonnie Chencko knows books change lives. She’s attracted to Rufus Van Dijk, the mysterious man who owns the bookshop in his ancestors’ building. A building filled with family ghosts, who are mysteriously disappearing. It’s up to Bonnie and her burgeoning Craft powers to rescue the spirits before their souls are lost forever. Buy Links 
RELICS & REQUIEM
Amanda Breck’s complicated life gets more convoluted when she finds the body of Lena Morgan in Central Park, identical to Amanda’s dream. Detective Phineas Regan is one case away from retirement; the last thing he needs is a murder case tinged by the occult. The seeds of their attraction were planted months ago. But can they work together to stop a wily, vicious killer, or will the murderer destroy them both?
Buy link 
Ink In My Coffee 