The weekend was a little scattered, full of all kinds of weather, but also creative.
I hope to ride that wave of creative energy through the week, doing deep work on my own projects, and building up some ore client work.
What’s your intent for the week?
Tuesday, July 5, 2022
Waxing Moon
Pluto. Saturn, Neptune Retrograde
Cloudy and pleasant
Why, yes, I started the week by writing a full draft of a new one-act play this morning.
Friday morning, I got the review and invoice out. I was paid my month-end fee by the biggest client. I got some information on something for which I want to apply in autumn. Sent a marketing idea to my shared world anthology editor.
I set up all #31Prompts to release via Tweetdeck at 11 AM each day. They will be consistent on Tweetdeck, and hit all the other social media channels whenever I can get them up. But at least, if you follow along on Twitter, it will be consistent.
Made a logo for #31Prompts, and also for the Friday Journal Prompts which are exclusive to my Ello page.
Turned around a script coverage in the afternoon, and received two scripts I will turn around today.
Got the information for The World’s (Possibly) Largest Poem event on the 23rd – when to get there, how we’ll be set up, etc. They’re giving us a travel stipend for gas, which will help. Thankfully, gas prices have gone down 34 cents in the last week or so. Which is good, since I need to top up this week (I always refill the tank when I hit half).
Spent the late afternoon on the front porch with an ice-cold martini, reading THE NEW YORKER and VANITY FAIR. It was hot, but not unbearable.
An article I read in VANITY FAIR gave me an idea to layer into GAMBIT COLONY, so I started doing that. Yeah, I’ve been working on that series for years. Eventually, I will finish it! But it’s always a comfort for me to work on it, even though it’s large and unwieldy. It has a very specific target audience. Anyway, I wrote about six pages of new material, to layer in another character’s story. At some point (probably over the autumn and winter), I will go back to finish Book 5 and write Book 6, then do another pass, because those first 6 books encompass the major story arcs and hopefully will release fairly close together.
But GAMBIT COLONY can’t be the main focus right now, just a stress release valve. The Big Project needs my primary focus.
A thunderstorm with lightning woke me a little after midnight, going into Saturday. Tessa and Charlotte were scared, so I stayed up with them for a bit. Willa yawned and went back to sleep. Not a lot bothers her.
It was still drizzling when I went to the Farmers’ Market, but I made my rounds, and then went to the grocery store to fill in.
Saturday was a bit of A Day: woke with a migraine, stepped on glass later in the afternoon and cut my foot, choked on a vegetable at night. Survived, but let’s hope that’s my quota for the month!
Dived into the world of GAMBIT COLONY and stayed there most of the weekend, tweaking, making notes on additional scenes, making cuts. The years of work put into it need to eventually add up to something. I wrote about 20 pages of new material.
A friend is working a show at an historical playhouse on Cape where I worked a few years back. I had a very mixed experience (slanting to the negative) when I worked there. I’m glad I got to be a part of its history, but it’s highly unlikely I’d work there again. I hope she has a better experience.
Salmon with fresh dill and lemon basil on Saturday night, which was good. Coq Au Vin in the crockpot Sunday, which was okay, but now that I have the base recipe, I need to work on it to deepen the flavors.
We were so lucky for most of the weekend. There were some controlled fireworks for about an hour or so every night, but not the constant shelling, danger, and noise that we had on Cape. So much healthier for us and for the cats. I heard from colleagues still living on Cape that it was absolutely packed and awful all weekend. Hard to get into the grocery store; lines to get to the beaches; and so forth.
I wonder how high the Covid numbers coming out of there will be in two weeks?
The weather’s been warm, but not unbearably hot, which has been nice. I haven’t taken advantage of Windsor Lake yet, but that’s on this week’s schedule! Spending regular time at the lake.
Monday, I was paid by a client and received my next assignment.
I intentionally stayed fairly quiet this weekend, in spite of the nice weather. My body demanded it, with all the sense memory stress. Here’s hoping that I pull out to the other side in the next few days.
I took Willa out on the back balcony on Monday afternoon. Tessa and Charlotte set up a Big Fuss. So everyone got a turn, each in her own playpen, for about a half hour each. That allowed for harmony in the afternoon.
There were some fireworks, but not dickheads setting them off in the streets. Around 10 PM, down past the end of our street, there was a professional fireworks display that ran 20-30 minutes, setting the starbursts over our street. It was beautiful, well-choreographed, and not very loud. Very pretty. We sat on the front porch and watched it. Well, Tessa didn’t like it and hid in the bathroom, but the rest of us watched it from the front porch, and some of the neighbors came out into the street to watch. It was fun.
Unlike feeling like one was being bombed 24/7 for days and having to worry about the roof catching fire, like on Cape Cod.
The shooting in Highland, IL was atrocious, especially since the cops were right there, “couldn’t” catch the shooter, but later took him “without incident.” This, after a black man in Akron was shot 60 times for a traffic stop and his dead body handcuffed. This is not acceptable.
And the Dems just shrug, tell us to “vote harder” and try to fundraise off it.
No. Just no. Do your fucking jobs.
When I finally did get to bed, I had a huge sense memory flashback to this time last year, when I was in the almost empty house, with the last few loads of boxes going to storage, hoping the roof wouldn’t catch fire from the illegal fireworks, because I’d given the hose away. On the 5th last year, was the day of my final storage runs, cleaning the house, and finally getting the hell out, so maybe, just maybe by 9 PM tonight, when I’d hit my favorite hotel in Sturbridge last year, exhausted and in tears, and they upgraded me to a fancy room, I will finally be done with the sense memory stress. I just have to ride out today.
It already started better than this day last year. I woke up with an idea for a short play, sat down before breakfast, took a quick breakfast break, and had the first draft written by 8:30 AM. It’s short, a one-act, but it was a place to put my rage, with a character who comes up with a solution. I mean, it needs work, it’s a first draft, but I said what I wanted to say. Once it’s polished, it’ll go out on submission. It’s called “The Little Woman” so you can guess the context and content.
A colleague on the Monthology anthology, who is helping the editor decide the order of the stories, said she read mine last night and it was so beautiful it made her cry. I’m delighted! I hoped it would have that power.
Today, I catch up on a lot of admin, and start writing my Llewellyn article, which is due by the end of the month. I’ll go back and wrestle with the formatting on the SUBMISSIONS Topic Workbook, and start putting in the edits to the first big arc of The Big Project, so that I can have clean copy to submit by early next week. I have some scripts in my queue, including one for which I was specifically requested. This week, I’ll also do some work on a couple of the other Topic Workbooks, and work on the slides for my class. If you haven’t yet signed up for it at the CCWC, the class is about “Developing the Series” and you can sign up here. It’s in the late afternoon of Aug. 6.
I hope your long weekend wasn’t too chaotic, and you were able to have both rest and pleasure.
Peace, my friends. We have to go to war for it (again), but we can get there.
Wednesday, June 29, 2022
Waxing Moon
Pluto, Saturn, Neptune Retrograde
Sunny and warm
I’m happy with the work I did on The Big Project yesterday, and that will probably be the biggest focus for the upcoming weekend: getting the edits on the first large section done while working on the second large section (this will all make sense when I reveal what this project actually is). It’s bizarre not to finish the entire thing and then edit the entire thing, but since there’s technically not and “end” (although there are options to impose one), that’s how this needs to be done.
The editor confirmed that I am in the first volume of The Monthology shared world anthology. I’m very excited, and I’m excited about my fellow contributors. There are still contracts to sign and edits to complete and all of that, but I’m happy. I’ve wanted to be part of a shared world anthology since Thieves’ World first showed up in the 1980’s, and now I am. Always nice when a creative dream comes true!
Played with the horror short story. If I don’t choose the right way to tell it, it will read voyeuristic and exploitative, instead of terrifying. I think I’ve got the right angle on it now; we’ll see as more words go on the page.
Spent a lot of time in the morning updating the links for the “Personal Revolution” re-release, and putting up the ad for it every damn where I could think to put it. Scheduled a bunch of tweets with the ad through next Wednesday on Tweetdeck, one per day. Don’t want to do overkill; at the same time, it needs promotion. Even with a list, I’m sure I missed a few places that will come to mind over the next few days.
Hopped down to the pharmacy to pick up my mom’s prescription.
Willa wanted to come out on the back balcony when I watered all the plants yesterday morning. I told her she couldn’t, and she was unhappy. I promised her that I’d take her out after lunch, in her playpen, and I did. At first she was happy, but then she was restless, so I brought her back in. Charlotte, who was upset that she couldn’t come, too, had given up by then and fallen asleep. But Tessa insisted that she wanted to go out. I told her it had to be in the playpen, and she let me put her in her playpen (each of the three cats has her own playpen) without trying to rip my lungs out, the way she usually does.
I took her out and she had a good time. She was interested in everything, especially all the different birds we have. There are a lot of different kinds of trees and tree-like shrubs nearby, with a large variety of birds. I need to look them up in the bird book. I don’t know what some of them are.
When we came back in, Willa kept running into the laundry room and trying to drag out her now folded up playpen, to go back outside.
I’m glad Tessa enjoyed herself. She always loved going out on the deck at the other house, although I didn’t need to put her in the playpen. She knew the boundaries and stayed on the deck. But the back balcony isn’t safe unless they’re in their playpens.
The computer was being wonky and frustrating. Again. And my phone is limping alone, just about done.
Something I ordered way back at the start of the month arrived, and was a big disappointment. The photo of the piece was highly stylized. Had I known what it really was, I wouldn’t have bought it. It was also presented as something created and made by an individual artisan (which is why I paid what I paid for it), but it is poorly mass-manufactured. It’s not worth returning, but I am unlikely to order from that company again. I will take some time with it and fix it up to be unique and what I want it to be, but it should have arrived that way.
I tried to concentrate on client work in the afternoon, but with the January 6 Hearings, I just couldn’t. Every seditionist and supporter needs to be removed from power any and every way necessary and prosecuted. The way nothing is happening is disgusting.
SCOTUS upholding gerrymandering in Louisiana to disenfranchise black voters doesn’t help, either. Dems need to stop telling us to “vote harder” and THEY need to fight smarter.
I went to my first in-person yoga class in nearly three years yesterday. Local place, in walking distance, should I choose. Loved the vibe of the place, liked the way the teacher teaches, enjoyed the other members of the class. The vaccination requirement is strictly enforced, some of the students still choose to mask, there’s plenty of room for everyone, and great ventilation. I felt safe within the space (although I’ll still test in three days, then six days), along with feeling renewed after class. I definitely would like to take more classes there. It’s a little late in the game to buy the unlimited summer pass (maybe I’ll do that next year). I’m going to see about buying the 10-class pass in a week or two, once the bills are paid – and once I know how much the new phone will run me.
The place in Pittsfield doesn’t have the phone I want (and is unlikely to help me switch everything over if I order it online). I might switch carriers. A different carrier with a store a few blocks away has a similar phone (but one step up) that may be a little more expensive, or it may be on sale and around the same price. The monthly no-contract plan is less than what I’m paying now, for about double the capacity. I’ll go down and talk to them today, after I do my library run. If they can’t/won’t do what I need, I’ll stick with my carrier, get the phone I want online, and see if I can do the transfer myself (urgh). But let’s hope I don’t have to.
This morning, though, before I run my errands, I want to get the horror story drafted (it’s short), and maybe work on some of the format wonk in the SUBMISSIONS SYSTEM workbook. This afternoon has to focus on client work.
The kitchen island cart is still in pieces all over the place. It’ll be the weekend before I can deal with that, too.
For the moment, though, now, it’s back to the page.
Tuesday, June 28, 2022
New Moon
Pluto, Saturn, Neptune Retrograde
Partly cloudy and pleasant
The re-release of the short mystery “Personal Revolution” is out today! I’m in the process of updating all the links. It’s a Delectable Digital Delight, a short story set in a fictional town tucked near Lexington and Concord, MA. Since Independence Day weekend is coming up, it was a good chance to re-release it. Only 99 cents. Universal buy link is here.
When a man is hanged from the oak tree in a Redcoat uniform at an historic house just before the Independence Day program, Glenda vows to both solve the murder and protect the newly-opened museum. What she finds is much darker — and more personal — than she bargained.
There’s information on the other Delectable Digital Delights here.
Back to our regularly scheduled natter.
Neptune has joined Pluto and Saturn in the retrograde lineup. Neptune has strong influences over me, so it’s a reminder to be cautious until it goes direct in December. It’s good for revealing phonies, though.
Friday was a hellscape, wasn’t it, with the corrupt, extremist SCOTUS striking down Roe. I’m glad I got a good chunk of work done on The Big Project, because the rest of the day was lost. The Dems had the heads up on this months ago. What do they do? Stand on a few steps singing a song and send out fundraising emails. They are pathetic.
Don’t start with “they don’t have the votes” or “don’t criticize Dems.” We gave them enough votes to get it done and it is THEIR JOB to keep their people in line, the way the Republicans do. The Republicans get whatever they want no matter who is in office, because they fight, and they don’t stop. The Dems throw up their hands, say they “don’t have the votes’ and ask for more money. Pathetic. They just let the extremists roll right over top of them, no matter what.
I had to hop out to the grocery store shortly after the announcement came down. What was hopeful was that there were growing groups of women of all ages, at both the grocery store, and the post office, talking. Those of us who are old enough to remember life pre-Roe, and who’ve been activists since before the Internet know how to harness the power of memory and communication that’s not based on technology, so we can help set up less traceable networks (nothing is untraceable if more than one person knows about it). Use the best of modern advances with old school.
There is plenty I will not be discussing publicly.
I tried to write in the afternoon, but everything came out incoherent.
I gave up on the Balzac biography, and I’m trying to figure out why I liked his work so much, back in the year I lived in Seattle. But I was a walking disaster that year, so my judgment was undoubtedly questionable.
Read Donna Leon’s latest Brunetti mystery, GIVE UNTO OTHERS, which is quieter and sadder than many others in the series. At least she deals with the pandemic. I don’t trust authors setting their books as “contemporary” who act like the pandemic never existed. I’m giving some a pass, who had books that stalled in the pipeline during the pandemic, but going forward, it’s a big red flag for me.
Saturday morning, I was up early. I took a home COVID test, because there’s the regular question of “Is it pollen or the plague?” and because of last week’s playwrighting workshop. Even though we were masked and vaccinated, there was still risk, and I felt questionable a few days after, so I wanted to make sure.
The negative test meant I could go to the Farmers’ Market (that and the fact that I felt fine, other than scraping pollen off my skin every few hours). I bought from my friend at Bohemian Nouveaux Bakery, I bought tomatoes and fennel and carrots and eggs from various other farmers, and told the maple syrup place how amazing their syrup is. I chatted with all kinds of people and dogs lined up to get attention (often thoroughly confusing their owners). I left before it got too crowded, but the market is as much about the social aspect as the culinary one.
Felt the need to rest, so I did, pushing away all the “should haves.”
Made a big salad for lunch, then put Willa in her playpen and took her out on the back balcony, so I could read and she could enjoy being outside. It’s nice and shady, and the humidity wasn’t too bad.
Finished the Donna Leon book and started FROM BAD TO CURSED by Lana Harper, which was a lot of fun.
Dinner was leftovers, and then I switched to a biography of Shirley Jackson. It didn’t get as hot as I feared, but I was too wiped out to move. My body remembers the exhaustion from last year, the move, going back and filling the two dumpsters, the difficulty getting things sorted to either the dumpster or into storage. So this week, I have to focus on building new, lighter, happier, more relaxed memories here over those other memories, even with all the crap going on, and even as I have to focus on deadlines and making a living.
So that will be. . .something or other.
Had weird dreams Saturday into Sunday, where I lived in a condominium. My next-door neighbors had theirs on the market. For some reason, the wall between our apartments served as a one-way mirror for me, so I could see everyone coming through to look at their apartment. I have no idea what the hell that could mean.
Sunday was even hotter than Saturday. It was also the day before the dark moon, my lowest energy day of the month, but all the stuff I’d put off for Friday and Saturday had to be dealt with.
I worked on the SETTING UP YOUR SUBMISSIONS SYSTEM Topic Workbook. That should be ready to go for final formatting and proofing this week, and maybe release next week. The workbook for class is nearly done. I took down two more workbooks that I want to re-release in July, so that they are down long enough for me to revise them and get them back up.
I worked on the anthology story and it wasn’t working. I’m percolating an idea for a different anthology that is genuinely creepy and twisted and, if I pull if off, will need trigger warnings.
The yoga studio here sent out a wonderful email blast about processing what’s going on, poses to help, and where they stand on the issues. Unlike the yoga studio on Cape Cod, who only allowed right-wingers to voice opinions and have safe space. If anyone spoke up to stand up to the right-wing crap spouted by class members, they were told to stop being political. Yet those right-wingers could say whatever they wanted and it was their right to express an opinion. Which meant it wasn’t safe space for anyone else. Huge difference, and the attitude here is much more what I want and need out of my yoga studio.
The meditation group also set up something virtual for Sunday night. I’d hoped to go, but Charlotte got her claw stuck on something in the kitty condo and panicked. By the time I got her safely extracted and calmed down, the mediation was nearly over. She wasn’t hurt, thank goodness, but was very vocal in her upset. Both Tessa and Willa were worried. Once Charlotte was free, and hiding, Tessa sat nearby, so that Charlotte wouldn’t be alone. I was worried Charlotte would get aggressive in her panic, but she didn’t. It was very sweet of Tessa, since they still don’t always get along.
Could not get going on Monday. Everything was a struggle. Managed to get the SUBMISSIONS Topic Workbook smoothed out and uploaded, but there is a lot of formatting wonk, so I will have to go back through and figure it out. I might have to push back the release date.
Lost way too much of the day trying to get my mother’s new doctor situation sorted out. It shouldn’t take us a damn year, pandemic or not, to find a doctor. I’m lucky she’s in reasonably good health for 97, and the paramedics aren’t here every couple of weeks, the way they are for several other residents on the block. I think we’ve found someone decent. We’ll see, after her appointment in mid-July.
Finally managed to shake loose what wasn’t working in the Monthology anthology story, and got it done. It wasn’t just that the originally planned A and B storylines flipped, causing restructuring – the heart of the piece was somewhere else. Once I found its heart, I could build the story properly. I did a few revision passes (some of them major), and wound up with a draft I felt good enough about to send to my editor. Hopefully, she likes it. I’m a little worried that the story is too quiet, without the harder urban fantasy edge. But I was careful about fact-checking the shared world details and the details of anyone else’s monsters, so I think we’re okay.
There’s a lot less about the workday of the protagonist, which I thought would ground the piece, and would have called for more inter-monster interaction. But there’s room to do more if there’s another volume, and if I’m invited to contribute again. This story stands on its own, but also leaves the door open for more stories with these characters.
Fingers crossed it fits the shared vision.
I let the horror story percolate. I actually have two ideas. The more gruesome one is the one I’m going to draft first.
While there weren’t scripts assigned in my cue, I got a stack of manuscripts to cover, where I have to read the first fifty pages and comment, so there’s the week’s work from that. I’ll still be under where I wanted to be this pay period, but not as badly. And, with the review invoice I’m sending, I should be okay. Bills are covered, and as long as I’m not extravagant, I don’t have to feel like a miser.
Started reading the new book for review. It’s pretty good.
Up early this morning to go to the laundromat. It’s usually kept up quite well, but it was filthy today. The machines were fine, but the rest of it was yucky. I brought the laundry back unfolded, because I didn’t want it on the folding table.
I managed to get a good bit of the multi-colored draft of first big section of The Big Project done. The good thing about the slow and careful attention it needs to catch passives, adverbs, and qualifiers is that a lot of other errors show up, too.
I’ll do some writing this morning, and promotion of “Personal Revolution”. Later, I have to pick up my mom’s prescription. This afternoon, I’ll take a home COVID test, not because I’m feeling terrible, but because tonight I’m going to my first in-person yoga class in nearly three years, and, even though they have strict protocols, I want to make sure once and for all I’m clear post-workshop and Farmers’ Market. I have my vaccination card tucked into my purse. I still have to clean my mat and fix my mat bag before tonight. The buckle on the strap broke during the move.
I’m hoping to get a tarot spread up on the Ko-fi page later today, too. I was going to head down to Pittsfield to try and get a new phone (my phone’s giving me trouble, but hey, it lasted four years, a record for me), but I think I’ll wait until later in the week.
Plenty to do, so better get to it, right? Overlay the NOW over the sense memory stress of the final clear-out last year.
Have a good one.
Friday, June 24, 2022
Waning Moon
Pluto & Saturn Retrograde
Rainy and warmer
Temperatures are going back up this weekend, but at least we had some rain to wash away the pollen.
Got some blogging done yesterday, and a bunch of admin work. Meditation was good, although it was hard to get settled.
After breakfast, I sorted out the book donations I’m making to the local library sale, packed them up, and took them on the library run where I dropped off/picked up books. Mailed some bills, picked up some wine.
Set up folders for each of the ideas generated by Wednesday’s workshop, and also for the new radio play idea I had yesterday morning as I put the coffee on. Notes, etc., all set up, so as soon as I’m ready to work on any of those ideas, I can drop right down. I expanded the notes a little on the three projects calling me with the most strength.
Freelance Chat was fun, as usual.
Gave the newsletter a couple more proofreads and caught typos each time. Hopefully, I got them all before the newsletter went out. Already had to open a new document for September’s newsletter, so I don’t forget what I want to tell people.
The newsletter reveals information on what I’ve been called “The Big Project” over the past few months. I will not be revealing that information for a couple more weeks on the blog and, generally, online and on social media. The project is going to get its own website, too, although that can’t go live until the project goes live, so, stay tuned.
Like you already don’t!
And I appreciate it.
The Friday Journal prompt will go up on my Ello page later this morning.
The Supreme Court continues its right-wing extremist stripping of rights. The Narcissistic Sociopath needs to be charged with treason and every decision and appointment made during that regime voided.
I turned around a script coverage. There’s been very little in the queue, and I’m behind where I need to be, financially for this pay period. Hoping more shows up over the weekend and into next week.
In the meantime, I’m putting my time, focus, and energy on other projects, and also into LOIs.
I have to do a grocery run today (almost out of coffee), but, other than that, the primary focus is on the anthology story. We were given two separate deadlines – one today and one on Sunday. Since I tossed a lot of what I did and started over, I will probably get it in by Sunday, although ideally, it would be today, or, splitting the difference, tomorrow. I need to get it off my desk and onto the editor’s desk for both of us, and so I can focus on other projects until I get the editing notes back.
I also need to spend time on The Big Project (having to finish a major section by early next week, so it can go through editing while I move on to the next big section), and the Topic Workbooks.
I’m getting contradictory information about a residency that I was interested in, and an organization is giving me one set of information, encouraging me to apply, but the actual application says something else. It’s a little frustrating. I may put that aside until at least next week.
I’m still dealing with sense memory stress from last year. The next 10 days will be rough, since I have to shake off what this time last year was about: travelling back and forth, trying to finish the cleanout in the Cape house, people being hired/paid and not showing up to do the work, the physical impossibilities of doing it all myself, some of the poor decisions I made in getting rid of things, the destruction of the dream of living on the Cape, and the landlord’s incessant fussing. All in extensive heat and humidity. But it got done and we are here, not there, in a better situation all around, and I keep reminding myself of that, and working to layer positive memories over the rough ones. Definitely a process. And last year, I had to suppress a lot of the emotion in order to get it done and just survive. So that’s come back to bite me in the butt, but at least I understand what’s happening and why, so I can take steps to deal with it.
The weekend will focus on the anthology story, The Big Project, and the Topic Workbooks. And, finally, maybe finishing the kitchen island cart that’s still in pieces all over the house.
See you on the other side. Have a good one!
Thursday, June 23, 2022
Waning Moon
Pluto & Saturn Retrograde
Partly cloudy and mild
Yesterday was a struggle early, and then blossomed into something wonderful.
In the morning, I slogged through a lot of email and got the inbox back down to something manageable. Dealt with a few things that needed dealing with. I still have some correspondence to get out today, mostly follow up to some of the recent art experiences. I also need to knuckle down and get my profile(s) up on the Creative Ground site. Every time I start, I get overwhelmed, which is ridiculous, because I can toss of bios and profiles in my sleep. But all the form-filling restrictions to get to the bio paragraph throw me off. I have to figure out how to make them work WITH what I do, not against it.
I did a good chunk of work on the anthology story, and it’s chugging along the way it should be. I also got another section of The Big Project done. I’d hoped this would be the end of the first big arc, but I need a few more sections.
In a week or two, I will make the public announcement about The Big Project, and some of this will start to make sense. If you can’t wait, I’m doing a reveal in the newsletter going out this afternoon. If you’re not on the newsletter list, you can sign up here.
My body and psyche fought me most of the day, remembering the stress of the movers last year at this time. I kept having to stop and lie down, or sit on my meditation cushion to acknowledge and release what was going on, while reminding myself that the reality of last year is not my reality now.
I should have turned around a script, but I knew I couldn’t give it the attention it deserved, so I did not, and will do so today, instead. I’m still fine, as far as deadlines.
In the afternoon, I drove down to Pittsfield, to the Berkshire Atheneum, to participate in a playwrighting workshop hosted by the Williamstown Theatre Festival. The guy who organized the World’s Largest Poem over in Lenox in which I’m participating is the one who sent me the information.
There were only 10 of us in a large space, and everyone was respectful and diligent about masking.
The workshop was fantastic. One of the reasons I wanted to attend was that I feel my stage playwrighting has gotten stale, and I wanted to shake up my process. Well, the workshop certainly did that!
We were given 5 titles and had to write a sentence or two about what our version of the play would be, inspired by that title. Basically, a logline. Then, we mixed and matched with different partners on each title to share what we’d come up with.
As someone who usually puts the title on near the end, this was definitely a way to shake up my process. It was a ton of fun. Then, we went around the room and shared the one we’d come up with that resonated the strongest. I was gratified that the one I felt the strongest pull from was something everyone in the room really liked, too, and several of my colleagues, at various points, encouraged me to write that play.
In the next exercise, we were given a character/set sheet from an actual play, with the character breakdown and some set notes, and had to come up with a quick outline of beginning, middle, and end. Then we broke down into groups based on which set sheet we had, and talked about what we’d come up with. That was a ton of fun, too. That was more natural for me, since I tend to work from character first. And it wasn’t completely out of my wheelhouse as someone who’s done for-hire work receiving material like that from a client and having to create around it. At the same time, it was different enough to be a stretch.
The final exercise was to create a title and then a character/set sheet and build a rough idea of a play from there. I grabbed a prompt out of the “wild ideas” bin (and it was one), and built from there. That one, I think, will wind up being a screenplay rather than a stage play. It’s gravitating more naturally to that form, and the concept chooses the form.
It’ll be a while before I can write it, because I promised my friend Paula to write a script inspired by the short story “Floral Arrangements” first!
Anyway, the creative experience was terrific, and my fellow playwrights were all wildly generous and creative. I hope they follow through on some of the ideas generated in the workshop, because I’d love to see/read the results. I felt very lucky to land in this specific group of creatives.
The playwright who led the workshop is also going to be in the World’s Largest Poem (so I’ll actually know someone there).
It also made me realize that, because I do this (writing) everyday for a living, I can get stuck in systems and processes because they’re safe and easy. To an extent, one has to do that in order to get the work done and keep a roof over one’s head. But it’s important to shake up process and not get stale.
I left the workshop with 7 viable script ideas. How I will fit them in to the rest of my life is a challenge, but I want to play with at least some of them over the coming months and see where they lead. It also might give me something to bring into the LAVA playwrighting circle, if I can ever remember that it meets the second Monday of the month! I signed up for it a long time ago, and have yet to make a meeting. I wasn’t comfortable bringing in the material for the radio scripts, because they are done to specific needs of various companies, and without knowing the specs, the people giving me feedback could throw me off the needed track. But bringing in material begun in this workshop, that doesn’t have a set venue yet, gives me room to incorporate the kind of feedback I’d get in a playwrights’ circle.
However, the first session, I will just sit and listen, to see how they work.
Anyway, it was a great experience. This facet of Williamstown Theatre Festival hopes to do a workshop every two months or so, and I hope I can participate in more of them. I loved the way the workshop leader created creative space and led the experience.
I’d hoped to order from Meng’s Pan Asian, but they were closed. Instead, I ordered an overpriced pizza from one of the pizza places we hadn’t yet tried, and it was mediocre. But it was food.
I’m working on the notes from yesterday’s workshop. I want to set up the files and information, and expand on some of the initial notes while they’re fresh. That way, when the idea’s turn comes up, I can drop back into it without wondering what the heck I meant.
This morning, I woke up with a new idea for a comic mystery radio play. I will make some notes on that, too, and it will have to take its place in line after the four radio plays already promised to producers.
Hopefully, this surge of creative energy can also feed into the anthology story and The Big Project. Based on yesterday’s work, I will re-post, each day of July, the 31 Prompts that I did a few years ago. I have a lot of followers I didn’t have the first couple of times I did them.
There’s a garden post up on Gratitude and Growth.
If you missed the short story “Discoveries” on Ko-Fi yesterday (as Cerridwen Iris Shea), it’s here.
Meditation this morning, then I have to do some writing, organize the books for donation, and do a library run. After that, it’s back to the page. I have deadlines.
A year ago today, we were on the road a little after 4 AM with screaming cats, got here a little after 8, and then waited for the movers to show up. Thank goodness we are here.
Have a good one!
Wednesday, June 22, 2022
Waning Moon
Pluto & Saturn Retrograde
Cloudy, rainy, mild
I expected rain yesterday, so didn’t get up early enough to go to the laundromat. But it didn’t rain until the evening. That’s the way it goes sometimes. It’s raining today, so I have an excuse not to go.
Plowed through a lot of emails. Got annoyed at a job listing that landed in my Inbox, claiming to be remote – only requiring 2 days/week in the office. Boo, that ain’t remote. It’s hybrid. Stop lying in the listings. Plus, it didn’t pay enough. Big red flag.
Tracked down some information I needed for a couple of different decisions. Worked on the anthology story. Percolated the other anthology story.
Most of the day was taken up with rewriting/updating the Topic Workbook for the Developing the Series class, which I’m teaching in August. I put in more resources, especially for indie authors, and talked about responsibilities when on a contract schedule vs. on one’s own schedule. I took out references to an author I no longer want to include, because I’ve lost respect for that individual. I’ve kept in references to another author whose work had a lot of impact on me, but about whom I’ve learned some disturbing things. I might leave those in, and discuss the way learning more about who an author is impacts the relationship with the work. Or, I might take it all out, and not have that tangent in the class. Because that discussion could be a class all on its own, and there are people whose input and experiences would be valuable. It feels wrong to open that discussion, but not include them.
I have a few days to make that decision.
I still have to check/update/remove resource links, which will take a bit of time. There are a few awkward passages that I need to smooth out. And I have to extract the material and exercises for the slides I want to use in class.
There’s still work to do, but at least it’s well under way, and I’m not leaving it until the last darn minute.
More January 6 hearings and more corruption from the enablers of the Narcissistic Sociopath. That Ginni Thomas, who tried to overthrow the government, gets extra protection, while election poll workers are threatened, is simply not acceptable.
And then SCOTUS telling Maine that taxpayer dollars have to be used to fund religious schools. They only mean faux Christian schools, but, in any event, it’s yet another corrupt decision from them.
And all this crap about “voting harder” doesn’t matter when voting rights aren’t protected.
Texas is talking about seceding. Again. They’ve been yapping about that my entire life. They were an independent country for a few days in the 1840’s (or whenever, I’m too lazy to look it up) and want to go back to that. It’s all performative, for their extremist base. It’s far more complicated, in this day and age, to detach, than it was a couple of centuries ago. Plus, they don’t want to lose the government funding. The blue states carry the red states with funding. It’s all hot air.
The atrocities around the Uvalde shooting get worse and worse. They need to get rid of the entire city government and the police force and start over. May those who stood by and did nothing be haunted into their graves. Which is doubtful, because if they had a conscience or ethics in the first place, they wouldn’t have behaved the way they did. It’s not like they will suddenly sprout a conscience now. Therefore, there must be harsh consequences for all of them.
On a happier note, Summer Solstice was fine, even though the weather was yucky. A CounterSocial pal shared a tarot spread that worked really well. I used my new Ask the Witch deck. When it first arrived, I was worried it wouldn’t read well for me, but working with it, I find it does.
This same pal also told me about the Druidcraft Tarot Deck, by the same team that did the Druid Animal Oracle and the Druid Plant Oracle, two decks I really like. Hmmm. . .like I don’t have a couple of bookcases full of decks!
I put up a new flash fiction piece on Ko-fi, “Discoveries” which is under the Cerridwen Iris Shea name. The dynamic of the marriage between the two characters interests me. I’m not sure if the piece will stand as it is, or if it will lead to more exploration with these characters.
I wrote and turned in my book review, and received my next assignment. I have a script in my queue, which I will turn around either today, or, more likely, tomorrow. There hasn’t been much this week, and I will probably end up doing script coverage over the weekend, if more comes in. Urgh. I was trying to avoid that this summer. But that’s the ebb and flow.
I need to work on the anthology story today, and more on The Big Project. The thing that slows down the writing on The Big Project is that each section of it has to basically be at the stage I usually would be at the third or fourth revision before I can move on to the next section. Even though the basic plot is outlined. It’s a learning curve. But then, each piece has its own innate rhythm. This one sure as heck does.
This afternoon, I have to put on Real People Pants and makeup and go down to Pittsfield. I’m in a playwrighting workshop hosted by the Williamstown Theatre Festival. Although I’ve been writing prose and radio scripts, the stage play part of my brain feels stale lately, and I’m hoping this will shake things up. It has very strict COVID protocols in place, and I know the venue, so I’m hoping I’ve calculated the risk correctly. I’ll know in 2-5 days, won’t I?
A year ago today, the movers actually showed up on Cape and loaded the truck.
Have a good one, friends. Despite the marketing, yesterday was not the “beginning of summer.” It’s Midsummer. Starting today, the days get shorter.
Enjoy them while you can.
Tuesday, June 21, 2022
Waning Moon
Pluto & Saturn Retrograde
Summer Solstice (Northern Hemisphere)
Cloudy and pleasant
Friday turned out to be an up and down workday. I spent some time working the class I’m teaching in August, preparing both the Topic Workbook for it and the PowerPoint. Some of my examples have not aged well over the past couple of years, so I’m switching them out.
I hopped onto Pages on Stages to do some updates, and it was an absolute mess. The posts page had somehow detached from News & Updates. Most of the time, I got the white screen of death when I tried to get on or switch pages.
I was lucky to land some excellent techs at A2Hosting, and together, we spent a couple of hours sorting it out. I am very grateful, and told them directly, and on social media. Hey, if I’m going to moan on social media when a company is awful, I have the obligation to praise when a company comes through.
I need to put up a media room page on that site eventually, with links to productions.
I did a library run to drop off/pick up books. It started raining when I left (on foot). I almost turned back, but it stopped within two minutes, so I continued.
Turned around a script in the afternoon. My Llewellyn contract came through, so I’m good to go on that article after 4th of July weekend.
I’m playing with a very dark idea for an anthology call edited by a friend. I don’t know if I can pull it off within word count by deadline, but I will try.
Reading an article in THE NEW YORKER about a new production of HAMLET spawned an idea for a new project that mashes up two genres that seem weird, but just might work. I have to finish what I’m working on first, though, before I hie off on anything else. I made some notes, to capture characters and energy, and now that project has to wait its turn.
Tessa started howling at 3:30 in the morning on Saturday. I moved to the sewing room, but she was not mollified. We no longer leave her food down at night for her 2 AM snack, because the others are eating it, and Willa is putting on too much weight. However, Madame Tessa Is Not Amused. She wants her 2 AM snack.
Got the proof done on “Personal Revolution”, fixed a couple of formatting things, and it is out. The re-release happens June 28. Once I get links and stuff, there will be a push for it.
Now, I have to decide what’s the next Digital Delight to come off Smashwords and switch over to D2D. Probably “Severance.” I want a new cover for that, too. Or maybe I’ll take down “Plot Bunnies” and put it up with the next Twinkle Tavern piece that hasn’t yet released, “Labor Intensive.”
Headed to the Farmers’ Market. I didn’t need much, but made the rounds to chat with the vendors; ran into people I knew from other spaces, such as the library, and we were chatting as to how it’s often hard to place people out of context. You know that you know them from somewhere. . .
Quick grocery shop from the store. Didn’t need much. Home, put it all away, lugged 66 pounds of cat litter up the stairs (Chewy delivery).
Then, I spent the rest of the day trying to put together the kitchen island cart I ordered. I wasn’t even close to finishing after 6 hours (it’s supposed to take 2 people 70 minutes). The directions were incomplete, so I had to hunt for another set online. The drawings aren’t detailed enough with some of the pieces, so then I had to find various videos of similar pieces to figure out the details, so I wouldn’t put something on incorrectly and have to take it apart again. And the design is so poor that, by following the directions, I had no room to maneuver the tools needed to tighten the next thing in the directions. Very frustrating.
If I ever get it put together, I think it will be a decent piece, though.
Used bounty from the Farmers’ Market to make a pasta primavera in Alfredo sauce (and used our own basil for it).
Started reading a biography of Balzac, before I go and re-read some of the novels.
By evening, every damn thing hurt and I went to bed ridiculously early. I slept well, dreaming of various gardens, which was rather nice.
Worked on an ad and other promotional materials for the re-release of “Personal Revolution” on Sunday. Started getting the pre-order buy links. I’m adding them onto the various websites as I get them. The release is holding to June 28.
Played with some other graphic tools to try to get comfortable. Since I can’t seem to do all of what I need with any single tool, I’m learning how to mix and match bits of what I want to do in different programs to get to the whole. It’s actually less irritating that trying to figure out a single program.
Made a logo for the project inspired by the article yesterday. If THAT’s not putting the cart before the horse and all, right? But it gave me an excuse to play with learning something new.
Worked on the newsletter. If you haven’t yet signed up for it, you can do so here. It will go out later this week. And, hint – in the newsletter, I reveal what The Big Project is really all about! So if you’re interested in finding out what I’ve been yapping about for months, calling it “the Big Project” you will find out before the hoi-polloi.
I created a bunch of ads for the Big Project, too, and they are really cool. I’m having way too much fun creating these ads. I’m trying to capture the voice of the piece in the ads.
One of the best things I started doing is opening a new document for the upcoming newsletter and adding information on projects over the course of the quarter. That way, I don’t have to scramble to remember what I did, and what I want to talk about.
Made more vegetable stock. Because buying all these vegetables from the market means I have lots of bits and bobs left over for stock. Not at a zero waste kitchen yet, but working on it.
Most of the day was spent on working on things around The Big Project, which will save me time and effort once it launches in July. It was a lot of fun.
I couldn’t face the kitchen island cart on Sunday. I needed the time away.
Slept well Sunday into Monday. Got caught up on some blogging, and blogged ahead. There’s a post on healing over on the GDR site, if you’re interested.
Planted some of the borage seeds and more cat grass. Got through nearly 400 emails. Sent out two LOIs. Worked on an anthology story.
The Authors Guild is doing a Words, Ideas, and Thinkers Festival this September over in Lenox, which is close by. Well, okay, about an hour, but just about everything is at least an hour away. They sent me an invite to attend, and I accepted. It’s in the calendar. I mean, if the COVID numbers are way up again at that point, I’ll cancel, but I know the venue, and they have good protocols in place. I’m hoping it will be safe to attend. I’m sure I’ll be masked, no matter what.
Since I didn’t have any scripts in my queue, I spent the afternoon on the porch, reading the next book for review. This morning, I will send off the review, and hopefully get assigned the next book before my editor goes on vacation.
Made a sausage pasta for dinner, and it was yummy. We have plenty of leftovers for the week (most of them pasta).
The B plotline has switched with the A plotline in the anthology story. It makes it a quieter story, and I hope the editor doesn’t feel it no longer fits the tone of the overall anthology. We’ll see. It’s for a created world, so it’s not like I could use it anywhere else if it’s rejected, not without major, major re-envisioning. But trying to force it the other way wasn’t working. All I can do is send in the best piece I can to this point, and then get notes on it, and apply them.
The other anthology story I need to get out by the end of the month is percolating in the back of my brain. I’ll be making the bed or chopping onions, sorting through plot possibilities: If I do A, with D work, or should I go with E? That type of thing. Hopefully, once the shared world story is out, I will have figured out enough of the other piece to just sit down and draft.
Slept well last night, although I woke up about every two hours (similar to what I was doing last year at this time). By 3 AM, Charlotte and Tessa were fussing. They woke me from a dream where I was temping at a company. I’d brought in blueberry muffins. Their kitchen/breakroom was stacked high with empty/used takeout containers and dirty dishes. They told me to clean the kitchen. I told them I was there to type, not be the maid. They laughed and said they couldn’t get any of the wives to come in and clean. I told them maybe they should stop being sexist and learn to clean up after their own damn selves.
That definitely happened to me more than once in my temping years, but I didn’t recognize this company or these people. Something about the dream made me think it took place in Chicago, and I never temped in Chicago. New York, Westchester, San Francisco, Seattle, yeah. Chicago, no.
I moved to the couch. Charlotte settled on top of me, Tessa rummaged. I dozed off and dreamed about more boxes (echoes of the move, no doubt). Willa woke me around 5:30, telling me she was Very Hungry, so I got up and fed them.
Plenty to do today, even without scripts in the queue, although I hope some more show up, so I can make my goal this pay period.
Last year today was the day the movers were supposed to show up and did not. I am glad we are where we are (and that it isn’t as hot as it was at this point last year, either).
I have every intention of enjoying the Summer Solstice, even though it’s supposed to rain.
Have a good one.
Wednesday, June 15, 2022
Last Day of Full Moon
Pluto & Saturn Retrograde
Sunny and warm
Yesterday was one of those lovely, precious summer days. It was warm, but not hot and humid; clear and sunny.
We left the house early and drove down to Stockbridge, to the Berkshire Botanical Garden. It was truly magical, beautiful, and wonderful. I posted some of the photos on my Instagram account, which cross-posted on Twitter, FB, and Tumblr, so if you follow me on any of those accounts, you’ll see them.
Again, as so often happens here, there was an art installation integrated into the space. This one was called “Symbiosis” and was both in the gallery, and pieces out and about in the garden.
My mom is 97, and likes traditional art. She always complains that she doesn’t understand modern art. And yet, when she experiences these installations having to do with the relationship to nature, she gets excited about them and loves them. It’s a lot of fun.
We took our time wandering the gardens, enjoying the magic of it, the different areas, and designs. I did an impromptu meditation on a carved wooden bench under a tree.
I found some borage seeds in the store. It’s late to start them, and I won’t use the entire packet, but I will plant some on the next planting day (which is actually today).
We want to go back in August, when everything will be in full bloom, and again in the autumn, before they close for the season. I would like, on a day that’s not too hot and humid, to go on my own with a notebook and write a piece of flash fiction in each of the different areas. I might need more than one day for that!
We took our time driving back, enjoying the day. I stopped at a grocery store I hadn’t yet tried, because heaven forbid I drive past a grocery store and not check it out. Got some lovely peaches and blueberries.
Although we came back early enough where I “could have” put in an afternoon dedicated to work, I chose not to. I read, out on the front porch, and played with some ideas. I wrote in my head quite a bit, and that should help me when I hit the page this morning.
Did the tarot reading from the Mystic Mondays new moon/full moon book (with that deck, of course), and it was right on the nose. Now, to follow through on the advice. Did a very simple full moon ritual at night.
Didn’t sleep as well last night as I had the past few nights, but we’re coming into the anniversary of crunch time in last year’s move, so time and energy needs to focus on separating sense memory stress from present day stress.
Up early and out the door to the laundromat. Got another chunk of the multi-colored draft of CAST IRON MURDER done. It’s slow going, because of paying attention to every word, but it will be worth it. I’m shocked (and a little embarrassed) by how much sloppy language still exists in this draft. But that’s the purpose of multiple drafts. I have an editor interested in taking a look, so, as soon as I finish this draft, off it goes. It’s already gotten a pass from another editor who said that the conversations about racism and the way the characters are still masking and talking about the pandemic make it a difficult sell. Which I respect, but both those elements are important to both the book and the series, so that publisher isn’t the right fit (she saw the synopsis, sample pages, and a series overview – this other editor wants to see the full draft).
My keyboard is being wonky today, which is irritating. I can’t afford this computer to take a dive. It’s only two years old, and it’s cosseted as though it was sentient, so there’s no excuse, except that PCs suck.
Anyway, it’s back to the page for me, along with some house-and-hearth stuff. If I get enough done early enough in the day, I might try to start putting the kitchen island cart together. Or, I might leave it for the weekend.
Today is the 1st anniversary of getting the keys for this place, when we drove out the first load of stuff, took measurements, and started planning where we’d put things. I am so grateful we are here.
Thursday, June 9, 2022
Waxing Moon
Pluto & Saturn Retrograde
Rainy and cool
Yesterday started rainy, then cleared up and was beautiful. I have a garden post over on Gratitude and Growth.
I didn’t get much writing done, which was frustrating. My brain decided it was Friday. So I focused on the client work first, after I’d gotten through all the email that stacked up while we were gone on Tuesday.
I turned around three scripts, in and around unpacking most of what we brought back up on Tuesday, and figuring out where to put it.
The box of Johnson Brothers china came up. I adore Johnson Brothers china, and I have a combination of it from my grandmother and that I’ve picked up in thrift stores and yard sales over the years. I can spot a Johnson Brothers design at 50 paces. Some of it is original, and had to be handwashed. Some of it is reproduction and can go in the dishwasher.
I also brought up my Pyrex and corning ware dishes (that are from the 60’s and 70’s), because we needed more of those dishes.
Two boxes of teapots came up. I unpacked one box and washed it, reminding myself of the story behind each pot. There are three more boxes of teapots which will need to come up in the autumn. They have to be all handwashed. Also in the box was a ceramic decanter and a pair of goblets that I picked up in a thrift shop and just love. I’m not sure yet where to put them, but I love them.
I might post the stories behind each teapot on my Ko-fi page.
I ordered an island cart for the kitchen. I need more counter/storage space. I wasn’t going to spend the money right now, but it was on sale right now, so I did. It will arrive on Monday. Not looking forward to putting it together, but the extra prep space and storage space are much needed. It’s on wheels, so I can stash it in front of the cookbook bookcases when it’s not in use.
I’m designing the way the new seat covers are going to work on the kitchen chairs, because traditional recovering isn’t going to work. Originally, I was going to staple the fabric to the frame, and then re-screw the seats into the chair frames. We’ve had problems with those screws since we got the chairs. Instead, I’m going to make like the quick change theatre wardrobe person I am and put snaps on the covers and the seat bottom, so I can remove these and wash them as needed. Then, I’m going to Velcro down the seats to the frames, allowing more stability and the flexibility to remove the seats as needed.
There is measuring and math involved, but needs must.
Somehow, in all of this, I managed to bruise the index finger of my right hand. I’m not sure if this is fallout from the bruising to that hand when I broke the bowl on Monday, of if I hurt it some more in the storage unit or unpacking. It doesn’t hurt, but it’s badly discolored, and definitely gets worse when I type. I’m keeping an eye on it and treating it with arnica cream. It’s not like I bang hard on the keys when I type. If anything, I have a light touch. (I worked with someone a few years back in the office, and she always pounded on the computer keyboard, and I’d think, “what has that keyboard ever done to you?”).
Anyway, meditation this morning, then work on The Big Project and the monthology story, then over to client work.
“The Collector” radio play has been accepted by the producer in New York, so we are talking contract terms. I’m very excited.
I have to do a library run today (books waiting). I’d planned a quick run to Pittsfield, but I think I’ll wait for better weather, tomorrow or over the weekend.
Ellen Byron’s newest release, THE BAYOU BOOK THIEF, is supposed to arrive today, the first book in her new Vintage Cookbook series. That is my treat for the weekend, along with finishing Helen Whistberry’s THE MELODY OF TREES, which is just wonderful. I also have a book to turn around for review, which I will try to do this afternoon.
This time last year, I was in moving hell, and it was so hot and humid, it was difficult to function. I am grateful to be where I am now.
Have a good one, my friends.
Thursday, April 28, 2022
Day Before Dark Moon
Cloudy/sunny/cold
Buckle up, buttercups. Retrogrades start again tomorrow.
The latest on the garden hijinks is up over on Gratitude and Growth.
Yesterday, I pushed hard in the morning and had to ease off in the afternoon, because I wore myself out.
I got a good chunk done on The Big Project, one section of a little over 1400 words, and a start on the next section. I need to get back into its rhythm and push hard in May, because I have to be in good shape in June, when it needs to start going live. I was worried I’d lost the voice there a bit, but I haven’t. The writing itself takes much, much longer than a normal 1400 words of an outlined piece would take because of the level and structure that has to be in the first draft, or I can’t move on to the next section. Each part has to compress the process of what would normally be the first three drafts for me. It’s been a learning curve.
Tracfone and Consumer Cellular are both being dicks about the phone transfer. Tracfone, after sending multiple texts confirming that the transfer was going through, is holding the phone number hostage. They won’t finish the transfer unless I pay for an additional month (the month is up today). Consumer Cellular SHOULD HAVE GOTTEN IN TOUCH as soon as there was a problem, but, of course, heaven forbid they actually provide customer service. I was trying not to be a nudge and waiting for the 3-5 business day period they said it could take before I followed up. When I should have been riding their inept asses from Day 1.
Summary: avoid both these companies if you have the choice.
It’s a shame, because Tracfone used to be a great, no fuss company. I hope they go out of business soon. They don’t deserve to have customers.
I’ve been trying to set up the autopay for the storage unit with the company who bought the facility, and I can’t get into their system to do it. Nor does anyone at the facility or the main office respond. This is intentional, of course, so they can charge late fees. Horrible company. I didn’t think anyone could be worse than U-Haul, but this company just might be.
I FINALLY got an appointment with a mechanic that’s not afraid of working on a VW. It’s for May 10. I have basically been without a car for six months, which is getting frustrating. It didn’t matter so much in the winter, because the weather kept us from doing much, but there are things that need to get done out of walking radius.
I got in touch with the landlord about the gas company wanting to do an inside service line inspection. The gas company couldn’t give me a straight answer about what they needed to see for the inspection, and I suspect it has to do with how lines come into the building in the basement, which is a landlord thing, not a me thing.
I gave myself the day off from script coverage. I worked on contest entries and read for pleasure instead. I was completely worn out from dealing with the stupid and the incompetent.
Tessa woke me up at 4 again (I am not a happy camper). She didn’t want me on the bed in the sewing room and fussed at me until I moved to the couch.
But I’m not complaining too much, because I heard about a friend whose elderly cat recently died, and I want to enjoy every moment I have with mine. Even when they’re being little pills.
Meditation this morning, then back to the page, then Freelance Chat, then script coverage and contest entries. Oh, yeah, and by late morning, fighting some more with Consumer Cellular and Tracfone. The number of billable hours I have lost because of their incompetence is infuriating.
Have a good one! Catch you tomorrow.
Thursday, April 14, 2022
Waxing Moon
Partly Sunny and warm
There’s a post detailing the latest plantings over on Gratitude and Growth.
Yesterday was not as productive as I’d hoped (familiar refrain), mostly because I’m still not feeling well. I was feeling well enough to try to function, but bad enough so that everything and every ONE was an irritant.
I got through some email and did some prep for this morning’s meeting. I did some plotting for a couple more radio plays.
I went to the library, to drop off/pick up a stack of books in each direction. Something I read in one of my other books had a reference to playwright Ben Jonson, and that led me back to Elizabethan Theatre and an idea with which I’ve been playing for years. I’ve been trying to figure out how to make it work. I think by making it an alt-universe, and giving certain creative people the ability to understand multiple alt-universes, I can fix those challenges. Anyway, the research books are coming in. Time to open a fresh notebook and take good notes. In all my spare time. Yeah.
Grocery shopping, where I spent more than intended, but we are now set for a while, except for things like eggs, milk, bread. And, even though we don’t celebrate Easter, I got my mom the Easter ham she wanted, and I’ll make a baked ham for Sunday.
Of course, one of the reasons I spent more than intended is because prices keep going up.
Mailed some bills, and some mail which had been misdelivered. There’s another street whose spelling has one more letter than my street, and I often get mail for the person at the same number on that street. I mark it as misdelivered and how, and put it back in the box.
Stopped at the liquor store, and found some new-to-me wines to try. Time to lighten up the wines for the season. Switch to lighter reds, and, eventually, over to rosé in the summer, because a good rosé goes with everything.
Home, exhausted. I stacked a few too many errands in that trip. Normally, it would make sense, but I’m still feeling poorly.
At the grocery store, I was in constant inner dialogue, since I was so grumpy. This is where meditation techniques come in handy. It was the constant question: Does this have anything to do with you? The answer was, of course, no. So drop it and move on. Because NONE of the people filling their carts and going about their lives were the cause of my irritation. They wouldn’t even have added to it on a normal day. Nothing they were doing was about me. And none of them deserved to have me take my irritability out on them. So I didn’t. Because they don’t deserve to have their day dampened by my irritation.
So what IS the source of my irritability? A lot of it is still feeling bad after the 4th shot. I’m still achy, headachy, fatigued, and I’m tired of being tired. But more of it, I think is rooted in residual burnout, that I don’t have the time and resources to take a full break to recover. I have to focus on earning money for this major car repair. I have to get the car repaired. I have to keep up the housework, the cooking, the bills, the deadlines. Taking a weekend won’t fix it. I need a serious break. And I don’t have the option to take one.
What I am doing is rearranging my workday to fit energy levels, and matching each task to the energy best suited for it. I also want to get more enjoyment out of each day, including maximum enjoyment in the work. That means adjusting the kind of work I take on. I updated some profile information on a few referral sites, because there are certain types of work that, even six months ago, I was open to accepting, that I no longer want. There’s another arts referral/networking site where I need to create one (or more) profiles to draw the kind of work I want to draw. I have to think about how to create those profiles to best hit. Creating the Pages on Stages website was the right choice; I’m already seeing positive results from it.
It’s a process, and will take time, but it will pay off, I think. Drawing in more of the work I truly enjoy will take off a lot of pressure. Expanding the client base will take off a lot of the pressure. Raising rates for certain projects will take off a lot of the pressure.
That will give me the healing time I haven’t had post-surgeries, post-move.
What if, instead of feeling like I have to get out and network and enter into community life here, I just . . .don’t? At least for this year? What if I only do what I want to do, and don’t feel like I “have” to be out and about? Like I “have” to network and put myself out there? The pandemic made us feel isolated and disconnected, and we all fought so hard to stay connected. What if I take more time to be solitary, virtually, as well as physically? There are still friends I haven’t seen in years with whom I hope to reconnect in person, and friends I like to see semi-regularly, which I still want to see. But rather than the whole “be out there building the network” thing, maybe I will take a different approach and a different route, at least this year.
Maybe, for me, part of the healing has to do with solitude, rather than isolation.
Not push people away, if they come into my life organically. But not dash around forcibly trying to add people into my life right now, either.
I’m still exploring that theory. I don’t have definite answers yet. I need to trust my intuition, and put it above the clamor of the “experts.” Because they don’t live in my skin. They haven’t lived what I have the past few years. They don’t have the knowledge to make proclamations on my life.
I can adjust my work, I can adjust my creative life, I can spend time enjoying what I enjoy, and limit external pressures.
I’ve never lived my life the way other people told me I “had” to. In spite of a decade on Cape where too many people tried to emotionally batter me into conformity, it didn’t work. And I’m not in that situation anymore, so why not enjoy what’s so different about things here? Because it is very different, and people tend to give each other more breathing room.
It’s a process, right? Try things, some work, some don’t. But what I’m being told are definitives aren’t necessarily relative to me personally, or to this new region.
So why not create my own definitives?
Although the thought of creating yet anything else is exhausting, but the act of creation tends to be restorative.
It was up in the high 70’s yesterday, and we opened all the windows and left the plants on the porch overnight. It was so nice to sleep with the windows open! This morning was the first day of the season I could do my early morning writing and have that first cup of coffee out on the porch, with Tessa keeping me company. It’s supposed to be warm again tonight, but then gets cold on Saturday, back down into the 30’s.
Meditation this morning. Then, some time at the page, before a video conference with a potential client. Then, some more errands and script coverage. I need to finish reading a book for review, so I can write the review tomorrow.
I think I’m going to take Monday as a holiday. I mean, I’m in a state where it’s a holiday, why not enjoy it?
Have a good whatever-you-celebrate, and I’ll catch you on the other side.
Wednesday, April 6, 2022
Waxing Moon
Cloudy/Rainy/Chilly
It was supposed to rain yesterday. Instead it was sunny, so people ran around enjoying it! I did a large grocery shop in the morning, to get us set up for the next couple of weeks. I also bought a pot of multi-colored pansies and a bunch of lavender tulips. Flowers for spring. I love pansies, because they’re so cheerful.
All the seedlings were moved out onto the porch, so they could enjoy the day, along with the cats (who moved themselves).
I finished the set of bios for Monthology celebrities tied to the Playhouse, the Gorgons, and the Valkyrie. I’d promised them to the collaborators, as fodder for the City’s tabloid. If none of this makes any sense, you can read about the shared world anthology here. It was fun, and these characters are for everyone to play with and have fun with. They are, at best, tertiary characters in my story. I felt bad that I was so late getting it in, although everyone in the group is great.
I wrote four pages of the radio play tentatively titled “Owe Me” that’s part of the Dramatists Guild project, with an eye toward sending it to the producer with whom I’ve been negotiating. It’s different from the comic horror; it’s more of a psychological ghost story. That went well. I’m letting the dialogue/plot flow, and then I’ll go back in and layer more sound cues (in radio, you have to figure a sound cue about every 30 seconds, approximately one cue every half page or so). I sometimes have clumps of sound cues to drive the plot, but then I have to layer in other cues when they get to talking, that either underline the dialogue or contradict it.
I’m percolating on the comic horror play that went off the rails. I think I will draft “Owe Me” first, and then go back to it, once I figure out how to get it back on track.
I pitched for a radio writing job that would run from May through August, and pays well. I’m sure the competition is fierce, but nothing tried, no chance at all. Plus, it was fun to include the new Pages on Stages website. I have to add in my bio page today.
The Conference wants me to take on some mentoring slots, and I’m not sure if I can take that on. A lot depends on how the upcoming negotiations for a couple of gigs go.
I covered two scripts in the afternoon. I started reading Deanna Raybourn’s newest Veronica Speedwell, AN IMPOSSIBLE IMPOSTER, which is a lot of fun. Knowledge Unicorns was a lot of fun, although everyone is eager for Easter break.
I signed up for a Buddhist series of seminars for the next five days, based on the work of Pema Chödrön, whose work I like and respect a lot. The rage I feel at fellow humans for allowing the slaughter in Ukraine to continue, and allowing the radical right to overtake this country, combined with the sense memory of the stress I underwent during this period last year, desperately searching for a place to live and organizing the move, is interfering with my ability to function well, and I’m hoping to learn some techniques that will help. Passivity is not an option, and there are so many people for whom I’m losing all respect. And yes, I am fully within my rights to judge those who allow genocide through inaction, or because the images make them uncomfortable. They are a threat to ALL our safety.
Had nightmares again last night, but I am privileged to only have them as nightmares, and not have to live them. Yet. If the GOP regains control, it’s game over for anyone with a brain and a heart.
I have to go and pick up one of my mother’s prescriptions today. It would have been nice if I’d known about it yesterday, when I was at the grocery store right next to the pharmacy, but that’s the way it goes.
More work on the radio plays, work on The Big Project, hopefully, more editing on CAST IRON MURDER, script coverage and contest entries are all on the agenda for today. Along with some admin. I need to clean out the Inbox.
Have fun, people!
Associate Member, PEN American Center
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 MYSTERIES
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 here.
COVENTINA CIRCLE ROMANTIC SUSPENSE
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 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.
Ink In My Coffee 