Sunday Link Love, Stylish Blog Award, and ROW 80 Update 1/22/12
- by Annalise Green
SUNDAY LINK LOVE
- Kait Nolan makes an argument for deeper explorations of more interesting villains. I agree a lot with what she says here, maybe ’cause I’m studying psychology.
- Nicole Basaraba gives us an an excellent post about longhand, and the writers (some famous) who use it.
- Ari Susu-Mago gives me another gem on Twitter:
Can you find Wall-E?
- I’ve seen the Ira Glass on Storytelling meme circulating on Tumblr ad nauseam, but that’s usually via poster. I love the video version, which you can find here.
- I thought Kiersten White’s post about a night in the life was hilarious.
- Need some inspiration and encouragement, fellow writers? Saundra Mitchell’s post You Can Always Walk Away is one of the best of its ilk.
- Remember how Chuck Wendig wrote about 25 things writers should stop doing? Well, here are 25 things writers should start doing. Also by Chuck Wendig.
- I loved (emphasis *loved*) Claire Legrand’s post on first drafts and the wordiness they inspire, and how that’s okay. Definitely what I need right now, as I draft the heck out of my WIP.
STYLISH BLOG AWARD
Lena Corazon gave me this Stylish Blog Award forever ago, but finals and holidays prevented me from scheduling a proper ceremony. Well, I’m ready to accept my award now. Thank you, Lena!
The Stylish Blog Award requires a list of 7 random things. I’ve already given the Internet many random things about myself, which you can find here and here. Otherwise, I’m afraid that I’m randomed out.
Time to pass it on! I’m pretty sure that my chosen blogs have already received this award, because their blogs are the pretty. But what can you do? As usual, feel free to treat this as the most momentous occasion ever, or as blog chain mail. Either is fine with me.
- Jennifer Johnson: Love the blue and the simplicity.
- Ghenet Myrthil: The colors are easy on the eyes, and the book-themed header is both elegant and perfect for a writer blog.
- Natalie Hartford: One word: pink. Seven more words: guess what there is never enough of?
- Sommer Leigh: Um, everything about this blog. Starting with the fact that she’s identified herself as a writer adventurer. The bold stripes. And the pirate ship! Just so much love. So much.
ROW 80 UPDATE
- Goal recap: write 750 words a day on 750words.com.
This week was great! So far, I’ve plowed through 4739 words. Not bad, if I do say so myself. (And I do.) There’s no reason I won’t make my 750 quota today.
I’m starting to wonder if I’m weird, though. Because I’m so not writing in order. Not even a little. I’m not just talking about jumping between chapters, but jumping between scenes. And I’m… not sure that this is the best way to write a novel? Probably not. It’s working, sort of, I’m drafting at least, but it’s also kind of terrifying because scenes keep going in completely different directions than I originally intended (they’re telling the outline to talk to the hand, basically), and when you’re spending half your time writing future scenes that are dependent on earlier scenes working out a certain way…it’s um, well…unnerving.
Which has made me think a lot about Claire Legrand’s post that I included in the Sunday Link Love. Because while I might not be sure that I’m keeping all of these scenes – or that they’re even going to make sense once I organize them into chapters – they’re not completely meaningless either. No! I’m glad I wrote them. These scenes are helping me flesh out important story qualities such as character, emotion, theme, stakes, ect. They’re useful.
And for the most part, they’re viable places for the story to go. Writers often compare writing stories to childbirth, and in that vein, I feel like I’m telling my future novel (aka prospective child): “You can grow up to be this, or this, or this.”
Anyway. Those are my thoughts for today. How did your week go, fellow ROWers?
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