Writing Updates

I realize that I've been writing more romance reviews than actual updates lately.

Well, for writing, I've been plugging away at Reading the Willow King like a good little novelist, even though I've got the ideas for a staggering 5 (!) fantasy-romance novels clogging up the creative pipe behind it. I've been trying to write steadily, but on my best days I'm never more than 2100 words, which is frustrating. A novel is at least 80 000 words! I'm more than halfway there (current count: 60 000 words), but then there's the second draft to be written, and the third draft, and then the workshopping, and then agent-shopping, etc. etc.

So let's just simplify this into one thing: writing books is hard.

On the short-stories side, I found out that Weird Tales never received "House Hunting," so I've been sitting on that thing for 6 months for nothing. :( But I think I'll resubmit anyways.

Also, as a break from my characters' near-constant bickering, I wrote a short story on the fly (on the fly in Animejune speak means: 4 days) about an idea about a washing-machine fantasy I've had in my head for a while. I churned it out, but the basics are there and I can put the pretty language in on the second draft.

Also, my Choir story based on my last tour with my Choir ("Joyful Noise") earned raves from....my mum. But that's a start - she's a very literary intelligent and person and not afraid to drop criticism on me (she's called my fantasy at times, "derivative" and "childish") because she knows that then her raves are much more important. So I think I'll polish that one off and try submitting it too, and see how it goes.

I'm enjoying the new job at the Library as a Materials Processing Assistant. I've been at it for a month full-time without wanting to kill myself or having been called into the Management's office to discuss my "attitude," which means this job is already a million times better than any other job I've ever had. So I guess that means it ranks #2, right below Full-Time Novelist.

Right? Once I learn how to write more than 2000 words a day? Once I learn how to make myself write for eight hours a day like Nora Roberts? That'll happen, right? RIGHT?