I'm Out There.....

...on MySpace anyway. It could seriously take all day to add friends!

Snark-ified

I've been reading about the use of snark in the writer/reader blogging world on several blogs (okay, just at AngieW's blog - though she links to several other blogs which I don't read -- not enough hours in the day, y'all!)

Being a person that holds grudges well, I used to have a mental tally of those persons who had wronged me. I also used to joke I had grudges from kindergarten (only I wasn't joking).

No longer being that much of an evil bitch (I've mellowed in my old age), I try very, very hard to think before I speak (or type). My daddy used to tell me I "showed [my] ass" alot. A eloquent man of cuss words, my daddy. So, as a spin-off of AngieW's blog discussion, I have to wonder:

In this day and age of instant information, is there just too much snark in the book world?

I like to poke fun as much as the next person. When I was an evil bitch, I used to quote Clarie from Steel Magnolias: "If you don't have something nice to say, come sit by me." Maybe now I just don't care as much to gossip (overlook the fact that I am addicted to celebrity gossip blogs, m'kay). I also don't care to trash talk or get involved in flame wars.

Am I entitled to my opinion? Yes. Am I entitled to type it on this blog? Yes. But I would certainly like to think I'm going to say whatever my opinion is in the nicest way possible. And, if I'm bitching about something, I hope it doesn't sound like a bitch.

What do y'all think? Is there just too much snark blogging around?

I Only Have How Many Words?

Before I became "serious" about this writing thing, I wrote for fun. I wrote for me, just whatever I felt like writing about. I've got 3 spiral ring binders with 1 1/2 historicals (and notes for 7 more in the series) under my bed.

And now that I'm "more serious?"

I'm obsessed with word count!

When I write in my notebook, I have to go back and count the words I've written, even though I know I'm just jotting down bits and pieces of conversations with little to no actual prose or descriptions.

When I write on my laptop, every time I take a break, I'm checking the word count with the handy dandy word counter.

I'm trying to be better about obsessively checking because, honestly, at this stage in my writing career, I'm not trying to find an agent. I'm not trying to pitch to a NY publisher (okay, there is that Nocturne proposal on my laptop but I haven't sent it anywhere). I'm just writing -- still for me --though in a different, more public arena.

Edited to Add: Thank you for everyone who made me feel like I'm not the only writer who obsesses with word count! You see, I'm not the only one....

Lordy, She's a Talker!

Some of my best ideas hit me while I'm driving. Maybe that's because my mind isn't focused on one clear thing when I'm in the car. Yes, I realize how wrong that sounds because, duh, I should be focused on driving. Driving is automatic to me. I've been doing it (legally) for 15 years. And since my listening choices have dwindled to Bert and Ernie, Sesame Street or The Wiggles, I tend to enjoy the quiet and serenity of...the voices in my head.

Right now, I'm thinking about my own little Yokapatawpha County. (I'm working on 2.5 projects for my pen names I'm trying to complete by the end of the month so those are more serious and immediate in my mind. But, if you haven't noticed, my mind tends to wander.) The character I'm fleshing out is the local Mary Kay representative. She's the reason for the title of this blog entry because she's talking my ear off! She hasn't stopped talking since I named her. Now if she'd only tell me something more than local gossip....

They Law.....

I've been reading and editing, people! Reading and editing.

I'm still tan-less, still reading gossip blogs (did you know that Katie Holmes is trying to enlist the help of Victoria Beckham in shedding her remaining post-Suri weight? I *know*!! I don't believe someone that gained 10 pounds during her second pregnancy is qualified to dispense 'how to lose post-pregnancy weight' but maybe that's just me....), still with a fidigity set of boobs and/or ill-fitting bra.....

My writing goals in June are to finish 2 pieces for my pen name (and you know what, I almost typed it!) One is a sci-fi romance I wrote almost 6 years ago. I'm editing the heck out of it but I think it still sucks. The second is a paranormal suspense/romance featuring vampires. I wrote the plot summary 2 months ago; I looked at it last night to kick-start my brain and I'm completely off track. So glad I'm not a plotter by nature!!

I'm also toying with some ideas for Southern-ish manuscripts -- Southern heroines doing and saying Southern things, getting into trouble as only we ladies of the South can. We'll see what happens with that...

Thursday Potpourri

This might border along the lines of TMI (Too Much Information) but, eh....

-I didn't meet any of my May writing goals. Really -- it's okay. There's always June...

-The underwire in my bra is killing me! I bought 3 new bras in February at the Maidenform outlet. Buying bras is a really big deal because, well, I just don't buy them that often. I can't decide if these bras are just cheaply made (and therefore the reason they were at an outlet store) or if my boobs really are this high maintenance.

-I am too pale. Almighty whitey, y'all! (That sounded so Britney Spears -- whom I think I feel sorry for. I mean, I liked "Oops..." the summer it was released. Now, she's flailing in the wind with no one to help her keep her white-trashy self out of the spotlight. Where's her momma? Or her publicist? Or her stylist? -- I know they make cute maternity clothes!)

-Gossip blogs are addictive. Which is why I probably haven't done much writing. Like Brad and Angelina really care what I think about their baby....

-The weather is crazy! In mid-May, it was raining almost every day; this week, the humidity has been off the charts. Summer is here to stay in the South!!


and

Dayna Hart's YOU AGAIN is now available from Freya's Bower. Blogger won't let me post a cover picture so you'll just have to trust me when I say it's gorgeous! Congrats, Dayna!!!