October « 2007 « Patti O'Shea's Blog

Archive for October, 2007

Insert Whatever Title You Like Here

Friday, October 19th, 2007

I spent yesterday cleaning when I got home from work. On the plus side, it’ll save me from having to clean this weekend. On the minus side, that’s all I got done. No time to go through edits or work on anything else. Of course, I still have my edits strewn across the couch, so the house isn’t perfect, but I’m not moving them for the vent sucker guys. It’s bad enough that I had to put away all the other stuff I had set up for a project I was working on pre-edits.

Oh! Speaking of other projects, I think my Maori hero has a name. Actually, we’ve been dancing around this name for like two weeks, but I didn’t like it. So when I started writing yesterday, I was convinced to use it just “temporarily” until I learned his “real” name. Damn man. I think he fooled me. I think this name is going to stick. I suppose I should stop complaining. At least he has a name–even if I don’t like it. My heroine still won’t share. We came close–I think–but that wasn’t quite right and nothing else in the same area of the alphabet worked. I guess she’ll continue to remain unnamed.

I stayed up too late last night watching baseball and I’m paying the price this morning. The coworker from hell didn’t do much resembling work yesterday. Instead, he yapped all day, disturbing others, and even intruded into other people’s conversations so he wouldn’t actually have to do what he’s being paid to do. The intern who sits next to me went home sick–hope he wasn’t contagious. And it’s still raining here. This is like 36 hours now or something. I need water wings.

I don’t think I have anything else to say, which should tell you how exciting things were on Thursday.

Tags: characters, house, names
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Back To Serious Work

Thursday, October 18th, 2007

When I got home from work yesterday, I spotted the package on my doorstep. It wasn’t the last order of bulbs I have coming. Nope, it was copy edits. I’m back to work again with a deadline. Sigh. I started writing my Polynesian couple’s story during lunch today and now I have to stop!

Anyway, I’m through the first 128 pages and it’s been pretty light so far, but page 129 has a query I’m not sure how to fix. So I’ll mull for a while and then go back and get it later. The copy editor gave me a smiley on one of the pages and a compliment. I really like that.

In other news, my garden wall is done. Yea! It finally stopped raining long enough on Wednesday for the guy to finish it. He did another beautiful job.

Here’s the new garden from a distance. You can see how close it is to the tree ring.

This is just the new garden.

And finally, here’s a shot of both the tree ring and the new garden from another angle. Because heaven knows if one shot is good, more is better.

While I was out checking the new addition, I also took a look at the plants in the tree ring. Believe it or not, my toad lilies have buds on them! I know, it’s October and they didn’t bloom all summer. We have another week of warm weather according to the TV guys, so let’s hope it’s enough time for the flowers to appear.

Toad lily with flower buds

It started raining last night and it’s supposed to pour all day today. Once again, I need to worry about the freeway being flooded. And to think, in July we were all concerned about a drought. Now someone better dust the plans off for the ark.

Tags: copy_edits, garden
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ia ora na

Wednesday, October 17th, 2007

The project I’ve been working on is a futuristic (or SFR if you prefer). My characters have been minimally cooperative and I have very little information about them or their story. I want more. So–of course–my Polynesian couple unloaded with a boatload of details today. Do I have to tell you that they’re not in the futuristic? I didn’t think so.

I still don’t have their names or where the story takes place, but I know what their jobs are, I know how they meet, and I know they both have tattoos. Deciding to go with the flow, I researched yesterday during my lunch hour instead of reading and then I did more research when I got home. The tattoo situation for him is going to be interesting. The Maori consider ta moko important to their culture and do not like it when people who aren’t Maori take their designs. My hero is half Maori, but grew up in the US and I’m not quite sure what the rules are in relation to him. That was one of the items I was trying to figure out Tuesday. I might end up having to email someone who’s Maori to ask. I hate contacting strangers out of the blue–even if their email addresses are associated with websites–and asking questions. I’ve done it before, but…. It’s that shyness thing again.

Anyway, he’s pretty damn hot. IMO, of course. He’s also been through an ordeal and is still trying to heal from it. More research upcoming on that front. The book opens in his Point of View with a prologue–at least in my head it does. I try to stay away from prologues, but I haven’t been altogether successful with that. I figure I’ll write this story the way it’s coming in and worry about whether or not I need a prologue later.

The other thing I’m not 100% certain of is the suspense element and what’s driving the plot. That I’m not too worried about yet. It’s early yet in this story’s development and I usually get the characters first, everything else later.

So here I am, trying to focus on one world and hearing characters from another story. Do you want to bet that when I try to focus on my Polynesian couple that they go silent?

BTW, in case you wondered, the title of this blog post is Reo ma’ohi for “hello.” (That’s the Tahitian language according to a quick online search.)

Tags: characters, polynesia
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Forgotten Hope

Tuesday, October 16th, 2007

What do you think of the title? Pretty bad, huh? If you don’t think so, keep on reading and groan along with me.

Sunday night, while I was trying to sleep, Hope finally started talking to me. That’s the good news. The bad news is that by the time I woke up on Monday morning, I’d totally forgotten everything she said. Heck, I’d forgotten she’d talked to me at all until Monday night when I was looking for her picture and she piped up again. “You’re going to be surprised,” she tells me. By what? I ask. Of course, that brings me no response. Is it any wonder why I enjoy torturing these people so much when I write?

I never did find her picture and I wanted to go to bed early, so I quit looking. I’ll pick it up again today when I get home from the EDJ–if I don’t get busy with something else. (Of course, I didn’t get to bed early. Sigh.)

I finished plugging the first round of holes that my writing buddy found in my latest project. I thought it would take a lot longer than it did. Of course, round two might be just around the corner, so I guess I shouldn’t feel too relaxed about it just yet.

So now the big question is what do I do today during lunch at the EDJ? I’d like to work on my Polynesian couple, but I prefer to work on one project at a time and I’m on the Hope/Ethan thing right now, and besides, I don’t have names or a good grasp on their story just yet. Makes it hard to write. Maybe I’ll slip a book in my bag and read–now that would be a change of pace.

Tags: characters, writing
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Weekend Catch-Up

Monday, October 15th, 2007

I had a totally great weekend over at Romance Divas doing that Science Fiction Romance workshop. So much fun that I got nothing else accomplished all weekend. It’s a darn good thing I’m not on deadline, but I do have a project that I wanted to work on and I didn’t touch it yesterday. I printed it out and will take it to the EDJ today to work on during lunch.

The guy building my retaining wall did come on Saturday–really late in the day–but he did get a lot accomplished and he came back yesterday. It’s nearly finished now, just a few more stones to put in place, some cap stones and then it needs to be filled with dirt. This guy does such nice work and he’s so reasonable–I love it! I’ll take pictures when it’s done, of course, and subject y’all to them. He said he wants to finish on Tuesday, but it’s supposed to rain all day today, tonight, and into Tuesday, so I guess we’ll see.

The other highlight coming up in my week is the guy coming to suck out my vents. Sigh. I should have been cleaning this weekend so the house looked good when they came, but see paragraph one about how much fun I was having online and you won’t be surprised to learn that the only thing I got accomplished was replying to posts. That gives me four evenings now to clean the entire house. It seems like so much time, but I guarantee I’ll be procrastinating.

And the Rockies won again last night. One more game and they’ll have swept the Diamondbacks–which is what I’m hoping for. Sorry Arizona fans, but the DBs must feel the pain they inflicted on the Cubs and that means sweep, sweep, sweep! Not that I’m vengeful or anything.

Tags: garden, workshops
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Change of Plans

Saturday, October 13th, 2007

I wanted to go to my chapter meeting today, I’d planned on it, but I didn’t wake up in time to get ready. Actually, I’m enjoying having a veg out morning. I hopped over to the Romance Diva’s Workshop on SFR and answered a few questions, then I visited a readers’ board that’s doing a discussion of In the Midnight Hour and answered their questions, now I’m contemplating what I’m going to do next.

The guy building the retaining wall for my new garden didn’t work yesterday and he’s not here yet today either. I don’t know if he’s planning to come or not. This is our last nice day for about a week according to the weather people, so I really hope he does show up and get a lot done. Hey, I have bulbs to plant!

I suppose I should do one of the million things on my list since it’s almost noon, huh?

Tags: garden, workshops
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For Writers of SF Romance

Friday, October 12th, 2007

I meant to post this in the morning, but I ran out of time. I did, however, get my website updated with the information.

Writing Out of this World Romance with Some of The Hottest Authors in the Science Fiction and Futuristic Genres

October 12th, 13th, and 14th at Romance Divas

Featuring:

Want to know how to write out of this world romance? Romance Divas is hosting a 3-day workshop with some of the hottest names in the Science Fiction and Futuristic genres. It will take place at the Romance Diva Forum. All are welcome. To get access to the forum you will need to register.

Tags: workshops, writing
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And Then It Was Titles

Friday, October 12th, 2007

While I’m waiting for feedback on my current project, I decided it was a good time to work on a title. I totally, completely suck at them and I hate coming up with them, but I’ve always believed you need a title that sells the story to the editor even if it never gets used on the final book. Unfortunately, there have been some books where I haven’t even come up with that much. It’s just hard to be clever.

I searched online at lunch yesterday to see if anyone else had any good suggestions, and I found one of my own tricks listed, so that was no help. Then I found one I hadn’t thought of. I tried using that, but nothing turned up that made me go, oooh, that’s it!

The best one I could come up with was pretty boring. I’ve brainstormed with every word I can think of, used the thesaurus, searched online. How do some people do it? How do they come up with clever titles? Oh, I used to be able to do it. Back when I was in college, I came up with brilliant titles for my papers, not just for me, but for the other kids on my dorm floor. Did I use them all up or something?

And now for something completely different. Fire drill yesterday at the Evil Day Job (EDJ). They couldn’t do it last week when it was warm–nope, we have to traipse outside in 40 degree weather. Of course, I got made fun of for wearing a hat along with my winter jacket. Someone asked where my gloves were, so I pulled my mittens out of my pockets. Hah! Bet he thought I didn’t have those with me.

I wanted to stay up last night and watch the National League playoff game, but I was so tired, I couldn’t make it. I ended up going to bed by 8:30. How sad is that? But Colorado won (yea!) and I’m rooting for them to sweep the series. Arizona beat my beloved Chicago Cubs and therefore they must lose.

Tags: EDJ, titles, writing
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Surprise Package

Thursday, October 11th, 2007

Yesterday I come home from the EDJ (Evil Day Job) and I find a bag. Confused, since I didn’t remember ordering anything that would come shipped that way, I studied the return address label and discovered some more of my flower bulbs have arrived. These are the alliums and they grow to 50″ in height according to what I read with flowers almost as big as an adult’s head. How cool is that? I open the package and there are my six bulbs. These things are huge! They’re smaller than a baseball, but not by that much. Pretty incredible.

Then I spot the stems and look closer. Along with my allium bulbs are two bare root plants–of some sort. Now I’m really confused because I know I didn’t order them. I don’t even know what they are for heaven’s sake. I look for a packing list. Nothing. I go online and check my email confirmation, and sure enough, all I ordered was the alliums–nothing else.

I go back to the package, look some more, and finally I think to flip the package with the bare root plants over. There it was stamped on the plastic: Burning Bush. I know I didn’t order that.

Back to the email confirmation, only this time I spot the line that says “Free gift earned.” Um, I guess the two burning bushes are my free gift. This just seems odd to me that any nursery would just send a bush that will grow to be 6 feet tall and 4-6 feet wide without asking first if the customer is interested. How many people throw these poor plants away, killing them without thought? I, of course, can’t do that, so now I’ll have two bushes in my yard.

I’d actually considered ordering them, believe it or not, but decided not to because they have berries and I didn’t want those things falling all over my yard. Looks like I’m going to have even more birds stopping by when those things grow.

So now this weekend, after my writing chapter meeting, I’ll be planting two burning bushes–somewhere. I just need to figure out where to put them.

Tags: garden, plants
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The Name Game…Redux

Wednesday, October 10th, 2007

Remember when Logan put me through all kinds of trouble to come up with his surname? Remember how I said I was never complaining again about a character telling me his/her name because it made everything so much easier? Well, I’m being forced to go through this hell again–Hope won’t share her last name. Grr. Okay, granted, I’m not doing anything right now that makes it needed and the important part was her first name, but I want to know. Besides, name does play a role in personality and she’s a big enigma to me.

What’s even more frustrating is that I read through what I wrote yesterday and it all pretty much sucks. Considering the sleep thing, and how the nap messed things up, it’s not a huge surprise, but I was hoping that I wouldn’t need to rewrite it all.

My other cross to bear is my Polynesian couple who still have no names, but who’ve started sharing scenarios. They’re all similar, so I’m thinking the premise of the story is going to stick. I guess it’ll just be a matter of what form it takes. The stories I’m seeing so far, though, aren’t really workable as a book, but this is percolation stage and that’s okay.

The stones were delivered for my new garden’s retaining wall yesterday. It’s amazing how much that stuff costs, but it’ll look so nice when it’s done. Of course, there’ll be pictures. I’m sure y’all have been sad for months without flower/garden shots posted here.

And because I can’t resist whining about the weather….It was summer in Minnesota this last weekend. Temps were in the mid-80s and I was running around in short sleeves and still thinking it was hot. Tuesday it got cold. Way cold. I seriously wished I was wearing my winter jacket when I left work yesterday afternoon. It’s 35 degrees with the wind chill and I think I’ll be putting it on this morning when I leave the house. Brr! I even had to put socks on which I totally hate.

Tags: annoyances, characters, names, stories, weather
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