Make Stones Weep

Stones don't cry when they shatter on the ground. The peculiar property of stone-ness means that these inert objects accept the transfer of kinetic energy with a silence that can only be described as stony. The pebbles that come of boulders retain the former properties of the stone--just in smaller pieces, smaller and smaller. At some point, it is said, a stone is no longer a stone. At which point, by definition, it must weep.

And, in doing so, it must gain tears--pain--feeling--soul. So be careful with stones. And be careful with souls. To make stones weep is no hard thing, but to heal a soul requires more than just mortar and brick.

I should probably be panicking

But I'm not. I have another watercolor to start and one more to finish. Next week we're starting the prep work for a party and I have a job interview.

Oddly, I seem to have calmed down about all this. Because, you see, contrary to popular belief about artists, it's all about the plan.

At least I have a title?

The title is: God Guides Me.

Now, if only I can write the story that accompanies it...

On the plus side, I've been reading more fiction lately. This means that I'll be writing less science-y and more prose-like.

On the minus side, Criminal Minds is on tonight, and I am totally addicted to that show, even more so than I was with House. I also like NCIS, and I think what makes these two shows in particular so much fun is how great everybody gets along. Even when they do have tiffs, they stick together in the end. People dynamics are always fascinating.

Hmmmmmm....

Obviously

I've been wanting to extend one of my short stories into either a story collection or a novel. I've already written a novella-ish-length novel around one minor character, which was fun, but it wasn't the extension that I wanted to do.

In retrospect, the extension seemed obvious--an expansion on a previously-explored plot point which didn't make it into the final cut of the story. I really just don't understand why it took me so long to figure that out.

Finally getting back into things

Yeah, it's been a while here. Some things blew up, some things slowed down.

Working on two books: one is a novel, the other is a book about Dutch food.

Hope they work out.

Nice Quote

I don't like to post quotes, because nothing seems so cliché as to confess to being unable to think of something yourself.

But every now and then, I come upon a good one. Too good not to repost, because it is 100% true:

If you're going to be a writer, the first essential
is just to write. Do not wait for an idea. Start
writing something and the ideas will come. You have
to turn the faucet on before the water starts to flow."

~ Louis L'Amour

Something about the very act of writing--physically writing with a pen and paper, not typing--lets ideas creep their way in. You start getting more and more ideas--and that's when you want to turn to the computer to get them all down before they start going away.

This is why it's called work

This week I started 4 drafts for Outside Looking In, all pretty good ideas--leaving my job, my allergies to our FatBoy--and eventually ended up publishing exactly 1.

This weekend I will send out two shorts to some small lit mags, and start writing up my next short, based on CPR.