“All Afternoon Those Birds Twitter Twit”

  • 07:56 Looking forward to a 14-hour day today: writing, work, skool, & being camera meat. #
  • 07:57 First thing’s first (after the cafe opens so I can get my coffee): assessing the damage with a hard copy of the #wip. #
  • 08:06 Writing playlist: Soundtrack to THE VIRGIN SUICIDES by Air. #
  • 08:39 RT @matociquala Oh, screw it. I don’t care anymore. This book can suck the chrome off a trailer hitch… [Sums up how I feel about my #wip.] #
  • 09:13 RT @mightymur New blog post: ISBW #114 – Feedback tinyurl.com/c6fuph #
  • 09:15 Believe it or not, through all the RTing, editing progress is being made. Especially since I swapped Air for Bill Champlin on the headphones #
  • 09:28 God *damn*, this story needs work! LOTS of work. Of course, motivation comes whenever I have very little time to follow thru. 🙂 #wip #
  • 11:37 *85% ON THE MIDTERM!!* Need an 83% on the final to keep a B, so I can’t slack too, too much. But it means I can write more!!! #
  • 11:44 Actually, factor in problem sets and attendance, and I probably only need 80-81% :). #
  • 14:18 Could’ve spent part of my lunch writing. Spent it looking over my successful midterm, instead :D. #
  • 15:57 Is this the proverbial dawn after the proverbial darkness? Skool discussion section cxl’ed tomorrow AM. More time to write!!! #
  • 17:38 Looks like I’ll get a bit of a break before tonite’s stint as camera meat. Time to review another couple of pages of the #wip. #
  • 19:41 Just no energy for MS review before I get to be camera meat. #

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“All Afternoon Those Birds Twitter Twit”

  • 07:53 At the backup writing site (read: the site close to home cos I got up late) with a red-eye, Night Ranger on the headphones, & my latest #wip #
  • 08:00 "And it’s hard livin’ life on this mem’ry-go-round" (I luv 80s lyrics!) ♫ blip.fm/~3xdvb #
  • 08:05 "I remember when you learned about love in the back of a Chevrolet / No good for an old memory to mean so much … ♫ blip.fm/~3xdzw #
  • 08:53 Giving myself a headache trying to focus on revision. I’m >this close< to just trashing this story. #wip #
  • 11:22 Glad I got a minuscule amount of writing done. Lunch will be cut short because I’m a needle slu…I mean, to get some blood drawn 🙂 #
  • 12:04 What one novelist’s revision plan looks like www.caitlinkittredge.com/?p=926 #
  • 12:39 Lunch (even w/the accompanying needle) just cannot come fast enough. #
  • 15:43 Really enjoying the Amateur Hour show here at the day job (not). #
  • 17:50 And on top of it all, I’m probably going to be hanging out late at work. I’m stopping for a drink on the way home, & I don’t mean coffee. #
  • 19:01 Got out on time after all, but just barely. And now I’m sitting w/a pint of ale. Day doesn’t seem so bad, now :D. #
  • 19:03 Reading The Lone Star Stories Reader by Eric T. Marin – tinyurl.com/cvv9rr #
  • 20:13 is starting The Lone Star Stories Reader by Eric T. Marin. Skimmed the introduction of the free pdf download. #
  • 22:06 Relaxing to a couple of beers and EASTENDERS. #

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“All Afternoon Those Birds Twitter Twit”

  • 07:53 Note to self: When setting the alarm, make sure you can *hear* said alarm the next morning. #
  • 07:54 Losing a little writing time this AM, but that’s okay–I don’t care that it’s a skool day today :). #
  • 08:33 Gonna try something radical this morning: Work from home at my newly cleaned desk. Gotta resist desire to take pics. #
  • 09:09 Oh, Inbox Zero–you’re *such* a sight for sore eyes. I’ve missed you! We need to see each other more often. 🙂 #gtd #
  • 11:50 First time the sun’s been out all day. Hope it stays out on the hike to skool! #
  • 13:28 Sun did not stay out, but at least it’s relatively dry. For now. 🙁 #
  • 14:26 Today at skool: more cold-war era music videos to illustrate gametheory. Still dunno how I feel about that, being the oldest guy in class. #
  • 17:57 Do I stress about where my profile picture went, or just assume there are status issues and ride it out? #
  • 19:10 @RachelleGardner Thank *you* for the info! #
  • 19:32 Just trying to get some caffeine in me if I’m going to do any writing at all tonite. #
  • 19:52 zomg!! THE LONE STAR STORIES READER available as a free .pdf ericmarin.livejournal.com/168642.html #

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“All Afternoon Those Birds Twitter Twit”

  • 07:59 is on page 95 of 256 of Dangerous Laughter: Thirteen Stories by Steven Millhauser. "Dangerous Laughter" had an great hook but the themes … #
  • 08:05 Took in some very powerful documentaries at FLEFF last night. Will have to blog (not just tweet) about them. Later, tho. I’m wiped out. #
  • 08:14 Need to create some writing space today. I think I’m depressed because I’m not sure how to do it after so long. #
  • 08:30 "When there’s no one left to leave you, even you don’t quite believe you, that’s when nothing can deceive you." ♫ blip.fm/~3uhti #
  • 09:23 Figured out today’s writing plan. I bet it’ll take 1 or 2 or 10 false starts. ‘Cos writing is NOT like riding a bike, at least not for me. #
  • 10:13 Early bird caught the worm! Table w/an outlet at the coffee place. Now I can procrastinate all I want. #
  • 10:19 Website for OUR DISAPPEARED/NUESTROS DESAPARECIDOS from last nite’s FLEFF, soon to be on @IndependentLens tinyurl.com/d9brba #
  • 10:29 Procrastination playlist: The Bad Plus, FOR ALL I CARE. Apropos CD, given the mood I’m trying to fight ;). #
  • 12:41 Writing playlist: Bill Champlin, Robert Lamm, Beckley-Lamm-Wilson #
  • 12:55 RT @jay_lake RT @ColleenLindsay @RachelleGardner on the 10 Things You Should Expect From Your Agent… tinyurl.com/dgdgu9 #
  • 13:59 Ah, the crash of being so wrapped up w/writing that I forgot to eat. Must mean I’m finally back to my normal routines :). #
  • 15:11 RT @Cbarzak @gregvaneekhout because flashbacks are like quicksand, dude. Write a flashforward. That might do the trick! 🙂 #
  • 15:12 You know I’ve been out of the game too long when I stop writing to do grocery shopping. Now, I’m looking at my messy office… *sigh* #
  • 17:38 Count Basie Orchestra vid from ’94. I saw them that year (not at this show, tho). Memories! www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtNjmTpVAE #
  • 17:39 Office is even messier than before. Don’t ask about the writing :(. #
  • 21:58 Early evening coffee and a cleaner office make for a slightly better mood :). #
  • 22:26 @jeffreyeford Thanks for the add. I’m in the midst of THE DROWNED LIFE and am blown away so far! #

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Tough Love

It’s been a week since the last critique group and I’m only getting around to this now. That’s the problem with this time of year for me, but that’s okay–better to light an inch than curse the darkness, right?

I’m posting this for the sake of completeness (to contrast my failure to keep my scorecards up to date for the past few months).

There really isn’t enough to break down into lists of Win! and Fail! because all I brought to last group–all I could bring, given the life BS I had to contend with that week–were two rewritten scenes. I brought them looking for only two things: (a) to see whether I successfully clarified/improved on the story’s McGuffin (Group verdict: Win!) and (b) whether I could answer the question of what keeps the protagonist in the situation he’s in (Group verdict: A little bit o’ Fail!).

So, I guess I should go and do something with these suggestions now, huh?

“All Afternoon Those Birds Twitter Twit”

  • 08:26 Planned on the farmer’s market this morning but it’s too cold and damp right now. No coffee at home though. Must go out. #
  • 09:11 Tweeting from the diner. WiFi really is everywhere in this town! #
  • 09:14 Today is a day of rest. And by "rest," I mean writing sometime this afternoon before I’ve truly recovered from midterm trauma. #
  • 10:41 Would’ve gotten THE BEST OF CRANK! from the library if it wasn’t missing the 1st 25 pages!! bit.ly/M1a0 #
  • 10:43 Gonna catch some of @FLEFF today. Lurk at a few talks, see a couple of films, maybe livetweet if there’s WiFi… 🙂 #
  • 13:03 Want to read: The Best of Crank! by Bryan Cholfin – tinyurl.com/c49brz #
  • 13:05 You know it’s a small town when you can run into the same coworker at two separate places/events. #
  • 13:08 Nice FLEFF panel. Learned things re: doco film distribution that I didn’t know but which make perfect sense WRT any art distribution. #
  • 13:11 Spending time at local CD fair was a mistake. Luckily, it was only a $15 mistake–could’ve been a LOT worse :(. #
  • 13:24 Reading The Orphan’s Tales: In the Night Garden by Catherynne M. Valente – tinyurl.com/dmamkq #
  • 13:40 Only came back to the library to mooch WiFi until the next bus. I didn’t mean to check out Series 4 of THE LAST DETECTIVE, honest!! #
  • 17:12 Getting Cassandra Wilson’s latest CD on the cheap at the CD fair was awesome. Getting the latest from The Bad Plus was an epic WIN! #

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“All Afternoon Those Birds Twitter Twit”

  • 07:55 I should’ve slept like a baby last night after the midterm. But I didn’t and for some reason, I feel more stressed than yesterday…? #
  • 08:06 You know, it’s not even the fact that I’ve got to finish a problem set due the day after the midterm. Well, maybe that’s part of it. #
  • 08:29 PTSD is the only explanation for how I’m feeling. Feh. Enuff whining. Gonna listen to the song "Walkin’ on a Thin Line" & move on w/life! 🙂 #
  • 09:17 Problem set done. I’m taking my life back now, thank you very much. Well, after I phone it in at work today. #
  • 11:55 About to do the Bataan Death March to skool. Have 1/2 a mind to skip, but that damn problem set *grumblegrumble* #
  • 14:29 I just feel like hitting life on the nose with a rolled-up newspaper and telling it, "No!" #
  • 16:45 RT @jay_lake #writing io9 on the difference between plot & story… bit.ly/1IVTJw #
  • 18:09 "I’m on a ride and I wanna get off." And I will in a few minutes. ♫ blip.fm/~3sc57 #
  • 19:54 Never fails! When I’m exhausted, everyone wants me to come to their party. O, poor me ;). #

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“All Afternoon Those Birds Twitter Twit”

  • 23:10 Sure it was cheese, but I didn’t mind the end to #LifeOnMars (US) that much. #
  • 08:27 Unfair: adj. Sunny day off work that I’m spending on campus to attend section & office hrs to prep for midterm T-minus 11hrs from now. Bleh. #
  • 08:38 Odyssey Workshop graduates discuss strong openings (novels and stories) odysseyworkshop.livejournal.com/6949.html #
  • 10:22 Want to read: The Rose Metal Press Field Guide to Writing Flash … by Tara L. Masih – tinyurl.com/ckdypq #
  • 10:33 Breaktime’s over. Crunchtime. Like Alec Baldwin said in GLENGARRY, "It’s f**k or walk!" #
  • 10:33 Study playlist: TORCH: A SIX DEGREES COLLECTION OF MODERN TORCH SONGS #
  • 11:24 SyllabusFail! I’ll never understand why a problem set needs to be due the day *after* a midterm! Feel like I’m spending too much time on it. #
  • 12:13 T-minus 7.25 hrs to midterm. I’m confident that all the necessary info is in my head. Just need to organize it, now. #
  • 12:38 Hard to study when there’s some sort of angry protest going on outside the building I’m in. #
  • 13:11 Going home for lunch and break. Probably won’t need to come back for prof’s office hrs, in which case, I’ve got *plenty* of time to midterm. #
  • 14:18 Walks from bus stops = walks in the sun, so I can’t complain too much. Studying will resume once leftovers are consumed. #
  • 15:43 T-minus 3.75 hours to midterm. Knocking on every piece of wood I can find :). #
  • 16:02 Gonna head back to campus, hole up with a cup of coffee, and review before Zero Hour! #
  • 18:26 Studying over. Screwing off for the next hour, and then it’s showtime!! #
  • 21:51 Totally punch drunk from the midterm. Definitely didn’t get an A, but I think I did a’ight. Treating myself to diner food as a reward. #
  • 22:41 RT @charlesatan Melanie and Steve Rasnic Tem on “I want to write, but life gets in the way.” tinyurl.com/cmjap9 #

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“All Afternoon Those Birds Twitter Twit”

  • 08:06 My skoolbooks have swallowed my soul!! #
  • 08:08 is on page 75 of 256 of Dangerous Laughter: Thirteen Stories by Steven Millhauser. "The Room in the Attic" gets 4* The ending, as a lite … #
  • 08:10 If I brought an ending like the one in "The Room in the Attic" to my genre crit group, I’d probably be asked to leave and never return. 😀 #
  • 08:14 Study playlist: Tower of Power mix. #
  • 09:28 Wonders if April Fool’s Day joke I set up at work b4 I left last night has paid off yet >:) I’m about to find out muahahaha! #
  • 10:16 As often happens with such things, my April Fool’s joke worked a little *too* well. Gonna have to dodge some people for the rest of the day. #
  • 10:16 Ain’t I a stinker? >:) #
  • 13:28 T-minus 1 day to midterm. Then the valkyries can come to take me to Valhalla. #
  • 15:20 Ouch! Vengeance was had by the other department. Payback really is a bitch ;). #
  • 17:23 I just can’t afford to be this tired right now. #
  • 19:36 Guests over for dinner. Too tired to mind. At least there’s food :)! #
  • 19:37 Ooh, and wine–might not be conducive to studying. Or, will it? I think I’ll give it a try. #
  • 20:46 Study plan: bit of review before and during tonite’s GHOST HUNTERS. Then, break for LIFE ON MARS. Then, more studying until my brain bleeds. #

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“All Afternoon Those Birds Twitter Twit”

  • 08:08 Reading Break It Down: Stories by Lydia Davis – tinyurl.com/ck2b4d #
  • 08:09 is on page 59 of 256 of Dangerous Laughter: Thirteen Stories by Steven Millhauser. 2/3 done w/novellette "The Room in the Attic." Creepy … #
  • 08:10 Last night was a *bad* slacking night. Have to try to make up for it today. #
  • 08:12 Study playlist: ABOUT TIME by Steve Winwood. (Closest thing I’ve got to having any Traffic.) #
  • 10:43 RT @warrenellis Just heard from DC that John Cassaday has finished PLANETARY #27. Ravens have left Tower Of London. #
  • 11:40 Wondering why, in this town, do folks ask me point blank who I voted for, yet balk at asking me how much my netbook cost?? #
  • 12:33 I think I’m hitting a mental roadblock in my studying :(. Amazed how fast confidence can turn to jelly! #
  • 12:35 Want to write at lunch, but I know it’d only be to procrastinate. #
  • 14:54 Just have to accept that I just can’t grok how to figure out min possible customer surplus due to price ceilings for now, and move on. 🙁 #
  • 18:01 Someone, please–snap me out of the 1,000-yard stare! #
  • 19:23 Sooo tempted to just bag today, hoping I’ll just pull it together on midterm day (when I’m off from work). Gonna have dinner b4 deciding. #
  • 22:02 Damn you, EASTENDERS! I was gonna go to bed early. #

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