tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3470026243285779972024-03-05T07:15:52.409-08:00 Creative Arts AnonymousDriven to write? Paint? Sing? Play a musical instrument? Love the arts? Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.comBlogger461125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347002624328577997.post-68354805767508905212023-04-02T18:50:00.000-07:002023-04-02T18:50:11.545-07:00Novel Idea #2<p>For the second installment, this is probably best as a YA or children's book:</p><p>Using as many of the fairy tales you remember from childhood, write a story interweaving the stories into something that makes a logical whole world. Think of Shrek, only it doesn't have to be comedic, or too centered on nursery rhymes... remember, you don't have to make a whole series about it, though that worked well for several seasons, didn't it? Eh, Nick?</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ7WN5goohOUnms9AV_qy5C5M6NNOFZSDIEVhYEbttp7xkdSRyHfwXOSZzuknacpjvABDW3zuxHbZksiKpnCN3Qra4T-OdFpg_onCAbQq1FzIqsE8IElHdtVikLe5tlEK9u6zpPQn608jK1CvRypNdrvbt9ys7M5aCqpdCfzwFiCP3tgLmzxXkAhiO/s1920/2016-0712-Grimm-AboutImage-1920x1080-KO.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="278" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ7WN5goohOUnms9AV_qy5C5M6NNOFZSDIEVhYEbttp7xkdSRyHfwXOSZzuknacpjvABDW3zuxHbZksiKpnCN3Qra4T-OdFpg_onCAbQq1FzIqsE8IElHdtVikLe5tlEK9u6zpPQn608jK1CvRypNdrvbt9ys7M5aCqpdCfzwFiCP3tgLmzxXkAhiO/w495-h278/2016-0712-Grimm-AboutImage-1920x1080-KO.jpg" width="495" /></a></div><br />Feel free to go dark with this if you want to, turning the piece into horror, or selecting the more disturbing of Grimm's tales... whatever you choose to write about, even if you turn it into a modern crime novel, make it as realistic as you can, so that its fairy tale elements are woven into the fabric of the real world around us, but in surprising ways.<p></p><p>Or turn it into a poem, giving us enough clues so that we know who each person is, without your naming a single one of them. Let the glass slipper, the three bears, or the mirror tell us where we are and what you are drawing from.</p><p>Use the idea if you like, or leave it. I'll be back with more (let's hope I can keep this going through the whole month). </p><p><br /></p>Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347002624328577997.post-54918369468991758752023-04-01T09:02:00.001-07:002023-04-01T09:13:25.828-07:00Novel Idea #1<p>It's been too long, but rather than apologize, for the next 30 days--the ENTIRE MONTH of April--I'm offering a gift: </p><p>Each day I will post ONE idea for a story, novel, children's book, screenplay, or whatever. And the idea is for ANYBODY to use. Feel free to write a story of your own from the idea, or use it as inspiration for whatever you would like to work on... or just use it to help you kickstart your own writing. </p><p><b>Novel Idea #1:</b></p><p><b>Multigenerational family has a genetic mutation--they are born capable of transforming into merpeople when young. If they do so before they hit puberty they develop the ability to change any time they get into water, but if they wait until adulthood, the transformation becomes blocked. </b></p><p><b>After centuries of being snared as selkies or burned as witches, they decide normal is better, so for more than a century they have forbidden any swimming or water exposure for all of the children until they turn 15. Everyone has been normal for several generations now, but parents are taught of the curse so that they can keep the normal cycles going. </b></p><p><b>Until one member, secretly angry with the world, invites all the cousins to his lake house for a week. And takes them out on a boat and tosses them into the water. </b></p><p>There you go... if you aren't into mermaids or fantasy, that's cool. Just check back here tomorrow for more. And let me know if you come up with a writing from this. I'd love to read it!</p>Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347002624328577997.post-45540945158869057632020-09-19T13:43:00.003-07:002020-09-19T13:43:57.633-07:00Color Blind<div style="text-align: left;">Just let me tell you what it means<br />To be color blind.<br />It doesn't mean you're blind</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />--You fool--</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />That you don't notice browner skin<br />The silken black of Indian hair<br />Or that you negate any conscious thought <br />That someone different from you<br />Might just have to deal with shit<br />You don't.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">--That is merely blind, you fool--</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />It means you notice all that is unique<br />The utter differences<br />The nappy hair, the cheekbones<br />Even how a person's speech<br />And fears, experiences, culture <br />Are not like yours.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">--In other words, you fool--</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />You choose--you truly choose<br />To love them as yourself<br />To see the value in the different<br />To know with all your heart<br />They have as much a right <br />To life<br />To love<br />To peace<br />To happiness</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />As you.</div>Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347002624328577997.post-9272997139386646082019-06-27T08:01:00.000-07:002019-06-27T08:01:25.857-07:00Too Long between PostsI really should be writing this on my <a href="http://notwritinganythinganymore.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Not Writing Anything Anymore Dammit</a> blog, but I've been just as lame updating that site as this one.<br />
<br />
But this is going to change.<br />
<br />
I have found--and I am not alone in this--that it is so very easy to get myself to work on my novels... and so very hard to get myself to work on anything else. Especially marketing.<br />
<br />
It's my failing... but it has to end. The response to my book has been overwhelmingly positive, but the chances of its ever taking off and gaining a wide readership is slim to none if I don't market the book. Therefore, to fight my stupid reluctance to market the book (despite my desire to see it go places), I am making a list.<br />
<br />
If you are a regular reader of my blog in the past, you know I am a lister. I make lists on a daily basis, and I am currently about to finish filling my fourth list book.<br />
<br />
So here's my marketing list for JULY:<br />
<br />
1. Make a list of potential agents using my current and prospective books.<br />
2. Write some short stories (either for publication or contest or both) to get my name out there more and get more items published.<br />
3. Set up at least three book signings or reading nights with local or state bookstores.<br />
4. Build an author website.<br />
5. Send out at least 5 agent queries.<br />
6. Write on my blogs at least twice per week.<br />
<br />
It's a short list, but it's one I've been ignoring for almost a year since my book came out, just like I've been ignoring my blogs. I know I'll still be revising the third Joshua book in the series, as well as working on the start of a manga version of book 1, but this stuff also needs attending to.<br />
<br />
What tasks have you been avoiding? How might you add them to your list for July?Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347002624328577997.post-63350473633756685262018-07-08T06:36:00.000-07:002018-07-08T06:36:59.628-07:00Publication... at Last!<b>My book is coming out! My book is coming out!</b><br />
<br />
Thanks to Black Rose Publishing, my first fantasy novel in a series is coming out August 9, and I am prepping to begin a book tour throughout the coming academic year (and beyond).<br />
<br />
Given how many years I've been working on this series, I'm as surprised as anyone to finally have the book come out in final form. It turns out, too, that getting one's book published is both daunting and exciting, but I'll explain all that in a future post. (Hint: It mostly involves the meaning of the series, and how much I want the books to change our thinking, especially here in the United States.)<br />
<br />
Here's the cover:<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-SLwJvs-9eXxinbloCDf5cHduvzcLKQ4JJD2rkha9JIkbXDfaheheF2zfUvfq6A75IjZReBmLSE051Rf-tgEqXB0fQO3qkFwIsw9EsMR5GpRAcHN4zD6vHCoEIl7ZIX-RmHXee_B_DT8v/s1600/Ghost+Portal+Cover+2018.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="416" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-SLwJvs-9eXxinbloCDf5cHduvzcLKQ4JJD2rkha9JIkbXDfaheheF2zfUvfq6A75IjZReBmLSE051Rf-tgEqXB0fQO3qkFwIsw9EsMR5GpRAcHN4zD6vHCoEIl7ZIX-RmHXee_B_DT8v/s640/Ghost+Portal+Cover+2018.png" width="443" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">Cover art courtesy of Black Rose Publishing</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The book comes out August 9, but it's already available for pre-order (10% off) through the publisher at their website:<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.blackrosewriting.com/childrens-booksya/theghostportal" target="_blank">ORDER THE GHOST PORTAL</a><br />
<br />
If you'd like a signed copy, you can pre-order those, too. Just post me your e-mail, write me at shakespeare824 at hotmail.com, or find me on Facebook (Cheryl Carvajal), and we'll make that happen. If you want more details, you can read about it on the publisher's website, but you can also email me directly, and I'll share some details with you that way.<br />
<br />
More information about the book to come... including a few excerpts... to stay tuned.<br />
<br />Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347002624328577997.post-77133659865914215762016-10-09T05:45:00.001-07:002016-10-09T05:45:57.595-07:00The Audience... and My Stage FrightAs I teach in my college classes, every writing has an intended audience.<br />
<br />
You may feel, as I sometimes do, that your writing is to weird or unfinished or crappy for anyone else but yourself, but eventually, if you are a writer, you intend for your writings to be read by <i>someone</i>.<br />
<br />
And there lies the problem.<br />
<br />
Who is our audience? Well, honestly, that depends on what we are writing, and why. I write in nearly every genre--essay, poetry, fiction (short and long), and drama (short and long). Each genre--and each work itself--has a different intended audience, and a different set of issues caused by the very audience I intend to reach.<br />
<br />
My novels are all the culmination of a set of ideas, many months (no, years) of work, and painstaking revision and effort. I have literally (yes, I do know the meaning of this word and use it correctly) have revised my first novel nearly 30 times. My third novel was stopped and almost scrapped three times, and I've overhauled it, starting the novel over from scratch, changing the main character, changing the entire genre of novel, and changing POV and verb tense (which is really, really hard to revise, it turns out). Why all the work? Because I want my novels to read seamlessly, to satisfy readers without annoying them with too much detail, too little, events which are too stupid or too preachy or too unbelievable, without "too much" anything. Of course, I cannot truly know my audience, for so much of my personal preferences in reading come out, and I know other readers will never be exactly like me. Another problem is that I am my primary reader. I've read my books far more than anyone else has, mainly because I have shown them to so few people (mainly because they rarely feel finished).<br />
<br />
With plays, I have a different audience entirely. I have to imagine all of the play in front of a live audience. Even more importantly, I have to imagine actors and directors taking my play and making something out of it, and create ways to help them do so easily (few sets, abbreviated action, logical shifts, etc.). After all, if a director doesn't feel the play is worth doing, and actors don't enjoy it, it won't be performed. But the final judge is still the audience, and I have to consider how I can place in the meaning of the piece (the whole reason I wrote it to begin with) into the work without losing the spontaneous feeling one should have watching stage action through a fourth wall. The largest difficulty with this is probably obvious: I can never know how a play, a particular scene, or even a line works until the play is in front of an audience, live, and my writing is already public. This is rather like a comic, who doesn't know if a joke works until it does--or doesn't--in front of a real audience.<br />
<br />
With poetry, I usually write with an audience in mind, too, but, in my case, the audience is nearly always singular. Instead of writing from a particular POV (the way that Edgar Lee Masters wrote his <i>Spoonriver Anthology</i>), I write TO a particular person, someone in real life. Often I write to my husband, as I can prove with a huge list of sonnets and other love poems, but I also write to others, even a few people who have passed away. I send poems to people, but often I write them only for myself, with no intent to ever share them with anyone, including their intended audience. Poems are a way for me to clear my head of some issue, to get something proverbially (not literally) off my chest. I have several to my father, for instance, but they are more like letters I write, seal, but never mail.<br />
<br />
If you write, you know, deep down, that you have an audience for your work, an audience beyond yourself. That is both a good thing and a bad thing. If you long for a huge audience of superfans who will love your work, your task may seem quite daunting, and any lukewarm response to your writings can feel like a knife to the heart. God forbid that a reader express distaste for your writing, or you might find yourself crushed for months. I am thicker skinned than many, but only to a point. It's the reason I keep revising and not submitting my work to anybody.<br />
<br />
It's funny that I am writing about audience here, in my old blog, since only a handful of people even read this, and I rarely get more than a response or two, nearly all from my fantastic sister. (Thanks in advance, Stephanie!) Perhaps, however, if you happen upon this page, you will see that, in the end, I am still writing to myself most of all. I am writing to understand myself better, to work through ideas, to see what is holding me back.<br />
<br />
I would love to know what you see holding you and your writing back. What fears do you have about your audience? Who do you believe your audience to be?<br />
<br />
Until next time, keep writing...Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347002624328577997.post-32506600971022879242016-09-14T02:19:00.000-07:002016-09-14T02:19:05.136-07:00The Hazards of the UnforeseenI'd ask whether life has ever handed you something you did not expect, but it would be a stupid question. Unless you are Nostradamus, it's happened today... or at least this week. My life is filled with the unexpected.<br />
<br />
Right now my existence is permeated with it. I had eye surgery, which, unexpectedly to me but not to the eye doctor, it seems, meant I could drive in a week but would have to read large print EVERYTHING for the next 4-6 months.<br />
<br />
My kids, only one month into school, have proven they cannot properly handle their classes without my constant nagging and looking over their shoulder. So they are behind. Again. And I have to refocus them ALL DAY to help them get caught back up.<br />
<br />
My house is in need of its final overhaul, remodeling the last remaining ugliness. Unfortunately, that involves ripping down wallpaper and refinishing spots on the wood floor. The wallpaper alone has been a beast--the dining room alone took me FIVE DAYS to tackle.<br />
<br />
I could whine more, but I won't. I just use these unexpected events as an excuse most of the time. An excuse not to write.<br />
<br />
Not productive, I know. You don't have to tell me. Just as I don't have to remind you about all the unforeseen hiccups in your life. So, my vision still a bit blurry, I rip down wallpaper until my fingernails disappear, spackle, stretch my aching shoulders, and wait for NaNoWriMo.<br />
<br />
Yet my hope is unchanged. I WILL get this remodeling done. I WILL see fine within the next few months (already I can write this without enlarging it on the screen, and that is GREAT news!). I WILL find a way to make sure my kids stay caught up AND still have time for my own pursuits. I WILL get my priorities back the way I want them, and not the way I have to place them for now.<br />
<br />
This will pass. This is temporary. I WILL start my agent search very soon...<br />
<br />
As soon as I get the last of this damn wallpaper down.Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347002624328577997.post-85186943151282632292016-08-19T06:40:00.000-07:002016-08-19T06:40:38.059-07:00Killing Time? Or is Time Killing Me?Before you read any further... bear with me. My eyes have been lased barely three weeks ago, and I have trouble seeing computer screen writing, so I will likely write with a few errors.<br />
<br />
The thought occurred to me, yesterday, that I should be depressed because my eyes will not, at this point, allow me to work on my novels... or work on my plays... or read for more than a few minutes at a time. My goals were to get my Thomas novel #3 done in September, revise #2 in October, and write #4 in November... but I know now that such goals are impossible, at least until I can comfortably write for hours on my laptop.<br />
<br />
Of course, since I don't tend towards the woe-is-me-whine-fest that seems a plausible notion at this point, I am making the best of the time while I wait. The hubby and I are readying our house to sell (we already put our house in Washington up for sale, and its contract is pending), so I've decided to concentrate on the activities I CAN do with my eyes as they are. Whining is such a waste of time, after all.<br />
<br />
I've already ripped down the wallpaper in two bathrooms, leaving me wallpaper in one more bathroom and in the dining room to tear out as well. (Note to would-be wallpaper putter-uppers: DON'T DO IT!!! If you have EVER had to tear down wallpaper, you would never put ANY up again, I promise!) I have several floors to patch up as well, sanding and re-staining, and then lacquering. Each one of these will have to be done carefully, in steps. Once I've patched the de-wallpapered walls, I'll need to prime all the bathrooms and then paint these as well. If I'm too worn out from going up and down the ladder, I'll replace door hinges (most of the house uses brass, and I'll need to replaced the hinges with steel or brushed nickel--SIGH) and door knobs.<br />
<br />
But it can't all be work. Thankfully, I can also sew at this point, too, and Halloween is close enough that I can work on costumes. Crystal wants to be a creepy broken china doll (cool!), and Brandon wants to be Lich King (I didn't know who that was, either, so here's a picture:)<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLB47ALeogULWakcIdLtPNDibeic-GJ1WqFlSN4G3yrLs8yb3tHGmtnIqc-DNrXuf6bMuYko7WJkTeVZ0E2QGPVr7znbf4vpyvtbVGiiVpCzLCis1x8jBUZX_LSza2LyyXhVUCV5a1Ixo/s1600/the_lich_king_by_kanaru92.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLB47ALeogULWakcIdLtPNDibeic-GJ1WqFlSN4G3yrLs8yb3tHGmtnIqc-DNrXuf6bMuYko7WJkTeVZ0E2QGPVr7znbf4vpyvtbVGiiVpCzLCis1x8jBUZX_LSza2LyyXhVUCV5a1Ixo/s400/the_lich_king_by_kanaru92.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thanks to Justin Currie on Deviantart.com for this rendering of Lich King!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Even my own costume needs finishing (since I started it last October but was distracted by my kids' costumes)... I am dressing up as a woodland faerie, complete with knee-high suede boots and pink flowers. Given my eye status, I might ask Crystal to sew the pink flowers on the costume, in exchange for sewing hers... but it's all bound to be fun.<br />
<br />
I assume, if you are reading this, that you have not just had eye surgery. but perhaps you have something else getting in the way of what you REALLY WANT TO BE DOING. So what? Shift gears, try something new instead, and just do SOMETHING. Feel free to browse through possible stuff, find a new path, and just play. You may find your next great adventure.<br />
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Now I am off to mine.Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347002624328577997.post-37030693088580028682016-05-23T04:42:00.000-07:002016-05-23T04:42:38.108-07:00Summer GoalsNew Year's Resolutions never work on me, if only because I've been on an academic calendar since I was five (perhaps even since my older sister was five). Trying something new mere days before the school semester starts up again is foolish in the extreme, so, naturally, the new things have rarely remained permanent.<br />
<br />
Therefore, I am making a short list of SUMMER Resolutions. My son is finished with school, and my daughter has two days more before her classes close, so it looks like I will have TWO WHOLE FREAKIN' MONTHS without tons of daily obligations. What can I accomplish in two months? Hopefully I will manage to do a LOT.<br />
<br />
Here is my short list:<br />
<br />
1. Completely revise Thomas novel #2<br />
2. Set up and implement an action plan to submit Thomas novel #1 to agents.<br />
3. Sew LOTS of clothing--daily wear stuff AND costumes.<br />
4. Re-cover all four of the dining room chairs.<br />
5. Refinish the hardwood floors in my house.<br />
6. Lose 20 lbs.<br />
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Now I just need to put this list up in BOLD somewhere and make sure I take steps EVERY SINGLE DAY towards each goal (I will allow myself to focus on a particular goal, too, but #6 will take daily action).<br />
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Even more important, I will NOT add more goals!<br />
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At least I think I won't.<br />
<br />
Y tu? What are your goals for the summer? Please share if you have them!<br />
<br />Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347002624328577997.post-87431442432944183062016-01-13T04:04:00.001-08:002016-01-13T04:16:10.609-08:00Working under AttackI rarely comment on political topics, mainly because the majority of debates are filled with gross exaggeration if not outright lies, but today I feel compelled to write.<br />
<br />
I cannot help but use my own point-of-view in this, as wife to a college president. My husband just took an interim position as president of another college in the area, and he has quite a job ahead of him, but his presidency is far different from the job of President of the United States, in much the same way that becoming a faculty member at a college is different from being a congressman in Washington, D.C.<br />
<br />
You see, when my husband--or anyone else--serves as the president of a college, he or she joins a large group of people in a team effort to create as good a college as possible. They are united by obvious goals: to serve students, to provide a great college experience and an even better educational experience, etc.<br />
<br />
What my husband does not have to deal with is the likelihood that half the college campus believes he is unfit for his job, will destroy the college during the years he occupies the president's seat, and is an incompetent, borderline Satanic creep. Instead, although some faculty and staff might disagree with a chosen path or argue about policy, 99% of those who work at, attend classes in, and are otherwise involved with the college are united in their effort to make the college as great as it can be.<br />
We need, as a country, to do the same.<br />
<br />
If my husband had to deal with 50% of his college attacking him through the press, disrupting meetings, refusing compromises, etc., the college would suffer. His ability to do his job would suffer. The truth is, EVERYONE involved with the college would suffer. How could the college function if teachers refused to teach, or departments could never decide on a textbook because of ideological differences, or maintenance were fighting with housekeeping, or students were bombarded by hateful rhetoric every time they stepped onto campus? Or if contracts were put on hold because the administration members refused to work together to get their budgets, hires, and other necessary work done? The truth is, the college would fall apart, and that is what is happening to our governmental system because both sides would rather vilify each other than work together.<br />
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I don't pretend to know which political party anyone belongs to. Honestly, I don't care. What matters to me is that so many of us think it's right to blast the other party just for being who they are, that we are so concerned with ideological differences that we refuse to work together or consider the "other" side our equals.<br />
<br />
How do we make it stop? The only person's actions I can affect are my own, but there are actions I can take every day to remedy this.<br />
<br />
1. Call out those who spread false information. It doesn't matter whose party or which candidate/congressman/public person the skewed post criticizes. If it isn't accurate, I need to make that clear.<br />
2. Check my own facts before I post ANYTHING.<br />
3. Constantly examine my own way of thinking to see where I have taken leaps of reasoning.<br />
4. NEVER assume that my opinion is "fact" while others' opinions (if they do not agree with mine) are "delusions."<br />
5. Show respect to all, but make it clear that I expect them to show the same respect to each other.<br />
6. Raise your expectations of those in office--and back off. How? To back off, stop expecting every statesman to do what you personally believe in. That they do not agree with you about abortion or the economy doesn't make them evil. It means they don't agree with you (and that is ALL). How do we raise expectations? That's the easy part. We need to expect those in office to DO THEIR JOB.<br />
<br />
And that is the crux of it. My job is to be a writer... to DO my job, I have to write. I am also a parent, doing that job effectively requires me to be present, to involve myself with my kids--to PARENT. Those in office need to stop fighting and back biting and DO THEIR JOBS. I respect people who have opinions, but I do not respect those who use their opinions to keep from doing their jobs. End of story. We all do better in life when we DO OUR JOBS, and many of the bad things that happen in our lives are caused by us NOT doing our jobs or by other people around us not doing theirs.<br />
<br />
In the end, it matters that I keep my mind open, that I admit when my judgment has faltered, and that I am willing to compromise. I cannot possibly assume that I am the single most intelligent person in the world, that my opinions are all right, and that I cannot make mistakes. Besides, if we stop pointing out differences, if we refuse to let the nasty language divide us from others, we might just see the similarities that tie us together.Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347002624328577997.post-66665145304664897232015-03-31T06:36:00.002-07:002015-03-31T06:37:14.652-07:00Camp NaNoWriMo Starts Tomorrow!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiPRk0PussTdbhjzno6MEKqELI6Kt3bNXaOdjrhcM-Sq7HSGPR752roQAAsFKzpYi_UB4NwTgyikM2NZ49GMa7l-HYoWXuR2m2VUK7A_dW9xYXJrxlWB-BP1s75M278OphiwNWcE4n7VU/s1600/Healer.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiPRk0PussTdbhjzno6MEKqELI6Kt3bNXaOdjrhcM-Sq7HSGPR752roQAAsFKzpYi_UB4NwTgyikM2NZ49GMa7l-HYoWXuR2m2VUK7A_dW9xYXJrxlWB-BP1s75M278OphiwNWcE4n7VU/s1600/Healer.JPG" height="400" width="300" /></a>Need to set a little fire under yourself? Then sign up for Camp NaNoWriMo! It begins tomorrow and lasts the month of April, but unlike National Novel Writing Month (in November), you can set up ANY writing goal, in any genre (though poetry is not specifically included), and you decide how many words you need to attain.<br />
<br />
My goal is to storyboard all the novels I'm planning to write for my fantasy series. I wrote a ten-page treatment last month covering my future screenplay <i>Changing Christmas</i>, and the hubby suggested I do the same thing for all the novels (even ones I am revising/rewriting), so THAT is my project. The fantasy series I've been developing (Novel #1 is mostly done, and #3 is partially written) is a paranormal sort of exploration of the Northwest through the eyes of a 15-year-old boy named Thomas. Hopefully this month will allow me to plan the whole thing out with more complexity than I've managed so far. I painted this picture YEARS ago, when Novel #3 was Novel #1, and I'm posting it up on the NaNo site, too.<br />
<br />
Pretty exciting to start on this... now to finish the sign-up and get to work!<br />
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If NaNoWriMo is new to you, check out its website <a href="http://nanowrimo.org/" target="_blank">HERE</a>. And donate to this organization, if you can! And if you want to join a campsite with me when you are there, just find me! I'm Shakespeare824, and I'd love to meet you and see the projects you have chosen for the month of April... so see you there!<br />
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Feel free tell me your own goals in the comments section below. Thanks!Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347002624328577997.post-18562851424656657062014-12-29T06:28:00.000-08:002014-12-29T06:28:02.611-08:00Rough Draft. Finished.Woot!<br />
<br />
I typed the final scene of my novel this morning. Lastima the mermaid is happy, everything is resolved (okay, not <i>everything</i>, but those things will have to wait until later novels in the series), and my first draft is over 65,000 words, as projected.<br />
<br />
I feel so light, as if I've also lost the 20 pounds I've been wishing to lose for the last year and half. As if part of my brain has disappeared. As if my clothing is made of mist, my hair is a balloon, my blood is mere air.<br />
<br />
Now I sit on the draft… but I am on the fence about something, and I need input. I have several new readers--readers who have never read a word of my stuff except perhaps news articles or Facebook postings--and they want to read the draft. Now. Not in a year, after I've completed two full revisions of it (which is usually the first time I allow anyone to read ANY of my stuff), but NOW.<br />
<br />
What should I do? Should I risk losing all three as readers by giving them a recent draft, one with countless holes, and erratic narrative voice, and goodness knows how many errors? Or do I force them to wait anyway, until I take a month off from the work, return to it, and revise it?<br />
<br />
What would you do?Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347002624328577997.post-31675464018019044132014-12-27T05:27:00.001-08:002014-12-27T05:27:34.845-08:00Hard EndingsI could write over 50,000 words in November, but can't seem to finish the last 15,000 in December! Ugh!<br />
<br />
Of course, part of the reason has nothing to do with writing. I've been baking about 15 kinds of cookies, wrapping presents, etc. I did finish all the (lame) Christmas verses for my Advent calendar, with mixed results… but I'm still short an ending for my novel.<br />
<br />
Why?<br />
<br />
It's not because I don't know the ending. I have it in my head pretty vividly. And I'm only a scene and a half from finishing. It isn't even because I don't sit down and writing. I have my novel page up RIGHT NOW, only I'm here online posting a blog update instead of FINISHING THE DAMN THING! UGH!<br />
<br />
If any of you have a suggestion as to WHY it's hard to finish this, I would love to know. I'm at a loss.<br />
<br />
But I HAVE to finish it! I need it DONE! I'm ending this blog post RIGHT NOW so that I can go back and work on it!<br />
<br />
(Really, though, if anyone can offer insight, it would be more than welcome…)Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347002624328577997.post-87375638061429265252014-12-01T03:22:00.001-08:002014-12-01T03:22:44.482-08:00Winning is Sometimes EverythingI've always loved goals.<br />
<br />
Not the seemingly unobtainable goals (weigh less than 125 lbs., be famous, rule a kingdom). Not the goals that do not depend on me (be professionally published, be discovered as an actor).<br />
<br />
I love the finite, fixed goals, the ones that come in all shapes and sizes, short-term and long-term. Goals like:<br />
<br />
Finish the laundry today<br />
Paint a picture for Christmas Cards<br />
<br />
or, say<br />
<br />
Write 50,000 words on a novel in November!!!<br />
<br />
I write during National Novel Writing Month because it gives me a very specific, finite goal to accomplish, and it puts just enough pressure on me so that I make writing, for one month out of the year, a priority.<br />
<br />
And I won! I did it! I set out, worked hard, and accomplished my goal! Yay!<br />
<br />
But it's not over. Now I have new goals, for the month of December:<br />
<br />
1. Write at least once per week on each blog.<br />
2. Write a new verse each day for the advent calendar (did that last year and the year before).<br />
3. FINISH the mermaid novel rough draft.<br />
4. Revise my play from a 45-minute one-act to a 2-hour full-length play.<br />
<br />
Notice how each one of these is a WRITING goal. That means, for the month of December, I will STILL keep writing a priority. And I will make sure I have writing goals set up for January, too, so that writing stays a priority all year round.<br />
<br />
If I don't set goals, I will let the rest of my life take over, and I won't write. I can't let that happen.<br />
<br />
What are your short-term and long-term goals? What have you won at lately?<br />
<br />
<br />Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347002624328577997.post-30465493262650281132014-11-13T06:55:00.001-08:002014-11-13T06:55:48.243-08:00Just Keep Writing (or Painting) (or Playing) (or Whatever)If you've been checking out my word count on the left hand side (and why would you?) you would have seen that my count is steadily going up, up, up. I'm almost halfway through NaNoWriMo, and I'm buzzing along, working on the novel almost every single day.<br />
<br />
But I have a friend who is not so lucky. She's a painter, but she has not painted anything in months. This week, trying to put a fire under her, I told her we were going to eat lunch Friday, and if both of us paint on a given week, we go Dutch. If one paints and the other does not, the one who didn't paint pays for lunch. If neither of us paint, we don't get to go to lunch at all.<br />
<br />
I had really hoped she would paint on Wednesday, her one day off this week… but she didn't. I haven't painted either, but I was hoping to paint my Christmas watercolor for my Christmas cards. I have to get it done VERY soon so that I can scan the artwork in, order cards on Vistaprint, and get them back in time to send out for Christmas.<br />
<br />
I've also been diligently working on the costume for my friend's role in A Christmas Carol, and it should be finished this weekend. And I'm also probably going to hit 30,000 words on my novel by Saturday afternoon.<br />
<br />
I'm no better than my poor non-painting friend, but we have an inherent difference, and it's one I've changed just recently: I am no longer willing to put off all the things I love so that I can finish all the mundane, boring have-tos of my life. I am putting my loves ahead of other crap.<br />
<br />
My beleaguered friend is the opposite, finding all sorts of mundane crap to pile onto her work desk so that she never gets to paint the way she really wants to. So she's miserable.<br />
<br />
Even as I keep sewing, and writing, and painting, I will keep working on my friend. And one of these days, very soon, we'll go Dutch. I can't wait until that happens!Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347002624328577997.post-54020532324138176192014-10-21T05:11:00.001-07:002014-10-21T05:11:42.438-07:00DistractionsI have reached an epiphany:<br />
<br />
All this time, through years of writing, I have been distracted from doing it by countless other things. Sometimes work pulls me away, sometimes household chores, sometimes family needs… in reality, EVERYTHING seems to conspire against me, to pull me from writing.<br />
<br />
Now, as my husband begins his second week of chemotherapy, after a month of surgeries, recovery, weakness, and countless adjustments and upheaval, the epiphany has come to me.<br />
<br />
All these things--my husband's cancer, the house, homeschooling, cleaning, etc.--will kill me if I don't have a distraction. And that distraction, my dear friends, is writing.<br />
<br />
Walking Man says I shouldn't write if I don't need to. "When you need to write, you will," more precisely. And now, caught up in all these things, I <i>need to write. </i>You will notice that my novel progress has been moving steadily. I wrote nearly 3,000 words over the last two days, despite trips to Tallahassee for chemo and countless other errands.<br />
<br />
Writing has always been my therapy. I can only hope it works that way now, keeping me sane in an insane world.Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347002624328577997.post-69454514463969852702014-10-18T05:50:00.001-07:002014-10-18T05:50:18.910-07:00Don't Forget NaNoWriMo--or Find Your GoalAlthough I'm going through a BUNCH of unplanned stuff this year, I am also planning on participating in National Novel Writing Month (November 1-30)! And you should too!<br />
<br />
Even if you don't write novels, sign up for it. It's FREE, and you can use the e-mails and inspirational articles from the <a href="http://nanowrimo.org/" target="_blank">Office of Letters and Light </a>to use for any of your efforts--from painting to music to drawing to reading to weight loss to pretty much any goal for anything you have in mind. Just sign up, and everything comes to your e-mail… and it's more helpful than you might realize.<br />
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I have found it hard to keep going without goals, without a plan for the day, for the week, for the month, for the year. Without goals, I am unsure what to do next. With goals, I have specific tasks automatically ahead for me.<br />
<br />
Remember, too, that we are 2 1/2 months away from the new year. Why wait until January 1 to set a goal? Why not begin that resolution soon?<br />
<br />
My resolutions (BEFORE January 1):<br />
<br />
1. Finish my mermaid novel.<br />
2. Lose the weight I've needed to lose for more than a year.<br />
3. Find a happy place with Richard's cancer treatments.<br />
4. Sew several costumes (three planned so far--Elsa from Frozen, Queen Elizabeth I, Antebellum dress)<br />
<br />
Not a lot, but one of these would probably keep me busy. What are YOUR resolutions before January 1?<br />
<br />
<br />Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347002624328577997.post-19552698224415372372014-10-11T04:58:00.000-07:002014-10-11T04:58:04.061-07:00Time to FocusI have not been able to focus in some time.<div>
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<div>
Wow, one sentence in, and I'm already lying. OF COURSE I can focus… I can give fifteen minutes to loading the dishwasher, without losing focus. I can sweep the house (takes about 30 minutes) and only lose focus when I find a piece of trash too big to sweep up. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I can watch a TV show for 45 minutes (that's skipping the commercials, since I rarely ever watch shows live). I can even manage to read the kids a story at night, which might run 10 minutes, or might go as long as an hour. And I can read, too, late at night, before sleeping.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
But so many of the things I love DON'T happen because focusing on them for 15 minutes doesn't get me anywhere. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
WRITING: I really need a good HOUR to work on my novel. Microsoft Word has an awesome button on it, though--down at the bottom left. It looks like a black screen with white corner bars, and it's called, of all things, "Focus View." Click on it, and everything on my screen disappears except for the page I'm working on--no icons at the bottom, no distracting stuff, not even the toolbar. Just text, as if I'm reading the novel page by page in real life. But it only works if I have the TIME to focus.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
PLAYING PIANO: Time is not my real enemy here, for my hands ache if I practice more than 45 minutes at a time… but it's been hard to do lately for other reasons. The hubby's been home recovering from major surgery, so he's been sleeping a lot, and when he's not sleeping, he's vegging in front of the television. And the piano gets in the way of his sleeping, AND it drowns out the television (if you don't have a piano, you may not realize how loud an instrument it is). Besides, I usually don't have time to play until late at night, when the kids are in bed and trying to sleep (or looking for any excuse not to sleep). Fitting it in while not annoying everyone is the challenge here. And this activity invites interruptions like talking on the phone. Suddenly people sit next to me, ask me questions, ring the doorbell, call, hug, and otherwise keep me from focusing on the sheet music in front of me. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
SEWING: This one is hard, for I can sew for days at a time, but I always have a ton of repairs and alterations stacked up, which I have to address before the fun sewing can begin. Right now it's altering the hubby's new suits when what I really want to do is make my Halloween costume. I'm slowly getting the alterations and repairs out of the way. Another problem is that the sewing machine is portable, and I don't have a dedicated sewing room, so I always have a big mess on my hands when I'm sewing things, and the mess makes me feel guilty and stresses me out.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
PAINTING: The hardest to focus on time-wise. Set up alone can be complicated, especially if I'm working on more than one canvas at a time (I'm painting a five-canvas panorama right now). Stopping is hard, too, for paint dries, brushes might get ruined, water cups need to be dumped and refilled, etc. At least my kids know to leave it all alone--such was not the case when they were younger. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
So there they are… all my stupid excuses. I've put them all here, and now I need to get started on something despite them. Time to focus on projects, not excuses. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
Would love to know what gets in the way of your focus… what excuses you make… </div>
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Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347002624328577997.post-22652838967482456302014-09-28T05:00:00.001-07:002014-09-28T05:00:55.439-07:00Fighting OnI'm here! It's been nearly a full year since I've posted on this page--and I'm sure all sorts of friend bloggers have assumed I've given it up for good--but I'm here.<br />
<br />
I posted on my Not Writing Anything Anymore blog a few weeks ago, resolving to make blogging on both blogs a priority. But then life threw in the biggest of big wrenches, and I had no choice but to switch to what is more important: my husband's welfare.<br />
<br />
My husband, on his way to run an Olympic length triathlon in Arkansas, ended up in an emergency room in Alabama with acute pancreatitis. Three weeks later, after a CT scan, tons of blood tests, and two ultrasounds, doctors concluded its cause was a 3 cm cancer tumor in the pancreas. Filled with anxiety (for the prognosis for pancreatic cancer sufferers is extremely bad), we went to the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, FL, where they determined his cancer was operable (thank God!), and where, a little over a week ago, he underwent the Whipple procedure. (It's a BIG surgery--look it up online, and you'll see how serious it is). Through his fight, he's adopted the mantra of his favorite college football team: Fight On! I've even ordered shirts and hats with the saying on them, for him, his friends, and our relatives to wear.<br />
<br />
A week later, we were heading home from Jacksonville when the doctors called, and the news is now much more positive. The cancer was caught far earlier than it usually is, and after six months of chemotherapy, Richard will most likely live a long life without pancreatic cancer ever returning. Yay!<br />
<br />
Our lives have been turned upside-down, though, and I found that even <i>reading</i> was impossible while I watched over him in the hospital. It was only when tests of the tumor were complete and we were given the great news that I could even concentrate on reading a book again. Now it's time to put my focus back on writing.<br />
<br />
Richard was told by a friend who had beaten ovarian cancer that he had to concentrate on more than the cancer, and she told me the same--I had to have more to do than support him and rehash the cancer stories over and over. So that is what I am doing. I'm getting back to my mermaid novel, back to painting (I have accumulated several castles I want to paint), and back to playing piano. All three will soothe my soul through this, making it easier for me to soothe Richard's.<br />
<br />
If you've read through this whole thing, thanks for visiting! Hopefully I'll have worthwhile stuff to share with you in the future!Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347002624328577997.post-74608181474050560262013-11-17T03:59:00.001-08:002013-11-17T03:59:06.237-08:00Revisions! Revisions! REVISIONS!I am in the midst of revising my ghost story set on Puget Sound…<br />
<br />
No, I'm still near the beginning. And I just had a breakthrough that dictates revising will take even longer. I've decided the whole thing needs to be present tense.<br />
<br />
THAT makes the whole thing harder. Not because the revision will take longer. It's because I will now need to go through the novel at least twice. Fully?<br />
<br />
Why? Because I cannot possibly revise it if I'm concentrating on changing all the verb tenses. That in itself is a HUGE task. I use lots of verbs. At least one a sentence, unless it's a fragment. Even if it is a fragment.<br />
<br />
So now, hopefully only through the next few weeks, I need to change every verb in the entire 80,000-word document.<br />
<br />
Only then can I start really revising. And revising. And revising.<br />
<br />
I won't gripe about it, though, not if it works. I'm sure, some day, it will work. Some day, if I keep revising, ONE of my novels will be worth publishing.<br />
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I hope.Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347002624328577997.post-5442734070744283872013-11-12T03:25:00.001-08:002013-11-12T03:25:49.002-08:00Something is Just Not RightYou've heard the metaphors before… about the "shoe" fitting and such.<br />
<br />
Imagine, if you will, poor Prince Charming. Start the action before the ball: He's feeling pressure to get married. Dad's overweight and old, the old man has gout and diabetes, and time is wasting. Charming needs to get married soon, and have kids soon, so that the line of rulers can continue without wrangling over succession once he gets too old to rule.<br />
<br />
He has a vision of the right girl--not a purely physical image, for he needs more than looks if he can make it through years of marriage and still be able to stand her. He also has a fear: what if she doesn't like him back?<br />
<br />
So he goes to the ball, his hands sweating from nerves. Most of the women just feel wrong. Some fawn over him, and he knows a month of marriage to any number of these would either give him a big fat head or make him gag. But then the image he hopes for steps into the ballroom. She's maybe a little shorter than he'd imagined, but still pretty. Her hands are graceful, and she looks so out of place and timid. She's perfect.<br />
<br />
Two hours of absolute bliss follow. She seems to like him, they dance together, they talk together like old friends, and he somehow finds himself sharing his innermost thoughts with her. But then his world is shattered--at the first stroke of midnight, she starts hyperventilating, grabs her purse off the table next to them, and runs off.<br />
<br />
He chases after her, but she's in far better shape, and suddenly she's gone, leaving behind a mere slipper.<br />
<br />
And now he's stuck. He knows what his ideal is, but she's gone, and he doesn't have a clue how to find her. So he takes the slipper around, spending weeks searching the whole kingdom to find that perfect person for him. Sure, he meets all sorts of other ladies, some of them quite pretty, some of them who even sort of or almost fit the shoe. But he keeps searching, willing to keep looking because he wants the right person, the perfect fit.<br />
<br />
So goes the search for a writer's group. There may be any number of groups in your neighborhood. You might have a next door neighbor who belongs to one. But ANY writers group won't work. They are all different, and a writers group that isn't the right fit won't do you any good.<br />
<br />
(BTW, this discussion could represent ANY creative group, whether painting, sewing, drawing, manga lovers, etc. I once joined a sewing group, but I was the only one who was sewing clothing--everyone else was quilting. It was not a fit.)<br />
<br />
I realized last night, as I visited a local writers group for the fourth or fifth time, that though it was a great group of people, it wasn't the right fit for me. I could attend every single meeting from here to eternity, but it would be like dating the same person week after week, knowing our relationship would not work in the long run.<br />
<br />
What do I want in a writer's group? I'm pretty picky, so here's my list:<br />
<br />
1. I need other serious writers to attend. By serious, I mean that they write all the time, revise what they write, develop their writing beyond short vignettes. I am perfectly happy if they are better writers than I, so long as they are writing. It's kind of like tennis. It's far more fun to play with others who are at or near your skill and commitment level than play with people who are far more or far less skilled. Mismatches are no fun for anybody (except for writers in number 2, below).<br />
<br />
2. The writers need to be there for both themselves AND others. Some of the more serious writers are only there as a ego boost, to flaunt their writing in front of other people. These writers take criticism and questions very poorly, and are nearly always silent about other writers' works (unless they open their mouth to say something outright mean). The other writers should be there for feedback, but also be there to help other writers grow. I find that feeling my way through the writings of others makes me better, and I want other members to be just as committed.<br />
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3. The group needs to do more than clap. I've been in groups that are only encouraging. And I certainly know that many writers, especially those on the beginning of their writing journey, need encouragement most of all. I don't. I need criticism. I need honesty. I need tough love. If a piece is not good, I need the writer of it to have some clue, and to ask for help. And the others in the group should be honest, without hurting feelings.<br />
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4. The group needs to actively encourage further writing. Perhaps it's an assignment for next time. Even better, it's an individual thing--"Now that we've read scenes 1 & 2 of this play, can you bring in scene 3 next time?"--the writers need a reason to come back, some level of continuity. The activity is what matters. I don't need a social group, I need one that inspires me to write more.<br />
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5. Writers need to attend consistently. Attendance shows commitment, and it allows writers to bring in novel excerpts, submit plays in chunks, and get feedback on a whole larger work.<br />
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Remember, though, these are <i>my</i> stipulations. You may need something completely different. Your slipper might not resemble mine at all. And that is fine. I have only found my perfect kind of group twice, and I would still be attending if these two groups if they weren't thousands of miles away. I have hope, though, that I will find such a group closer to home. I am willing to drive if it means I can find the perfect fit for my slipper.<br />
<br />
So I will keep looking, shoe in hand.<br />
<br />Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347002624328577997.post-69718515642047595362013-11-10T05:12:00.000-08:002013-11-10T05:12:23.188-08:00In Search of Writer's GroupI am in the midst of a LOVELY book right now. It's a collection of short stories by three women, called <i>The Curiosities</i>. And it is absolutely delightful. Below I have posted what the cover looks like.<br />
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Even more than the lovely vignettes provided by these three authors is their obvious time spent working together on their writing, reading each other's stories, offering advice, giving prompts, mentoring each other, encouraging each other's writing. The stories have little handwritten comments and drawings in the margins, capturing the sense of these works in process.<br />
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The book is well worth reading, but it makes me long for the writing groups I once had. The group I started in Independence, Kansas, which is still going strong thanks to the efforts of Cherilyn Fienen and other fantastic people. The playwrights' group north of Seattle, who were such an ideal group of intelligent writers, who were willing to ask hard questions, who managed to weed out the weaknesses in my writing in minutes, when all I could sense was that something was wrong.<br />
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Brilliant.<br />
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Only I don't have any of that now. The local writer's group is not really a critiquing group. I need some writers on a similar journey to mine. Writers who see the worth in my writing--who can grasp the kernels of truth in it--but who also see what isn't working, who can tell me where I falter, where the prose or dialogue doesn't work, who can help me be better.<br />
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Worse still, I need them in person. Online simply won't work for me. I need to see their faces, interact with them in real space, in real time. I haven't met anyone like that here yet. Painters, yes. But not writers.<br />
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So I'll keep looking. These people may be here, waiting for the opportunity to find someone just like me… and we will find each other. I know it. And we will help each other create our own collection of "curiosities."Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347002624328577997.post-44786808327881515252013-10-31T04:01:00.001-07:002013-10-31T18:06:43.790-07:00Get Your Creative Costume on!Some days I am especially grateful to have children.<br />
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Halloween is one of those days. I live in an area of the country where many people do not celebrate, mostly for religious reasons.<br />
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I am not one of those people.<br />
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It's not the candy, or the horror flicks on television. It's the chance to dress up. I LOVE dressing up. It is a way to fit my love of stories into my daily life, along with my fascination with costuming (engendered in my theatre participation), my love of sewing, and my need for imaginative play all together.<br />
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Thankfully, it's my year to take the kids trick-or-treating. I dress up either way (even when I hand out candy), but it's infinitely more fun when I get to walk around from door to door, ostensibly to "monitor" my kids as they do the same, only with pumpkin pails to collect their candy. (The candy doesn't interest me in the least… okay, maybe a little, but only the Almond Joys and Bit-o-Honeys).<br />
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So we're starting school as soon as possible this morning, and then prepping splendidly for a night of walking around in character. I'll update this post later today with a picture of all of us!<br />
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<br />Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347002624328577997.post-41188338759237909892013-10-23T03:20:00.001-07:002013-10-23T03:20:48.490-07:00It's Six O'Clock--Do You Know Where Your Writing Is?I think I'm going to just make a habit of waking up early.<br />
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The whole house is sleeping, and the only noise invading drifting through the early morning is the chime of the grandfather clock every fifteen minutes. It's the most luscious sound, full of calm and promise. The perfect time for writing.<br />
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I thought today was packed, but items have mysteriously slipped off my to-do list. And I have hopes that homeschooling will soon get easier. Perhaps not this week, but soon.<br />
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So it's time to write. Right now. Write now.<br />
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I wish you the same leisure... at least an hour to write/paint/sing/listen to music/dance/or whatever suits your soul.Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347002624328577997.post-82706018723108205262013-10-20T04:53:00.001-07:002013-10-20T05:04:43.128-07:00Absence Makes the Fingers FearfulHalloween is the perfect time to face my fears. But what could I possibly be afraid of? What have I been most afraid of lately?<br />
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It isn't wrinkles. I have plenty of those, and they don't bother me. It isn't really any physical feature. I'm pretty content with all that, and even if I weren't, what am I supposed to do about it? Go under the knife. Please.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Courtesy of Freepik.com</td></tr>
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I'm not afraid of teaching. I've been doing that all over my house lately, teaching my kids Latin and other stuff, working them hard, lecturing, writing lesson plans, creating projects for my kids to tackle. It's time-consuming, but still worth it.<br />
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No, what I've feared lately is writing. That thing I once loved to do passionately, but which, for a variety of reasons, I haven't done in months. I've considered it millions of times. I've even briefly felt my heart pitter patter with excitement at the thought of starting a new project. But my fear has always overcome me. I would have gone absolutely mad except I threw myself into reading with the same level of passion.<br />
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But reading can only tide me over so long. And its effectiveness has passed. I've stopped reading at least a dozen books over the last few weeks, dissatisfied with the characters, the plot development, or even the narrative voice of them. I've suddenly become a listless reader. And that can mean only one thing: Fearful or not, I need to return to my writing, or I will go off the deep end, so to speak. (You see, it's been so long since I've written that I'm using all sorts of bad cliches. AAK!)<br />
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It's fear-facing time. Time to face the scary blank white Microsoft Word screen and type something into it. Time to make blogging, playwriting, noveling, and poetry writing one of my four big priorities (FINALLY it will take precedence over "cleaning"!) Time to venture into the web-covered old haunted house that was my writing life. Time to sweep out the cobwebs, the spiders, the red-eyed rats, and clean up the place so that I can fill its walls with some new artwork.<br />
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Time to write, write, write every day. Without fail.<br />
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And no more cliches! (Okay, maybe a couple. I'm sure you'll see them here and there when you come back.)Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.com0