Not with a Whisper, but with a Shout

I'm not what you would call a religious person. I suppose I'd probably be spiritual, at best, but the idea of God raises a lot of questions for me.

But sometimes there are signs. And I think I've received a few this week.

I've been stalled on my WIP. It's like it ran out of gas. I've tried to work around it, writing other projects, considering scenes from other points of view, etc. Unfortunately, nothing has really jarred my imagination. You know what finally got me moving?

Rejection.

Yup, you read that right. This week I have received 2 rejection letters for my novel BECOMING MAGDALENE, from agents that I queried nearly six months ago. It sparked something inside me. Some little voice said "Oh, hey, remember this! It's called being a writer. You TOTALLY do this!"

And, you know what? I totally do.

Sometimes the best motivation is someone telling you "no."

ROW ~ Check in Fourth the Win! #lamepun

First off, I apologise for the incredibly lame joke. I'm feeling punny tonight.

Yeah, I apologise for that one too.

This week went pretty well, if I do say so myself. I think my routine has adjusted itself to be a Monday-Friday one. That's okay. I write on the weekends, just not as much. It's working for me and that's the point, right?

PS Did anyone else watch the Golden Globes tonight? And, if you did, did you think that the fashion theme was Dynasty-Meets-the-Golden-Girls? Can't wait to see who brings the crazy to the Oscars.

ROW 80 ~ Third Check In...It's Like an Antibiotic, Right?

If you miss your goal one day, you make it up the next, right? I've been trying to get back on track this week. So far, so good. The only problem is that I am at a sticking point in my story, so it's hard to get enthused. I figure that the only thing I can do is write myself out of this slump. Here's hoping I'm batting a thousand for the next check in (is that good? I don't know baseball).

ROW80 Check In #2 ~ Or, the One Where I Fall Off a Bit

Well, perhaps I shouldn't have jumped the proverbial gun. I did a lot of writing for the ROW80 Second Check In, but I did not accomplish my goal every day. Want my laundry list of excuses?

1. I was sick (I was! And I also had the NyQuil hangover that goes along with trying to make yourself better).

2. I was seeing Ben Affleck! Come on, that gives me some points, right?

3. My bestie was in from Vegas. So, we did the brunching, shopping, tattooing thing (her, not me. Tattoos look extremely painful).

So, those are my excuses as to why I missed a day and a half on my goals. And you know what? None of them are really good or acceptable. Writers write. I apologise. I will be better this week. I promise! Onward and upward.

Overheard in LA and a Nerd Alert

You know those conversations that you always hear about but never actually hear for yourself? They're so funny that you think the person telling you about them must be making them up. Well, my friends, I assure you I am not making this up.

Overheard in Los Angeles (and, it must be noted, said in an extremely braggy tone):

"Well, I was talking to Naomi Watts, she comes into my Coffee Bean all the time, and she said that the script went through a ton of changes."

Maybe you had to be there, but this was hilarious. The overwhelming "Know It All" tone turned an innocuous sentence into something that struck me (and my companion) as beyond hilarious. Only in LA.

Speaking of things that only happen in LA, would you allow me a brief nerd moment? Thank you. Okay, here's my full confession. I love Ben Affleck. Love him. I've loved him since GOOD WILL HUNTING and I am nothing if not loyal. I held on through GIGLI and DAREDEVIL and I'm thrilled that he's getting some recognition as a director. There was a special screening of THE TOWN last night (have you seen it? See it, it's awesome, and it also has Jon Hamm) and my future husband was doing a Q & A after. My dear friend called me as soon as she heard about this event and we immediately bought tickets (it should be noted that my awesome friend is not a huge Affleck fan but she is, as previously stated, an awesome friend).

We got there early and got seats near the front. That's right. I was less than 20 feet from BEN. He looked at tad homeless, but still gorgy.

I'm not the type that goes gaga over celebs (it would make work difficult), but there's always that one that makes your hands shake a little. Who is it for you?

ROW 80 ~ Check In, the First

The first 5 days of A Round of Word in 80 Days is complete. 75 days left!

I'm proud to say that I've met my goal for each day, so far. I certainly hope I can keep up this up. One of my Not Quite Resolutions for 2011 is to finish the first draft of my WIP...and come up with a decent title. I'm terrible at titles.

I'm also terrible at blogging today. So sorry. I seem to have come down with a touch of la gripe. I assume this is from my boss coming to work with the plague. Oh, well. I'll be back on my feet by Sunday (hopefully).