Tennessee Text Wrestling

My New Home On The Web... Visit Me There!

2009-02-18T20:51:00.006-05:00

My new Web site: Thomma Lyn Grindstaff, Novelist.

My new blog (also accessible from my Web site): Tennessee Text Wrestling.

I'm starting fresh at the new blog, and I won't be updating this blog anymore. But it will remain on the internet landscape as a repository for TL's Old Stuff.

What are you waiting for? :) Check out my New Stuff, at the links above. And please update your bookmarks, blogrolls, and feeds.

Forward and onward!

Stand By...

2009-02-15T19:22:00.003-05:00

...big changes are afoot!

I'm working on my author's website, and I'll be moving to a new blog. When I launch my new internet home, I'll make an announcement here, so watch this space.

Happy Day!

2009-02-09T00:32:00.009-05:00

Today, I received the marvelous and oh-so-welcome news that Black Lyon wants to publish my novel, Mirror Blue! I'm thrilled -- what an exciting milestone on my writing journey.

You might be wondering what else I've been up to. Well, I have all kinds of new developments in the works. Watch this space for updates on Mirror Blue and related news!

In the meantime, I'll leave you with pictures from a recent hike. This lovely waterfall is known as the Blue Hole. The day of the hike was fairly warm, but two days before, we had heavy snow, hence the ice surrounding the waterfall.

Progress, or Lack Thereof

2009-02-05T21:37:00.011-05:00

Two words: Heart's Chalice. Yup, the book of my heart I've been wrestling with for almost a year. Soon, I will dive into third-draft revisions, but I have a confession to make: I've burned myself out. So I'm taking a little sabbatical.

In fact, this week, I've been on sabbatical from fiction-writing, period, so that my burned-out neurons can regenerate. But I mustn't stay away from it too long. I need to get back in the writing saddle: work on journals for my two main characters and brainstorm ideas for Heart's Chalice revisions.

In the meantime, I've been playing piano, hiking, critiquing, and working on other interesting things. Never a dull moment. Not for me. I don't know the meaning of the word "bored."

It snowed yesterday, so of course, chilly temperatures notwithstanding, I had to go outside and play in it (i.e., hike in the mountains). Here are some pictures of the forest and of the frozen pond.

Maelstrom Valentine's Day Contest

2009-01-31T14:46:00.011-05:00

My friend Ann Pino has written a delightfully diabolical novel, Maelstrom, about a rock band that is made up of a genie, a vampire, a zombie, an incubus, and a fairy. And their band manager is human! As you can imagine, there's never a dull moment, *grin*.

On Maelstrom's web site, Ann is posting flash fiction extras about the band's shenanigans and reviews of the band's concerts. Go check 'em out -- they're great fun!

And she's having a Valentine's Day Contest: Win a Date with Bo! Bo is Maelstrom's bass player, and he happens to be the incubus of the group. Winners will receive Valentine's Day candy and will either get to guest-blog about their date with Bo, or if writing isn't your thing, Ann will write a story about you and Bo. Go here for details!

Here's more info from Ann: "To anyone concerned about the 'date with an incubus' contest, it's quite within the rules to have the story be one of mistaken identity, getting stood up, or some other mishap. A funny story is preferred, but not required."

=-=

Heart's Chalice news: Before diving into third-draft revisions, I'm taking a breather, brainstorming on how to tighten up my story. In the meantime, I've decided to journal as Laurel and Robert, my two main characters, in order to get a better feel for their mindsets, their backstory, and their voices.

So I'm taking a break without dropping the ball! I think the journaling exercises will do me good, give me perspective, and ultimately make my story better.

=-=

The mountains, as ever, are gorgeous and rejuvenating for me on all levels. Here are some recent hiking pictures:

Lana Moses Interviews Trevor Wolff!

2009-01-27T19:08:00.006-05:00

Okay, to bring you up to speed (if you aren't already), Trevor Wolff plays bass in my friend Susan Helene Gottfried's fictional band, ShapeShifter.

Lana Moses, Trevor Wolff Groupie Extraordinaire (I first wrote about Lana here), adores ShapeShifter, but she especially adores Trevor. That's why she was ecstatic when he agreed to an interview! So without further ado, I present a star-struck Lana interviewing the guy who never fails to make her heart (and any stadium) go thumpety-thumpety-thump.

Lana: Oh, I'm so psyched to be talking to you again, Trevor! Okay, first question. What made you want to be in a heavy metal band?

Trevor: Mitchell. That loser would sit around and dream of playing his guitar in a band. He'd still be sitting in his parents' bedroom, dreaming, if it weren't for me.

Lana: What attracted you to playing bass?

Trevor: Mitchell said it was the easiest to play. And the hardest to find when you were looking for guys for your band. That meant that no matter how bad I sucked, if ShapeShifter didn't work out, there'd always be someone desperate enough to let me in.

Lana: What inspires you to make and play music?

Trevor: Money. Girls. All the perks. I'm not exactly doing it for my health ifyouknowwhatI mean. Which, in fact, you don't. You haven't read the book yet.

Lana: Please take good care of yourself, Trevor! And I hope everybody will be able to read that book soon. So, what would you like your fans to get out of ShapeShifter's music?

Trevor: A good lay?

I have to look around when I say things like that. Mitchell likes to smack the back of my head and remind me to be nice. That's because I don't like to get deep and the real answer here is a deep one. Anyone who listens to the band and doesn't come away feeling better has missed the point.

Lana: I agree with all my heart. You guys lift me up totally, even when I'm feeling like total crap. Hey, what can I say -- some people say to follow your bliss; I follow you. *grin*. Okay, next question: what bands influenced ShapeShifter's sound?

Trevor: Let's see... Rat Catcher, Sammy Spencer, Terry Fantillo, Walter Cichewski. All the usual suspects.

Lana: When you're on the road, what do you most like to do for fun?

Trevor: Play with girls like you, Lana. You keep me from being bored. Ever. A bored Trevor is a dangerous thing.

Lana: Mmm, play! I love to play. Okay, tell me about one of your weirder experiences on the road.

Trevor: Look. When you're in a band with the likes of Mitchell, Daniel, and Eric, every last fucking thing is weird. Like the time we were staying in this hotel that didn't have a restaurant or room service or anything like that, so we had to walk across a couple of streets to get to one of those family-style places, who serve breakfast all day long for ridiculously low prices that make your per diem actually make sense.

Anyway, there's the four of us and it's windy and we've all got this long heavy metal hair, right? Some asshole truck driver thought we were chicks and invited us to see the party in the back of his cab.

None of us swing that way but if anyone might not get grossed out by that idea, it's Daniel. He's the one who finally yanked his shirt off to show off his chest hair. That was the only way the trucker would buy we weren't four really flat chicks.

Eric said that was one of the first people he'd met who'd be improved by some of the shit the drug-sniffing dogs come look for when we cross into Canada.

Lana: gigglesnort, gigglesnort!! What do you most like to do when you're not playing, touring, or recording?

Trevor: You, Lana.

Lana: Ooooooh! *huge grin* Tell me about one of your most memorable shows and why it's memorable for you.

Trevor: There was the night Mitchell fell off the stage and broke his nose. That was a good one. Or the night he fell off the stage early on and broke his guitar and he and I had to figure out how to get him another one.

There was the night you first showed up. Think I forgot about that? How we showed up at sound check and there you were, green eyes all glittery like you were stoned, only you weren't. And so shy, shit. Like you thought I'd bite you right there if you said two words to me. You thought I didn't see you, Lana babe, but I sure as shit did. Told the crew to keep an eye on you, make sure nothing happened or I'd sic Mitchell on them. I could tell right from the start, Lana dear, you were special.

Lana (giddy with joy): You remember. Oh wow. Just wow. (pause to regain her composure) Okay, what's your advice for aspiring heavy-metal musicians? I've thought of taking up guitar myself.

Trevor: Ask Daniel. Trevor Wolff doesn't give advice.

Lana: Do you guys read all your fan mail? Even the love poetry that Sharla and I slip you and Mitchell?

Trevor: Babe, we fucking sleep with those poems. Well, I do. I can't speak for the big idiot except to say he's a big idiot. Who's probably eyeing the back of my head right now, but so fucking what? You've got to live every now and then.

Lana: How does it feel to be so incredibly delicious?

Trevor: Why don't you tell me?

Lana: You're better than a dark chocolate brownie with chocolate ice cream and a chocolate-covered cherry on top. Infinitely. And I'm curious: do you still have that lock of my hair I gave you at that concert a year ago?

Trevor: Now, why wouldn't I?

Lana: Who's your favorite groupie? Please say me. *smile*

Trevor: Come closer and let me show you, okay? We'll start with that tat on the back of your neck and go from there.

Ooooooooooh, Lana's swooning... we'll let them share a *ahem* private moment. *wink wink, nudge nudge*

Want more Trevor? You can learn more about him and ShapeShifter at Susan's site, West of Mars, or at her blog West of Mars - The Meet and Greet.

And you can get to know Trevor and the guys especially well by reading The Demo Tapes, a delightful collection of outtakes from Susan's blog. Don't miss this jewel of a book. Trevor and the guys will make you laugh; they'll make you cry. They'll make you think. And they'll touch your heart.

Tagged: Have You Ever?

2009-01-21T01:03:00.017-05:00

My sweet friend Maya tagged me for a meme. I'm to bold the things I've done or will admit to! :)

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland/world
8. Climbed a mountain (I assume hiking up them counts?)
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal in a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Gotten flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book (keeping fingers crossed)
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating (can I count fish I didn't catch myself?)
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee

Tagging: Anybody who wants to play!

=-=

It's snowy here in East Tennessee. *singing*: "Hiking in a Winter Wonderland." Cold, but so beautiful. And don't worry; I bundle up well.

And I just had to draw this with my hiking pole: a Snow Cat! Looks kind of like my kitty, Marilyn MonREOW (pictured below the Snow Cat). Only Marilyn is much, much warmer (she's on my lap right now, *smile*).

Meme: How Do You Sleep?

2009-01-15T19:06:00.007-05:00

My sweet friend Dorothy tagged me for the How Do You Sleep? Meme, which originated with Mimi Lenox of BlogBlast for Peace fame, who is also known as the Queen of Memes.

Apologies for being AWOL from my blog. I've been super-busy. My usual activities, just more intense, so I'm hopping from the time I get up to the time I go to bed. Speaking of which...

1. How long do you sleep each night?

It varies. Seven to eight hours is optimum. Six is okay. I can function on four to five, but it's tougher.

2. Do you fall asleep easily?

Not really. Even on good nights, it takes me about thirty minutes to fall asleep, and even so, I have to read in bed to wind down before sleeping. I'm a chronic night owl, so I'm easily wired up, even in the wee hours of the morning.

I've battled insomnia in the past and once fairly recently, but I seem to be doing okay with that for now. I hope it continues.

3. Do you fall asleep at times not in your bed?

Nope. I can't sleep unless I'm lying down. I envy people who can take catnaps sitting up!

4. Do you listen to music or use white noise to sleep?

Gotta have white noise, as in fans. Yes, plural. One floor fan plus a fan in the window. Otherwise, I'd wake up at every little sound. Not because I'm nervous, but because I awaken so easily, like a cat.

5. Do you sleep through the night or get up a couple of times?

I usually get up at least once, often twice.

6. Do you have trouble sleeping away from your own bed?

I tend to, but if I bring a little fan with me for white noise, then it's easier. Well, somewhat. I always have even more trouble winding down when I'm away from my own bed.

7. Do you need an alarm clock to get you up?

In the morning? Absolutely. I am SO not a morning person.

8. Do you ever take medication to help you sleep?

I take Melatonin. Not sure it helps me fall asleep more easily, but it gives me funky dreams. *grin*

9. Do you/have you slept with pets?

A hearty yes! But on nights when I'm having trouble sleeping, I shut the bedroom door, because our two youngest Ballicai (otherwise known as cats) love to play Thundering Herd of Elephants at five o'clock in the morning (and sometimes a rousing game of Tag the Humans' Toes).

Tagging: Whoever wants to play, have at it! :)

=-=

From a recent, very chilly-weather hike (but comfy for me because I bundled up good): waterfall icicles!

Snow on the Mountain!

2009-01-09T21:10:00.008-05:00

"January brings the snow, makes our feet and fingers glow."

~Sara Coleridge

"How did it happen that their lips came together? How does it happen that birds sing, that snow melts, that the rose unfolds, that the dawn whitens behind the stark shapes of trees on the quivering summit of the hill? A kiss, and all was said."

~Victor Hugo

"Out of the bosom of the Air, Out of the cloud-folds of her garments shaken, Over the woodlands brown and bare, Over the harvest-fields forsaken, Silent, and soft, and slow Descends the snow."

~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

"The aging process has you firmly in its grasp if you never get the urge to throw a snowball."

~Doug Larson

"Resting on your laurels is as dangerous as resting when you are walking in the snow. You doze off and die in your sleep."

~Ludwig Wittgenstein

Waterfall Quest

2009-01-05T19:50:00.021-05:00

Hubby and I heard from several local people that there's a tall, gorgeous waterfall near the head of the creek branch and that we could find it by following one of our trails all the way back to where it's overgrown by brush, then making our way through the brush and laurel thicket, following the creek branch up the mountain.

So this wasn't just a hike... it was a Waterfall Quest!

It was a cool, misty day on the mountain, and as time went on, the mist got thicker and thicker. The mist lends a delightfully ethereal quality to the woods (and to the pictures). I kept expecting to see the face of a wood elf poking out from behind a tree!

Here are some pictures from the trail:

Then we reached the end of the trail, which grown up with laurel thicket. Most people stop here.

But not us.

Laurel is hard, thick, and tangly -- very challenging to get through -- but we forged on through brush, through thicket, to a part of the mountain where we'd never been, and we found a beautiful small waterfall.

The terrain got rockier and rockier, and increasingly, hubby and I heard a roar in the distance that sounded like big water, much bigger than the little cascading waterfalls. So we kept making our way through the brush and thicket, following the creek branch, crossing it several times. Here's what I found on one rock outcropping: two trees growing out of it.

And though it isn't much of a waterfall, here's a particularly beautiful part of the stream...

...after which we came upon a series of cascading waterfalls, pictured here:

We followed the creek branch quite a ways, but it was getting dark, so we had to turn back. But thanks to our explorations, we figured out a shorter route, so next time we go on a Waterfall Quest, we can go farther and faster. It was a fun adventure, and hopefully, we'll find that tall waterfall soon.

Our return home? Just call it a Misty Mountain Hop. *grin* (and this picture gives you a good idea of the terrain we were pushing through -- no one can say we didn't get our exercise!)

New Year's Resolutions

2009-01-01T19:29:00.010-05:00

This has become a fun exercise for me on this blog -- taking resolutions I made the previous year, seeing how well I followed through on them, then making new resolutions for the coming year.

The exercise is instructive in that it shows me the extent to which my goals develop and change over time. And they do change, as you will see!

My old resolutions are in bold, blue type.

1. I want to make Thy Eternal Summer, my little romance novella which used to be published with Chippewa Publishing before they closed their doors, available through Lulu. There isn't anything else I want to do with it -- so I might as well have some fun with it on my own.

Thy Eternal Summer? Nah. I don't want to fool with it for the foreseeable future. Don't get me wrong. It isn't a bad little book. But I only have so much time and energy to go around, and for now, I just don't want to put it into Thy Eternal Summer.

2. Finish revising House on Bear Branch, the dark, angsty-ghosty-horror novel which I rough-drafted for the first round of Seventy Days of Sweat. I'd like to get it submission-ready by spring (at the latest).

I did make headway revising House on Bear Branch, but it's still not submission ready, and that's a good thing. That book was written at a difficult time in my life; I think of it as my Vomitorium (release of toxins). It would need a serious rewrite before I would consider throwing it out into the world, at least with my name on it.

3. Finish revising Beast of Stoney Creek, the dark, angsty murder mystery with horror elements which I rough-drafted for NaNoWriMo (2007). I'd like to get it submission-ready by summer (at the latest).

Beast of Stoney Creek is still languishing in rough draft form. I haven't touched it since November 30, 2007. It's a neat, freaky-cool story, and I might do something with it at some point, but not for the foreseeable future. I'm running full-tilt on another project (coming up in my response to Old Resolution #4).

4. By Spring, start rough-drafting at least one new novel, perhaps two. I have two really nifty ideas, both of which are pulling at me, and the characters for one of those ideas are practically screaming in my ear for me to hurry up and finish fooling with those other two books (#'s 2 and 3). The particularly insistent idea will develop into a "book of the heart"; I feel it already. And maybe the other one will, too.

Yes, the book of my heart (and the "particularly insistent idea") is now known as my work-in-progress, Heart's Chalice. I started rough-drafting it in March 2008, and I'm currently working on revisions. It's the most challenging novel I've ever written, and it continues to challenge me even in this phase of deep edits. But I know beyond any doubt that it's my best book yet.

The other idea? Well, for now, it resides in a file on my computer. Perhaps one day it will become a novel.

5. Be more persistent on the query-go-round. Hang in there, and don't give up so easily.

Turned out I didn't do much on the query-go-round this year -- I've been in creative mode (working on Heart's Chalice), not submitting mode. That said, however, I submitted a query for Mirror Blue to Black Lyon Publishing in October. They requested the first three chapters in November, then to my delight, on my birthday, they requested the full manuscript. I am keeping my fingers crossed so tightly they're going numb.

6. Increase my savvy re: the publishing industry and be aware of the DING DANG MARKET!! For example, don't submit my introspective women's fiction story to a publisher who sees women's fiction as synonymous with chick-lit.

Ha, see my number 5! That introspective women's fiction story is Mirror Blue, and when I sent it to the right market (Black Lyon's Literary Love Stories Line), they were interested. I hope they'll want to publish it, of course, but there can be no doubt that I've gotten more market-savvy over the past year.

7. Keep writing short stories. And write them more frequently. They're so much fun!

In 2008, I wrote one short story; it became the groundwork for the first chapter of my novel-in-progress, Heart's Chalice. And I haven't written a short story since. But I'm thinking about writing flash fiction to dovetail with Mirror Blue and/or Heart's Chalice should I be lucky enough to get either or both of them published.

Okay, time to list my goals and resolutions for 2009!

1. I want to have Heart's Chalice ready for my Beta readers by June 2009. Hopefully before, like April or May. But definitely by June.

2. Once Heart's Chalice is revised with feedback from my Beta Readers and is submission ready, I'm going to hop on the query-go-round, and I'm not going to give up until I find Heart's Chalice a place for readers to discover it in the wider world.

3. While I'm submitting Heart's Chalice, I'll start the book that will follow it -- set in the same world with many of the same characters, but it will be a stand-alone book (as is Heart's Chalice).

4. Write flash fiction to dovetail with Mirror Blue and/or Heart's Chalice should I be lucky enough to get either or both of them published.

5. In a similar vein as #4: if I get a book published this year, work hard at promoting it; be as creative and innovative with promotion as I possibly can.

6. Keep learning more about the publishing industry, and about marketing and promotion.

7. Keep blogging. Thanks to blogging, I've learned a great deal about the publishing process, and most importantly, I've made wonderful writer friends. You gals help keep me going on this path. Thank you.

8. Keep playing the piano and keep writing new songs. I've gotten back into my music in a big way after having back-burnered it for a time, and it feels good to be home. Also, I'd like to somehow fuse my music with Heart's Chalice. Still thinking on that. I'll come up with something, *grin*.

9. Keep hiking! And not just for the exercise (though that's certainly a benefit). The mountains ground and center me; they inspire me. I need them.

10. And keep up the healthier eating. I've been doing great in that regard since July 2008 when I developed low-functioning gallbladder symptoms. I started eating less fat and smaller meals, and my symptoms have gone down to practically nothing. And in that time, I've lost twenty pounds! I feel better than I've felt in years.

11. Most importantly -- be the best wife, cat mom, friend, and overall family member I can possibly be.

I wish all my readers a joyous New Year with good health, good fortune, happiness, and love in abundance.

Waterfalls

2008-12-29T20:30:00.018-05:00

Last couple of weeks, we got some much-needed rain, so the creek branches are up! And when the creek branches rise, we get -- oh, joy! -- waterfalls.

“A strong (wo)man and a waterfall always channel their own path.”

~Unknown

“Leisure is a form of silence, not noiselessness. It is the silence of contemplation such as occurs when we let our minds rest on a rosebud, a child at play, a Divine mystery, or a waterfall.”

~Fulton J. Sheen

"The quality of the imagination is to flow and not to freeze."

~Ralph Waldo Emerson

"Nobody trips over a big rock or mountain. It is the small pebble which causes you to stumble. Pass all the pebbles in your path and you will find you have crossed the mountain."

~Unknown

=-=

Heart's Chalice progress -- still working my tail off on deep-edits. The story develops and deepens with each chapter I hone. It might be Spring before I have this novel Beta Reader-ready, but that's okay. It'll be worth its long baking time.

Going back into my writing cave now. Well, my writing and piano cave, *grin*.

In the meantime, here are more hiking pictures for you to enjoy (yes, Grendel, my Cave Dragon, lets me out for hikes):

Happy New Year, friends! I hope all of you have a wonderful year in 2009.

Book Review: The Demo Tapes (Year One)

2008-12-27T19:46:00.006-05:00

One of the most enjoyable reads I've had in a long time comes courtesy of my friend Susan Helene Gottfried: The Demo Tapes (Year One). It's a collection of fictional outtakes from her blog: West of Mars -- The Meet and Greet.

Susan writes about a rock band, ShapeShifter. Her characters -- members of the band, their friends, family and entourage -- feel so real that they practically walk off the page.

I love so many of Susan's characters: Mitchell (ShapeShifter's front man), his wife Kerri, his mom, dad, and sister Amy, band members Daniel and Eric, but my very favorite character in Susan's world is ShapeShifter's bass player, Trevor Wolff.

Trevor is so alive in my mind that I find myself asking, in various unusual or sticky situations, "What would Trevor do", then feeling confident that I know the answer to the question. Trevor is what I think of as a Toasted Marshmallow Guy -- crusty on the outside but sweet on the inside. He's a strong-minded person who's survived a hell of a lot in his life and doesn't take crap from anybody.

He's also the star of Susan's debut novel Trevor's Song, which I hope will be published soon and available for everybody to enjoy.

The Demo Tapes (Year One) is comprised of outtakes, arranged, in chronological order, which appeared on Susan's blog between April 2006 and March 2007. Each is a joy to read. Some are funny, some are serious, but all of them lend insight into Susan's delightful fictional world and the minds of her characters.

The Demo Tapes is one of those rare books that I read twice, back to back, one reading immediately following the other. I only do that with books whose fictional world -- whose characters -- I'm reluctant to leave.

But I never really "leave" characters like Trevor, Mitchell, Kerri and the gang. I carry them with me wherever I go, and I enjoy visiting with them every time I go to Susan's blog. They've become like old friends.

Soon to come, here on Tennessee Text Wrestling: Lana, a ShapeShifter groupie (and a character I came up with for ShapeShifter fan fiction) will interview Trevor Wolff! She has a tremendous crush on him, *grin*.

And in the meantime, what are you waiting for? Go order a copy of The Demo Tapes, and hang out regularly at Susan's blog to find out what ShapeShifter is up to. They're always into something interesting!

Happy Holidays from the Mountains of East Tennessee!

2008-12-23T17:55:00.005-05:00

"Holidays" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

The holiest of all holidays are those
Kept by ourselves in silence and apart;
The secret anniversaries of the heart,
When the full river of feeling overflows;--
The happy days unclouded to their close;
The sudden joys that out of darkness start
As flames from ashes; swift desires that dart
Like swallows singing down each wind that blows!
White as the gleam of a receding sail,
White as a cloud that floats and fades in air,
White as the whitest lily on a stream,
These tender memories are;--a fairy tale
Of some enchanted land we know not where,
But lovely as a landscape in a dream.

Random Tidbits in the Life of TL and Happy Holidays!

2008-12-22T15:35:00.021-05:00

1. I'm reading and enjoying The Demo Tapes: Year One, a wonderful book just out from my friend Susan Helene Gottfried.

Go check it out. Like, right now. You don't want to miss this.

And a review of The Demo Tapes is coming up soon, here on this blog!

2. We've received a great deal of rain this past week, and at last, the creek branch is running high again.

3. I found a lovely poem about water, which I picked out for my friend Squirrel, who asked for inspiring poems on the subjects of life, death, water, and light.

"Going for Water" by Robert Frost

The well was dry beside the door,
And so we went with pail and can
Across the fields behind the house
To seek the brook if still it ran;

Not loth to have excuse to go,
Because the autumn eve was fair
(Though chill), because the fields were ours,
And by the brook our woods were there.

We ran as if to meet the moon
That slowly dawned behind the trees,
The barren boughs without the leaves,
Without the birds, without the breeze.

But once within the wood, we paused
Like gnomes that hid us from the moon,
Ready to run to hiding new
With laughter when she found us soon.

Each laid on other a staying hand
To listen ere we dared to look,
And in the hush we joined to make
We heard, we knew we heard the brook.

A note as from a single place,
A slender tinkling fall that made
Now drops that floated on the pool
Like pearls, and now a silver blade.

4. You may have noticed -- particularly in my comment trails -- my references to my Writing Cave and to Grendel, the dragon who lives in my cave and makes sure I keep working hard on my book.

Why "Grendel", since the Grendel in Beowulf isn't a dragon? Well, Grendel plays a thematic role in my WIP, Heart's Chalice.

My friend Annie Wicking painted a lovely picture of a dragon which I have placed in my sidebar. Her Writing Cave Dragon is named Orocarni. Any writer who retreats from time to time into a writing cave and would like a dragon as a guard, go to Annie's and adopt one! *grin*

(And don't worry: Grendel gets along fabulously with my cats!)

5. Heart's Chalice progress: slow but ongoing. I'm working on my main character's POV chapters, and they're tough because they comprise the spinal column of my story. The other characters' POV chapters are important, too, but Laurel's chapters are where much of the world-building takes place, so they've got to be just right.

6. I'm playing piano a lot, too: my own pieces, of course, and working on classical pieces. I'm also composing again. I wrote a new song last week, and another one is starting to take shape.

7. Happy Holidays, my readers, and I wish you the best in the New Year!

Genre: Shop Talk

2008-12-16T00:33:00.035-05:00

Another shop talk post, inspired by my blog buddy Squirrel! In the comment trail for my "SQUEE" post below, she asked me these excellent, thought-provoking questions about genre. I'll address them one at a time.

Of all the genres out there, what is yours called and how did you gravitate to it?

I've experimented with numerous genres. My first novel, Battaglia, is a political thriller. It's also a trunk novel which will remain forever in the trunk.

The next novel I wrote, Mirror Blue (currently on submission to Black Lyon Publishing), is women's fiction (and it has received several thorough overhauls since its first incarnation).

My third work, a novella called Thy Eternal Summer, is romance, and it was published with a little e-publisher before the e-pub went belly-up.

Then I wrote a novel called Occam's Razors, which is what Nathan Bransford would call "book club fiction": a hybrid of mainstream and literary. I queried for Occam's Razors to a point, but for many reasons, I've decided to toss it into the trunk.

After Occam's Razors came a period of depression and self-doubt. What kicked my ass out of that dry spell was two writing challenges: Seventy Days of Sweat and NaNoWriMo, in that order.

For the first Seventy Days challenge, starting in July 2007, I wrote an angsty ghost story tentatively called House on Bear Branch. It's very dark, the most gratuitously icky story I've ever written. Writing it helped purge the hurt and disappointment I'd been feeling. I think of the novel as my Vomitorium, and I doubt I'll do anything with it unless it's under a pseudonym (yes, it's that revolting). It'll probably go into the trunk with Battaglia and Occam's Razors. But HoBB served its purpose -- it got me back into writing.

For NaNo 2007, I wrote a murder mystery called The Beast of Stoney Creek. It's decidedly weird and kind of cool-creepy, and who knows, I might do something with it one of these days. But not for a while.

Because on the heels of The Beast of Stoney Creek came the seed for Heart's Chalice, the novel I'm working on now, the one for which my enthusiasm and hopes are high.

Black Lyon has a term which fits both Mirror Blue and Heart's Chalice: "Literary Love Stories." Out of all the genres I've tried, literary love stories are the kind of story I gravitate to the most.

But wait, Heart's Chalice is also magical realism! So perhaps that's my genre -- a hybrid of "literary love story" with "magical realism."

ACK.

Yeah, I know. I sound like I have genre AADD. But truly, I find "genre" confining. As a writer, I like to think outside the box and simply try to tell a damn good story.

It is related to other genres?

Seems to me a literary love story would fall under a larger umbrella, either that of literary fiction, mainstream fiction, or Book Club Fiction. And magical realism can be a component of many kinds of stories.

Is there a map of genre relationships?

It would seem so. From what I understand, there's "literary fiction", then there's "commercial fiction." Under commercial fiction, you find romance, horror, chick lit, women's fiction, mystery, fantasy, science fiction, thriller, suspense, etc.

But genres are labels, artificial constructs. Good books are a mixture of many things. "Literary" equates in people's minds with "good writing", but good writing can be found in genre fiction, too, so why the divide?

I dislike pigeonholing. But book publishing is a business, and marketing people want labels in order to know where novels should be shelved and to whom and how they should be marketed.

How do do find a publisher in your genre?

Research, research, research. And a little help from your friends (thanks, Bunnygirl, for the heads-up on Black Lyon!). Same goes for agents. Agent Query is a particularly good research tool for finding agents according to the genres they represent.

What characterizes your genre and what would push it over into another?

I'd define a literary love story as a character-driven love story with a powerful emotional punch. Magical realism just adds to the fun. Magical realism is everyday magic that's worked into the fabric of a story, as contrasted with high fantasy (swords and sorcery, wizards and wands and such).

It's interesting, though -- no matter what genre I've tried, each book I've written deals, in its own way, with digging below the pat surfaces of things to explore what lies underneath. Hey, maybe my true genre is Literary Archaeologist. *grin*

Again, writing buddies, feel free to answer these questions on your blogs! Please let me know, in a comment, if you do -- I'd love to read your posts.

=-=

And in case you're missing them, here are some pictures I took on a recent hike. The woods are looking nicely wild and tangly!

"Good heavens, of what uncostly material is our earthly happiness composed... if we only knew it. What incomes have we not had from a flower, and how unfailing are the dividends of the seasons."
~James Russell Lowell

"To me a lush carpet of pine needles or spongy grass is more welcome than the most luxurious Persian rug."
~Helen Keller

"The sky is the daily bread of the eyes."
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

SQUEE!

2008-12-15T00:01:00.005-05:00

Happy Birthday to me, Happy Birthday to me!

Yesterday was my birthday, and it was a great day -- especially topped off by an email from Black Lyon Publishing requesting the full manuscript of my novel Mirror Blue! I'm submitting it to their Literary Love Stories line.

Keep all your appendages crossed for me, my friends! YIPPEE!!!!!

Now, it's back to work on Heart's Chalice, my WIP. A writer's work is never done, and I wouldn't have it any other way. *grin*

Writing a Novel: Shop Talk

2008-12-10T18:13:00.022-05:00

A blog buddy whose work I admire, Querulous Squirrel, posed the following questions in a recent post, and they gave me such good food for thought I decided to turn them into a blog post in which to explore my answers.

Squirrel's questions are highlighted in bold.

All of you who have written and are writing novels: what is your process (aside from putting in desk time)?

My process has been different for each novel I've written. But for these questions, I'll focus on Heart's Chalice, my novel-in-progress, because (1) out of the novels I've written, its process is the most interesting, and (2) I believe it will be the best novel I've written yet.

My process for Heart's Chalice has been a conglomeration of "whatever works." Often "whatever works" changes on the fly, and I've had to scrap much of what I'd written and start afresh. But my goal throughout has been to discover then deepen the story.

How do you find the right voice or voices for an entire book?

It begins with a character (or characters) at a crossroads. That character (or those characters) will have to make decisions, and the decisions made by that character -- and the effect of those decisions on that character -- suggest to me the story.

Of course, that's only the starting point. As I follow characters on their journey, the paths take unexpected turns, and the process of discovering their story becomes akin to a mountain hike where sometimes the trail is fairly flat and even, sometimes I run into obstacles on the trail that I need to climb over or crawl under, and sometimes I find that, for whatever reason, I'm on the wrong trail and I need to find a different one (but on the same mountain).

How does your idea begin?

The idea for Heart's Chalice, a magical realism novel, came to me as a result of my hikes in the mountains. My protagonist, Misty Laurel Nave, popped into my head, and I started fleshing her out and imagining her story while I hiked.

But the seed for my story was planted almost a year before, by this precious little fellow:

His name is Moonlight, and he was a magical kitty boy. He was a feral kitten I tamed over a period of months, then to my heartbreak, he got run over in the road. He features prominently in Heart's Chalice. I didn't know Moonlight long, but he touched me deeply. I'll always miss him, and I'll always love him.

And on a larger scale, Heart's Chalice encompasses my love for the mountains, my love for my Ballicai (otherwise known as cats), my love of music, and last but never least, my thoughts about love and time, choices for good or ill (and what-ifs), and the nature of soul mates.

Do you outline?

Sort of. I think of it as brainstorming, and it's by no means set in stone. Hell, nothing I write is set in stone. As I've discovered the story for Heart's Chalice, I've scrapped probably 100,000 words all told. I've done two major rewrites of rough drafts before I completed what I could call a rough draft.

The brainstorming gives me ideas in more detail, then I set off writing, and the hiking analogies apply -- hopefully, I'm on the right trail, but if not, time will tell, and if I have to find another trail, it's okay. After all, it's a big mountain and there are lots of trails.

Once I'm on the right trail, sometimes the hills are steep; there are rocks and roots to keep from tripping over, etc. Sometimes, to find my way, I have to hack my way through the brush with a machete. Sometimes I see practically to what I think is the horizon only to find, nearly hidden, another trail which beckons, a trail connected to the first that continues the journey, only in a different direction, to a different horizon.

The fun of writing Heart's Chalice has been the surprises. And though I'm currently on deep edits (my second draft revisions), the story continues to develop in unexpected and delightful ways.

Go chapter by chapter?

Yup. Chapter by chapter is integral to my deep-edits process: I hone each chapter as though it were a stand-alone short story before putting it all back together again and developing the novel further as a whole.

But at the rough-drafting stage, chapters suggest other chapters, which in turn suggest other chapters. While I'm rough drafting one chapter, I'm also making copious notes as to what might happen in the next chapter, or in future chapters. Needless to say, I always stray far from my initial "outline."

Value plot?

Yes, but not at the expense of character. Character determines plot, and if a prospective plot point demands that I force my characters to behave in ways they wouldn't, then I deep-six that plot point and listen more closely to my characters to figure out how to proceed.

Keep track of characters?

To a point. I keep a list of my characters, their names, ages, and birthdays. Ages and birthdays play into the time line of my novel. But I keep more detailed time lines than character lists.

When I'm on fire writing a novel, its characters spring to life in my mind, and I don't need to use character charts to record things like hair color, eye color, favorite ice cream, etc. But those things are fine if you like them. Different methods work for different people.

Not bore yourself or the reader?

Perish the thought. I've deep-sixed ideas because they bored the snot out of me, and if they bored me, I know they'd bore a reader. Heart's Chalice continues to excite me, and that's how I know (hopefully) that I am developing the story in such a way that readers will find engaging and (hopefully) downright addictive. *grin*

Create emotional suspense?

This might sound cheesy, but I'm at my best creating emotional suspense when I write from my heart, when I write about things which move me. Hence the role played by the mountains in Heart's Chalice. The role of soul mates. My love of cats and music. The questions created by having lived long enough for time to lend the wisdom of hindsight.

How do you structure?

In revisions. My rough draft is pure story-discovery. Certainly structure is an element of that because a story will have an innate structure. But it's in my revisions that I hone that innate structure, develop it, then build on its strengths and patch up its weak spots.

How do you know an idea is a whole novel, that you'll have enough and not run out?

Trial and error. :) Seriously. I have (let's see, gonna go count 'em)... ten semi-developed "novels" which I dropped. That is, they never made it past Chapter One.

I did a whole lot of brainstorming, but when it came down to writing the things, I realized that either (1) there wasn't enough to sustain a novel or (2) the characters and/or stories bored the snot out of me. Perhaps facets of those ideas will become short stories someday (the non-boring ones).

What keeps you going that long, long distance?

The only thing that keeps me going that long, long distance is a story and characters in whom I can throw myself, heart and soul. A story and characters into whose world I look forward to immersing myself. A story and characters who call my name, who natter in my head while I'm hiking, in the shower, in the car, shopping for groceries. The only thing that keeps me going that long, long distance is a story and characters for whom I feel passion.

Is there a maximum age to write your first novel as in "Well, she hasn't written one by eighty. She's not likely to write one now."

No maximum age. With age tends to come wisdom. Heart's Chalice isn't a novel I could have written at age 20. No way. Frankly speaking, when I was 20, I was an idiot. I've learned a lot since then, and it informs my fiction.

Twenty years from now, I hope I'll have gained more wisdom. Life can be a good teacher, if sometimes a hard-assed one.

But I'll stress this, too: you don't have to write novels to be a writer. I admire good short story writers. Short story writing is a great, time-honored tradition. In a novel, a writer has lots of wiggle room. Not so in a short story. Well-developed pithy muscles are a beautiful thing.

=-=

Edited to add: Writing buddies, if you'd like to answer those questions, I'd love to read your answers! Please let me know, in the comments, if you're doing a post on this, and let Squirrel know, since she was the person who asked those excellent questions in the first place. I bet Squirrel would love to read your answers, too. :) It's lots of fun to read about how other writers work!

=-=

And in case you thought I'd forgot: I've got hiking pictures! We got some much-needed rain, and the creek branch is back up. What a joy to hear the sound of it rushing along!

I also got a cool shot of a low-lying cloud on a distant mountain -- yay for my zoom lens!

I'm Still Here

2008-12-06T00:01:00.009-05:00

Wow, has it really been a week since I blogged? *whew*.

Well, I'm still here, and I'm working on Heart's Chalice revisions, playing piano (and composing new music), and hiking.

Blogging? Not so much. I've got a major case of Blogger's Block. I'm pouring so much energy into my writing and my music that I don't have a lot left for blogging.

I'm not going to stop blogging, though my posts will continue to be on the infrequent side for a while. Once I complete Heart's Chalice revisions, I hope to have more to say here again. In the meantime, I'll have hiking pictures to share. And I'll pass along any writing news (hopefully of the "good" variety!).

Hikes are chilly this time of year, but I bundle up well. I recently bought a fabulous pair of boots (Danner Pronghorns, if you'd like to check out specs). Their list price is high, but I got them for a steal because I have small feet. The boots are waterproof and well-insulated, and they keep my feet toasty warm even in snow and wet leaves. They're listed as hunting boots, but they're the best hiking boots I've had yet.

Oh, almost forgot! I had a fun idea for a future post: to dress up like one of my Heart's Chalice characters and post a picture here on the blog! Shoot, I wish I'd thought of that in October. It would have been perfect for Halloween.

If any of you would like to join me in this (if you're a writer: dress up as a character from your own novel or story, if you're a reader: dress up as a character from a novel you enjoyed), let me know, and we'll make a day of it!

=-=

"What would the world be, once bereft
Of wet and wildness? Let them be left,
O let them be left, wildness and wet,
Long live the weeds and the wildness yet."
~Gerard Manley Hopkins, Inversnaid

"Under the crescent moon a light autumn dew
Has chilled the robe she will not change —
And she touches a silver lute all night,
Afraid to go back to her empty room."
~Wang Wei

"Nature is man's teacher. She unfolds her treasures to his search, unseals his eye, illumes his mind, and purifies his heart; an influence breathes from all the sights and sounds of her existence."
~Alfred Billings Street

Song Of The Rain VII ~Khalil Gibran

I am dotted silver threads dropped from heaven
By the gods. Nature then takes me, to adorn
Her fields and valleys.

I am beautiful pearls, plucked from the
Crown of Ishtar by the daughter of Dawn
To embellish the gardens.

When I cry the hills laugh;
When I humble myself the flowers rejoice;
When I bow, all things are elated.

The field and the cloud are lovers
And between them I am a messenger of mercy.
I quench the thirst of one;
I cure the ailment of the other.

The voice of thunder declares my arrival;
The rainbow announces my departure.
I am like earthly life, which begins at
The feet of the mad elements and ends
Under the upraised wings of death.

I emerge from the heard of the sea
Soar with the breeze. When I see a field in
Need, I descend and embrace the flowers and
The trees in a million little ways.

I touch gently at the windows with my
Soft fingers, and my announcement is a
Welcome song. All can hear, but only
The sensitive can understand.

The heat in the air gives birth to me,
But in turn I kill it,
As woman overcomes man with
The strength she takes from him.

I am the sigh of the sea;
The laughter of the field;
The tears of heaven.

So with love -
Sighs from the deep sea of affection;
Laughter from the colorful field of the spirit;
Tears from the endless heaven of memories.

Late November Woods

2008-11-29T21:01:00.011-05:00

"You have noticed that everything as Indian does is in a circle, and that is because the Power of the World always works in circles, and everything tries to be round.....
The Sky is round, and I have heard that the earth is round like a ball, and so are all the stars. The wind, in its greatest power, whirls. Birds make their nest in circles, for theirs is the same religion as ours....
Even the seasons form a great circle in their changing, and always come back again to where they were. The life of a man is a circle from childhood to childhood, and so it is in everything where power moves."

~Crowfoot, Blackfoot warrior and orator

"The elders were wise. They knew that man's heart, away from nature, becomes hard; they knew that lack of respect for growing, living things, soon led to lack of respect for humans, too."

~Chief Luther Standing Bear - Lakota Sioux

"As you sit on the hillside, or lie prone under the trees of the forest, or sprawl wet-legged by a mountain stream, the great door, that does not look like a door, opens."

~Stephen Graham

"Great things are done when men and mountains meet. This is not done by jostling in the street."

~William Blake

"Those who dwell among the beauties and mysteries of the earth are never alone or weary of life."

~Rachel Carson

=-=

On the writing front, I'm still working on deep-edits for Heart's Chalice. That's going to be true for some time to come.

But I have exciting news to share: last month, I sent a query letter for my novel Mirror Blue to Black Lyon Publishing's Literary Love Stories line, and today, I received a request for a partial manuscript!

*SQUEE!* Keep your fingers crossed for me, friends!

Great Attitude and Gratitude Award

2008-11-25T14:43:00.003-05:00

My friend Wylie honored me with this neat-o award -- the Attitude and Gratitude Award! Thank you so much, Wylie -- you made me smile. :)

Here are the rules:

*Put the logo on your blog or post

*Nominate at least 10 blogs which show Great Attitude and/or Gratitude!

*Be sure to link to your nominees within your post

*Let them know they have received this award by commenting on their blog

*Share the love and link to this post and to the person from whom you received your award

All righty, I'm going to pass this award to (in no particular order):

Annie Wicking

Bunnygirl

Jannie Funster

Kimmi

Querulous Squirrel

Maya

Leah

Susan

Dorothy

Julia

=-=

Too busy to say much today, but writers and storytellers, go read this: Comfort Reading. It's a wonderful, moving post that reminds us of why we do what we do.

Snow and Sundries

2008-11-21T17:50:00.023-05:00

YIPPEE, we got snow last night -- approximately three inches! Today wasn't a hiking day, and the back yard isn't as pretty as the mountains, but here are a couple of pictures.

Yesterday, however, was a hiking day, and I got some gorgeous pictures.

"I go to nature to be soothed and healed, and to have my senses put in order." ~John Burroughs

"I'll tell you how the sun rose a ribbon at a time." ~Emily Dickinson

"The world is mud-luscious and puddle-wonderful." ~e.e. cummings

=-=

Today has been a writing-and-play-piano day. In addition to playing my original music, I'm also working on Postludium in C Major by Erno Von Dohnanyi from 'Winterreigen' Op. 13, and Fantasie K. 397 D Minor by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. I'm playing Scarlatti sonatas. And I'm playing Bach. Lots of Bach. His Inventions and Sonfinias are good for the fingers, *grin*. Soon, I'll move on to Bach's Goldberg Variations.

Heart's Chalice progress: I'm still hammering away at the same blasted, pain-in-the-butt chapter I mentioned on Tuesday. Argh! I've made progress, though, and I hope I can finish it tonight and move on.

I've been contemplating this quote by Mark Twain:

"The time to begin writing an article is when you have finished it to your satisfaction. By that time you begin to clearly and logically perceive what it is you really want to say."

Substitute "chapter" for "article", and you have my deep-edit process in a nutshell. I go chapter by chapter, shaping and deepening them one at a time.

In the process of honing 18 chapters (with 29 left to go), I've gained additional insights into my story, collected 70-odd notes to incorporate into future revisions, and I've realized that I have yet another new chapter to write.

One of these days, Heart's Chalice will be revised, polished, and ready for Beta readers. That I promise you. But this story demands that I take my time, and I'm listening.

=-=

And speaking of quotes, I found this jewel on The Literate Kitten. I'm adding it to my Words to Live By, here in my sidebar.

"Communicating or expressing creativity requires an every-day-warriorship-courage. It is so vulnerable. It is bold to create despite the wave of critics and naysayers, the avalanche of "shoulds" and comparisons.

"The haters are always out there hatin' so loudly. To express anyway takes guts. Just to create, just to communicate is somehow so innocent and so bold. It requires a tolerance for allowing our art of Self to be seen in ways we may not like.

"But in our warrior-heart, we have room to do that. There we can find we are living for something more important than other people's approval or understanding. We are expressing things for goodness sake and that is enough.

"Our art can be set free into the world as it is. It (and we) can be like a mirror accommodating whatever projections are set upon it without losing anything, without falling into confusion. That is a heroism that is rarely noted, but makes the difference between a life of suffering and a life of satisfaction."

~from Joy, Sorrow and Everyday Warriorship by Tröma Rigtsal Rinpoche

Potpourri

2008-11-18T19:33:00.015-05:00

1. My friend Annie honored me with a very sweet award: the Marie Antoinette Award. Thank you, Annie!

2. It snowed last night! And on the mountain, I found plenty of snow to play in. Beautiful, isn't it?

"Nature chose for a tool, not the earthquake or lightning to rend and split asunder, not the stormy torrent or eroding rain, but the tender snow-flowers noiselessly falling through unnumbered centuries."
~John Muir

"Nature is full of genius, full of the divinity; so that not a snowflake escapes its fashioning hand."
~Henry David Thoreau

"I counted till they danced so
Their slippers leaped the town,
And then I took a pencil
To note the rebels down.
And then they grew so jolly
I did resign the prig,
And ten of my once stately toes
Are marshalled for a jig!"

"Snow flakes" ~Emily Dickinson

3. Music I listened to last night while I was working on Heart's Chalice revisions:

Beethoven Symphony No. 6 in F Major ("Pastoral")

4. Heart's Chalice progress: I'm hammering away at a particularly challenging chapter. Slowly but surely, it's getting there. So I'm scooting in my writing cave and getting back to work!

Added later: I'm deep in my writing cave, but I wanted to share with you what I'm listening to tonight as I'm working: Concerto Grossi (G minor, F Major, D Major, and B flat Major) and Trumpet Sonata by Arcangelo Corelli.

Click here for a sample (Concerto Grosso in G minor, Op. 6 No. 8).

Sublime Writing Music

2008-11-16T01:05:00.005-05:00

Sviatoslav Richter playing Rachmaninoff Concerto No. 2.

In six parts on YouTube, if you'd like to check it out:

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 6

Shivers of delight and goosebumps guaranteed.

Random Bits in the Life of TL

2008-11-13T14:15:00.011-05:00

1. I haven't been much of a blogger lately. Bear with me. I'm putting a lot of energy into my writing and my piano music. And hiking, of course.

While I'm on the subject of hiking, I'll share some pictures with you. As you can see, most of the leaves are on the ground now.

"I only went out for a walk and finally concluded to stay out till sundown, for going out, I found, was really going in." ~John Muir

"Forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair." ~Kahlil Gibran

"I thank you God for this most amazing day, for the leaping greenly spirits of trees, and for the blue dream of sky and for everything which is natural, which is infinite, which is yes." ~e.e. cummings

2. I'll continue to post hiking pictures, but I'm thinking of resurrecting something I've done here in the past: posting quotes on writing and exploring my take on them. Perhaps music quotes, too. Nature quotes need no explanation -- only gorgeous pictures of the mountains, which have become my second home.

3. I'm working hard on Heart's Chalice; still up to my ears in deep-edits, but I'm making progress, and that's what's important. My deep-edit process is to divide the novel into point-of-view chapters, then polish and hone each chapter individually as though it were a short story. It takes a lot of time, yes, but it's well worth it because I continue to discover and develop my story, and when I put everything back together, the story's various threads will be all the more well-woven.

4. I'm playing piano every day. My own music, and other people's too. I'm classically trained, and as a young person, I was being groomed for a career in music. I didn't go that way for reasons too complicated to delve into here, but music will always be an important part of who I am. Since leaving the concert and competition circuit years ago, I've written a good deal of my own music.

In Heart's Chalice, three of my characters are pianists of different stripes: Laurel is a retired professor of piano, Renata is a singer-songwriter, and Ivan is a record producer. I've lent a number of my songs to Renata, my singer-songwriter character, and in whatever way I can get Heart's Chalice out there, I'd like to fuse my music with the novel, perhaps by offering my music online as an enhancement to the story. I'm brainstorming possibilities. And in the meantime, my writing inspires my music and vice versa. A win-win deal on both sides.

If you're wondering what my original piano music is like, I write songs and instrumental pieces, and people who have heard it describe it as "neoclassical." I'd call that an apt description. And yes, I'm good. *grin*