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Posts Tagged ‘artists’

Keep Writing

Posted in Writing, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on May 18, 2016| 1 Comment »

It’s a beautiful day today, the birds are singing, the clover is growing and I’m plugging along, making progress on numerous fronts and feeling fine.

It isn’t always this way.

Some days I can’t get a thing done and nothing seems right no matter what I do. I’m not alone in this, as I was reminded by a recent discussion on one of my listserves. A member had finally had it up to there with the frequent failure to find editorial acceptance. Folks chimed in, discussions were discussed, and this particular writer hopefully left the thread more optimistic than when it began. I know I did.

What some call failure, I call pre-acceptance. Have I mentioned this before? I probably have, because it’s a fairly critical component to my writerly attitude.* No one is going to like everything you write, no matter who you are. There will be rejection.

And that’s ok.

That’s progress, that’s experience, that’s learning one more way not to make a lightbulb. All writers, all people, get rejected.

Let’s take words out of the equation for a moment. I’m on a cookie kick so let’s stick with that.

Are you handing out delicious cookies at work? Someone will say thanks, but no thanks. It may be that they aren’t keen on chocolate chip, or that they are lactose intolerant, or that their doctor just read them the riot act about Type 2 diabetes. You don’t know, and that’s ok.

This isn’t about them, it’s about you.

Do the best you can, of course, and keep bumping that line higher. Practice. Follow Angela Duckworth’s research and go on grit rather than talent. Go online, and find helpful pep talks like the one Neil Gaiman wrote for National Novel Writing Month:

One word after another.

That’s the only way that novels get written and, short of elves coming in the night and turning your jumbled notes into Chapter Nine, it’s the only way to do it.

Whatever it takes. Your goals are worth it.

* I should mention that I didn’t start out this way. It took some time to be ok with rejection, and if I can do it, you can too. The 350+ pre-acceptances I have accumulated so far helped a lot:)

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This Is How You Do It

Posted in Writing, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on May 11, 2016| Leave a Comment »

This is how you do it: you sit down at the keyboard and you put one word after another until its done. It’s that easy, and that hard.
― Neil Gaiman

Thankfully, I have cookies:)

 

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Productivity Through Gamification

Posted in Likes, Writing, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on May 6, 2016| Leave a Comment »

Today’s Thing I Like is a way to make productivity easier and fun. Also? Guilt-free rewards for writing and lots else, always awesome.

Let’s see, how to introduce this idea?

If the only part of that sentence that made sense to you was “Christmas” fear not! Explanations forthwith.

•

Part the First: Mary Robinette Kowal

Mary is a terrific author and puppeteer with a string of quality novels and shorts under her belt. She’s the sort of person who suffers a puppeteering injury (yep, that’s a thing) and decides to get back into writing in her down time. And wins a Hugo. Then another one. And another one:)

For those of you interested in learning about writing, she’s also active in the Writing Excuses podcast (transcripts are also available for those who prefer the written word).

 

Part the Second: Habitica

This online platform helps you set up a to do list and rewards you in (fake, sadly, but still) gold pieces when you finish things. It’s free to join and while you can subscribe for things like avatar and quest extras, you don’t need to spend a cent to take advantage of the productivity options. There are lots of productivity and gamification platforms and apps and trackers out there, but this one is working for me.

This is my Habitica avatar, mount and pet, all decked out in rainbow fun.RainbowRumpus

Habitica lets you track what you need to do and, just as importantly, what you have already done. Then (and this is the extra fun bit) when you’re asking yourself if you’ve worked enough to deserve that double mochaccino half-caf* you’re craving, you can go over to your (fake, but still) treasure chest and cash in gold for a reward.

True, you still have to pay for that half-caf with real money, but! It is no longer a guilty pleasure, it is a well-deserved prize. Set up whatever rewards you like, from a trip to the cafe to a book-like object to dinner and a movie.

 

Part the Third: Ink Slingers

A Habitica guild or assemblage of people with similar interests, in this case, writing. You don’t need to join a guild but if you’re the sort of person who likes chat breaks with their productivity, consider it. If you’re the sort of person who wants to eliminate even the possibility of distraction on their way to accomplishment, well, don’t.

•

How Does This All Come Together?

Now, I’m not usually into apps for this and groups for that. I tend to just forge ahead. Even so, this  system works for me. Maybe it will work for you too, or maybe all you need is a handwritten list of your daily step count. Whatever works to help track measurable progress toward achievable goals.

I may still have a tiny touch of game/loot love left over from my time in Warcraft, and if it works for Mary, well. I asked if I could pretty please join Ink Slingers and then promptly became the walliest of wallflowers, but it’s still nice knowing that other people in my guild are working toward similar goals. It’s also nice to have a list that keeps me on track and lets me reward myself when I cross things off.

It’s even nicer to enjoy a tasty adult beverage (50 gold), guilt free. Now excuse me while I go check “blog post” off my list:)

……….
* Ok, I don’t drink coffee, but the great thing about this system is that it lets you pick your poison. Hot chocolate with whipped cream and Bailey’s, anyone?

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Getting Happy

Posted in Likes, Writing, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on May 5, 2016| Leave a Comment »

“Writing isn’t about making money, getting famous, getting dates, getting laid, or making friends. In the end it’s about enriching the lives of those who will read your work, and enriching your own life as well. It’s about getting up, getting well, and getting over. Getting happy, okay? Getting happy… you can, you should, and if you’re brave enough to start, you will.”

― Stephen King

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Extra Super Busy Today, But…

Posted in Writing, tagged , , , , , , , , , on April 15, 2016| Leave a Comment »

Many people, myself among them, feel better at the mere sight of a book.”
― Jane Smiley

Me too:)

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A Comfort to the Lost

Posted in Likes, Writing, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on April 6, 2016| Leave a Comment »

Life is not supposed to be neat. And it’s a comfort. It’s a comfort to all of us who have messed up. And then you find your way back…

— JK Rowling

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Impostor Syndrome

Posted in Likes, Writing, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on February 26, 2016| Leave a Comment »

Today’s entry for #ThingsILike is Impostor Syndrome. Let me be clear, I don’t enjoy feeling like a fraud. What I do like is that I’m not alone when I do. My advisor introduced me to the term in grad school and gave me a gift: he told me that practically everyone at our prestigious and accomplished institution had it. It just wasn’t something people talked about.

Ok, maybe what I really like is the fact that the today’s connectivity means I don’t feel like the only one, be it re: impostor syndrome or sci-fi fandom, POC or what have you. Still, today is as good a time for a pep talk as any. Let’s get to it:)

A lot of people feel like frauds at some point in their lives. The topic came up for me this week because Mary Robinette Kowal has a good piece about it on her site. (If her gaming analogy doesn’t work for you feel free to come up with your own.)

Have you ever felt like a fake, attributed your accomplishments to luck or some external reason, or downplayed your success even though on paper you might look pretty darn impressive? If you’re asking yourself “Who hasn’t?” well, you know about impostor syndrome.

(Quick, here’s a pretty picture to keep your spirits up. That’s you, taking in the view on your way to the top. It only looks like someone else’s behind:)

Impostor syndrome is so common that CalTech has a page on it for its students, and everyone from Forbes to Geek Feminism Wiki to the American Psychological Association wants to help people work through it. (And that’s just from the first Google search page:)

I like Mary’s take on impostor syndrome as a way to tell that you are making progress, working hard, and facing down problems that feel too big to handle. (The key here is “feel.” Feels are fine and all but emotion is interpretation, and not necessarily fact.)

Impostor Syndrome means that you are winning.

I think that’s great.

Speaking of progress and how to make more of it, there’s a great TED talk with relevance here. Rather than seeing challenges as a binary yes or no, can I or can’t I? Carol Dweck argues that it helps to think about targets as yes or not yet. That “yet” is the crucial modifier. The brain is built to learn, you just have to chill out, keep going and give yourself a chance.

Do that, and not yet can become yesterday’s accomplishment. Now I’m off to take my own advice:)

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Locus + Recommended + Free

Posted in Entertainment, Writing, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on February 1, 2016| Leave a Comment »

The 2015 Locus Recommended Reading List

It’s the beginning of a new year and that, among other things, means year-end wrap-ups and award seasons. Locus Magazine, which has covered the science fiction and fantasy field since 1968, released its list of recommended reading for 2015. It is extensive. It covers material from novels to shorts, fantasy to non-fiction, and there seems to be something for everyone. The full list includes links or references for all entries so check it out if you want the full shebang.

If you’re short on available funds or want to sample an author before you dig deeper into their repertoire, then check out my abbreviated version below. It links to all of the list’s freely available stories (I think, although it’s a big collection and I may have missed one or two).

There’s a lot of excellent material here. I’ve read some of these pieces already but not all, and I look forward to catching up. Do check out the novels and other purchasable items too, if you have the wherewithal (and if you don’t, I highly recommend a library card!).

Enjoy!

 

NOVELLAS
‘‘Waters of Versailles’’, Kelly Robson (Tor.com 6/10/15)

NOVELETTES
‘‘And You Shall Know Her by the Trail of Dead’’, Brooke Bolander (Lightspeed 2/15)
‘‘Islands off the Coast of Capitola, 1978’’, David Herter (Tor.com 7/8/15)
‘‘Machine Learning’’, Nancy Kress (Future Visions)
‘‘Another Word for World’’, Ann Leckie (Future Visions)
‘‘Coming of the Light’’, Chen Qiufan (Clarkesworld 3/15)
‘‘Fabulous Beasts’’, Priya Sharma (Tor.com 7/27/15)
‘‘The Long Goodnight of Violet Wild’’, Catherynne M. Valente (Clarkesworld 1/15, 3/15)

SHORT STORIES
‘‘The Great Silence’’, Allora & Calzadilla & Ted Chiang (e-flux journal 56th Venice Biennale 5/8/2015)
‘‘Soteriology and Stephen Greenwood’’, Julia August (Unlikely Stories 10/15)
‘‘City of Ash’’, Paolo Bacigalupi (Matter 7/27/15)
‘‘Snow’’, Dale Bailey (Nightmare 6/15)
‘‘Unearthly Landscape by a Lady’’, Rebecca Campbell (Beneath Ceaseless Skies 10/15/15)
‘‘Hold-Time Violations’’, John Chu (Tor.com 10/7/15)
‘‘Three Cups of Grief, by Starlight’’, Aliette de Bodard (Clarkesworld 1/15)
‘‘Please Undo This Hurt’’, Seth Dickinson (Tor.com 9/16/15)
‘‘Madeleine’’, Amal El-Mohtar (Lightspeed 6/15)
‘‘A Shot of Salt Water’’, Lisa L. Hannett (The Dark 5/15)
‘‘Let Baser Things Devise’’, Berrien C. Henderson (Clarkesworld 4/15)
‘‘The Apartment Dweller’s Bestiary’’, Kij Johnson (Clarkesworld 1/15)
‘‘Cat Pictures Please’’, Naomi Kritzer (Clarkesworld 1/15)
‘‘Variations on an Apple’’, Yoon Ha Lee (Tor.com 10/14/15)
‘‘archival testimony fragments / minersong’’, Rose Lemberg (Uncanny 1-2/15)
‘‘The Game of Smash and Recovery’’, Kelly Link (Strange Horizons 10/17/15)
‘‘Descent’’, Carmen Maria Machado (Nightmare 2/15)
‘‘Hello, Hello’’, Seanan McGuire (Future Visions)
‘‘When Your Child Strays From God’’, Sam J. Miller (Clarkesworld 7/15)
‘‘The Smog Society’’, Chen Qiufan (Lightspeed 8/15)
‘‘The Empress in Her Glory’’, Robert Reed (Clarkesworld 4/15)
‘‘The Three Resurrections of Jessica Churchill’’, Kelly Robson (Clarkesworld 2/15)
‘‘Today I Am Paul’’, Martin L. Shoemaker (Clarkesworld 8/15)
‘‘The Karen Joy Fowler Book Club’’, Nike Sulway (Lightspeed 10/15)
‘‘The Pyramid of Krakow’’, Michael Swanwick (Tor.com 9/30/15)
‘‘The Lily and the Horn’’, Catherynne M. Valente (Fantasy 12/15)
‘‘Pocosin’’, Ursula Vernon (Apex 1/15)
‘‘Kaiju maximus®: ‘So Various, So Beautiful, So New’’’, Kai Ashante Wilson (Fantasy 12/15)
‘‘Hungry Daughters of Starving Mothers’’, Alyssa Wong (Nightmare 10/15)
‘‘Seven Wonders of a Once and Future World’’, Caroline M. Yoachim (Lightspeed 9/15)

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The Best Sort of Oddity

Posted in Entertainment, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on January 11, 2016| Leave a Comment »

David Bowie 1947–2016

Bowie was a great artist and an inspiration to so many, including those of us in the science and science fiction communities. A lot will be written about him in the next while so I’ll just leave you with one small sign of his influence, on and off the planet.

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Holiday Best

Posted in Entertainment, Likes, Writing, tagged , , , , , , , on December 8, 2015| Leave a Comment »

We’ve had guests in town and that’s always fun. We went to The Tallis Scholars at the Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica last night (check out that vaulted ceiling in the photo below:) and it was a lovely experience. There’s nothing like soaring choral music to elevate the spirits, and the level of talent was extraordinary. A UK vocal ensemble formed by Peter Phillips in 1973, the group holds a well-deserved international reputation and have more than sixty albums out. If you have the chance to see them in person, I recommend it. The fact that this is the holiday season just made it that much more fun.

Me being me, the event also inspired some deliciously wicked ideas for a story I’m writing. Win win!

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