I attended a portion of Gen Con in Indianapolis. It was very interesting and I saw all the things/people/characters/booths that I thought I might see. But the most interesting part of attending Gen Con for me was the writer’s symposium.
I did not know what to expect and it was quite the adventure. I am glad I made it fit into my schedule and just admitting that I was a writer, could be, should be, maybe one day will actually let someone read something I write…. that was powerful.

In my last post I wrote about an author I admire and her practice novel which turned into a bestseller. I like the idea of a practice novel, to understand how to write, but also how to pitch it and possibly sell it.

I admit it, I am still learning and still working on the discipline it takes to write regularly. I do write a lot, for work, so when it is time to write for myself sometimes I come up blank. It is the times when I am trying to sleep, or riding in a car or all kinds of random places and times that I think of the most amazing ideas. Trying to remember to always have something to write with!

So this place is an attempt to learn how to write on a regular basis and how blogging works. I am working on writing and editing my stories and I may eventually post pieces of my work here just to see if there are any reactions. It also might make this whole crazy writing thing seem more real!

I have recently become hooked on the Starz show Outlander. I had read the books a while ago and I enjoyed them, but now the show is front and center on my radar. I love the opening theme song, I think the cast is great and Scotland is beautiful. It is a fun show to watch, though it has its happy moments and some quite grim moments, I keep thinking about how the author saw the characters in the beginning when she first began the story. They are long and hefty books and make a great show.

I can see where the story makes a better tv show than it would a movie and that brings about the thought, is my “movie” in my head, the scenes that I am writing, more of a tv show or a movie? What is the format? I have heard so many people talk about what it takes to write a book and now with self publishing it seems much more possible. I recently read about how the author of Outlander wrote it as a practice book, and that is something I understand. (I also love it that she has Mountain Dew for breakfast!)

So a practice novel is underway!

I am new at this, both at blogging and at writing in general. When you don’t have to write, it can be a lot easier to squeeze writing into the schedule. When I feel like I should be writing, should take time, block out time in the schedule, that is when I come up blank. My author friends say I need a blog, so here it is, though right now it isn’t much. Right now I would rather watch a TV show about black holes, (did you notice that black holes are now represented by black spheres? Is that because of Interstellar or something else?)  or watch a movie or two that are up for Oscar nominations, right now it is hard to write. I am learning and this will take time. (I still haven’t seen Interstellar!)
I should introduce myself, I am a wife and mother, I live in Indiana. Not much to write about there. I usually write science fiction, different types and different themes but all generally have something to do with science and the future of our world and of other worlds not yet visited.

I am not yet published though that is something I am hoping to change this year. I like movies and sometimes when I write I see my work in my head like a movie. Scene by scene some days. I don’t see the characters faces or know exactly what they look like, but I know them. I also don’t have names for them in my early drafts. To me names have power, they mean something and finding the right name is difficult.

Well, I guess that counts as a blog post. More to come soon! – Hopefully!