Beeb Writes

I have been doing some serious birthday party planning. My son turns 1 early in August. We don't usually throw parties so I think this one is getting a little out of hand. It started as an innocent BBQ party but now it has grown into a whole outdoor affair.  Complete with jumpy things.

So far the amount of people invited is roughly 154 people. Yeah. I don't expect everyone to show since a few are out of state. It'll be a big bash anyhow. We're getting a huge cake and a slightly smaller one for the little guy to demolish.

In other news... can I say Baby T is not so "baby" anymore? Yep, that's right folks, he decided he wants to walk! It was mostly a nightly ritual - he would walk back and forth between my husband and I... and that was it. Now the distance between us gets longer and longer and if I don't pay too close attention I'm finding T launching himself off of whatever he's holding onto. 

I'm getting my hospital bag ready.

Yes. That is a picnic table.

I am toying with the idea of moving my blog. I absolutely LOVE it here and I love the people I've met here too. I even feel creative here.

So what's the problem?

It really bothers me that non-vox members can't leave comments. Not like I write for the comments but I have a bunch of friends - with blogs - and it is nice when we can keep up with each other through them.

What's a girl to do?

Following Prana's lead, I have started reading Yoga and the Quest for the True Self by Stephen Cope.

I am just getting into this book but it already has me thinking on a deeper scale. And it has me thinking about the mat a little more. Things have been super busy lately, not to mention the little one is getting around! 

I am sure that these excuses have no place here since I am sure I could have found at least 15 minutes here or there to practice. Sometimes the setting just isn't right. I stayed at my sister's house the night before the wedding and I just didn't feel comfortable sticking my butt up in the air - let alone ujjayi (sp?) breathing - in front of everyone.

Yoga probably could've helped me some. I have been battling a head cold since the day after the wedding. My body is funny like that. Once the dust settles, my body decides it's tired of warding off sickness. The same thing use to happen whenever I came home from college. I wouldn't be home a whole day and suddenly, I'd have a full blown fever, complete with shakes and cold sweats.  Now that I think of it, the same thing use to happen over Christmas break when I was younger... must be my body's way of dealing.

Even now, I feel foggy. I'm almost out of the Sicky Woods and when I am I'll be back... hopefully, with more appealing posts.  ;)

I entered a contest where they gave the first sentence and I had to continue from there. It is to be no longer than 200 words. The bold is the line given and the rest is what I came up with. Enjoy!

He smelled something burning.

Ah yes, that sweet smell. It made his mouth water and the hair stand up all over his body. Since Nick was a child, he craved fire. What his parents thought was a “cooking accident” at the age of 15 was no accident at all. Nick watched the flames lick the wall and consume the home he was born in. He had never seen anything like it.

Nick stood on the sidewalk, mesmerized by the hot glow. He wanted to reach out for it, embrace it, and let the fire consume him. He remembered that day like it was yesterday.

There were a few other fires and no one could deny Nick had a problem. He had some medication and regular shrink visits…

Then, the doctors said he was better. Cured was the word they used.  Everyone could breathe a little easier.  What would his doctor’s say if they saw him now? What would they do if knew how he felt?

Nick inhaled deeply.

He put on his helmet and dashed into the flames wearing the fireman uniform his father passed down…

This is how it works: you get 5 words and with these 5 words you have to write an entry. The words might or might not be related. You decide how to combine them, and how long your entry will be. You tag your entry with 5wordchallenge and whatever other tags you like. Finally, you put the words in bold.

This week's challenge: carpet, jury, pasta, shapeless, whey

The jury sat unmoving. Tension filled the air.

The whey sat in a bowl on the courtroom table.

Next to it a plate of dirty noodles.

At the prosecution table sat a woman, arms crossed at her chest.

It had been proven her child put down whey instead of milk for the family cat.

That issue would be dealt with later.

She couldn't believe it had come to this.

The courtroom door opened with a bang.

A shapeless man stood with the blinding sun behind him.

Finally, he stepped forward and her husband came into focus.

Then, he spoke...

"I confess. I spilled the pasta on the living room carpet."

Well, I got the mail today and I received one postcard back acknowledging the publisher has received my manuscript. I also received a rejection letter (!) from an agent.  I'm pretty excited. Not only am I one rejection letter closer to becoming published but it was actually a LETTER. No generic postcard with a "No" plastered across it but an actual letter! 

I can honestly say I'm happy. There is something about sending out your work and having professionals look at it.  It's pretty scary at first but it just makes the whole journey more exciting. Like I am writing seriously now. For real. Not a hobby. I know my story needs some tweaking still but I needed to send out a few submissions to get me to the next stage. In a weird way it gave me momentum. It has also allowed me to put my story aside for a week or two so I could come back fresh instead of beating it to death.

I am currently fighting a head cold after a long (wedding!) weekend. I'm sure my post isn't put together in the best way but I just had to say that "I'm pumped" about the future of my story.

I have been feeling the urge to simplify things in my life. I tend to overload myself with information and clutter - even the appearance of my blog was getting really busy. I am constantly stumbling over books throughout my house. Even though I can't bring myself to get rid of them - I can't keep them out all the time.

I have been writing queries and cover letters - not to mention researching the hell out of becoming a freelance writer. There is no set time limit but for some reason it all feels so rushed. Like I'm not going to ever get this opportunity again so I'm trying to make the best of it. I have an internal accountant tapping her watch saying, "Time is almost out. You should make money before you have to go back to work."  My husband is completely supportive with everything I do but I'm worried that we can only survive on one income for so long.

So, of course, I am thinking of freelance writing to bring in a dribble of income. I still don't call myself a writer. I feel that I haven't earned the title yet. It can get discouraging - researching two parts of the same field (children's books and freelancing). But I am determined. I just wish I had a map as to where to start.

The hubby, Baby T and I went for a nice bike ride. We got caught in the rain. It was refreshing. Baby T was perfectly dry in his little bike trailer but the rest of us had to hack it in the wet *ahem, cold* weather. It's one of the simplest of exercises but it's so uplifting. I need to do more of it...

...including other simple exercises, such as, yoga, walking, jogging and anything that doesn't require me to pay an arm and a leg for a gym membership!

PS: OH! And I got accepted to a school for children's writing. I had to take an aptitude test before applying (and I read somewhere that they only accept about a third of the applicants). I don't know if I'm going to take the course yet but it's nice knowing I've got the aptitude for it!

Write about a person whose reputation rests on the appearance of an inanimate object.

What is her problem? It's my body - and if I want a tongue ring I should get one. She says it's unsanitary and looks disgusting. Well, that's why it's in my mouth, not hers. She always turns everything around on her. Like the whole world revolves around her and what she thinks. I am my own person. I like to express myself.

Why does she feel the need to control everything I do? "Over-Protective Mom" does not come close to what I went through. I'm sure it's hard losing control over your daughter but at some point you have to let her be who she is... I mean, I have been WELL behaved compared to most and she doesn't see it. I may have been five minutes late for curfew a few times but let's face it, our whole family is late for everything. It's in my blood.

If someone judges you for this- chances are these people should be going home and looking in their own kids' mouths. They might be surprised.  I had told her. Pah. I could care less about what others think... I just wish my own mother wouldn't judge me so much.

I am sitting at my desk. Printer shooting off page after page of my manuscript. Nerve-wracking does not being to sum up how it feels. I can honestly say, I'm nervous. And doubtful. The competition is high out there and what makes me think that I have ANY ability to rub two words together? I wonder if writing children's books is for me. Don't get me wrong, I love and I'm learning SO much but my critiques all say the same thing. I need just the bare bones of a story. Detail need not apply.

Does this mean I should be writing for older children? Adults? (How do I find out what I'm good at?) I've got some great children's stories (sadly, most of them are true) but it really kills me to cut out all the details. These books are suppose to be detailed and unique but apparently there is this imaginary line - that I like to step over quite frequently.

I guess I'm feeling a little discouraged. I run a very large critique group (by "run" I mean I started it... it's like a community, so to speak) and they have seen one of my stories change and develop for some time now. They are - for the most part - in agreement that I should send it out. Aside from tweaking a few things, there is another person in the industry who says it's almost there too. Well, we recently added some new members and I received a critique that says A LOT is wrong with it. It needs to be chopped big time.  I don't know what kind of experience this woman has but she makes some very valid points. (Of course, I keep in mind that it's just one opinion and I could be tweaking forever if I try to please everyone.)

She said she was afraid to leave me that critique because she noticed everyone else had said to move forward with it. Frankly, I'm grateful for her honesty. I knew this business wouldn't be cake - and you really have to love the work because it doesn't seem like lots of money can be made after everyone gets their cut. But it just seems like an uphill battle sometimes.

And that's only a small part of the stress I've got going on right now.  But I'll spare the rest of the details (can't cross that line again! 8)