The Opening

I spent most of the day rewriting my novel's opening scene for the 500 millionth time! Okay, so I might be exaggerating slightly, but because I have rewritten it dozens of times over the last four years, it feels like the bazillionth time.

My novel didn't come to me as a fully-formed story. It came to me in flashes of scenes, glimpses of characters, and small notions. It only grew into a developed story after a lot of planning and even more writing. I envy writers who approach the page with a full-fledged idea. Even in these final revisions, I've added new scenes and storylines (albeit minor ones that complement the whole). Last year when I worked on the rewrite, I cut out major scenes and changed whole storylines. I'm an organized planner, but my writing style seems to be more chaotic. As frustrating as that is for me, nothing feels more satisfactory than finally nailing that troublesome scene.

I'm off to celebrate with some Red Velvet Cake frozen yogurt. Oh yes, it does exist!

A Winner

I am SO excited!

I entered a contest last week. I should mention that I never ever win anything. Ever.

But.

I won!

Over at Women on the Web they are running a contest called Words Move Me. To enter the contest, you have to submit a 'literary moment' that inspired you. The prize? A rose-colored Sony Reader Pocket Edition. (!!)

It looks quite lovely. I can't wait.

Here's the announcement, and my winning entry:

OMG, I won!**

I believe there are two chances left to win...

(**Because I am obsessed with language, I must note that there is a stray comma in my entry that shouldn't be there, but it wasn't in the version I submitted. Grammar Geek out.)

R.I.P

You served me well* for the past four years, waking me with hot** coffee each and every morning. Sadly, another year was not to be. You couldn't compete with the brutally hard water conditions.1

I will not mourn you as you move on to appliance heaven.2

*Okay
**That's true
1That's why your replacement has a fancy decalcification indicator and a charcoal water filter.
2And it has nothing to do with the fact that I ordered a better spiffier model--which includes brew-pause for a quick pour and a gold-tone filter--the moment you were cold on the counter.

The shiny new and improved model is whinging it's way here soon, but until then, it's gritty French press coffee or Starbucks. But for a model like this, I can wait:

The Red Sox Are Going to the World Series!

*cough* *cough* *cough* *cough*
Okay, I'm heading back to the couch to take care of this nasty cold/bronchitis that's kept me down since Thursday.

Woo Hoo, GO Bah-sten!
*cough* *cough*