Wednesday is over and Thursday is nigh, and let me say that it is one of the wettest Thursdays on record. I don't care a wit for the Olympics that are descending on Van in the next month, but if I did I would be glad it's pouring down here because that usually means snow in the mountains. I have no coherent thought, as I am in the middle of the Teething Process, which is draining me and in turn, exhausting everyone around me. And so I ramble....
I spend a lot of time reading #pubtips , #askagent, and #amwritingparty on Twitter. A LOT of time. I read these things on my Blackberry while I am feeding my baby, and I troll mindlessly for hours studying what they say, don't say, like, hate, and everything in between. I do this because I find the entire science behind writing then publishing books so entirely interesting. I think if I wasn't a stay at home mother to 4 small children who lives in suburbia and has a husband who works long hours PLUS travels I would certainly want to work in publishing (although with a run on sentence like that, they would never hire me).
I've been working on my WIP for quite some time. I tend to work on it in the evening, after the hub-blub of the freelance writing/butt wiping/dinner making is over for the day. The benefit to this? I have been thinking about writing it all day, and randomly jotting stuff down in my notebook (that I carry in my diaper bag everywhere. You can't text while you drive, but no one said anything about writing). When I finally sit down, I have a clear direction and just pound it out. It's my recreational time. It's also hard as hell, but it's fun.
My WIP is about a mother with postpartum depression, and her relationships with her husband, her parents, and her children all revolve around this single facet of her. I kept thinking of how funny it is that we are all very multi-dimensional, even someone who is a bland and boring as a stay at home mom (and I say that with the utmost respect as I am one myself). Case in point? I tweet about stupid kid's shows that I am forced to watch because my children have taken over the TV. Someone like Lance Armstrong is always tweeting "The view in Maui is breathtaking" then posts a picture to make us all jealous and feel bad. See, I'm boring, he's obviously not.
The fact that one single part of a person or character could really become all encompassing (especially the part you don't expect) if you let it, it's seriously intriguing. I write with that in mind. It's dark stuff, but not so dark that if you read it you'd want to off yourself or worst of all, stop reading. This is the little person who has been screaming at me from inside my head for over a year now, so when I get a chance to let her out, it always makes me feel better.
At any rate, that is my WIP. Now that I've rambled about that, my thoughts return to query letters. It is #agentsday on Twitter today. I have found it so interesting to read about their days, what they do, what they eat for lunch. It reminded me of the fake resumes I used to hand out at Orchard Park Mall in Kelowna, about 18 years ago (even I cannot believe how quickly time passes), when I worked in the mall in Kelowna, BC.
Good old Kelowna. I'm so glad I choose not to populate there. But, I digress, again....
I wrote a number of 'fake' resumes. This was really just for fun. We'd come up with a few doozies when we were at home in the evenings or at University where I was supposedly studying Psychology. Then, when I'd come in for my shift at my part time shoe store job in the mall, I'd slip the resumes under the gates of a few stores. After that, we'd sit back and watch the fun. And fun it was. The pure look of shock, and in many cases, fear that would pass over the managers face as he read it. Even better, when we'd make the follow up call and inquire as to whether or not he'd received said resume and if I could come in for an interview. I sincerely wish I had a copy of a few of those resumes.
It was this morning, when I started to make up BS queries in my head while doing the never ending, life-sucking pile of laundry, that I realized it would be fun to post one. I'm always stumped for blog posts, and this seemed to be a good idea as any. I'll have to work on it though. I don't want to post a BS query and have it be half assed.
One last thing: Brian Lynch tweeted to me a few days back (after I asked for one piece of advice for would-be writers, so exciting), 'Keep writing. Not only will you have lots to show people when you break through, it's the only way to get better.' Right he is.
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