between

Harvest in the Vineyard, Samuel Palmer

41,479, Loose Daddy. Since last week I’ve been reading Burghild Nina Holzer’s journal, A Walk Between Heaven and Earth. I’ve learned from her journal entries not to treat my journal like an army sergeant to whom I must report, but to write in the moment without premeditation. Here and in my hand journal I’ve written ideas for stories, complained, bored myself, and eased my mind. Not reporting, simply writing.

Yesterday morning I was feeling aggravated about Loose Daddy. So close to finishing the rewrite but can’t seem to get it done. There I sat at the Starbucks, early on a work day morning, sunlight piercing the glass of the long windows making up the front walls of that particular Starbucks, and dazzling my eyes. There were accidents on the northbound 405 that morning and traffic was choked up coming out of Long Beach. I was late getting to Century City, late to my morning session. I’ve been writing many notes about Loose Daddy, working it out between thought and paper–the narrative seems to be at a standstill, but it’s really not. It’s like a salmon caught in a stream. It doesn’t look like it’s moving at all, but it is; it’s pushing against the flow of resistance and moving forward inch by inch.

Today I’m home because it’s Rosh Hashanah and the boss has closed the office. I’m working on Loose Daddy, and can see my way to the final scene, but first new stepping stones must pave the way, and I’m struggling to get them laid.

i can hardly wait…quantum of solace

 

I’ve worn a groove in CASINO ROYALE.

groomed by monkeys

Aucassin and Nicolette, Marianne Stokes

41448, Loose Daddy. Sorry to be missing in action this week, still at work on Loose Daddy, despite the rough going, trying to get to the end. I’m sure I’ll have to make one more pass through the manuscript even after I’m done this time. Must confess–I’m so looking forward to bring finished with this novel. Finished! Finished! Finished!

Started a class this week, Real Estate Principles–sounds like a conflict of interest, doesn’t it?

time

Renaissance tile, Tilings from Historical Sources

40862, Loose Daddy. Time. There is chronological time, the ticking of the clock from one minute to the next, one hour to the next, one day to the next, one year to the next, and there is psychological time, the weight of time passing, and there’s emotional time.

Emotional time, the time inside a moment, elastic or fluid or glacial. It can be slow like the moment when you’re waiting for the other shoe to drop, or the microwave to ding, or fast like the fender bender in heavy traffic or a lightning strike. Emotional time is what counts in fiction, the heartbeat of story-telling. It’s the beats in a scene, the rhythm of dialogue, the close-up, the microscopic view of an exchange of perceptions between characters.

In a emotionally weighted scene time slows down. The moment crystallizes in the meeting of opposing characters, like an angry wife and a cheating husband or in Character A coming to a realization about Character B. Writing those moments makes me anxious. So much has to be conveyed. Words rush, and I’m afraid I’ve missed the target.  Sometimes emotional time must be spun out and threaded through several scenes, then the knot occurs and the characters are inside the moment. I’m at such a moment between Tyrell and Keisha.

Read from Loose Daddy, Chapter 11 at writer’s group today. It went well.

dry spell, slow rain

Sixteenth Century Persian, Tilings From Historical Sources

Had a few days of dry spell mixed in with a heavy dose of frustration with Loose Daddy but It seems to be melting away now. Since winter’s coming, and traffic’s already thickened to a starchy consistency, I’m returning to my early morning routine, leaving home at six and spending my writing time at Starbucks until day job time rolls around. Took Neo with me this morning, had a productive session.

Some notes…

• The “dusting roses” scene must be moved and revised to fit better in the narrative flow. It sets up the coming action between Tyrell and Sandra.
• Tyrell should visit Calvin’s grave when he’s at the cemetery.
• Need to write out the story’s chronology so I can keep track of events.
• Add the new dialogue between Tyrell and Lucas in the San Hermosa sequence.
• New objective: Write the “moving stuff” scene between Tyrell and Keisha.
• Tyrell and Sandra could marry in early January. Think about this.

sunshine through the chinks

Middle Ages, Tilings from Historical Sources

39,853, Loose Daddy. Junior got into a quarrel with a pole so he’s at the shop getting his bruises and scrapes repaired. Honestly, he just can’t stay out of trouble! Spent the day working over working on Loose Daddy, lots of cutting and rearranging of scenes. I’ve decided to shape it into a novella. I think it plays best that way. It’s 10:15 p.m. and I’ve been at work on the manuscript since noon. I think I can stop now.

lumps and hollows

Elizabethan, Tilings from Historical Sources

So the cloud lifted from Loose Daddy yesterday, I saw a way across the chasm that had opened at my feet and brought me to a stumbling stop for the past couple weeks. I’d removed a certain sequence that I’m now going to put back as it held the answer to the problem–an answer I couldn’t see at all until it blooped out of the swamp and floated like a feather in front of my startled eyes. I figured out what to do–the word chase is on. I’ve targeted the end of September to finish the rewrite.

thought doodle

455 words, short fantasy story. Worked on the Ladriel story this morning, searching for a heartbeat. Not at full-on writing stage yet, just exploring ideas, letting the pen drift. At the moment it’s tentatively titled A Geometry of Vapor. I have the start of a situation.  I’ve composed the opening but it may very well change, become a later scene in the story. Right now I’ve got a tiny spark and I’m blowing on it as gently as possible.

upon my motionless dreams

Stained Glass at the Cathedral of Bourges, Middle Ages, Tilings from Historical Sources

I’m giving Loose Daddy a rest this week so that I don’t tear the thing into tiny pieces. I’ve started a short story, continuing that conversation between an angel and the serpent. The angel’s name is Ladriel. Have not decided if I’m going to name the serpent. So far it’s going well. I’ve finished the first scene and am contemplating the second.

a dream of vast silence

Byzantine, Tilings from Historical Sources

43,205, Loose Daddy Rewrite. So what have I been doing lately? Gradually recovering from the Loose Daddy disaster. Yesterday was Writing Saturday with Michelle. We celebrated her still-to-come birthday (Sept. 20) with lunch at the Renaissance Cafe. Afterward, we spent our writing time ensconced in comfy armchairs at Panera until dinnertime. I worked on LD, doing scene-by-scene cards. I’ve been very irritated with the novel lately and thought it would help to get a long look at it. I suspect I’m going to have to rearrange a few scenes, hence the index cards. I reached Chapter 8 yesterday. When I’m done with the scene-by-scene work, I’ll lay out the cards and contemplate.

I also wrote two pages of a new scene for LD, asked myself a slew of questions, and that yielded material for additional scenes. The book is growing in spite of the miserable time I’m having with it. I think I’ve reached that I HATE THIS BOOK stage. I’d like to drop-kick it off a cliff, but it’s really a good book and I must persevere.

I put LD away and spent some time thinking about a new short story. A conversation struck up between an angel and a serpent in one of the halls of Heaven and I happily followed along. We closed our day with take-home dinners from Panera (the Harvest Salad for her; and the tomato and mozzarella panini with tomato soup for me). I’d brought along my Netflix copy of MRS. PALFREY AT THE CLAREMONT –a charming and beautiful movie starring the charming Joan Plowright and the beautiful Rupert Friend in a lovely story about the touching friendship between an elderly widow and a kind young writer–and after that, three SUPERNATURAL episodes from Season Two. (Michelle is catching up.)

My third season dvd of SUPERNATURAL has arrived! Yay!

The year is rolling to a close and I’m not happy about the short days and early darkness, not to mention the dratted time change. Summer didn’t seem very long this year. It’s hot still though–hot, hot, hot. Last night was dragon’s breath warm well after midnight, and this morning’s hungover, broody sky, muggy air, but I like sleeveless weather so I’m not complaining about it, just observing.