Writing More?

Hey, I'm posting only 4 days apart. Woo-who! or should I say W00T, the word of year for 2007 (spelt with two zero's).

Things are good. I didn't write over the weekend like I was supposed to, but we took down our Christmas decorations and etc. I still have a little corner left to pack up, but that will probably happen tonight.

On Sunday, I spent a couple of hours in a major book store chain (I'm sure you know the one). I walked out with three books on writing as a career. Writing for the Internet, writing as a freelancer, and writing with no-plot (which I thought was the most appropriate considering the recent project I've assigned myself). I'm reading the no-plot book first since I want to get started on my "lets-see-what-happens-when-I-have-no-idea-what-my-story-is-but-I'm-going-to-write-it-anyway" project. I think it will be fun... mostly because I have little-to-no expectations (the ones I do have expect it to suck). So I have licence to waste my time writing something that is junk because it is just an experiment, and no one ever has to read it.

On a different note, I've been thinking about increasing my scheduled writing days. I've been writing every Wednesday since last year (it was a 2007 new year's resolution that I kept) which has helped me a lot. However, I think I need more. I'm going to try for one & a half hours of writing on 3 weekdays and maybe 3 hours on a weekend day. We'll see if that works for me. It's still only 7 and a half hours a week, but it's better than the 2 I'm putting in now.

Well that's all the update I have for you on this lovely Tuesday afternoon. I have a writing day set for tomorrow so we'll see if something new happens so I can update you again.

Cheers,

Tina

New Year, New Way of Thinking

I haven't written since October 2nd. Sorry to leave you all hanging.

The PureSpec conference was fun. Got to meet up with a publisher friend from Calgary again, and got to see a whole new side of the writing world. Comic books have made an impression on me.

I've basically stopped writing since the conference.... so that means I'm still only halfway through chapter two of my novel. I have still been meeting up with my friend Rox at the library to write, but I haven't been producing very much. Mostly, the reason has been stress at work. I had a break down in November and had to go home that day because I was so upset. The stress and political pressure got to me.

I never did contact my tutor about the change in direction. I will have to call and thank them all for helping me out for the last year. I bought the course three years ago and my 3 year extension runs out at the end of this month. I don't think getting my novel done in less than 30 days is going to work, and I'm done trying to force myself to do something. It has to come naturally.

December my support group held our 3rd annual Christmas dinner and didn't stop talking about books and writing until 1:30am. Our Publisher friend from Calgary came up to celebrate with us, and seemed to enjoy himself. It was a great night, but I don't know many people who could handle talking about writing all night long.

The Christmas season was busy, and now that it's the new year it's time to clean up the apartment and re-assess my life.

My job has gotten better since the break down. Some of the pressure has been taking off. I do like being able to say that I make a difference doing my job, but the stress level is something I will be monitoring closely. Also, my course is over. Even though I have a month left, there is no way I will be able to get anything done in time. I think it's time to say thank you and goodbye.

And what of my writing? Well, like I mentioned before comic books have made an impression on me, and I've had a couple people tell me that my writing would translate well into the form. I already have a completed story that I am converting into a graphic novel (non-serial comic book) script and I'm looking for an artist to help me make it real. I still don't know a lot about the industry but I've got my fingers crossed.

I also have to figure out how I write best. Thus far I've always planned out my stories in such detail that it should take nothing to finish them. Yet, I'm finding that the more the story is planned out, the more I get bored with it and it ends up getting pushed aside. My latest assignment for myself is to try and write something I only have a general idea of and see what happens. I don't know if this little project is a short story, novella, or a novel but I guess that's part of it, right?

I just really want to write again. I'm tired of having life get in the way of what I want to do. I told D last night that I was planning on writing on Saturday (something I haven't done in months) and he almost started clapping saying "Good, it's about time".

And it is about time. Time that I start believing in myself. Not that I'll get published or get famous because, while it would be great, that's not success for me. Success is have a story finished so that other people can read it, whatever the form. I just want to tell my stories. To get them out of my head, and maybe make people think about things a little different. Success is me being happy.

One last thing. It has been discussed, thought about and finally decided that C. M. Hunt is an old pen name that needs to be retired. So, I will be writing under my real name from now on. No more hiding behind a pen name. I write dark stories. I'm ok with that. It just means that I have a really interesting imagination, and I'm not ashamed to write under my own name anymore. I'll be changing my website soon to reflect the name change to Tina Hunter.

So.... Here's to 2008! Hopefully a year of Success!

Tina

Oh Christmas Tree

Yeah OK, so I have no idea why I started this blog singing 'oh Christmas tree'. It is pretty close to the big day though isn't it?

I'm not big on the whole religious meanings behind this time of year (not that I don't respect them, there are just too many to focus on one). So this time of year for me means what I think it should, time for family!

My boyfriend and I are merging family traditions this year. It'll get easier as the years go by, but this is the first year we are really merging and it's kinda cool. It feels like I have 4 families, my Mom's side, my Dad's side (they are divorced and remarried), my boyfriend's immediate family, and his extended family. All of whom I think are great, if not love. No evil mother in-laws here! (Although I'm not to found of the step-mother, too much drama about her and my Mom being best friends before she started dating my Dad)

Sunday, Monday and Boxing day are filled completely with family dinners, brunches, and get together. Lucky for me I also get Wednesday off, while my boyfriend goes to work. I'll be writing. My boss also told me that I can basically write my novel on Thursday and Friday because there will be nothing to do. So by the 30th, we'll see how far I am. Things in my novel are starting to feel like they are becoming clearer. Like I can see what road I've got my characters on. I feel like I can do this again.

Not only that, but I'm getting faster at my day job. What does that mean? Well when you only have a certain amount of work per day, it means that I get time to write at work again. See, good things can happen. I can only imagine what the new year will bring. (I'm wishing for a contract with a publishing company, but what new author isn't?)

Happy Holidays and all that jazz, and if I don't write before then... Happy New Year as well.

From your future favorite Author,

Dust