Are You Human? Fun with Word Verifications

You know those annoying word verifications you have to complete before posting a comment on some blogs? The ones that check to verify that you're human and not some spam bot waiting to clog the poor Blogger's inbox with viruses?

I always picture a green headed alien typing a comment and then deleting it when he is forced to answer that question...

Anyway, how good are your language-building skills? I'll admit, I have no experience with language creation in world building (my current - endless - WIP is set in a modern city). But I find too complex a language utterly distracting when I'm reading. However, if it's well done, and just enough to pull the reader into an alternate world without throwing us into a swirling black hole of "huh?", it adds to the world the author has built.

So, I thought I'd put those annoying WVs to use. Here's where I take a choice WV and use it in a sentence or dialogue. Do you know the meaning right off the bat, without having to guess? If yes, I've succeeded in that little piece of language creation. And that would be frexing brilly.

This week's Word Verification comes from Bethany Robison's blog.



Bethany is also part of the Ink Slingers Girls. Go over and give both blogs a follow. I won a coveted copy of Beth Revis' Across the Universe on Bethany's blog, so of course, she is awesome in my book.

Here is the Word Verification I had to type before I commented this morning: Stinitio

And here is my first attempt:

Kat tried on the shoes. She'd never worn such high heels before. These were a shiny vampire red, matching the hilt of her lightsword perfectly.

"Stinitios are hard to walk in, at first," the saleslady commented. "But they're kick-ass sexy, don't you agree?"

Kat admired the length of her leg and the way the shoes shaped her calves. "Yes," she said. "I'll take them."

Have fun with your Word Verifications today! And for more great information on World Building, head on over to the Wednesday Word Building Workshops at Juliette Wade's Talk to YoUniverse blog.

Juggling Skills - or Lack Thereof

ACK! My posts are getting sporadic. I'll try to do better in the next few weeks. Thanks for the new follows. It's fun to see the list grow. When I began this blog, the number of people reading sat at BIG FAT ZERO for months. So, a BIG thank you!

So, yeah. Juggling. I can't do it. My husband can juggle 3 items (soft, round items. Not knives or anything) and he tried to teach me. But I drop stuff. And soft, over-ripe oranges go splat.

And then there's LIFE juggling. You know what I'm talking about. Most of my aspiring writer friends are trying to balance writing (and all that social networking that must accompany it) with a career/day job (usually uber-boring, by comparison), kids/dogs (or both), and any number of other things from a sick, live-in parent, a farm, volunteer work and the list could go on and on.

I am struggling with juggling.

I can barely find the time to get my day job work (luckily, I telecommute) and my farm chores done by the end of the day. Add social networking to the mix (Blogging and commenting on blogs I follow, Tweeting, Facebooking) it seems that writing - the one thing to which I would happily dedicate my whole day seems to be taking a back seat.

Here's what I plan on doing next week. Or, perhaps the week after since I have a big work project over the next several days that will probably throw me for a loop.

1) Try to limit the number of blogs I read/comment on.

Blogging is time consuming. But let's face it. There is a wealth of learning and networking to be had by reading and commenting on blogs. Plus, if you want people to read and follow your own blog, you've absolutely got to do this. I've 'met' a tone of great writer folk through blogs. But, My Follow list is steadily growing. I need to skim titles and read only what catches my eye. Or something.

2) Use Tweetdeck or something to schedule Tweets.

I am a novice Tweeter, but I'm trying. I just find Twitter so time-sucking! Anyone got any other tips? Please let me know!

3) Cross post my Facebook and Twitter updates or at least some) to kill two of those birds with one stone.

4) LIMIT my online Twitter and Facebook time (yes, my posts are woefully infrequent, but I still find myself spending a lot of my time there!)

5) Schedule writing time.

Like exercise, writing won't make time for me. I've got to make time for writing. My muse is at its best anywhere from 3 am to 6 am (with 10 cups of coffee of course). That still gives me time to get farm chores done and hike my dogs (see exercise, above) before I need to sit at The Work Desk. Of course, then I'm wiped by 8 pm!

6) Take a day of from writing once a week.

I know, this seems counter productive. But honestly, my WIP or revisions benefit from a day of not actively thinking about it - that's when most of the questions get answered and problems get solved. Tip: Carry a small notebook and pen with you EVERYWHERE. The answer to your plot problem will come at the most inopportune times!

So, what do you all do to juggle everything? Are you like me, dropping oranges or are you an expert, like Bobby May?

Happy Juggling!

And remember....






Tomorrow!

Help, My Characters are Stalking Me!

During the last go-round of rewriting Reset, a new character knocked on my door. Really loudly. I mean, hammered. Now, she and her ever growing entourage refuse to leave me alone!

I am 30K (ish) words in to Rewind, a prequel to Reset, and I hate to admit, but I've hit The Wall.

It sucks, the story's weak, the plot confusing...The ever growing list of negative feed into my brain makes me want to quit, and these new characters, who fit nowhere into my plans, are urging me, pressuring me, threatening me to pay attention to THEM!

They're all there when I wake up in the morning, they follow me on my morning hike with my dogs, they sit down at the computer with me, whispering and scratching in my head...They come to bed with me, keeping me awake with their constant chatter.

I'm beginning to feel like the Verizon guy..."Can you hear me now?"

But, I need to keep on track! Finish what I've started....

Right?

Even as I type this post, I find myself scribbling scenes for these characters on the backs of my old business cards (hey, they are good for something). I discover that their story is NOT to be ignored. It feels too powerful somehow.

Am I up for it? Do I even have the skills, newbie that I am, to bring it to life?

Am I a failure for not finishing my WIP?

Will this be the story of my writing life: begin a novel, hit The Wall, give up and let myself be bullied and coerced into starting a new one?

I can't think of the answers right now, I have to research names, build a world, create a language...

Uh, oh, sounds suspiciously like Sci-fi, a 180 degree turn from the Paranormal Romance that Reset became as I revisited themes and 'What Matters' during my (many) rewrites.

Yikes. What the hell am I getting myself into now?