And catching up on reading blogs. Of course.
But it's been a meme-ish week, and I was tagged a couple of times, so I'm both saying my thank yous and taking time to play. First, the lovely Liz of Los Angelista's Guide to the Pursuit of Happiness tagged me with a meme to come up with three pieces of writing advice:
1. Write. As stupid as that may sound, it's the only way you're going to be a writer. You have to walk the walk. It's not all about sitting in your favorite coffeehouse with your laptop trying to look all writerly. It's about writing when the kids are done for a nap, writing when you think you have nothing to say, writing that incredibly hard scene that you've avoided for your entire. stupid. novel. (I get to write that one next week).
2. Read. Read in your genre. Read outside your genre. Read outside the box. Read news stories and recipe books and writing advice books (although don't waste too much time with those) and cereal boxes and advertisements and your own writing. Try to read every day. And write every day. Every day.
3. Help other writers and yourself by critiquing their work. The more I read the WIPs of writer friends, the more I learn about the writing process and the more I learn about my own writing. Sometimes it's scary to send your stuff out to someone whose writing you admire tremendously, but it is soooooooo worth it. Enjoy and support the work of your fellow writers.
Now, to tag others who might have pithier thoughts on this subject (and feel free to skip this if you have already done this meme or just don't care to do it):
NYC/Caribbean Ragazza
Anno
Charity
Luisa
Marianne
Greg
Ella
Then Charity, of Writing Wrongs, tagged me with this 1-2-3 meme, which I am changing to a 2-3 meme because Charity, Anno and I picked the same book - the wonderful One Love for Liv by our very own Marianne Arkins of Reading, Writing and Stuff That Makes Me Crazy. It was published this week by Samhain, and if you love funny, happy romance, this book is for YOU. Go off and buy it RIGHT NOW. Seriously. I mean, I don't even like romance novels, but I like every story and line that Marianne has written. She's a MAJOR hoot!
Anyway, here's what you do:
1). Pick up the nearest book (of at least 123 pages)
2). Open the book to page 123
3). Find the fifth sentence
4). Post the next three sentences
5). Tag five people
So here's my snippet from page 23 (yes, I'm cheating here) from One Love For Live:
“Fine. I’ll see you then. I need to go.” Liv didn’t wait for a response before she hung up the phone, wishing she could slam it down in his ear, just for the satisfaction. Now she needed to call her father and cancel tonight.
And I tag:
Fourier Analyst
Flower Child
Soccer Mom in Denial
Lilac Specs
Gunfighter
Cable Girl, of 42, gave me this absolutely fabulous award, which I have to pass on to another 10 bloggers, so even though I could pass this on to all the wonderful bloggers that I read, I'm going to actually do some choosing this time. I'd love to get some of my faves from certain groups reading some of my other faves, so I'm spreading the love, so to speak. Cable Girl made this easier for me by already passing this award on to several of my favorite bloggers.
In completely random order, I pass this Award of Excellence on to:
Anno's Place - Anno gives us her gentle perspective on the world through absolutely stunning writing.
Greg's Random Bits - Greg leaves us with excerpts from his passionate fiction pieces, as well as perspectives on Buddhism and life in general.
My Mommy's Place - Leslie makes me laugh with her tales of love and mommydom every. single. day.
Not That Different - Jami comments on everything from the pitfalls of corporate bathrooms to important political movements. And she writes damned fine haikus.
Bleeding Espresso - Michelle opens all our eyes to the beauty of her corner of the world and she is a master at history, cooking, writing, photography - need I say more?
Los Angelista's Guide to the Pursuit of Happiness - Liz has written some of the funniest and most poignant pieces I've read anywhere. We'd live in a much better world if she was in charge.
Diana: Muse - Diana's perspective on artists and aesthetics keep me riveted and give my eyes a feast every time I visit her.
Thalia's Child: Musings from a Muse - Ella is a master writer and her memories, stories and perspectives on motherhood and nursing never fail to touch me.
Novembrance: Luisa is simply a master writer, whether she tackles something as simple as a cake recipe, argues for the 2005 version of Pride and Prejudice or shares her passion for her family or spiritual life.
NYC/Caribbean Ragazza - Ragazza talks straight up about her experiences as a writer and producer, making the transition from LA to Rome. No matter what her subject - the movie biz, fashion, racism, music, politics, love of all things Italian, Ragazza fills her posts with humor and clear perspective.
And, of course, I can send it right back to Cable Girl for her wonderful insights on everything from politics to motherhood to being a biker/kickboxer/Medievalist.
Happy Sunday, Everyone!
