Like many other writers, I'm prone to procrastination. This week, it's been all about that for me when it came to my new short story, "Mexico, NY." I think it's because I know it's going to be complex with all the characters I'm including and it probably won't end up being a short story anyway (more like a novella). I think I'll continue writing the other short story I started ("Dylan's Prayer"), one I started writing for the flash fiction challenge about "omnipotence," but I think I want to make it longer.
With "Mexico, NY," I'm outlining the plot now since it's going to get a bit crazy at some point. I'm only bringing in the characters right now so the reader gets to know them. I will be writing a brief character sketch for the main characters, too, in order to help me along.
In Verse
One poem I wrote, "Slender Island," was about Eleuthera, our favorite island in the Bahamas. I felt experimental and wanted to stretch my alliteration chops in this one (several metaphors and double meanings, too).
"Slender Island" is definitely more complex than the other one I wrote, "Chocolate Jesus." This one was inspired by an article I read about the life size, anatomically correct, Jesus exhibit at some museum that caused a ruckus. This poem has some wryness to it and the feedback I got from my EditRED friends was positive.
Novel
Nothing to report with On A Gelding's Trail. It sits like a comatose soldier, waiting patiently for me to awaken it in time of war.
Screenplay
I was able to make some progress editing the second draft of A Perfect Tenant. I consider that to be a good thing in light of all I didn't get done this past week.
Editing
I continue enjoying my editing that I'm doing for other EditRed writers (and I appreciate their critique of my work). I've taken to copying the recommended changes to OneNote so I don't forget them. I'm still amazed by the broad base of talent in the amateur writing community.
Reading
Still going through Chris Vogel's book, The Writer's Journey. The two other James N. Frey books on writing arrived, so they're in the queue, too.
Other
I decided to break down and buy Alphasmart's NEO, a mini word processor. My tablet, though small, is too big for typing on the bus or in bed, so I decided it was better I get this device and transfer the text to the computer than doing it by hand. I'll still be handwriting ideas and such, but the NEO should give me what I'm looking for in portability and convenience. When it comes, I'll give a more detailed review.
That's all for this week. Thank you for your feedback and encouragement, as always.
Michael
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