Love Spring!

This. . .this is why I love Spring above all other seasons.  The gaiety of color truly gladdens my heart and the resurrection of life lifts my spirit.  I eagerly await for buds to transform barren bushes into lacy green veils and brown swatches of ground to part making way for these tiny miracles.

My crocuses have come and gone.  Their memory still makes me smile.  Soon the Lily of the Valley will  appear with their fragrant blooms.  These will be followed by azaleas, rhododendrons, hydrangeas, and  flowering trees, dressing my property in a regal gown.  Nature is so beautiful and awe inspiring! 

Willkommen der Frühling

(Welcome Spring)

I hope I have that right, otherwise I think I might have ticked off a bunch of Germans.  Being of German decent, my great grandmother would be upset if I did.

On the Giving End

A little while ago a writer friend of mine asked if I'd critique her story. I was thrilled and honored that she wanted my opinion.  Of course I said yes. 

To make a long story short,  I sent her the first 25 pages a couple of days later, to which she replied what " wonderful, thoughtful, constructive feedback . . .".  It made me smile and gush inside, feeling I had helped her. It took me longer to get pages 26- 109 to her.  She wrote back stating she'd been revising the story for the past three days and was still working on it.  Several days later, I sent her the rest.  She didn't reply back in regards to the work.  Uh oh.  Did I tick her off?  I know I can be really picky, I told her that in the beginning.  I hope I didn't cross over the line.  I didn't mean to if I did.  Was she just being nice saying those things about the first section I did?  It might be, she really is a  sweet person.  Did she never want to show me her work again?  Would she still talk to me?  Ah jeepers, my mind was going down that path of paranoia again.

Okay so it wasn't a full outright trek down that road but my toes did make contact with that path several times during the next few days.  Then I received a request from her to look over her query letter.  Hallelujah, she wasn't mad at me!  Whew.  Thank goodness.  She went onto say she respected what I did, and even though she didn't agree with everything, it made her look at her work and justify why she kept some things.  Fantastic!  I had helped her in a couple of ways, one I didn't expect. 

I'm telling you this because critiquing someone's work can be a touchy situation. You have to make sure they want an honest assessment and not a bunch of praise.  You have to deliver your opinions/thoughts/feelings in a helpful way.  Just like unwarranted praise, brutal honesty doesn't cut it here.  How to Critique Fiction by Victory Crayne, is a very thorough site.   It seems to cover everything so I won't go into it.  It does state the list is merely a guideline and very few people  try to address each subject on that list.  I know I don't, but   after looking at it, I'll be looking for more things.  If it helps me become a better critique partner, why not.

 What kind of critique partner are you?  What strengths do you bring?


For those who follow the LIRW blog, sorry for the replication.  As some of you know I've been busy with family.  Thanks for understanding.

hey

Hey, were you looking for me?  Yeah I know, I haven't been around lately.  My husband has been sick and I've been running around getting things done and going to the hospital visiting him.  He'll be coming home tomorrow then going for an operation in a few weeks.  So I've been in seclusion during this time.  Okay, so I've been hiding.  I'm a pro at that.  Hopefully, after he's home, I can get back on track.

See you soon.
Hugs,
Donna

A Few Good Words

The past several weeks have been a bit crazy. I was sick with bronchitis then my husband came down with it.  Now he has heart trouble which we're dealing with.  C'est la vie. 

 I'm  a true believer in positive thinking and that dwelling on the negative only makes the problems and life itself worse. It can totally bring down your whole outlook on things.

So here are a few quotes I like.  Hope they help you along your way.  If you have a favorite quote,  share it with me.  I'd love to hear it.



Tough times never last, but tough people do.

What great thing would you attempt if you knew you could not fail? - Robert H. Schuller 

When deeds speak, words are nothing. 
- Pierre-Joseph Proudhon 

You cannot plough a field by turning it over in your mind. -Author Unknown

“Do not follow where the path may lead. Go, instead, where there is no path and leave a trail.” 
- Ralph Waldo Emerson

“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” — Maya Angelou 

“If you’re going through hell, keep going.” 
- Winston Churchill

“It is never too late to be who you might have been.” - George Eliot

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” — Mark Twain

The Great Pacific What?

I know this is going to sound more like an Earth Day post but to me some things should be remembered more than one day out of the year.

Did you know  out in the Pacific Ocean there is a huge area, by some accounts twice the size of Texas, of floating garbage? It consists of plastic bottles, bags, toys, fishing lines and nets, and more. There is also a smaller one in the Atlantic Ocean. The plastic from these items break down into tiny pieces; some of which make their way to shore mixing with that same sand you like to wiggle your toes in.
Check out Charles Moore,  first to discover The Great Pacific Garbage Patch, talking about how wide spread this pollution is and what it consists of.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FrAShtolieg

Sea turtles think plastic bags are jellyfish and ingest them. This can cause a blockage in their digestive system, resulting in death. Sea birds, such as the albatross,also eat the floating garbage. This junk cannot pass through their system and makes the bird think its belly is full and won’t eat. Eventually the bird will 
die of starvation.

If you’re not concerned about what we dump into our oceans consider this: there has been enough mercury leaked into the ocean that the FDA advises children, pregnant women or women who might become pregnant not to eat shark, king mackerel, swordfish and tilefish. They should limit their intake of albacore tuna or tuna steaks to six ounces a week, smaller amounts for children.

And if you're not concerned about that, consider the financial burdens.  California spends approximately $52.2 million per year trying to keep it's beaches clean.  That's  just one state.  Think of how many states have a coastline.  Hell it's not just the oceans but the waterways that are polluted with this same garbage and how many streams, lakes, and rivers does America have?   Got the picture?

So what can you do?  Well besides becoming informed and passing the word, reduce the amount of plastic bottles and bags you use by bringing reusable bags with you and by using metal water bottles.  Recycle, though it doesn't take of everything every little bit helps.  Don't litter.  Join groups that clean up beaches and streams.

Remember it's our only home.

Some other sites:
The New York Times - http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/10/science/10patch.html?_r=1&-

Mother Nature Network - http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/translating-uncle-sam/stories/what-is-the-great-pacific-ocean-garbage-patch

The Natural Resources Defense Council -  http://www.nrdc.org/oceans/plastic-ocean/

Or just google it. : )

Cherry Adair With LIRW

All this past week I've stayed home from work trying to rid myself of damn bronchitis.  Why?  Well for one thing no one likes being sick and two, this weekend is the LIRW workshop with Cherry Adair.  I've been  registered for this since October 2012  and then Hurricane Sandy decided it had other plans for us.  It was rescheduled.

 I have a room  reserved for me and two other LIRW members, Lisa Jo and Dawn. I'm excited about going but yet nervous.  I don't know why.  Maybe it's because I'm not a fast note taker or I'm afraid I'm not going to "get" what she's talking about, especially the plotting, since I'm a "panster",(one who doesn't really plot out stories but goes by the seat of her pants).


On Saturday Cherry presented a workshop on Layering and Texturing Your Novel.

Though a lot of this was sort of like a review, I enjoyed going over it all.  It's amazing what you forget until someone reminds you. Cherry also had some very good tips that she shared.   I took a decent amount of notes because it helps me to remember and yes, I was slow.  Every once in awhile I had to look over the shoulder of the woman in front of me, to see what she had typed so I could catch up.  Thank goodness she had a laptop so I could read it.

 Sunday's  Plotting workshop was an extra day for LIRW members only.

                                                        Cherry is the Post-it queen.

                                                                Our group hard at work

As Cherry said this technique won't work for everyone.  A few of the others and I had trouble doing what she said to do but others loved the procedure.  One of the other LIRW members, Michelle, also a pantser, suggested that I write my story and then I could plot it out on the board,using Cherry's technique, to see what areas were weak.   It's a good idea.

I'm glad I went. Learned some new things.   Got to spend some time with friends. Instead of going out to eat with the big group and Cherry, I hung out with three other members and brainstormed while eating pizza in our room.  It was a nice change of pace.

What workshops have you been too?  Did you find them helpful?  

Sorry

  Sorry but this week's posting has been cancelled due to bronchitis.  Hope you come by next week.  Thanks.