Correspondance

So today's entry is going to be a little different from usual. Before everything gets lost in the shuffle of cranking out words, and arranging things for Script Frenzy, I want... No, need, to pass on a bit of correspondance that I've been having with the folks down at The Office of Letters and Light. On Feb 16th, "Tim", and intern for the director of Script Frenzy sent out a notice to all MLs asking for people to nominate someone from our region to be featured on the site in something similar to the WriMo report from the NaNoWriMo website. We just had to provide a short summary of their general awesomeness, and let it go at that.

I thought long and hard, as there are so many people in the Sudbury region that I believe are deserving of 15-minutes of fame. In the end, I chose my official unofficial co-ML, and sent this off (18 hours ago):

Hello Tim!

You asked if there was anyone whose awesomeness would be great to showcase. As much as I would love to put myself up for dibs, I'm not nearly as awesome as my unofficial Co-ML, so I'm going to tell you all about her, and what makes her awesome.

Julia Muldoon (username PiscesMuse) signed on this year to the Frenzy for the first time, still hot on the heels of Sudbury's greated NaNoWriMo to date. She's come up with a tonne of ideas for us this year, and has been spearheading the organizing of an overnight write-in at Laurentian University, similar to the outstanding one we had for NaNo which yielded 18 unique participants and saw most of us crash through the 50k word mark. With her energy, I'm certain we'll be seeing a nice chunk of participants for this year's "From Dusk Til Dawn" event. Julia has also been brainstorming Sudbury's version of a Scripter's PDA, has done a lot of the running around to get event locations and themes hammered out, and other general energetic madness. She's been doing all of this, but without being able to take the official title of Co-ML as it will be her first Frenzy.

Julia also plans on working on a musical for this year's SF. With her background in theater and love of musicals, I know it'll be a blast and that in all likelihood, we may even end up hearing a couple of songs performed!

If I could think of anyone to feature, it would definitely be Julia. She's a great candidate.

About an hour ago, I received a reply from Tim:

Hi Shawn!

That's so great! Thank you so much for taking the time out to nominate Julia, it's much appreciated. And hey, nothing wrong with self-nominating! We'd love to feature you, too!

Oh man, it does sound like Julia's doing some pretty awesome stuff up there in Sudbury, especially in such an unofficial capacity. We'll definitely do our best to tip our hats to her.

Thank you again, and, actually, if we could feature you, too, that'd be great! Do you mind sending me a little bit of info about yourself? Hope to hear from you soon.

At first, I didn't want to reply. I mean, as much as I sometimes love to blow my own horn, I don't like bragging or taking all the credit when it isn't due. But inevitably, I gave in because it was requested, and wrote the following:

Hey Tim.

I guess I could send some information about myself, though I don't feel nearly as qualified to talk about myself in as glowing terms as I can talk about everything Julia's been doing for the area. I think it's still an inspiring story, and something I have the Office of Letters and Light to truly thank for it.

I first picked up on NaNo back in 2004 (though I forgot my original password by 2005 and had to create a fresh account) as a suggestion from my poetry workshop classmates while I was in the midst of getting my degree in English at Carleton University in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. I had more or less given up on writing short stories and novels up until the event and it set me back on course.

By 2006 I had moved up to North Bay, and got involved with the much smaller NaNo group up there. At first, there were no events planned, so I proposed a handful on the group forums, and we all met up on campus at Nipissing University, where I was getting my Bachelor of Education with a focus on multimedia technology. Unfortunately, the last half of the month I was up in Timmins on my placement, so was unable to do any guiding of events.

When Script Frenzy launched in June 2007, I was all over it. I was excited, and I was alone. As much as I wanted to get something out of it, it's a lot harder to keep yourself going without a group of people checking up on you to make sure you succeed. I missed the activity, and the comraderie that I had found in Ottawa during the first years of NaNo, or in North Bay where I was helping to get things going. In 2008, I put up some flyers around Timmins, but there was little interest in writing.

By Fall 2008, I was in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada. I figured it being a bit of a larger city, it had to have a good writing base. With no ML in sight for NaNo, I hastily applied just before the deadline. We had a great turnout, and for the first time beat North Bay in word count. I signed on as ML of SF in 2009, but was disappointed by the turnout. The same light advertising that I had done for my first NaNo as ML was a total flop for SF.

So for NaNo 2009, I got some advertising for both NaNo and SF out at the Northern Lights Festival, where I was sharing a booth with the Sudbury Writers Guild and the Sudbury Hypergraphic Society. As November approached, I got with a few of the previous year's veterans, and we came up with some plans. Advertisements went up, we got a cease and desist order that I had to rectify with the city, but our goal was achieved. And with the help of some of those veterans (Sylvie / sinful_cinnamon especially) and a couple of new people (chiefly Julia / PiscesMuse ), it was a huge year with overnight write-ins, launch parties, TGIO party, and a dozen write-ins at a half-dozen different locations.

The thrill of arranging and seeing these events go off were truly inspiring for me, and despite all the work involved, I loved every minute of it. It gave me a hope to get out of my dead-end job and maybe do something with my degrees. So I applied for school, again. And I got in to my program. The program? Event Management at Algonquin College in Ottawa. I loved organizing events so much, that I figure I may as well do it for a living.

Even before receiving my acceptance notice, I was looking for people that I thought could work together to keep NaNo, and Script Frenzy, going and growing. I found Sylvie for the one, as she was instrumental this past year, and I found Julia for the other. I've taken all I've learned from NaNo and SF, and I'm passing it along to them as we get the ball rolling and events organized for this year's SF. We're going all out on the advertising, getting the events organized, and ensuring we have good locations (even on April Fools).

In the end, I'm sure this year's SF will be just as fantastic as this past year's NaNo, and I hope to have the photos to prove it. If Ottawa is still vacant for an ML for next year's SF, I hope to fill that spot and give the city a heck of an event to match the ones that set me onto this trek way back in 2004.

So you see Tim, it's not me that's done anything particularly awesome, its the OLL that deserves the recognition and the spotlight. Without the OLL, I never would have figured out what to do for my future, with schools closing left and right up here, my old goal to be a teacher would remain unrealized, and I'd continue to be stuck where I was: selling electronics most people don't really need. Instead, the events headed by the OLL have given me a direction, and I'm just happy to give back as much as I'm able, when I'm able.

Send my thanks to Chris, Lindsay, and everyone else up there at the OLL. You all do a bang-up job every year, and I'm thrilled to be a part of it in my own way.

I'm going to be borrowing a part of that letter and using it as my future bio, because I think I've done a bang-up job of describing what I've been up to
the past few years, and I've done it without bragging. The letter does give my true and honest opinion of everything that's been happening over the past few years, and gives thanks where it's due. I know there are a couple of people out there that are doubtful, concerned, or just plain confused about why I chose to apply for another program, and I hope that this answers those doubts and sways people the way that I feel. Quite honestly, my greatest fear is that this last letter was probably the greatest piece of writing I've done to date.

Back on to writing, I finished up outlining Blackfoot this morning. Turns out I'm writing a novella, not a short story. It also turns out that it's a modern fantasy, as opposed to a dark fantasy. Surprises all around! Time to get off and do some writing, the opening needs to be retooled to fit the story's new structure and goals, and I hope to crank out a few thousand words before tonight's write-in.

Keep on writing!

Out of a Rut

So I've been working myself out of that little rut that I fell into this past week. Changed the background colour of my "paper" and started fresh with a character idea. Ended up spitting out about 1000 words of a new piece I'm tentatively calling "Blackfoot". Not sure as of yet whether that's going to be a short story or a novella, but I think it's going to fall into the dark fantasy category (or maybe just fantasy, we'll see).

Been starting to get the ball rolling on Script Frenzy 2010. I've thrown some posts up on the SF boards in my region, the Ontario region, and the Ottawa region. Basically I extended the new ML for Ottawa (when they get one) a helping hand, and let both Ontario and Ottawa know about SudSprinter. Currently neither region has an ML. Since it looks like I'll be going down to Ottawa in the fall to obtain my graduate certificate in Event Management, I'm hoping to join in, or take over as the SF Coordinator for that area next year.

I've also been posting in the ML forum. It's from the ML forum that I pull my next segment. The ML from Vegas mentioned having trouble getting people involved in the event. So I came up with a nice, long post about some of the things I've done, or plan to be doing this year. Here's my post:

There are a lot of things that can be done to garner attention and people in your project. Here are a few ideas I've had.

One thing I did this past year was attend a number of local events and conventions (not that we get many this far north), and handed out flyers to attendees (with permission from those in charge of course). There's still a bit left before the kick-off, so you may be able to give that a try.

Get an article in local arts flyers and newspapers. Just a short bit about what Script Frenzy is about, where to find more information, and your Script Frenzy contact information so interested people can get in contact with you. I've been fortunate up here to have some connections within the local arts community, so I can get in their newsletters.

The standard getting flyers up in businesses and on hydro poles is an option, but be careful and check local bylaws first. I got hammered last year with a cease and desist order for my hydro-pole usage because my area has some very strict guidelines about what exactly you can do in these regards.

Use social networking as a force for good. Facebook, twitter, myspace, and even the new Google Buzz are all good ways to get the word out for your event. If you're anything like me, you've got a lot of contacts on most. Paper your contacts once about the event, and add on a notice that they should pass it on to anyone they may feel wants to join in the madness. This can do wonders for expanding your base.

Advertise it as a way to meet local writers. That's a part of how I managed to get in contact with a lot of people this past NaNo. Sure, we're not novelling in Script Frenzy, but we are working on dialogue, which is an important part of any novel, and anyone writing a script, just might be one of those people that likes to write other things. Using it as a way to unite the writers in your area, so they can form their own, perpetual writing groups is a great way to go. Those writing groups will recruit on their own in time, and they'll drag their members back year after year (as I've now seen with the Sudbury Hypergraphic Society, The Underground Writers, and the Monday Night Writing Pack, the status of the Late-Nighters remains to be seen, but I'm hopeful).

I'm sure that sounds like a lot of work, but trust me, they'll notice. I've received a great many pats on the back from my NaNo group this year, including those that participated last year, and the two that were around the year before. It's a beautiful thing seeing stuff come together like this, and when it happens, there's no thought of giving up nine days in.

Hope this helps!

If there were any doubt that Event Management was the right track for me to embark upon, I'm sure that single post, in combination with everything else that I've done for NaNo and Script Frenzy in the past two years, should dispel those doubts. The only problem remaining is the question of money. Not going to focus on that at the moment though, since I know that a good event coordinator can bring in a fair amount from contracts.

Anyhow, I've some outlining to do, and a couple more e-mails that I need to get sent out. Should be more info flowing here in the near future!

Hitting a Wall

So I'm stuck. Like most writers out there, eventually we do hit walls. There's all sorts of advice on how to blaze past it, and I've shoved my way through a great many of them in the past, but it's here none the less. I had been working hard to hammer out the first chapter of a YA novel. I struggled immensely, managed a little over 1000 words in about a month, and decided that it just wasn't going to work out. Or atleast, that idea wasn't going to work out.

I came home from the Monday Night Writer's Pack, and cranked out about 800 words of a different piece. Mostly random, no real plot or ideas, just playing around a bit. It sounded alright, and over the past week, I've more than doubled the number of words. Catch is, it was just a kind of exercise and I've no clue where I want to go with it, if anywhere. I may have the kernals of something, but they haven't popped yet.

To make matters worse, I had a deadline this past Thursday to submit a piece for critiquing with the Underground Writers, and there's one today with the Monday Night Writing Pack that I'm going to be missing. I'm going to have to send an apology in lieu of submission to both I'm afraid. The piece I sunk a month into isn't fit for human eyes, and the one I started last week, although better, isn't ready for critiquing by any soul.

The editing of Hedged In has come to a bit of a stand-still as of late. I have to get it all finished up and rewritten before the month is out, so I'm probably going to end up focusing on that. Maybe I'll submit the first 4k of that novella to the groups in March. I don't think it'll quite be publishable quality, but I'm going to get my free print copy to which I'm entitled. If the critiquing of the edited version goes well enough, and another rewrite puts out something I think is ok, I'll grab a couple of beta readers and e-publish it through Smashwords. If I get $20 out of it, I'll be happy enough.

Julia and I have begun work on Script Frenzy. We've got a basic timetable planned out, and a to-do list that we'll have to chew through. It looks like we'll be going all-out this year, with a tonne of events including another all-nighter. We've given each event its own name (more or less). Hopefully we'll get a good turnout and Script Frenzy can grow like NaNoWriMo did this past year. I've got a pretty good idea of what I'm going to be scripting this year, and I think it'll be a blast!

Anyhow, I'm going to try to break through my wall. Someone told me changing the colour of your "paper" works. We'll see how that goes.

Post Critique #3

So this past Thursday, my writing group, The Underground Writers, did our third big critique session. It was our first session with a new member (Julia Muldoon) in the group so we were all pretty eager to see how things would turn out, what kind of information would get exchanged, and what her piece would look like.

On the whole, things turned out really well. The pieces were generally newer (or older pieces that had been edited with some of the more recent advice from other pieces), so it was all around an easy critique. I had submitted my short story, Blood & Puppies, for critiquing this round. Generally the reviews were along the same line. Near the end I have a PoV shift that needs some work, there's a bit of blocking trouble for that last portion, and there's a small bit at the beginning that really doesn't make much sense. From what feedback I got, I have to quote Randy Lalonde on the all-around progress: "Your dialogue has also gotten stronger and has outgrown your descriptive prose." Not a bad bit of review, and it shows me exactly where I need to work with my next handful of pieces. Basically, keep tightening the dialogue, and work more on tightening the description.

I wasn't sure about the working title going in, and I'm still not sure about it coming out. The reviews on the title have been mixed. They're about half-and-half. Those that like the title, or even squirm at the title, claim that it's a very re-tweetable title, and that people may just stop and look at / buy the piece because of it. The others aren't overly fond of the title, because it doesn't work too closely with the actual story. I hope to come up with a better title, but if nothing pops up before I finish the rewrite, it'll probably stick.

On other writing news, editing on Hedged In has been progressing a little slower than I thought. I figure I should still have it done by my deadline, but whether I'll be as happy with it at that point as I want to be, that's another question. I may end up having to bow out of one of our monthly critiques just to get it to the point that I want it at. That would mean putting other projects on hold, and I'm not up for that right now.

I began a new project a couple of weeks ago and I'm almost through writing the first chapter of it. I had received word about a scholarship that teetered on writing a young adult novel. The cash involved is pretty nice for someone looking to get through another year of school. So I spent an evening reading over the back covers of dozens of books in the YA section of Chapters, and I even bought and read one (Graceling by Kristin Cashore). I spent another evening coming up with a few YA-style treatments, and then I began writing a first chapter of one of my ideas. I don't even have a working title for the piece yet, but when I do, I'm sure you'll all be able to read it here.

Anyhow, I have some more writing that I need to get done today. I promised myself a good two solid hours of writing, and I aim to do it.

2009 In Review

Here we are, only a day away from the end of the year. It's customary at this time to review everything that's happened over the course of the past 364 days. I was holding out for a little while longer in the hopes that something different might find its way into my inbox before the year was out. Naturally, nothing really arrived, so here we go.

In 2009 I stepped down from my position as manager of The Source so I could focus on my writing, failed to spur interest in Script Frenzy 2009, got engaged to my beautiful fiance Sabrina, successfully ran the Sudbury Hypergraphic Society booth at the Northern Lights Festival, watched the SHS rip itself asunder, felt the formation of the Underground Writers, completed drafts of numerous short stories, submitted work to publishers, received useful critiques on a number of short stories, received several rejection letters from publishers, successfully ran National Novel Writing Month 2009 in the Sudbury area (with more than 50% of those with a word count surpassing the 50k mark), restarted the Monday Night Writing Pack, completed the first draft of two novels, and made the decision that I need to return to college.

Hell of a year eh? So where does that put me at the moment? I've been editing the first draft of my NaNo novel. A good chunk of it has been cut, and I've about as many words of notes for corrections, additions, and changes as I do remaining in the original draft. I need to scramble to get something ready for the first Thursday of 2010 for sudmission to the Underground Writers for ciritiquing. I'm thinking the first 3-5k of my NaNo novel might not be a bad idea.

I'm also starting to work on the planning for Script Frenzy 2010. I don't want a big flop like 2009. I need another successfully planned and executed event prior to my return to college, and I'm hoping that SF'10 will do it. Much like NaNo, I'm thinking write-ins every Monday, rotating locations on alternating weekdays, and two all-day write-ins. I don't think I really want to do an overnighter in April. I'll need some more concrete ideas worked out before I bring it up with anyone, but I think we could have something useful pop out of it, and I know I could use the experience for my future career.

By now I'm sure you're all wondering what I'm talking about. Originally when I was thinking about returning to school, I was looking back at a field that I had given up on previously: computer programming. After having consulted with a fair number of people, all except one having got back to me, it doesn't look like that would be a healthy choice. Generally, the market's too full of programmers, there are thousand of qualified applicants for every posted position, and the jobs are unpredictable.

So I started hunting around for something else that I could possibly look into doing. And I dug, and dug, and dug... It was a painstaking process, and finally I was told that I had to look outside what had become my comfort zone. No sooner had been mentioned than something came to mind. Both last year and this year, when I organized NaNo in the Sudbury Area, plus when I had worked out some write-ins in North Bay a few years back, I absolutely loved it. It was stressful, it was a lot of work, but I loved doing it, and numerous times I wished that I could be paid to do stuff like that. Turns out, you can. A quick little 1-year graduate certificate from college in Event Management, and I could fill the role of Events Coordinator for just about anything (from organizing conventions and fairs, to business get-aways and other learning vacations). Cool huh? I think this is the route for me, and from those I've mentioned it to, they're in agreement (though they hate to see me leave Sudbury to do it).

So we're at the point in the 2009 wrap-up blog where we're supposed to post our resolutions or hopes for the New Year. Let's see.

1. I will finish rewriting and editing my NaNo 2009 novel before the end of March.
2. I will organize and run a successful Script Frenzy 2010.
3. I will apply for the Events Management program, OSAP, and numerous bursaries and scholarships.
4. I will cut up one more credit card.
5. I will get published.

Ok, so #5 is a repeat from last year. I'm going to try for it again. If I keep working at it, it'll eventually work. Wish me luck folks. Happy New Year.