Fucked. I am fucked.
Anyway. I found this writing survey thingy, so I figured I'd give it a go. Maybe I'll become inspired or something.
1. Are you a “pantser” or a “plotter?”
BOTH. I come in with a plot all laid out, but somewhere in the process of getting that out, things change. In which case, I just make shit up as I go along.
2. Detailed character sketches or “their character will be revealed to me as a I write”?
Hmm. I usually have a pretty good idea of what my characters are about before I start, so the latter isn't really true. But I'm not really into devoting too much time to character sketches. Those can get droll and indulgent; I suppose I just let their personalities develop right along with the plot.
3. Do you know your characters’ goals, motivations, and conflicts before you start writing or is that something else you discover only after you start writing?
Oh yes, I generally have a very good grasp on my character's psyche beforehand. That having been said, it's not unusual at all for them to surprise me from time to time. Example: current NaNo character was so not supposed to be so much like me. He's a rude, morose prick, and sometimes I really hate him. But all the shit that falls out of his mouth... It's my shit. I almost feel like this is semi-autobiographical. But. No. Not at all.
4. Books on plotting – useful or harmful?
I wouldn't know! I've never bothered with them.
5. Are you a procrastinator or does the itch to write keep at you until you sit down and work?
Lol. Procrastinator who inevitably gives into the itch.
6. Do you write in short bursts of creative energy, or can you sit down and write for hours at a time?
I can sit down and write for days, given the inspiration. But... it runs dry sometimes.
7. Are you a morning or afternoon writer?
HAHA, more like middle-of-the-fucking-night writer.
8. Do you write with music/the noise of children/in a cafe or other public setting, or do you need complete silence to concentrate?
Music helps a lot. I tend to zone it out after a time, but I will occasionally lean on music to put me in the right mood needed for what I'm writing. "I Was a Lover" by TV on the Radio is like... Fucking perfect for last year's NaNo. That's pretty much its theme song.
9. Computer or longhand? (Or typewriter?)
Computer. BUT, I use whatever is on hand when I need to get something down asap. Post-it notes, BlackBerry memos, in the margins of my Personnel Psych notes.. Whatevs.
10. Do you know the ending before you type Chapter One?
Typically, yes. The challenge is to make the bits in between stick. :D
11. Does what’s selling in the market influence how and what you write?
Uh, fuck no. At this point, I am concerned mainly with developing my skills, so I'm gonna write what ever the hell I want. I'll worry about the stupid market later... : P
12. Editing – love it or hate it?
Love. It makes the OCD in me very, very happy.
Bonus questions
13. Why do you want to write?
Hah. I live vicariously through this shit. And. What else would I do with myself?
14. Do you want to publish your work? Why?
I would love to be published. I think it's possible, someday... PLEASE?!
15. Do like to write alone or do you like to work with others? Why?
I don't really have a whole lot of experience working with others... That one time with Tabby was cool, though. But, I think... I'm a loner, Dottie. A rebel. : P
End of survey. Still not feeling the research paper groove. ARGH.
- Mood:
restless - Music:Modest Mouse - Bury Me With It | Powered by Last.fm
- Mood: rushed
I have appeared on HBO.
My mother is a pilot for American Airlines.
I'm from a reservation.
Lawls.
- Music:The Smiths - Pretty Girls Make Graves | Powered by Last.fm
This is the original version that I fell in love with. It's got that foolish, drunken happiness about it that is so typical of young love.
I just discovered this a few hours ago, and I've been listening to in pretty much nonstop since then. By changing the tone of the song, the lyrics take on an altogether different meaning. It's more somber; not so much about a brief but beautiful love affair, but one that was doomed to be over before it began.
And lastly is a cover by Jose Gonzalez. It's more well-known here in the United States (because it was featured on Bones and some nifty Sony commercial :P) than the original version, which is a shame. That's not to say that this isn't a nice song. Give it a listen.
- Mood:
contemplative
Blarg. I shall get over that, though. Writing this (extraordinarily!) screwed up stuff is really quite fun.
- Mood:
creative
You guys! I hope that you get a chance to experience a real pow wow at some point in your life. Nothing else compares to the sights and sounds of Grand Entry, the dancers, the regalia, and the drumming, and those wild voices. I get goosebumps every single time.
When I was younger I was always out there dancing, practically every summer since I could walk. My tiny jingle dresses are still stored somewhere, and looking at them is probably a more emotional experience for me than it is for my parents. (Haha. :P) If you asked me why I stopped, I really couldn't give a good answer. I grew up, became uncomfortable with myself, and put away a lot of old habits. Sadly, this was one of them. But even after I stepped out of the ring, I never lost that admiration for the art. Because that's exactly what it is: a raw, unteachable craft. Pow wow dancing begins the moment the drum beat starts and you allow your body to react. That's all there is to it.
I guess it's just in my nature to connect to my heritage through such an active, kinetic outlet. My dad does through his insane, radical knowledge on Indian policy, history, and treaty laws. (Aside note: he is crazy fucking intelligent. I want to be my daddy when I grow up. :3)
YouTube video time! Actually found something that was from White Earth, so w00t! This is called, colloquially, the Chicken Dance. You shall see why. Also, the people who run out and seem to throw a handful of non-existent sand at the dancer's feet? They're offering him monies. :)
- Mood:
energetic
LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL.
Oh God. This is ridiculous. Just watch it.
The first is a little quirky, and don't you dare go and bring up Juno, because I kind of hate that movie now. :)
( It's just the band, anyway. Song isn't even from Juno, so poo. )
The next song I had the pleasure of seeing played *live* this past Saturday. It was absolutely gorgeous, and that's pretty much all I can say without sounding like a gushing lunatic.
( Duluth has lots of superheros. )
Where would I be without music?
- Mood:
lonely - Music:Sun Kill Moon- Carry Me Ohio
While brushing my teeth, it occured to me that it may be a good idea to look up graduate programs for English majors. I know it's still pretty early for me to be making plans for what happens beyond college, but I figured "what the hell."
So, I found this cool database that lists graduate programs, and started searching. I stayed within Minnesota/the surrounding areas, but there wasn't much showing up, besides Hamline. SOOOO... At this point, I kindly request that you don't think me too much of a geek. I searched for schools in Washington and Oregon because of fucking Modest Mouse. Because duh, they are from Issaquah, Washington.
Hey, turns out that I found a pretty fucking kick-ass program at the University of Oregon in Eugene. (Where Modest Mouse started their recent U.S. tour. God, I'm still fucking obsessed!)
Anyway, it's for a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing, which wouldn't make me Dr. Cayla Bellanger DeGroat (how fucking badass does that sound!?), but it would give me tons and tons of writing time. ME WANT.
- Music:Modest Mouse - Make Everyone Happy/Mechanical Birds | Powered by Last.fm
*obligatory Valentine's day post*
Got nowhere to go or nowhere to be tonight, so I'm just sitting here by myself, listening to the Smiths. This could be considered sad, but you know what? Fuck that. I like the Smiths. AND PEOPLE LIKE ME FOR THAT. I have proof of this!
Karla's boyfriend, Ben, is here for the weekend, so we took him downtown to see the "sights." Went to the Electric Fetus, which is my most favoritest store ever, regardless of anything. I bought Okkervil River's The Stage Names (which I really like, but I've heard that Black Sheep Boy is better. You gotta give me credit here; The Stage Names was like $3 cheaper!), and TOTALLY FORGOT TO LOOK FOR FLEET FOXES.
Anyway, I was paying for my CD and about to walk out when I look up and see this huge-ass Morrissey poster on the wall. None of my friend have any idea what I'm talking about, but I don't really care and say "Look, it's Morrissey!" The requisite hipster dude behind the counter shoots me this look and says "Did you just say you're a Morrissey fan?" Fuck man. I respond with a geekily overenthusiastic "I LOVE MORRISSEY," and next thing I know, he's handing me Morrissey's new LP single I'm Throwing My Arms Around Paris, saying, "Happy Valentine's day."
Lololol. Yeah. Pretty awesome.
- Mood:
calm - Music:Morrissey - Dial-a-Cliché | Powered by Last.fm
Huh. Linsay introduced me to them. At first I thought we just listening to Interpol, but... No. They sound different, but really very alike. Both bands obviously worship Depeche Mode and Joy Division. (BIG TIME on the Joy Division thing. Ian Curtis vocals, anyone?) At first listen, I thought "Wait. This is Paul Banks from Interpol. No wait. Yes. It is. NO IT CAN'T BE. What the hell?"
Seriously, the two vocalists sound incredibly alike, but She Wants Revenge is headed by Justin Warfield, who, strangely, was a rapper before this. Huh. You never could tell from his singing. It's very gothic. I mean. Wow. Paul Banks, yeah, he's got an excuse. He's British. But this other guy just pulls it from left field.
In a strange way, I really like it. This song reminds me of Canada. :D
- Mood: contemplative
- Music:She Wants Revenge - Red Flags and Long Nights | Powered by Last.fm
I got an email last night from the English department. Apparently there is a little old meeting being held this Thursday concerning the reinstatement of The Literary Guild and it's accompanying publication, The Roaring Muse.
Intrigued, am I? Yes!
It would be great to have some experience on a formal publication like that, especially considering that my degree and dispostion will likely lead me in that direction in the future. At least I hope so. I don't really like to think about what life will be like for me four years from now. I don't think that I'm cut out for... "traditional" work. But I guess we'll see how things go, right?
Well, concerning my first stab at National Novel Writing Month, here is this: 
Yep. I barely made a dent, but at least I know I tried.
It was just very hard to find time to devote to writing, which I expected. I could have done a lot better, though. I could have tried a lot harder. But you know what? I don't feel like I failed. This is the most attention that I've ever given to a single story, and even though it kinda sucks in its current state, I actually feel like I've accomplished a lot.
And goddamn, I'm going to finish this thing if it kills me.
(On my own time, of course. November is almost over...)
- Mood: contemplative
First off, you all must be wondering how those silly old elections went down. Well, I'm happy to say that Gryffindor beat Slytherin. Hehe. Some friends and I went out to Perkin's to celebrate by eating a late-night breakfast and making too much noise. It was good fun!
Alas, for today has been quite bad for me. I actually made it to Biology & Society, but I skipped my other two classes. I went back to my room and slept instead. It took me a long time to convince myself to not just curl up in a ball and pass out for the rest of the week. I've got too much on my mind. Stupid fucking bills. HUGE bills. Well. I took out my first loans today, so at least my tuition is covered. But you know how student loans go.. They kill you before you even leave college. I can't wait to graduate in debt!
NaNoWriMo is turning out to be very addictive! I wish I had more time.. But I'm enjoying myself. The insanity is well.
- Mood:
crazy - Music:Feral Children - Saint | Powered by Last.fm
November is gonna be a bitch. I'm doing NaNoWriMo, but I really should be working on other stuff. My head hurts.
I feel like I'm going to explode into a million little pieces of insanity.
- Mood: creative
- Music:TV on the Radio - Wash the Day | Powered by Last.fm
- Mood: cold
Meeting alllllll the new, exciting people was stressful, I will admit. It's going to continue to be stressful. But I digress.
All is well here. Aside from the FUCKING HEAT.
I WILL NOT DIGRESS.
It's unbearable. Hate it. Loathe it. Abhor it.
The end.
Oh yeah, and classes start tomorrow. Woot.
- Mood:
blah - Music:Where Does the Good Go-- Tegan & Sara
Hahahaha, I love Pitchfork. Their reviews are fucking classic.
I just love it when snooty little buzz bands get knocked off their high horse. Unless of course, I happen to be a fan of said band... That would be an unusual occurance, though. I like to get to know a new band on my own, and thus develop an immediate annoyance with any that is shoved in my face.
In an effort to stay out of trouble, I visited farm animals last night. Ahh, there were slovenly rabbits and pooping ducks and angry chickens. I guess... it was fun? It was definately odd. And I discovered something; I adopt an Australian accent when I'm talking to sheep. Only the sheep, for some reason. Maybe I watched Babe one too many times as a kid.
Oh! Roommate and dorm assignments are out! All I can say about that is... Where is Madien Rock, WI?
One last thing:
In other news, I think I'm going insane. I'm not even sure why. My best guess is that summer has reached an awkward mid-point. All the fun and interesting stuff is done, and I am sick of waiting for Fall.
You know what? Fuck summer. Summer is overrated. The weather is too hot and humid, the sun is too bright and the days are too long. Fall is the perfect compromise. It's nice and cool, the sun isn't violently shining all damn day and the leaves are dying their beautiful deaths.
(Somehow it just doesn't sound as logical and neat written out as it does in my head)
Summer, I've stopped enjoying you. Please go away.
Moths. Disgusting. Gross. I hate them. On Thursday night I was brushing my teeth, happily zoning out, when I looked up and saw a big gray moth on the wall. And... Long story short, I tried to be brave and kill it quietly, but ended up waking the whole house up. Then the little fucker disappeared for two days, making me look like crazy fool. But yesterday, he returned. I accidentally grabbed it.. kyhrfafukgakiugsdjfgas. Shudder. I kept it alive long enough to prove that I wasn't hallucinating.
- Music:Wishes- Alison's Halo
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