Owl Be Home By Morning

Did you know that male owls are the food providers of the owl family? Neither did I. For some reason, I had always just assumed it was the female's/mother's job to nurture her little owlets. Maybe that's because that's how it's typically done in most human homes. Or, maybe it's because so many females in the animal kingdom are the sole providers for their spawn.

This wonderful little tidbit of information, courtesy of the world wide web, has inspired me to write a new story. For some time, I've been searching for the perfect opportunity to write about two things that I love dearly love: owls and great dads. Today,I finally started that project.

My new WIP (work in progress) is called Owl Be Home By Morning.
This story is dedicated to my wonderful husband and boys' father. It is a picture storybook about a father who sets off in search of food for his owlets. But before he goes out each time, he assures his owlets that he will be back soon and tells them how much he loves them. This is the tale that "owl" fathers have been waiting for.

Stay tuned for more details about my latest WIP. Maybe, just maybe, a publisher will pick it up before next Father's Day.

Preview for Legends of the Guardians:The Owls of Ga'Hoole

Here is a preview for a seemingly great new movie coming out in the fall. To quote Barney Stinson from How I Met Your Mother,"It's going to be...wait for it..Legendary!" Or, at least, I think it will be. And, it didn't hurt that the title had the word legend in it.

Legends of the Guardians is based on the book series, Guardians of Ga'Hoole,written by Kathryn Lasky. The scenes in the preview are so incredibly breathtaking, that I felt compelled to post it. Watching the preview, was like looking at a work of art in motion.

I,for one, will be lining up to watch this in September. Maybe not on opening weekend because I can't use my movie coupons, but definitely the following weekend.
Who's with me?

So "they" say

Have you ever heard a friend, fellow wannabe writer, or loved one utter the words, "They say that you should start a blog to start getting your name out there." Or, "They say that you should start your own website to promote yourself. "Well, who the *&^% (in the world) is this "they" anyway?

Who is this mystic being who keeps telling me what to do with my life? Is/are "they" succesful? Is/are "they" someone that I should listen to? Does/do "they" have a webpage or blog that can read for myself, because seriously, who is "they"?

After much ponderance on the subject, I figure 'what could it hurt'? I gave in to the doubt and I listened to omniscient "they". I started this blog, Girl, Unpublished. After all, I am an adult now and realize the importance of following procedure. And,who am I to blow-off the advice of an all the knowing and all powerful "they"?

I've also started working on a website. It's incomplete, so I won't start pimping it out there just yet. But stay tuned for more details. I promise it will be 'all that and a bag of chips' when it's finished.

My question to my fellow wannabe writers is this, do you have a blog or website? Have you succumbed to the peer pressure of the wise and powerful "they"? Do you worry that listening to the "theys" in this world will come back and bite you in the buttocks some day? Because, I do.

I worry that I might be putting myself out there too soon. I worry that I have no work to my credit, so isn't that a little like the blind leading the blind? I worry that I won't be taken very seriously. Do you feel this way, too?

When I was younger-which is totally weird to say because I'm only 33 years old as of June 28th-I was always told to fake it, until I believed it. So, I guess that's my mantra. I am going to fake being a serious writer.

Not that I don't consider myself a writer, because I do. Anyone who thinks of nothing else but writing, is a writer. And,when I say 'wannabe writer' I mean that term affectionately. After all, I am one.

I simply mean that I am not published, yet. And until I am, I will conduct myself as if I already am published.

So what does that mean, exactly? What are my measurable goals? 1. I will work on my blog weekly. 2. I will work on my website bi-weekly. 3. I will write as often as this working mom can-semi daily. 4. And, I will put myself out there, even if I don't know all the answers just yet.

Who's with me? Lets share our struggles, adventures in writing, and triumphs together.

Editing-a necessary evil

Stanfordism# 3
Editing, for me, feels a lot like a root canal. It's necessary, and it's healthy, but it's excruciatingly painful for the one who has to endure it.

Here is what others have to say about editing:

Editing is the same as quarrelling with writers - same thing exactly.
Harold Ross

Editing Hemingway was like wrestling with a god.”
Tom Jenks

Whenever I talk to kids about writing and tell them it's the rewriting I enjoy most, they groan. I guess if you're in school, rewriting means copying your papers over. But to me, rewriting is the most exciting part of the process. When I'm rewriting, I feel most creative. I've got all the pieces to the puzzle and now I get to put them together. I go through four or five drafts of each book. (When I was writing Summer Sisters I went through twenty drafts!)
Judy Blume

"When you write you tell yourself a story. When you rewrite you take out everything that is NOT the story."
Stephen King