How do folks keep up with all of the blogs and digests they're interested in AND write AND live a real external life as well? I've got hobbies I'm not attending to, writing I'm supposed to be working on, and I've gotten behind in reading several blogs. So behind that I didn't notice the Left Behind and Loving It series of writer's workshops until two days ago. And I'm already feeling overwhelmed by the amount of material it offers.

I'm one of those people who need time to decompress every so often. I need a quiet space where I can passively let my brain relax and unravel all of the experiences that get tangled within it as the week goes by. I think my decompression-debt is rising these days; when I get home from work, I don't have the energy or the focus to be able to study and absorb new writing techniques or tackle the 3DCG art hobby I was so excited about when I started it several months ago. I just want to sit and do something I don't have to think too much about, like a computer puzzle. Of course, working on a wedding isn't helping.

Where did I fall off the motivation and drive boat? How do y'all manage it?

Check out this post on Worldbuilding with a Wiki. I never thought of using a wiki for anything but an informal info source. Boy, I've really got to start thinking outside of my teeny little box.

Stuck for character backstory development? Might I suggest scrolling through the pictures at It's Lovely! I'll Take It! and imagining which ones your character might have lived in/decorated/cringed away from? Talk about a picture being worth a thousand words....

I have hatchlings!

HAPPY CHOCOLATE DAY, EVERYONE!

I've already eaten some, now you GO FORTH and CONSUME GOOD CHOCOLATE!

On a lower note, looks like my eggs aren't gonna make it. I think I looked at them too often from the same computer before I realized it was NOT a good idea to do so. Dragons on my mind these days, so I've got regretful pangs about losing this batch. Live and learn.

I made one small change to the backstory of the storyline I'm supposed to be working on. The result: a story that has felt that it didn't have enough to drive it forward suddenly shows new signs of life as it simmers in my brain. I'm glad I didn't give in to my impulse to just shove it aside and start a new storyline. Not finishing manuscripts is a dangerous habit I've visited before, and I don't want to do it again unless I write something that's just not viable (and that obviously sucks to anyone who reads it).

Now to get some motivaiton going....

Whoever said planning for a wedding is fun LIED THROUGH THEIR TEETH!

Haven't been writing any fiction. I have been writing for my job, and the funny thing is that my writing skills are strong enough in that area for my boss to be confident that I'll send out letters that will get all the necessary and potentially sensitive questions asked to all of the people involved without insulting anyone. So I can still write. Sort of.

Meanwhile, I also bought a book called THE MIND OF YOUR STORY, by Lisa Lenard-Cook. I'm hoping that examining the heart of my story will help me figure out why this one isn't a joy for me to write and why my slow writing has ground to a complete halt.

Now all I have to do is catch up. To remind me of how important catching up and writing is, I've placed some dragons on this page. Whenever anyone finds a reason to visit this blog, the dragons (now eggs that hopefully won't die) will be here. For any one to visit this page, of course, there has to be something worth reading here. And since my own life is not particularly exciting, the something worth reading will most often involve writing. No worries, I am NOT going to use this blog to chart my wedding planning progress. That would only add to the stress.

But I see why people say blogging is good for writers. I try to think about my story often, and I fail miserably to get any farther than regret about not writing. But WRITING about working on my story somehow makes it more possible that I could actually work on the story. Henh.

Succumb to whimsy at some time this month. It'll make you feel good, and everyone else will eventually forget their own shock.