tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010942979784569627.comments2024-02-06T04:20:38.551-08:00Reading, Writing, RevisingLisa Ecksteinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11469107523441985396noreply@blogger.comBlogger822125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010942979784569627.post-56898093589175044262024-02-06T04:20:38.551-08:002024-02-06T04:20:38.551-08:00Also, that reply was mine. It's early... ;)Also, that reply was mine. It's early... ;)Christopher Gronlundhttps://nolumberjacks.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010942979784569627.post-9723281294668863932024-02-06T04:19:37.686-08:002024-02-06T04:19:37.686-08:00LATHE OF HEAVEN is the only Le Guin book I've ...LATHE OF HEAVEN is the only Le Guin book I've read. I've thought about rereading it again over the years (I read it when I was 19 or 20), and I've always wondered about her short stories. Sounds like I have some catching up to do...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010942979784569627.post-27647976363266268462024-01-19T15:39:42.858-08:002024-01-19T15:39:42.858-08:00I know you spent tons of time on writing (and rela...I know you spent tons of time on writing (and related creativity) last year, and that can make it hard to find time for reading as well. But here's hoping you fit in some good books this year!Lisa Ecksteinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11469107523441985396noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010942979784569627.post-22386552973620475322024-01-19T05:18:51.804-08:002024-01-19T05:18:51.804-08:00I was a terrible reader in 2023. Lots of starts an...I was a terrible reader in 2023. Lots of starts and stops, and only a handful of books read. 2024 is off to a good start, and I definitely plan to read some things you read in 2023!Christopher Gronlundhttps://nolumberjacks.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010942979784569627.post-4744065014416013592023-09-29T15:13:11.750-07:002023-09-29T15:13:11.750-07:00wintersweet: We should think about (brainstorm, I ...wintersweet: We should think about (brainstorm, I suppose) how to make that work virtually!Lisa Ecksteinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11469107523441985396noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010942979784569627.post-6854972636806629082023-09-29T15:12:31.070-07:002023-09-29T15:12:31.070-07:00Chris: Your weekend retreat sounds as though it of...Chris: Your weekend retreat sounds as though it often packs in a week's worth of creative renewal, so I hope that's the case this year! It can be so valuable to get a bonus stretch of time outside the usual setting when all you have to think about is writing. Lisa Ecksteinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11469107523441985396noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010942979784569627.post-73049492989963127562023-09-29T12:15:39.773-07:002023-09-29T12:15:39.773-07:00"intently brainstorm and make decisions"..."intently brainstorm and make decisions" -- that is really what I need to be doing! I just miss having a table of other writers once a week or so to do a bit of the brainstorming with.wintersweethttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08808244413432650654noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010942979784569627.post-46374450707224548482023-09-29T05:14:06.718-07:002023-09-29T05:14:06.718-07:00Awwwww...thanks for the kind words! It's the d...Awwwww...thanks for the kind words! It's the day of the annual [short] writing retreat, and with the shift to them falling in autumn, it's also a good time for Not About Lumberjacks planning! (I mention "short" 'cause I talk about the writing retreat and people think I mean a week-long thing with a bunch of writers and catered food...not two friends in a state park cabin from Friday afternoon to Sunday morning.)Christopher Gronlundhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16835103557224226930noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010942979784569627.post-85310541118183046852023-06-30T15:07:51.280-07:002023-06-30T15:07:51.280-07:00Yes, it feels like I'm making progress! Slow p...Yes, it feels like I'm making progress! Slow progress, but progress nonetheless!Lisa Ecksteinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11469107523441985396noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010942979784569627.post-79293848588644887542023-06-30T11:42:02.584-07:002023-06-30T11:42:02.584-07:00I've always found myself at this point with ev...I've always found myself at this point with every novel. Just a spread of Post-it notes or notecards laid out to see what might be moved and what's needed to connect everything.<br /><br />It's always nice because it usually means I'm getting closer, so I hope that's your experience as well.Christopher Gronlundhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16835103557224226930noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010942979784569627.post-66683216547161441982023-03-02T11:34:22.203-08:002023-03-02T11:34:22.203-08:00Thanks, Christopher! And after all that regular pr...Thanks, Christopher! And after all that regular progress, a few days off is reminding me how much a break can also be an important part of the process. I'm getting reenergized and building up new excitement about returning to the story in a few more days!Lisa Ecksteinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11469107523441985396noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010942979784569627.post-69500082250300592302023-02-28T12:42:59.203-08:002023-02-28T12:42:59.203-08:00That's a great accomplishment, even though it ...That's a great accomplishment, even though it may not feel the way you expected. And I love just the little bits of progress...regularly. In some ways, it's a favorite part of the process to me, 'cause you know the story better/well enough to really begin doing more with it.<br /><br />So here's to this draft and all to come! :)Christopher Gronlundhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16835103557224226930noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010942979784569627.post-32387173977275000262022-11-26T11:13:15.069-08:002022-11-26T11:13:15.069-08:00Thanks, Christopher!
I love seeing the different ...Thanks, Christopher!<br /><br />I love seeing the different ways people organize their reference materials for plot, characters, etc. And as you say, those can be so useful not just before and during writing, but later on for seeing the big picture for a synopsis or revision.Lisa Ecksteinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11469107523441985396noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010942979784569627.post-34021617999223344962022-11-24T06:58:37.165-08:002022-11-24T06:58:37.165-08:00Twenty-five thousand words is impressive...and see...Twenty-five thousand words is impressive...and seems more realistic to me in a short and busy month. Congratulations! I'm always impressed by anyone who sets out for NaNoWriMo. I believe, if I ever did it, I'd take your approach this year...and let knowing others are working away be my motivation to still pile up an impressive word count.<br /><br />And the B.A. Shapiro link is great! With the current novel series I'm working on, it's all kept in a spreadsheet: what happened in the world during the months and years, what happened to all the characters...just this timeline of a person's life and the world around her. Bonus: when I had to make a synopsis, it was so easy to see the big points all laid out in columns, rather than going through hundreds of pages.Christopher Gronlundhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16835103557224226930noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010942979784569627.post-60383226097008216512022-07-08T11:31:37.666-07:002022-07-08T11:31:37.666-07:00I hadn't heard the term "gender apocalyps...I hadn't heard the term "gender apocalypse" until recently, either, and also hadn't realized there was more to the genre than Y: The Last Man. Maybe there have been enough entries that we can be done with this subgenre now!Lisa Ecksteinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11469107523441985396noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010942979784569627.post-47006456924229309142022-07-08T07:57:21.388-07:002022-07-08T07:57:21.388-07:00I thought while reading about "The Men" ...I thought while reading about "The Men" that its premise sounded awfully close to the older "Y: The Last Man" graphic novel (recently televised). I did not realize we'd hit the point where "gender apocolypse" is a sub-genre. :)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010942979784569627.post-72784562276233095542022-02-19T17:25:29.192-08:002022-02-19T17:25:29.192-08:00A years later followup on the comment discussion, ...A years later followup on the comment discussion, since I'm linking to this review again: I did go see the production of Mr. Burns, a Post-Electric Play by Anne Washburn. It was great and weird, and since the story was also about preserving art in the post-apocalypse, it was fun to compare to Station Eleven.Lisa Ecksteinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11469107523441985396noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010942979784569627.post-39362523438074395402021-11-30T16:58:37.860-08:002021-11-30T16:58:37.860-08:00Thanks, Christopher! It felt good to write a subst...Thanks, Christopher! It felt good to write a substantial amount for the first time in a while.Lisa Ecksteinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11469107523441985396noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010942979784569627.post-73618400580704205232021-11-30T06:28:39.112-08:002021-11-30T06:28:39.112-08:00That's a hefty word count, and to wrap up with...That's a hefty word count, and to wrap up with days to spare is impressive! I always have something else going on when November rolls around, so I've never taken part. I know I could produce the word count on multiple projects, but I'm not sure I could hit 50K words in a month on one thing. So you get all my respect! (And I hope you're able to make sense of all you did and end up with something cool down the line from the mighty effort.)Christopher Gronlundhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16835103557224226930noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010942979784569627.post-66138619966578678612021-10-29T14:21:55.608-07:002021-10-29T14:21:55.608-07:00Eeee, exciting!! Good luck!!!Eeee, exciting!! Good luck!!!laurenhathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04109325640858487775noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010942979784569627.post-68513659466408664692021-10-05T16:02:22.288-07:002021-10-05T16:02:22.288-07:00Thanks for the yays, Lauren! :) I had never seen t...Thanks for the yays, Lauren! :) I had never seen that about The Claw of Popularity, and it's so true and both comforting and disheartening. May the Claw alight upon us, and even grasp! Lisa Ecksteinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11469107523441985396noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010942979784569627.post-86566069315432823752021-10-02T13:24:47.530-07:002021-10-02T13:24:47.530-07:00So much good stuff in this update! Yay for submit...So much good stuff in this update! Yay for submitting things, and for resubmitting after rejection! That's inspiring to see. I know that's what one is supposed to do, but I kind of feel like I’d never want to submit anything for publishing (even if I had the patience to edit something enough to get it to a submittable form) because of not wanting to deal with rejection or with coming up with a Plan B (and C and D and so forth). But seeing good friends go through the cycle and try again makes it seem more weatherable, and it definitely makes me cheer from the sidelines. <br /><br />Fingers crossed for an eventual good outcome with the story -- but I feel like submitting stuff is a notable achievement, regardless of whether The Claw of Popularity eventually alights on this story. (Hmm, I forget, have we talked about that metaphor before? There was a good post about the unpredictable nature of success in fanfic writing that also seems somewhat applicable more broadly — https://penknife.livejournal.com/178090.html. I think of pro publishing as also involving a mysterious Claw in between “good story” and “story that gets read by more than a handful of people” — though unfortunately it’s a Claw with a lower selection probability than in the world of self-published fan works.) <br /><br />Also, big yay for having an exciting story idea!! (WHY can’t it just spill out onto the page without all the interim hard work, though? So unfair.) Regardless of where it all leads, I hope you can enjoy the feeling of excitement and possibility for a while, despite the accompanying sense of pressure. <br /><br />And finally, yay for the regular(ish) blog updates. They’re always an interesting read. <3 laurenhathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04109325640858487775noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010942979784569627.post-42229783106392570402021-09-30T11:32:13.723-07:002021-09-30T11:32:13.723-07:00Thank you, Chris! Best writing wishes back atcha!Thank you, Chris! Best writing wishes back atcha!Lisa Ecksteinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11469107523441985396noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010942979784569627.post-1993349193203747072021-09-30T02:44:18.070-07:002021-09-30T02:44:18.070-07:00I'm glad you submitted something and then turn...I'm glad you submitted something and then turned around and submitted it elsewhere when the first place passed on it. And, of course, I hope the next story comes to you a bit easier...and that fall brings good writing your way! :)Christopher Gronlundhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16835103557224226930noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010942979784569627.post-4371673973344809172021-08-28T18:51:59.108-07:002021-08-28T18:51:59.108-07:00Thank you for tthisThank you for tthisEllena Fhttps://www.ellenafield.com/noreply@blogger.com