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Busy times here at work. We are hiring a new office assistant, and we’re trying to get that done before I rush off to Europe. And on the home front, there’s a lot going on. Wiscon coming up, getting ready for the big trip, supportive wife stuff. All this makes for a very full life.

Some of you have been asking about my upcoming trip abroad. A writer friend, Catrina Horsfield, and I are going on a writer research trip. She’s going to research Finnish culture, and I want to get a good look at the nature and folklore of Norway. I will eventually use this information in the rewrite of the troll book, as well as the sequel to it. Here’s the itinerary for the trip.

Continue reading “Finland and Norway Itinerary”

Let me see if I can get this done. I started at 9:30 am, but it’s been a day.

Two things of note: It’s the day of my fake birthday party, as I will be in Helsinki on my real birthday, and Bryon’s like that. AND my vintage make-up and hair books came in the mail! They are as cool as they promised to be.

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This is a more practical post, but a necessary one. As bodies age, they change in mysterious ways. One of the ways in which we change is our skin.

We all know that we get wrinkly and we lose elasticity in our skin. And I’m not going to get on that train. You can read a ton of articles about how to reduce wrinkles, or use botox, or have plastic surgery done. Guys, entropy rules. You can’t fight entropy. Your face is anarchy waiting to happen. I like my laugh lines. I’m getting used to my saggy chin. We’ll get used to the rest as it comes.

So, if you’re looking for someone to give you those hot tips, there’s a big Internet out there. Have fun.

My concern is using make-up so it doesn’t make me look older than I am. And I use make-up as my skin becomes more blotchy, or my age and sun spots begin to show. In today’s entry, I’m going to share some tips I’ve gotten about facial cleansing

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Skin changes as it ages. Of course, as a young person, you probably analyzed your skin type. Even the guys out there might know how to take care of their skin if it’s oily or dry. The problem with many of the ways we take care of our appearance is that we get busy with life, so our early training stays in place, and we never update it. Unless you truly do have acne, you should probably stop taking care of your skin like you do. In my case, my skin has increased in sensitivity, which is a common problem in light-skinned white women.

Happily, I can take some lessons to update myself. We still all have different skin types, so the most important thing as you age is to talk to someone about your skin. You know, a trained professional. Like the Avon lady. In my case, the Aveda folks and the Body Shop folks. I like both these stores because their products tend to be more environmentally friendly.

Here are some things I’ve learned.

My skin is drier than it used to be. To cleanse my skin, I use the Body Shop’s Vitamin E Cleanser. It’s an economical alternative, and helps to keep my sensitive skin from reddening. I also use a hydrating toner, especially on the days I use make-up. Usually, I’ll finish off with a nice night cream, even during the day. Right now I’m trying another night cream just for kicks–carrot moisture cream.

Now, why is it important to start with a clean, moisturized face? Soap can dry your skin. So can the sun, and the weather. And of course, impurities can cause all sorts of blemishes. Blah, blah, blah. Elementary stuff.

Both Aveda and Body Shop have products which claim to help with wrinkles, fine lines, under eye shadow, and so on. Your mileage may vary. One of the ways in which I’m lucky is in fairly good shape for now, so a little under eye shadow cream and make-up usually take care of my blotches and discoloration. I’m still in the minor leagues with this.

My friend Jools recommends Philosophy’s Miracle Worker. I’d be interested in trying it out to see if it works better than my current eye cream, which gets rid of shadow, but that’s about it. I’ll let you know what I think when I give it a whirl.

Just a quick note on the rest of you. Skin doesn’t stop at your neck. Don’t forget to moisturize the rest, or use a shower gel that does. I use many flavors of Body Shop body butter. Sometimes I get nostalgic for the smell of Jergens. My skin on the whole is in pretty good shape.

When we return to the make-over, we’ll talk about make-up foundations for older skin.

Earth 2 me, Cath Schaffer, has written an excellent article on how to hang out in the bar for authors.

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Some of you might remember that last year I participated in the Clarion Write-a-thon. We did make a little money for the effort, and I would like to do so again. My Viable Paradise experience has taught me that time away to be a writer, away from the cares of every day life is IMPORTANT. I’d like to help give someone else that gift.

And, as it turns out, a friend of mine is, in fact, going to Clarion West this year. This gets a little more personal.

So. This year, once again, I will be participating in the Clarion Write-a-thon. Here’s my author page.

Just like last year, I want to urge you to participate if you’re a writer, and you’d be writing anyway. The dates are June 26-August 6, the same dates as the actual workshop. Also, it doesn’t matter who you donate to. Just help us raise some money!

My goal will be to continue pounding away on my 12 hours of writing a week as I continue to work toward my writing expertise hours. I’ve been thinking about how I could make this more interesting for those who contribute. Last year, Ferrett Steinmetz did a fantastic job with fund raising, and I think I will be taking a page out of his book . I need to generate lots of material for the Klarion books, so my plan will be to have a Klarion/Clarion blog (Isn’t that cute?).

If you donate a mere $10, you will be part of the Klarion/Clarion community that can see me produce initial drafts of novel bits from the Klarion series (with author notes sometimes). I will also be happy to critique (drawn at random) from 3 contributors who contribute $25 or more (most likely after the write-a-thon).

Remember, festivities will begin June 26th. Get your ticket now! Only $10 for the price of admission, or if you prefer to think of it that way, one really exclusive latte.

And…if anyone would be kind enough to spread the word, in case you can’t participate, but would like to get some donations vicariously, I’m happy to be linked to.

Catherine

Let me get the self-denigration out of the way. Because I am amused.

This morning, in our efforts to be environmentally conscientious citizens, Bryon and I are juggling our schedules to take one car. We have failed in this effort twice this week, so we were extra cautious this morning. At 7:15 a.m., he dropped me off at Coffee Talk, and I picked up my latte and walked to work. It takes me twenty-five minutes to accomplish this task. I finished the drink, navigated the construction, and made my way onto the campus.

Here’s where things get a little complicated. When I drive, that’s one of the times I get my best story ideas. Walking too is a good time, especially walking alone, which I seldom do. So, I’m walking and thinking, thinking and walking, and I…sort of forgot I was walking. I was so immersed in my WIP, and my feet were tangled, and, well, I fell.

No injuries. Minor owies only. And no embarrassment, as no one was around to see me take my tumble.

This used to happen to me all the time when I was a kid! It was another option in that “weird kid doesn’t fit in pack” that I bought before birth. Usually, this seldom happens nowadays, but I guess it still can if conditions are right. So, moral of the story–sit down if you notice a writing trance coming on. If.

Do any of you experience anything similar?

***

I’ve been working at the college an awful lot this week. All administrative, all the time. That makes me tired. It’s been hard to motivate myself to write and do what needs to be done. But you know, I like having words to work with. I like falling into the trance. I like being able to say to my writing buddies, “Yes, I too have been working on…something” and then be able to pull something out to read.

I like that. And it would be awesome if it could be like that all the time. But there are times when you really struggle to find time to write. As a matter of fact, Miranda Suri just did a post on this. It’s a busy time of year for academics after all, so I know I’m not the only one feeling the crunch and the drain. And speaking of the drain, sometimes that demanding life just doesn’t let you feel like you’re writing. And of course, the shadow of my father-in-law’s situation and Bryon’s depression isn’t doing much here either.

But.

Birds gotta fly. Fish gotta swim. Writer gotta write. Books don’t write themselves. Ain’t no way I’ll ever get to see Bryon’s little face light up because I’ve bought him a Lost in Space robot if I don’t write the book, send the book out, and do all those things. DO them. Not THINK about doing them.

Which is an easy trap to fall into. You know, I used to not have the time to write. Until I decided that I would make the time. I’ll admit it’s not always easy, but it’s not like I can come back and find a manuscript ready on my desk. Unless I leave out more milk for the writing faeries.

***

Speaking of playing, nothing stimulates a writer to write like being around other writing writers. Or, writing writers write around right writing writers. Wiscon’s coming. That’s gotta help. And maybe some fellow writers and I could schedule some Internet play dates, once I get back from Europe.

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Better get in some more work before there’s another student call. Loves me some students, but today is not really productive.

Catherine

Here are a couple of cool things I found out about last night!

Retro MakeUp is a book that covers make-up styles from the twenties into the seventies.

Vintage Hairstyling shows a variety of old-fashioned hairstyles. This is the second edition.

Both books are written by Lauren Rennells, who has a ton of experience with make-up and hair in television, movies, and photography.

So, I’m ordering them, and I’ll be playing with them.

***

In other make-over news, eShakti has not yet sent me my dresses. However, they sent me an email when it became clear that they wouldn’t make their promised obligation of 3-5 business days, and gave me a 10 percent discount.

It has, however, been two weeks since I ordered from them, and I would like the dresses for Wiscon next week. I hope they come. I REALLY want them for my European trip, so they have a little time, but I did want to wear something cool to the con.

***

All right. Next make-over post, I swear, skin care for over 40. It’s just that I had to share the coolness.

Catherine

I…grapple with my current work. It’s a commitment of time and energy. Five books that will examine four generations of one family over ninety years. We take it one book at a time, with a different focal relationship for each book. Currently I am revising what I can save from the old version of what will become book three. But the time I’ve honed everything down, I might have about 30,000 words. Most of those events will end up in the finished story, even if the actual words I have characterized them with don’t.

After I’ve done that winnowing, new writing begins. I plan to explore stories and arcs, see how they fit into my plot outlines and time tables, and focus on the tensions as well as the climaxes.

I’ve only stuck my toes in the shallows of this project. I can see the overall shape and vision of the thing. But from this side of the lake, I can’t see the opposite shoreline of the completion of the entire project. It’s huge and complicated. Worth doing, certainly. I want to do it well.

***

As most writers do, I read others. About a year ago, I saw the cover of Prospero Lost, picked it up, and thought that I would be happy to read a story with characters from The Tempest. I picked it up a couple of months after that, and just recently found my way to it in the big stack of books.

Here was the model of what I was missing. Prospero Lost is a story about the Prospero family. Told from Miranda’s viewpoint, after she receives a cryptic warning from her father, she and airy servant turned fleshy detective Mab set out to warn her seven remaining siblings about a demonic danger. The siblings turn out to be other famous characters in history and folklore. Oh, and the family just doesn’t get along anymore. Rife with melodrama, adventure, character conflict, and mysterious events, Miranda and Mab move through an increasingly complicated story which will be concluded in two more books.

Continue reading “Prospero Lost”

Yesterday at work, I sort of lost it for a bit and decided my brain needed a break. I spent some time researching our upcoming (next summer) trip to Disney Paris, and ended up looking at Disney Cruises as well. With the budget I have to work with for anniversapalooza, it looks like we can afford just the Paris side of our planned excursion to Paris and London, and The Man (TM) is okay with that. So, we plan to do a 5 day/4 night trip to Paris, focusing mostly on Disney, but with a side-trip into Paris, and maybe a side-trip into Provins.

Finally, these two Disney enthusiasts will see Phantom Manor.

Mind you, those cruises were VERY tempting. For about the same money as it would cost us to go to Paris, we could have doubled our time on a cruise ship. But that will come in the future.

***

Next year’s fake family reunion, by the way, will feature VOW RENEWAL. This year’s will just feature cool people. Got the invites out for that yesterday. For those of you who have no clue what that is, my counselor of a few years ago suggested that I celebrate the family I have and the life I have created from my humble beginnings. This one will be number three.

***

There is a trip to Finland and Norway coming up. I intend to put up the agenda soon(ish), and there will be some journaling on the trip. And some research posting later.

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What else do I want to write about upcoming? Um… Prospero Lost (next entry), And it’s time for another fashion post, probably on skin care for older women. I have a couple of requests for VP interviews out.

And there is the Clarion Write-a-thon again.

***

Right. Moving on. Next entry coming on the heels of this one.

Catherine

Irina Ivanova is soft spoken. Yet, she writes a tough cookie of a heroine. Guess you never can tell what is beneath the surface.

Tamago: When did you first know that you were going to be a writer?

Irina: I wrote my first story at thirteen, for a literature class. The assignment was to come up with a 3 (notebook) page science fiction story. After an all-nighter (a first manifestation of a bad habit of mine), I proudly presented a 22-page story (again, a first manifestation of another bad habit of mine). At this point, I still didn’t know I’ll one day consider writing as more than a fun pastime — that’d take another 20 years or so. But I haven’t stopped writing since.

Looking back, though, I should have known storytelling would be my “thing.” I was the four-year old who would entertain herself for hours by naming her color pencils and creating adventures for them (sadly, my character-naming skills haven’t improved much since — though I’d like to believe the adventures have). For years growing up, my favorite bedtime activity was to re-imagine books and movies the way I’d have liked them to be (I had, and still have, a mild fascination with evil henchmen — as you can imagine, there was a lot of re-imagining to do there!). Oh, and I was also a compulsive reader. I figure my career as an engineer has had it coming from the start.

Tamago: What kind of genres do you like to write the most in? Why?

Irina: I don’t necessarily have a preferred genre. I’ve dabbled in most subgenres of speculative fiction, but I play mainly in “hard-ish” fantasy and in science fiction (usually, with stories that are a tad less grand than space operas, fall a hair or two short of hard sci-fi, and/or border on social sci-fi). I guess one of my favorite parts of writing is world-building, so I tend to be drawn to genres that let me do a ton of it.

Tamago: Has being a member of two different cultures affected your writing?

Irina: Absolutely! It’s the shove-it-down-your-throat version of gaining perspective by being exposed to others’ beliefs and lifestyles — and adopting or adapting to them — or, alternatively, getting forced out of your comfort zone: a type of experience all fiction writers should have anyway!

Seriously, though, partly because I’ve been a member of different cultures and partly because of the specific cultures and the events that have influenced them in these past couple of decades, I feel I have a rich source of themes, conflict, imagery, and behavior patterns to explore — or borrow — for my stories. Otherwise, it’s just another experience, in a way unique, and in a way not at all that uncommon, that’s part of life. And life affects writing, whether we want it or not. =)

Continue reading “VP Profile #15: Irina Ivanova”

And…we’re back in front of the computer at work.

Saturday was actually a surprisingly good day. It was good for Bryon to see his mom and dad. Neal’s attitude was stellar. He’s in no pain, he was talkative, and he feels the docs did all they could. Phyllis is a little less balanced. She’s concerned about her ability to take care of him. We encouraged them to check out their local hospice possibilities. Bryon has decided that this really hasn’t changed much. We know that his dad is dying, but we don’t know exactly when that is going to happen. At Neal’s age, we wouldn’t know that anyway. We’ll ramp up the visits, but we’re not going to miss out emotionally on the time we have left. Our minister believes a lot of people set themselves up for pre-emptive grief, and try to shoot past those feelings by already imagining loss. We’ll be okay with living in the now, no matter how sad that makes us.

***

Tonight it’s my plan to get some writing done. I have been focusing more on studies rather than production, given my travel and emotional action. And I still have some trip prep to do as well. Only 10 days until Wiscon, and after that, the time between Wiscon and Finland/Norway will disappear in a blink.

***

Usually this is the time of year I think about what I’ve accomplished in my writer life, given the proximity of Wiscon.

This has been the year where I lost my almost agent opportunity, but I gained more promising rejections (and some acceptances!) in the realm of the short story. This has also been the year that I have begun to really control my writer education, and become a more active writer in terms of planning and editing. This is the year I write a certain amount of time each week, rather than focusing on words on the page.

These are great steps forward. What I had hoped for going into this year was an agent and a book deal. What I got was an affirmation of the organic process of writing, and a belief in my own continuity of goals. I am seeing improvement, I am in the community more, and I am getting there, slow but steady.

I believe more than ever that writing, as with anything, is a natural extension of where you are. I saw Sarah Prineas doing her first guest gig at Demicon, and we were talking about some issues some writing friends were facing down, and I suggested that it was true, that what you did was really trade up your problems. Maybe, I said, I should stay cuspy. Maybe this was the easiest time of my writing life. We laughed about that, but I think there’s something to this.

I really don’t know what kind of a writing career I will have. I write books and they will get better. I’ll hit writing career benchmarks when it’s time. I am content. I will try to hold onto this whenever I am thinking that things aren’t going as they should. There is no perfect life. There is only working with what you’re given, and finding new ways to work with that and to keep trying and learning.

Meanwhile, I go to Finland and Norway because I’m a writer doing research. I meet up with my friends at conventions because I’m a writer who knows other writers. I send things to my friends who critique them because I am a writer who is growing. I teach. I have good friends. I live. Writing and its ups and downs do not control my life. It’s part of me, but it’s not all of me.

I keep plugging away, and I keep living my life. I won’t be waiting for the day I’m (agented/published/in a box store/adored by millions). I’ll keep looking at what I have and seeing the good in it, and making more things happen. I won’t whittle away my life to the future when things are exactly what I want them to be. I wasted enough of my life doing that, and I’m done with that.

Wishing you productive word counts and ego security.

Catherine

When one posts about a tragedy like cancer in a public place, one wonders whether you should enable comments. Well, I know one of my frustrations when friends are going through hard times is not being able to express at least well wishes, and I went with on. And thank you all for those wishes.

Real life friends have been especially helpful. I sent out the news as soon as we found out to our family of friends, and Bryon appreciates the phone calls and the letters. He’s doing a lot better. The first night was a shock. He grieved, he didn’t sleep, and he was pretty exhausted. Yesterday he felt better and he had a good night’s sleep.

We talked about grief. How when you grieve, you might feel happy for a moment for some reason or other, and then you feel guilty because you have no right to feel happy when someone you love is dying. How you don’t want to think about your usual geeky pursuits because they feel frivolous. How you sort of sleep walk around at your worst. The best, Bryon said at breakfast, is a sort of unemotional neutral, a dimmed amiability, an upbeat sadness.

How am I doing? Stalwart wife that I am, I managed to stave off my emotional reaction until I got to work yesterday, at which point I felt safe enough (imagine! Feeling safe at work!) to have a good cry. It didn’t help that wonderful and supportive friends kept sending all these wonderful emails that I was forwarding on to the husband and elaborating on with insight. So, I exhausted myself yesterday. I spent the day sleepwalking through budget codes, and I stumbled home to watch a little television, sleep, and read. Not my most authorly day. It’s okay. Sometimes we can do nothing but be human.

Bryon had a lengthy conversation with his mother to let her know we’d be down this weekend. She seems to be doing a little better. His father slept all day. It goes without saying his grief is the worst of all. I can’t pretend to know what he thinks or how he feels. I’ve never been about to die and known it. Jay Lake has been very public about his battle with cancer, so I have some inkling there (Thank you, Jay. You may not realize how helpful what you’ve been writing has been as we’ve been riding this roller coaster with Bryon’s parents). For the last years, Neal has struck me as very tired, very frail, and very afraid. He was a big guy, a mechanic, and he has become a frail elderly one, and I don’t think he’s found that anything but terrifying.

We’re going to talk about hospice. I know Neal is religious and his minister has been visiting. Hospice is the intellectual version of that–helping both Neal and Phyllis to get ready for this change of life. Several people at work say it’s the best thing their dying relatives ever did. I don’t know how it will play in Southern Iowa.

***

Bryon and I grieve very differently. As you can tell from the post above, I process verbally. He needs quiet alone time, and does talk, but only after very careful, already finished processing. He apologized for what he thought I perceived as pushing me away the other night when he just wanted to be alone. I re-assured him that I understood, that I wasn’t offended, and that I was here when he needed me. For the next several months, Bryon gets a blank check with me.

***

I mentioned reading. I am reading a very good book right now– Prospero Lost by L. Jagi Lamplighter. The next time I get a crack at the journal, my plan is to discuss the book. It’s a family saga, and there are lots of good techniques in there I can use with the Klarions. The flashbacks and forwards are superbly rendered. It’s also making me think that I need more character flaws. They’re there, but sometimes the characters strike me as too nice. Need to bring out some of that not so nice. Anyway, there will be a discussion, a review, and a dissection. I’d like to figure out how to do what she’s doing in there, so I can do it, so I’ll have to take the book apart. After I’m done with it as a reader.

***

Not really looking forward to tomorrow, but wouldn’t want to be anywhere else this weekend than with my husband and his parents. Besides, I may have to cuff my crazy sisters-in-law just a little. Neither of them do crisis well. It’s a benefit of my background that I do crisis exceptionally well. You know, making lemonade and all that.

Catherine