I don't really have a security blanket... unless you count Mr. Pointy.

Buffy ,'Lessons'


The Great Write Way, Chapter Two: Twice upon a time...  

A place for Buffistas to discuss, beta and otherwise deal and dish on their non-fan fiction projects.


deborah grabien - Mar 24, 2005 11:18:33 am PST #801 of 10001
It really doesn't matter. It's just an opinion. Don't worry about it. Not worth the hassle.

(deep breath)

This is a bit longer than drabble length, and I'm not cutting a word. As some people know, I'm in the process of recovering memories of a certain time period. I hadn't actually forgotten about this, except for one thing; I'd forgotten I was crying at the time.

Contents of a Kitchen Floor

Two bottles of Seagrams whiskey, one empty, the other with an inch of liquid left.

Courvoisier, I'm counting three bottles, sticky with depletion.

The cats' dishes, empty.

A scattered pile of mail, probably pushed from the table by Pig or Fluff jumping away from their human, as he was fighting with his insane wife or reaching for one of the bottles I'm now bending to dispose of from my wheelchair. Included; one confirmation of the next dialysis appointment for the damaged man who emptied all these bottles into his damaged body.

Oh, and one damaged man, unconscious amid the rubble, trusting me to be there when he wakes up.

And me in my wheelchair, tears of love and longing sitting angry behind my eyes, wondering how to save him.


Pix - Mar 24, 2005 12:31:11 pm PST #802 of 10001
We're all getting played with, babe. -Weird Barbie

Ouch, Deb...stings.


Susan W. - Mar 24, 2005 10:08:13 pm PST #803 of 10001
Good Trouble and Righteous Fights

I just hit page 100 on the wip! In theory, I'm a quarter of the way done, though more than likely my rough draft will end up well over my desired 400 pages/100K words and I'll have to find a way to cut it. But still. It's a number. It's round. I've been staying on track this year, for the most part. I'm happy.

t pats self on back


SailAweigh - Mar 25, 2005 6:03:24 am PST #804 of 10001
Nana korobi, ya oki. (Fall down seven times, stand up eight.) ~Yuzuru Hanyu/Japanese proverb

Go, Susan! I haven't tried for anything more than a couple pages, double-spaced, at that.


Susan W. - Mar 25, 2005 6:09:23 am PST #805 of 10001
Good Trouble and Righteous Fights

Oh, you better believe these are doublespaced, too. And Courier 12, which takes up a lot of space.

The truly crazy part is now that I'm used to manuscript format I prefer the look of Courier to Times New Roman. It's crisp and it photocopies well. You get into all kinds of debates about which one is better and which editors prefer and so on, but I think I'm the only person who actually likes the way Courier looks.


Anne W. - Mar 25, 2005 6:13:37 am PST #806 of 10001
The lost sheep grow teeth, forsake their lambs, and lie with the lions.

Susan, you are far from the only one.


Amy - Mar 25, 2005 6:45:18 am PST #807 of 10001
Because books.

Susan, you are far from the only one.

Raises hand. Times is a bitch to copyedit, because it's too damn small. Maybe my eyes are getting older, but I much prefer Courier. I always asked my authors to submit in Courier, too.

And yay on the hundred pages. Nice solid milestone.

Oh, and Deb, that was sharp and painful and needed every word.


deborah grabien - Mar 25, 2005 6:48:19 am PST #808 of 10001
It really doesn't matter. It's just an opinion. Don't worry about it. Not worth the hassle.

I loves me some courier. So much more readable, so much easier to parse. I use TNR for letters, but manuscript format with courier is da bomb.


Susan W. - Mar 25, 2005 6:50:26 am PST #809 of 10001
Good Trouble and Righteous Fights

Times is a bitch to copyedit, because it's too damn small. Maybe my eyes are getting older, but I much prefer Courier. I always asked my authors to submit in Courier, too.

The last writing contest I judged, I had three entries in TNR and one in Courier. The Courier was a much easier read, and not just because it was shorter. TNR is fine when it's an original from a decent printer, but I had copies, and even the faint degrading you get with a first-generation copy is annoying.


deborah grabien - Mar 25, 2005 6:58:27 am PST #810 of 10001
It really doesn't matter. It's just an opinion. Don't worry about it. Not worth the hassle.

Susan, that exactly matches with Ruth says; she's 86 years old and her eyes are still probably as good as mine (reading glasses only), and she says she'd like to keep them that way, so nice large courier, please. Oh! And YAY! on the 100-page mark.

I'm spending Saturday reading erika's finished novel, and I'm hoping to hear whether or not my series will continue at St. Martins soon - Jenn said Ruth hinted at something, and since Ruth isn't a tease, I suspect we're good to go for at least Cruel Sister. It's weird; with the proposal on Ruth's desk since January and me not knowing what's going to happen, I've felt sort of in limbo. But now I want to get back to the book, since I'd like it done by August at the latest, and since the insane renovation project from hell - aka "The Victorian That Ate My Life" - is done to the point of being at least manageable, I can concentrate again.