Oy. Writing groups. A few months ago, when I was all morning-sick and not going very often, there was a kerfluffle between two of our members--the details are convoluted enough to be plot points for a bad soap opera, but what ultimately fell out was that neither came anymore, and I think there was even some group discussion, which V was privy to, saying that V wouldn't come back. So we ended up with a cozy, friendly group of five, one that's even become helpful to me once I asked for somewhat stronger critique. It's still not my ideal, and I'd loved to find an all-romance or all-historical fiction of any genre group, with a closer match in writing skills, but it's a pleasant and inspiring way to spend a Monday night.

So tonight, out of the blue, V comes back. And it threw off the chemistry terribly. And I hate to be all in-group and shunny, but I'd really like to stay just the five of us. Because, the thing is, V's stories drive me crazy--they're dark and inevitable, and not in a Shakespearean or Jossian way that sends chills down your spine. No, it's just endless end games of people who've fucked up their lives slowly dying in modern squalor. They're both depressing and boring, and that's a lethal combination.

Anyway, I'm just venting, and wondering if it's terrible to want my writing group to be a bit of an exclusive club.

Susan, I just had to tell a very sweet man without the smallest inkling about how to write a novel that he simply wasn't ready for a writing group. And we are enjoying our chemistry (although we miss our original seventh rather intensely).

Sometimes you just have to say something.

Plei, Bev - insent to you both. There are typos in the last ten pages or so. Sorry about that....

Sometimes you just have to say something.

I probably will. I feel a "how to do this nicely" email to J coming on, since she's turned into the impromptu leader of the group by virtue of being the most naturally outspoken of us all.

Because if I have to read another story about an aging washed-up rock star drinking himself to death and reflecting on how it was all inevitable because of Insert Parental Unit Here, I'm going to scream.

Someone should point out that Richard Burton is dead and Elizabeth Taylor is blonde now and "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf" has already been filmed to perfection, thank you very much.

Well, tonight J and I did suggest that it's nice for a story to actually have a plot of some kind, even if it's a character-based or atmospheric piece.

You could always offer the lady a ritalin milkshake.

Or make her watch "Buckaroo Banzai", to see if she has any cracks in the existentialist glooooooom...

BTW, comment left in your lj, about alumni article, and general tone thereof.

I'm a little giddy. I just finished off a major chapter and sent it on and I feel like dancing.

Yo, all my writing peeps!

(Ahem.)

BUST magazine, which I adore beyond all reason, has an article on how to start your own business, including a link to a website called Seattle Writergrrls. I originally was going to post it and flag it to the attention of the Seattle peeps, but in poking around the site (particularly the Resource page), this Web site is EXCELLENT for any writer, not just those is Seattle, and not just grrls.

Check it out, yo. Especially the Resource page.

Thanks, Teppy!

I just re-wrote the "Alumni Voices" piece I posted friends-locked in my LiveJournal last night. It's nearly 500 words shorter, and, damn, I wish I could make my first drafts concise and spare myself all this word-butchery!

Up to page 78 in the rewrite (out of 298), which means that I'm approximately 1/4 done with the hand-revision phase. Only up to page ten in the committing the revisions to the electronic version (which means as I type in the corrections and read the resulting paragraph aloud, more changes get made) so there's a way to go there.

Post-and-run on my way out the door to writers group--I'll be back in a few hours:

Just got my manuscript back from Marlene, the agent Deb recommended. She said, in part, "Thank you for allowing me to consider Lucy and Mr. Wright, which I've now had an opportunity to review. While there is a lot I like about this story and feel the writing is strong, I had problems with the pacing. Please keep in mind that publishing is a subjective business and another agent may well feel differently."

I'm not heartbroken because I figure in the big scheme of things, pacing is fixable, and while Marlene seems really wonderful, I kinda got the impression from some things she said here and there that she had a different niche in mind for me than the one I'm picturing for myself.

So I figure my task for the new year is to, first off, send queries/partials to such agencies as look appealing to me (because while I think she's right about the pacing, I don't think the problem is in the first chapter or three, so I feel safe letting people see that much right away), and meanwhile giving it another editing pass. Any ideas how to edit for pacing? I've got a good feel for polishing lines and scenes, but this is obviously more of a macro level issue.