Susan roooooocks.

Save Firefly, which needs a sexier title but I won't deal with that til it's really most sincerely dead.

Boobs for Firefly?

"Boobs in Space"?

I'm curious now, about how other writers out there see the things they've already written, individual approaches.

I'm one who tends to writhe in horrified embarassment at remembered mistakes, so I burned the notebooks which contained the very earliest versions of a really, really big Star Wars fic I did back when the first movies came out. The "finished" version is in a binder about ten inches from my left knee, so it didn't die a final death, just evolved. I'm *almost* tempted to wish I still had those notebooks so I can see how I progressed as a writer, but not really. I remember. And the me 20 years later has a vague itch to rewrite the thing one more time, but Amy would probably commit me.

I can generally let the things I've written recently rest in a state of sufficient accomplishment, though I tweak little things occasionally if I'm reading on the computer. Sometimes I go, "Hm, fairly bland plot twist there, should have done that to pitch the conflict a little clearer." And sometimes I stare at a phrase or situation and go, "Dear God, I *can* write."

I think I fit Amy's description of "writes well but has no story to tell" . I understand the concept of getting better at one's work, and expect to work to achieve that. I have a standard, but it is my own, and I don't compare my work, my working style, my word count, or my success or lack of it to anyone else, nor have I expected to achieve results similar to anyone else's. That part of being a writer doesn't interest me.

I'd love to sell something new, it would be validating, in that way that remuneration is validating. But basically? I'd be really really thrilled to have an idea burning in my head that I could wrestle with and spend the day in that world and hear those characters in my head, and some days get it right, even if days in a row I didn't. I had that. It's gone, and I have no idea whether it will ever come back.

Hand up over in this corner, Allyson, when you're ready for readers.

I got the bad writing out of the way early on: really bad novel at age 15, in bad Italian, grandiose and self-indulgent and thoroughly pointless. No idea where it is, but the point is, never been ashamed of it. It was a story. I told it, however badly. I put too much me into it - I was 15, for fuck's sake - and then put it away for two years. I looked at it again, burst out laughing, and never looked back.

There was a story in there, and characters, ones on a journey.

Allyson, also with the beta, please, ma'am. And title: "Emotional Rescue, Deep-Space Style"?

OK - I gloat gloat gloat.

Completely up to date photo of Isle of Dogs.

See the south bank, the big white rectangles in the river? That's the Royal Naval Dock Yard. Not too far from there, in Greenwich, just to the east? Was Henry VIII's manor house, Pleasaunce (aka Placentia). He married three of his wives there, including Anne of Cleves.

Directly opposite the Royal Naval Dock Yard is a small green undeveloped square. It's where I'm going to set my 16th century haunt-inducing crime.

My story just fell into place.

Gloatygloatgloat.

Happy now.

I'm almost ready for Beta reading of Save Firefly, which needs a sexier title but I won't deal with that til it's really most sincerely dead.

Hey, and finally I'll be able to ask to read it on time!

Whenever I read the words "Save Firefly", I think about the big red button in (wait for it) "Out of Gas"¹. I can't help it - my mind immediately goes to that visual place.

It's really interesting reading about the different approaches of everybody here. Nothing to add, sadly, just waving to the people I haven't posted with for so long.

¹ deb, and anybody else who hadn't watched "Firefly" - it's the one episode I can't stop falling in love with. Also, embarassingly enough, I can't stop posting about it, either.

I didn't have the same love affair with FF that some of you all did, but Out of Gas was the best episode...possibly its playing with cop show forms had something to do with that. Obsessed? Nah.

Monday means new drabble topic time!

Challenge #27 (the 2 choices of art-themed drabbles) is now closed.

Challenge #28 comes from Deb, who suggested the theme fateful encounters, which is a theme that seems to need some dramatic music playing behind it. Fateful Encounters!!! [dum-dum-DUM!!!]

Go to it. Background music not required, because I'm just being a dork about it to amuse myself. You get that, right?

Someone remind me how much better I'll feel if I just go ahead and make the one or two tiny edits where I think DH had good points and get these contest entries in the mail today. Also that that'll free me to finish polishing the partials I'm planning to mail to the editor and agent I met at the conference no later than 10/27.

Do it to it, Susan. You know you want to.