Wrestling with Longshots

Writing in 2017 has been interesting, but much of it feels the same. I'm still splitting my time between edits, revisions, writing fresh drafts and working on scripts (again). But what it feels like is working, working, working with no way off of the hamster wheel. This feeling keeps gnawing at me that I need to do some big, grand gesture in order to move my career along. I get this feeling every few months, but I have yet to figure out exactly what needs to be done.

I think this feeling is what's throwing me back into script writing. I still have a desire to submit something to Amazon Studios, but silly, always prepared me starting looking at the fine print again. The deal they offer isn't quite what it seems. It's a buyout--which means if they like it and they want it, they can not only block you out of any future script revisions or rewrites (which I expected), but they can also strip your name from the project. So, aside from money, what's in it for me? It puts me in a situation of bragging about getting something made, only to see that I can't prove to anyone I did it.

It's not just script writing either. I've come to the decision that I need to move beyond self publishing. I'm not giving it up entirely (I still have the third installment for Kindle Worlds to release), but I think the next new project that goes out into the world should be presented from a more traditional source. The publishing world isn't the same as it was twenty years ago. You have to have your feet planted in both sides of publishing to maximize visibility and income. Plus, you have to come up with a scheme for a weekly check. Some do podcasts, some sell useless How to Write courses, some super bloggers earn enough from advertising--I do freelancing right now, but there are so many options I feel like I'm not exploring hard enough (except for selling courses--most of them are worthless).

What does this all mean? It means I'm still going to practice drawing, even though I'd rather be writing comics than drawing them. It means I may throw myself into some other creative form if given the chance. It means I have to do what I do best--get creative to find the space I want to occupy. It'll probably cause a few brain freezes along the way (like the one I'm having right now), but maybe I'll be led in the right direction.

Hello, 2017

I didn't mean to disappear for the last couple months. I sat myself down every week to write a blog post, but everything I wrote didn't seem right. I just didn't have much to say. A new year has started. I wanted to title this post The Year of Yes, but Shonda Rhimes apparently got to that phrase first. I have to admit, I still don't have much to say, but I'm working on that--behind the scenes, as usual.

What I have tried to do is to challenge myself. I don't do resolutions, but because I love photography so much, I've decided to do a photo a day for a year. My downfall might be that I chose to use an instant camera, so I may have to switch back to digital at some point.

Anyway, I'll figure that one out. Here's one of the first  shots I took for the year (complete with a little experimentation in color flash filters). Hopefully, I'll get much more creative as the days go by. Otherwise, I'll run out of interesting subjects quickly.

What creative projects have you kicked off in the new year? 

#NaNoWriMo 2015: DAYS 7 & 8

I managed to plow through 6000+ words on Saturday. I don't know how I was able to do it, but I did it. Today, on the other hand, needs some work. As of 5pm I'm only at a few hundred words written. A lot of things contributed to this. First, I found my Diana Mini. I blew it when it came to finishing the film--I forget one vital step in rewinding it, and I ruined the whole roll. But I've learned my lesson and won't let that happen with the next roll.

The last thing in the world you want to rediscover during #NaNoWriMo is your Diana Mini. Now l just want to spend all day photographing things instead of writing. #lomography #dianamini

A photo posted by Terri (@terrideno) on Nov 8, 2015 at 6:01am PST

Of course after I found my Diana Mini in my mess of a closet, I used that as an excuse today to clean said closet. It looks great--and it only took two and a half hours that could have been precious writing time. But the day isn't over--I'll make it to 13,333 before my head hits the pillow.

Challenges and Goals, NOT Resolutions

I don't do resolutions, but I do often try to create goals and challenges for myself that are attainable throughout the year, if even I slip every once in awhile. The big goal is still the same -- working and living in New York. But the smaller goal that goes along with the traveling theme is to get to D.C. in April for the cherry blossoms. That's been on my to-do list for the past three years or so. The shorter trip is much more attainable and will give me more travel experience, even on my pitiful earnings.

I have also challenged myself to do what I do best. I am currently challenging my self to take one photo each day, write one haiku each day and write a full poem (non-haiku) each day. The poem challenge might change to revising a poem each day once I run out of ideas, but its simple a way to keep me motivated. And if I'm in a hurry, these things can be completed in less than an hour at any place I may be. In fact, it may get me away from my computer more often, which I see as a plus.

So far, I'm ahead of the game on everything but the photos, because its seems like its cheating to take more than one photo per day that counts toward this goal. However, poetry is different. I'm two days ahead on the poems and the haiku simply because I have so many ideas I'm trying to frantically get out. Even notes aren't enough -- if too much time passes I usually can't read my handwriting.

Are you challenging yourself to do anything this year?

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Monday, Monday

This week has started off better than I thought it would. I had way too much coffee and other caffeinated drinks before bed last night. I spent half the night awake and wondering why it wasn't time to get up yet! I should have just got out of bed at 3 a.m. to do my work. I gave up on sleep about 5:30... and now I'm really close to finishing work for the day. If I resist a nap, I can do almost anything--writing, photography, genealogy... the possibilities are endless. I haven't had this much free time in two months. I better enjoy it while I can. :)

A Photo

If you live in the Midwest, you know about the storms we've been getting the last few days. While nothing significant has hit my area, I did see a beautiful sunset the other day. It was a deep orange surrounded by purple. I don't think the picture I took did it justice, but you can check it out HERE. Thanks!

My Adventures in Lomography

I just realized that I haven't shared any of my lomography photos from my first Diana Mini roll. Aside from writing, photography is one of my great passions. I'm not really skilled at it, but it's fun anyway.

Here are some of the shots that I thought were decent:

Taking the time to do it right

This weekend, I was finally able to relax! It was such a change of pace for me. I was able to work on a puzzle, continue my crocheting and even turn up my iPod and just mellow out. I'm carrying this feeling over into the work week because I know how much I need to cultivate my writing rather that just slapping it down and publishing it.

My goal for this week (and for the future) is to slow down on my articles. I want to really get into the topic, think about the angles that someone would be interested in and get the story down with much more care than before. I'm tired of writing articles that are just "acceptable" to get paid. Having that attitude will never sustain my career.

I'm also planning on immersing myself into my articles by taking my own caption photos when time and subject availability permits. I'm sure most people looking for information on the Internet are completely done with the generic stock photography included with most articles. Some places that I work for I will continue to have no control over these photos, but where I do, I will certainly try my best to improve the total reading experience.

Now, it's time for the treadmill. Fun, fun. But at least I'm still on track with those resolutions I made all the way back in January! Small steps for big goals really do work.

Still Alive

When I get down in the dumps about my career or about writing in general, I usually tell myself and those in the immediate vicinity "At least I'm still alive." That usually generates a few nods, maybe a chuckle. It's important to find a bright spot even when all the dark shadows are closing in on you. I've had that happen to me a few times in this past week.

Work isn't going so well. And because of the precarious position I am in, that's all I will say about that. A major side effect of this current storm is that I have lost a lot of time that I normally devote to fiction, poetry and my general articles for online publishing. Once I get back on track with my main source of income, theses will all fall back into place. I just have to be patient and positive.

Tonight I plan to work on the last three poems I have left to write for Personas. I'm expecting the book (at least my part of it) to be done by the spring. I may need to find a little more inspiration for these poems though -- they are at this point simply titles with an idea or two written underneath or in one instance, just a topic.

Tomorrow I should have an abundance of pictures to post with all of the snow expected to come in to Indiana over the next couple days. The first round I failed to get out there before the neighborhood kids trampled and whizzed over the yard on snowmobiles. Most of those will be digital, but I'm also in the honeymoon phase with my Diana Mini, so once I get that roll developed and scanned, we'll see how those turned out (if at all!).

Caught Being Goofy

My nephew is only a month away from being 5 years old, but he sure knows how to use a camera!

Back into Photos

Around holidays and birthdays, I'm typically the designated photographer of the family. This is for a few reasons. First, I'm the only one with a 35mm SLR. Second, I have taken a couple of photography classes in the past. I like doing it, but there's still a lot for me to learn because I want to play a little more with my manual camera settings. The biggest failure I find when I do this is finding quality light for my photographs. I do not want to be limited to outside photography. I have read the camera manual upside down and every which way. I even have a cheat sheet for my aperture and shutter speed settings. But what I'm amazing with is those photographers that can adjust these at a split second to capture the image. If it were me, I would either get a shot with bad lighting or still be fumbling with the settings and completely miss the best opportunity for the shot. Oh well. I guess the best thing for me is practice since I really want to incorporate photography into my writing/editing/life business. I figure at the very least I could get some gigs taking pictures for brochures, real estate listings, or just to compliment my poetry.

Who Inspires You?

Lately, the story ideas that are supposed to fuel my career have been non-existent. I thought long and hard about this, and realized that I have not surrounded myself with the people and places that usually inspire me. Friends are the biggest inspiration for me - usually not my family. Since it is the holidays my family is the only thing around me. I'm not complaining, but I'm making a mental note that December is the hardest month for me in terms of work. Most of the time general work is lacking. And since I'm not inspired, I anxiously await January 2nd (usually still recovering on the 1st...).

This is the year I am also looking into to taking more trips, whether it's to the streets of downtown or out to the east coast. I've been planning a weekend trip to Chicago with a friend for years now, but he and I still have to find the right time when both of us can escape from work and have the money to do so. Taking trips will also give me an excuse to work with my Nikon and also try some lomography, if at all possible. I'll be working like a maniac on articles, editing and other work until then, but it should be well worth it.

How many words is that picture worth?

I love photography almost as much as I love writing. This weekend I finally convinced my family to let me take family photos. The young ones don't care - they love to smile for the camera. But it was a feat getting the older ones to let me take their picture. But I think it's extremely important to get pictures, whether in their natural element at a party or posed.

As I was looking through these photographs last night, I actually came up with a few story ideas completely unrelated to the actual person in the photo. I remember my first creative writing teacher in college used this technique to give us a writing prompt. She had us bring in a photograph and trade with someone else. I brought in a picture of one of my Buddha statues. I think I ended up with a picture of a squirrel or something. It was one of the best prompts I had ever used.

My advice to anyone stuck in a rut with their writing is to get out of reading words on a page or from a computer screen. Immerse yourself in another medium such as photography, art, or film. It will help you to better visualize and you just may get that spark of inspiration that you need.

Long Weekend

This has been a very long weekend for me, and it is certainly not over. I went home to spend time with my family, get a haircut, and also get some family photographs. Well, I chopped off my hair, but circumstances beyond my control kept me from being able to take photos of the family. But I did enjoy some of the best spaghetti... yum.

I'm hoping to get most of my work done by Friday. I only have a handful of articles to complete for one of my jobs, and the other ones are a little crazy right now, so I think I'll wait a day or two for sane people to post articles with reasonable guidelines. Then I'll have to start packing. I only have about eight more weeks here and then I'm moving out. It'll be a crazy summer, but at least I won't have to fork over an enormous amount of money for a sub-par apartment anymore.

But I can't slow down. I have to go and find a new job. One that will actually let me enjoy writing or editing and still earn a decent amount of money. That's just a far-fetched dream, right?

Birds!!

If anyone wants to check out the pictures of the cardinal that lives in the tree next to my dining room window, go to Picable and you'll find those pictures (among others). One or two look a little funny because I have plastic over my windows to keep out the winter chill (which it does NOT do). Enjoy anyway.