On writing

I think I just won the prize for fastest turnaround time for a rejection letter/email ever. I submitted my query to a literary agent via email at 4:56 PM yesterday afternoon. The response email was sent at 1:30 AM (the agency in question is in the U.K.). That's...what...about 7 1/2 hours. I don't know whether to be grateful that it was swift and relatively painless, or annoyed that it was so easy to dismiss what I had to offer.

They did say 'but good luck anyway' at the end of the 'we're not accepting new clients' part, though. Which is a step above a postcard rejection I once received for a comic book submission to Dark Horse Comics. That one consisted of the words "No Thanks" scribbled across the improbably large bosom of one of their female characters. Classy.

Lately I've been thinking a lot about writing. Observing things around me, collecting blog fodder. When it comes to actually writing any of it down, I've been in total lazy slug mode. Well, at work I've been in total 'too much REAL work' mode. And when I get home in the evenings, feed the cats, run errands, do tae-bo (when I'm not too tired for exercise), and make dinner, sometimes the only energy I have left is the amount it takes to operate my 'waiter's helper' and open a bottle of wine for my medicinal glass of red. Then my cats will settle on my lap and how am I supposed to move them to get my iBook? C'mon, Jobs, if you're so friggin' smart, can't you make a computer that'll come when it's called?

I've been reading more blogs too. Not as many as Mr. Fabulous, my favorite male blogger. I don't know how he writes as many posts as he does, what with his blog roll, not to mention his guest blogging. But enough to make me realize that there are a lot of excellent writers out there (I include the authors of my current blog roll in this estimation, btw). And they're prolific.

One of them, CP (I recommend her blog, An Oxymoron is Not an Idiot with Zits, very highly) seems to possess an ease of writing style that gives the impression that words just flow out of her without any hesitation. Funny, well-written, touching, sometimes horrifying (her four part post on domestic abuse is as powerful as any memoir I've ever read). Sometimes her posts are totally off the wall and nutty as hell, including things that I'd never write about because...well...my MOM reads my blog, y'know, and there are just some things that she doesn't need to read about her baby girl. Doesn't mean I don't love to read about 'em when other people are writing 'em, though! My favorites, however, are the ones that basically recount conversations between herself and her daughter/mother/whoever. Just love this woman's voice.

Mr. Fab says when it comes to writing, CP makes him feel like she's using a Bic Butane lighter and he's trying to generate the same thing by rubbing two sticks together. I feel like I'm missing a stick.

I won't be writing this weekend. I'm going to Los Angeles, specifically to emcee a Twilight Tour at EFBC. I'll be seeing my favorite tiger, Caesar.



When you check out Mr. Fab's blog, please note his avatar, which happens to be a picture of Caesar. This Saturday I'll be getting kisses from Caesar. So I guess I'll be kissing Mr. Fab in some weird sort of way. That's okay. He won the award for Sexiest Male Blogger, so I should probably be honored to get smoochies by proxy. I wonder if he generates as much drool as Caesar.

When I get home I'm back on the CHILL rewrite trail. I plan on pounding out the next section as quickly as possible. Maybe another trip to my Saturn dealership is in order; I seem to have no problems with writer's block when I'm hanging out in their waiting room.

Time to go home now.

Yes. I wrote this at work.

Don't tell.