Lauren K. Moody (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
anthimeria) wrote2011-01-13 05:32 pm
anthimeria) wrote2011-01-13 05:32 pm
In sickness and
So, came down with a crazy mutant cold that won't go away and makes me fuzzy-brained. I am completely unable to edit while sick--it requires too much brainpower. You have to keep track of plot and character and what you're supposed to be fixing and . . . nope, too much.
After my last entry, I poked around my older posts and found an almost identical post about how hard it was to start writing Skywatch. Now, I guess I'll only be able to test this theory when I start writing Sanctuary, but I wonder if the issue is Skywatch itself? For a book that I thought was going to be easy, it's been a bear. Not bad, just difficult. It requires a lot more of my energy per word than The Novel ever did (okay, not ever, but on average it's the same amount of work and Skywatch is half as long. Do the math).
Also, in between getting sick and editing middlegrade steampunk, I have been reading every Miles Vorkosigan book my library has. I'm about to head out to other branches, because these books are awesome. Mind you, most of the ones I've read have been with an older Miles--late twenties and early thirties. The Baen Free Library has Warrior's Apprentice, one of the early Miles books, and I suspect that while I'll like the book I might not like Miles the character as much. I like my heroes a more practical and less impulsive, which from Miles's internal monologue in Komarr is not at all how he behaved. Still, I'm excited to read it, and I really enjoy the combination of genres Bujold handles seemingly effortlessly--adventure, sci-fi, mystery, romance--I sound like a 60s movie preview with less exclamation points. Nevertheless, I like this lady's work and am going to head out to other libraries and track more down.
The best part for library-dependent me is that you don't have to read them in order!
Last bit of news is that I've collected an astonishing number of rejection letters for the two new short stories I started submitting in 2011. Three each so far and the month isn't even half over yet. I think that's kind of impressive. At least it means I'm submitting again!
After my last entry, I poked around my older posts and found an almost identical post about how hard it was to start writing Skywatch. Now, I guess I'll only be able to test this theory when I start writing Sanctuary, but I wonder if the issue is Skywatch itself? For a book that I thought was going to be easy, it's been a bear. Not bad, just difficult. It requires a lot more of my energy per word than The Novel ever did (okay, not ever, but on average it's the same amount of work and Skywatch is half as long. Do the math).
Also, in between getting sick and editing middlegrade steampunk, I have been reading every Miles Vorkosigan book my library has. I'm about to head out to other branches, because these books are awesome. Mind you, most of the ones I've read have been with an older Miles--late twenties and early thirties. The Baen Free Library has Warrior's Apprentice, one of the early Miles books, and I suspect that while I'll like the book I might not like Miles the character as much. I like my heroes a more practical and less impulsive, which from Miles's internal monologue in Komarr is not at all how he behaved. Still, I'm excited to read it, and I really enjoy the combination of genres Bujold handles seemingly effortlessly--adventure, sci-fi, mystery, romance--I sound like a 60s movie preview with less exclamation points. Nevertheless, I like this lady's work and am going to head out to other libraries and track more down.
The best part for library-dependent me is that you don't have to read them in order!
Last bit of news is that I've collected an astonishing number of rejection letters for the two new short stories I started submitting in 2011. Three each so far and the month isn't even half over yet. I think that's kind of impressive. At least it means I'm submitting again!
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Congrats on submitting again; condolences on the rejections.
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I did check out the Baen free library, which I love.
Thanks re: submissions. Good luck with VP!
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. . . y'know, Baen is right. My first thought upon realizing that they really were giving all these books away was "So, I totally have to read them all and then go buy my favorites." Which I never would've done if I hadn't read them first. So go Baen.
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(The only one that's missing is Memory, which you definitely have to read. It's the best of them all. Many fans agree. It goes between Mirror Dance and Komarr, and it's got Miles redefining himself. I...can sympathize there.)
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I have a mostly spoiler-free post on my blog over here. (No plot details revealed, just discussion of thematic issues.)
Seriously, this book is so meaningful for me, for reasons implied in that post. I had the excerpt between Miles and Harra in my user profile here for a while. Redefining your life after everything you've worked for your whole life goes to shit... got the scars to prove it.
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Thank you!
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b) Do you have any of the triggers commonly warned for in fanfiction?
There are two camps on where to advise people to start. If they like a bit of romance and action/adventure, start with Cordelia's Honor (warning: rape). If they like the space opera-y bits, start with Young Miles. They don't have to be read in order, it's true, but it helps. I definitely advise people not to start with Memory. It's my favorite of the bunch, but you don't get the full impact without knowing Miles, Gregor, Illyan, and everyone else.
(And they're totally legitimately free at the link in my previous comment :D )
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Once I was assured they *could* be read out of order, I dove in. I'm a comic book fan--order is for people who don't have 70 years of canon. ;)
If you *want* to read them in order, I'd go with feuervogel's suggestions.
I'm becoming quite the Lois McMaster Bujld fan in general--the first book of hers I read was Curse of Chalion, and its kinda-sequel Paladin of Souls, which are fantasy. I think you'd like them.
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I'm sorry you're sick! Feel better soon! *hugs*
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