Victory is mine!

First draft of second novel complete at 50,265 words.

3 days early.

I will now allow myself a month to put it aside and think about other things-- like holiday shopping, 7 children's birthday parties between now and mid-December, assorted holiday gatherings with family and friends, one vacation, planning the daughter's 8th birthday hip hop dance party and possibly sleep (if I'm lucky). And then I'll pick it up again in January to begin revisions, and likely double its length when all is said and done.

Very productive weekend so far! Tomorrow is a birthday party, USC/UCLA rivalry game and sleepover. Sunday is holiday card photo shoot, another birthday party and a trip to visit college BFFs brand new baby. No rest for the wicked.

Now where did I put that box with the holiday decorations?

Time to give some thanks

I know, I know, it's dreadfully cliche. But I would be remiss if I didn't take note of the season and offer thanks for all the wonderful things in my life. Because lord knows I have no problems complaining about the things that are wrong!

1. Family that loves me, supports me and tolerates me-- A husband who watches reality dancing shows with me, children who leave "I love you mommy" notes in my purse, a sister-in-law who is far more like an actual sister to me, cousins and extended family that are wonderful beyond measure.

2. Friends who are like family-- from late night texting counseling sessions, to spontaneous cross-country weekend excursions, transatlantic vacations and just plain-old girls nights out, I am so lucky to have you all in my life.

3. My DVR-- without it, I would be unable to fit tv into my insanely busy life. And that's just unacceptable.

4. Social networking-- allows me to keep in touch with 200+ people with very little effort on my part. (Note to mmw: which is why I "know everyone." hahaha)

5. Writing-- gives me an outlet to be purely creative, without the restrictions of business requirements or the preferences of secretaries.

6. The fact that Matt Barkley is only a freshman-- means that, once this horrible season is behind us, the future is incredibly bright for my USC Trojans.

7. Greg Vaughan-- needs no explanation.

8. Almond Roca cookies-- they sound really weird and kinda disgusting, but trust me, they are made of awesome.

9. A relatively great sports year for my teams-- Trojans won the Rose Bowl, Lakers won the NBA championship, Yankees won the World Series. We won't talk about the 49ers.

10. All of you-- for taking the time to read my blog, comment, and just generally support me as I move toward getting published. You guys rock.

Happy Thanksgiving to all!

Yep, still Team Edward.

So I went with some girlfriends to see New Moon last night. As we are old (meaning that we can drive ourselves to the theater and don't need to ask our parents for popcorn money), we don't do standing in line. So we went to one of those grown-up theaters where you can reserve specific seats in advance and enjoy a glass (or a bottle) of wine afterward.

Our group of 8 broke down something like this:
- 4 had read all the books and would tell anyone who cared to listen (and even those who didn't) why the movies are nowhere near as good as the books
- 2 had read a couple of the books and laughed at the group of 4 listed above
- 2 had never read any of the books and only came for the girlfriend time

Full disclosure: I am most decidedly Team Edward, and have been since I read Twilight. For my own sanity, I choose to believe that the film adaptations exist separately from the books, as the Edward in my head doesn't look like a meth addict with messy hair and red lipstick. And my version of Bella actually knows how to change the expressions on her face to match what she is saying and experiencing.

Silliness aside, a fun time was had by all. And for those of our group who haven't read all the books yet, you have been put on notice. Eclipse comes out June 30th. :)

I still hate eating my vegetables

My kids are always so excited about the day when they will finally be grown-ups. Visions of staying up as late as they want, eating candy for dinner and buying all the toys they can hold are no doubt their prime motivators.

It won't be until their much older that they discover being a grown-up isn't all that it's cracked up to be. It can mean feeling crushed under the weight of responsibility...not just for yourself but for countless other people too. Or it can also mean getting yelled at by clients for things that weren't your fault (but you still have to graciously accept responsibility for anyway when what you really want to do is tell them to STFU). And it can mean realizing 33,385 words into your latest novel that you really don't like your protagonist, and would much rather write about the random supporting character who pops up midway in chapter 4.

Not to say there aren't perks that come with age. I can eat frozen waffles for dinner, spend way too much money at anthropologie on a whim or decide to go to Paris. I'm not complaining.

So at the end of the longest week ever, I can look back at accomplishments, a relatively healthy household, and a weekend filled with both spontaneous and planned outings with dear friends.

And hope that I can rediscover the love for my poor protagonist, who I really just want to smack upside the head this point for being annoying and selfish.

Happy weekend!

I guess I have a dark and twisted soul. Who knew?

Noveling is a strange endeavor. Stories that start out as one thing have this bizarre habit of suddenly changing course midstream. And before you know it, what started out as a light-hearted social satire has turned into a heart-wrenching walk on the dark side.

As strange as it may seem, the novelist has no control over this phenomenon. The characters you create suddenly evolve to exist outside of your imagination. You can guide their actions, but they tell you what has to happen to them next. Even if you really don't want them to. The best writers are the ones who recognize this and learn to let go and see where it all leads. No plans, no expectations. Just enjoy the ride. Kinda like life.

Which is why, as a well-known writer recently told me, "you never know what a book is really about until you reach the end. That is true for both reader and writer."

Jessica
18,457 words and counting.

Still alive...

...and the proud owner of a New Moon canvas tote, poster autographed by the cast, and CD of the soundtrack.

Well, maybe not so proud, as I won't actually put any of it in public where other people can see it. Gotta love press junkets!

In other news, 13,450 words in. And the hubby and I (along with a couple that shall remain nameless) were the last ones to leave the grown-up party last night. Multi-tasking is my friend.

And now that soccer teams have been cheered for, sleepover guests have been returned to their rightful owners, girls night out has been planned, dinner out with 7 adults and 8 children has been survived, baths have been given, bedtime stories were read, and word counts are on target, I will now collapse into a heap on the couch, wondering where my weekend went.

Highlights from the last 6 hours

1. I am 10,150 words into my new novel.
2. Edward Norton told me that I rock.

I'm not sure which of the two I'm more excited about.

And now I have to figure out how to fit writing time into this weekend on top of:
- watching kids do gymnastics, ballet, soccer and t-ball
- Saturday night grown-up party
- prep for daughter's saturday night sleepover (while I'm at grown-up party so all chaos is the babysitter's problem)
- organizing girls night out to see New Moon during opening weekend

Happy weekend!

And so it begins

Three days and 6000 words into the new novel, and I'm liking where it's headed so far. I went into it with a very specific idea of what it was going to be about, but it quickly veered off to someplace completely unexpected.

Just like life.

Be open to the possibilities of the things you hadn't fully considered. That is where potential magic resides. Things rarely turn out the way we plan, but if we embrace the twists and turns along the way, they oftentimes can turn out much, much better.

Note: I am still in the honeymoon phase of the story. I reserve the right to become bitter and angry once my characters no longer entertain me.