Progress

I have a short story that I am working on. It's different than anything that I have ever written. There are monsters. I don't write monsters. But this time, I've written monsters.

I wrote about 400 words last night. It was mostly dialogue, my favorite thing to write. I have to watch myself, though. I have a tendency to make my characters too clever. They always have the proper comeback or smart way to say something, so I have to watch myself. It's something that can take me right out of a story as a reader and I don't want to lose anyone who may read my stuff.

But I am happy with progress, even if it is on a subject I don't normally try and tackle. Like monsters. And I am having fun writing this one. It's coming easy and that's always when writing is the most fun.

And seriously, I have no idea where monsters came from.

Word count

I mentioned in a previous post that I was going to add up all of the things I'd written to see how many words total have come from my head and to the keyboard.

I started that process but there are just way too many snips and bits of things that I've written that to add it all up would take hours. Instead I added up the six best pieces I have written. That includes short stories and a few novels in progress.

Totaled up those six pieces come to almost 70,000 words. I figure that if I add up all the snips and bits I'd be pushing 100,000 words. Maybe even more than that.

Honestly,that's a little disappointing. But it's a bit motivating too. I took a few moments to read some of those main six pieces and I like them. A couple of them I like alot. They need editing in a desperate way, but the stories are solid. The writing's not too bad either. So I want to dive back into them and get them finished. I think I need to pick one piece that I feel most jazzed about and push forward with it, but that will have to wait for another day.

Favorite book finds

There was a time, a few or more years ago, that I was a regular at the used bookstore about 15 minutes from my apartment. Odd thing is, when I was there I would rarely go inside the store until it was time to pay for whatever it was that I had found.

Instead, I would spend all of my time browsing the carts out front where everything was $1. I was able to pickup some classics at great prices, but my favorite thing was to take a flier on something. I did it often and, honestly, was burned often. But there were times when I would find a book that grabbed me from the beginning and wound up being a favorite of the moment.

The best of those books was by Jasen Emmons. It was called Cowboy Angst, and from what I can tell it was his only book. It also appears to be out of print.

I don't know if it was reading at just the right time in my life or what, but the story got holdof me and I couldn't put it down. It's about Dennis, who drops out of law school to play drums in a country and western band. He spends the rest of the book dealing with his family and the ramifications of his decision. Not the best sales job on the book, I know. But I loved it and I especially loved that it was something I discovered on my own, just because I liked the look of the cover and the blurb on the back.

So, what about you? Do have a book that you stumbled upon that you wound up thinking, "Man, I'm glad I read that."

5K training: Day 1

Last night was my first night to train for the 5K. Pretty simple. I am using the training program at Cool Runnings.

I decided, spur of the moment to skip the first week and just jump to week two. Bad idea? Not sure. Last night's run was pretty easy. I never felt like I struggled the entire 20 minutes I was alternating between running and walking. I did feel like I was pushing myself. One of the reasons I skipped to the second week was because I didn't think week one would be enough of a challenge.

Once I got off the treadmill I was sweating and my heart rate was up, which was the point in the end.

I am supposed to be doing this three days a week. Not sure what the next two days will be this week, but I figure that will sort itself out.

So, one day down, who knows how many to go.

Some great advice

Joe Konrath is judging a short story contest and, through his frustration, offers a repost of some great writing tips. It's a post he wrote last year but the advice is still solid. Most of it I have read before, but it never hurts to hear/read it again. You can find the post here.

Yes, I am crazy

So after thinking about what I'd mentioned in the previous post, I have decided that I am crazy. Instead of trying a triathlon, I think I'll go small goal first and just give a 5K a shot.

I know that it's quite the step down, going triathlon to 5K, but it's a more sensible move for multiple reasons.

First, going with a triathlon would be like deciding to eat a two-pound steak as the way to break a hunger strike. I should start with a nice sandwich first. That's what the 5k is. It's a ham and cheese on rye. It's something that's much more manageable and doable since I have never tried any endurance kind of activity before.

Second, triathlons are expensive. I'd have to buy a bike. Those ain't cheap. I'd have to pay entry fees. Thanks to my shoddy research I have no idea how much that would be, but it's an expense. I've also read something about needing special clothes, some sort of unitard that can be worn while you tackle all three disciplines.

With a 5K, the only expense I'd have is the entry fee. I can do the training either at the gym, which I already pay for, or just on the street outside my apartment.

Plus, there are training programs you can follow online that will get from the couch to the race in a matter of months. And, for me, that's something that I think is important. If I were to train for a triathlon it would probably be a year or more before I was ready to compete. That's too long for me. I don't do well with distant goals. I need something that is closer and can be accomplished. The 5K will give me that.

So, that's my fitness goal for now. I want to run a 5K by year's end.

Am I crazy?

I have found myself looking at THIS site a few times the last couple of days. Not really sure what has gotten into me.

I like to swim, I think bikes are fun, and I've never thought poorly of running. Well, that last part is not exactly true. But something inside of me says I should try this. Maybe it was the folks we saw in Mexico who were in the middle of one that made me want to do it. But I am really thinking about at least starting the training to give it a try. God knows I need to get into shape and having a goal to work toward like this may be what it takes to keep my butt in the gym and working.

No better time than in the middle of a 100-degree Texas summer to kick things off, right?

Writing

I promise things will get back to writing here very soon. I know that there aren't that many folks who stop by my little corner, but when I started this it was intended as a writing blog. I am also aware that there hasn't been much writing talk lately. Hopefully that will change very soon.

While we were in Mexico and this last week being away from the day job has given me some time to think about writing and the process, and I have have some questions I'd like to pose to other writers who may stop by. I'll post them soon and look forward to the answers.

I don't know what it is that so fascinates me about the creative process, but I can read about it for hours. I love to know how others do what they do, and the steps they take to get to the end product.

Anyway,more writing stuff coming. Soon.

Transformers: the 10 word review

Just got back from seeing the new Transformers sequel. I have a soft place in my heart for these movies since I spent a nice little bit of my childhood playing with the actual toys the movies are based on.

I will admit that I was more of a GoBots guy when there was still a choice. They were made of metal and smaller, and I for me that made the difference. Looking back now, they weren't cooler. Their transformations weren't as elaborate and the toys weren't as well articulated. But they were my preference. Ultimately, I did have more Transformers than GoBots. And I watched the cartoon every day after school. But more than anything, I think the Transformers and the toys of that ilk inspired more drawing fits that hourslong play sessions. I'd create my own robot characters and make them the subject of flip books and comic books.

Watching the Super Bowl this summer there were ads for this Transformers movie, the GI Joe movie coming in August, and the Land of the Lost movie with Will Ferrell. I commented to Gina that it was like Hollywood had decided Summer 2009 would be the Summer of Jarrett's Childhood. There was a GI Joe preview tonight. Honestly, it doesn't look like much of a movie, but I'll see it. The story will be awful and I know my memory won't allow me to remember who is who, but I'll still be there. The Land of the Lost will have to be something I see at home. Will Ferrell has burned me too many times lately. Gina and I suffered through Blades of Glory and Talladega Nights in the theaters, each time leaving with the feeling we'd just wasted our money. We actually left 45 minutes in to Step Brothers we were so bothered by it. So, if we see Land of the Lost at all, it will be at home.

So, tonight's movie. Here is my 10-word-or-less review: Good, not great. Wonderful special effects, but too dang long.

Hello, USA.

We're back. Have been for two days now, but been busy ushering a new niece into the world. She's adorable and I am sure you will hear more about her later.

Mexico was fun and the beach was relaxing. The sunburn that continued to get worse and worse throughout the first day was neither.

My piece of advice if you ever go to Mexico: Don't lay under a thatched umbrella thinking that you are protected from the rays. My shoulders and legs and Gina will tell you differently.

But, other than spending the week feeling a little medium rare, we had a great time. We swam with dolphins. We went snorkeling. We explored downtown Puerto Vallarta and were assaulted by salesman hawking junk.

When we left a hurricane was spinning off the Mexican coast, but it brought us nothing but a bit of rain our first night. Every day after that was beautiful. I finished one book -- which I really enjoyed and am thinking I'll write about later -- and started another. Gina did me one better. She finished two books while we were there. I have never seen the woman read so much.

I took my computer with me and had thought I would write some. And I did. Got a couple of pages in on a short story I have been working on, but that was it. However, I am coming back refreshed and recharged, so I figure that's OK.