You know what's awesome?  Being up before dawn.  Seriously.  It's pretty cool.  I just wish there were a way to do it that included sleep.

But for now, I have a little time to post something.

I finished reading The Left Hand of Darkness, by Ursula K. Le Guin.  It had been on my list for a long time.  I have switched gears to non-fiction now and am reading No Logo, by Naomi Klein. 

I have projects.  My god, do I have projects.  Fantasy Magazine has put out a call for radio plays, which is something I've been wanting to try for years, so I'm working on a radio adaptation of an existing story.  I also have a new short story underway, and have a couple of ideas for this year's novel.  

I got the first NaNoWriMo email of the year just yesterday.  I couldn't believe it was that time again already.  I've had two miserable failures in a row on NaNoWriMo (following two successes) and I would like to get back on the Win Train this year.  I do know that I will not even attempt to act as Municipal Liason this year.  I am starting school in a couple of weeks, and taking on that responsibility this year would be a recipe for failure.  I am trying very hard to avoid self-sabotage these days.

As a participant, I don't know how I'll approach it this time — whether I'll outline and notecard and plan plan plan, or if I'll just sit down with a vague idea and a character and just write.  

This is something I've been thinking a lot about lately — our processes.  No two are alike.  And even just for myself, no two stories seem to get written the same way.  I don't have a process that works consistently yet.  Maybe I never will.  I keep trying new things, to see what's easier, what sticks, what produces.  I will post more on this soon.

I've also fleshed out that Adaptation idea from a couple of months ago, and have pitched it to my partner in crime and in most other things, Patrick.  It has changed somewhat since I first posted about it.  We have some things to hash out still, but I think we may have a real long-term project on our hands, so stay tuned. 

I recently settled on a real carrot for myself.  For every story I finish, I get a new Poppet from Lisa Snellings-Clark (whose work you should totally buy:)

The result will some day be an army of Story Poppets.  I'm not buying them retroactively, so for now I have a very tiny army of two.

Sigh.  The games I play with myself just to get words made.  

In other news… Patrick recently finished up a music project, which you should check out and download here.  

August is Big Nerd Month for us — tonight we are driving to Las Vegas to see Star Trek: the Experience before it closes September 1.  He was there a couple of weeks ago and thought it was awesome enough to make the drive again.  I've never seen it — haven't even done the mandatory Vegas Road Trip before.  I'm excited about it.  Then next weekend will mark one year that we've lived together, a not insignificant acheivement for a couple of strong-willed, opinionated creative types.  (A friend recently wrote, “I figured by now you'd have either married or murdered each other.”  I had to laugh.)  At the end of the month we're headed for Seattle to attend Penny Arcade Expo.  

That's the update.  I'll try to get back to writing things that matter soon.  For now I've gotta down a serious volume of coffee, pack, and go to work.  Cheers!