Musings about o-fic, writing in general, and life with pets

[wordinista]

It's funny.  I thought I hadn't touched my original-fiction folder since November, but as it turned out, I did some writing back in May.  Something else that's funny -- I'd managed to convince myself that Universal Truths was the suckiest bunch of suck that had ever sucked, and I'd be doing myself a favor if I deleted the whole damned thing and started over from scratch.

And...um.  You know?  It... doesn't suck, actually.  I'm still stuck, because I just don't know how to start the next chapter, but... it's actually marginally less-sucky than I remember it being.  And I'm finding myself looking forward to jumping back in and working on it in earnest again.  At least it has a plot.  The untitled vampire-fic doesn't even have that.  It's just a premise-bunny at the moment, but my premise-bunnies usually evolve into huge monster were-rabbits, and often at the most inopportune moment.  So I'm going to keep scribbling down my ideas for that one, and keep my focus on UT.  I think once I figure out whose POV I should use, the chapter itself will fall into place rather nicely. 

I do wonder if half my problem is this stubborn insistence I have of writing it in chronological order.  I gave in to the urge to write a future scene, because it had been banging around in my head so frequently, and it came out on paper exactly how I saw and heard it in my head.  I just want to get out of this dry spell.  It's killing me.  I think that's why I've pushed myself towards finishing my unfinished fanfiction projects (*coughcoughOGAMcough*) -- fanfiction is infinitely easier than original fiction, and if I can at least get the gears turning, then the ideas and inspiration will start coming, and then I'll get myself back onto a routine again.  Hopefully this year the holidays will not squash my creative spirit into paste.  Tora's parents being out of the equation probably won't hurt things, either.

Unfortunately, I'm one of those people who gets some of my best ideas while talking with other people.  Because when I pitch an idea to someone who knows me and in whom I have a lot of trust, they'll return the volley with either a suggestion or criticism that gets me thinking.  And once that spark ignites, I'm a writing fool.  That said, I really hate bothering people, and I've felt particularly self-conscious about it lately, so I've stopped dragging my victims friends down into my brainstorming hell, because for a while I felt as if that's ALL I was talking about, and I thought that I was being tiresome and a pain, so I just quit.

I need to find new ways to jump-start my brain.

In pet news, Bronte is doing much better these days.  She's put on some much-needed weight, and her coat is as shiny and thick as it should be.  I'm very happy with her improvement.  Even her personality is back to normal -- she's getting in trouble again. ;)  She's got a follow-up appointment tomorrow morning, and I'm looking forward to seeing how much weight she put on in two weeks.  She was 8.1 lbs at the last visit (well within "normal" parameters for a cat, but not Chunky Puff -- she was more towards 10-11 lbs, I think, maybe even 12, and it suited her).  I say she's between 9.5 and 10.5 lbs.  Tora thinks she's back to 12.  We'll see. :)

Darwin's being remarkably tolerant today.  Possibly because he had a big day yesterday.  Aussies are a high-energy breed, but Darwin will occasionally have a low-key day, finding amusement in his toys (or the cats).  We're having one of those days today, because I feel pretty lousy, still.  I may take him to Petsmart with me, because he is in dire need of kibble, and he loves going to Petsmart.  My only hesitation comes from the fact that an excited 44 lb. mass of nearly-grown puppy doesn't always blend so well with the handling of a 20 lb. bag of kibble.  I love my boy, but there are certain situations that are still wildly stimulating for him, and exactly NONE of the obedience tricks work to calm him down when we go to Petsmart or to the pond parties.  None. Of. Them. 

And it kills me, because he's pulling like crazy on his leash, and I can hear him choking on his collar, and still he pulls.  And I make him stop and sit and wait, but the second I release him from the sit, he's lunging forward, pulling like crazy again.  So I end up looking like an irresponsible pet owner who cannot control her dog. But this only happens at Petsmart, the doggy park (though he IS getting better about that), and the pond parties, because they are places Darwin knows and loves.  We go on regular walks, and, okay, he pulls a little, but I can control him, and eventually he settles down.  But I hate how much of a spaz he becomes when I take him to those specific places.  And I have to keep taking him, because otherwise he'll never learn.  But it's starting to feel like he'll never learn anyway.

On the other hand, as my mother is so fond of reminding me -- he's just a puppy.  He's 8 months old.  The woman at my vet's office said once, "The thing with Aussies is this -- if you can both survive the first two years, they're the best dogs you could ever hope for."

Eight months down, sixteen to go.  Woo.

The other thing I hate is that he pulls so hard in these particular situations, that when I dig my heels in and stop, I worry that it looks like I'm swinging him around on the leash.  It's like... he pulls, and I stop, and his momentum makes him swing to the side, somehow.  I don't know.  Maybe I worry too much -- but one of these days, I'm convinced someone's going to be all, "OMFG WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO THAT POOR ANIMAL?"

I spoke pretty harshly about training collars before, but I'm starting to think that I may actually give it a try when we start the next obedience class.  I'd never try them on my own -- I want to know the proper way to use them, and which would be best for Darwin.  But I've spoken with too many handlers and trainers and breeders who have excellent results when a prong or choke collar is used correctly.  So we'll see.  He's got a very dominant personality, and while the training methods I've been using so far have been met with success, leash training has always been an area where there have been problems.

It's something to think about, at any rate.

ETA: Okay, what is it with my dog making a liar out of me? We went to Petsmart, and aside from some crazy, spazzoid behavior upon first walking in, for the rest of the time, he was better than I've ever seen him behave. (I wonder if it had anything to do with the fact that on this visit, I was pushing a cart as well? I don't know.) And of course he had to "stand up" and put his ginormous paws on the counter as I was checking out. I like not to encourage that, but it still amuses me every time he does it.

Comments

[mscongeniality.livejournal.com]

Feel free to bounce stuff off of me any time you want (by phone or IM). There's no need to feel guilty, as I'm also one of those people that works best by bouncing things off of other people. I'll just consider it karmic retribution to months of regaling my suitemates with details of leprosy, syphillis, animal skeletons and skyscrapers when I was in college. ;-)

[dqbunny.livejournal.com]

You even think about deleting Universal Truths and I am flying my little Bunneh butt to Florida and kicking yours. That story is absolutely delicious and rekindled my interest in Jane Austen. You get tempted to delete it and I will go scrounge up every copy I can find and keep my grubby Bunneh hands on it.

And don't ever be afraid of bouncing ideas off of me. Because being bounced is what Bunnehs do!

...

Did that sound wrong to you too?

Love, Bitteh Bunneh.
Because some Bunnehs just have to go medieval on you.

[everstar3.livejournal.com]

Teen dog! I know I say it a lot, but... yes. Teen dog. I think it took our cats a couple of years to mellow out, too. Maybe you should ask his breeder or someone whose opinion you trust before you go for an obedience collar? Just a thought.

And of course Universal Truths doesn't suck. I could've told you that! XD

[therhoda.livejournal.com]

I know you normally don't but if you want a fresh eye on something all you have to do is mail it to me. Now the one warning on that is I might ask nicely if you would read something on mine that may or may not be on its second time through the betas. (as I would not send you raw rhoda writing your eyes they would bleed) But as I have told you before if you need to talk I am around and always glad to share the great horde of plot bunnies that live under my desk.

As for Darwin he's still a puppy, really anyone that start calling you irresponsible isn't paying attention. Something you could try on the his favorite places thing is to try to take him more often which sounds so much easier than I realise it is. I have no doubt that in your next 16 months you both will get so comfortable that you will be good anywhere you want to go.

[smartycat.livejournal.com]

I've said it before and I'll say it again. Training collars are not the greatest evil known to dogdom. They are tools that can be used correctly and safely or incorrectly with disastrous results. (Prongs in particular must be fitted very carefully.) A good trainer should, before asking you to put any training collar on your dog, instruct you to put one on yourself so you'll know what it does, what it feels like, and what level of force to put behind it. Alternatively, you could try one of the no-pulling harnesses. There are also groups on lj: dogtrainers (tag list here) and dogsintraining.

When you were pushing the cart at Petsmart did you give him less slack in the leash than usual and keep him in close to you and the cart thus making it more difficult for him to pull? You might want to work on getting him to heel very close to you and putting that special heel on command. On ordinary walks I don't care if my dogs heel slightly in front, slightly behind, or directly beside of me as long as they don't pull, but they "close up" at bridges, traffic intersections, or when we pass other people.

Free writing

[hecallaghan.livejournal.com]

Someone came up with a really good suggestion about writer's block to me the other day - the notion of free writing. Basically, you just start writing whatever it is that you want, as a rough draft of what it is that you wanted to do but couldn't. The point is that it doesn't matter if it's shitty.

The thing is, that you time it on a timer. You say, "I will now write for an hour." - don't do any more than that at first, as that's too much pressure. You switch off the internet and take the phone off the hook. You tell everyone in the house that you are unavailable for comment. In this way there are no distractions and if you don't write, you'll just have to sit there in silence for an hour, watching the dust settle on the white page on your monitor.

Something that works for me (since I find the white screen of my monitor in my bedroom too intimidating) is to go out with my notebook to some nice shady nook, or a nice pub by a river, or probably in your case the beach, and just jot down stuff in that. Then, you write it up when you get home on the PC. I'm finding that most of Mephistophela is now coming together that way, because for some reason being out of my room makes me feel more creative.

If you've written more UT, then do let me see it - I'm doing it at the moment for random people all the time, I'd be more than happy to do it for you!



I've not tried it yet, but I may do tonight. One of my writing group has been using it and they say it's working fantastically for them.

[tatertott.livejournal.com]

Of course UT doesn't suck!! I don't think any of your stories are bad - I mean, I've gotten some of the best visuals from them.

I know for myself, I always get inspiration at the most random of times: driving or taking a shower. And I'm usually listening to some mind-numbing, droning techno. It's like a weird trance and suddenly I surface, not remembering the past five minutes except for this rush of visuals and omg I have to get it down on paper.