I'm Moving!!

Song of the Day: Mr. Saxobeat by Alexandra Stan

I disappeared for a bit. Dropped off the face of the planet for a few weeks. Not cool, I know. On the plus side, there is a reason for it! I moved!!!

For those of you who have been living under a rock for the past few years (or on another planet, maybe) the economy in the U.S. is not so great right now. Therefore, those of us graduating from college in the past few years have not had an easy time finding jobs. Spending a semester abroad didn't help to pad my bank account, either. So, when I graduated, I moved back in with my parents. (Horrifying, I know!)

I was lucky enough to find a temp job only a few weeks after returning home, but it didn't pay me enough to move out. Just recently, I was hired on to a big corporation and am finally earning a decent pay. My bank account is back up to acceptable levels, and I can now pay rent! Since the beginning of the month, I've been cleaning and fixing up the place and moving my things in. The most exciting part: I have an office! (Well, technically it's a second bedroom, but since it's just me, I'm making it an office.) I still have things to do, and I don't have internet service yet, but it's mine, and it's pretty, and it's quiet!

Since I've been so busy lately, the plot bunnies have been on the prowl, attacking at every chance they get. I now have a thought for an immediate prequel for my WIP, a far prequel/world building piece, several post...quels (is that a word?), and one that has nothing to do with that particular universe at all. Good thing I have markers, white boards, and flash cards, no?

What have you been up to?

Yesterday's "Aha!" moment

Once upon a time, I read somewhere (thought I can't for the life of me remember where at the moment) that you should stop writing while you still have something to write. At the time, my thought was, "What?!? That's insane!" When I get writing, I want to keep writing and writing until I run out of things to say and have no more words to put on the page. I keep going and going until I'm totally worn out and have no clue where I'm headed next.

Cue moment of brilliance:

Yesterday, I was forced to stop writing because it was finally time to leave work. I had my swim fitness class at the gym afterward, and I was a little worried that I would forget everything I had in mind for the scene I was working on. However, yesterday's workout consisted of lots of distance sets. For anyone who hasn't done a nice, long distance swim, once you get into the rhythm it's hypnotic. I often use distance sets to plot out what's going to happen next or where the characters are going. It wasn't until one of the last sets, a 400 meter one (that's a long distance in the pool, trust me) that it hit me; having that little bit left to write gave me a building block for the next scene. Instead of having a dead end at which to start, I had a bit of a lead into it. It was fantastic! I think I got more done in the eight minutes it took me to finish the set than I had in hours before when starting from scratch. Brilliant!

So there ya go. Stop writing before you run out of things to write.