Hello from the Writing Ogre!

Have a photo of a deeply unsettling ogre. You're welcome.

So those of you who are following me because I write, not because I read, have probably noticed I don't post much about my writing any more. The main reason for this is that I usually say everything I want to say about my writing on my Twitter. So if you're serious in your stalking of me, you might want to go over there.
That being said, I figured I should talk about some of the writing projects I'm working on right now. I am writing much more this year than I have since 2008 (ah, the good old days!??).

Beta version of "Mad As Gods"

This is my 2010 Nanowrimo. It's a sequel to my 2007 Nano, it's quite rough, and it doesn't really know what it's trying to be, who it's trying to star, or what it's trying to say. There's a lot of love and bad jokes (as in stupid) and innuendo (as in sketch) and gratuitous snakes. I'm sharing it slowly with my small core of awesome Nano-ites, and getting super fantastic feedback (as in helpful, not as in "omg this story is perfect in every way" XD). It's always great to know what people like, and more importantly what they do NOT like. Then I can get a sort of idea of what is working and what isn't.
I am also getting to read my friends' Nanos, and giving them feedback. That's also really helpful for me (besides them, of course, lol) because it forces me to look at how their story is working, how they've structured it, etc, and how various bits work and various bits don't work. The benefits of analysis, fellow writers, are legion.

Drafting "Batty, Batty, Bats"
This is one of those projects that is pure sugar and cream. There is nothing not fun about writing this story, but I'm certain that once I finish it, I will never touch it again. It's just not publishable for a lot of reasons, mostly structural. It's kinda like one big character development/psychological exploration. It revolves around one character who has a lot of trauma in his past, and I start with him as a teenager and then go through his 30s or so, just kind of visiting the significant turning points in his life. Almost like a coming of age story, but prolonged and, yeah, very psychological. This description almost makes it sound smart, LOL! But it's mostly hilarious banter and panic attacks and misunderstandings and BAD CHOICES. It's also set in a night-club, so, seriously, what is not fun about that.
This story was/is also a great outlet for all of the stuff I wanted to include in "Mad As Gods," but couldn't, either because of plot constrictions or world constrictions or because I was trying to keep tiny-minor characters from hijacking the story. "BBB" grew from "Mad As Gods" in a lot of weird, unexplainable ways.

Short stories
A couple of friends and I committed to sending each other a new short story every week, or at least an excerpt of something we're working on. There has been a bit of cheating going on, for all of us, I think, but we've all written a lot of stuff we otherwise never would have written. I'm actually struggling with this project right now, because all I want to write is "BBB," but hopefully soon I will get back in gear.

Editing Snazel's stories
I'm also helping a friend edit some short stories that she's going to submit to get into a writing workshop (or somesuch). It's a lot of pressure, lol! I want to be as helpful as I can, which means I'm wayyyy over-analyzing everything, and I have to figure out how to communicate my thoughts on various bits and word choices and such. It's a hard game, but it's also helping my writing-brain figure stuff out, which is fabulous.

So I just wrote this.

"He yawned and shifted, and realized that not only was someone lying beside him, but that someone was breathing in the room besides himself. As opposed to waking up next to a corpse, which would be ten times creepier."

It was one of those times when you're writing, and stop after a sentence, and question when, exactly, you thought you might have the skills to write for a living. XD

Bats are nocturnal, fast, and out of their minds

750words is my new favorite site. I heard about it last year, tried to use it last month, and am finally utilizing it this month. It's basically a blog site, but very simple, private, and is geared for Wrimos and the like. You can earn fun badges if you write 750 words a day for enough days in a row, or if you complete challenges or do other jolly things. It also has search and export functions for your entries, stats, and stats on other people to keep you competitive and all that. Plus, it is soooo satisfying to see the little Xs at the top to show how many days in a row you've done your wordcount. I don't know why it's easier to use this site rather than stare at my Microsoft Word and demand I write 750 words. I mean, it's completely mental. Check it out, tell me what you think. :D

I've started a new story called "Batty Batty Bats." I don't actually know what it's about yet (superheroes, contemp. pantheon, organized crime? Idk!), but it's a lot of fun. Here are three very short excerpts from it:

The first is after the main character Saul gets injured.

A ferocious roaring filled his ears, drowning out that thought, and a deep, rhythmic thud made his bones ache. Was he back at Damien's club? It was like listening to Daft Punk while drunk and hungover and under water.
Screams. Shouts. The roaring ceased--no, was replaced by the roaring of voices. Saul wished they would stop.
They stopped.
Cool, Saul thought. I wish for a pony and a plastic rocket.

The second is an early morning convo between Lyssa and Alex, two randoms.

"Your hair," Lyssa said, unable to control her response.
Alex raised an eyebrow. "Yes?"
"It's purple."
"And four people saw Damien come out of your room this morning."
Lyssa considered this. "Fair enough."

And the third is the plot trying to animate itself, but turning into a sideshow to Damien's feature film.

"Saul! SAUL!"
"Yes?" Saul asked.
"I need MEN!" Damien announced.
"What kind of men?" Saul asked, bemused.
"PRETTY ones!"
Saul stared at him. "Are you intoxicated? It's 9 in the morning!"
"Why wait for alcohol?" Damien waved a hand expansively as he walked toward him. "Silly!"
"I saw him put tequila in his morning coffee," Alex said, popping his head out of the doorway beside Saul.
"Holy-" Saul started.
"Get me men, Saul!" Damien repeated.
Saul looked at the ceiling for patience and divine comprehension. "What kinds?"
"At least one sniper, two marksmen, and maybe a demolitions man, just to be thorough."