I’m also planning to make some changes around here – expect a new look to the site before the year is out. Ideally I’ll combine that with at least monthly posting on the blog. (A much more achievable 12 in ’12 for me, though with my posting track record, let’s not hold our breath.)

My convention junket this year is still being set. I’m planning on the Gathering, so I can represent the SFR side of the FF&P genre. I’m seriously looking at Nationals in Anaheim. Beyond that, it’s hard to say where I might end up. As always, if you’re going to be in the same location as me, send a wave my way. I’m always happy to say hi to people.

So here’s to bigger and better things for 2012 – at least until a giant solar flare degausses the Van Allen belts, or whatever vaguely scientific reason Roland Emmerich had for the apocalypse in that movie. All I’m asking is, whatever the reason for the end of the world, let it wait until after I’ve had a chance to see The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.

I’m off to see the elephant, you see.

At this year’s RWA Nationals, author Candace Havens presented a workshop on “Fast Drafting.” The object is to get the brilliant story you’ve locked away in your head out on paper before your brain has a chance to muck it up. It’s a grueling and arduous attempt, that makes NaNoWriMo seem an absolutely sane pace by comparison, but it also sounds like exactly what I need.

I’ve joined up with some other like minded  authors, so we can support each other as we dive into this strange and crazy thing. And when it’s all said and done, we will surface together, accomplished, exhausted, and proud parents of a (admittedly mistake ridden) first draft. But it will be on the page, and sometimes that’s the hardest part.

I don’t know what it looks like, but I will definitely see the elephant before we’re done. And it’s as exhilarating and terrifying all at once as I would expect it to be. I look at my outlines and scene cards (I’m still a plotter after all). The dear C.A. Young has helped me hammer out the kinks (or at least smooth the rough spots) to get it as ready as I can be. So now all that’s left to do is take the plunge. And let me tell you, I can’t wait.

See you on the other side, Ray.

The Gathering – the annual awards dinner for the Fantasy, Futuristic and Paranormal genre chapter was once again a smashing success, and the PRISM awards were handed out to some incredible writers. Science Fiction Romance was well represented (and even got a pair of nods at the Rita Awards for Marcella Brunard’s great romp “Enemy Within”).

Speaking of SFR – this year’s keynote speaker was Sherrilyn Kenyon, and there weren’t many dry eyes in the room after she told her story of triumph and success despite what seems like insurmountable adversity. Her signature, on the inside cover of my Nook, will be a reminder of her inspiring story, and will definitely be a place for me to look when  I think it’s “just too hard” to do this crazy carousel. By comparison, I can assure you that I haven’t even begun to see a rough road.

Dry eyes were also hard to find during the Rita and Golden Heart awards – RWA’s yearly awards for published works and unpublished manuscripts. Most of the recipients got teary eyed with joy, and we followed right along with them. Tales of unwavering support, loyalty, and love reminded us that no matter how much this feels like a solitary endeavor, none of us exists in a vacuum.

Old friends were met, and tales of the last year were swapped (because despite all the time spent writing, I and many others are simply rubbish at answering our e-mail). New friends were met, and friendships kindled over drinks, cheesecake, and more drinks. Workshops filled us with new ideas, and if other folks are like me, left with notes about current and upcoming manuscripts scribbled hurriedly in the margins around their notebooks. Critique groups formed, and so did plot brainstorming circles. Manuscripts were pitched (and some of those will probably be started in the coming weeks, no matter what their state was declared to be when pitched).

In other words, it was the best of times and I was sorry to see it end. Now the challenge will be to keep the magical feeling of that time alive in the weeks after the Big Show has ended. Fortunately, like everyone else I talked to, I came away with my creative batteries at full charge, eager to take on the world and pour myself into the writing at a fever pitch. I hope that everyone else who attended got as much out of it as I did.

Reason number 2 to stop by? I’ll have the first set of Romance Trading Cards for Hearts and Minds! I just got them back from the printer, and I think Kim at Hot Damn Designs! outdid herself on these beauties.

Of course, if you can’t make it to the big apple, I understand. You’re in luck, as July 16 I will be signing at Rose’s Bookhouse from noon to 2pm. There’ll be more RTCs than you can shake a stick at, too, since I’ll be there with Sela Carson, Jennifer Jakes, Kimberly Killon, and Annamarie McKenna. I’m flattered to be next to such luminaries, and definitely recommend stopping by.

Actually, sometimes that happens pretty early. Not because I don’t love my WIP (I do – the Heroine is one of my favorites since Syna Davout), but because I am fighting issues with my magpie mind something terrible. It’s very much a case of “Ooh shiny!” and “Do this!” that can be a bit of rough trade to bring under control as I’m going. And of course that’s what I’m going to talk about today.

I love to knit (after all, practically a third of this blog is dedicated to my knitting), and a lot of times that’s all I need to do to still the magpie mind. It’s a form of meditation, and it doesn’t take more than 20-30 minutes before I’m focused and calm and ready to shift over from the day to my writing.

But that’s not good for everyone, and even for me it can be rough. That’s why I really like what Holly Lisle refers to as “Candy Bar Scenes” – those scenes you just can’t wait to write. I find that if I can tweak a scene, adding a conflict or an element I hadn’t thought about originally, it can often switch my mindset from “work” to “treat”. I get excited about writing the scene, and when that happens I know that some of my excitement gets transferred to the readers.

So that’s my method, for when the Magpie Mind wants to do something – anything else. If I’m not excited about the scene, I try to step back and decide why. I ask myself if it really needs to be in the story, or if I can move the plot along better by putting the important elements of the scene in another place and dropping the scene. I ask myself if there’s something I can add to up the stakes for the character. I work myself towards excitement, and excitement follows.

How about yourselves, dear (loyal, patient) readers? Any particular methods that you fall back on again and again to keep your mind on the right track?

Keeping Up (with) Appearances:

• April 16 will see me signing copies of Impulse Power at the Barnes and Noble in Crestwood, MO. I’ll be the person sitting next to the far more talented Allie Harrison. Don’t have a copy of Impulse Power? They’ll have them for sale!
• I’m returning to RWA Nationals this year, and thrilled beyond measure that I get to hit the Big Apple. I’ll once again be running myself ragged trying to do everything at once, but Nikki Enlow has made me promise to do Karaoke at least one night…
• In July, I’ll be doing another book signing for Impulse Power, this time over at Rose’s Bookhouse. I’ll have more information as the date gets closer.

So yes, there’s links below, some old, some new and some just things I felt like sharing. Come back Monday for a real post. In the meantime, things you might like to see:

Links:

• If you’re like me, you’re probably worried about the things that have been leaking out about the remake of Conan (Even if it does have a line from “Queen of the Black Coast” in the trailer, and a lot of Jason Momoa’s abs). If so, remind yourself of the original film with a Musical Adaptation: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBGOQ7SsJrw
• Smart Bitches, Trashy Books wins my heart (at the cost of my already damaged liver) by linking us all to the incredibly awesome Jane Austen Drinking Game, complete with live video. http://www.smartbitchestrashybooks.com/index.php/weblog/comments/friday-videos-love-womanly-skillz/
• If you’re the book buying sort, and you don’t know this already, there’s a movement to boycott Dorchester. I’m not normally into telling folks what to think, but this is the exception. I’ve had friends that got screwed in this and had to fight to get their rights back. If it helps sway your mind RWA uninvited them from the National Convention last year for “unfulfilled contractual obligations “. Brian Keene began it all here: http://www.briankeene.com/?p=6140 and for another author’s take you can go here: http://www.stacydittrich.com/blog/2011/03/guess-what-dorchester-its-on/
• A bit of good news for fans of the Glastonberry Thorn – despite last year’s horrific vandalism, there is new growth on the tree: http://www.thisissomerset.co.uk/news/New-life-holy-tree-welcomed-great-news/article-3363186-detail/article.html
• And while we’re talking about religion, there’s few things make me smile as much as the Saga of Biorn: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MV5w262XvCU

Dark Sun once again graces the table of people who like their fantasy post-apocalyptic and dark. I’ve praised this before in these electronic pages, and it should be no surprise to see it in my list for top picks this year. It is, simply, the best use of the 4e engine so far, modifying the set-up to create a world that feels on the verge of total collapse.

On the Post Apocalyptic front, I finally had a chance to play the new version of Gamma World. It’s just as over the top and crazy as it has always been, and possibly even more so. Mutations rise and fall in the heroes, while technology is dangerous and unreliable. Character generation is random and quick, and players aren’t expected to live long. It’s a blast.

My winner for great games this year though has to be Fiasco. It’s a loose, narrativist rpg designed to set up the kinds of nightmarish failed heist stories that make for some of my favorite movies (Big Lebowski, Snatch, Fargo and the like.) Invariably, it spirals out of control and everything falls apart, and in the breaking becomes even more entertaining. Highly recommended.

Of course, any recap of the year in RPGs would be empty if I didn’t mention Paizo’s Pathfinder, for which I’ve written a bit of fiction. If you like your D&D more pulpy and a little old school, (but not retro-clone levels of old-school). It’s a good time, with some great settings.