On rough seas - where the heck's Wilson?!

Yep, I love Wilson from CAST AWAY. Who's with me? I promise one day I will stop talking about Wilson.

I definitely will for now, because I have something else to talk about: the amazing advice I got recently about my "closest to being ready" novel, SUNDOWN. Turns out, it's not quite so ready! The advice was worded in a very nice way, i.e. a way that didn't even make me want to cry and give up my writing dream forever more. But it amounted to this: 1) My main character is so annoying readers may well be hoping she'll die at the end, and 2) I need to rewrite my novel.

I've never done a complete rewrite before. Not of a novel, or of a short story. Or even a poem. So, you can imagine that this is quite the daunting prospect!

So what's the problem with my novel, other than the fact that my MC may well get murdered if I don't do her a favour and rewrite her? Well, let's start with this: I've long had a problem with identifying my MC's main goal, her burning desire, in life. Way back when I was first attempting to create a query for this story (ha, how utterly premature that idea seems now!), people would ask me, "What does she really want?" and though I was sure I was really thinking hard about it and coming up with good answers...I guess I wasn't.

That's what I've done now. I've given my MC a purpose, a great burning passion, and with that, the means to stop being passive and melodramatic (yep, this too was a revelation! My MC's a drama queen! Oh. The. Horror.). With this new purpose, I have high hopes that the main weak spot in my story will be eradicated. The story will emerge strong and shiny and awesome. As will my MC.

I'm excited. I really am. Even if it means scrapping what I have (it's up to Draft #5, people!!) and starting fresh. I'm not the rewriting type. I'm the edit what you've got till you drop type. But in this case, there would just be no point in editing.

I know lots of you have been in this position before. Maybe all of you! Right?!?!!? (I'm going off to find Wilson now, I need a volleyball hug. hehe)

Tagged by Leigh Covington...after a little rant

Well, I'd have to be a robot to be able to read this!

I've seen a lot of bloggers ranting about word verification lately. The reason can be seen above! What the hell does that first word say? Believe it or not, I entered letters after squinting at the screen for a while and actually seemed to get it right. I'm not convinced, but maybe I was really that lucky. I certainly couldn't read the damn word, so it had to be pure luck.

Anyway, moving on!

A while back I got tagged by Leigh Covington, and she charged me and my fellow tagees (for the purposes of this post that is a word) with answering some questions. On that note, I used to write that 'qvestions', just for fun. Anyway, here I go with the question answering!

1. What is your dream vacation?
I've travelled a lot, but one thing I would love to do before I die (other than see the Great Pyramids, at least) is check out the Arctic Circle and see the northern lights.

2. Are you spontaneous or do you like to plan ahead?
I guess it depends on the situation. With travelling I tend to have a solid plan at least of where I'm going (I don't do open-ended tickets). But with writing and creativity in general, I tend to be more of a pantser. At work I'm a bit of a perfectionist, but I still don't necessarily have my whole work day planned out. I may jump around between numerous projects in one work day, if possible.

3. Tell us one thing you want to do, but don't dare to do. (Unless of course, you dare to do everything!)
Go and live in another country for a while. I know so many people who have done that, but I've only ever travelled with the certainty that I will return home (I kind of like that certainty, to be honest, but I think living overseas would be a nice challenge).

4. What's your biggest phobia?
Cockroaches! The big, brown, flying kind. Other than that, speaking (or performing) in public makes me feel just a little queasy. I think I'd rather deal with a flying cockroach than speak in public. Unfortunately sometimes I have to do it for my job, even though it's technically not part of my role. I hate that. (It's no coincidence that I have to do some public speaking today at work)

5. If you were stranded on a desert island - what 3 things would you want with you? (not including laptop, or family.)
The Smashing Pumpkins' forthcoming reissue/remaster of Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness; the complete Harry Potter series of books; Wilson the volleyball to be my friend! (Yes I just re-watched CAST AWAY for the first time in years. I love Wilson).

6. Name three blessings in your life.
My family, my friends and the privilege of living in a relatively free country.

7. What was your nickname in High School?
Well, one of my friends called me Fish Face for a while, until I told her she better stop if she wanted to live. I also had a self-imposed nickname of Carrie (not related to Stephen King's book at all, which I have yet to read!). I think I might've also been called Danielle Johns at one point (ya know, Daniel Johns...Silverchair).

8. If you could meet the President of the United States, what would you say to him?
I'd say, "You're a darn sight better to listen to than your predecessor, man!"

9. If you could be any literary character for a day, who would you be?
Hermione Granger! I think her life is pretty cool, even if she's gone through a lot of crap.

10. What is your favorite quote?
I don't know that I have one single favourite, but...umm, I'm always partial to Billy Corgan's variation on a popular saying: "If practice makes perfect and nobody's perfect, why practice?" Not that I particularly live by that, of course!

11. In the colour code personality test, what colour are you? (If you don't know, go HERE!)
I was a White:
"Whites are motivated by Peace. They seek independence and require kindness. They resist confrontation at all costs. To them, feeling good is more important than being good. They are typically quiet by nature, process things very deeply and objectively with great clarity. Of all the colours, Whites are the best listeners. They respect people who are direct but recoil from perceived hostility or verbal battle."