Zombie Trisha

Can you see it? I know, it's tiny! But I was searching Google for an appropriate zombie picture and I couldn't find any.

Now I guess you're wondering why I needed a zombie pic. Basically I was looking for something that would do my current appearance justice. I finally had my skin cancer removed and now I have a rather misshapen forehead. It really looked like I had little aliens growing in there. Not that the lumps were moving - no, they were perfectly dormant - but still, the description fit.

I'm not in much pain, just a little discomfort, and my lovely man stocked me up with white whine and chocolate (and leftover Thai food...mmmmm!), so I am all set. My mum is coming over at some point to wash the blood out of my hair. And then on Monday it's back to work, unless I decide I'm too ugly to be seen in public.

Meanwhile, today I am working on revisions. Currently I'm up to page 115 of 188. And I just realised I haven't paid any attention whatsoever to the Chrysalis prompt for this week. So I guess I better get a story written somewhere in the next few days.

What are you up to this weekend?

My NaNoWriMo past...and future

I thought I'd rehash my NaNo past, as well as briefly mention the future! A little research has shown me that I've done the following:

2002: ANJIE DAYS

2003: SOMANA

2007: SQUEAKY MCLEAN

2008: TURKEY BOURKE

2009: SUNDOWN

2010: NAUSICAA

In 2011, I'm writing two novels, so to the above list I will be adding:

2011: DANNA/VICTORIOUS

Because I am determined that I will win this year as well! Maybe I won't actually finish both novels. Maybe I'll finish one and not the other! Maybe both will be 'complete' (I'm doubtful of this). Either way, I will write 50k on each novel. At the very least, I will write 50k altogether. The major challenge will not be writing a total of 100k. Rather it will be attempting to finish both novels.

I've participated in NaNoWriMo during other years, but either unofficially, or unsuccessfully. So I'm not listing those here. One of the unsuccessful years was me attempting to continue with the previous year's story. I wrote a bit on it, but not 50k. One year I didn't participate at all, and another I participated unofficially.

So there you go. It's on record now, for all to see! But now it's your turn!

What's your NaNo history?

Twitter-tag the first

Long, long ago, I got Twitter-tagged by my blogger friend Charlotte Jane Ivory. And here is my reaction to that event:

1. If you could go back in time and relive one moment, what would it be?
   I've had heaps of great moments, but probably the one I'd love to relive is the first time I ever saw the Smashing Pumpkins live in concert. Or MAYBE it'd be the second time I saw them, which was a 3-hour performance in San Diego. MAGIC.
   
   
2. If you could go back in time and change one thing, what would it be?
   I'd probably go back in time and try to orchestrate a distinct lack of Joseph Stalin in the world.
   
   
3. What movie/TV character do you most resemble in personality?
   Nobody, because I'm unique and nobody is like me? This is my lazy answer because I honestly can't think of any character off the top of my head. Or even off the bottom of it.
   
   
4. If you could push one person off a cliff and get away with it, who would it be?
   If I could push one person off a cliff, it'd probably be Juturna from my novel NAUSICAA. Maaaaan that lady's a nasty piece of work. But it's okay, she gets her come-uppance.
   
   
5. Name one habit you want to change in yourself.
   I want to be utterly confident in the idea that the world is my oyster, damn it. Basically I want to stop looking to other people for the kind of validation I am more than capable of giving myself.
   
   
6. Describe yourself in one word.
   Interesting.
   
   
7. Describe the person who named you in this meme in one word.
   Glamorous!
   
   
8. Why do you blog? Answer in one sentence.
   Because somebody said I should...so I gave it a shot, and thought it pretty well rocked!
   
   
9. Name at least 3 people to send this meme to, and then inform them.
   Ohhh, okay. I'll choose these people, after which I shall inform them:

• Laura @ Daily Dodo
• Madeline Bartos
• Jolene Perry

Meet Laura, my first EVARRR beta-reader!

Recently I mentioned that I found myself a beta-reader at last. That was actually one of my goals for 2011, so YAY! Anyway, my lovely beta's name is Laura and she has agreed to answer a few questions (read: be interrogated by the crazy librarian cat lady) so you (and I!) can get to know her better! Without further ado, I present...Laura!

1. What do you write, and what do you read? Do they tend to be the same?
I'll answer the second bit first. I read chick lit. Lots of chick lit. Probably far too much for one little person to handle - with the occasional snippet of sci-fi, thriller, and historical non-fiction. When it came to writing, I decided to write chick lit (naturally), and it also fits in well with the non-fiction fashion writing I do. I finished the first draft of my fist novel Welly-Booty-Goodness and shrugged. I was meant to be super-excited but it wasn't there, maybe because I've read so much of the stuff before. So now I'm considering embarking on a thriller for NaNoWriMo.

2. Do you love NaNoWriMo as much as I do? (for assistance with answering this one, I will inform you that I love NaNoWriMo THIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIS much)
I have a confession. I'm a NaNoWriMo virgin, *blushes*. I did BuNoWriMo in June run by Burrowers, Books and Balderdash. It's exactly the same premise but on a smaller scale, and I really enjoyed that. But I'm so excited about NaNoWriMo - I'm sooo going to a kick off event!

3. Do you have any beta readers of your own, and if so want to tell us about ‘em? If not, why not?
I don't have any dedicated Beta readers as yet, because I haven't really got anything to a stage where I want to get it checked out by anyone. A couple of fab, bloggy pals have been good enough to take a brief look over a chapter here and there for me though.

4. What kind of music do you write to? Or do you need complete silence? Or the steady beating of a bongo drum as background noise? Or something else entirely? (if the latter, what?)
So, for Welly-Booty-Goodness, I wrote the entire thing to the same playlist - Elvis, Beejees, Fink and Al Green. I'm thinking if I go the thriller route, I'm going to need some new suggestions!

5. What the HECK were you thinking, agreeing to be MY beta reader? Just kidding! The real question is...what's your favourite writing snack/drink combo?
Peanut M&Ms, a huge bowl of greasy, ready-salted crisps and a bucket of coffee.

Mmmmmm, peanut M&Ms...! No, really, that's where the interview ends. Pretty abrupt, huh? Well, I ran out of ideas for questions. So now I will just say THANKS to Laura for submitting to my interrogation, and for agreeing to be my first ever beta! Wheee!

Check out Laura's blog to enter her 200 Followers Giveaway!