But I’m going to be attending the next best thing: A workshop about owls! Yes, a full day of learning and quizzes and questions and charts about OWLS. Yes, the ones that go “hoot” or “skreeeeee!” or any other manner of owl sounds.

And then, my friends, THEN… I will go on an OWL PROWL for two hours on a wintery Friday night with 8 complete strangers, where we’ll search the darkened skies and trees for a hint or a shadow of these elusive winged ones.

What does this have to do with anything?

Well, it doesn’t, really. I just like learning about things. It just so happens that a nearby university offers the occasional nature course, and I have a free day, so… why not?

But I’m not just writing to talk about owls. Rather, let me ask you this:

• Is there something you’re interested in, but have never had the chance to learn about?
• Is there a type of cooking, or crafting, or technology you’ve always wanted to try?
• Do you wish you knew a little more about nature, or gardening, or the butterflies that flit around your window every spring?
• Have you always wanted to learn a new language?

…so… why haven’t you? What’s stopping you? I bet if you Google your area of interest, and your location (or the biggest city near you), you’d find an upcoming course or workshop that’s exactly what you’re looking for.

Is your excuse:

“I don’t have enough time!” – Make time. Book a day off work. Get a babysitter. At the end of your life, do you want to feel like you spent a life fulfilled, or do you want to spend your final years regretting that you wasted time on Facebook instead of taking a moment to enjoy the wonders that this world has to offer?

“I don’t have enough money!” – Birthdays? Christmas? Anniversary? Valentine’s Day? If your family does gift lists, put your course or class or interest on the list! Let people know that you want to experience something difference! Tell your significant other or best friend—these are the kind of people who’ll be excited for you, and encourage you to get out of your comfort zone and do something different.

“I’d suck at that. I know I would.” – You literally DO NOT KNOW that until you try. And, what are you basing that on? A bad grade in French class twenty years ago? An embarrassing line-dance incident at your sister’s wedding? Being human is about learning and growing and failing and then trying again. Just because a rabbit bit you when you were seven doesn’t mean all lagomorphs are evil—maybe you’d be a great foster parent for an animal rescue!

All of these excuses SUCK. Yes, that’s right. They SUCK.

Especially if you’re a writer.

If you want to learn something, or try something new, and you’re a writer, why wouldn’t you get out of your comfort zone and do it??? If you never step out of your comfortable little bubble, how can you create realistic human emotions and interactions in your characters? How will you know what to feel or sense or how to react, if you can’t do it yourself? Hearsay is one thing. Real-life experience is another…

The fear of sitting in a classroom for the first time in fifteen years.

The frustration of caring for an injured animal.

The excitement of making your first successful Pad Thai with authentic ingredients.

The satisfaction of knitting a scarf for the first time.

The delight and joy of discovering the wonders of nature.

At the owl workshop, I’m going to be surrounded by biologists and wildlife experts and agriculturists and birders and academics and when we introduce ourselves and explain why we’re there I’m going to stand up and proudly exclaim “I’m here because I’m a writer and I like birds and I love to learn new things.”

It’s going to be awkward. I don’t like strangers. I don’t like talking to other people in new environments. But if I don’t go, I’ll never get to learn about these amazing, mysterious creatures from someone who has make studying birds their life’s work.

I’ll be scared and excited and amazed and nervous and I might want to throw up just a little bit when I step into the room for the first time.

But I’m a writer, and a human being, and that means I need to make the most of the life I was given. I don’t want to be 95-years-old and wishing I’d done more with my life.

So today, I’m encouraging you to step out of your comfort zone… and if not just for the sake of getting excellent fodder and realistic experiences to plug into your writing, then for the sake of your growth as a human being. Let’s say “no!” to becoming stagnant, and “yes!” to everything this incredible world has to offer.

What do you want to learn or try or do that you’ve always been afraid to or just “haven’t got around to it yet”? Why not look into it TODAY?

Writing Fantasy Gender Stereotypes, Part 3: Alphas, Betas, and Losers, Oh My!

I didn’t choose the images that went along with it, but Marc (who posts the articles) did a great job illustrating this one. Don’t miss the final jab in the bottom image (and make sure you’re not drinking anything when you look at it)!

(If you missed the first two articles, you can find Part 1 here and Part 2 here.)

Without further ado, here is the first post in my new (weekly? monthly? whenever I feel like it?) series about my the things I love. Why? Because I can.

And because it makes the world a little bit brighter when you think about your favorite things (seriously, Maria von Trapp did NOT lie!) and share them with others. Go ahead and SQUEE with me… and why not leave a few of your favorite things in the comments?

Favorite Thing #1: Leverage (TV series)

This is, without a doubt, THE BEST THING ON TELEVISION right now. I blew through all four series in a remarkable amount of time, and I’m going to be very, very sad waiting for the next season because I feel personally invested in the lives of these people and their zany capers. I love them. Truly. Parker most of all.

Favorite Thing #2: Skylanders (video game)

I think I played about 15 hours of this game after cracking it open for the first time. Then I went hunting around my city and a neighboring city, looking for MORE SKYLANDERS. Everywhere in the universe was sold out (until this week… needless to say, I’m going to Microplay later tonight), and every display I checked had sad people standing at it, wishing there were more Skylanders to buy and play with in the game. And when I say “people”, I mean “myself and several 8-year-old boys”. I am not ashamed.

Favorite Thing #3: Star Wars (WAY OF LIFE)

We’re talking films, books, games… need I say more?

Favorite Thing #4: Dragons (“mythological” creatures… *pfft*)

Yes. These. Fire, flying, and pointy bits. LOVE.

Favorite Thing #5: Cheesecake (food) 

Because WHO DOESN’T LOVE CHEESECAKE?!?! I prefer baked cheesecake, and if you’re offering me a version containing chocolate, pumpkin and/or raspberry, you will be my friend for life. If you also provide a decent cup of coffee at the same time, you will be my friend for INFINITY.

…and those are a few of my favorite things.

The prompt was “a book hitting the wall”:

a book hitting the wall

…yes, I know, I’m hilarious. But not really.  

…just felt like sharing. 

Go ahead, do something silly today! I give you permission.

2011 was an interesting year. I made a lot of changes at the cost of other things (blogging, time spent visiting blogs, time spent with friends on LibraryThing and various writing forums I’m a member of, reading GOOD books), so this year my plan is to reintegrate those things on a more casual but scheduled basis.

Otherwise, being online might take up all the writing time I have!!!

So, along with the rest of you who are posting resolutions online, here are a few things I’m planning for this year:

• Blog posts minimum twice a week
• 1/2 hr. minimum on LibraryThing daily
• No more crappy books – if it sucks, stop reading it!!!
• Complete edits on the two half-edited books I have, and submit them
• Post once a week on The Ancient Standard again
• Re-watch the entirety of Star Trek: TNG (what? some resolutions can be fun! )

Mind you, my actual plans are more detailed than this (I have some weekly charts drawn up), but that’s the general idea.

That said… hope you all had a great holiday!!! Anyone else making resolutions (or plans, at the very least) for the year ahead?

Soooo… if you’re interested in reading a little bit about writing the opposite gender when creating fantasy characters… here are the links!

Writing Fantasy Gender Stereotypes, Part One: Writing the Opposite Gender

Writing Fantasy Gender Stereotypes, Part Two: Inclinations & Deviations 

…and as per usual, I have a few book reviews coming up… and hopefully a few notes on this year’s NaNoWriMo experience… year five! Ahhh!!!

What are you all up to this month?

Because I just read halfway through a review book with these lovely qualities:

• outrageously predictable plot
• at least three twists that I predicted long before they happened (they were that poorly “foreshadowed”)
• flat, one-dimensional heroine with obvious “I needed to give her more personality so I added this quirk even though it doesn’t fit with the rest of the character profile”
• a “mysterious” hero who is neither likeable, mysterious, sexy, or dangerous (though the story wants to suggest he is)
• pacing that makes me want to tear out my eyeballs
• romance so forced I sometimes wondered if the characters were actually robots
• cliches so glaring I needed sunglasses

…and that’s only about 100 pages into the book. And you know what? If that can get picked up as a debut novel from a traditional publisher, your work can too.

Keep writing. Keep trying. Yes, it might take awhile, but those writers who succeed to become published authors are the ones who kept going and held onto that hope.

You can do it. I can do it. That crappy book tell me anyone can do it, so long as we persevere.

Have you read any books lately that bolstered your confidence by their sheer awfulness?

Beyond that, I’ve caught that stupid cold that’s going around and haven’t managed to get a whole heck of a lot accomplished.

Included in that pile of non-accomplishment is figuring out what I’m going to write for NaNoWriMo this year. I have little flashcards with all my novel ideas on it, and no idea which one to pick. I may just draw a big target and throw the cards on it one at a time. Whichever lands closest to the center “wins”.

How’s that for “writing to the market”? HAH.

Anyway, I’ll save you lovelies from my potential rambling (could be delirium from the sickness setting in) and send you off with this word of wisdom:

POPSICLES.

Remember that, the next time you have a sore throat. Then tell me it’s not a word of wisdom.

YOU’RE WELCOME, READERS.

I’m having a bit of a conundrum. A situation, if you will.

As some of you know, I’m rewriting my NaNo novel from 2009. It’s going swimmingly (despite the fact that I’m not a very good swimmer), and my main female character’s voice is set. Firm. Mercifully natural, most of the time. I’ve got her down (more or less), and where I’m having trouble with it, I can fix it with a few tries.

Problem?

Halfway through the book… the narrator changes.

Er, if anyone from my critique group is reading this… heh. Spoiler alert. Sorry. BUT NOW YOU ARE PREPARED (and hopefully will throw fewer things at me…).

Without saying exactly who it is (for the sake of my crit group), the narrator changes to a teenaged male. I’ve written male characters before… so this isn’t my first time.

However, for some reason that’s beyond my ability to understand, I cannot get this blasted character’s voice right. First he sounds too young. Then too whiny. Then too juvenile. Then too stiff and lifeless. Then too forced.

WHAT DO I DO?!?!?!

If you’ve had this problem before, how did you solve it? Did you just write and rewrite and write again until you found it?

The issue isn’t having the right character to tell the story, either. I know this is the right person. He’s just… being difficult about it. Argh.

Heeeeelp!!!

Mind Over Mind

by Karina Fabian

Science Fiction

Release Date: 2011

Synopsis:

Deryl Stephens’ uncontrollable telepathic abilities have landed him in a mental health institution, where no one believe in his powers.  Joshua Lawson, a summer intern at SK-Mental Institute, does something no one else has ever done:  he accepts Deryl’s reality and teaches him to work with it.  As Deryl learns control, he finds his next challenge is to face the aliens who have been contacting him psychically for years–aliens who would use him to further their cause in an interplanetary war.  The first in the Mind Over trilogy, from DragonMoon Press.

Trailer: 

My Thoughts:

What a different, interesting approach to science-fiction! I know books like this are “out there”, but I can’t say I’ve stumbled across them lately… I tend to pick up the space operas, or Star Wars novels, or off-world ship stories. Fabian’s book is definitely not that—she’s crafted a psychologically driven sci-fi tale that centers heavily around character, as opposed to setting or massive world-building.

While the synopsis above focuses on the character of Deryl, I found that he was almost secondary to what was happening with the intern character of Joshua Lawson. There is a lot of character-building activity centered around Joshua and his past, his present internship, his techniques for dealing with clients, and his love interest.

Most of the time, I enjoyed this—I didn’t even mind the heavy focus on Joshua’s romance, though there were moments when I tried to mentally urge the book to get back to the sci-fi aspects instead—but I found the best parts of the book were moments when Joshua and Deryl worked through issues relating to Deryl’s psychic abilities.

These conversations formed the core of the novel, and made what could have otherwise been a very flat story turn into one full of life and conflict. I say “flat” because the vast majority of the book takes place inside the institution, and rarely ventures outside of those confines. It could have easily turned into a plodding, “day-to-day” rote with the occasional “ah-ha!” moment, but Fabian kept the story moving by revealing certain aspects of character and conflict at key moments.

Now, I know this is part of a trilogy, so there are more books coming that will presumably answer all the questions this one raised and DIDN’T answer. I was a bit disappointed that the focus on Deryl’s mental contact with an alien species didn’t get as much play time as the synopsis led me to believe it would. I wanted to see a lot more of this, and I’m hopeful that it’s coming in the next installment.

That said, I really liked that Fabian was able to believably incorporate the Catholic faith into the main character’s worldview—in a way that fit, really truly fit—as well as including characters of diverse ethnic background. It’s rare to see this done well these days (at least in the books I’m reading), it’s refreshing to see faith and ethnicity presented in such a natural, non-cliche/stereotypical manner.

Worth the read? You bet.

About the Author

Unlike her characters, Karina Fabian lives a comfortably ordinary life. Wife to Air Force Colonel Robert Fabian and mother of four, her adventures usually involve packing and moving, attending conventions, or giving writing and marketing advice in one of her many workshops. She’s always had an overactive imagination, however, and started writing in order to quell the voices in her head–characters who insisted on living lives in her mind and telling her their stories. Winner of the 2010 INDIE award, winner and finalist for the EPPIE and finalist for the Global e-book awards, she’s glad people enjoy reading the tales her characters tell. Visit her website at: http://fabianspace.com