Road Trip Day 4

We're in the Colorado Rockies, having put almost five hundred miles on today.  Two touristy stops - a buffalo made of barbed wire, and the Cathedral Rocks in Kansas, which were the highlight of the day.  Not very touristy, as we had to wind down a dirt road for seven miles before we found them.  Nothing around for miles.  No other cars, no people, just the wind and some cows.  

Then across some lonely roads in dark, dreary Kansas, not meeting another car for miles and alternating between flat, flat lands and long, low hills.  The minute we hit Colorado, the sun came out and we started climbing.  And climbing.  Fifty miles away, we saw Pike's Peak.  Dinner was in Colorado Springs inside a beached fighter jet turned restaurant.  Pretty cool.  So that makes three touristy things, though I'm not going to count the rocks.

Tomorrow, the Grand Canyon then Sedona.

Road Trip Day 2

Abilene, Kansas, the end of the Chisholm Trail and the home of our 34th president, Dwight "I Like Ike" Eisenhower.  

We spent last night east of St. Louis, rose, took our walk  then drove to the waterfront to ride to the top of the Gateway Arch.  Picture five people knee to knee in a giant egg rocking back and forth.  Four minutes up, three down.  Ten at the top.

Tomorrow we explore the finer points of the sunflower state (giant ball of twine, a buffalo made of barbed wire, etc) before meeting a friend of my daughter's who now lives in Garden City in the west side of the state.  Tuesday is her birthday, so she gets a birthday dinner from familiar people.

Off now to plot the big adventure.

More signs

Spotted license plate:  GOIN2AZ

check out this website: www.roadsideamerica.com

5 in 2, I get the picture

Sedona messages keep wandering into my life.  On Wednesday and Thursday, I talked to five people who have visited Sedona.  One man went there for the first time in 1959.  I received advice to a) ride a hot air balloon b) take a train ride c) go to the airport for a fabulous view.  For a little town of 11,00, it sure has a lot of visitors, at least within my sphere.

My daughter is temporarily home, and we've touched on different aspects of the trip.  St. Louis for sure, Santa Fe (which was featured on Rachel Ray less than ten minutes after she mentioned it - did I mention the psychic powers floating around here?)

On a secondary note, I am waaaay too dependent on the internet.  We lost it Saturday and I was forced to call Comcast and schedule a tech visit.  Fortunately, DH wiggled some cables, and we're back in business.  

Writing wise, I've super-duper cleaned Tall, Dark and Slayer, and it is finished.  I've started The Princess Rescuer, which has been renamed  The Dark Ages Detective Agency.  The rule is - there are no rules.  It is a total medieval farce, and I'm enjoying the first few pages written - a talk between two minions, one of whom is pushing the other to join the henchmen's union.  See?  No rules.

2,400 miles down, 4,000 to go

Between July 4th and 11th, DH (and various members of the Sterling family) piled 2,400 miles on to our trusty Malibu.  (three adults do not fit well in the back seat.)  First up-Traverse City.  Best part of the weekend?  A toss up between the Blue Angels airshow and the New Age bookstore we found.

Monday-all day on the road to Pennsylvania, taking Libby home as she packs 

up four years of college life (most of which returned with us Tuesday and Wednesday

)  The best part?  Tooling around the back roads Tuesda

y morning to Ringing Rocks Park.

Thursday-Lake Michigan beach.  A fabulous place that we tend to take for granted.  Best part? The hot pink plastic shovel that washed up, allowing me to repair a moat left by previous visitors.

Friday-the casino.  Best part?  Coming home with only $5 less than I started

Saturday-our local RWA meeting, connecting with fellow writers.

What's next?  What about that 4,000 miles in the title?  Huh?  Our graduation present to Libby was fairly open ended - a trip.  Somehow, it morphed into a trip with Mom, similar to our European romp of 2003.  After much debate, delay and consideration, the possibilities of Iceland, Ireland and Morocco were discarded for (drumroll, please) Sedona, AZ.  At Raw Spirit Fest 2008 www.rawspiritfest.com.   Go figure.  I'm going to spend three days in September not eating cooked food.  Do not talk to me for at least two weeks afterward, or ten Big Macs, whichever comes first.

The best part is, it's going to be a roadtrip.  Why?  With the price of gas climbing every week?  Well, is it going to go down in price?  The cost and hassle of a plane ride for the two of us will probably equal the gas we'll buy.  Which leaves cheap hotels and eating out of a cooler.  The cost of spending two weeks with my daughter:priceless.

Look for more blogs as we map the great American west for awesome things to see.

Look out, giant ball of twine (it's in Kansas)

Feedback

Not too long ago, a member of my Toastmasters club gave a speech on evaluating speeches.  At the end of the speech, he passed out handouts of what he'd covered.  Handouts are cool.  Remember that the next time you give a presentation.  But, I digress.  With a little word substitution, I've borrowed from his speech to give you the rules for effective writing critiquing. Thank you, Bruce.

1.  Give positive reinforcement

2. Help the writer stay motivated

3. Evaluate the writing - not the person

4. Nourish self esteem

5. Show the writer how to improve

6. Show that you care

7.  Suit your evaluation to the writer

8. Learn the writer's objectives

9. Personalize your critique

It's easy to forget we were not always experienced writers and there are tender writers just starting out who should not be treated roughly - as we might have been.  On the other hand, we don't need to sugarcoat bad writing, either.  Use the above guidelines to give an honest, constructive evaluation.   One of the responsibilities earned by our experience is to teach.  Do it in a good way. 

Why writing is like remodeling

It started with a gallon of paint. Luminary was the color. For various reasons, it took almost two months from purchase to application. The results - shocking! A nice, rich gold morphed into school bus yellow. In my bathroom!

A day later, my perspective has changed. Why have a safe gold color when you can have a HAPPY Bathroom? A Cinco de Mayo explosion of color? The start of a bright and expressive place to live?

With the shift of thought, we've begun a complete remodel of our condo. No more boring neutrals (maybe the carpet, which needs replacing.) No more safe choices. Today, we started with a new kitchen table. Wednesday, we pick up my new craft table, which replaces a boring desk I don't use. A large worksurface with shelves underneath equals more opportunities for creativity, which should spill into my writing. If you look closely, you'll see the top has a seam down the middle. It folds onto itself, but unfolded, the worksurface is twice as deep. Notice the shelves, perfect for baskets. I could go on and on.

But wait, you say. What does this have to do with writing? Simple, oh young one. One simple spark, an idea, a twist in the plot, can lead you and your characters on a wonderous journey. Sally isn't the girl next door that you envisioned. Instead, she's a space pirate. The hero's best friend is the real father of his daughter. The heroine's boring backstory suddenly becomes the catalyst of terrible problems. Or choices she has to make, each one suckier than the last. Your characters will go on a school bus ride of epic proportions, with ruts in the road and dead ends, mudslides and terrorist attacks. But somewhere in the adventure, they'll find a new side of themselves. Better. Colorful. And maybe, if they're lucky, they'll find what they didn't know they'd been searching for.