Work Room - Week 5

[clauderainsrm.livejournal.com]

It's time for another Work Room, and another Mentor. Thanks for putting up with me ranting at you last week.

One of the things that I love about Idol is the wealth of talented people who have passed through these halls.

Idol has played host to some amazing and diverse group. This one is no exception.

It's one of those times when you look at someone's resume, and their life, and realize "Wow, we've got something special here". That is one of my personal goals with the Mentor program. To recognize these people, and to tap into that in order to help out everyone else in the community who might be struggling, After all, everyone struggles at one point or another.

I'd recommend anyone in Idol who wants the extra help with the new topic http://therealljidol.livejournal.com/498756.html to take advantage of any and all advice that she can give to you.

***

Greeting All. Our Fearless Leader has kindly asked me to help out in the workroom.

So who am I?

Well out on Live Journal my handle is puppetmaker40. On most of the rest of the Internet, I am either know as Puppetmaker or Kath the Puppeteer. But y’all can call me Kath.

Why am I here?

Well I was asked very nicely. So the follow up might be why me?

My career path has been varied to say the least but it comes back to books and writing quite often. I have managed both comic book and regular bookstores. I have been a librarian’s assistant and work in collection management for a university. I am a published author in a variety of forms. And I am an editor. I worked at Del Rey books and I currently work for Space and Time Magazine.

I have also participated in this little contest for the past couple of years getting as far as the top 10.

What am I to do?

Well I think Tea did a good job giving a bit of structure to what is going on in the work room so I plan to follow in her footsteps.

So I am here to help you with the topic at hand. But I will not write your paper for you (sorry flashing back to the AOL homework room I use to run back in the day).

When and Where?

Well here please. I will be stopping by one or twice a day to look things over. PMing me can be a dead end at times since (as some of you will attest) I can be lousy looking at those. I will tend to be looking in the AM East Coast time and after 5 PM East Coast time since those tend to be my free time zones.

So that’s my intro. I am looking forward to your questions and essays.

Comments

[megmaureen.livejournal.com]

First?

*edit -- West coast FTW!!!!

[rhetoricians.livejournal.com]

Oh, man. I have no idea what to do this week - for the first time I'm 100% stumped. *ponders*

[puppetmaker40.livejournal.com]

I have two suggestions.

Just write (or type) the prompt, take a deep breath, set a time for 2 minutes, and for those two minutes just write down everything that comes to mind. look through those and see if a word or phrase hits you.

If it continues to confound you, you can declare a bye.

[myrna-bird.livejournal.com]

Welcome Kath, I'm sure it will be a splendid Workroom. It has been pretty active this season as the newbies are not particularly shy and the veterans are definitely full of great ideas and questions. looking forward to the new topic which i am going to check out. right.now.

[rt-sparrow.livejournal.com]

Hi Kath/Puppetmaker!

Did anyone else look at the topic and immediately think about The Princess Bride?

[fading-light.livejournal.com]

I did!

[snarkerdoodle.livejournal.com]

LOL -- all I can think of is The Princess Bride. ;)

[roina-arwen.livejournal.com]

You're not the only one!

[nyxocity.livejournal.com]

So, I'm curious. What do we think about fiction so far this season, Kath, the rest of you? I've only done one fiction piece so far, but it was definitely the least voted for of all my entries so far. Of course, it was also super dark and didn't end well, but then so MUCH of my fiction is like that :D

[sweeny-todd.livejournal.com]

I like reading the fiction. I think it is kinda harder to pull off in a shorter-story type format, but there has still been some really good stuff!


Me, I have done mainly fiction.. and I have been having fun with it! My personal challenge was comedic fiction, because it is a) something I am not that good at and b) something I want to be better at! In terms of votes, people seem to be liking it, and I am near the top of my group (which saddens me.. because (as Gary pointed out last week) a bright flame burns shortest.. but I digress).

[pixiebelle.livejournal.com]

I just looked at the topic this week... And I'm pondering. What I learned this past week was that my best ideas seem to come when I don't try too hard. I was mostly asleep when last weeks idea came to me and I felt the response to it was beyond my wildest dreams. Thanks everyone. You guys who commented and voted rocked my world this week :)

The idea I had the week before last came as I was relaxing in a hot bath and not thinking at all about the topic. I was pleased with that entry too (I promise I'm not narcisstic).

So the moral of all this? I need to relax more. Maybe I should cash in on that hot stone massage Groupon and see where my mind takes me. Or just sleep on it at least. But one thing is for sure, I'm going to keep having fun with the topics if I can help it :)

[rabid1st.livejournal.com]

Oh, a hot bath...or relaxing massage.

"Yes, dear! I'm absolutely sure this will help with my writing...a little lower and to the left, please!"

[rabid1st.livejournal.com]

Whoops! Sorry about that deleted comment, Claude. I was overly excited.

Let me say it here!

It is my favorite movie, but I think that is far too obvious.

[lapis-lazuli615.livejournal.com]

One of my favorites as well but based on the reply above... yeah, not going there.

[sweeny-todd.livejournal.com]

I had a question for the writers.. do you have a backlog of ideas, and hope that a topic will come up that you can use the idea in, or is it just a fresh idea each time?

I generally get an idea from the prompt, but I have had two ideas this season (which stemmed from other prompts) which I would love to write if a) I can write them as well as they feel in my head and b) they fit the topic.

[rabid1st.livejournal.com]

Since this is my first season, it is all new to me, so I am inspired anew each time. I generally write fiction and I sort of branched out here with a few real life stories. But generally, I live a boring life so after 4 topics I'm already running low on interesting things to write. Only, I did have a thought about this one...still...I might not go there. Time will tell.

Opinions, please:

[ellakite.livejournal.com]

Please note: I have directed the following question to someone I trust, but it will be a while before they get back to me... and in the end, it's really you folks out there who can give me the best feedback.

The last couple of weeks I've written pieces related to my epic saga -- One piece was about developing the stories & characters in it, while last week's piece was a significant chapter.

I think the origin story for one of my characters will fit this week's theme quite well. And before you ask: this tale should be *MUCH* shorter than last week's.

On the one hand, it is a story I want to tell. On the other hand, I'm concerned that you folks might get bored with me if I stick to one theme.

So, feedback please -- who wants to see more of the saga, and who wants to see something different?

Thanks!

Re: Opinions, please:

[honeybeewriter.livejournal.com]

More please!

My only thoughts on this week's topic:

[vampedvixen.livejournal.com]

Re: My only thoughts on this week's topic:

[honeybeewriter.livejournal.com]

I am very much thinking Bout writing my first time seeing it, but I am afraid we will see a lot of Princess Bride related stories.

[jem0000000.livejournal.com]

How does one go about conceiving of something inconceivable?

Also, isn't it traditional to spell the topic wrong first? ;)

...off to go sleep on it. Ideas, they come to me, like spectres in the night, floating on the raveled wings of timeless sleep....

[vaguelyclear.livejournal.com]

If there are footnotes, I would read them last, as I find it distracting having to go back and forth. But that's just me.

Is there no way that you incorporate the commentary into the entry itself (aside from in brackets)?

[imafarmgirl.livejournal.com]

So far I am stumped on this topic.

[puppetmaker40.livejournal.com]

I have two suggestions.

Just write (or type) the prompt, take a deep breath, set a time for 2 minutes, and for those two minutes just write down everything that comes to mind. look through those and see if a word or phrase hits you.

If it continues to confound you, you can declare a bye.

[n3m3sis42.livejournal.com]

Hmmm, this is going to be a tough one, I think.

My first first thought, like everyone else's, is Princess Bride, but that doesn't actually inspire me to write anything. My first actual writing-related thought is another mom-centric post. I don't necessarily feel good about doing a third one of those in a row, and besides that, that inspiration deals with some heavy stuff and I'm not sure I'm ready to do it justice right now.

If I go beyond that one, I have one idea I'm kicking around, but I'm not totally in love with it. If the idea I'm playing with doesn't pan out, the basic train of thought that got me there does have potential. So I sort of want to explore that more. But is it bad that I didn't go with my first gut instinct (the heavier, mom-centric idea)?

[oxymoron67.livejournal.com]

Okay... I need advice. Because of things that happened at work (check out my last entry for a partial explanation), I'm more than a little angry.

This is a block for me. (Also,there is nothing I can do about that or any other of the several upsetting work situations until Monday.)

How do I get around this? I mean, I could write a spleen-venting rant, but who wants to read that?

[vaudy.livejournal.com]

Is it totally a cop-out to write an entry inspired less by the topic than by a quote involving the topic (quote to be provided with the entry, of course)?

This one is totally throwing me for a loop. I know I have time, and I'm not in a panic, but I like to at least have a direction to mull over, and I don't have even that, yet.

[rt-sparrow.livejournal.com]

I think it depends on how you go from the quote. For example, if the quote was, "It is inconceivable that cats can befriend dogs." It would be fine to talk about challenging preconceptions about friendships between different animals, but it wouldn't be on topic to talk about how cute cats or dogs are.

[honeybeewriter.livejournal.com]

My thoughts:

The first time I watched The Princess Bride (there is a story behind it)

or

How I wound up marrying a Mets fan. (seriously people who know me well are shocked by it)

I am thinking I might just have to take a bye but I will have Tues to work on it possibly so maybe not?

[puppetmaker40.livejournal.com]

Personally I'd be interested in how you married a Mets fan but then I did the same thing.

[alien-infinity.livejournal.com]

http://alien-infinity.livejournal.com/201226.html

This is all I've got, and I don't like it. I plan to have something different for my official entry, but I've got nothing with a lovely side of nothing and a big glass of half-empty nothing right now.

I'm stumped. :/

[alien-infinity.livejournal.com]

I posted my official entry in the Topic Thread, so this early version is no longer visible to everyone.

[sorchawench.livejournal.com]

I worry that I'm too depressive thus far in Idol. I've written 4 pieces and 3 of them were moody. And only one was fiction. And what I initially wrote for Inconceivable isn't exactly a happy happy joy joy post, but it is honest. Should I be worried?

[puppetmaker40.livejournal.com]

Short Answer: No

Longer Answer: There have been some pretty moody pieces over the years. The quality of the writing is more important than the tone. I have written some pretty moody pieces in my time and one is even published in the LJ Idol first collection. For some people, that is the piece that they remember me for. So quality of writing is more important than tone. Tone will take care of itself.

[spydielives.livejournal.com]

My first thought was also Princess Bride: I was going to write about the wedding of friends of ours last summer. They used the theme from the movie as she walked down the aisle. The comments from their friends and his family "Awww, that is SO SWEET!" However, a few of the older set, and some of the more religious ones, had no idea what was going on or the context of the music... and were quite confused.

I decided to go with something completely different, simply because once I got started writing I kinda liked it.

And because this pain in my knee has to be worth something.

[nyyhoneybee.livejournal.com]

We also used it when I walked down the aisle, which is why I had the thought of using it. I'm still not sure what I'm gonna do

[emploding.livejournal.com]

All my entries so far have been fiction, despite many people thinking otherwise ;)

I'm thinking of option for a non-fiction piece this week, however I fear the "conceive" (baby/child theme) part of "inconceivable" will end up overdone and just make everyone roll their eyes when they see another one.

[imagemirror.livejournal.com]

hey Kath

thanks for taking the time to help us all out. i would be very grateful for some feedback and critism of my entry this week. I feel my work lacks depth and would be keen to get an outside view on it

[puppetmaker40.livejournal.com]

I wouldn't worry. I liked it and thought that you did a good job of compare and contrast between what was going on in the head and what was happening. I liked the father's comment on the end of it.

Makes me want to know more about this person.

I took a quick look over the grammar. I saw nothing egregious that took me out of the story.

Nicely done

If anyone's still interested...

[ellakite.livejournal.com]

My piece is up. I hope you like it.

[puppetmaker40.livejournal.com]

OK Folks I have gone through and I think I have all of the requests directed at me.

IF I missed something, bring it to my attention here.

I was without Internet most of the weekend and this morning so I am playing serious catch-up.