Green Room - Week 1 - Weekend Edition

[clauderainsrm.livejournal.com]

I don't know you, and I don't know why you are in my room.

Which, by Texas standards, pretty much means you're about to get shot!

But, if you somehow avoid that fate, and are still working on your entry http://therealljidol.livejournal.com/715255.html then that's even better!

While you are out doing that, if you could continue to spread the word that the Sign Up Sheet is still open until Monday, I'd very much appreciate that! http://therealljidol.livejournal.com/711493.html - There are still people trickling in, and (from what I've been told) some more on their way. So, if you have a moment, make sure to say hello!

***

Just a couple of words before I head off into the weekend itself- pretty much everyone has stared down that "I can't figure out how to write this" beast. If you keep slamming your head against a brick wall, take a step back and try coming at it from another angle, or better yet, talk it over with a friend. Heck, write it out! Talk about your frustrations, and as you continue to write, more often than not, the "way to it" might actually come to you. Then scrap the filler and use that as the starting point for your actual entry!

I can't recommend the idea of talking it over with people enough. There are a ton of writers here, going through a lot of the same things. You can go to the Work Room http://therealljidol.livejournal.com/715373.html or even just find someone with work that makes you go "Wow" and solicit their opinions!
A fresh pair of eyes, and a new perspective never hurt!

***

I hope you are going to be doing something fun this weekend...


Now, if you would excuse me, I need to take some Pinkberry frozen yogurt out to these homeless people who are waiting for it.

Comments

[sweeny-todd.livejournal.com]

If you keep slamming your head against a brick wall, take a step back and try coming at it from another angle

that just sounds like more parts of the head get injured!

have a good weekend, Gary :-)

[roina-arwen.livejournal.com]

Nah, usually by that point it's the shoulder. :)

[roina-arwen.livejournal.com]

Second! Here I was reading a few entries, meanwhile the GR gets posted! I'm hoping to go out to the movies tomorrow... er, later today. I want to go see "12 Years a Slave" if it is still showing somewhere in town.

[monkeysugarmama.livejournal.com]

That is an intense movie. Lupita Nyong'o was amazing. If it isn't in your theaters any longer, it is on Amazon streaming and On Demand already.

[crazypuce.livejournal.com]

If you keep slamming your head against a brick wall, take a step back and try becoming an electron so you an tunnel through it instead. ;)

[mari4212.livejournal.com]

Or see if there's a gate you missed somewhere else along the wall.

[waltzmatildah.livejournal.com]

This drove me crazy all day yesterday, I freaked out and complained and freaked out some more before throwing the towel in at midnight and tossing my laptop out the window deciding to go to bed. Within two minutes of cleaning my teeth, I had the bare bones of an idea, and twenty minutes later had the whole thing sketched out the old fashioned way, pen and paper while sitting in bed.

Taking a step back is the best advice!!

[porn-this-way.livejournal.com]

That's how it works sometimes! Some of the strongest entries I've ever put up have been the result of some random-ass thing that popped into my head during the "fuck it, I'm gonna go zone out and take a shower" phase of the brainstorming process. (You know, the phase that takes place after multiple failed attempts at *actually* brainstorming, followed by several extended freak-out sessions.)

[porn-this-way.livejournal.com]

Which, by Texas standards, pretty much means you're about to get shot!

I think, by Texas standards, everything means that.

D00DZ. I can't focus! I have a solid idea though, which is YAY, because I never have solid ideas until like an hour before the deadline. Okay, so I got a little better at that during Exhibit B, but not as better as I'd like to have gotten.

I am currently considering the following options:
- Try and make myself focus.
- Take some Nyquil to knock my sorry ass out and hope I'm more focused tomorrow.
- Continue screwing off in Photoshop because shiny.

[sweeny-todd.livejournal.com]

In my experience, the shiny generally wins

[teddyescher.livejournal.com]

Didn't realise the topic would be this tough until I actually sat down and attempted to shove everything else aside to write it. Maybe writing for four different fiction exchanges (minimum of 1.5k words each, planned work-in-progress adding up to 10-20k length stories, someone shoot me now!) while participating in LJ Idol wasn't too brilliant of an idea. My brain is a gooey mess of prompts. Argh. [falls over and melts into the floor] Goodbye world. I will just puddle quietly here in my room, thinking of what to write.

[theun4givables.livejournal.com]

Oh man, fic exchanges used to be the death of me. Sometimes the prompts given require so much work to actually be accomplished. If, y'know, you want to do it right/be in character....

I totally hear you on how hard the prompt is. I have two ideas, one of which I need to tap into my sense of humor and actually like, hand-write brainstorming for, because the idea is good, but I need to think of several little parts to make the whole piece work. It'll definitely take me a bit to go with the one I really want. The other idea is a backup plan, which I've already started/mostly finished.

[rattsu.livejournal.com]

Thought this was impossible until I was driving to work (12h shifts all weekend) and then a phrase just popped into my head and the whole thing just came together. Sketched out the entry over breakfast, and will hopefully finish it during my lunch. My only problem is... Leeength! It is so early and I try to be short to be nice to people. It's just so hard...

[rattsu.livejournal.com]

My biggest question is how to write this short...

[monkeysugarmama.livejournal.com]

You are correct - here in the beginning, short and sweet is important when folks have so much to read! You don't want them skipping over your awesome entry because it looks too long!

[theun4givables.livejournal.com]

Good morning, GR!

I am awake stupid-early today and an trying to brainstorm jokes for one of my idol ideas. It's...not going as well as I'd hoped. Feeling kinda down today, actually. But I feel a lot better physically, today?

This topic is gonna be the death of me, I swear.

[sweeny-todd.livejournal.com]

*hugs* hope you have an upswing

[i-will-not-say.livejournal.com]

This journal was supposed to be a character alt, only I wanted people to recognize the name among the mass of contestants, so I've been using it comment on journals and elsewhere out of character. The journal entries themselves will stay in character, for now. Who knows what sort of beast Idol might make this journal become, though?

This Evil First Topic of Doom actually didn't stymie me all that much -- I had an idea almost straightaway, and I've got a first draft written. That said, watch the next topic (if I survive) be something easy as pie and thus impossible for me to generate an idea for. :P

Also, a friend was struggling with this topic, so I gave her a serious idea. I also jokingly encouraged a less-serious idea. Her excellent brain mashed the two ideas together into something I think will be awesome once it's done. ^_^

Edit: The point of all this babbling is both that I'm awake stupid-early for a Saturday and also that ideas can come from the oddest places!

[x-disturbed-x.livejournal.com]

I still don't know WTF is up with my brain but it will be epic. ;)

[xo-kizzy-xo.livejournal.com]

Good morning GR!

I haven't written anything yet. Today (Saturday) is my first full day off in almost two weeks. Considering I fell asleep right after dinner last night, roused myself enough to go to bed, woke up maybe a half hour ago and still feel like I could sleep another 12 hours...um, yeah, I don't see any writing happening at the moment.

However, I do have an idea. I'm going to have to write it out to see if it translates, though. I do that a lot --write out 3-4 different things and I run with the one which speaks to me the most.

However, breakfast first. Then I'm going back to bed.

[monkeysugarmama.livejournal.com]

I crashed early last night too. Nothing makes me feel old more than the fact Friday nights have become "too tired to stay up past 11" nights instead of "party till dawn" ones!

[jem0000000.livejournal.com]

Something bit me. :(

On the other hand, I have a second thing to write about now, I just think I may have preferred to skip it, because this doesn't look good. Not, like, spider-bite bad, but might-be-infected bad is still on the table. I doused it in rubbing alcohol and the ring around the mark has gone down, though.

[tsuki-no-bara.livejournal.com]

at first i thought you meant a plot bunny bit you. but no. ouch. i hope it's ok! (and good luck with your second thing!)

[monkeysugarmama.livejournal.com]

Morning all! I wish I was still asleep but the dog woke me to go outside at 7:30 and, with everything I need to do today, my brain said "We're up? Awesome! Let's get started!" I tried to coax it back to sleep, to no avail.

I have all the last minute birthday party buying/cleaning/decorating to do, along with a kiddo softball practice this morning and I'd love to sneak a shower in before the guests arrive this afternoon. A clean hostess is...well, not a smelly one!

[kittenboo.livejournal.com]

Good luck with everything!

I have a kiddo soccer game I have to coach in about an hour!

[kittenboo.livejournal.com]

I definitely felt paralyzed by the topic, because it just feels so specific. And as I am not funny, and don't write humorous (at least not on purpose!) I was at a real loss.

So I did something I never do, I read about 20 entries on the topic, and I am not totally sure why, but that helped me to have a better handle on how you could go in more directions, and how you could use it simply as a jumping off point.

[xo-kizzy-xo.livejournal.com]

And as I am not funny, and don't write humorous (at least not on purpose!) I was at a real loss.

That's exactly the issue I'm running into. I mean, I can think of something funny, but since I don't tend to write "funny", I find it difficult to translate the funny.

However, I do have an idea. I'm going back to bed in a bit so it can marinate.

[alycewilson.livejournal.com]

Our fun plan for this weekend is to buy more underwear for KFP (bought his first pack last weekend) and to stop by the Winter Farmer's Market in our town. Woo-hoo!

[sweeny-todd.livejournal.com]

woohoo! New underwear is always exciting!

[x-disturbed-x.livejournal.com]

Morning GR.

Still sick here so I probably won't be doing much. I did want to go to Walmart to pick up a few things but it doesn't look like that will be happening!

[xo-kizzy-xo.livejournal.com]

As you can see, I'm still up :p

You just reminded me...I need new work pants, and I always get mine at Walmart. However I don't know up to battling the teeming millions who invade our Walmart on Saturdays...

Note to self: KIZZY GO BACK TO BED.

:thud:

[mothermelete.livejournal.com]

Hey, does anyone have time and is willing to be a beta for me?

[roina-arwen.livejournal.com]

Sure - feel free to email me at Pandria@aol.com

So, Gary... what are you waiting for?

[ellakite.livejournal.com]

You say that you're going to shoot me?

Then go ahead. Shoot me.

What are you waiting for? You're doing me a favor.

Go on. Do it.

DO IT!!!

man, the things you have to do to get some service around here...

[p-m-cryan.livejournal.com]

Good morning, Green Room!

I'm off to spend the weekend doing the same things I do every weekend... bookselling, book-blogging, and hand-coding my bookstore website. This weekend, though, there will be reading of LJI Topic 1 entries in between those things.

It's been a long time since I've had a traditional weekend off. The price of working for oneself... and frequently by oneself.

[bleodswean.livejournal.com]

*nods* Self-employment is an amazing way to create/uncreate one's life. Some days we feel like the world is our calendar and other days we feel locked into the hours.

[fourzoas.livejournal.com]

I'm on a train, have been on a train in one way or another for about a week now, will be on a train until lunch tomorrow. This, in theory, should be a cake walk and yet...

Going to grade some papers. Maybe inspiration will strike.

[whipchick.livejournal.com]

Amtrak residency?

[ewok-626.livejournal.com]

Hello green room! Happy Saturday!

*sets out trays of scrambled eggs, french toast, bacon, and danish*

[adoptedwriter.livejournal.com]

French toast nom....nom....nom...nom..... AW

[bleodswean.livejournal.com]

Second day of corned beef - hash for breakfast. It's a looooooooooooong St. Pat's for us. Always. We got married on March 17th!

I struggled with the topic, too. Blind prompting is like watching a freakyscary horror movie for me. I just tense and tense and tense and then when it jumps out I scream and run around tearing my hair out.

[adoptedwriter.livejournal.com]

Happy almost anniversary! How many years? AW

[adoptedwriter.livejournal.com]

Working at Curves (tm) and then tutoring kids. End of the quarter is coming. I had Zumba this morning. That was fun! Sold a book too! AW

[shay-writes.livejournal.com]

Good morning!

We are expecting a rainy day (and another tomorrow) Which is good because I have bunches of stuff I have to do on the computer.

*wishing everyone a fabulous Saturday*

[kickthehobbit.livejournal.com]

"doing something fun"—ah, yes, like working!

(Up before 8 so I can get some stuff around the house done before I go into the lab at 10, then finishing the synthesis I'm currently working on and filtering the product, etc, so that it's done in time for Monday's work...oh boy. :) )