RWA - Saturday

As is always the case with RWA by Saturday afternoon I am tired, a little cranky, hungry and my feet hurt. And yet, I am still having a fabulous time. How does that work? Well, first off, I love coming out of my cave...I mean room, at least once a year to see all my author friends. And while I am a natural introvert who can fake the extrovert thing after 5 days of smiles I start to feel a bit tired. But I still want more! More of the great workshops. More of the great books. And of course, more of my great friends that I only see once a year. But this shindig is nearing the end. I will post pics as soon as I download. And I will write more about the conference (RWA-WF annual meeting was a hit!) once I return home.
xo
Maggie

RWA - Tuesday Night

Here we are after our sushi meal. Mmmmmm sushi! Was fab once all the roomies arrived. Of course I was the first and indulged in some naughty conference behavior (that may have involved a mojito and a nearly illicit substance) before Ally and Jen arrived.

A pic for your pleasure.



More later....

RWA

So next week, I am attending RWA, Romance Writers of America, National Conference. This year we meet in Orlando. I love this conference because there are a number of writers that are my friends that I only get to see at conference. Also, this year, is the first meeting of the RWA-Women's Fiction chapter. I am president of programming so have been steering the ship for the meeting.

I am particularly thrilled because not only is this our first chapter meeting but we also scored Donald Maass as our speaker for the meeting.

I am taking the camera and will attempt to post between meetings, socializing and yes...still writing.

xo
Maggie

Summertime

Love the summer. Even though I am deep into a script and have a manuscript I desperately want to rewrite I still feel this wonderful summertime vibe. The vibe that allows you to take a long walk just at dusk. Or the need for ice cream (okay frozen yogurt) at 4 in the afternoon. A trip to the pool with the girlies. All of these summertime excursions have a relaxed feel to them. The pressures of school and homework a faded memory.

But as I've mentioned before, even with this slowed down let's relax attitude I still write. Must write. If I don't write, I get cranky and frustrated and no amount of frozen yogurt can cure me. Summer, I admit, is a trickier balance with the girlies home. But I also think my writing is actually *better* because I take these breaks. I relax a little. When I sit down I concentrate fully without distractions. Turn off the internet and turn on the writing portion of my brain. The little bits of breaks and excursions and fun provide some down time for my brain to work out the plot knots and character questions. When I get back to my keyboard I am amazed to see what flies from my fingertips.

Happy Summer!
xoMaggie

Friday Funny

I think this is pretty representative of how every father feels.

Packing The Box

Today I am busy working on a rewrite of a screenplay. I've rewritten this project about a dozen times. This pass, I've made some drastic changes in an attempt to get the 'fun' back into the funny. The first act, I believe, is close. Now it is time to move on in an attempt to rework the second act.

Screenplay writing is an art unto itself. I love the structure requirements of a screenplay.


Imagine a box.

A box that is approximately the same size--always. Now each time you write a new screenplay you are given a ton of stuff to pack into the box. Odd shaped characters, long and short dialogue, irregular plots... No matter the size or the shapes of the items they *must* fit in the box...the approximately same sized box that is your screenplay each and every time. It is my job to determine exactly how to pack the box so that all these items get included. And nothing breaks.

The current box I'm packing includes: romance, love, comedy, mystery and some odd shaped characters.

Packing the box can be difficult. Packing the box can be amazingly fun. But everything you need to tell this story has to fit into the box.

xo Maggie

Happy Holiday!

Have a safe and happy 4th of July!!