jason erik lundberg
writerly ramblings


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Mood:
wrung out

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On the bus to my car after class tonight, I noticed a woman driving beside us in a bright yellow Mustang, the top down and the wind whipping her frizzy red hair in all directions. He license plate read AEROWORM, and at every stop light, she would pull out a plastic canister, and blow bubbles out of her car.

Tonight was my last class, and we went over my second chapter. Because of the comments made in the class, and ones I've already received from Ol' Mike Jasper, I'll be doing some pretty major changes to the outline of my novel. I've been holding back, being too tame, trying to force my story one way because of its possible marketability. Screw that. It's time to get weird. It's time to eradicate some penguins. The story will also start now when Audie (our hero) is eleven years old instead of four. After hearing what Dr. Barnhardt had to say tonight, I have to agree that four is just too young.

On the surface, I guess it seems like I'm stuck in a loop, continually revising my outline and never getting past the first few chapters, but I don't think that's the case. I'd much rather do the revising now then when I've written 70 or 80 or 100,000 words of this novel. If I can get a clear idea of the story I'm trying to tell now, I can crank out the wordage when I start drafting for real.

I also talked to my graduate advisor today about classes for the Fall, and we ended up picking some: (Graduate Short) Fiction Writing Workshop with John Kessel (again; I already took this as an undergrad, but it's the only writing workshop offered in the Fall), Literary Postmodernism, and The American Romantic Period. I'm so excited. Gonna start with a bang.

I'm also applying for a Residence Director position with NCSU Housing. If I get it (which I have no idea of my chances), it would mean free rent, free tuition, free food, and a pretty generous stipend. There are quite a few duties involved, but I think they're worth all the benefits. Wish me luck.

Oh, and I'm getting spam on my answering machine now, for satellite tv, or carpet cleaning, or some other damn thing. That's a sign of the apocalypse, isn't it?


Now Reading:
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon

Stories Out to Publishers:
12

Books Read This Year:
18

Novel Word Count:
9200



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