Pride of Place

Confession: When I plan an event, and it rains, I feel responsible.

Reading:

• "Toga Party" by John Barth
• The House of Mirth, by Edith Wharton
  

Writing:

• Untitled Dark Fantasy Project

Revising:

• "Cora and the Sea"

Future Projects:

• Dairhenien's Library - Development
  
• Floorcraft - First rewrite of 1-5, first draft of 6-8
• Ferian Fetlock - Next chapter, "Ferian Fetlock Catches a Cold," followed by "Ferian Fetlock Takes a Wife."
  
• "Motley" - Expansion
• "Fireworks and Earthworks" - 5% into first draft
  
• Untitled School Mistress Story

Unpublished Stories/Status

• "The Revenant" - 2nd Draft, Unsubmitted
  
• "The Frost Fugling" - 2nd Draft, Unsubmitted
  
• "Leaves and Sunsets" - 2nd Draft, Unsubmitted
  
• "Motley" - 2nd Draft, Unsubmitted
  
• "Black Pudding" - 2nd Draft, Unsubmitted
  
• "A Happy Ending" - 1st Draft, Unsubmitted
  
• "Illuminated" - 3rd Draft, Unsubmitted
  
• "Pictures of the Old Port" - 5th Draft, Unsubmitted
  
• "What Price Stamps" - 3rd Draft, Unsubmitted
• "Ferian Fetlock Cures a Horse" - 2nd Draft, Unsubmitted
• "A Cup of Coffee" / "Morning Tea" - 2nd Draft, Unsubmitted
• "Hattie Donnelly's Favorite Doll" - 2nd Draft, Submitted to 24 Hour Short Story Contest
  

I took a tour of Long Island today with some friends, and as I drove, I found myself pointing out places where I had done my writing. I doubt this was of much interest to anyone but me. Upon reflection, though, I think it's interesting that where I write would me anything to me. Why not just what I wrote? Or why not other things, like what I ate while I was writing, or what I was wearing? In other words, why is the location important?

It may be because of what I've said before, for example, in this post. Huh... that's interesting. I just read it over, and this passage appeared at the end:

With "Ferian Fetlock," I have no such place. Each part has been written in a different location. I think I need to find a place, a new place, and write there until it's done. That's my project for this weekend... to finally put that story to bed and move on to something new.

The funny thing is, when I finally found the right place to write it (D'Latte in Greenport), I finished it in an afternoon, with only minor alterations since.

That raises a question... how much of the place makes its way into what I write? I look, and I can't see those locations really reflected at all, but I may not have the objectivity. But in a way, it explains why I would have such pride in where I've written. Those places are a part of the story, or at least a part of the story of the story, and it's something I feel an urge to share.

Publication Status:

• Submitted: 3
• Accepted: 1
• Rejected: 1
• Pending: 1

Location, Location, Location

Confession: It's been a while since I was in a relationship. Even the group of women knitting in the corner of the restaurant look hot. To my credit, they are all about my age.

Reading:

• Someplace to be Flying, by Charles de Lint

Writing:

• "Ferian Fetlock Cures a Horse"

Revising:

• "Cora and the Sea"

I wrote almost all of "Illuminated" in the Barnes and Noble in Smithtown, NY. "Cora and the Sea" was conceived on the walk between my house and the local Borders books, and written there in an afternoon. Each story in Floorcraft has a different origin: Lauinger Library, the Leavey Lounge, the Davenport Coffee Lounge at American University, Uncommon Grounds at Georgetown, and others. I can remember each one distinctly.

Dairhenien's Library has ranged wildly. Lately it has been written at the back table of the Panera Bread in Bohemia, but in the past, it's been at the Borders in Friendship Heights, the Barnes and Noble in Georgetown, La Madeleine in Chevy Chase, and others. It started at my dad's work computer at Cargill Steel and Wire, where I typed up some notes while waiting for him to finish up for the day.

Location is pretty important for me and my writing. It's not that these places set the tone for the story--I mean, they're pretty much all coffee shops, bookstores with coffee shops, or college coffee shops. But each is distinct, and just thinking about those places puts me in the same mental place I was when the stories were written.

With "Ferian Fetlock," I have no such place. Each part has been written in a different location. I think I need to find a place, a new place, and write there until it's done. That's my project for this weekend... to finally put that story to bed and move on to something new.