Many thanks to the Pink Ladies for asking me to be a guest, in spite of knowing that I’m sometimes weird..
Ahem. Now for the topic of the day.
When writers talk about their work in progress—often shortened to wip—we’re usually talking about the latest writing project.
“How’s the current wip coming?”
“Added 3,000 words to the wip today.”
“The strangest character just walked into my wip.”
I have that kind of work in progress, of course. Several wips reside in my laptop, in various states of unreadiness. *Sigh* One wip is in final edits, to be released in June, so that’s a cause for celebration.
But I am also a work in progress, even though as far as I know, people don’t call me “wip.” Of course I have been called a mess, unfocused, a failure... On the days when I wake up hearing that voice in my head telling me what a loser I am, I understand why writers drink.
Last fall I started a little blog of my own. It’s called Welcome to Magdalenaville, and the idea behind it is that I’m on a journey to reinvention, and whoever wants to come along is invited! I think we’ve made some progress on the journey, and we definitely have a good time at it. Some days it’s like a tea party with friends, some days it’s free psychoanalysis for me, and one day Spot, our amazingly cute dog, blogged. It has been pointed out that Spot got more comments than I ever have. As if I needed to hear that. Sheesh.
In my novel, The Blank Book, the heroine starts a journey to reinvention, too. Her husband has died in a hilarious (yet tragic) accident, and she examines her life and starts making changes. But when she begins to write a romance novella in a mysterious blank book, her life suddenly turns weird. A hunky movie star shows up on her doorstep in smalltown Indiana, because the story she wrote is controlling both their lives.Well, shoot, that route to reinvention seems about perfect, right? I mean, except for the book controlling your life. That’s a bummer. And yes, like Alice and Robert, you’d have to figure out what the heck was going on, and deal with it, because otherwise everything you’d worked for was headed down the toilet.
But I don’t want to tell the whole story. Just saying, reinvention can be harder than it looks. And being a work in progress can sometimes make you feel distracted, or frustrated, or scared. But you know what the worst thing is?
When the dog, who isn’t even slightly into reinvention, gets more comments than you do.
Magdalena Scott
http://magdalenascott.com/
http://magdalenascott.blogspot.com/
21 comments:
Magdalena, I hope that adorable Spot doesn't pop in today and steal your thunder. Magdalenaville is one of my favorite places to visit. I come for the humor, the pleasant atmosphere,the camaraderie, not to mention the Earl Grey. So I hope that if you're successful in reinventing yourself, you'll keep the porch open to the rest of us passersby who are still searching.
I haven't read The Blank Book yet, (so many writers, so many books) but I'm now moving it to the top of my tbr list. I love the comparison you made about being a wip. I think most of us are wips, looking for something. But what we probably don't realize is, the journey to the destination is what makes it all worthwhile.
Hope you have a terrific, relaxing holiday weekend!
Devon, bless your heart for coming over here and commenting...and what a lovely comment! You're a dear.
As I buzz around cleaning the house today, I keep watching Spot watch me out of the corner of his eye. I'm afraid he's going to sneak some internet time at the other computer while I'm not watching...
You're right (as always) about the journey making it worthwhile. I'm so glad to have you on the journey with me. :)
Magdalena:
I love your blog. And yes, we are all works in progress. Some of us are just more finished than others and some of us are stalled, and some of us will never be finished.
I can think of people I know who fall in all those categories.
Hope you get a thousand comments and if you don't, it will be those who didn't stop by's loss.
Write on,
Teresa R.
Teresa, now you've started me thinking about who I know in the categories you mention. ;)
Not sure I could handle a thousand comments, but it would sure put Spot in his place, huh?
(His place, of course, being on the heat register in cold weather, and the window seat when it's nice. What a life!)
Mags, a life is like a wip -- I like that. When I start with a wip, I come up with my character chart and figure out what's going to happen -- HOW it happens unfolds and surprises me as I write the book. That's like life -- it's a surprise every day. As long as we keep a positive attitude, we'll be okay. Life is all about attitude.
What a great post, Magdalena!! Your book's premise sounds fascinating!!
Oh, Jan, you've caught me again with my attitude in a twist.
YES, life is all about attitude. You're right, you're right, you're absolutely right...
Thank you, Nicole. This is one book I can't get out of my system. I appreciate you stopping by!
How true! Thanks for the perspective. We are truly a constant WIP, and as we evolve, our lives and writing often does, too.
Nice to meet you over here! I'll have to go check out your blog.
--Lisa
http://authorlisalogan.blogspot.com
Nice to meet you, too, Lisa! Thank you for stopping by. I'm glad you like the WIP analogy.
I'll have to go check out your blog, sounds like fun. And I could use some fun right now. Best of luck to you,looking forward to your blog.
Mary, thank you for stopping in here today. Good to meet you! The thing with Magdalenaville is that, even if I'm down in the dumps, somebody shows up and jostles me out of it.
I consider WIP to be Where Ideas Percolate!!
Great post,
Tessy
Great comparison, WIP and our lives. I know there are parts of mine, both life and WIP, that I've been fortunate enough to re-write. :) The Blank Book sounds very interesting, is it paranormal?
comments comments comments! Where is spot? Oh, no, it's Magdalena again? But I thought. Okay, well...
Wonderful post Mags. It's so YOU. lol And Magdalenaville is such a great place.
Oh, did I tell you I passed through Magdalena, NM a couple of times my last trip out? I was thinking of getting a picture but there was this terrible wind/sand storm. Really.
I was looking for Spot, though he might be around there somewhere in a basket and clicking his heels....
No, I'm not drinking. Tired. :)
Wipped, I guess.
Sorry.
That was bad. I'm off now. LOL
Magdalena,
It's been such a pleasure having you here today. I always enjoy the tone of your blogs.
It was interesting to think of myself as a wip. I like the idea. It makes me wonder what I'll be like later in my life's journey. Hmmmm.....
Thanks for blogging with us! :o)
"Where Ideas Percolate" is great, Tessy!
Diana, good for you on doing some wip re-writes! Yes, THE BLANK BOOK has a tinge of the paranormal--the book itself. Where did it come from, how is it controlling them...
Maddie, it's okay if you're drinking. Just be responsible, okay? ;) I'd love to have a picture of the Magdalena, NM sign. Sand storms are such a drag.
Tracy--Ah, yes, your life's journey has barely begun. It is exciting to think where you might be in just a few years/pages. As Jan said, life is a surprise every day. Thank you for inviting me to Inspiration, Ink, and for patting my head when I was freaking out about it.
Many thanks to everyone who read, and especially to those who commented. I was scared to death I'd be sitting out here in the breeze with nary a comment.
Somehow Spot missed the whole thing. Dontcha just hate that? ;)
Hi Magdalena,
Makes me think of that country song by Alan Jackson, "Work in Progress," which is hilarious.
I'll have to check out your book now.
Julie
Hi, Julie! Thanks for stopping in!
Magdalena, I'm sorry I wasn't here on the right day. I was computer-less all weekend! Gasp! I hope you get this comment, because I absolutely love your blog. It's whimsical and light-hearted, and I always head there first on my rounds. I am in the middle of the Blank Book, and I see a lot of you shining through. Keep the words flowing!!!
Jennifer--omigosh, a computerless weekend?!? I can't imagine how one functions that way. I hope you'll blog about it!
Thank you for your kind words about Magdalenaville and The Blank Book. Of course I'm sitting here reading your comment over and over again, instead of being productive. Shame on me. And more coffee IN me might help, too.
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