What's Up Wednesday

This week...

My Current WIP (Work in Progress): I wrote about 15 pages of new material smoothing out a couple of scenes. I didn't expect to need to write new material, but those pages make the story better. 

Quote of the Week: "I don't believe you have to be better than everybody else. I believe you have to be better than you ever thought you could be." ~ Ken Venturi

What I'm Reading:  I finished the Kristan Higgins book I was reading last week, but haven't started anything new yet. I've been reading magazines that have piled up the last couple of months. 

Random Thoughts:  We are having a much smaller Thanksgiving gathering this year. While I'm sad that not everyone can come, I'm looking foward to having less cooking, not to mention the clean up after the meal, to do. 

Random Photo of the Week:

                             Mrs. Green likes to try out the blanket I'm making.

"Frogging" a Manuscript

I was working on a blanket this past weekend I'm crocheting for an upcoming baby shower when I realized the pattern just wasn't looking right. (I can't locate a copy of the pattern so I'm trying to duplicate it using a photograph.)

As I was frogging it back a few rows, it dawned on me that undoing those rows and reworking them is a lot like revising a manuscript. You take out, add, or change scenes, sentences, characters, dialogue and such to make the story better much like when you pull out rows of crocheting (or knitting) to make the pattern better, the stitches neater, tighter, or smoother.

While I hate when I have to pull back rows in my crocheting to fix something, it's infinitely easier to do that, even if I have to do it multiple times to get the pattern right, than it is to revise a manuscript. There are days where I feel like the changes I've made to a story the day before still need to be fixed/reworked. As frustrating as it can be, it's all worth it as the process makes for a better book (or blanket 😀) in the end.

This I know for sure...

I try really hard not to complain about the winter weather. I live in Upstate NY after all. Snow is to be expected. We average over 100 inches of snow every winter. It's not really the snow I complain about so much as the people who drive at excessive speeds putting themselves and, more importantly, others at risk when the roads are snow/ice covered.

That being said, we don't usually get much snow in November, usually 2 inches or less. 17.2 inches fell within two days this week. I'm hoping this isn't a sign that we're going to have a higher than average snowfall.

I'll be buying a new shovel this weekend just in case. 

What's Up Wednesday

This week...

My Current WIP (Work in Progress): I only managed five pages last week due to commitments that took up my usual writing time. I should be able to get back on track this week.

Quote of the Week: "Action is the foundational key to all sucess." ~ Pablo Picasso

What I'm Reading: I started reading Life and Other Inconveniences by Kristan Higgins this past weekend. I'm really enjoying it.

Random Thoughts: I've been making a lot of different kinds of bread the last few weeks. Last week I made a chocolate walnut twist bread recipe for the first time. It came out really well. We ate a loaf and a half within the week. I gave the other half of the loaf to my sister who stopped by for a visit. I will definitely making this recipe again.

Random Photo of the Week:

                  This is a photo of the chocolate walnut twist bread I mentioned above.
 

Veteran's Day

Today is Veteran's Day in the US. A huge thank you to all who have served in the military.

This I know for sure...

We had our first snowfall of the season yesterday. I shouldn't complain because the first snowfall is usually around October 23rd so it's late this year. It wasn't a lot, just enough to coat the sidewalks and such.

What is so crazy about the first time it snows and there's even the tiniest bit of accumulation is that people seem to forget how to drive in the inclement weather even though they've lived here through previous winters. The number of cars you see off the road or in ditches those first couple of snowfalls is astonishing.