Sep 2, 2010

Editing Returns!

In the sequel, Mary goes at the first draft of her second novel. Can it be saved or will it be edited to bits? Watch, Editing Returns, and find out. Beware of the red pen!

Been working on short stories still. Started reading novel#2. Gearing up for the spit and polish phase. No word on anything. No news is good news? Been wishful dreaming a lot.

Hit 1,000 tweeps last week. Got my first celebrity tweep, too. Cool.

Debating which novel is next - idea #3 or idea #4. Depends which solidifies more first. They're both very different from the first two. Novel#1 is a bastardizaton of space opera and soft sci fi. Novel#2 is pure space opera. Novel#3 is contemporary sci-fi and Novel#4 is steampunk. Until something catches, I'll keep trying something new. Each has the potential for a series. Although the story arcs actually exist for #1, sort of solid for #2, filmy for #3 and #4 - gossamer threads. Probably once I write the first, I'll get a better idea of what's next for each. That's the way my mind works. I plot best while writing.

Here are some photos from Saturday night at PMO. Winter hung in the air. My toes froze before the sunset. Although, we could not see the sun. Nor did we get a glimpse at the Moon. It was rainy and cold and cloudy. Miserable. We were glad no guests showed up. We never even went up to look at the telescopes. It's a bad sign when I turn the heat on in the car before leaving the driveway. Yup, it was that chilly here on Saturday. Up at 6200 feet, I could smell snow. Being originally from Buffalo, I know what air smells like when there is the potential for snow.

Along Highway 20 - featured in Beacons - lots of clouds gathering


In the distance, the lighter rise, is Pine Mouontain
What's called a 'sun break' in Oregon.

New moon this weekend. The PMO crew is hoping for clear skies. This weekend and next are the last prime viewing opportunities of the season. Only four weekends left. Makes me all meloncholy.

I posted on Tuesday about things feeling right. Working at the observatory is one of those things that feels right. I love everything about it. I love the long, lonely drive. I love the mountain. I love sitting on a mountain top and watching the sun set. I love sitting alone in the dark under the stars. I love sitting with my friends in the dark under the stars and jawing about our weeks. I love teaching astronomy and the skies to our visitors. I love looking through the telescopes. I love finding objects that are easy to find. I love finding objects I haven't seen before. I love freezing my a** off and not feeling warm again until the next afternoon. My weekends fill me with peace. They fill me with energy and wonder. I feel renewed every week. So, yes, I will miss it until next May. I will miss it a lot.