I saw “Stars Wars, Return of the Jedi” last night, for the first time on the big screen. I remember when it came out. I wasn’t allowed to go see it. My parents didn’t approve all that much of science fiction. Oh, if they were alive, wouldn’t they be appalled at how miserably their efforts to turn me from it have failed. The son of my parents’ friends went to "Star Wars" and even got a Millennium Falcon model with action figures. I was so frustrated because I wanted him to recount the story, and all he wanted to do was play with the toys in a seemingly random fashion. I remember being secretly glad when one of the action figures he’d tied to a makeshift parachute became stuck in a huge fir tree in our yard, as he hadn’t been able to tell me how parachuting related at all to a movie about space, and I thought it served him right. Anyway, it was fantastic to finally see the film played large, in a crowded theater with an audience that cheered when it started and when it ended. To create something that touches so many is precious.

“The Unintended Mongrel” is up to 22,311 words.

A thought on opportunity: Options abound, and the key to distinguishing between options and opportunity is knowing one’s own heart. Sometimes the most important things that present themselves are options that appear to be opportunities but that help you crystallize your thinking and realize they won’t take you in the direction of your true desires.

Miami and Opportunity

“Sixes and the One Eyed King” has been accepted into the Miami Underground Film Festival. I’d like to attend, as I’ve never been to Florida, but I’m not sure if I will, due to the expense. Miami is much closer than Oregon to Disneyworld and Epcot, and that would be a blast. Oh, for unlimited funds and the time to enjoy them!

Bison Motion Pictures is still seeking distribution for the film, although it's encouraging that Director Ray Nomoto Robison’s first film, “Die Before I Wake,” is now available on the Internet at sites like Best Buy.

Clips and the trailer for “Sixes and the One Eyed King” are up on YouTube.

I’m now two weeks into my Great Opportunity Experiment. I can’t say that much has changed in my life yet beyond saying “yes“ more to more fun things. Which is a good thing. I’m not too disappointed about the way the experiment is going so far, as I have an outpatient surgery scheduled for early February and don’t know if I’d want a big shake-up in my life until I’m done dealing with medical issues. My Opportunity Experiment has a couple of basic rules: 1) The opportunity doesn’t violate my moral core and 2) It doesn’t threaten my financial situation. Thus, attending the Miami Underground Film Festival would be an opportunity if the cost were reasonable. I’m afraid that airfare, hotel and everything might put it beyond my means at this point.

I’ve decided to start a filmmakers discussion group, something like a book discussion group but for people who make and want to talk about films. Chance Larsen agreed to host it at Animal House Coffee in downtown Medford. I’m looking forward to some interesting conversation.

“The Unintended Mongrel” word count: 20,164.

Happy Old Year!

New Year’s Eve. I’ll soon be slipping into a party dress and bidding farewell to 2006 at the Larsens’ house with alcohol and some mocha meringues, which are currently meringueing in the oven. They have zero fat and cholesterol, which is important these days.

My 2007 should provide some interesting experiences. Inspired by a member of my writing group, I’ve decided to spent the first part of the year being open to opportunities that present themselves. My Great Opportunity Experiment has some guidelines, but it’s basically an increased awareness of and openness to whatever comes along. I told my writing group that I’d blog about it. This isn’t really a New Year’s resolution; Jan. 1 was just a convenient time to start it.

Speaking of things that come along, one opportunity I don’t expect this evening is that elusive New Year’s Eve Kiss. It’s a great tradition if you have someone to lock lips with, but the lockless ones are again reminded of their single status. I’m of the opinion that it really only counts if you go into the night with someone by your side, as sharing a smacking wish for a year’s worth of luck with a guy you’ve just met doesn’t quite carry the romance I’m seeking. There’s no sense that the guy will be around to see whether the good luck actually happens in the coming year. I’d make an exception if I should run into that even more elusive Soul Mate, if he exists. Which is really what “The Unintended Mongrel” is about. So, in honor of those who will stand awkwardly and pretend to be OK with not smooching following shouts of “Happy New Year,” I’m posting an excerpt from the draft of Chapter 5. I’ve now written 18,493 words. That’s about 61 pages, double-spaced.

"The Unintended Mongrel" excerpt

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NoNoWriMo

No Novel-Written Month for me

During the month of November, I wrote 15,872 words on “The Unintended Mongrel.” National Novel Writing Month’s challenge is 50,000 words. However, I don’t feel bad about not making that goal.

I haven’t worked on the novel since I learned of the death of my sister, Mary. I will get back to it, probably later this month, but I needed a break. Considering death’s emotional toll, the legal aspects of it shouldn’t be this difficult, especially since her estate seems to be comparatively simple. I’m planning to incorporate some of this into another novel I’ve been working on, one that is untitled and that has proven to be an emotional challenge. It’s inspired by my mother’s death from lung cancer, when I was 25. As the main character faces the loss of her own mother to cancer, it dredges up her alcoholic father’s death, which involved hitting and killing a family while driving drunk. My own father died when I was 16, from heart failure complicated because of respiratory illness brought on by smoking. Like my sister, who was just 50.

Looking back over the month, I realistically probably wouldn’t have made the NaNoWriMo goal, regardless. To my surprise, I’m not that fast of a writer. Also, I had too many demands on my time and energy this year. I generally like such challenges, sometimes to the point that I push myself too hard. I have a fresh understanding now of the need to enjoy life. I don’t want to negate what I’ve done simply because I didn’t reach the NaNoWriMo goal. Nearly 16,000 words is a very good start on a novel, and I like what I’ve written. I’m glad I attempted the challenge, as it got me started. I’m enthusiastic about this book, and I’ll probably post more excerpts as I continue to work on it. I’m averaging about 1,000 words per scene card, and I have 63 scene cards left to work from, but that will likely increase. I’ve added a few as I’ve written and come to understand the story better through that process. I’m sure I’ll also expand when I get to the editing stages and spot any holes or weaknesses. The book will likely end up as a shorter novel rather than an opus. I hope to finish it by the end of 2007.

"The Unintended Mongrel" is born

I've launched into National Novel Writing Month. It's been difficult to be fast and creative after work, but I'm making pretty good progress this weekend. I've posted the beginning of the first chapter of "The Unintended Mongrel" on the National Novel Writing Month page, and I thought I'd also post it here. Keep in mind that this is a draft, written quickly.

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I've built the spine of "The Unintended Mongrel," and I'm working on fleshing out the story as much as possible in anticipation of my Nov. 1 start date for writing. Add some ribs, a tail, a wet nose. I also need to develop character names. That has been a sticking point for me for writing before, as I want the names to mean something. I've been happily writing along and gotten to a point where I realize I don't have a name for a character, and it stops the flow. So, I want to get the names out of the way before I start writing. I plan to come up with names for the main characters and a list of possible names for other characters that pop up along the way, in the process of writing.

While walking down the street the other day, I thought of an ending to "The Unintended Mongrel," and I started to cry. It was embarrassing. I hope I'm able to write the story well enough that others can feel that reaction. It feels good to have an end in mind, although it's kind of strange to think that my goal is to make people cry.