Friday, September 25, 2009

Last Few Hours

I'm going to take a shower, then find a quiet shop to read for a few hours, maybe have lunch, and then head back to Indy. This has been fun. I'm not looking forward to next week when the bills start coming in.

Thursday, September 24, 2009

There's No SAD in Louisville...

...or maybe there is. It hit me while I was in the coffee shop that I have no real energy. I look outside and it looks awful, and at lunch I lacked my usual appetite. I may have the leftovers and my remaining cookies (thanks Mom and Grandma!) for dinner. I'm talking to Garrett over Skype tonight, I have no dire need to leave the place until tomorrow. Maybe I won't.

I feel good about my writing today so far. On my short story I made a strong beginning, if less than I wanted, but I switched to the novel concept again and made a pretty significant breakthrough, linking it to a nice piece of dialogue that came out of my head right before bed.

I've got a disc of comedy I promised to watch, so I think I'll watch it, and draw as I sip my Coke.

Unforgiving

I'm in a small coffeehouse getting some writing done while my room gets cleaned. Central Park would be lovely except it's been wet for the past two days. As I left the B&B I noticed a parking ticket for being a foot into the "No Standing" zone, only $15 but still inconvenient.

I've been playing around a bit with my BlackBerry, having just set up Facebook and installed Opera and a locking program that uses pattern drawing and not a code, all of which I really like. I'd prefer it if the alerts were simpler to change, but to date it's been a great investment.

I'm surprising myself in that I've finished a LOT of the reading I brought, more than I had any right to do. I finished a novel in a day, all but a few of the loose comics, and managed to get about 1,000 words written yesterday, all good stuff. I haven't drawn at all, I'm a little disappointed at that, but the day's still young.

Old Louisville is a gorgeous area, even under cover of rain cloud, but the variety of food isn't wonderful. I'm thinking I'll walk west for lunch, since just about everything else I've found has been east maybe something exciting will be revealed.

I should really make shit up now. Later!

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

First off, the accommodations are great. Enormous bed, great A/C, wonderous bathroom facilities (lacking bidet, but still!!), and a tasty if unimaginative breakfast, plus free beverages and light snacks. I may most of the day here tomorrow, especially if the weather's like they suspect it will be.

I spent today outside, not just outside the room I mean with sunlight and crap. I don't know if I'm just sitting in the "right" spots or what, but Louisville strikes me with an air of insulation, I suppose you'd call it. Everyone seems to know each other, and while they practice hospitality it's clear if they don't know you, you won't get invited to the fancy parties. I'm self aware enough to know that I can be a bit paranoid, especially when it comes to socializing with new people, but that isn't the case here. Every shop I've visited had at least two people strike up intimate conversation, once a day I've seen people shout greetings across a busy street. If one of my purposes for this trip wasn't social isolation I'd be nonplussed.

I AM nonplussed that after only one week, Daily Show and Colbert Report appear to be back in repeats.

I've read most of The Light Fantastic by Terry Pratchett today, and may just finish the damn thing. I've missed reading so much. Tomorrow I may write. Or read more. Both rule.

Monday, September 21, 2009

It Begins

After a hurried morning and a nice lunch with the grandparents, I am now sitting in lounge chair in my room at the Inn at the Park B&B. I'm trying to find a nice place to get dinner, a good bar to watch the game in, or alternatively a good place to get the supplies to watch it in my room as I type this.

Something of a big question: what do I do with myself now that I have no one else to work around? Part of the reason for this trip is to refresh my memory of what I like to do for me, not simply what is convenient and acceptable. It's not something I've had the chance to think of in a long time, and I haven't been in a position to act on what thoughts I've had in longer.

The wine the give away for free (Ryan's liver: "NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!") is left out too long, I think. It's strong and drinkable, but close to turning. (Ryan's liver: "Whew.") I'm about to head out and get what I need to complete my exhaustive experiments on martinis and what makes the best ones. (Ryan's liver: "Fuck!") There's an italian place close by, I'm told, or I can go to Fourth Street live and its cajun place, I'm thinking, and close by is what looks like a good sports bar for me to watch Colts vs. Dolphins. $2 draft Buds and $0.50 wings, sounds fun!!

Friday, September 18, 2009

Failure: A Perspective

The artist I was going to work with to bring "Losing Yourself" to publication will be finishing his involvement with the project after only twelve pages. My short stories continue to be denied publication, my novel series concept only gets more intimidating, and I haven't touched the screenplay project in weeks. One could easily consider this a list of failures, but I don't for a couple of reasons.

For one thing, this is twelve more pages than I had to begin with, and I can do just about anything I want with them. I own the copyright. Which means I can throw the word balloons together and at least have something I can show someone and say, "THIS is what I've been going on about." That is so much more concrete an experience than simply delivering a pitch, and it shows that I have really tried.

For another, this is not a definite ending. We've broke this relationship cleanly and all friendly-like, so should we find ourselves in a more compatible position later we can pick right back up. That is a more professional and more humane way to stop than some of the absolute horror stories one hears in the comic and graphic novel industry; tears, a sailor's dictionary, and months of defamation aren't standard, but they're also not uncommon, and I'm happy to have avoided them.

And here's something I just thought of today: when someone asks me what I'm up to, I have a lot more to say than "well, nothing much." Some people may think I'm insane for trying, others may not have meant to hear anything other than something about the weather, a couple might even think of someone that can help, but no one thinks that I'm being lazy. Except maybe the people that think I'm lying, but then those aren't the people I'm trying to impress. The act of attempting is, if all else fails, a marvelous conversation piece.

Tonight, socializing with fellow comic book nerds. Tomorrow, Windy City Con. And then, Louisville!

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Next Week: A World Apart

After everything that's happened over the summer, I'll be taking a vacation. The idea appeared in my head one day after my third trip to the same department, and M suggested that she'd cave my head in if I didn't take some time off, so the idea became a plan.

I'll be going to Louisville, KY, exactly where is currently in a state of quantum flux but it should be nice. I know no one in Louisville, and there's no major event going on that I know about. It's just a day's drive away, with no one but me to consider. It's the first time in living memory that I've had a vacation by myself. Not to give the impression that I don't like those close to me, but I am really sick of people these days.

The idea is that I will get a lot done of what I love doing: reading, writing, and probably drinking. I'll try to update regularly while down there.