I'm now working on the sentinent alien race of tree-like creatures story. This is my experiment with description -- a bit of a stretching exercise. If it goes beyond 2,000 words, most readers won't be able to wade through it. Viewing the world through an alien mind is difficult and I've only tried this once or twice before.
I'm also still working on the horse fantasy. I know what's going to happen and it's rather predictable and yet at the same time it's a play against type. I'm not certain I can manage this, but I'll give it my best shot.
There's an old saying about a wise man knowing that he knows not. If this is so, then I must be really brillant because I don't think there is any Clarionite here who knows not more than I know not. [Or is that less?]
I feel very much like a C person achieving a B average through sheer Herculean force and Bs aren't good enough for me. I don't want to be a B person. For one thing, the stinger makes it hard to sit down and the black and yellow stripes make my hips look too big.
Update at 1730 hours: I finished the stupid, alien tree species story and it's awful. I know some people write best when they write slow but my general observation is that my best stories are those written quickly (which is not to say that they're final drafts) and the worst are those which require a week or more of effort to get that first draft out. This one sucks like a black hole. I was trying to write from within an alien viewpoint and I've now got this trite, alien sentinent tree coming of age story with a sappy this is the meaning of life ending. I don't know whether to toss it into the manuscript box or set it on fire.
I am now back to writing descriptive sentences that show not tell (haven't succeeded in getting a single one of these right yet), typing up my critique notes, and starting back on the homosexual-lover-turned-into-a-horse story.
This morning, I woke up after driving five hours to reach my parent's home and I was busily signing documents that needed to be faxed elsewhere to cover an emergency. The dachshunds were barking and running around my feet when the phone rang and Buck asked why I wasn't at the critiquing session. I explained it was a five-hour drive and I'd planned to drive straight back, stopping just long enough to sign the documents, but people kept waylaying me. Then I woke up and I was in bed in the dorm. It was almost 0600 hrs.
I decided to go back to sleep for a while. Driving that far really wears me out.
I'm still trying to deciper the meaning of that dream and I note that mine is not an isolated episode. More than a few of us have reported weird Clarion dreams.
Under home-related news, the daughter's insurance company is being anal-retentive. They insist they cannot process her claim because the other driver didn't file a claim and thus she is responsible for all bills, etc. This is BS. Fortunately, we have an attorney. I hate to pay him $100 to make a phone call but this is what we had to do a few years ago when my son was rear-ended and the other driver tried to claim it was his fault. [David was turning left, into the subdivision and the other driver tried to pass him on the LEFT. She was driving home from work and in a bit of a hurry and it took a phone call from our attorney to her insurance company to shake loose a check and an understanding. Phhtttt! to insurance companies and bureaucracy.