Stephanie Jaymes' Blog

25 Things…updated

stephaniejaymes — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 23:36:27 +0000

A couple of years ago, I heard a few of my co-workers talking about their “25 Things” list on Facebook. I signed up for Facebook pretty much so I could read other “25 Things” and create my own. While going through the process of re-doing my website, I came across the list I’d written in 2008 and made a few changes (not too many, funny how some things never change) for the 2010 version.

25 Things…

1.I believe all dogs have complex feelings and emotions.
2.I love when my husband laughs really hard.
3.I didn’t know how to blow my nose until a few years ago when I figured out I couldn’t.
4.I dread the day my dog acts like he’s “getting older.”
5.I don’t order French Toast at restaurants because I know they’ll never give me the amount of powdered sugar I use at home.
6.I love cantaloupe martinis.
7.I’m unsure about becoming a mother some day- but I’m making progress!
8.I go back into the house (at least twice a week) to make sure the curling iron/straightener is turned off even though they have auto shut-off.
9.I’ve always dreamed of receiving a Tiffany & Co. diamond ring in a robin’s egg blue box.
10.I can’t decide if I get more nervous before the 4×200 or 4×100.
11.I heard Dan Rather quote a politician once and have used “Maximize your potential” as my life/teaching philosophy ever since.
12.I hate the images kids see on T.V. sometimes and wish they could be younger longer.
13.I told a teacher when I was in 4th grade that I’d never wear bell-bottoms and I still haven’t (but I did wear Converse sneakers once and had told her in that same conversation that I’d never do that)
14.I believe a lot can be learned from the original Beverly Hills 90210.
15.I can’t decide what’s worse- having an eyelash stuck in my eye or having stickiness on my hands.
16.I’m not sure how I went so long without listening to the Breakfast Boys in the morning- now my day doesn’t feel complete without it.
17.I’m obsessed with marshmallows, the color teal, and with matching my shoes to my outfit.
18.I admire my husband’s ability to stay calm.
19.I think if you make a lot of money as a professional athlete, you should be drug tested more often and kicked out of the sport if you’re found positive.
20.I still hope the Mariners can win 116 games again someday.
21.The most beautiful place I’ve ever seen is the view of the Pacific Ocean from the Pacific Coast Highway.
22.I hope to travel to Italy sometime in my 30s.
23.I feel lucky and fortunate to have known my dad for 32+ years 24.Some days I seriously consider becoming a vegetarian.
25.I wish I did more volunteer work.

Meditation?

stephaniejaymes — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 21:55:22 +0000

Not sure what happened to my website- all of a sudden it’s just not there and after an hour and a half of looking through deleted emails and old junk mail, wondering where old posts and pictures went, I came to the realization that it’s time for a new site. www.stephaniejaymes.com (Stephanie Jaymes is my pen name…for when I actually publish a book someday) will be up and running again, as soon as Office Live gives me the go-ahead to start creating from scratch- that’ll be a fun beginning-of-summer project. So along with that, I’m going to try and keep up with this blog also, if for no other reason as an exercise in reflection and a chronicle of trying to become a published (fiction) writer.

So I’m at REI today, standing in a VERY long line, and see Yoga magazine on the rack near the register. There’s a headline on the magazine about new scientific research proving that meditation is good for overall health and well-being. I have no doubt that what the magazine is touting is true- I just can’t imagine. My mind is always going a million miles a minute and the thought of focusing on simply breathing seems unreal. I get that people can do it, I just don’t think I could. I want to, but it feels like it would be an insurmountable challenge. I feel a funny tightness in my chest just thinking about it.

I’m looking forward to this summer. My goals are to walk at least 10,000 steps a day (3800 and counting so far today…I have a few miles to go), actually revise Summer Road (not just talk about it), and get organized at home. I’m beginning to feel like the subject of a Real Simple article I saw earlier this year, “Why Am I So Organized at Work, but Not at Home?” I’ve also figured out that I need to have functional organization, not just cutesy teal-labeled type of organization I always try to have. Other than those things, I’m just going to see what summer brings.

Summer plan for Summer Road

stephaniejaymes — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 03:34:09 +0000

Is it possible to be inspired to write a blog? Probably, for people who write blogs all the time and actually have other people who read them , but rarely for someone like me who hasn’t been good at keeping up with this page this spring. Today, however, I found myself inspired to blog, not to share any new-found knowledge or anything particularly interesting, but somewhat as a way to keep myself accountable for some upcoming writing projects.

I’m going to give Summer Road an overhaul this summer. Now that I’ve had the past six months to distance myself from the ups and downs of the last WPF term and process the feedback I received about the story as a “complete” work of fiction, I’m ready to take it on again. I think I have a pretty good foundation (as well as a lot of resources) to be able to increase the tension, emotional stakes, and conflict in the story. One of my mentors said it “sails along at a very even keel” but then lacks any true drama. That was hard to see and hard to take in the midst of trying to get it finished and trying to graduate, but I know now that she was right and regardless of what else is going on in my world, I can get it ready to submit by September when school starts up again.

I have a few other writing projects I’m working on (mainly short stories), but with being the proud owner of a Masters in Writing Popular Fiction, it’s time to start trying to get something published, not just telling people I have the degree.

Summer Road was many years in the making and possibly just a summer away from becoming a novel I’d be proud to submit.

A 101-word story?

stephaniejaymes — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 05:43:07 +0000

I found a contest recently that called for 101-word stories. With so few words, clearly you have to come up with something catchy and clever. I think I might give it a shot, but I have no idea what I’d write about. Is 101 words actually a story? Or is it more of a moment or a reaction?

I might keep my eye out for 101 word stories in everyday life in the next week, maybe find a moment that would work for this. The story is due March 18…

Also in the works, an 800 word romantic fiction story. It’s finished, but needs a little tweaking before I’m ready to submit.

A Renewed Spirit

stephaniejaymes — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 05:19:09 +0000

I remember sitting at my work desk, searching tirelessly for grad schools. I needed a new direction and I wanted to get a Master’s Degree in something that was completely different from teaching physical education/health education. It wasn’t that I didn’t think I needed to master teaching , but I had to find a way to dig myself out of the sadness of that school year. I didn’t know it at the time, but working toward a Masters in Writing would prove to be just the rejuvination I needed to reclaim my spirit and regain my perspective on who I am professionally.

Next up- exploring some non-fiction opportunities, tackling a short story challenge, and continuing with my second novel. Not sure if it’s going to be titled Friday Nights in Falls Canyon, Falls Canyon Friday Nights, or something entirely different. I also wasn’t sure if I’d revise Summer Road, but in the last few days I’ve had a renewed interest in that too. I thought it might be too much to try and fix- but what it’s lacking in plot may just be saved by this newfound energy and desire to see it succeed.

I get the DailyOM email each day, and today’s seemed especially timely:

http://www.dailyom.com/articles/2009/17013.html

~Stephanie

Haven’t blogged forever!

stephaniejaymes — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 02:26:57 +0000

I’ve sure been a slacker when it comes to keeping this blog up! Summer Road is finally finished and has passed approval, so all that is left of my Seton Hill education is the last residency and graduation in January. What a relief! At first, I didn’t feel like it was that much work and a steady pace worked. Then all of a sudden, these last few terms were non-stop with deadlines, challenges, and craziness!

I think I officially have a texting injury. I had a minor little cut on my right thumb and while sending Tony a text message today, I realized it hasn’t healed at all and maybe gotten worse as I typed away on my phone. Silly.

Finished!

stephaniejaymes — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 16:25:35 +0000

Well, my thesis story is coming out of the printer as I write this. I’m finally finished! Well at least for now. It still has to pass through my two mentors for thesis approval, but it’s a relief to have gotten this far.

More later, just thought this deserved a quick post.
~Stephanie

Going into isolation

stephaniejaymes — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 15:22:53 +0000

Days until Self-Imposted-Before-School-Starts-Deadline: 11

Days until Final Manuscript will actually be finished: probably 13

Today I’m headed to the Rockwood Bakery to work on my revisions. I don’t know why I can’t seem to plow through all the changes I want to make. It’s either fear, lack of focus, lack of interest, or that I just want to push it to the last minute so I have that have-to-do-it-now kind of pressure. Not sure that’s the best plan.

The Rockwood Bakery is where I’ve done most of my writing for Summer Road. It has a wonderful atmosphere, pretty good coffee, delicious food, and NO INTERNET! That’s the biggest reason I go there. I can sit and write without the tempation of checking email (although I do do it on my phone from time to time) or read various blogs or news stories.

My goal for today is to re-write the Cynthia-Mitch meet scene, then outline a plan for the rest of the revisions. I may also, time permitting, add a resolution to Allison’s story and add in the friend to replace some of the parent scenes. I doubt I’ll get that all done, but just putting it out there that I would like to try is something.

~Stephanie

A Bridget Jones-type list

stephaniejaymes — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 22:01:12 +0000

Days until final manuscript is “due”: 18

Actual Days until final manuscript is DUE: 48

Steps walked today (at press time): 7967 (walk with Sam, Wal-Mart adventure)

I don’t usually suffer from writer’s block. I’ve never sat for hours at the computer, wondering what to write. There’s always been something. Until now? I don’t know if I have writer’s block or if I have procrastinator’s block. That might be what it is. I’m stuck on my opening scene…I’d thought it was full of tension, described Cynthia’s personality, and was the last scene I’d need to spend revision time on. But after hearing from my mentor, critique partners, other writer friends, and family who have read it, the popular opinion seems to be that it needs to be changed to show more Cynthia. I’ve been struggling with how to re-write it…do I keep the tension-filled angry customer scene and write her having an attack before that or do I scrap it and write a new scene? Ultimately it’s my story, but I’ve always been of the opinion that if you get opinions from various people and they have a consistent message, it’s worth listening to.

What I’d really like to do is leave it as-is and move on to my other revisions…then go back and work on it. Not sure why, I just haven’t done that. Maybe later tonight. Ugh.

~Stephanie

Sinus Surgery hampers writing

stephaniejaymes — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 23:07:57 +0000

I bet it’s one of those things that I’ll be happy I did a few months from now, but right now the only good thing I can say about having sinus surgery last Tuesday is it forced me to finally start reading a new book (Baby Proof by Emily Giffin) . The rest of the recovery has been brutal! The first few days after the procedure were clouded by pain meds (no reading or writing during that time…just lots of Law and Order reruns- thank goodness for the USA network!) and although I planned to have this done right in the middle of summer as to not interfere with teaching this fall, I’d been at a good place with Summer Road and keep telling myself I haven’t really lost the momentum and am just taking a quick break.

With the August 30 deadline looming I have 4 plot areas to fix, 2 characters to re-work, and quite a few pesky ‘ly” words to eliminate. (A major goal was accomplished early last week when my “was” count went from 1140 to 400 in a 60,000 page manuscript. )

I think my dog Sam is a little annoyed I’m home resting day after day (he hasn’t said as much but his expression seems to indicate he could use a little time to himself), I KNOW I’ve annoyed my husband with my boredom, I’ve spent my self-imposed weekly coffee allowance on Kleenex, and for some reason haven’t gone two days in a row without munching on a donut (not good for someone who can’t exercise for two weeks).

Someday I’ll probably blog that I’m SO happy I had the sinus surgery. For now it’s just plain annoying.
~Stephanie