Home, Home on the Range

I think a title like that requires antelope. Right? Antelope?

There we go. You're welcome.
So, I'm home! I'm home, and it's hot and humid, but there is vanilla coke and a queen size bed at my disposal. I am quite fond of this bed. In fact, so fond that I didn't leave it until 2 in the afternoon yesterday, and that was just to go watch Glee project.
(BTW, is anyone else watching that? Is anyone else cheering with all of their heart for Sam? Because I totally am.)

(That's a lie, actually. Part of my heart loves Damian.)

(These are important things, people. I promise. Someday, when the Apocalypse looms, you'll be sitting there wondering, 'Why did I not care more about a random reality tv show in which teenagers sing a lot?')

Anyway. I'm back from Alpha and oozing all sorts of advice. Not sure how to translate it to blog posting, though. 

Well. I think this was probably my favorite advice. It came from several authors at Alpha -- Ellen Kushner, Tamora Pierce, several of the staff. 

And it's quite simple.

Let your first draft suck.

No, really.

It needs to suck.

It will suck.

There is no doubt that your first draft is going to suck.

That doesn't matter, though. What matters is getting it down. You just have to finish It was something we talked about a lot -- a majority of people will never finish something they work on. Many people at Alpha had never finished anything. Finishing? Yeah. It's half the battle. 

Finishing turns you into THIS.

...What? Not bad a$$ enough?

This, then?

No? MY LANTA, PEOPLE.

Fine. Finishing yours novel turns you into this. 

Yeah. You're welcome.

Anyway, writing makes you a soldier. Finishing makes you a warrior. Editing turns you into a general, and getting published means that you, My Dear, have won the war.

But first, you must become a cat with a melon on its head as Jane Yolen put it, "Just finish the damn book."

Anyway. More later. I'm going with Maggie to see MAGGIE STIEFVATER OMG this weekend, so yayness. Possibly some on that.

Also, there might be a little Tamora Pierce fangirling. 

Anyway. More later.