Encouragement, Discouragement

As I wrote about a week ago, I got an e-mail from an editor to whom I had sent a few stories. He said one of my stories wasn't "me" enough. I was discouraged. I thought about it and I figured I didn't have enough time to do a re-write and fiddle with this story that I wrote when I was quite angry.

Then he wrote and said, "Where are you?" and attached another of my stories that he had cut in about half. I don't like that story so much any more, but I can live with it. So I wrote him and I said I understood and that I would do a re-write when I was home today. I did it. It felt good. Again, it's not as good as the original, but he wants like no more than 2000 words. I cut away all the fat and really chinced on the adjectives. I'm obviously a little more flourishy than him. But it's done. Then I got the news that the third story, which I thought was cute, but not as meaty as the other two, didn't make the cut. So I told people that two were getting in the book, but I was wrong about which two.

There's a line in "The Big Chill" where the guy who is a writer for a "National Enquirer"-type magazine (played, I think, by Jeff Goldbloom) is explaining to people that pieces can't be too long in his paper. "You can't write anything that someone couldn't finish during the average shit." I think that's what Doug is going for. He wants them short - no more than ten minutes if you read them out loud. So my wonderful details and magical lines end up on the cutting room floor. Too bad.

We have new carpet in the bedroom now. I like it. It's very different. The wall is red too. We have to move everything back into the room tonight. It'll be nice. There's too much stuff all over the house for F, and even for me.

Work was nice today, but it was one of those days where my brain was not picking up enough Dutch. I'm not sure what it is. I listened and tried to understand, but it's like there was a wall. I picked up some, of course, but it's like I reached a platuea. I'm waiting to see if i get in the new Dutch class. It would be nice. Intermediate. I'll know by the 9th of September.

F is going away starting Tuesday night. He's off to Florence. I'll be a little lonely probably, but he'll be home early on Friday, so we can have a normal weekend.

I'm thinking about doing the National Novel Writing Month. It starts November 1. It would be interesting. It would take the cooperation of F, since he already thinks I spend too much time on the computer. But I think he's mostly bothered by me chatting with people - although I only chat with people I know. It creeps me out a bit to chat with total strangers. But my being on the computer in general bothers him. So we'll see.