Busy

I'm busy preparing my two stories for a writing contest. More on this later when I have a chance to tell you about it, like after I've submitted my stories.

But in the scurry to get things ready, I used to Wordle to help me find keywords for titles. Thought you might appreciate the graphics. So, here you go.

For the time travel/romance story ...

For the contemporary romance story ...

PS Wordle is a great site to play with. Give it a go.

Another Toy, er Tool, on the Horizon: Scrivener

I've mentioned that I use Scrivener as my word processor. But "word processor" doesn't even begin to encompass all that this software can do: outlines, corkboards, index cards, a binder to keep research with the writing project, compile manuscripts. Based on the tweets from @ScrivenerApp, I've barely touched the surface of what this program can do. I wouldn't be surprised that I've overlooked the software setting that would allow it to critique my story for me.

Today, I read a tweet, sorry I can't remember whose, about a new version of Scrivener coming out soon. Of course, I went to the Scrivener blog and read the latest post. Sure enough, in a few weeks, a new version will be released, with enhanced functionality ... like greater index card flexibility and management, cool organization tools, and ePub support.

It was a Make-Me-Smile moment.

There is a drawback ... I think I need to upgrade my OS to use this new version. And since I use the 1st gen MacBook Air, I'll probably need an optical drive, if I don't want the OS upgrade to take forever using the Remote Disc utility on the family iMac.  I'd planned to purchase these items, just not so soon. Regardless, this is just a tiny drawback and doesn't diminish my excitement one bit. (What a tech geek I be!)

So to the folks over at Literature and Latte, thanks for the smile and great software tool. I look forward to getting my literature-reading, latte-sipping and novel-typing hands on this new toy, er, tool.

My New Toy ...er Tool

In my my never ending search for cool tools/toys, I plow through hundreds, nay thousands, of blog posts that encompass photography, technology, writing, creativity and pop culture each week, hoping to find a useful tool. Sure there are many cool things out there, but useful? Not so much.

I've been drooling over this product since I learned of its existence in a post over at the blog Seven by Five. And now ... I can drool no more.

Enter my new Wacom Bamboo Fun tablet. Here's a pic of it.

My take on it so far...

• Physical Attibutes: 
• It's slightly bigger than my laptop. 
• The table finish matches the laptop. And friends and family will know I like things to be organized, and to match.

• Hands-On Usage: (limited to writing)

• The handwriting recognition is decent, except for the occasional double spaces between words and the jumbled mess of characters. 
• It's easy to customize and adjust.
• I have two surfaces for multi-touch: my trackpad and my tablet.
• On a Mac computer, I can write on a Ink window program to capture my scribblings or for handwriting recognition, or write on top of a page in my word-processor of choice.  Drawings, as far as I can tell, can only be made in the Ink window or a drawing software. It would be nice if I could just draw within Scrivener.

For the days I want to handwrite out my words, instead of typing, I can just break out my tablet. And the software will take care of the typing for me. After writing 249 pages by hand and probably just as many to go, the thought of typing each page leaves my fingers aching. While using the table might take a little time to get the input correct, it will probably save my lots of time later.

My revision course requires that I must hand write my revision with pen and paper, then type my words later. I've gone through five pens and several packs of paper. But with the tablet, I can export my handwriting scrawlings as is and send them to a word-processor, like Scrivener and Pages, as pictures.

And who knew it could be so environmentally friendly? Using the tablet will help from killing so many trees as the need for printouts will be less, as I'll be able to add handwritten comments right on the screen. As soon as I can figure out how to do it.

As an added bonus, the tablet came with photo editing and painting software. I've installed the drivers on the family computer for when the urge to test out my tablet for photo editing comes upon me. And I know it will.

I am hoping the missed word occurrences will decrease as I get more comfortable with the tool. Overall, I'm pleased with my purchase and try to use it as much as I can during my writing sessions.

Anyways, just thought I'd share.

Manuscript Highlights

This past weekend, I went into my office to grab something and stumbled into a unique experience. My manuscript sat on my desk completely bathed in light. I'd left the curtain open and the morning light coming through my window lit up the document. It reminded me of those images in movies where God, or some sort of divine being, shines down blessings upon someone or something. It actually glowed.

So me, being me, I took some photos. The one I've included below is from my iPhone that captured the glow off the printed paper.

Time to get back to writing to make the story worthy of such a glow.