Today, I'm trying to think Eastern...

And failing.

While I loved Bridge of Birds by Barry Hughart, I've never written Eastern. But Crossed Genres wants some Eastern submissions. I have so little knowledge there. I think, Ninjas are Eastern. So, great. I have ninjas. What do they want? What are they doing? What makes it a story?

And I'm lost again.

I have no idea.

But I love the idea for next month. Gadgets and Artifacts. I don't know if I'll do any better at figuring out a story for that than I have this month, but it makes me think Bond, James Bond, of course. I had this idea a few months ago about a person who had the ability to bring those little animal shaped pieces of jewelry to life, though that's not quite it either.

Otherwise -- I've been cleaning like mad. Or to the best of my, still impaired, ability. I have knitted most of the foot of one sock. Since the Orlando trip, so that's, what, three weeks? (I seem to be an exceptionally slow knitter -- seeing my progress, or lack thereof, can make my pair-of-socks-in-a-week friends almost visibly shake. It's almost funny to watch them try so hard to be encouraging.) I took a printed page and a paper notebook to writing night this week and scribbled three pages -- that I have not yet transcribed into the magic glowing screen -- so my progress is questionable.

All pages were on the Little Red short. I think it's pushing along somewhat reasonably despite the fact that it's not flowing and I'm forcing it out word by word.

But now that I am three months behind on my New Year's Resolution of submitting a short story per month somewhere, I am trying to decide if, since Caretaker was published in February, even if I submitted in December, can it still count for this year? That would only put me two stories behind.

Unfortunately, I think it's really cheating, so I guess I'm three months behind. Maybe after the manic cleaning phase I'll get back into the manic writing phase? That would have to help with the short story thing!

I'm hoping that after the summer, when Little Boy (hopefully) goes into a two-morning a week preschool, I'll be able to use that time without the constant interruptions that come with children and it will be my "work time." I'm not basing my every hope on that. I'm still trying to figure out how to find personal discipline to do this on my own, but I am hoping some.

Anyway.... Should you happen to have an Eastern story hanging around -- or if you can slam one out in a day -- Crossed Genres needs you. Because unless I come up with something better than the Ninja Knitting Club -- you never see them knit-- in the next hour or two, they're getting nothing from me.