A n g e l a F l e e n o r

Article--Makin' Movies

Wed, 22 Apr 2009 14:57:55 -0600

Hay y’all. I have been feeling the need to type informally lately and call everyone “ya.” Perhaps it’s the changing seasons.

Anyway, I have posted another article on Examiner— http://tinyurl.com/deb29z —about the things you need in order to make your own movie for free. Enjoy! Also, go make some movies thank you.

Article #2

Thu, 09 Apr 2009 16:17:00 -0600

New article up at http://tinyurl.com/c2bwa6 about a French film festival happening at the Colorado Film Festival.

I have some lovely food poisoning—be careful what you put in your mouth, kiddes—and the fire station across the street is doing major construction with jackhammers, so I am in a lovely mood.

I like writing these articles so far. It’s fun to just play around on the keyboard and then get paid money for them. Not that I’m not putting effort into them, but… still.

I think it’s going to be hard for me to not go all Dorothy Parker “The only “ism” Hollywood believes in is plagiarism” on everyone. Maybe it would be good?

First Examiner Article Up!

Mon, 06 Apr 2009 19:11:41 -0600

Wow, it’s been a while. I really have no excuse. On the up side, I have published my first Examiner article. It’s short and sweet, so go check it and tell me what you think!

That’s me!

Happy Holidays!

Sat, 27 Dec 2008 15:44:00 -0700

I really enjoyed Christmas. It’s always a strange thing for me.

I liked sipping champagne while playing Battleship with my cousin. I liked gathering with Buddhists and Atheists for a Christian holiday. I liked eating traditional American fare in a Chinese household.

I found it interesting that the holidays are a time to gather with your friends and family, and yet I was gathered with someole else’s friends and family. The vast majority of people I like and love were not there. It’s ok, but I still found it strange.

In terms of gifts, suffice to say that I have enough fine chocolates to last me the next two centuries. I am not complaining!

I hope everyone had/is having a wonderful holiday season, and I hope you all got to spend time with the people you love.

Famous Dropouts

Mon, 22 Dec 2008 04:48:00 -0700

For your entertainment: here is a list of writers who never attended college/dropped out:

Ray Bradbury
Noel Coward
William Faulkner
F. Scott Fitzgerald
Robert Frost
Jack London
George Orwell
William Saroyan
William Shakespeare
George Bernard Shaw
Leo Tolstoy
Mark Twain
Walt Whitman
Emile Zola

(more here)

I don't like college

Mon, 22 Dec 2008 04:41:31 -0700

I have been taking a break from writing because the majority of my away-at-college friends have come back to town for the winter holidays. It’s wonderful to see them again.

I’ve realized, in thinking about my friends, that there is a myth about going to college. Almost everyone says how wonderful it is—that they met their best friends there and grew so much as people. They think this way after the fact; they forget that it wasn’t all sunshine and peaches.

Of course, life is very messy. I actually hate college. There are definitely good things about it. Mainly: being able to say you went to college. Also, learning to deal with ridiculous bureaucracies. Otherwise, one pays to be forced to do things he or she doesn’t want to do.

Sometimes there is sunshine, and sometimes there are peaches, but often there is loneliness, regret, and self-doubt. Nearly everyone I know is confronting issues they denied for so many years.

This is healthy, of course, and I’m very glad and proud that my friends are being smart and working on their issues.

I do, however, long for that magical college experience where I meet amazing, compassionate people and learn things about the subjects we’re supposedly studying in class. I wish my friends could be happy and have the magical experience, too.

Yes, we’ve very privileged to be able to have an education, but please forgive me if I am a little disappointed that it’s not all that it’s cracked up to be.

Drunk People

Sun, 21 Dec 2008 03:38:00 -0700

There are a decent amount of drunk people who wander Denver at night, even when it’s cold. It makes for some interesting times.

As I was pulling up to a Hamburger Stand ordering speaker box the other day, a drunk guy walked in front of me, up to the box. He stood there, slurring, “Hello??” at the thing for a while. When they didn’t respond, he turned around, put his butt near the speaker, and made a farting sound with his mouth. At that point his friend persuaded him to get out of our way.

Tonight my boyfriend and I went to a 24-hour Starbucks at around 1am. It was a smallish one, but it was pretty packed. This drunk guy came in and immediately began yelling priceless one-liners. Examples:

“Because eating hamburgers is delicious, but not eating anything is not.”
To his female companion: “Those jeans make you look really fat.”
About Barack Obama: “Go back to *bleeping* Africa.”
“If you got some Viagra, I bet you could keep it up.”

I don’t think he actually believed any of the offensive things he was saying, but was just having fun torturing the non-drunk people he was with. It was actually pretty funny, but in a rather sad way.

I don’t want to be that guy, but it’s ok with me if he does.

Internets

Wed, 17 Dec 2008 02:44:39 -0700

How long have you had DSL?

Think about it for a second. Think about all of those months and years you’ve spent enjoying the ability to waste your life on Youtube and free porn websites. Those were good years, yes?

Now think about little ol’ me sitting solemnly at home, combating with dial-up and the inability to listen to songs on myspace. A sadder story has never been told.

But, lo, dear reader, you may now wipe those tears from your eyes and leap up in joy, for I have finally ascended to the level of DSL-having, contributing member of society! O, heaven surely cannot be more beautiful than this.

What this means to you:

1) I will be less cranky and frustrated
2) I will be online more, which will probably lead to more blog, or at least more informed blog, or at least more links to youtube
3) I am ever closer to posting pictures of my cat+bacon

In summation: Woot.

Editing

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 00:30:00 -0700

I like losing myself in my stories. It’s the best part. I can lose myself in someone else’s work, but I like creating my own because then I have unlimited power. I say what goes next, I say what happens next, and I say who gets a say. It’s nice.

Editing, however, is difficult. It’s hard to tear myself away from the feelings of joy and accomplishment I get from finishing a piece, although this is necessary for objectively viewing its merits and pitfalls.

I also feel estranged from the elements of a story. Inciting incidents, rising action, climax—it all seems faraway and theoretical to me. I’m starting to understand the necessity of using these ideas in editing, but I’m very much out of practice.

I’m also starting to realize that a normal first draft will most likely fail at one or more of these things. It doesn’t mean I have failed. It just means that I am an actual person doing actual work.

This is a very comforting thought to me, and I’m starting to find the confidence to be absolutely brutal with my manuscripts. Once I can accept that it’s not perfect I can make it better.

Winter Fails

Mon, 15 Dec 2008 03:25:25 -0700

So the warm cozies didn’t really work out. First of all, we didn’t get much snow, and the snow we did get just made the roads really slick and treacherous.

Second of all, I forgot that I had plans to go to brunch at the Brown Palace for my mother’s birthday. We had a lot of fun (and a lot of food!), but I did not get an ounce of work done. Which I am okay with.

Third of all, I didn’t have any hot chocolate or any warm blanket time. I have no excuse for this one, except to say that I just wasn’t feeling it.

I had a nice break from writing today. It made me realize that I’ve been so wrapped up in my goals that I haven’t been paying much attention to anything else. It’s very easy for me to be so completely obsessed with something that I forget that there is an outside world.

This realization does not necessarily mean that I’m going to totally fix this, however. I feel like I need to be obsessed for a while because 1)it’s fun and 2)I’m getting a lot of work done.

I am going to pay more attention to my loved ones, but not at the expense of my work. And vice versa. And I’m definitely going to give myself some warm blanket time.

Winter Cozies

Sat, 13 Dec 2008 22:28:50 -0700

There is a terrifying snow storm a-coming! The high tomorrow is supposed to be 16 degrees Fahrenheit, and we’re supposed to get inches upon inches of snow.

This means wonderful things. I don’t have anywhere to be tomorrow, so I’m going to slip on my snuggy socks, make myself bucketfuls of hot-coca, and wrap myself in a lovely blanket. Then, I’ll get to work.

I love being snowed in because it is the perfect excuse to write. Writing, to me, seems cuddly and self-involved, and falling snow and below-freezing temperatures tend to put me in that mood.

Add a bit of lovely chocolate caffeine, and the stage is set for a very productive day.

^ That is how I feel about apostrophes. Apostrophes are slippery...

Sat, 13 Dec 2008 16:38:00 -0700

^ That is how I feel about apostrophes.

Apostrophes are slippery little buggers. The homophones that cause me the most trouble are the words “its” and “it’s.” I only conquered them a few years ago, thanks to the mocking efforts of a grammar obsessed friend.

Also, what is up with the possessive forms of words that naturally end in “s,” such as “James”? Would one write “James’”—as in multiple Jameses? Or would it be “James’s,” which just seems a little too much? Or “Jame’s”? What is one to do????

Of course, I could just do a quick google and this would all be over with. My misery would be assuaged by the cool relief of knowledge. BUT. I am far too much of a masochist to let that happen.

Plus, I kind of like the ~mystery~ of ignorance. It’s nice, sometimes. If this ever comes up in something I publish, I will sadly learn the truth, and the mystery will die. That will be sad.

Next week: What is going on with the ~ (tilde), and why is it on my keyboard???

Literary magazines are pretty sweet

Fri, 12 Dec 2008 01:41:53 -0700

Since I decided to write and publish short stories I’ve been in full-blown short story mode. Usually this would entail buying a heap of lengthy anthologies and reading only a few of the stories.

But, as I said, I quit my job at Starbucks. That, in conjunction with the dumpy economy and the even dumpier publishing outlook, has made me pinch my pennies. The library and I have become best friends.

I checked out the “Writer’s Market” book, and looked through it, hoping and dreaming. This dreaming was tempered by my revisions of fairly stubborn stories, but do not fear. The dreams remain alive and well.

In an attempt at better understanding certain publications, I went to a bookstore to read some of them.

I expected very much to use my analytical skills to discern which magazines I should pursue. This did not happen. I’m still a little confused, in fact. What did happen was this: inspiration.

I really didn’t expect to find good writing between those pages, mostly because my mind was focused on something completely different. I really liked the surprising mix of formality and casualness that many of the stories had.

Nearly all of the stories held me fast in my chair and took me to an emotion or a moment or a person. It was strange to be effortlessly pushed around like that. Strange in a good way.

I suppose the stories didn’t touch me on a deep, emotional level, but it’s good to know that there are people out there doing good work. It gives me a healthy standard, and I’m inspired to be better.

Coffee and Creativity

Thu, 11 Dec 2008 17:24:00 -0700

I’m going to be honest here. I am addicted to caffeine. It’s not so bad since I quit my job at Starbucks (as you can imagine!), but it’s still there. It’s also not as bad as some people I know, who drink coffee at least three times a day.

I only have a cup if I’ve eaten enough that day—coffee gives me headaches if my stomach is empty—and if the coffee maker is clean.

I used to make coffee in a coffee press, but that entails far too much work. And, since I’m being honest here, I’ll say this: I only did it because it made me feel like a coffee snob. Which was a nice feeling. But, now that my coffee-obsessed days are over, a regular old Mr. Coffee maker is good enough for me.

I am fairly particular about my beans, though. I like Veloce Coffee because it’s fair trade, it’s organic, and it’s roasted just over yonder (in Boulder, CO). All of which makes me feel like a coffee snob in a different way.

And this coffee snobbery is just what I need to get going.

Okay, really, just give me a Coke and I’m happy.

Job?

Thu, 11 Dec 2008 12:23:00 -0700

Fear is awesome. I woke up this morning and made myself the quickest cup of coffee that has ever been. I guzzled it, and then grabbed handfuls of cheerios sans milk and stuffed them into my face. I then sat at my kitchen table in a daze of terrified inaction.

I got online to review my application and make sure I entered my phone number correctly. All was in order. The call was a few minutes late. Had something gone horribly wrong?

It hadn’t. I got the call. The woman on the other end was really enthusiastic and seemed genuinely interested in her job. It was surprising and nice. The call was partially an interview, but it was mostly “We want you, but we want to make sure you’re not a crazy person.”

So I got it! And now that I’ve hung up, the coffee is finally starting to kick in.

I’m going to be writing articles about independent film in the Denver area, which is something I like. The whole thing seems pretty legit.

I’m really looking forward to this, and I’m really thankful that I got it. It’s too bad Thanksgiving is over. Ah, well, I guess I can still celebrate with some turkey and a post-meal nap. If the coffee wears off.

Business Calls

Thu, 11 Dec 2008 02:01:28 -0700

I have just started trying to get writing jobs. As such, I’m going for whichever ones I can get. I have no resume, and I have no experience—just a lot of unpublished writing and some balls. Not even big balls, just little ones. And they’re shaking in their little boots.

I am honestly terrified of the publishing world. This is, no doubt, due to huge amounts of ignorance. Bucketfulls. In fact, it’s hard for me to comprehend how little I know about it. I suppose I’ll learn as I go (my favorite method!), but right now it’s scary.

One thing that is causing me a great deal of distress is a business call I have tomorrow morning. I applied for a small thing writing articles about movies for an internet site, and they’re giving me a call to discuss something.

I’m not sure what they want to discuss, exactly, but I think I might be in. People only call if they’re interested, right?

I’m trying to remain calm, I am. Here I go. Inhaling and exhaling.

Okay. I’ll give it my best.

Hello and welcome!

Wed, 10 Dec 2008 16:07:47 -0700

Hi there! I am a simple writer, and I am here to document my super fun attempts at getting published and my life in the meantime.

I like writing. In elementary school we had an assignment to write about a hidden treasure. I could not decide what it should be. Eventually I led my main character on a lengthy journey through the jungle and the desert until he found the treasure box. The treasure, it turned out, was a bunch of clean underwear, which was lucky because he had forgotten to pack any.

Perhaps this just shows that I have a juvenile sense of humor, but I suppose that moral is just as valid.

I haven’t been published, except in my high school literary journal. I am going to change that, and along the way I’m going to tell it like it is.