The No News is No News Purgatory Thread, Volume 8

we are headed for 5 year anniversary.

i started the thread in 2008--right after
i got agent bill, i believe. and i was
already on sub.

and here i am all over again. haha!
a lot has happened indeed.

blondie, i can't decide what has been
more drastic--your personal life or your
publishing life. i'm almost inclined to say
the former. =)

GAR -- how can it be Monday already?
Haupe, thanks for the shout-out. Jo, I repped you about an old homeopathic pain killer for sore teeth -- hope you get in the the dentist ASAP.

Sammy, yay for the sequel.
Kel, good luck with the cleaning (YUCK!)
Blonde, wishing your liver a speedy recovery.
Hugs to anyone I left out.

Haupe, I did read Gone, Girl, and did see the ending coming, but I think I'm suspicious by nature. : )

I am very happy to have found a grass-fed dairy at my farmer's market. Not nearly as delicious as the milk of Ireland and England, but better than anything else I've had in a loooong time. (Also, I am doing my very first ever 'diet' and look out for the cranky girl.)

xiaotien said:

we are headed for 5 year anniversary.

i started the thread in 2008--right after
i got agent bill, i believe. and i was
already on sub.

and here i am all over again. haha!
a lot has happened indeed.

blondie, i can't decide what has been
more drastic--your personal life or your
publishing life. i'm almost inclined to say
the former. =)

Click to expand...

2008. Wow.

PURGY FLASHBACK TIME!!! Where were YOU in 2008?

I was still married but recently separated and still working for him, running his television show. I had quit singing entirely, and hadn't found the circus yet. I had just started writing like 6 months earlier, was querying my first book to monumental rejection, and had just started working on something new: a YA novel about a one-eyed girl from the Bronx fighting fairies in Ireland.

It's been a wild ride since then.

5 years ago I had only lived in Kansas city for 9 months. The relationship with psycho ex wasn't destructive yet. It was around that time that I stopped really writing and wouldn't pick it up again for about a year.
Today has been really rough.... Couldn't even make it into work today. Can't focus may go for a walk in a bit.

OMG...2008? Blond, I can't remember last week! Let alone 5 years ago. I do know I was gaming (WoW) and teaching. The rest, no clue.

I have been working on my website and while I still have some major changes to do once my book comes out, like make a static page and separate out the blog from the author features, this is the look anyway here's what I have so far. Happy to interview any published authors willing to do so. Just rep me.

I think I'm all caught up now. Not much news to report, so let's see about 2008...

PURGY FLASHBACK TIME!!! Where were YOU in 2008?

I had just gotten back from teaching in Japan and started my new job (where I still work). I was convinced I'd go back to school for my PhD and start writing fiction again...this time for adults (I'd only written PB and MG). I didn't go back to school, but I did start writing again. My then boyfriend--now husband--also proposed that year.

PURGY FLASHBACK TIME!!! Where were YOU in 2008?

I started querying a little book called Third Strike on 2/29/08. I immediately got my first full request and my first rejection within 4 days. (Thank you, N@than Br@nsdford. )

I joined Purgatory sometime during my querying tribulations (I was on the first page of comments, if I remember correctly!), and somewhere around the end of July/beginning of August, I sent out the query that would land me Ex-Agent. Signed with him on 9/5 (why do I remember this??? That's part of my brain I will never get back)

Kiddo started 1st grade that fall and turned 6 that October. Somewhere along the way, Ex-Agent changed the name of Third Strike to A Devil in the Details, and the rest is history.

2008: I had just started my job-previous-to-the-current-one, and it was sinking in that I HATED it. Mr. Fruit became a selector for YA books at his library and started bringing lots of ARCs home

Result of these two situations: in late 2010, after much dipping into the ARC pile, I started writing fiction for the first time in 15 years.

DENTAL APPT OBTAINED. Heading out of the house in about five minutes, after I scarf down lunch. (Yes, it's 10 AM, but I'm anticipating not being able to eat for a while...) I'm like oh please, just take my money, fix my tooth please oh please. Dentists are very valuable people.

In 2008 I was so frustrated about getting nowhere with my writing for so many years that I decided I'd do something crazy and switch from writing adult fiction to kidlit. Wrote WR quickly and went from there. I lurked in purgatory for several months before I ever posted.

2008

I was in Arizona and I started writing seriously that year. All because I was listening to this song in the car on a hot July day.

Ooh, flashbacks!

In 2008, I had most of a first draft of W!de 0p3n, went to Blue3 Heav3n for the first time, published a couple of short stories (How to Hide Your Heart and The Whale's Lover. I think?). Blue was a puppy.

I wasn't here--not even on AW yet.

That's what I've got.

Also, yay for Sammy's cover!

Dear Gods, I was married in 2008. And still really new in the U.S. and miserable for lots of reasons. Also, I was still writing the first "actual" draft of my dystopian fantasy. Which was terrible. Plain terrible.

Anyway, glad to be where I am now, but yikes...

Also, Fire's bunnehs are hilarious.

Thanks for all the lurve, all.

In 2008- I was in the middle of the long stretch that was the six years it took me to finish the vampire book. I was also working as a temp at the entertainment library at the college I got my degree from.

671 words at lunch on MBG. Not a lot, but considering I only got to write for about half an hour of my hour lunch, I'll take it.

I always find these retrospective questions depressing.

*whacks para with spatula*

think about ms coffee date!

actually--soon after i started thread--i
went to taipei with entire fam.

it's been five years and definitely
time to go back.

Lovely phone call from one of the Vegas area college libraries this morning and I think they will be doing an event for me when I release. Good thoughts out to the universe for me pretty please?

Tas, I haz a jealous cause I so want to get back to writing. I'm getting my ducks in a row though.

Parametric said:

I always find these retrospective questions depressing.

Click to expand...

You and me both.

Starts singing Boston's "Don't Look Back."

your lives couldn't have been *that*
bad? and they can't be *that* bad now,
can it???? ha

*paddles inkie's bottom*

Parametric said:

I always find these retrospective questions depressing.

Click to expand...

Yeah ... there's a reason we used to have a Pit. For those of us who aren't "progressing as planned."

In 2008, I still had an agent, a husband, and a decent credit score.

Well, I'm skipping over things like new health issues and graying hair and a hip that reminds me there are things I will never be able to do again. Now I'm putting my rose-colored glasses on again.