The Road to Phoenix

Finally! I'm blogging the photos from the Pizza Pilgrimage that my LesBro and I took a few months ago, when we drove 12+ hours in a day and a half for, um...pizza.

PART I: Desert Bus, I Mean the Drive From Los Angeles

Apparently, we went to Chiriaco Summit, which is like some dude's mountain. I wouldn't know, since I spent the entire morning portion like this:

Yeah, my sleep mask says "I Don't Do Mornings."

But Selena said I was such a good immigrant that I was sneaking across the border while sleeping:

This poor FOB could only stand outside the fence and make Japanese tourist signs:

Coming Up...

Midgets eat pizza and Marines flash their nips!

Sh...Someone's Going to the Vet on Saturday

Friday Five About Nothing

I wish I had a picture for you, but all my photos are on my Mac and I'm PC right now. (Yes, I swing both ways in the most unholy of computer couplings.)

Since none of the good memes are refreshed yet, I'll do my own Friday 5.

52 Faces Presents: the Most Boring Friday 5 Ever

Here are 5 things that have kept me busy in the last week:

1) Bitchass Terry acts all housebroken for days, then pees on the carpet. We kind of hate him.

2) My new position at work has started and I love it! It keeps me busy though.

3) I've been diligent about writing Novel Y every day (except last night when I had to sleep early...and I guess I should write a few words tonight.) Word count is now over there -->

4) The diluvian rains have come to Los Angeles, doubling both driving times and hazard, while flooding rich people's homes. I knew we had it coming. It's Heidi Montag's 10 surgeries. (Awesomest celebrity awfulness ever, btw. Not as good as Casey Johnson and Tia Tequila: From Lesbo Engaged to Dead, though.)



5) Jifo's cousin independently joins a meetup group that I've been hanging out regularly with. Her friend from the group is friends with one of my coworkers (Neither knows this yet, and I am going to guard this fact with my life. Other than blabbing it on my blog.) The world implodes yet again.

Butches Are In, GenderQueer is Out (Of the Closet)

To get inspiration for my novel, which is lesbotastic, I've been trying to find hot photos of Asian butches. But apparently, "butch dyke" is no longer popular the way it was when I was in college. (You know...those days.)

All I ended up with were totally un-butch dykes and one creeptastic link to dog porn. (Why would a lesbian want canine penis if she doesn't want human?)

C'mon people, what happened to all the stone butches?

Apparently they became genderqueer.

I searched that term instead and came up with a lot hotter dykes. So weird how terms and identities shift, but the photos stay mostly the same.

I ended up facebook stalking my ex-girlfriend (from said college days - I'm so cliche) - who, let me just state for the record - got skinny and butch and hot AFTER I pushed her out of the closet. Don't you just hate that?

I also had to ogle an old friend of mine who went on T a few years ago and is now the hottest Asian boi I've ever seen and I hate his girlfriend for being so lucky. But at least he's with another Asian, so I can't complain. Keep that transgender goodness in the community!

Anyway, if you have any photos of sexy andro Asian girls - or bois, rather, send them my way or link 'em in the comments so we can all take a gander. Please end my need to dredge up my history and look at photos that just make me cry.

And if any of you are lucky enough to be dating a butch Asian, you better watch out before I steal your transman!

52 Days of Pain: Day 10

Progress Report on National Novel Writing Year



Novel Y:
Projected Day 10 Word Count: 12,960
Actual Word Count: 9,076

Novel X:
Haven't touched it since starting Novel Y.

I think when I'm working on first drafts I can't look at anything else.

2010 Young Adult Reading Challenge

Stepping it Up level: 50 books

1. The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick (Christmas gift from Selena)
2. Revelations (Blue Bloods, Book 3) by Melissa de la Cruz (via audiobook while commuting to work)
3. Flash Burnout by L. K. Madigan
4. Witch & Wizard by James Patterson (audiobook)
5. Dragon Slippers (Dragon Series Book 1) by Jessica Day George
6. Forest Born (Books of Bayern) by Shannon Hale
7. The Van Alen Legacy (Blue Bloods, Book 4) by Melissa de la Cruz
8. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (audiobook)
9. Dragon Flight (Dragon Series Book 2) by Jessica Day George
10. Catching Fire (The Second Book of the Hunger Games) by Suzanne Collins (audiobook)
11. Dragon Spear by Jessica Day George
12. Graceling by Kristin Cashore
13. Princess of the Midnight Ball by Jessica Day George
14. Millicent Min, Girl Genius by Lisa Yee
15. Ender's Game (Ender, Book 1) by Orson Scott Card (audiobook)
16. Fire (Graceling) by Kristin Cashore
17. Princess of Glass by Jessica Day George
18. Mockingjay (The Final Book of The Hunger Games) by Suzanne Collins (audiobook)
19. Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder
20. Castle Waiting by Linda Medley
21. Hero by Perry Moore
22. Magic Study by Maria V. Snyder
23. Misguided Angel (Blue Bloods, Book 5) by Melissa de la Cruz (audiobook)
24. Fire Study (Study, Book 3) by Maria V. Snyder
25. Storm Glass (Glass, Book 1) by Maria V. Snyder
26. Sea Glass (Glass, Book 2) by Maria V. Snyder
27. Spy Glass (Glass Magic) by Maria V. Snyder
28. Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

2010 Support Your Local Library Reading Challenge

Just My Size level: 50 books

1. Dark Tower: The Gunslinger Born by Stephen King
2. Flash Burnout by L. K. Madigan
3. The Forest for the Trees: An Editor's Advice to Writers by Betsy Lerner
4. Dark Tower: The Long Road Home (Exclusive Amazon.com Cover) by Stephen King
5. Dark Tower: Treachery by Stephen King
6. Dragon Slippers (Book 1) by Jessica Day George
8. Forest Born (Books of Bayern) by Shannon Hale
9. Dragon Flight (Book 2) by Jessica Day George
10. Dragon Spear (Book 3) by Jessica Day George
11. Graceling by Kristin Cashore
12. Princess of the Midnight Ball by Jessica Day George
13. Millicent Min, Girl Genius by Lisa Yee
14. Fire (Graceling) by Kristin Cashore
15. Princess of Glass by Jessica Day George
16. Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder
17. Hero by Perry Moore
18. Magic Study by Maria V. Snyder
19. Fire Study (Study, Book 3) by Maria V. Snyder
20. Storm Glass (Glass, Book 1) by Maria V. Snyder
21. Sea Glass (Glass, Book 2) by Maria V. Snyder
22. Spy Glass (Glass, Book 3) by Maria V. Snyder
23. Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

2010 Reading Challenges

One of my favorite parts about committing to being a writer is allowing myself to read again.

As I've gotten busier with work in the last few years, reading felt like a luxury and I felt indulgent when doing it. The only times it became okay to read were:

airplanes
trains
bathrooms (you know what times)

But now that I'm "a writer", reading is actually part of the job description, although I still don't have enough time to just pop over to Borders or the library and get lost for hours like I used to.

J. Kaye has some of the best annual reading challenges in the blogosphere.

Last year I did the 25 Library Book Challenge, this year I'll be stepping it up to 50. I'm also doing the 50 YA Books Challenge.

Who's joining me?

250 Words a Day Challenge for Writers

This project by Inkygirl should help me stay on track with my word count. I would have liked to do the 500 words a day challenge, but my progress has been more like 500 words a week...

(Given that I'm writing a sentence here and there while supervising teenagers might have something to do with it...)

I got a great question about my experience with the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award yesterday, which I will address in a detailed post. Thank you Guinevere (and Honolulu Girl) for making me feel like a "real" writer. :P

2010 Is National Novel Writing Year

Declares I.



Word count widget provided by writertopia

I find I write better when I get to show off am held accountable, so I'm making my novel word counts public.

This, like my "Should I Quit Journalism School" poll, could be a mistake that causes me to hate my friends for a while. (Don't worry, I've forgiven you all for being boring-ass practical aZns who wanted me to commit suicide [but at least I'll have a masters!])

But for now, to kick my own ass, here's the start of my own private NaNo, what I like to call:

52 Faces's 52 Days of Pain

Novel Y: 4,141 words as of Jan 5
Goal: 50,000
Time: 52 Days
Average words needed per day: 881.9

Novel X: 2009 NaNoWriMo winner
Goal: Second draft
Time: 52 Days (x2 possibly)

My goal is to find trusty beta readers to help me rapidly revise Novel X for agent (and possible contest) submission. While I'm heeding the advice of my new bible blog Kidlit.com and seeking readers who are agents/editors or published/high-level writers, I'm also searching for actual teenagers who love to read YA fantasy.

I got this idea from another writer, who blogged about how she forced asked her high school students to read her novel, a chapter each week, and give feedback. ("Wow, that isn't child labor or anything," says Jifo.) I too am hoping to find a few bright and eager students to enslave into critiquing my work.

I'm considering submitting to the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award again to get my rear end torn anew one more time by anonymous Publisher's Weekly weasels critics. (I stopped writing for like a month after they raped my first NaNo novel last year - the Amazon Vine readers liked it though, and the book-loving public is who I write for.)

But I'm not going to make the mistake I did last year of sending in work in a rush just to make a contest deadline. So if I miss the deadline for submission, oh well. At least I'll have a damn good novel to query agents with this year.