Twofer Tuesday -- A Grand Plan

As I wrote in this post last week I've commited myself to 1000 words a day. So far, so good. It all started early last week when I noted my word count one day was 932. Well, I thought, that's just a few ands, ifs,  and thats away from one thousand. Maybe I should make it a target.

As a bonus the story which was not moving is now crawling forward. One of my characters did not wish to grow, change, or do anything, despite taking some drastic action to get to where she  is.
On the good side she's not my main character. She was going to be a second MC, but if she insists on stagnating, then her role changes.

I have been reading over what I've put down so far with special focus on the first chapter. I introduced a few questions back then that it's high time I got around to addressing. I'm working on it.
I'm happy to say that during some sessions, like yesterday's, the words gushed out, like this:

 Old Faithful, Yellowstone

and I was happy.

But there are still days when the session is more like this:

Sulphur Caldron, Yellowstone

and I gnash my teeth as I write, but I am still happy.

I suspect Dead Broke will be one on those manuscripts. You know the type. The one that comes up in the queue and must be written to get at whatever's behind it. 

I could be wrong. But right now I don't think I am.

Two lines from the manuscript:

"A bullet-shaped beige lump with a peaked cap smiled up at me and twinkled  its deep brown eyes. This is what my afterlife had come to: a dildo with glasses and a wanton fringe of hair offering his services."

#

What have I been reading?
Glad you asked.

I had the unqualified pleasure of reading Gregory Maguire's Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West.

He did a magnificent job of bringing Elphaba to life and making us care about her. She may be wicked to some, but she loves fiercely, in the absolute, and on her own terms.

She who is perceived as wicked is frankly better and more honest than the good one who is corrupted by the perception of absolute good.

Maguire did a much better job of twisting around our sadly pedestrian notions of good and evil and of making us think than Salman Rushdie did in The Satanic Verses,  and he did it without Rushdie's self-important bloviation.

Two lines from Wicked (Harper, 1995)

"But Elphaba only nodded grimly. 'I couldn't agree with you more, ' she said.

'As for Shell-'continued Glinda, wondering what fresh pain she might tread upon."

Thanks for reading. For more Tuesday twos, please see The Women of Mystery.