It’s that time of the year again.
The Clarion West Write-a-Thon is UPON US.
. . . I don’t know why I felt like making that all bold and doom-like. It’s not really a doom thing.
For those of you who don’t know/haven’t already suffered through two years of these posts, the Write-a-Thon is a fundraiser that Clarion West runs to raise money for their six-week workshop, a workshop I attended three years ago and that maybe, kinda changed my life. I couldn’t participate last year, but this year I’m back in it, working on THE NOVEL.
(I haven’t attempted anything close to a novel-length project in three years, so it definitely deserves the doom-like bold font. My goal here is to complete a chapter a week, which may or may not be doable, depending on how long my chapters need to be.)
Here is the very brief synopsis/blurb I wrote for THE NOVEL:
A toymaker and a magician create three children together, daughters made out of love letters, wishing stones, and death glass, respectively. Once close, the three sisters have grown up and grown apart — but when one is found dead in their childhood home, the other two must come together if they want to solve her murder and, just possibly, bring her back from the dead.
If you’re so inclined/capable, you can donate money here. You can also find links to the many other authors participating if you’d like to donate to their pages instead of/as well as mine. If you do sponsor me, I’ve taken someone else’s idea come up with some incentives that you’ll hopefully have fun with, assuming you’ve ever enjoyed silly personality quizzes. (And don’t even lie. You know exactly which Disney Princess you are, just like you know which Hogwarts House you belong to. Also, did it ever bother you there were really no good Slytherin students? I wouldn’t even be Slytherin, and that bothered me. No, Snape doesn’t count.)
Anyway. Incentives:
If you donate $5.00 to my page, I’ll send you a brief personality quiz so you can find out if you’d be made from wishing stones, love letters, or death glass.
If you donate $10.00 to my page, I’ll send you a slightly longer survey so you can find out what completely original material you’d be made from. No one will get the same answer — you’ll all be your own special snowflakes.
Of course, I’ll happily accept more than $10.00 donations, but all I have to offer you then is additional gratitude. I can say ‘thank you’ in different font sizes and colors, though, if you’d like.
The Clarion West Write-a-Thon officially starts this Sunday, June 21st, and ends July 31st. You can donate any time from now until it ends. Wish me luck!
My Geek Blasphemy 
I’ve decided not to donate. I spent a couple of weeks trying to decide. On the one hand, I like you and your work and want to support you. On the other, when I give to charities, I try to pick the ones where my money will make the most difference – and while supporting developing writers is lovely, it’s ultimately not as desperate as trying to provide the world with clean water, or trying to save the environment before it gets fucked way beyond repair.
Then I was in a car accident, which, in addition to sending my car to the wreckers, is probably going to eat all my savings due to the insurance excess. This was just after I adopted a very adorable kitty called Miette, who needs food and litter and vet appointments. So I kind of need to be extra frugal for a while.
I don’t think I’d be Slytherin either (pretty sure I’d be Ravenclaw) and yeah, that drove me crazy. As if your ambition being more prominent than your bravery, cleverness, or diligence means you can’t be a decent person. Okay, it’s a more selfish trait than the other houses’ – especially Hufflepuff’s – so I’d expect a somewhat higher proportion of dickheads, but not to anywhere near the degree that is displayed in the books.
Then there were Dumbledore’s comments that it’s our choices that define who we are (referring to Harry’s choice not to be sorted into Slytherin) and that perhaps they sorted people too young. Those just came off as confirmations that yeah, all Slytherins are assholes, if not outright evil.
This is possibly unnecessary to say, but – I hope you never feel obligated to either donate to me or explain your reasons why you chose not to. It’s very kind, and I hope you don’t mind that I think of you as my internet buddy, but you also don’t owe me shit. Which you probably know, so, like I said. Unnecessary. But I’d just feel bad if this was something you felt the need to justify.
More importantly, I’m sorry to hear you were in a car accident. I hope you’re okay, and that your new kitten is providing cute kitten comfort. Pictures, by the way, are totally welcome. 🙂
I’m relatively sure I’d be in Ravenclaw, though I suppose Hufflepuff is also a possibility. After that, I’d just get expelled for having a lackluster personality because I’m not hugely ambitious, and I’m sure as hell not brave. (The too young thing is also interesting. I don’t have any idea what my main personality trait would have been at age 11.)
Okay, cool. It’s just that I also think of you as my internet buddy, and I try to be supportive of your work, and I was kind of concerned that I wasn’t being that? IDK, I’ve been told I apologise too much – the last time someone said that, I instinctively apologised before realising the irony.
Yep, fortunately no one was hurt, and the kitten has been good at providing comfort for the financial stress. He’s one of the most affectionate cats I’ve ever met – he sleeps on my lap all the time, likes to nuzzle my face, and tends to follow me around the house.
I don’t know how to put pictures in comments, but there are a lot of kitten photos (and anecdotes, and a video) on my Facebook page.
https://www.facebook.com/anya.jenkins.9
I’d be barred from Hufflepuff for laziness. I guess Slytherin might be my second option? I think I have about an average level of ambition, but I do have that kind of sideways approach to problem-solving that could be described as cunning.
I do the over-apologize thing sometimes, too, and have also apologized for apologizing too much. Though possibly I don’t say sorry as much as I used to. I’d like to pretend this is some kind of character growth, but I think it’s more likely that I’m just getting crankier as I get older. Anyway. For my fragile writer ego, emotional support trumps financial support, like, a lot, so. Your comments mean more to me than any donations/purchases/whatever. Be not concerned. 🙂
Also, your cat is pretty adorable, and I’m glad no one was hurt in the accident.
Eh, since your crankiness had a positive outcome here, I’d still say it counts as character growth – at least as far as over-apologizing goes.
Oh, excellent. I’m glad to know you find my comments helpful, fabulous writer lady!
He is pretty adorable. :-3 Did you see these two photos from yesterday? I think they were the most adorable of all, even if the cleanup afterwards was a real pain in the ass.
I did, and laughed a lot. I’m pretty sure my exact thought process went like this: Aw, look at that cute kitten in all that dirt — yeah, I’m glad I don’t have to be the one who cleans that up. 🙂
There’s a Clarion West Write-A-Thon? I would love to go to Clarion one day. Any Clarion. There used to be one here in Australia a decade or two ago but no one runs it any more. The chances of me skipping out on job and family for six weeks even if I could get in are pretty remote though. Good on you with the novel. I love your brief synopsis!
I am struggling through trying to finish my YA fantasy. Just when I think the end is in sight, it turns out that was in fact a mirage, which is kind of bizarre because I actually have a detailed outline. I think I might just be in denial about how much work it actually is.
Yeah, the Write-a-Thon is in its last week now, but they do a six-week fundraiser every year. Clarion (in San Diego) does one too.
I loved going to Clarion West, but I know it’s impossible for a lot of people and I feel lucky I had the opportunity to go. I know it doesn’t help with everything (certainly not family commitments), but there is scholarship money available — it’s actually a big part of what the Write-a-Thon’s donations go to.
I feel you SO HARD on the denial. I am also a detailed outliner, and then when I actually start writing, the outline . . . changes. A lot. Good luck with the YA fantasy — I hope the mirages dissipate soon!