Getting "Lost"

I have to say that being an avid fan of Lost has pretty much ruined any fun or romantic deserted island fantasy I’ve ever had. If I ever did get stuck on a deserted island, I’d probably be freaking out about the possible smoke monster or Dharma project hatches or, say, nuclear bombs that might be hidden somewhere. Which got me to thinking, if I were stuck on a deserted island, I’d probably want to have one of the Lost characters with me, just because, you know, they’re used to this sort of thing by now. So that begs the question: which one?

I guess the obvious answers would be Sawyer or Jack, because, well, they’re Sawyer. And Jack. If you watch the show, you know what I mean. But, all male gorgeousness aside, Sawyer’s a bit too angry and hotheaded to rely on, and Jack is a bit too damaged and controlling. It would be cool to pick Hurly’s brain about all the dead people he’s talking to (aka great book material), but with our combined survival skills I don’t think we’d make it long enough to ever get off the island. So instead, I would pick Kate.

I know she’s kind of a murderer, but I’ll admit, I may have a bit of a girl crush on her. She’s SO tough, which I love! She can get out of any situation and handle her own as well or, probably, better than any of the guys on the island. She knows how to navigate, hike, shoot, hunt, hide, survive and somehow, her hair always looks good (and she has curly hair like me. Honestly, I wonder every week how she keeps it from getting frizzy!). If I were stranded on a deserted island, I would not know how to do any of the above and thus Kate would be my best chance of survival and/or rescue.

So what about you – which Lost character would you want to be on a deserted island with?

My Island's Got No Power

My Desert Island necessities, huh? Let's see. I'm assuming I can't pack much and that there is no power on the island, therefore I've got major limitations as to what I can bring.

The first thing that comes to my mind is my mascara. CAN. NOT. LIVE. WITHOUT. MY. MASCARA. And while I'm at it, I'll give a shout out to my peeps over at Loreal. Love it. Love it. Double Extend in dark brown. Fabulous.

Secondly, a razor. I'm hoping that I'm island-stranded with a dreamy, prince-charming and the thought of me with hairy legs and pits just doesn't cut it for me with the romance of it all. So a razor it is. And hopefully it's not a throw-away Bic. I'll take the Gillette Venus 5-blade, thank you very much.

Next up is my Bible. There's no way I could be stranded for an indefinite amount of time without it.

And a pen and paper is absolutely crucial. I have a hunch I'd be able to write a heck-of-a memoir after finally learning how to be a minimalist.

There's no power on my desert island, so I can't watch movies or TV. That means my dreamboat and I will have to create our own fun. I'd like a case of Ferrari-Carano chardonnay. No glass necessary. I'd even drink it out of the bottle after chilling it in my personal island stream and have it every night with my halibut (that my man had caught with his homemade fishing spear) and a big fat juicy mango.

Finally, I think I'd like to bring a guitar. A piano or a harp (my first choices) might be a bit large, but with all that spare time, I'd like to learn to play the guitar. Since I can't have an iPod, I'd HAVE to be able to hear music. And if the case of wine has taken up all my extra space, surely I could at least slip a harmonica in my pocket.

Glorious Silence.

After spending the morning dealing with more than a few two-year-old tantrums, being stranded on a desert island sounds wonderful right now! I imagine there would be lovely water, a beautiful beach and glorious, wonderful silence, with nary a scream or a shriek around. Hopefully, I'd have enough notice so I could pack a few things.

Besides all of the essentials like toothpaste, toothbrush and contact solution, I'd say an absolute necessity would be my laptop. I envision having my trust Sony Vaio, along with a wireless internet card. That way, I could still go on Facebook, Twitter and keep up on my favorite blogs. Of course, it would also help if I chose to be rescued. I'd spend the days lounging on the sand, typing away at my latest book. I wouldn't have to fetch a sippy cup, or take the dog outside, or yell at the cat for jumping up on the kitchen countertops. I'd just spend my days writing and laying on the sand. I bet I could write an entire book in about two weeks if I had free time and silence.

Of course, after some time, I'd miss my husband and my son. So maybe I'd have to send a boat to pick them up and bring them to the island with me. Under strict rules against any loud noises or screeching, of course.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go fetch Elmo from under the couch. This, apparently, is a tragedy.

What would I bring?

Okay, I'll admit it. The topic this week was my idea. Now that I have to write it, though, I find myself thinking: Um...Why did I think this was a good idea? I don't know. I blame the cold I've had for the past several weeks.

But here we go. If I were stranded on a desert island, and somehow knew it was going to happen, so packed appropriately for the...er...stranding, what would be in my suitcase?

If I were smart, I'd say a bag filled with bottled water, but this is fantasy and in my fantasy, there's a lovely little spring of fresh water on the island and plenty of various tropical fruits to eat, so I'm going to focus on the other items I consider necessary to survival:

1. The "doh" items: Extra Clothes, Soap, Hairbrush, Toothpaste, and a Toothbrush
2. Essential items: Bug repellant, two flashlights with extra batteries (I'd lose one, so need two), matches (hopefully they didn't get wet and are now useless!)
3. Photographs of my family and friends (because I'd miss them)
4. A Survival book on island-living :)
5. Coffee (Hey, I can use a palm frond as a filter, right?)
6. Blank Notebooks and a Pen so I can write/journal/send "save me" letters out in bottles.
7. Bottles!
8. Do I have room for a travel blanket and a pillow? I'm going to say yes.
9. A pin-up calendar of hot, sexy men I can pretend are my friends when I lose my mind.
10. And, finally, books. However many will fit in whatever space is left over. I'm not sure if I'd choose my favorite reads or go for books I'd never read. Hm, maybe a mix of both. But I KNOW I'd stick to light, fun, romantic books...after all, if I'm stranded on a desert island, I really don't need to bring Stephen King along with me. Too scary!

And, uh, that's about it. Now, let's say out of the above list I had to cut my choices in half. What would go? What would I keep?

1. Um...Coffee is coming with me. That's just the way it is.
2. Blank Notebooks and a Pen
3. Soap, Toothbrush, and Toothpaste (I'll leave the hairbrush at home. Hey, who's gonna see my wild hair, anyway?)
4. Photographs of my family
5. And...um...I *should* say a flashlight, right? Or the blanket and pillow. Or the island survival guide. But nope, I'd bring the books.

Okay, so in furthering this game I'm playing with myself, if I could only bring THREE of the above, what would it be?

That's easy: Coffee, photographs of my family, and books.

I can't reduce the list any further. Really. Nope, huh-uh, not happening.

Hope everyone has a wonderful Monday!

It's what day, again?

First off, an apology for my recent scarcity around these here parts. And lateness of posting. Seriously. It's Sunday? Already?? How did that happen???

Second, an explanation - of sorts - which relates rather nicely to this week's theme: it hasn't stopped.

Allow me to explain. What do I mean by 'it'? I guess I mean the writing because that really hasn't stopped... but I also mean all the other stuff that goes along with the writing. As my fellow Girls have already illuminated with their customary collective brilliance in the preceding entries, what happens after you turn in your manuscript is that... well... a LOT happens after you turn in your manuscript!!

I think there is a tendency among first-time writers to think that after the MS goes to copy-edits, or galleys, or actual press, our work is essentially done.

HA!

No no, my friends. That is not so. No kicking back on a beach for you, young word-slinger. Not just yet.

You already know, now, about what happens to the words after you turn them in. And you already know a little bit about what happens to you. I'd like to expand on that a bit. Here are just a few of the possibilities of the things which will occupy your time while you wait for your shiny new book to hit the shelves - all or none or some of which might be relevant to your particular situation, all or none or some of which you may or may not accomplish with flourish and panache (and, as Jillian points out, it seems like you wait forever for the book to hit the shelves. Or possibly just an eyeblink).

You might, in the interim, indulge in the following pursuits: blurb-gathering, blogging, blog-touring, blog-hosting, group blogging, giving interviews, answering q&a's, cover-copy approval, cover-art approval, catalog copy approval, website design/redesign/overhaul/maintenance/upkeep, twittering, facebooking, myspaceing, school visits, festival appearances, launch-party planning, book tour planning, recording the audio book version, shooting the book trailer, organizing contests and give-aways, putting together press-releases, networking your butt off, approving and signing contracts for foreign or sub-rights.

You could also set aside blocks of time to fret over cover art, rejoice over cover art, start another book, get another contract, finish that other book, start on the third book, pitch a couple of new projects, fret over advance reviews, rejoice over advance reviews, weep over advance reviews, attend conferences, participate in forums, self-google incessantly, wonder why you even own a tv, try to do laundry every now and then, and order in pizza. A lot.

Sometimes it gets a teensy bit overwhelming. And yet, for all that, there is the awesomeness. For example, on Thursday night I had a fund-raiser for a school in Brampton to attend where I was the guest of honor (whee!) and got absolutely mobbed by an awesome bunch of students; on Friday, I was the guest speaker at the York Catholic School Board's White Pine Event (an award for which I am gleefully shortlisted for WONDROUS STRANGE! whee!) and got absolutely mobbed by a different awesome bunch of students; this weekend was the Ad Astra SFF Literary convention at which I was a guest, had three panels to speak on, and a book signing to do; tomorrow, I have another school visit with two sessions of writer workshops to lead. Book 3 just went to copy-edits, I have a new book to finish by August, and I'm working on a pitch for another project as well. It's been barely over two years since I turned in that first MS. Feels like forever ago. Or maybe just an eyeblink.

And, while I might be a little sleepy, occasionally late or absent on the blog-front, and slightly swiss-cheesy in the brain, I have no complaints whatsoever. But I do wish they'd hurry up and perfect cloning!