Lola Versus

SIFF-stravaganza started for me last night, with a massively full screening of Lola Versus. I guess the night before, the festival had run into the problem that more passholders had shown up than anticipated, leaving the poor single ticket holders out of luck. I have a feeling the same thing happened at Lola last night, but as I made it into the theatre, I can’t be certain.

(And to the two girls seated next to me: NOT COOL. Claiming you have to go to the bathroom and then cutting in line so you make it into the theatre makes me want to find an usher and have you thrown out. Dumb bitches.)

Anyway.

Lola Versus is brought to you by the team of Zoe Lister-Jones and Daryl Wein (the geniuses behind Breaking Upwards). Lola’s got a great life, living in New York City in a fantastic loft owned by her boyfriend, Luke, studying for her PhD, hanging out with her friends…then her boyfriend proposes, and her life gets even better.

Except when he dumps her. Oops.

Despite not being a big fan of romantic comedies, I can’t seem to stop watching them. Fortunately, I’ve seen a couple in the last few years that were genuinely funny (500 Days of Summer; Crazy,Stupid, Love) and this one definitely qualifies as funny. Like haha funny, not the cutesy funny you so often get with romantic comedies.

Lola (Greta Gerwig) turns into a completely believable portrait of an ex: obsessed with her former fiance, unable to move on, making mistake after mistake, compulsive eating (okay, her compulsive eating is all gluten free and macrobiotic) and getting wicked drunk and pissing off all of her friends. She knows Luke is bad for her, but she can’t stop herself from going back to him, trying to sort out the confused mess in his brain. He wants her. He needs space. But he loves her! But he needs space (in the form of another woman)!

Gerwig is often hilarious and completely real, and shows off the flair for comedic timing she demonstrated in No Strings Attached. Zoe Lister-Jones, as Lo’s friend Alice, is a sex-crazed single woman in a city full of prospects. Those prospects just don’t seem to be interested in her. Lister-Jones is at times hysterically funny and touchingly nuanced, especially toward the end of the film. The big surprise for me? Bill Pullman, as Lo’s father. I don’t think I’ve seen him as relaxed and having as much fun since Spaceballs. The man’s always so damn serious. It’s about time he loosened up!

What I loved the most about this film was the way it dealt with the timeline of a break up. Having a relationship end is often painful, messy, and confusing, especially if it’s gone on for an extended length of time and the other person has become so ingrained in your life you aren’t sure how to function properly without them in it. Lola plays out the way you’d think so many other break ups do, complete with a realistic ending that, while not sappy, left me feeling pretty damn good.

Lola Versus opens June 8th, nationwide June 15th.

Another day, another contest…

The first round of results are in for the RWASD’s Spring Into Romance Contest. Finders Keepers, unfortunately, didn’t final. Disappointing, certainly, and a little surprising. But I did receive some great feedback and some positive reinforcement, so it wasn’t a complete loss.

I just wish I could read the comments without giving myself a headache.

I have two score sheets. One judge wrote in pen, the other in pencil. I can read the pen comments with relative ease. Pencil? Not so much. The BF and I have this ongoing war, pencil versus pen. Musicians carry pencils around, to make notes, to change phrases and bars around, all sorts of things (I also imagine when they’re really bored, they engage in pencil fights). It’s been years since I last used a pencil, having had to use pen for work.

So, to all judges of writing contests everywhere, PLEASE make sure your comments are legible. If you absolutely have to use a pencil, make sure it’s sharp and dark enough to read. I would love to take into consideration all the comments you make on my writing. I can’t do that if I can’t read what they are. Just sayin’.

Now, for two more contests:

The FF & P is sponsoring On the Far Side, a contest for writers currently unpublished at novel length (40,000+ words). While the FF & P is a sub-chapter of the Romance Writers of America, it does not appear that your entry need contain romantic elements. You do, however, have to be a current member of the RWA. First twenty pages, submitted electronically, plus an additional two page synopsis, if you wish. Deadline is May 30th. Contest info is here.

The GSRWA (my local chapter of the RWA, or what will be my local chapter, once I get around to joining) is sponsoring the Emerald City Opener Contest. Polish your hook and send in the first seven pages by May 31! This is for romance writers, unlike the FF & P contest, and finalists get a chance to pitch to the agent or editor of their choice at the Emerald City Writers Conference this October. Contest info is here.

Finally, if you’re a writer thinking of looking for representation, you should check out Cupid’s Literary Connection. The blog regularly hosts pitch contests and offers query critiques, and I’m still kicking myself that I missed the most recent pitch contest. Oh well. I signed up for email updates so I won’t miss the next one

Rainy day reads

Here in Seattle, it’s raining. Again. All my coworkers and I have done today is complain about the weather. Outside, it looks like winter. This, of course, prompted many of us to whine pathetically. This could also be because it’s Monday.

I don’t know about you, but rain makes me want to curl up on the couch with a book and waste an afternoon (or a day) sitting on my ass, eating popcorn, drinking hot chocolate, and getting lost in a good story. Without further ado, here’s my top ten rainy day books!

The Likeness Tana French - I’ve raved about this book a number of times, but I honestly can’t get enough of it. Featuring Cassie Maddox from her previous novel, In the Woods, Cassie goes undercover to uncover the truth of a girl’s murder. The catch? She looks exactly like Cassie. It’s heart wrenching in so many ways, and the writing is superb.

Daughter of Fortune Isabel Allende - This was one of the first Allende books I read. A rich, complex story about a young woman immigrating to Gold Rush era California, I personally think it’s an excellent introduction to Allende if you’ve never read one of her books.

The Key Trilogy Nora Roberts - The three novels of the Key trilogy are, hands down, my favorites by Roberts. It wasn’t until my, oh, sixth or seventh reading of these books that I realized there’s just the barest hint of paranormal-ness going on mixed in with the romance. I’ve lost track of the number of times I’ve read the story of three women in small-town Pennsylvania tasked with finding the mythological keys that unlock the souls of three demi-goddesses.

Certain Girls Jennifer Weiner - If you associate rainy days with a book that makes you cry, this is one for you. With her trademark wit and sass, Weiner takes us back into the world of Cannie Shapiro, navigating the waters of raising a young teenage daughter and somehow remaining sane. The crying part comes toward the end-if you read Good in Bed, the first part of Cannie’s story, you’ll cry even harder. And I never cry during books.

Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ’s Childhood Pal Christopher Moore - I imagine after bawling your eyes out, you’ll want to laugh. Hard. Enter Christopher Moore and the as-yet untold story of Jesus’ childhood. Warning: avoid reading in a public place. People will think you’re nuts because you’ll be laughing so much.

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn Betty Smith - I come back to this story again and again. It’s my all-time favorite book. If you’ve got a few hours, I could give you a full-on synopsis of the story, to the point where you could probably write a book report afterward. Francie’s story of growing up in the slums of Williamsburg is my “pickle book”: when everything else on my bookshelf seems dull and boring, I re-read this, and suddenly the world is full of color again.

News of a Kidnapping Gabriel Garcia Marquez - Say what you will about Garcia Marquez, but when it comes to reporting, the man tells a riveting story. In late 1990, two journalists were kidnapped by men associated with the Medellin Cartel and the notorious Pablo Escobar. The story that followed ended with a total of ten journalists kidnapped, two shot, and a story so full of suspense and intrigue you’d swear it was fiction. It’s not.

Shadow Kin MJ Scott - I just read this a few weeks ago for the first time, but the world building was so fantastic, I can’t wait for the next one, Blood Kin. Able to slip in and out of the shadows unnoticed, Lily’s the pet assassin whose most recent assignment goes terribly wrong. It’s a combination of vampires, mages, and Templars (yes, Templars) that sets the stage for an interesting new series.

Bastard out of Carolina Dorothy Allison - This is one of those stories that has your eyes widening in horror, gradually, with every turn of the page. It’s also the reason you can’t put it down. Bone grows up spending her days trying to avoid Daddy Glen, her step father. But he won’t be avoided, and their encounters stoke a fire that grows steadily until it reaches the point of combustion.

Cast in Shadow Michelle Sagara - Something about the world of Elantra is just so engaging, I can’t put it down. Kaylin Neya is a Hawk, tasked with investigating crimes within the city of Elantra. After having escaped the fief of Nightshade seven years before, she’s ordered back to investigate the deaths of several children, the crimes duplicates of the murders that drove her from the fief in the first place. Worse, she’s ordered to partner with a man from her past that she swore she’d kill on sight, should their paths cross again. Awesome world building and a kickass heroine had me going for book two, book three, book four…okay, fine. I’ve read them all.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got some books to read

Some thoughts on Magic Mike

I feel I ought to preface this post by saying I’m about to objectify men, in the same manner they often objectify women. So if this sort of thing offends you, or if you find it silly or shallow, I’d highly recommend you find something else to read for the next few minutes.

Now.

Channing Tatum said in an interview some time ago that he wanted to make a film based on his experiences as a male stripper. Apparently in his new film, Magic Mike, he got his wish.

I’m female. I have a pulse. As such, I find Channing Tatum on the upper end of the attractiveness scale, although not quite at the top (the top is reserved for nerdboys and men with delicious accents, like Michael Fassbender). I work with a bunch of women. They also have pulses. As such, they also find Channing Tatum at the upper end of the attractiveness scale.

We fully intend to attend a screening of Mike. I’m practically drooling in anticipation.

A few observations:

• This may very well be Matthew McConaughey’s perfect role. I thought nothing could surpass his performance as Wooderson in Dazed and Confused. Without even having seen the film, I know I’m wrong, just from his refusal to wear a shirt for the better part of the last god knows how many years.
• MATT BOMER. I loved you as Bryce Larkin on Chuck, even as you screwed your best friend over and tried to steal the love of his life from him. You wear a suit so damn well on White Collar. I’m sure I’ll love you in this movie as well.
• I demand the camp and lewdness of Showgirls from Magic Mike. However, as this film is directed by Steven Soderberg, and he has yet to remove his name from the film (like Paul Verhoeven did with Showgirls) I’m guessing the movie may not deliver.
• As the movie is directed by Steven Soderberg, I expect the movie may actually be halfway decent.
• I’m not usually a fan of overly muscled men. So much meat is really not all that attractive. Then I saw Joe Manganiello’s abs.

I am now a fan.

Go ahead. You have my permission to swoon.

The monster under the bed

Every writer, no matter how egotistical they are (or become) has one story that will never, ever, EVER see the light of day. It’s the one that gets dumped in a box and shoved under the bed, and it comes around to taunt you and make growly noises every so often.

What’s mine? My NaNo project, Iron Jewel.

Initially, I was so damn proud of it (not that I’m ashamed of it now). I wrote almost 80,000 words in three weeks (yes, I finished a week before the contest ended), the longest story I’d completed to date. I had a complex MC. I had ideas for four more stories featuring the same characters and continuing the arc I’d set up in Jewel. I had a villain that made me squirm with discomfort. In short, it had all the elements of a great, highly entertaining book.

It sucks.

I’ve been searching for a piece to send in for another contest, and as I’ve already submitted Finders Keepers and Shadowdemon to previous contests, I thought I’d submit Iron Jewel. After re-reading the first chapter, I decided I’d be laughed out of the contest if I submitted it and slunk off with my tail between my legs.

Over the last couple of months, I’ve pulled out various chapters, picking them apart, searching for a less obvious solution.

The obvious solution, of course, is to start from scratch.

I really don’t want to do that. Like, really, REALLY don’t want to do that.

It’s so daunting, because I know there’s some decent writing in there, parts that I could use, but I don’t know how. Anne Lamott, in Bird By Bird, describes how with one novel, she’d printed the entire thing out and set out each scene, or sometimes a single page or whole chapter, and began moving them around like puzzle pieces, trying to find the way they’d fit together. This could work, except that the one problem the story doesn’t have is a continuity issue. I can’t move the pieces around without an Infinity Gauntlet (I just learned what this was after watching The Avengers this weekend. Sometimes having a comic book geek for a friend really pays off )

It needs more action. It needs a manly man instead of a girly man. It needs more intrigue, and yakuza, and research (I hate research). The MC needs a stronger voice and needs to be less waffle-y. It needs some kerosene and a match. It’d make a good bonfire.

I wish Iron Jewel wasn’t relegated to the status of “do not show this to ANYBODY” status. It’s quite sad, especially since the BF not only thought of the title, he actually helped quite a bit with the plotting of the story. And kept me supplied with bottomless glasses of wine.

But for now, it’ll remain in the box, until such time that Remy demands I rewrite her story or she’ll turn me into a newt. Or something.

Rather than being all negative…

I had an idea in mind, when I logged on to WordPress today, that I’d sound off on the changes they’ve been making and just how completely shitty they are. They really are. WordPress is becoming the new Facebook, it seems, unveiling new features and switching things around that, to the programmers minds, probably make it look way more awesome but ultimately has the users throwing their hands up in frustration.

Then Rebecca posted about things to be grateful for, and frankly, that sounded like a better idea all around.

So.

I have the world’s most awesome BF. Seriously. If there were an award for awesomeness, he’d get it. He doesn’t understand half the stuff I write about, or even why I write about it, but he listens to me anyway and finds it amusing when I announce in the middle of dinner in a crowded restaurant that I need to kill more people. Also, he brings me bacon, cooked just the way I like it: almost burnt.

Then we have Noisy Shadow, AKA Demeter. She’s been a bit of a pest since I had to have my other cat, Zen, put to sleep about two months ago, but she makes up for it by being the most insane (and adorable) cat ever.

I have a giant pile of library books to read.

The sun is out, and the weatherman, bless his heart, is proclaiming the temperature will rise above 70 degrees today. This is a magical feat not to be taken for granted in the lovely Pacific Northwest.

I have a job. A job that I don’t necessarily like, but go to every day anyway, and somehow, my coworkers make up for the fact that we’re stuck inside, and we talk about shoes and jeans and the fact that JP Morgan posted a 2 billion dollar loss.

Did I mention the stack of library books?

Also my parents, who will have been married for 42 years this coming week, and the fact that even though tomorrow is Mother’s Day my mother said to not bother about coming over because she’s got too much to do, but she’ll switch her opera night from a Wednesday to a Saturday just because I tell her I’d like to go, too. (That sentence makes very little sense. Oh well.)

My never ending and occasionally twisted imagination. I’ve been paranoid, since I began writing in earnest, that I’d run out of ideas for new stories. That has yet to be proven true, and I’ll never take it for granted. It could always happen. For now, I’m taking advantage of the deluge of ideas and jumping into a number of new projects. Screw editing. I can always edit when I’ve got writer’s block.

Finally, despite the sunshine, I’m taking myself off to join a group of girlfriends in going to see The Avengers, which is really just an excuse for me to ogle Jeremy Renner and indulge in some squealy Joss Whedon fangirlness. They understand. They’ll be drooling over Thor.

I’ll take bands I’ve never heard of for 200, Alex

Today’s post seems fitting, given the news from yesterday. There are any number of journalists and bloggers out there who can do a far better job of paying tribute to Adam “MCA” Yauch than I can. I will say that I never had so much fun at middle school dances as I did dancing around to “Sabatoge”, and “Girls” will always be linked to driving around with the windows wide open and the song blasting at ear-splitting levels. The music world’s lost one of its pioneers, and he will be missed.

Which brings me to my topic for today. The BF and I have pretty disparate choices in what makes for good music, but there’s one thing we can agree on: the state of rock music today pretty much sucks. So instead of tuning into my local modern rock station (1077 The End), I end up trolling websites like NPR and KEXP (our local indie station) for new music suggestions. Here’s some of what I’ve found lately:

Bruiser Duke Spirit – So I used to have a subscription to Marie Claire magazine, and hidden amongst the stories about beauty and fashion are the newest releases in music, movies, books, art, and theatre. I’ve actually found quite a few songs I liked through their regular feature “99 cent DJ” and Duke Spirit was one of them. Lead singer Liela Moss has a distinct Bjork-ish style about her, but Duke Spirit’s songs are infinitely more accessible. “Bodies” has a bass line that sounds like it’s been ripped straight from the Chili Pepper’s “Breaking the Girl” (this is not a bad thing), “Procession” comes across as slinky and militant at the same time, and “Everybody’s Under Your Spell” is a throwback to early 90′s guitar-driven rock…perfect for someone like me.

Center: Level: Roar Youngblood Brass Band – The BF doesn’t particularly care for hip hop, so I was quite surprised when he handed me this album. Then I listened to it, and I wasn’t. Youngblood Brass Band combines what appears to be a marching band with their smooth lyrical stylings, and the result is fun and far more interesting than a lot of music today. Most of the songs fit under the banner of conscious hip hop, much like Blue Scholars and Flobots (two other favorites of mine). “Human Nature, Pt. 2″ samples Michael Jackson’s “Human Nature”, and “Brooklyn” shows off just what the band behind the MC can do.

Handmade Hindi Zahra – Another artist I discovered thanks to Marie Claire, Zahra is a Moroccan singer-songwriter who reminds me a lot of Zee Avi. Singing in English, French, and some Berber languages, her sound is mellow and warm. “Ahiawa” wouldn’t sound out of place in the middle of the Deep South (except it’s not in English) as does “Set Me Free”. “Don’t Forget” floats along on a hypnotic waltzing beat, and “Beautiful Tango” will probably make you think you should be wandering through narrow cobbled streets in the rain, looking for a dance hall. Honestly, of all the new albums I picked up in the last six months or so, this is my favorite.

Glass Drop Battles – Ringing with steel drums and an echoing keyboard that almost sounds out of tune, Battles has a hard sound to classify. So I won’t. Mostly instrumental, the few songs that have words are actually disappointing compared to the ones without. The guitars vibrate, then fade in and out in a crash of notes, and it’s great for listening to when you want background noise but can’t be distracted. Think of them as an alternative to your usual drum and bass or trip hop, because one can only listen to so much Thievery Corporation. The songs range from exuberant (“Ice Cream”) to insistent (“Futura”) to epic (“White Castles”).

Dead Man’s Bones Dead Man’s Bones – What to say about Dead Man’s Bones…they’re fronted by Ryan Gosling. At first I thought it was a kind of joke band (not unlike Jack Black’s Tenacious D) but no, Gosling’s, well, dead serious about this. Bones is strange. It’s got a 70′s folk music vibe to it, but it’s not folk music. Hell, I don’t really know what it is. You’ll have to listen and decide for yourself. Almost all the songs feature the Silverlake Conservatory Children’s Choir, which would make it stand out in and of itself if it wasn’t so…weird. Seriously, I’ve listened to this album several times since I got it, and I still can’t decide whether I like it or not. The songs don’t follow any sort of theme, making the album more of a mishmash of sounds. The one constant, besides the children’s choir, is Gosling’s hesitant vocals, which give you a sense he’s almost coaxing them into being. Try “Dead Hearts” and “Paper Ships”; they’ll give you an idea of just how varied this album is.