Abnajects Haven Forum Introductions

Will you please introduce yourselves here?

Who you are; where you are; who you were in ABNA?

A bit about yourselves? Any specific expertise?

Other interests?

Thanks

Greetings Rejects....and I mean that in the kindest possible way. Were y'all as sure you were going to be a semi-finalist as I was? The good thing is the events of the past few days have made me take a hard look at both my writing and my ego.  I love writing almost as much as I love writers. If there were a 12 step program for addiction to writing workshops I would have to join. For the past seven years I have been attending the IWWG (International Womens Writing Guild) weeklong workshop in Saratoga Springs, NY and have been fortunate to develop a network of writing friends around the world as a result. We call ourselves the "pinky sisters". I took a workshop with Natalie Goldberg a few years ago. That's when I decided I was not cut out to be a Buddist. I do love New Mexico, however. (I lived on a commune in Embudo in the early '70's) so I go to the Taos Summer Writing Conference each year.  When I am not attending writing conferences I do write. I have written two novels. Pungo Creek was rejected by the geniuses at ABNA (do I sound bitter?) I describe it as Lovely Bones meets B*****d out of Carolina.   Fanny's Tattoo is mystery-suspense. I wrote it in 28 days during this year's NaNoWriMo and enjoyed the process immensely.  But enough about me...Brenda

Thanks Brenda, glad to have you here. I'm looking forward to reading some of your novel.

I was almost finished typing a really informative introduction last night when a power surge knocked out our main computer. Basically, the hard drive is toast, the motherboard is toast, and after running system recovery the monitor was fried this morning. Then, I decided to put the hard drive in another machine to recover the files.

It fried that motherboard too.

Hence, this is a shorter intro, from my laptop, after hours upon hours of computer work with no success.

I'll write a better intro when I'm more sorted.

Hi, and thanks for reading.

Lorri

Anita Parikh, author of Alms Full of Rainbow (Literary Fiction), x-ABNA'ite, entrant from India.

Through the medium of words i paint the world i want to see...

A freelance software developer now, i am passionate about Digital Art and Photography, in addition to writing. For more, on the things i do, check out www.anitaparikh.com

Lots of other interests... if i am able to take myself off the computer! Yet, not a net person per se, i can't promise being a regular here, as on any other forum, as much as i would like to... but an author needs to sashay into the environs that she must also belong to... :)

Hi.  My name is Lisa and I'm a write-aholic.  I started writing as soon as I could hold a pencil properly.  On March 23, 1981, it's my very first day as a cab driver and I'm in the process of divorce from a fellow who would make a GREAT bad guy in any genre.  It was as a cab driver, a couple years later, that I read a book that SO didn’t live up to its cover and back blurb, I vowed to write a better one.  Thus was born my ABNA entry, written by hand in a spiral notebook when I wasn't taking somebody some place.  

In August of 1992, this Lost Child of the Disco didn't see me stopped at the light in my red and yellow taxi cab, and blasted into the back of my 1981 Ford Fairmont station wagon, doing about 30 mile per hour (40 kph).  Got a fused wrist out of the deal, and a diagnosis of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, the latter a souvenir of my wretched marriage.  The combination of the two got me put on Disability (the medications they gave me didn’t work and after 15 combinations in a year and a half, the pill rollers at the community clinic gave up.  I asked for re-training.  They responded by sending me a tiny little check each month for me to live on).  

Hadn't planned on retiring at the age of 34, but turned it into a lemonade making experience and pulled family research out of moth balls and, for variety, resumed work on my ABNA entry.  

I know a fair bit about the healing aspects of herbs, barks, and grasses and the administration thereof; the history of the areas that are today Washington state, USA, and British Columbia, Canada, between 1858 and 1863; Pacific Northwest and Norse mythology; the Chinook Jargon; 19th century clothing construction; "primitive" weaving; motorcycles; Ford Mustangs; genealogy.  I dabble in html (self-taught; am the webmaster for four websites I designed) and since, 1989, I've been a member of a couple online writing groups that started out on FIDOnet and are now distributed via email;  I'm the current moderator on one of them.  Then there's the Living History and playing with the tourists' brains, which happens in the summer time.

I am here who I was in ABNA and have a fair command of naughty language--one cannot work with cab drivers for 11 years and not.  A born-again Pagan, I have no interest in talking anybody into following my religion and ask the same courtesy of others, and feel the same about politics, race, and individual sexual preference.  I mean, if one wishes to boink a hamster while shouting, "Bush Roolz!" and wearing visqueen and tartar sauce, well, as far as I'm concerned, it's nobody's business but the boinker and the boinkee.  I might let the boinker know where he can get a good deal on electrical tape, but have NO interest in joining in.

Oh, and Mr Moderator, Sir…?

My ABNA entry is an adult alternate universe story, and you said, "(No fantasy and kid's/young adults' stuff please: there are myriads of places on the net for such highly sought and respectable genres.)".  So, does that mean I have to take my pail and shovel and go find a new sandbox to play in?

Inquiring minds want to know.

I entered the ABNA on a lark. I had the manuscript sitting around and thought why not.
I entered the contest under a pen name and have continued that to this site.

Thanks for the invitation , Tom,.  and thanks Lisa for telling me about Tom. I know this is the place where we introduce ourselves.. I promise I will very shortly.  Right now my sweetie is home sick so not much time to spend on computer.  I am also from the Great Pacific North Wet  (Hi Lisa!)

I will be 70 in June, retired,  and have been writing most of my life one way or another. I do have two unfinished novels floating around here somewhere. In fact the first one is partly responsible for the current work in progress.  I felt I needed a back story to help me sort out some inconsistencies in the first novel. Dark Times is the result of those efforts. And oh the sea changes that back story has gone through

 

ps no  I was not in ABNA    Not yet

 

Kathy B