Hey everybody!
I’ve got a lot of things going on in my life right now, and they are all great, so here’s what some of them are!
First off, I am totally falling back in love with Machine. After what happened in my last post, I’ve been seeing my work in an entirely new light, and remembering why I love it so much in the first place. It’s pretty fun because I’ve been being a big nerd over it like I used to (coming up with a soundtrack for a movie that would pretty much never happen, planning out discussion questions for book clubs, etc.), but it’s also been useful because when Machine is ready for the next round of edits, it’ll be helpful to go into it with a positive attitude, to say nothing of the passion I’ll need to find the right agent once I’m ready to start looking for one again. It’s given me the energy I’m going to need once I start going back in and really fleshing out and taking notes on some of the stuff I’ve never realized or paid proper attention to before and in general, it’s just been a really freeing experience. It makes me think of the song Flower by Amos Lee, probably because it just seems to happy and hopeful, just like, currently and hopefully forever, me, and whenever I listen to it, I think of Machine. Also in general, it’s a great song, so give it a listen! The man’s music is great (especially some of his live stuff), so if you’re looking for a new artist to listen to, this one is on me!
Secondly, I have officially been accepted into a missionary school in London. I’ll be leaving in August and gone for five months, learning about God and how to use my writing and possibly dancing to help others know him. As someone who has lived in the same house her whole life, it’s certainly going to be a big leap, but I can’t wait to see what God does in and through me during that time. I don’t know how it will affect this blog yet, but even if I don’t get to post much while I’m gone, I will be sure to catch you all up on some of my adventures when I get home!
Third, I’ve been getting back into podcasts. I was working part time for a while in an office job, so I was able to listen to them a lot during the day, and I found (or rediscovered) some ones I really, really like. I’ve linked to them below. If the links don’t work, let me know.
- Critical Hit has long been one of my favorite podcasts and will long continue to be so. It’s a D&D campaign hosted by Rodrigo Lopez (author of The Tale of Tallest Rabbit) and the creativity of the story as well as how genuine and hilarious the characters are really makes it stand out. There were times that I had to stop myself from laughing out loud at work, so if you’re into collaborative and/or oral storytelling, give this one a try.
- Seated at the Writers Table by Phil Giangrande is all about the craft of writing, whether scripts, novels, music or just about anything else. What I love about this one is not only the quality of Phil’s insightful questions, but also the exceptional character each one of his guests seem to have. They are all so supportive and generous with their knowledge, I finish each episode feeling not only as if I’ve learned something, but also inspired that I can accomplish anything I want to do so long as I put in the work.
- Criminal is a podcast about, you guessed it, crime. Focusing on strange cases (scuba-diving through the La Brea tar pits for evidence or a prison that was housed alongside a leper colony for example), the stories are always compelling and interesting, with a strong focus on the human element. Some of the content isn’t suitable to children of course, but it’s worth listening to if you’re up to that kind of thing.
- 99% Invisible is a podcast about design and how it affects our day to day lives. Ranging from architecture to fashion and more, each episode explores how certain design elements affect or have affected a specific group of people, often without them realizing the full extent of its impact.
- Stuff You Should Know is a classic and still one of my favorite podcasts. On a quest to learn about everything in the world, the two hosts, Josh and Chuck are always charming, funny and knowledgeable, with the perfect ratio between banter, tangents and real information.
There are a lot more that I’ve been dabbling with and exploring, but I think these are probably my top five at the moment. If you have more you think I’d like, feel free to post them in the comments!
Anyway, that’s most of what’s up with me! I’m going to be trying to focus a lot more on getting my heart in the right place before my trip and wrapping up any last Storium and/or Machine things this next month, but I will definitely keep you all posted!
Thanks and God bless!
Abby