Today is June 21st - the summer solstice, the longest day of the year, but most importantly, the shared birthday of all Necromancers around the world. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
For those of you who are turning thirteen today, I hope that you take your day of transformation very well and that you don't have too much difficulty with it. Be careful of all those voices - they have a tendency to get to you, if you let them.
A Solstice coincidence - last summer I started querying literary agents for the first time. I sent out my first batch on June 21st. I received the following response from my current agent on July 19th:
"This is one of the most clever queries I have ever received. It's originality earns you a request to send the full ms via hard mail to: "
A few months later, after several more requests and a few exclusive requests, I signed with my current agent. She started submitting my manuscript to publishers at the beginning of this year.
Here's to hoping that this June 21st will bring an offer from a great publisher. There are several that have my manuscript in their hands, but I just need one to make an offer.
Again, Happy Birthday, Necromancers!
Till next time,
T.L. Gray
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
Thursday, June 08, 2006
Editing - The Year of the Unicorn
I think I will work on editing the next chapter of The Year of the Unicorn and upload it into my critique group for review next week. It looks to be a long chapter. Hopefully, I'll get it complete today.
I'm about half-way through the edits of book two of my Necromancer series. I can't wait until I have it all nice and polished, so that I could send it along to my literary agent and she can start shopping it around.
I'd like to write the next couple of chapters of Milledgeville Misfit this weekend. Perhaps I'll catch up on my sleep, be rejuvinated and have a refreshed mind to get busy.
On another note:
A prophecy was given to me that things are being lined up for me right now, and that this line is an endless one. I'm to be patient. A change is coming, for the good; a wave of peace and clear direction. It's not just for me, but through me - and will change the lives of me, my husband, my family and even my friends. When I see a direction that seems to go the wrong way, I'm not to worry - it's part of the shifting, but in line with the plan.
Here's to the journey - and to those who are ready to take it with me.
Till next time,
~T.L. Gray
I'm about half-way through the edits of book two of my Necromancer series. I can't wait until I have it all nice and polished, so that I could send it along to my literary agent and she can start shopping it around.
I'd like to write the next couple of chapters of Milledgeville Misfit this weekend. Perhaps I'll catch up on my sleep, be rejuvinated and have a refreshed mind to get busy.
On another note:
A prophecy was given to me that things are being lined up for me right now, and that this line is an endless one. I'm to be patient. A change is coming, for the good; a wave of peace and clear direction. It's not just for me, but through me - and will change the lives of me, my husband, my family and even my friends. When I see a direction that seems to go the wrong way, I'm not to worry - it's part of the shifting, but in line with the plan.
Here's to the journey - and to those who are ready to take it with me.
Till next time,
~T.L. Gray
Friday, June 02, 2006
Smallville - Superman Transition Dream
I haven't had much thoughts about Smallville for the past few weeks, at least not since I watched the season finale. However, last night I had a dream about it. It was great! I even had great special effects. I will try to be as true to the dream as possible - even the embarrassing details. LOL!
The dream starts with Clark and Chloe. They're in Clark's loft (his homemade Fortress of Solitude) and things are getting pretty steamy. Clark yeilds with concerns for Chloe's safety, but she tells him she's willing to try. They take their game of cat and mouse out into the cornfields - and let's just say that when it was over the field had a new symbol burned into it - a 'C*'. Don't know what it means. You know how dreams go - they have a life of their own. The main thing - they're happy and she survived.
But, Clark doesn't sleep very well. He starts having these dreams of chaos. Disturbed by his dreams, he visits the real FOS to speak to Jor-El. His hopes of a great life with Chloe are dashed as Jor-El speaks of the dangers of Kryptonians and humans mixing. How it is life threatening to Chloe and the product of such a union would bring disaster upon the earth (like all of Clark's other decisions).
Clark immediately tells Chloe - because he's completely honest and open with her. She is heart-broken, but says that she could love him and be with him without having relations - pointing out in her factoid way that there are hundreds of couples who live good lives together without the pleasure of sex. She reminds him of woman married to paraplegics (hint, hint Christopher Reeve) and are happy. Clark reminds her that she would never be able to have children if she remains with him. She tells him they could adopt.
They seem to be working out all of the details, but Clark still feels that they don't know enough to make a complete and final decision on the matter and asks Chloe if she's up for a little trip - and he takes her with him back to the FOS. It's a fun scene when she hops into his arms and says, "let's fly" - though he really just runs.
They reach the FOS and Jor-El repeats what he told Clark earlier, but he adds more this time - reminding Clark of the dangers of a Krytponian/Human heir and the complications that are associated with it. Clark tells Jor-El that he and Chloe have discussed that - that they made a decision to abstain from sex and adopt. Jor-El tells Clark that he doesn't know enough about his Kryptonian heritage to make such a decision. Clark concedes his lack of knowledge, as does Chloe. Jor-El tries to tell him of destiny once more and how important Clark needs to learn his origins before he could make any lifelong plans on earth - including marriage and family.
Clark tells Jor-El how much he loves Chloe and Jor-El tells him that if he truly loves her, he would not ask her to make such a commitment without all the facts. (He used her own strength of journalism and fact-finding as the premise of the conversation.) Chloe agrees with Jor-El. She tells Clark that she loves him, but she feels that this world has a bigger purpose for him than just her and that he needs to learn the truth - all of it. Jor-El tells him that his training would take 14 earth years to complete. Clark refuses, but Chloe convinces him that she'd wait for him. "Fourteen years compared to a lifetime is nothing," she said. Clark concedes.
Clark and Chloe spend a month together in various places throughout the world. Clark takes her to all the places she's always wanted to see. Tuscany, Paris, Germany, Norway, Sydney & the Great Barrier Reef, Madagascar, Istanbul, Greece, Oslo, Great Britain & Ireland. They are happy. Chloe returns to Met-U and the Daily Planet, while Clark returns to the FOS and begins his training.
Fourteen years later he re-emerges as Kal-El/Superman and flies off from the FOS. His first stop is Metropolis - to find Chloe at the DP, but as he arrives he notices a helicopter hanging off the top of the Daily Planet and so he introduces the world and Lois Lane to Superman. He saves the day, but then flies off to Smallville to see his mother - thinking he'd show back up in Metropolis as Clark Kent to find Chloe.
Clark walks into the farmhouse to find Martha sitting on the sofa watching the news. She looks up - (she's gray-headed now) and smiles when she sees her son. "I'm back, mother," he says. She embraces him and asks, "But, not home?" He hugs her tightly and responds, "This will always be home, but I'm not just Clark Kent anymore. I'm Kal-El from Krypton." Martha smiled. "I know". Clark visits his old loft, which is now dusty and dark. Martha joins him, bringing him a cup of coffee. He asks about Chloe and a pained look crosses Martha's face.
"Clark, you have to understand that Chloe was happy and she had no regrets. I was with her in the end." Clark stumbles backward and falls back onto the old, dusty sofa. "You know how fearless she was, always tackling the next big story. Well, she found a story that was a little bigger than she was. She could never let go of investigating Lex."
Clark jumped up from the couch. "What did he do, mother? Tell me!"
Martha stood by the open door of the loft. "It was during my re-election campaign. Things were getting pretty nasty and Lex was down quite a bit in the poles. Chloe wanted to make sure I was safe and that Lex wasn't planning on anything to cause me harm so that he could win, but she stumbled on a plan of his to knock me out of the race. She never told me what that plan was, but she told me she was going to stop it. I tried to convince her to let it go, that I planned on stepping down once I've gained the seat, to allow a good ally to take my place. We just had to prevent Lex from gaining the seat."
Martha turned around and stared at Clark in the face. Tears ran down her cheeks. "Chloe got caught sneaking into Lex's mansion. We don't know what happened to her and she couldn't remember, but she got sick afterward. It started off like a mild case of the flu, but it kept getting worse. I stayed with her night and day in the hospital, both Lois and I. We never left her for one moment. Toward the end, she knew she wasn't going to make it and she wanted me to tell you that she was happy, that the time she had with you was enough to fill a lifetime and that she had no regrets. She says for you to stay strong, to search for the truth and seek justice. She called you her 'Superman' and to tell you that you she loved you - she always had."
Tears ran down Clark's cheeks as he embraced his mother. After a few minutes, he pulled her away from him and asked, 'What is Lex up to, mother?"
"I think he's creating a new chemical weapon made out of the meteor rocks. I think it was this chemical weapon that killed Chloe. He's been on a campaign to rid the world of Kryptonite - at least that's what he's been telling everyone - and there is hardly any left in the world now. He's dug up most of Smallville now. Once he won the Senate seat, he's had truckloads of the rocks shipped out. He says he's destroying it, but there's no telling what he's really doing with it. It has cut down on the appearance of meteor freaks, but I worry about what he's doing with it. He thinks you're dead. He was sure you'd come back when Chloe got ill, but you didn't. He's dangerous, Clark. I'm glad you're back. The world needs you - there's no telling what Lex is capable of."
Clark flies off to Metropolis and shows up for work at the Daily Planet. He meets Lois outside of Perry White's office.
"Well, I'll be, if it ain't Smallville. You mother told me you were back and that she told you what happened to Chloe. You should have been there."
Clark looked down, pushing his black framed glasses farther up his nose. "I know," he mumbles.
Lois looks at him curiously, "You look different."
Clark points to the glasses. "I had some trouble with my vision. I'm stuck wearing these babies now."
Lois looks at him indifferently. "You do know they have a thing called Lasik surgery now that can fix those."
He laughs, "I tried that, didn't work."
Lois shrugs, "Oh, well - what ever floats your boat. So, you want to be a mild-mannered reporter, huh?"
Clark arched his eyebrows and replied, "Uh - I was doing this before I left. What I can't figure out is why YOU'RE a reporter - and for the Planet."
Lois - "Well, after Chloe died I was determined to find out what really happened to her and discovered I'm actually good at this investigative stuff. I don't spell too well, but that's what spell check is for. I find I can get to the bottom of story well enough. Which reminds me, can you believe what's going on in the world today?” Lois grabs a hamburger at 9am in the morning and walks around to her desk, which sits opposite of Clark. “ There's some alien dude flying around saving people. He just shows up out of nowhere. I tell you, Smallville, this is the story of the century.” She takes a big bit of her hamburger and with a full mouth replies, “I’m going to get the scoop on him, you watch.” After she swallows she says, “He's amazing, Smallville. I've never seen anything like him."
Clark shifts uncomfortably. "Yeah, some kind of Superman I hear."
Lois' eyes light up and she slams her burger down on her desk. "Superman! That's what I'm going to call him." She turns to Clark, not really noticing him. "What do you think, Smallville? Do you think the world is ready for a 'Superman'?"
Clark follows after her, "Well, Lois... I-"
Awe.... my heart just goes pitter patter. I'm really sad that Chloe was gone - but this makes perfect sense to me. Anyway. There's no telling how Smallville will end, but this is how it ends in my heart.
I thought I'd share my dream with you - and there it is.
Till next time,
~T.L. Gray
The dream starts with Clark and Chloe. They're in Clark's loft (his homemade Fortress of Solitude) and things are getting pretty steamy. Clark yeilds with concerns for Chloe's safety, but she tells him she's willing to try. They take their game of cat and mouse out into the cornfields - and let's just say that when it was over the field had a new symbol burned into it - a 'C*'. Don't know what it means. You know how dreams go - they have a life of their own. The main thing - they're happy and she survived.
But, Clark doesn't sleep very well. He starts having these dreams of chaos. Disturbed by his dreams, he visits the real FOS to speak to Jor-El. His hopes of a great life with Chloe are dashed as Jor-El speaks of the dangers of Kryptonians and humans mixing. How it is life threatening to Chloe and the product of such a union would bring disaster upon the earth (like all of Clark's other decisions).
Clark immediately tells Chloe - because he's completely honest and open with her. She is heart-broken, but says that she could love him and be with him without having relations - pointing out in her factoid way that there are hundreds of couples who live good lives together without the pleasure of sex. She reminds him of woman married to paraplegics (hint, hint Christopher Reeve) and are happy. Clark reminds her that she would never be able to have children if she remains with him. She tells him they could adopt.
They seem to be working out all of the details, but Clark still feels that they don't know enough to make a complete and final decision on the matter and asks Chloe if she's up for a little trip - and he takes her with him back to the FOS. It's a fun scene when she hops into his arms and says, "let's fly" - though he really just runs.
They reach the FOS and Jor-El repeats what he told Clark earlier, but he adds more this time - reminding Clark of the dangers of a Krytponian/Human heir and the complications that are associated with it. Clark tells Jor-El that he and Chloe have discussed that - that they made a decision to abstain from sex and adopt. Jor-El tells Clark that he doesn't know enough about his Kryptonian heritage to make such a decision. Clark concedes his lack of knowledge, as does Chloe. Jor-El tries to tell him of destiny once more and how important Clark needs to learn his origins before he could make any lifelong plans on earth - including marriage and family.
Clark tells Jor-El how much he loves Chloe and Jor-El tells him that if he truly loves her, he would not ask her to make such a commitment without all the facts. (He used her own strength of journalism and fact-finding as the premise of the conversation.) Chloe agrees with Jor-El. She tells Clark that she loves him, but she feels that this world has a bigger purpose for him than just her and that he needs to learn the truth - all of it. Jor-El tells him that his training would take 14 earth years to complete. Clark refuses, but Chloe convinces him that she'd wait for him. "Fourteen years compared to a lifetime is nothing," she said. Clark concedes.
Clark and Chloe spend a month together in various places throughout the world. Clark takes her to all the places she's always wanted to see. Tuscany, Paris, Germany, Norway, Sydney & the Great Barrier Reef, Madagascar, Istanbul, Greece, Oslo, Great Britain & Ireland. They are happy. Chloe returns to Met-U and the Daily Planet, while Clark returns to the FOS and begins his training.
Fourteen years later he re-emerges as Kal-El/Superman and flies off from the FOS. His first stop is Metropolis - to find Chloe at the DP, but as he arrives he notices a helicopter hanging off the top of the Daily Planet and so he introduces the world and Lois Lane to Superman. He saves the day, but then flies off to Smallville to see his mother - thinking he'd show back up in Metropolis as Clark Kent to find Chloe.
Clark walks into the farmhouse to find Martha sitting on the sofa watching the news. She looks up - (she's gray-headed now) and smiles when she sees her son. "I'm back, mother," he says. She embraces him and asks, "But, not home?" He hugs her tightly and responds, "This will always be home, but I'm not just Clark Kent anymore. I'm Kal-El from Krypton." Martha smiled. "I know". Clark visits his old loft, which is now dusty and dark. Martha joins him, bringing him a cup of coffee. He asks about Chloe and a pained look crosses Martha's face.
"Clark, you have to understand that Chloe was happy and she had no regrets. I was with her in the end." Clark stumbles backward and falls back onto the old, dusty sofa. "You know how fearless she was, always tackling the next big story. Well, she found a story that was a little bigger than she was. She could never let go of investigating Lex."
Clark jumped up from the couch. "What did he do, mother? Tell me!"
Martha stood by the open door of the loft. "It was during my re-election campaign. Things were getting pretty nasty and Lex was down quite a bit in the poles. Chloe wanted to make sure I was safe and that Lex wasn't planning on anything to cause me harm so that he could win, but she stumbled on a plan of his to knock me out of the race. She never told me what that plan was, but she told me she was going to stop it. I tried to convince her to let it go, that I planned on stepping down once I've gained the seat, to allow a good ally to take my place. We just had to prevent Lex from gaining the seat."
Martha turned around and stared at Clark in the face. Tears ran down her cheeks. "Chloe got caught sneaking into Lex's mansion. We don't know what happened to her and she couldn't remember, but she got sick afterward. It started off like a mild case of the flu, but it kept getting worse. I stayed with her night and day in the hospital, both Lois and I. We never left her for one moment. Toward the end, she knew she wasn't going to make it and she wanted me to tell you that she was happy, that the time she had with you was enough to fill a lifetime and that she had no regrets. She says for you to stay strong, to search for the truth and seek justice. She called you her 'Superman' and to tell you that you she loved you - she always had."
Tears ran down Clark's cheeks as he embraced his mother. After a few minutes, he pulled her away from him and asked, 'What is Lex up to, mother?"
"I think he's creating a new chemical weapon made out of the meteor rocks. I think it was this chemical weapon that killed Chloe. He's been on a campaign to rid the world of Kryptonite - at least that's what he's been telling everyone - and there is hardly any left in the world now. He's dug up most of Smallville now. Once he won the Senate seat, he's had truckloads of the rocks shipped out. He says he's destroying it, but there's no telling what he's really doing with it. It has cut down on the appearance of meteor freaks, but I worry about what he's doing with it. He thinks you're dead. He was sure you'd come back when Chloe got ill, but you didn't. He's dangerous, Clark. I'm glad you're back. The world needs you - there's no telling what Lex is capable of."
Clark flies off to Metropolis and shows up for work at the Daily Planet. He meets Lois outside of Perry White's office.
"Well, I'll be, if it ain't Smallville. You mother told me you were back and that she told you what happened to Chloe. You should have been there."
Clark looked down, pushing his black framed glasses farther up his nose. "I know," he mumbles.
Lois looks at him curiously, "You look different."
Clark points to the glasses. "I had some trouble with my vision. I'm stuck wearing these babies now."
Lois looks at him indifferently. "You do know they have a thing called Lasik surgery now that can fix those."
He laughs, "I tried that, didn't work."
Lois shrugs, "Oh, well - what ever floats your boat. So, you want to be a mild-mannered reporter, huh?"
Clark arched his eyebrows and replied, "Uh - I was doing this before I left. What I can't figure out is why YOU'RE a reporter - and for the Planet."
Lois - "Well, after Chloe died I was determined to find out what really happened to her and discovered I'm actually good at this investigative stuff. I don't spell too well, but that's what spell check is for. I find I can get to the bottom of story well enough. Which reminds me, can you believe what's going on in the world today?” Lois grabs a hamburger at 9am in the morning and walks around to her desk, which sits opposite of Clark. “ There's some alien dude flying around saving people. He just shows up out of nowhere. I tell you, Smallville, this is the story of the century.” She takes a big bit of her hamburger and with a full mouth replies, “I’m going to get the scoop on him, you watch.” After she swallows she says, “He's amazing, Smallville. I've never seen anything like him."
Clark shifts uncomfortably. "Yeah, some kind of Superman I hear."
Lois' eyes light up and she slams her burger down on her desk. "Superman! That's what I'm going to call him." She turns to Clark, not really noticing him. "What do you think, Smallville? Do you think the world is ready for a 'Superman'?"
Clark follows after her, "Well, Lois... I-"
Awe.... my heart just goes pitter patter. I'm really sad that Chloe was gone - but this makes perfect sense to me. Anyway. There's no telling how Smallville will end, but this is how it ends in my heart.
I thought I'd share my dream with you - and there it is.
Till next time,
~T.L. Gray
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