Author: mirandasuri

Miranda Suri: writer, teacher, archaeologist, traveler.

Liminal Days

Well, the strange, slow creep of the liminal period dividing vacation and semester has ended.

Yesterday was my first day of classes, thus bringing to a close the transitional phase between “summer is a never-ending playground of joy!” and “oh, crap, reality will soon strike its iron fist upon me!”.

The iron fist has fallen and, as always, it was both tiring and exciting. Much as I enjoy summer, I don’t actually do that well when I have no schedule. At first it’s wonderful, and I get all inspired to have adventures and write and cook things I don’t typically have time for during the school year. And then the lethargy sets in. No need to dwell on the ugliness of the lethargy, so suffice it to say that it’s pleasant and invigorating to be back at work.

Still, one blessing of the summer is that I am allowed to forget the reality of commuting on the subway. It’s like childbirth that way, I suppose. Descending into the sweaty underbelly of the city and waiting, and waiting. Trying to game whether you should get on the F or wait for the G. Miscalculating. More waiting. More sweating…ugh. Then the stop and start of the train, the bad driver up front riding the break till you want to spill your lunch all over the already festooned floor. The rush to transfer to the bus. And so on. While there is much I miss about my job over the summer, this is NOT one of those things. All told, the trip is an hour and a half. Each way.

But! There were plenty of items in the ‘pro’ column for my first day back. For starters, the copy center had actually copied my syllabi — and without any mistakes this year! — and they were waiting in my mailbox. Also in the pro column: my office. As a part-timer, I change offices every semester. This time around I landed a nice one with a window overlooking the campus green. Also, a pro, my students seem like they’re going to have a good dynamic and be engaged — especially in my Ancient Mesoamerica class. And my classes aren’t too big, which facilitates the fostering of said dynamic. This is so, so important to a having a rewarding semester.

Not everything was wine and roses on Day 1, however. As a rule, something is always broken on the first day of the semester. Last year it was the in-room tech (no computer or projector). This year, it was even worse. In my first class, the heat was on. Yes, the heat, in August. It was about 95 degrees in the windowless lecture hall and (wait for it…) the lights were broken, so we were stuck in the dark. Hot and dark and airless. Now, there’s a recipe for a great class, eh? Ah well. My second class, in a building that appears to be an homage to Soviet-era construction (also windowless), seemed a veritable paradise in comparison. The lights worked AND there was air conditioning. Never mind the weird smell in the stairwell…

My favorite part of the day was also the strangest. As I was leaving campus to walk to the bus stop, I heard a strange wailing noise. Looking up, I spotted a falcon perched on the roof of the Social Sciences building, shrieking at the wee people down below. A falcon? In Queens? So random. And so magnificent.

So, school has started again and my schedule will transform accordingly…but first, a break! Because, you know, the first day of classes is exhausting, so we all need a vacation, right? Oddly, because of the alignment of Labor Day and Rosh Hashanah, we have all of next week off. My husband and I will be traveling to Maine for the greater part of that time with our friends Jeremy and Miro. Look for updates on hiking in Acadia and gluttonous feats of lobster and wine. Also, Miro wants to go mushroom hunting, so probably we will all be dead within a fortnight.

Until then, adieu!

The semester cometh

Well, less than a week to go and then I’m back on the Merry Go Round again.

In many ways, I’m eager for to the start of the semester. Summer is always wonderful, and it’s great to have three whole months off, but I find I work better and harder when my schedule is full. It can be all too easy to pawn work off until the next day when you feel like you have infinite time.

Plus, it’s energizing to be in the classroom and around the students.

Since I’m teaching two classes I’ve taught many times before, prep work shouldn’t be too onerous this semester (though I always like to tweak and change things up), which should make this fall a productive few months for writing. At the beginning of the year, I set a goal to not only finish drafting PROJECT AWESOME but also to send it to readers and revise it. With a little over 40K written, I think that’s an achievable goal if I continue to work hard.

On this novel, I’ve had the great good fortune to have a fellow writer reading along chapter by chapter as I draft. Her feedback has been extremely helpful in allowing me to dig deeper and weave in more complexity on the first pass than I might otherwise. Her comments always really make me think about the details and how they’re building arcs (or failing to do so!) and that makes the novel so much stronger. I can’t thank her a enough 🙂

So, my goal for the remaining 6 days before the start of classes is to try and hammer out another 10K.

Better get writing!

The words

Well, I would apologize for not updating in a week, but I feel that I have a good excuse. I’ve been writing a lot, you see, and as a consequence haven’t had a lot of words left for the blog. There are only so many in the mines, after all.

What have I been writing, you ask? Well, many things, actually.

I’ve been making great headway on the first draft of the current novel (Project Awesome, which is a dark Urban Fantasy). I’m about 40K in and trying very hard not to obsess and over-think and rewrite too much (which is typically my wont). I’m just trying to get it OUT and on the page and trust myself and my outline.

I’ve also got a few new shorts going. I recently finished a draft of a moody little character study that I’m kind of in love with and am outlining the concept for another short that features a curse breaker with a hoarder mother and takes place in an abandoned prison. For those who follow the blog regularly, you know I’m more of a long form person and don’t write that many short stories, so two in one week is rather spectacular for me.

I think my recent burst of writing energy has come from the realization that in a mere 13 days the semester will begin. Ack! This means my unlimited summer writing time is fast drawing to a close. Soon I’ll be neck deep in teaching and spending far too much time on the G train. So, gotta take advantage while I can.

Complicating matters, unfortunately, is the amazingly beautiful weather we’ve been having. Brooklyn in August is typically very hot and humid and gross, but for some reason this year it’s been on the warm side of mild, sunny, and relatively dry. The temptation to blow off work and go for long walks is hard to resist.

Sooo, that’s where I’ve been and what I’ve been up to.

How about you?

Writer’s Workspace: 8/8

Welcome to this writer’s workspace. Here’s what’s happening liiiiiiiiiiive at Miranda’s desk.

What I’m working on: I’m carrying on with the first draft of Project Awesome, as well as starting a few new short stories. So, lots going on in terms of new projects, and I must say it’s nice to take a break from all the heavy revising and rewriting I was doing a few months ago. Here’s a peak at a new short I’m working on:

Snippet from the screen: “Lou is old. He’s wearing a stained Grateful Dead T-shirt and faded blue jeans, two sizes too big. Goodwill, I’d guess. Everything about him sags. Everything but his smile. I frown, suspicious. Only fools and five year olds smile like that.”

Keeping me company: Mr. Ramses, of course–though, he’s not much company since he’s recovering from yet another gum surgery. Poor buddy. I actually have company other than Ramses today, though. My friend Jeff is here, working across the table. A few months back he, my friend Sarah, and I formed a work from home group in our neighborhood. We get together once or twice and week and keep each other on task. It’s cool. So, say ‘hi’ to Jeff, everybody.

In my mug: boring old water. Teatime is over for the day, alas.

On the iTunes: Bob Dylan’s “Mr. Tambourine Man”

Out the window: it’s a rare cloudy day in the midst of an otherwise glorious Brooklyn summer (I’m only being about 50% snarky on that last one…)

A little procrastination never hurt anyone: well, that’s true if you’re not interested in the link I’m going to share today, or if you’ve already seen it. But if you are interested…let me just apologize in advance for the massive amounts of time you’re about to waste. I discovered this over the weekend and have been binge-watching ever since. So…if you’re a fan of Jane Austen, click on through to The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, a modern vlog & twitter adaptation of Pride and Prejudice. Enjoy!

What’s that, you say?

Oh, I know, it’s TERRIBLE. I haven’t written a blog post in weeks! I am undoubtedly a bad person, or maybe at the least just a busy person. But, aren’t we all? Busy, I mean.

Anyway. I’m here now.

It has been busy. I’ve been in Seattle visiting my family for the last two weeks and it turned out to be a lot more go-go-go than I really expected. So, not much time for blog updating. Too busy living and doing and…well, eating. Yeah, did a lot of that. After all, it’s summer in the Pacific Northwest. That means raspberries and fresh carrots and peas. And beets. And chicken eggs from the coop, positively electric orange and rich. I was even lucky enough to pluck some early blackberries, plump from the sun.

I went camping at my favorite place on earth, Mount Rainier. I ate at the Willows Inn on Lummi Island (yes, more eating), possibly one of the best restaurants I’ve ever been to (and those who know me well know this is *quite* a statement). I tried kayaking for the first time, and found out it makes me spectacularly seasick. I spent a lot of time with my nieces, who are growing up so FAST. I gardened and went walking and caught up with family friends.

I also wrote. My parents house on Vashon Island is perfect for writing. My mom is a gardener, well, really she’s an artist who happens to use a garden as her palette. The place is completely amazing. Like fairy story amazing. It’s a super beautiful, zen place to sit with a laptop in the shade munching raspberries and thinking deep thoughts.

Since I’ve finally finished ABSENT and begun the scary-exciting process of submitting it to agents and editors, it’s back to PROJECT AWESOME. I had previously outlined and then drafted about 1/3 of this new novel, but after submitting it to a few workshops there were changes I wanted to make. I spent two days reworking some of the backstory and further developing the magic system. Then I revised the plot, working especially on beats and structure. Then I reworked the first 30K to reflect the changes.

Now I’m pushing forward with the rest of the draft. I’m extremely excited about it. ABSENT was a blast to write – an adventure-y romp that let me use a lot of my knowledge of academia and prehistory to tell a great story. But this book is different. It’s dark and tackles hard issues, and I think it’s the first time I’m really baring something as an author that will truly surprise people. At least, I hope so.

In any case, it’s a thrill to be diving into something new after so long revising.

August is upon us now, which means summer isn’t much longer for this world. School starts up again on August 28th. So, till then, I plan to write, write, write.

How about you?

Oh, and before I go, I wanted share this great link from Laini Taylor’s blog. She talks about how drafting a novel is like a dance between what is Known and Unknown, and she describes it beautifully…take a look.

Homeward bound

Bon Voyage, Readers! Today I’m jetting off to the lovely Pacific Northwest to spend some time with my family.

09-39_bridges_vashon-island

I’m looking forward to:

Lazy, sunny days at my parents’ house on Vashon Island

Long walks with the family puppy

Hanging out with my two adorable nieces

Spending a few days eating, hiking, and kayaking on Lummi Island

Camping and hiking at Mount Rainier

And, of course, sneaking in writing time whenever possible

This trip is good timing, as I think I’ve finally got my query letter and synopsis for ABSENT in good shape and am read to start sending them out. Having a distraction to keep me from obsessing over responses (positive, negative, or lack thereof) will no doubt be a Good Thing.

I’ll try to post some updates while I’m away.

In the meantime, stay cool and keep on truckin’

Bits and bobs

Some thoughts in random order on a hot Monday morning:

1. What is it with colds this year? I mean really. This about the 8 bazillionth cold to grace the Suri household since last fall. Are we particularly pathetic or is there some super-strain of virus out there making its bid for the destruction of humanity? Either way, depressing.

2. The mother-in-law has departed after a week-long visit. Waaay behind on my work. More slogging through ABSENT synopsis revisions and redrafts today. I know there must be a perfect, brilliant way to capture my 91K word novel in 1K words…I JUST KNOW IT.

3. I also have what might be a cool idea for a new short story about computer science and music and life in a post-apocalyptic airship adrift over an endless ocean. And a lottery and mysteriously vanishing children. So, maybe I’ll take a crack at that today.

4. Still thinking about Man of Steel a week after having seen it. Possibly this is due to Henry Cavill’s pecs, but I also really enjoyed the film — especially the first half. Am I alone in this?

5. I went to the Farmer’s Market this weekend and brought home a bounty of fresh, delicious fruit and veggies. They’re all gone now. Farmer’s Markets should be all the time and not just Saturdays. Just sayin’

6. My cat is about to bite me. I suspect I’d better go play with him if I want to live.

Laters.

Happy 4th of July!

Ah, 4th of July! A day of sleeping in. A day of the smells of BBQ and smoke drifting down the street from the park. A day of heat and the threat of rain. A day of afternoon drinking and all day eating. A day of remembering that even though our country has improvements to make, we have many wonderful freedoms too.

In short, a day of awesomeness.

Happy 4th of July, one and all.

What archaeology is really like

Most people have this notion that archaeological work is a sort of super-thrilling adventure that takes place exclusively in distant lands. While sometimes (on very rare occasions) all components of this description are true, much of the time archaeology — like any other job —  is just hard work.

To wit: I am currently in Kansas City doing some archaeology with my long-time colleague, Bill McFarlane. What work, you ask? Well, this week, what “archaeology” means to us is the ugly labor of putting finishing touches on a manuscript presenting the results of our last four seasons of fieldwork. Laborious hand editing. Long debates about the right structure for the discussion and interpretations. The tedium of making sure the dreaded “findings” section is thorough but as short as is humanly possible.

On this visit, archaeology also means visiting the Biodiversity Institute at KU to check out some local, previously unstudied artifact collections. Why? We’re (gulp) considering starting up a small scale field school in the area while we wait for Honduras (the country where we’ve always done our excavations) to become “safe enough” to return to with field school students for whom we are liable.

I mention these things because, actually, this kind of work is a lot of what archaeology really is. Yes, digging stuff up and having adventures in foreign lands is a fun (okay, let’s be honest, AWESOME) part of being an archaeologist. But without analyzing your findings, writing them up, making them fit for publication, and doing the same for old, neglected museum collections, you’re not really doing archaeology. You’re doing Indiana Jones. You’re doing looting with some field documentation on the side.

So, yeah. Today I’m off to do some archaeology. At the office.

Wheeee!

I am happy to report that ABSENT, my archaeological time travel novel, is done! As in really and truly and completely done. As in ready to start submitting. Yay!

Now I’m working on pitch materials and compiling a list of agents. Tomorrow I head out for a short work trip to Kansas City. I hope to have my pitch materials ready to begin sending out by the time I return, next week at the latest.

A big, big thanks to all of you who read and provided feedback on ABSENT’s many drafts. You are all awesome.

Okay. I think I’ve earned a drink.

Later!