Mixed-Up Monday

I have a few random things to share today. Hence the mixed-up reference. This post has nothing to do with my group blog. I just wanted to make that clear. (Though you are welcome to see that blog in all its awesomeness here, I'm just sayin'.)

1. I've graduated to pictures! See?! Now my entries should be all pretty-like. (BTW, this image is by PunkJr from Flickr.)

Photo from Flickr by PunkJr

Doesn't this pic say it all? Ha ha ha!

2. I haven't said anything yet (not sure why), but I have finished the revisions on my WIP and have shipped it off to my agent for some feedback. I know it still needs a lot of work, but hopefully the characters are acting like they should and the story itself makes sense. I've put it aside until I hear from Agent Man, because I needed some time away from it.

3. I have been spending some time doing some serious thinking about my next book. No, not the sequel-to-the-WIP next book (which I'm supposed to be thinking about), but a brand-new idea book. Well, that's not exactly true. It's the humorous book of mine I talked about in my writing humor for kids entry I wrote a million years ago. I wrote part of it for NaNoWriMo a million and half years ago, and then revised that part and added some more word count with a different character as the MC. I now want to revise it again and change the POV (and the MC once more, too), and actually finish the draft. I thought I had finally settled on who should be the main character, but his POV isn't working. So now I'm thinking of going in a completely different direction and adding a new character as the narrator. It would add depth to the book, but it will also add a serious side to a book that is supposed to be humorous. That could be a really good thing...if I can pull it off. Or it could be a really bad thing, because I'm worried the narrator's character arc will take over the story and the narrator would become the MC, which would completely change the entire mood of the story (and pretty much get rid of the humorous plot). So I'm doing some more thinking as I plot out the story in my head.

4.. I've noticed back to school supplies are in the stores. I LOVE school supplies. This is my favorite time of the year. Back to school time! (Which is funny, since we homeschool and my kids don't actually go back to school.)

5. Speaking of school...I feel a little guilty thinking about this, but there is a new charter school that just opened its doors last year near my husband's work. My younger kids have been asking if they can go to school and see what it's like. As much as I like homeschooling, I don't want to keep them home if they'd rather try a school. My oldest isn't interested, but I'm seriously considering sending the others to school this year. On one hand, the thought of only having two at home during the day (and homeschooling one, my youngest is still a toddler) sounds VERY appealing. On the other hand, I certainly feel like I'm quitting, and I'm stubborn enough that quitting isn't something I like to entertain without a very good reason. I don't know if the charter school has any openings, so it might be a moot point, but I've "applied" for my kids to at least get them on the waiting list. If they actually get a spot, we'll discuss whether or not they really want to go. We're also considering letting them try out the public school next door (literally next door). I feel better about the charter school, which follows the same type of curriculum philosophy that we do at home, but my kids want to go to the PS school so they can be with their friends. Sigh. We'll see what happens in the next month or two.