I Know I'm an Ice Cream Cake, but What Are You?

So, seeing as how I'm a huge fan of dessert (no meal is complete without it, in my opinion), I couldn't resist taking the "What Kind of Cake Are You?" quiz. Yes, it's silly, but considering my stomach's growling and I'd love a giant slice of chocolate cake right about now, it seemed like the right thing to do.

You Are an Ice Cream Cake

Surprising, unique, and high maintenance. You're one of a kind, and you don't want anyone to forget it. You're fun in small doses, but it's easy for people to overdose on you!

What Kind of Cake Are You?

The funny thing about this is that while I love cake, and I love ice cream, combining these two yummy treats just leaves me cold (err... no pun intended there). But the quiz-makers are probably right on with their overdose comment. *sigh*

So, spill it -- what kind of cake are you?

Lacey
http://www.laceysavage.com

IMDB's Top Box Office Hits

It's no secret I'm a huge movie buff, so when I saw this fun game making the rounds in the blogsphere, I had to join in.

RULES: This is IMDb’s top 25 all-time box office hits. Bold the ones you saw in theater, italicize the ones you saw some other way instead, and leave the unseen ones alone.

1. Titanic (1997) $600,779,824
2. Star Wars (1977) $460,935,665
3. Shrek 2 (2004) $436,471,036
4. E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982) $434,949,459
5. Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999) $431,065,444
6. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest (2006) $423,032,628
7. Spider-Man (2002) $403,706,375
8. Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005) $380,262,555
9. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) $377,019,252
10. Spider-Man 2 (2004) $373,377,893
11. The Passion of the Christ (2004) $370,270,943
12. Jurassic Park (1993) $356,784,000
13. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) $340,478,898
14. Finding Nemo (2003) $339,714,367
15. Spider-Man 3 (2007) $336,530,303
16. Forrest Gump (1994) $329,691,196
17. The Lion King (1994) $328,423,001
18. Shrek the Third (2007) $320,706,665
19. Transformers (2007) $318,759,914
20. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (2001) $317,557,891
21. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) $313,837,577
22. Iron Man (2008) $311,708,133
23. Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002) $310,675,583
24. Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End (2007) $309,404,152
25. Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983) $309,125,40

Wow. Of the top 25, there's one one I haven't seen (and have no interest in seeing). And of the 24 I've seen, I watched 21 of them in the theater. Hmm... I think that means the top 25 list is made up of pretty recent movies, overall.

What about you? How many of these have you watched?

Lacey
http://www.laceysavage.com

My TBR (To Be Read) Shelves

I know... I've teased you all endlessly with mention of my TBR shelves, which, at last count, held over 2000 books. Currently, they're empty -- but don't panic (heck, I'm trying not to, but I still hyperventilate when I look at my beautiful and very lonely shelves), my books are still in boxes.

I took some pictures before leaving Austin, and I thought it was time I stopped teasing you, and started showing you I really mean it when I say I'm a book addict. Ready? Here goes (click on pictures for larger versions):







Yes folks, once again, those shelves only hold books waiting to be read. And yes, I do occasionally wander into that room and complain about having nothing to read.

I should mention that the books are, of course, alphabetized by author. And those little shelves within the shelves you see? They're custom-made additions built by my grandfather so I could double the amount of bookshelf space I have.

Lacey
http://www.laceysavage.com

HELP! I'm turning into a... a... *pantser*!

Those of you who know me know I'm a die-hard plotter. Character charts. Full, scene-by-scene outlines. Research in advance. The works.

Yeah, well, I have a secret confession. I can't work that way anymore, and facing that fact somehow manages to scare me to death and excite me beyond belief all at once.


Photo by: the trial

I'm not sure what's changed. Maybe I have. The last year has been insane, forcing me to go through some major, life-changing, ups-and-downs. After not writing for a while, I came back to my work enthusiastic and energetic... only to stall in the beginning stages of drafting an outline. I panicked, outlined again... and stalled. So I cried (seriously), outlined again... and stalled.

And then, one day, I said "Fuck it." (Really. I did.) I remembered reading a book that praised writing prompts and their effect on creativity. At that point, I had nothing to lose so I figured why not give this a shot? After all, nothing else I'd tried seemed to work.

I chose a headline from my daily newspaper at random, skipped reading the article altogether, and started writing. Before I knew it, I had a character who intrigued me, in a situation that damn nearly broke my heart. "Aha!" I thought. "Now I can outline." And I did. Only to start writing the story itself, and find my outline was as far removed from the words pouring on screen as Harry Potter is from Anna Karenina.

The really scary part? The stuff coming out on screen was much, much better than the crap in my outline. And I thought it was a pretty good outline to begin with. Guess that'll teach me. Now, every day I sit in front of my computer, I approach the story with a giddy enthusiasm that makes butterflies stir in my stomach. Butterflies? Damn. I haven't felt butterflies in years.

Now, for the first time ever, I'm discovering the story along with my characters. Some days, scenes brew in my mind. Other days, they appear as though out of thin air while my fingers hit the keyboard. When I find myself overwhelmed by questions I figure I should know the answers to, I stop, grab a notebook, and start free-writing. On the characters. On the story. On possible explanations for things that happened in the past, or things that may happen in the future.

I have no idea when the story will end. Or how. Oh, I have a vague hope it might end up where I think it will, but oddly enough, I find myself not caring much if it doesn't. I trust my process. My pantser process.

Not long ago, the word "pantser" would have made me break out in hives. Now, I'm tentatively embracing it, and my newfound creativity (and productivity) along with it.

Are you embracing your process? Or do you fight it, hoping it'll magically morph into something resembling The Hero's Journey instead of The Insomniac Writer's Plight?

Lacey
http://www.laceysavage.com

Naughty Stage Actresses and Ghost Stories

I've talked about inspiration before. I get ideas from everywhere: newspaper headlines, books, movies, tarot card spreads, you name it.

I've had a story idea running loose in my mind for a few months now, which came to me when I dealt a story spread using a brand new Tarot deck. The story revolves around a theater actress and her sex-scapades.

The problem? I know nothing about the theater world. Oh, sure, I've been to the theater, but that's not the same as knowing what goes on behind the scenes. So I've started doing research. A little here, a little there, trying to learn a few things about the life of a stage actor.

In my research, I came across an article on London's Haunted Theaters, and it struck a chord. Twisting my naughty actress story into an erotic ghost tale would certainly add a little spice to my premise.


Photo by: oaspetele_de_piatra
From the ghost of Joseph Grimaldi, whose head is said to haunt the Theatre Royale, to Lyceum Theater's William Terris, who died in the arms of his leading lady, it seems there's no end of inspirational material to fit the theme.

I'd love to hear from you. If you know anything about the theater world you think might be useful to me, or if you simply want to let me know how much you like ghost stories, leave me a comment!

Lacey
http://www.laceysavage.com