Conlanging

Started cracking the code of my old script for Kalyeshur / Vas'hehr. I've figured out about five or six glyphs.

Lexember Word for the Day

tonga • / to ŋa / • letter or glyph in a writing system
noun without finalized declension forms, so I can't offer example sentences or constructions at this time
Language: Akachenti

Work

Possible breakthrough on a testing issue that we'd deferred for major feature development/rework/refactoring and here! A lead that may result in a fix without having to wait for the pre-Easter development cycle.

Tonight more smoke testing. I may be up all night, considering the last deploy.

Reading

Good Articles I Read:

It's Thursday, so it's time to go read the Business Rusch.

• Business Musings: Diving To Freedom by Kristine Kathryn Rusch




• Belief and Artistic Choice by Dean Wesley Smith




• Friendship by Juliette Wade

Books I Want:

• Women of Futures Past: Classic Stories, edited by Kristine Kathryn Rusch - I mean, look at that cover, it's gorgeous! And I adore women and girls in my science fiction. 'Nuff said.
  Meet the Women of Futures Past: from Grand Master Andre Norton and the beloved Anne McCaffrey to some of the most popular SF writers today, such as Lois McMaster Bujold and CJ Cherryh. The most influential writers of multiple generations are found in these pages, delivering lost classics and foundational touchstones that shaped the field.
  
  You'll find Northwest Smith, C.L. Moore’s famous smuggler who predates (and maybe inspired) Han Solo by four decades. Read Leigh Brackett’s fiction and see why George Lucas chose her to write The Empire Strikes Back. Adventure tales, post‑apocalyptic visions, space opera, aliens‑among‑us, time travel—these women have delivered all this and more, some of the best science fiction ever written!
  
  
  

Writing

Didn't have a lot of actual time for that today, but I got a poem done anyway. Not a very good one, but it exists.

Strait

There's the fast way,
then there's the easy way,
the last way we did,
and the right way.

There's the quality way
and the quantity way,
the way things are done,
and the right way.

I've worked hard and fast,
I've worked smarter, not harder,
what we've always done,
and non-starters.

I've tried all the methods
and done all the tests:
when all's said and done,
the right way is best.

And a somewhat better haiku

if joy comes with morn
then still as snow, I will wait
through ungentle night

On the sixth day of Lexember, I coined the word valus!

valus • /va lus/ • the way things are, as in ise valus, that's just the way it is
definite noun
Language: Akachenti

The definite form of this word is distinctly not valu, which means I have to figure out exactly what the rules are of making a noun definite besides just adding –s.

But on the bright side, I now have three definite nouns:

• valus - the way things are




• n|akos - the plan(s) that is definitely implemented or will be




• a:gis - my parent/aunt/uncle

The only one that is indefinite by simply removing the s is a:gi.

At some point, I have to figure out a better way to document conlangs than anything I've been using. I just dug out a ton of material from my old papers that needs to be documented and left a good chunk I know I'm not going to get to. And that's existing conlangs. I don't want my new ones to turn out the same way and they're heading that direction. :(

Yesterday, I made actual progress on getting my one book collection for the year done (technically, two versions, one for geckoholic and one for my other friend), made no progress on getting trovia's story done (I am ashamed), and this morning, made progress again on writing the stuff I need to do for family and my columns (due monthly).

Also, wrote a poem today:

Brotherly Love (poem)

Who is my mother and my brother?
Who is the one I choose to love?
He who does My Word,
It is he that loves Me.
And he who loves Me, it is him I love.

Who is the child of My loving Father?
She who comes to me, I will accept.
Love her as I love her,
Treat her kindly.
What you do for her, I will accept.

So be kind to all that you encounter
And treat them with a holy, sincere love.
My Word is that you should
Love one another.
In doing this, you offer me Your love.

"Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently," – I Peter 1:22

Make that two:

Of Grace (poem)

If God my soul is gracious
to forgive in love,
what right to judge could I have?
I have no right to judge.

When I was still a child,
I chose to never be
a hypocrite, unsharing
of grace I have received.

So if God my soul is gracious
to forgive and love,
surely I must also
by strength and grace of God.

Got a threesome of characters I want to put into action: Miss Fiona Locke, Miss Samantha Kee, and Miss Amelia Weather, who all reside at Mrs. Grenstead's Boarding Home and Breakfast, where their names actually mean something. :twiddles thumbs: :doesn't say what: Unfortunately, other stories take precedence. I must ignore them.

For the record, I hate writer's block.

Good articles read:

• Artistic Choice and Making Money by Dean Wesley Smith




• Sales vs People vs Artistic Freedom by Dean Wesley Smith

Good fiction read:

• Free Fiction Monday: Boz by Kristine Kathryn Rusch




• Aisling and the Whalecat by John W. Sexton

General state of the scribbler:

• Incredibly tired. I was up until 1 o'clock in the morning doing smoke testing for work. Many people put in 12.5 hr workdays. I'm not usually one of them. Brain fried.




• Generally pleased. I got stuff done, even if it wasn't the writing/extra-curricular stuff, so to speak. I even have a hope of writing the pieces required for that website. Right.




• Health at 7.5 out of 10. I've been hovering barely above 5 with regular dips below lately, so I'm actually quite grateful for that number.




• Lurking on most other sites/blogs/journals. Oops. I do try to chime in enough to remind people I care, but the truth is, I'm a little slow just now.




• Behind on postcards/holiday stuff. This is largely due to budget. Next payday should fix that.