Friday, February 6, 2009

Visual Thesaurus

Have any of you heard of the "visual thesaurus?" I just came across it today when doing a web search on a word (because I was too lazy to reach up and grab my hardcopy thesaurus). It's pretty nifty, but it costs money to subscribe. Before going out on a limb and purchasing the software or a subscription, I was wondering if anyone out there has used it before. Is it worth it?

Other news: I got time to work on my book today. Yay! It comes at a cost, however. Both children are currently napping because Eldest woke up at 3 a.m. Yes. Really. She did. Then she came into our room and woke up Youngest, who was contentedly sleeping curled up in the crook of my arm. This was the second (third?) night in a row that she has woken up in the middle, but this time, she didn't go back to sleep until 11:30 a.m., when I forced a nap upon her. Then I got some new batteries for the swing and put the baby to sleep. (Hate to use it sometimes, but it is a lifesaver. Plus he's upright and therefore less likely to spit up.)

I got THREE HOURS of time in which I got to call all the shots. I briefly tried to nap, but after delving into a story in The Arabian Nights, my mind was whirring and there was only one thing I could do: jump into Scrivener and outline my plot. Then I got to write about each scene. I didn't attempt any first-draft writing because my brain is jumpy from lack of sleep and large doses of caffeine, but I will do so later tonight if I get a chance. (Which won't be until hubby gets a nap. He had to get up with our daughter since the baby was up at the same time.)

Because of this week's events, hubby and I have made one belated purchase: a coffee maker. Alas, tea no longer does it for me.

4 comments:

Elise Murphy said...

Welcome back to the world of coffee. I also returned when the twins were babies. There was no other way to make it through!

Is there an outline tool in Scrivener? I can't seem to figure it out (duh.)

Amber Lough said...

Elise--I'm just filling in info on the index cards. First, I made files under the draft folder, one for each chapter. Then I switched to corkboard view and start filling in info on the cards (just the plot). When I have the "inspector" section opened, I click on a card and type in extra notes in the document notes section (like background info for myself). I was even able to color-code the thumb tacks since I have two different POVs (a surprise for me until today--I had thought I'd never do that). Sooo cool.

Unknown said...

COFFEE GOOD!
i speak caveman in the morning before my coffee. I would write caveman too so I wish you the smooth, warm words of coffee.
hugs,jill

Val said...

Be careful with coffe. It's said to be bad for teeth' colour.