Lily Lazuli

Gotye-Somebody That I Used To Know

2012-02-11T09:00:00.001-05:00

I’m putting this out there because the song is addicting. I listened to it many, many times yesterday and now I have to pass it on. Enjoy! All artwork, photos, and text © Copyright 2008-2012 Liliana Almendarez unless indicated otherwise. All Rights Reserved. Any downloading, copying or use of images on this website is strictly prohibited without express written consent by Liliana Almendarez.

Misfits

2012-02-10T09:00:00.008-05:00

I keep meaning to write about this little show on Hulu that my friend Tony turned me on to: Misfits (written by Howard Overman and Jon Brown), for the sci-fi geeks out there looking for something fun...the show is addicting. If you can’t get past the very thick UK accents, close-caption it. Sometimes, that’s the only way you’ll catch the funny one-liners (trust me, you don't want to miss what

Feeling Good

2012-02-09T10:09:00.001-05:00

Today, I seemed to be moving in slow-motion while the rest of the world seemed to be stuck on fast-forward. I missed my morning train (ergh) but as I waited for the next train on the open air platform, I had a moment. The morning sun was shining on my face and the cold, brisk air smelled of early spring and my heart felt wide open. For a moment, I was glad that I was alive and breathing. Being in

Look Back in Anger

2012-02-07T15:51:00.000-05:00

Photo by Joan Marcus On Saturday, I went to see the play, Look Back in Anger by John Osbourne at the Roundabout Theater. Sam Gold directs Adam Driver as Cliff, Charlotte Parry as Helena, Sarah Goldberg as Alison Porter and Matthew Rhys as Jimmy Porter. Matthew Rhys as Jimmy rages across the stage, sounding off his working class frustrations on his temperate upper-crust wife Alison, who

2012-02-03T13:34:00.000-05:00

It’s a cold, bright day in NYC and the last couple of weeks have been hectic. Hence, the lack of updates on this blog about the novel. Working on it, little bit at a time but not making substantial headway at the moment. Ergh. But I’m not freaking out (yet!) Operative word being yet. I have a list of excuses starting from my kitty being sick last week (and getting very little sleep), to a

The Road to Mecca by Athol Fugard

2012-01-31T15:41:00.000-05:00

Last Friday I went to see Athol Fugard's play, The Road to Mecca at the Roundabout Theater. Although the cast was stellar…I have to say that the piece was over-written. The story could have unfolded without so much exposition. I was drowning in words. I held up pretty well in the first (hour-long) act, primly perched on my seat, listening to the conflicts that were unfolding for the two main

Breakeven by The Script

2012-01-20T10:36:00.000-05:00

I know this is not a new and shiny song. None of my favorites ever are by the time they are engraved into my psyche. Anyway, Breakeven by The Script has been on a loop all morning for me. It’s my theme song for today. It slipped under my skin and took root. Woke up with the music in my head. Listened to it while I getting ready for work. The chorus kept playing in my head on my way to work. And

Brr-isk Day

2012-01-19T14:45:00.000-05:00

I finished a rough draft of Chapter 8 and will be bringing it in to writing group tonight. I am sitting here reminding myself that it’s all right for it to be a rough draft right now. I am aware of the glaring holes. And I have to temper myself otherwise I’ll rush in too soon to fix it and then make a bigger mess. So…I will wait. Let the new lines…the new direction of the story…gel up before I

One foot out the door

2012-01-13T11:36:00.000-05:00

It’s the Friday before a long weekend and I am feeling antsy. I want to get moving, I want to get going but I am sitting here waiting. At the moment, there is nothing immediate that needs to be done. I could work on my writing but I’m covering phones today. I can’t take the constant interruption without wanting to rip someone’s head off. So the writing will have to wait. I brought the latest

Word count...up

2012-01-10T16:04:00.000-05:00

Hmmm, been working on chapter 8 today. Added 1,389 words to this new story line for a total of 1,557 words. Yes, counting words helps me keep track of the growing progress of this novel. There are still more chapters that haven’t been touched by revisions yet but wondering now if they are going to fit with these new material. Eventually, will need to skim further pages to see if the older

Restless...

2012-01-09T00:41:00.000-05:00

My brain is full tonight with thoughts of parallel universes and alternate realities. We go through life making a thousand decisions big and small and each of them take us down one path or another. We have encounters or miss opportunities based on those decisions and I think how different would our lives be if we had taken a chance instead of hold ourselves back. Or if we had held ourselves

Pleasure Principle

2012-01-06T13:12:00.000-05:00

I brought chapter 6 to my writing group last night and it went really well. Gosh, it’s so good to have a support system as a writer. They were positive and encouraging and they asked lots of really good decent questions that I can wrap my head around. Even some feedback that I wasn’t able to hear earlier, someone else mentioned it last night and it clicked for me. I’ve had a note (more than

What have I been up to these last couple of weeks?

2011-12-22T10:44:00.000-05:00

Still working on the novel….I seem to be working and re-working Chapter 7. Some days I only managed 300 words. It will have to do for now. It’s reading a bit stiff and clunky and I’m having a hard time moving forward until this chapter has been smoothed out. I’m not looking for perfect; the chapter just needs to work in the context of the bigger picture. The chapter is about 2,100 words long but

Chapter 7

2011-12-09T16:20:00.000-05:00

I had a couple of hours to work on Chapter 7 today. I went through a third of the chapter (~1,100 words)...but things are going slower. Ergh! There's 1,700 more words (still waiting) that need work. It's interesting to read this material again after so long of a separation and trying to remember what my initial intention was for that particular chapter. Things have changed in the story along

Close Up Space

2011-12-09T14:49:00.001-05:00

Last night, I went to see Close Up Space by Molly Smith Metzler currently in previews at the Manhattan Theater Club. I haven’t stopped thinking about the craft of the play. The story has SO much potential but I don’t think it’s quite fully realized. It had some interesting and beautiful elements to it, like the way Harper (the daughter) uses the Russian language and poetry as a way of

Healthy Chapter 6

2011-12-08T16:43:00.000-05:00

I worked on editing chapter 6 for the better part of the day. It was tough. It’s so much easier to line edit someone else’s work because I can be ruthless. I don’t quite have the same teeth for my own work. However, I managed to clean it up into fairly decent shape. It’s 2,800 words long. Also managed to start on Chapter 7. Worked on the first two paragraphs and then my brain turned off. I

What's Up?

2011-12-07T16:21:00.000-05:00

I am plugging along on the novel. Took me awhile to get back on track but the last two days I’ve written up 3,600 more words. It’s cool…progress…finally! I’m not sure what happened. One day I was hemming and hawing about what to do next with the story… the next thing I know…I revamped 3 whole chapters in a matter of days (Chapters 3, 4, and 5 are mostly done…5 may need more but will decide better

A Tasty Morsel

2011-12-02T06:00:00.005-05:00

I wanted to share the following exciting news: You can now download a digital copy of my book of poetry onto your Nook via Barnes and Noble: A Scorched Page It didn’t include page count but it’s roughly 65 pages long. Pass the word along. Peace, Lily~ All artwork, photos, and text © Copyright 2008-2011 Liliana Almendarez unless indicated otherwise. All Rights Reserved. Any downloading

Ketch-up Entry

2011-12-01T14:14:00.000-05:00

I’ve got some things rattling up inside my brain skull. Too much really and I keep taking my sweet time with writing blog entries so I am way behind here, bear with me. Been busy living life, I guess. Nov 19- Went to see Ani DiFranco perform in Town Hall. Had a great time and I’m a bit peeved that my little cheap camera phone took crap pics. As in, unable to see anything really. So no

2011-11-17T16:16:00.000-05:00

I’ve spent the better part of the day working on one component to a grant application. I’m bleary eyed and bored of it. How does one come up with a narrative bio that doesn’t bore the reader to tears? Ergh! I wrote one up but it doesn’t seem quite right yet. It just feels like something is missing. I have time before the deadline but I was hoping to send it in this weekend. So I can move onto the

Cassidy’s Back!

2011-11-02T09:57:00.000-04:00

I went to hear Cassidy (former lead singer of Antigone Rising) last night at HousingWorks. She was in rare form as she belted and rocked her way through a set. She may as well have floated up to the rafters, she was on fire last night. Her current singing project goes by the name of Boheme. (Apparently, there is a rapper out there in the music world by the same name as Cassidy). Do I love the new

Like Crazy...opening on Friday in NYC

2011-10-27T14:27:00.000-04:00

I don't know if I've written about this film but....if you are a hopeful/hopeless romantic this is the movie to go see...Like Crazy is simply amazing. I saw this movie at an early screening last month and it left me buzzing days after. Go to their official site: http://www.likecrazy.com/ What gets me excited about this type of movie is that the writers (Drake Doremus and Ben York Jones)

It's been a while...

2011-10-27T10:52:00.000-04:00

Morning, It’s been awhile since I last wrote on my blog. Since I’m no longer complaining on this site, let’s just say that I’ve been going through a difficult time of late. The creative process is at a stand still. My pages have been curling up on my writing desk at home. Between you and me, I think my cat Pandora is using the stack as a place to lie on and rub her chin against it. Recently, I

Another Earth

2011-08-25T13:54:00.000-04:00

After my rant the other day about Siffy (Syfy) canceling yet another decent sci-fi show, I went out and caught this amazing intimate, indie, Sci-Fi film called Another Earth. This movie blew me away!! Directed and co-written by Mark Cahill, it’s a smart, moving movie for an intelligent audience. I had goose bumps from the impact of the final scene. I won’t spoil it for anyone, it’s a must-see.

Where Have All the Decent Sci-Fi Shows Gone?

2011-08-23T13:34:00.000-04:00

*pushing out my soapbox, testing the mic* I just found out that Eureka Season 6 has been cancelled. What the heck is Siffy (Syfy channel) thinking? That show has roughly 2 million viewers. AND IT STILL GETS CANCELLED!! What a huge disappointment!! Caprica is gone before it got a chance to take off. Battlestar Galatica is gone. Firefly is way gone. Dollhouse is dead (I know this was