My video editing skills are improving! I made this month’s Clean Run magazine promo video in about 30% less time than it took to make last month’s promo. There was also about 85% less swearing, so, really, it was a HUGE improvement! I figured out some tricks this time that will save me a lot of work next time. I’m enjoying having the opportunity to stretch my skills a bit.
You can check the video out here. Next month’s video will be even better, I am sure!
Today as part of my work I got to share some new toys with my dogs (Lotus balls, https://www.cleanrun.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=product.display&product_ID=3098) as well as record a little intro to what will be the May promo video for Clean Run magazine. 
Tessa trying out the Lotus Ball.
Filming for Clean Run is always a challenge for me. My equipment is primitive and the only place I can film that is bright enough and that has a place to put up a backdrop thingo is the floor of my kitchen. There’s a lot of grunting I have to edit out as I get up and down to check out the camera. So sexy.
Today I only shot a brief intro, so it wasn’t too painful. No cue cards necessary. There may have been a Chihuahua in my lap at points, but you can’t see him so he doesn’t exist. I’m a complete professional. 🙂
In other writery news, a brief article I wrote for a blog about misconceptions of dog training is being picked up by the Pet Professional Guild for their blog. I’ll let you know when that goes online. I’m sure you are all holding your breath about that 🙂
Finally, I’ve written the first draft of a new flash fiction story. It’s interesting how my fiction writing process is changing. My first two stories ended up very similar to their first drafts. I made a lot of changes through the drafts but the basics of the stories stayed true. My third one morphed A LOT through the several months between its creation and completion. I chopped off the beginning of the story, starting in the middle, and flipped my ending from a happy one to one that is… less than happy. It’s a much better story now but I’m telling you, there were parts where I almost threw in the towel on that one.
I suspect this new story, tentatively titled “Love Knots,” will be the same. I just kind of threw the ideas on the page (screen?) and I plan on some major rewriting. It’s kind of interesting to work this way. Very different from the way I write nonfiction.
I’m starting to get anxious to hear how my stories did in the last Women on Writing contest. Waiting is hard!
Currently I am up to my eyeballs in writing assignments for Clean Run magazine. I’m working on my first in a series of four articles on flooring for agility facilities. This is my third take on this topic over the years. I can’t say that I enjoy writing these articles AT ALL but they are useful and people ask us about the topic a lot so they need to be done. It’s kind of like eating salad. With no dressing. And it’s just mostly watery lettuce. Not the green parts of the lettuce either, the hard, white parts that you probably should throw away. But you didn’t because you were lazy.
Fortunately this month I also got to have a hot fudge sundae; I wrote the editorial for the May issue. Love, love, love writing editorials! This one is currently titled Be Aware Before You Share and it is a look at what can happen when post on social media asking for help in solving agility training problems.
I’ve also got my usual Everything You Want to Know training column due. This month we have a few updates from agility organizations as well as some questions to answer, which I have not yet answered.
Everything except the editorial is overdue. Fortunately, I’m turning them into myself so I haven’t sent myself a late notice yet or anything. I’m nice like that.
“I don’t want to go back. I’d rather go forward.”
—From Indecision, by Brenna Fender
I have no idea what I’m doing. I’m sure, in time, this site will be awesome. Or at least average. I’m not gonna lie, my skills are lacking. Special thanks to Hayden and to a customer service agent named Vaibhav, who is my new bestie, for getting this off the ground.
Brenna Fender's Write Site 