Tag: life after the apocalypse

Writing along…

Where are we? Wednesday? That sounds right.

So! Wednesday, sunny and gonna be hot, again. I’d thought that tomorrow I’d declare a Writer’s Day Off and go view peonies, but tomorrow the ‘beans are calling for thunderstorms. No sense going to a peony farm in a thunderstorm.

Was up and writing a little early, which actually works well for the balance of the day, since I have a noon-time appointment.

Today is an exciting day as the WIP breaks Three Grand! We’re currently at +/- 3,340 words, and have visited two master traders at their letters, including one from Master Trader’s pin’Aker’s cha’leket, who’s a fashion designer. And also Midys Herself.

Next up is Jethri at Sactizzy. I hope to get him off of Meldyne as quick as I credibly can.

Steve had gotten hung up with the details of the conference, which — boy, do I empathize. I had suggested a clean break in one of our how-do-we-make-this-book-work conversations, which he rejected, and, looking through his drafts, I can see why. I think involving the master traders early and getting some of the backstory from them will move things along on Jethri’s line, and let him get moving.

I think.

I tell you what — it’s good thing that writing is easy.

I may need to go out this afternoon, and pick up tag board so that my class, if I have a class, can make themselves name cards, just like we do at cons, and thereby make the teacher’s life easier. Also should look for some puzzle glue or tape or sticky backing so I can display my jigsaw puzzle and remember that I can too work jigsaw puzzles. It just takes me 15 times longer than anybody else.

So! What’s happening on your edge of the world today?

Tuesday

Tuesday. Sunny and what passes for hot in these parts.

Breakfast was. . . what was breakfast? Oh! Oatmeal with strawberry preserves. Lunch will be a salad, in just a few minutes.

Only wrote +/-425 words today. My excuse is that I had to name people and think up the plot for a melant’i play. WIP currently stands at 2,425. More or less.

I actually got a good night’s sleep, in spite of a brainstorm as I was brushing my teeth that had me darting off to Make A Note, so the boys in the basement are on the case, anyhoot.

After lunch, I need to do my duty to the cats and open the paper mail. Looks like a bunch of people want money — as who does not? After that? I’m for the sewing circle at the library.

An easy, pleasurable day so far here at the Cat Farm and Confusion Factory.

How’s your Tuesday shaping up?

Let’s see what happens

Sunday. Rainy and Imma say “cold.”

Breakfast was eggs scrambled with veggies and cheese, and a side of toast. Hit the keyboard a little late, but still came away with 1,000 words, bringing the WIP to +/-2,045 total words.

Lunch was soup (ref rainy and “cold”) with cheese and crackers. I need to do my duty to the cats and take a walk in the basement, then I’m either working on my lesson conceits for the course I’m teaching in the fall (assuming anybody signs up), or coloring while I listen to Fledgling. I fear I’ll fall on the coloring-and-listening side of the coin. My father always said I was lazy.

Speaking of lazy. I read an article this morning about late bloomers, and how we celebrate the Brilliant Youth, but fail to celebrate the Elder who has worked an entire lifetime in order to hone themselves to a sharp edge in their chosen field. “Young people,” according to the well-known sage Mark Zuckerberg, “are just smarter.”

Why has no one ever slapped that boy?

Ahem.

Anyhow, I come before you as both a late bloomer, even a very late bloomer, and one of those tiresome personalities who cannot be bribed to do something that doesn’t interest them — a creature who becomes Deeply Entrenched in a subject (yes, I was the kid who would’ve told you all about the rocks, if I’d talked, which mostly, I didn’t), and learns everything there is to know, but ignores the five bucks offered to go do that Stoopid Thing Over There.

Apparently, late bloomers are also often “Let’s see what happens,” personalities, and this is where it gets interesting, at least to me.

When I met Steve, I was still very much struggling to understand most of the things around me. I had the rules for being a secretary and I was a good secretary. The rest of my rule sets weren’t delivering what I wanted, but I didn’t know how to find better ones.

Just throwing the rules out never occurred to me.

Steve was an instance of Chaos, a “Let’s see what happens” with whipped cream and a cherry on top. He knew how things worked, was a keen observer of almost everything, and? He could explain things, and didn’t think I was dumb for not knowing any particular something. You, perhaps, have no idea how attractive, “Let’s see what happens” is to somebody who had been taught to operate according to the rules. That all there is, are rules.

I knew I wanted to be a writer — I’d always known I wanted to be a writer — and I did know some of those rules, but the other rule sets like, oh, “talking to imaginary people is weird,” got in the way.

So, anyway, Steve taught me a lot, and, eventually, I grew into myself. His “Let’s see what happens,” steered him into side quests, but he always came back to writing, while I never found anything so fascinating as telling stories about the imaginary people I talked to. For years, we ran as partners, complementing each other, swapping what-ifs and let’s sees on the fly.

It happened slowly, but it did happen. One day I heard Steve say, “But I don’t know how that works,” and I heard myself answer, “Neither do I. Let’s try it and see what happens.”

I realized then that we had swapped places.

Which was a Moment.

Life, come to discover is all about Moments, spinning out, until they stop.

Catching up, slowing down

It’s been a rocky couple of days and I haven’t been keeping up — with anything, really.  I haven’t been sleeping well, and feeling physically hammered, and worried, not just because of The Usual (and how much I Truly Hate what The Usual has become), but because I had developed a fear that the house was going to be falling down around my ears.

This morning, a knowledgeable friend came by and was not only able to assure me that the house was not in imminent danger of falling down, but gave me a New Equation to apply to decision-making, which has made me feel somewhat less frantic, though I’ll need to sit with it and think about how best to apply it, going forward.

I have, as possibly reported previously, begun to write Trade Lanes, and am able to report that there are 1,050 brand new words in the novel file.  The plan is open the manuscript after lunch, and at least sit with it, perhaps adding another couple hundred words.

I did sleep a little better last night and am hoping to duplicate that feat tonight, whereupon I should be in better shape all around, just in time for the 7:30 am dentist appointment on Monday (no drilling, but my front top teeth need to be re-enameled, because they’ve gotten so thin there’s a danger of breakage), and to get back into a steadier schedule.

Your patience while these adjustments go forth is appreciated.

I offer the following snippet as a peace offering:

Trade ran as much on networks as on ship routes; the meat and wine of networking being correspondence.
So had Norn ven’Deelin’s master taught her when she had been an apprentice in trade, and so she had taught her own apprentices.

 

Some days are like that, Mrs. Miller. . .

Business first: Those who have recently read/re-read the Fey books in their original form, may now review the books as one work under their omnibus title, The Fey Duology, in the venue of your choice. Given the Fair Mess this release has become, reviews will help considerably.

Once again — Spanish Aunts, and many, many thanks for your support and patience.
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I did finish enough research that tomorrow, I believe I will begin to write down words in the book file, so that’s good.

After that, things kinda went downhill. Possibly because the book I’m writing is the last of the Jethri arc, and Jethri was Steve’s buddy. OTOH, I wrote the first one, so it’s fitting that I write the wrap-up. Hear that, Brain?

I went out for some Alpaca Therapy, which helped a little. I think, but I’m still not Top of the Pops, so I’m shutting down for the rest of the day. I figure to do some coloring and listen to The Talisman Ring, go to bed early, and try again tomorrow.

Everybody stay safe.

In case anyone else is in need of Alpaca Therapy, here’s a picture:

And so it’s June

Business first! The Fey Duology, including dark fantasy novels Duainfey and Longeye, is now available for purchase in electronic format from!  Amazon, Apple, Kobo, Smashwords, and Baen.

The paper edition is for sale at the Amazon link.

Go forth, Big Book, and Find Your Audience.
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So! Monday. Sunny and cool-but-not-cold.

Did some good start-up work on the new novel. I still have to find a few names of planets and locate a couple spaceships, but so far, all the Signs and Portents are positive.

The cats were very supportive.  Photographic proof.

A couple people asked me what I “usually” do with a completed jigsaw puzzle, and the answer is!

The puzzle the cats completed for me yesterday is, I believe, the very first jigsaw puzzle I have assembled as an adult. My spatial sense — by which I mean, the ability to recognize what will fit into where — does not exist. So! While it’s very lowering to read that a 500-piece puzzle ought to take, eh, up to five hours to assemble, I’m kind of astonished I actually got one together At All, despite it very likely absorbing 3 times that many hours (I didn’t time myself, really, but I do know that yesterday alone, it took 4 hours to finish.)

The completed puzzle is taped up safely in its portfolio. It being an Accomplishment of its kind, I may glue it together eventually, as a trophy.

Lunch has been et, and in a moment or two I will start in with emptying trash cans, and staging the trash bags and recycling, so that it can easily be moved from the garage to the curb tomorrow morning. Also up for my exciting afternoon is doing my duty to the cats, taking a walk, and making two phone calls. Sigh.

Since last week, I’ve listened to Georgette Heyer’s Cotillion and Black Sheep. Yesterday, I started listening to The Talisman Ring, and I’m … a little shocked at how very menacing Basil “The Beau” is, listening to him being read, professionally. Of course, I read Heyer as comedies, and the narrators are obliged to read them as if they were serious.

So, that’s me caught up on the first day of Back To Work.

How’s everybody doing?
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So, that’s enough excitement for one day. All the to-do list items are crossed off, including the one where I had to remove Steve’s name from the sock-drawer credit card (new cards arrived in the mail today; I’d forgotten he was even on it).

Also? The altered state that newly bereaved people exist in is an impressive coping mechanism. I made dozens of those calls right after Steve died, and they were hard, but today was gut-wrenching.

And, apropos of nothing much, I don’t talk to many people from Texas, and that accent falls odd on the ear.

So, anyway. Knocking off for the day, having Done Great Deeds. I have a mid-morning dental appointment tomorrow, and after that? We’ll see.

Everybody stay safe. I’ll check in tomorrow.

Vacation winding down

Sunday, chilly so far, and slightly cloudy. The weatherbeans are calling for rain a little later.

Slept badly, which is becoming A Theme, and am therefore a mite muzzy-headed. Which reminds me that I ought to put the kettle on.

The Plan for today, insomuch as &c, is to finish the laundry, finish the puzzle, talk nonsense to the cats, have a good night’s sleep (sigh), set the alarm (!) and be ready to go back to work tomorrow morning. This will consist of reading my notes, deciding on sections and maybe even making a start on listing scenes to be written for each section.

Trade Lanes, here we come.

Tomorrow, I will be returning to the New Work Schedule of writing in the morning and tending to blogs, business, housework, shopping, baking, and various whatnots in the afternoon. I am, going forward, planning to make any needed appointments in the afternoon, though I have a long-standing dental appointment on Tuesday morning.

I’m told I need to send a “picture” to Adult Ed to accompany my course listing, but I’m not completely clear on a picture of What, so I will be writing that email today, as well. If it’s a picture of me, I’m thinking I’ll send along the portrait that was taken with Zander and Obie.

Else?

. . .

Nothing else occurs — ref putting on the kettle.

What are your plans for the day?