The best work-week I’ve had in a while.
I can thank TYG for a lot of that. She decided she missed Plushie so she spent a lot of the week sitting with him next to her on the couch. That’s easier for her than me as I’m never so busy I can’t break off and fetch her stuff if she needs a Diet Coke or whatever. But it’s way better for me. I go up to my office and don’t have to deal with the awkwardness of sitting Plushie’s cage or with Trixie or Wisp looking at me with sad eyes. The end result? Much more clarity for work.
Sleep helped a lot too. I had some really bad nights but it got to the point my body decided to sleep late — that’s rare — and I felt much better for it (who’d have guessed?). With TYG keeping the dogs occupied much of the week, it was also easier for me to find time to exercise.
I still didn’t write anything new but I did get some creative work done. I finished rereading Let No Man Put Asunder‘s first draft and noting down how to improve it. It’s in much better shape than most of my first drafts but as it goes along I lose Mandy’s character arc (Paul’s holds up somewhat better) and that needs to change. And while the plot is action oriented, the plot’s really a mystery — why is this happening to Mandy and Paul? Keeping that in mind and advancing the solution as it goes along will help the next draft a lot (see this old post of mine for discussion).
I also started copy-editing Southern Discomfort: I printed out the first 100 pages and I made it through the first forty, reading them aloud and noting errors/problems/overused phrases, etc. Working on that made me feel I’m really getting my mojo back.
Work for The Local Reporter once again got heavier than planned. I got in two stories, one about l0cal pandemic history, one about Carrboro renaming a street to honor a local civil-rights activist rather than a white supremacist. And my editor told me I’m amazing.
Over at Atomic Junk Shop I discussed encountering old tropes when they’re new to you, the muddled end of the Silver Age Metamorpho comic book (cut off in mid-reboot) and some more 1968 changes and reboots including the X-Men dealing with the death of Professor X. Yes, he turned out alive later but I think it was still a daring move on Roy Thomas’ part. And while I’m not fond of Don Heck’s superhero art, I think he captures the tragedy of the moment.
Oh, and the Durham Writers MeetUp Group — my specfic writing group is under their umbrella — is in need of a new admin, so I volunteered. It doesn’t sound like too much work; I’m waiting for the current administrator to get back to me about what I need to do to take over. Wish me luck.
#SFWApro. Art top to bottom by Curt Swan, Sal Trapani and Heck, all rights remain with current holders.
