Losing Momentum

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Well, I picked it up again.

And wow, has it been hard to be motivated.  About a week after I put up the previous post, I got a cut on my eye, which also caused a condition called iritis.  Needless to say, not fun.  And even though I was functional for most of my recovery, it was still a very demotivating thing.  It's hard enough to get working when you're healthy, let alone when you have blurry vision.

I was laying on my couch this evening, thinking about my lack of work on the writing and the blog, when it came to me.  Why not now?

It's a momentum issue.  Once you stop rolling that metaphorical boulder it's so much harder to get it going again.  Once I get used to not editing the book, it's so much harder to pick it up again.  Do I really have to face that embarrassing writing again?  After going for a week (then two, then more) without updating the blog, it gets easier to let that go by, too.

Granted, the work I did today was very short, but at least it counts as something.  I actually picked up the thing and worked again.  If editing is a boulder, I started to budge it a little.  And hopefully that's a first step in getting rolling. 

Writing and the Working Girl

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It's been awhile.

This is not a new phenomenon.  Writer has intentions, maybe even a good story - and then life gets busy. 

Earlier this month, I started a new job working part time at a local nonprofit.  Which is excellent. I'm very glad to have it.  Knowing I was starting new work, I mentally cut myself some slack. Going back to work meant an adjustment in my schedule and a change in demands on my energy level.  The book and blog could wait.  My nonprofit work schedule is Tuesdays/Thursdays, with some wiggle room in there to shift things around if I need to. 

I began work on October 3rd, a Tuesday.  I then worked October 6th, a Thursday.  On Friday, October 7th, my mother was admitted to the hospital for symptoms of a possible stroke.  I took a sudden trip up to Southern New Hampshire (I live in Massachussetts) for the night.  Thankfully, my mom is doing well.  She was released from the hospital the very next day.  At no point did she lose any motor skills.  She was diagnosed as having suffered a TIA, which is similar to a stroke, but not as severe.

The next week I started teaching my continuing education classes again.  That Saturday, for the first time ever, I worked (for pay) as a private coach for an actress I've had in two of my classes.  If you're keeping track, that's three different jobs starting within two weeks of each other.  Still not busy enough?  I also didn't mention that I started my nonprofit job a matter of weeks before the organization's biggest fundraiser of the year.  That was Thursday.

Life gets busy.

I don't know how to view these times when I don't work on my story.  I don't know all my reader's beliefs or philosophies, but for my part, I believe God has a plan for my life, and that He directs me as to which way to go.  I believe strongly that He has called me to write (notice I didn't say publish - though I hope that happens, too) this story.

So I wonder:  Are all these "dry times" in my work a failing on my part?  Should I be working at a quicker pace?  Or are these delays part of the planned timeline?  Either way, I know none of this surprises God.  And I know that He is merciful.  And I know that sometimes, a plan for your life can take a long time to unfold.  When I look back at how long this journey has been going on (since 2006), a break of this size is kind of small in comparison.  When I was planning my wedding and working full time, I stopped work on the book for about a year or so.  And then I picked it up again.

So maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but God willing, I will pick up the manuscript again and keep going.  And I hope to keep you all informed of my progress along the way :)

Please feel free to connect with me via twitter or by leaving a comment on this post.

Book Tuesday

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                Writing can often be a struggle of time management.  Whether we are very busy or are simply very good at procrastinating, it can be hard to find time to sit down and write.  It was for this reason that I started Book Tuesday.

                The original idea behind book Tuesday was to block off a day to write.  I was un- or little-employed at the time, so I was in a good position to make this sort of declaration.  By “clearing my schedule” so to speak, I tried to eradicate the guilt I would feel if I took time to write instead of doing other things around my home.  And so it began.

                The base of operations for book Tuesday was a Starbucks at my local mall.  I would go there, order a drink, and sit and work on my manuscript.  As time went on (and as I drew attention to myself with my giant manuscript in front of me), I got to know the baristas a bit.  I developed a regular seat in the shop, at the counter that overlooked the barista’s work area.    One of them wanted me to write a coffee shop into my work (and I think him as a character).  I believe I told him that I might do something like that in the next one.

                Getting to be a regular was a fun experience.  It wasn’t quite a Norm form Cheers thing (“Norm!”) but it still felt good.  The baristas got to know who I was and what I was trying to do.  I formed a bond with one barista in particular.  She was (and is) a college student named Brittney.  Granted, our chattering back and forth when I came to visit didn’t help either of us get more work done, but it was nice to see a friendly face and catch up.

                My initial dream of spending a large portion of the day working on my book didn’t ultimately come to be.  I may have spent more time working during the early Book Tuesdays, but eventually it became a shorter event.  But, as I’ve pointed out, even a little work still counts.  On Tuesdays (at least most of them) I would go to Starbucks, work on my book, and visit with Brittney if she was there.  It was forward motion, but there was also something more going on.

                One of the other benefits of this exercise was in perception.  Writers talk about procrastination, yes, but one thing you may hear from writers - both published and not - is the reluctance to identify themselves as writers.  Going to the coffee shop on a regular basis and forming relationships with the people there made me “confess” to them what I was really doing and what I was trying to be.   For better or worse, I was honest with them.  And here’s something great about that: the people were nice about it.  It’s hard to take myself seriously as a writer, but Brittney did.  Without reading a word of what was on my laptop screen, she believed in me.  And that is something very special.  If you’re reading this Brittney, thank you.

                And now the epilogue.  I started teaching on Tuesday nights one fall, and I stopped coming in for book Tuesdays.  Eventually my husband lost his job and then got a new one that moved us out of town.  Interestingly enough, Brittney moved too, so she doesn’t work at that location anymore.  Book Tuesday, in a way, has essentially ended.

                But today is Tuesday, and I wanted to tell you this story.  And today I worked on the book.  I didn’t go out to Starbucks. My Gold Rewards Card stayed tucked away in my wallet.  I didn’t sit at the counter overlooking the barista’s work area, but at my own dining room table in my new condo.  There’s no Brittney the barista to talk to, but interestingly enough today I’ve been texting with a new friend who lives around here, named Brittany (note the spelling difference).

                So what about you?  Do you do anything interesting to make time for writing or other pursuits?  I would love to hear from you in the comments.

Adaptation

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Say it with me now:  "Eight-ty pa-ges." *clap clap, clapclapclap* "Eight-ty pa-ges." *clap clap, clapclapclap*

Anyways, on to today's topic..........

Today I read a blog from fellow twitter person Elaine Allen (@mousicorn) about books being adapted to film.  The concept of film adaptation has been a fascinating one to me for awhile.  It's not just our favorite reads that are getting the Hollywood treatment.  Comic book characters and video games are also undergoing the transformation.  I feel I may have a unique perspective to add to the conversation.  I've been writing prose stories for years, but I also went to film school, where I learned screenwriting. 

The biggest issue, perhaps, surrounding a film adaptation is how well it keeps to the original.  It's a fair concept, to be sure.  If a movie is going to bear the title, display the characters, and ideally draw the fans of the original work, shouldn't it bear a striking resemblance to what we already like?  I would agree with that, but as someone who has studied film structure, I understand that there are some changes that are almost necessities.  Literally putting the book/comic/game events up on the screen may sound like a good idea, but I would caution someone in that mindset to be careful what they wish for.

Keep in mind, film communicates in much different ways that the written word.  In a novel, the author can take us directly into the mind of the characters.  As readers, we can process information about exactly what a character is thinking along with the physical realities (action, dialogue) around the characters.  Maybe this is one reason why the film version of our favorite characters can so easily dissapoint - by virtue of the medium we are cut off from their inner monologue of thoughts, which we perhaps relied on more heavily than we realized when we first read their stories.  Add in each reader/viewer's take on what a character should look/sound/behave like, and no wonder it's so hard to find an adaptation satisfying.

But some can be.  I would refer you to The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian.  I'm a fan of the book, and really, the whole series.  It was a set of books I first read as a child, and the series remains dear to me to this day.  Now let me say this:  the film is very different from the book.  It's as though the filmmakers cut the story up, shifted it around, and added some things of their own.  But the cool thing is, IT WORKED.  In the book, the four Pevensie siblings from the first installment return to the magical land of Narnia, only to discover it has been hundreds of years since they ruled it as kings and queens.  Not only that, but the land has been overtaken by a neighboring race of humanity that has all but exterminated the original talking animals that were the indigenous population.  They meet up with a dwarf, who fills them in on the fact that the human prince has defected to the side of the Narnians and is mounting a (now failing) attempt at a revolution.  The siblings join up with the prince and help work toward the liberation of Narnia. 

Sounds good enough, right? But think about it - how cinematic is it to meet a character (the dwarf) partway into the movie, and have him sit and tell you this whole long story about Caspian, and that his uncle tried to have Caspian killed after his own son was born?  And don't forget we need to know how Caspian met up with the Narnians and about the revolution.  Kind of boring, as a film.  As a book, it works just fine.  The medium of words on page serves that very well.  The slower opening of the children making it to Narnia and discovering things works.  The telling of Caspian's tale comes off fine.

But what did I see when I went to see the movie?  First up, Caspian's aunt giving birth.  The uncle learning he has a son.  A cloaked figure moving through the castle at night - it's the beloved professor, coming to wake Caspian, and get him out of the castle before his uncle can have him killed.  Caspian narrowly escaping the castle on horseback.  Caspian galloping on a horse away from the castle, the guards in hot pursuit.  The music swells, the title rolls up.  Tears prick my eyes.

They nailed it.  They totally did.  That was what we needed to see to make the opening dynamic enough to fit the needs of the film.  I don't hold it against them that they changed the opening.  In fact, I'm glad they did it.

There are other changes too, and to go into them would make this post way longer than it already is.  They added a sequence about a castle raid that wasn't in the book at all.  But to my surprise, it actually reinforced a key theme in the book for me.  The original villian from the first novel returns briefly, when she never appeared in the book.  Some may dismiss it as a marketing ploy - a way to get the actress's name and image involved with the second film.  But I don't mind it.  The actress they chose to play this villian was so good in the role, it was great to see her for the limited time we did.  And the scene provided a great moment for one of the sibling characters who had a lot to do with her in the first film.

So, I guess changes to beloved source material does not always spell doom.  I hope to delve into this subject more in future posts.  What about you?  What do you think about adapted works?  Are there any that have surprised you in a good way?  Please post on this blog to let me know.

Here is the link to Elaine's blog, which includes the post on adaption:
http://www.itsallwritehere.wordpress.com/

Ideal Writing Towns

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Above my desk I have a small piece of art.  It's a rendition of the main street of Essex, NY.  The town is a very special one to my family. 

Essex is a tiny little town on Lake Champlain (that would be the lake between New York and Vermont).  One of it's major draws, I would guess, is that it is one of the landing sites for the few ferries that run across the lake.  It also has the distinction of being the home of Champ, Lake Champlain's version of The Loch Ness Monster. 

The Charlotte-Essex Ferry. 

My husband's Grandfather is pastor of the Methodist Church in Essex. He and Granda Hunn live in the neighboring town of Willsboro. My husband and I actually got married in Essex, at the church, officiated by Grandpa.  With that and other family gatherings, I've spent a lot of time in that region.  I could go on and on about how small and rural Essex and Willsboro are, but suffice it to say this:  If you are staying in either one of them, plan on a 45 minute to an hour drive to get to a McDonald's, Walmart, or Regal movie theater.  When I was planning the wedding reception, I had trouble finding catering options because the area was too far of a drive.  Getting the picture?  

Oh, but it is an attractive part of the country, with gorgeous lake views and small town charm.  I remember one day describing-I think it was Essex, specifically - as being the type of town where one would go to write the great American novel.

It really is a charming prospect.  Slipping away to a peaceful part of the country to work on your masterpiece has a certain element of romance to it.  Imagine cool mornings, sipping coffee by the lake, a notebook or laptop within reach to craft your story......

Aaaaaaannnnd, cut.  That's enough.

Let's be real.  Essex may be remote, but it still has the internet.  And cable.  And most likely, as a traveler you will have luggage.  And luggage can sometimes hold other distractions, like knitting or a stack of books you've been meaning to get to.  A change of location won't stop me from procrastinating.  It may change how I procrastinate, but I still would.

So maybe, the ideal writing town for me isn't some remote locale, but instead is the city in which I live.  Maybe there's value in realizing that we don't need to go somewhere exotic to write, that we can instead make it work in our ordinary lives, right where we are.  Where we live is a part of the unique set of experiences we each have as individuals. So why not embrace it, rather than feel like it's something that's holding us back?   Not that we can never go away on writing trips.  In fact, if you do, I can give you some reccommendations of places to visit in and around Essex, NY. ;)

Writing Wallpaper

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I finished the scene rearrangement mentioned earlier, and began working on the text beyond that.  I worked in the dining room (rather than my upstairs hall alcove space)  because it allowed me more room for the "visual aids" of sorts that I had made for the scene swap.  Visual aids, you ask?  Allow me to explain.

I had several scenes that I basically wanted to float around, possibly reshuffling them completely in order to strengthen my story.  I don't know about you, my readers, but the idea of staring at my iPad and trying to mentally sort out what should go where was not appealing.  Sometimes, when a task seems too hard for my mind, it tends to just want to stop working.  I don't know if this would have happened here, but there was a way to circumvent the issue completely.

I printed out the section of manuscript in question, then cut and taped pieces together, making several large paper pieces, each one with a particular scene.  That way, I could physically arrange the scenes, making it easier to play with and envision a new order for them.  Once I had the order figured out, I numbered each scene with a highlighter.  When I left the task for another time, it was easy to keep a handful of scenes together, numbered, stacked in order, and clipped together.  It was more prep to actually do my little cut and paste project, but the visual organization was helpful to me.

My recent cut-and-paste scene organization.
Sebastian the cat got involved as well.

This is not the first time I've done something like this.  Years ago, while still living at home with my mom, I printed out the manuscript and taped it up, in order, in my room.  The sheer size of the thing was so daunting, it seemed like it would be easier to get a handle on the big picture if I could literally see "the big picture" of it on my walls.  Pages and pages were taped up.  It took up a large part of one wall, and may have also been spread on to the back of the bedroom door.  An interesting form of decor, to be sure.

I don't know how much the wallpaper method helped back then, but it felt good to do.  I could highlight and color code sections, make notes, and plain just look at the volume of words committed to paper so far.  Rather cathartic, I guess, to let the words out for viewing like that.

Earlier this summer I spent some time with some old high school friends. I found out one of them has employed the same wallpapering technique she saw me do all those years ago, with an unfinished novel of her own.  It was a compliment to me that my actions back then somehow affected hers.  It validated my process, to have her adopt it too.

So if you're feeling stagnant in your work flow, tired of the same view from your computer screen, get creative.  Hit print, break out the tape, and do some decorating.  :)

The Inadvertent Vacation

121/205 I think.  It's been awhile.

You may notice that number hasn't changed much.  Allow me to explain.

Earlier this month I was moving along, as this blog indicates, editing my way through the 200 plus pages of my manuscript.  Normally I simply  go through, scene by scene, fixing each one in chronological order. While working on this current section, I began to realize that the sequence of scenes wasn't quite making sense.  The emotional development and thought lives of the characters did not seem to have a smooth flow.  It was like a carrot chopped and mixed up, so that it was no longer a smooth flow from skinny end to fat end, but instead a bumpy mess of different sizes.

So I thought about rearranging the scenes.  Maybe, with some rewriting to make the transitions make sense, many of the same scenes could be more effective if put in a different order.  Maybe this was the right thing to do.  I wasn't sure.  I didn't know what to do.

And then, life interrupted.  The "inadvertent" title of this blog may indicate to some that I valiantly tried to keep working when the life got busy, or that maybe all the busyness caught me by surprise and so my plans were foiled.  Neither, really.

My inlaws came to visit, their first time since the weekend we moved into this place (last minute "bucket list" of move-in tasks, anyone?).  Technically it was two visits with them staying overnight, as they came to see us before and after spending time in nearby Newport, RI.  I had an interview for a job, then got the second interview, where I was offered and accepted the position.  Between those two interviews, and during one of the inlaw visits, I volunteered with my new church, doing my first turn as a clown in months.  So yes, I was busy.

But here was a cool thing pertaining to my writing:  I was separated from my scene switch dilemma.  Even if I were to think about it, I wasn't going to try to effect any changes any time soon.  In a "normal" span of time, I may have put more pressure on myself to decide sooner.  After all, I want to keep moving, keep progressing that page count.  Got to have something to show the blog readers, right?  But I didn't work on the page count.  I think the dilemma came to mind at least once, but again, I had already come to terms with the fact that any editing was on hold anyway.

It would be nice to tell you that after all these things I came back with my problem easily solved and my workflow moving at a nice pace.  Not all true.  I still procrastinated.  I worried that I had lost readership from not updating the blog in so long.  But, saying prayers for help and guidance, I did get back to work.  I rearranged those scenes, and I  think the sequence will come out well.

So maybe those "writing vacations" aren't so bad after all.  Those times when life gets busy, we can put our work aside when it's driving us crazy anyway.  Get some distance from the rough stuff.  And feel better about ourselves when the vacation does not win out and become permanent, but ends as we pick up our work again and take another step forward.

Encouragement

As I've mentioned before, I'm a new homeowner.  A little while back, while going through yet another box, I came across something interesting.  Years ago, I used to print out exerpts of my manusript for my mother to read. I have two of them on my desk, which she returned with notes.  One of them, which she dated May 2007, has this note in the margins, written in green highlighter:
"Darlin This is Your Gift - I hope someday you will be able to slow down enough to finish it."

Encouragement is such an important thing.  For a something designed for an audience (in this case of readers), writing can be a very lonely pursuit.  And it's hard to put so much time an energy into something that you hope to make money doing but aren't sure if you will.  So when we get down on ourselves, when we start listing all the other things we could be doing that are supposedly "more productive," its good to have someone at our elbow, or a note on a page to say "This is your thing, keep going."  Hey, I mean really, even an occasional "I've read worse" might be all we need sometimes.

So if you're writing, keep writing.  If you know someone who is a writer and you truly think they're good at it, tell them.  Or, break out the green highlighter and get scribbling.  And Mom, I know you know this already, but I have been slowing down enough to work more.  Interestingly enough, at

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I'm back in the territory of those same pages from May 2007 that you wrote that note on.

Something That's Been On My Mind

It's time to talk about the fear.

It's amazing, really.  I wouldn't have thought that I would actually end up with this clean sounding, ready for some movie speech type of complex.  But I think it's happened.  It's fear.  Fear of rejection of my work has kept me from working as hard as I could.  Because think about it - and here's the clean cut part - if I don't finish it, I can't send it off and get it rejected.  And lets face it, if you've spent any time taking in the stories of those who have broken in to the writing world, you hear about the rejections.  It gets to the point where it feels like you HAVE to be rejected to be normal.  And I realize the reality may be that the majority of writers go through at least some rejection before they get a yes, but does that mean we, the unsubmitted writers, should go into our first submission pretty much accepting failure?  Not exactly great motivation to keep you editing.

But, for better or worse, I must keep going.  I don't know what types of belief systems are represented by everyone who may read this, but I truly believe I have a calling to write this book.  Notice I said write, not get published.  I realize that rejection may just be a pathway to something else.  And if you take away the power the threat of rejection holds, shouldn't that mean the fear goes away?

117/204. Take that, fear of failure.

Can't I Just Pretend That Part Isn't There?

114/205  Look, the page count went up.

Here we are.  It happened.  I stayed away from blogging and editing for I think longer than I have since I began this site.  Sure, there are those instances where I would remember, oh, "I've still got to do that," but yet, it still didn't happen.  Life gets in the way, and in this case, life involved a particularly frustrating passage of my manuscript.

If you read it, you may think it was just another section.  But this section included condensed time and changing points of view.   The kind of thing that I would just look at and wonder how I was going to make it something that would be acceptable to the publishing company I'm dreaming of.  But folding the laundry or glancing warily at my iPad won't make that writing any better.  And, honestly, I don't think working on a piece of writing always makes it better, either.  But in this case, I think it might have.

That Laundry Looks Good....

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Still working.

The progress is happening, paragraph by paragraph, page by page.  I will say having this blog is helping.  I'm aware of the fact that I should probably keep posting regularly to help keep any readership up, but I don't feel right doing so without being able to come to you with an updated page count.  Not always easy to do, though, as life gets in the way.  Which brings us to today's topic: procrastination.

It's amazing how easy it is.  How one can spend hours doing other tasks all in avoidance of something that may only take 10 or 20 minutes.  "Yeah, I need to work on the book....but that stuff really needs to get picked up over there.  And I need to vacuum over there...." and so on.  What is it about my manuscript that makes putting away laundry look so appealing?

There are probably many reasons.  One of which is facing the "bad" writing.  It's one thing to be in the  drafting/writing phase, where so much time is spent on creating new material.  It's a time where the writer can put his or her story out there like a painter laying out big, broad brush strokes.  And if its bad, so what?  I can fix it later.

Well, my friends, welcome to later.  It's drudgery sometimes.  Having to mentally roll up the your sleeves and face the fact that those sentences need to be reworked or just plain rewritten.  And, lets face it, it's hard to spend your time on this, hoping it will lead to work and not knowing if it will.  But I press on, and, God willing, I will finish.  And the laundry will just have to wait.

The Genre

Before I really begin, I've realized over the last several days that the way my Pages app on my iPad works (and lets face it, the way I use it) may not be producing completely accurate page counts for my progress ratio.  But if there's a page or so error anywhere, it still shows forward motion in a quantitative way, rather than a bunch of entries starting with "I'm still working on it."  Anyways, all that being said, and allowing any potential margin of error:

109/204

Let me tell you a bit about the genre I'm writing in, as well as some of how I got into writing for it.  The official title of this type of story is "inspiriational romance."  If that term leaves you still wondering about what the book could still be about, let me put it this way - Christian romance.  I don't like to admit it, but I get embarrassed often when I need to tell people the type of book it is.  I guess after so many years of living my faith in a secular world, I expect most people on the street to find my genre laughable, as if its just a bunch of dumb, naive stories.  While I won't go claiming that every work of this nature is intelligenty written and highly literary, I will go on record as saying that the inspirational romance genre can be a great avenue for readers like myself.

Christian romance, at least in the guidelines I'm writing for, is defined as "sweet" romances, where there is both a romantic and faith element present in the story.  Basically, its a romance where one or both of the leads have some sort of issue of faith that they work through in addition to the romance storyline.  The nice thing about these stories (or should I say, one of them) is that people like me can get what they want - the romantic, guy meets girl, couple overcomes obstacles to live happily-ever-after type of stories without any sex scenes that one might find objectionable.

I didn't always know about this subset of the romance genre, and I used to read other mainstream novels, which would often include me having to skip pages at particular sensitive parts, skimming for any dialogue.
"Nope, still doing it." *turns page* "Nope, still doing it." *turns page*

It's great to have a genre of romance where I can read a love story that doesn't have those objectionable parts, and has a Christian message.  This is the genre I hope to break in to.

My Version of a Progress Bar

I realize I forgot to tell you about how I, and now you, can track my progress.  I'm working straight through my manuscript, editing each section/paragraph/scene as I encounter it.  I've begun tracking this with a type of fraction.  For instance, I didn't tell you, but before I started editing yesterday, I had last left off on page 104 of my 204 page manuscript, so that's 104/204 according to the little blue sticky note pad I have here.

The reason I say 104/204 is simple.  As I edit, the manuscript size shifts.  Sometimes it may be subtle - retooling a couple of sentences may shift the word count either way.  And sometimes there are more dramatic changes, like if I rewrite a section and it ends up pages longer than the previous version, or I cut an entire section that is seems week and out of place upon review.

So here we go. At the time of yesterday's writing it was 104/204. Today I can check in and tell you that after yesterday's work I'm at 106 of 204. That may not seem like a lot, but it's forward motion, so it counts :)

If You're Done with the Manuscript, Why isn't it Finished?

I’ve heard it said somewhere that works of art are not finished; they’re abandoned.  After years of being involved in the creative process, I know what it’s like to have to simply stop tweaking and messing with whatever you’re working on and simply “call it done.”  Right now I am dealing with one of those projects that sticks with you for years.  Five years, actually.  And it’s time to put it to bed.  But in this case, I’m hoping that when, God willing, I at last “call it done,” there will be some sense of completion, and not just abandonment.

I should probably introduce myself.  I’m in my late twenties, a college graduate, and a wife for nearly two years now.  I’m also a new homeowner.  While creative writing has been an interest of mine for well over a decade now, for pay I teach acting and other classes in a continuing education program.

Just as I was about to graduate college in 2006, I started writing a manuscript, ideally to submit to a publishing company that takes amateur, non-agented submissions.  I continued to write.  Some days I would literally only add one sentence before calling it a day.  If five years seems a long time (even with my one-sentence-a-day days), keep in mind that over those five years I’ve graduated college, moved three times, held and left multiple jobs, got engaged and took about a year off from the project while I worked and planned my out-of-state wedding, got married, weathered the recession as my husband gained and lost work, and eventually bought a home.

That being said, this past Sunday I was asked how far along I am on the manuscript.  Technically, I can tell people I’m finished, and it’s not a lie.  I can print out the 204 pages and hand them to someone, and the story should pretty much be coherent and all there.  What’s left is the editing, going back through all those years of writing and trying to make it ready.  And that is my struggle.  I hope you’ll stay with me and check back to see how I do.  I figure if I want to keep this blog going I’m going to have to keep editing at a regular pace, otherwise I would have to admit my procrastination to all you internet readers that I hope will be out there.  If you are out there, I hope to hear from you.  You can also follow me, @kameliahunn on twitter. 

And now, it’s time to get this post up and see about my writing.