Slowing Down

Well not completely, but I’m noticing my writing is less urgent than it has been lately. When the 50k mark was crossed I sort of knew I was on the right track. Today I had a quiet day with only a couple of hours writing this morning before going off to Tatton Park with my SIL and the dog. My excuse is location scouting, I just cannot resist stately homes. We didn’t go in today but instead went for a cross country ramble, Elizabeth Bennet style, there were deer and sheep not to mention lots of people and their dogs.
Back to the story in hand, there have been a few angsty dramatic moments lately, but all in all I think my charries have coped well. I hadn’t actually had that much drama planned, but it has actually given me a viable solution for how to move the plot to a close, there are a few things that need to happen before the final plot point can happen, but now I have a natural progression towards those events.
I woke up last night with an idea in my head, and spend over 1 hour talking the scene into my dictaphone (iPhone app). I’ll have to remember to type it up tomorrow, so easy to forget it’s there waiting.
Right it’s time to drive back to Liverpool, I’m really starving now. More updated soon, I promise!

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The Waiting Game

It’s been a month now since I last saw my hubbie, and at the moment I’m eagerly waiting for my visa to come through so I can join him in Abu Dhabi. How ridiculous is it to be married for 5 days before your brand new husband leaves the country? I’m just really fed up with it now.
At least my writing course keeps me busy, I’m really enjoying it despite the near disaster of not being able to submit the first eTMA. Luckily my tutor was very helpful, and I was able to submit it a few days later instead, crisis averted. I just hope it was worth reading, I’m so nervous about getting it back, what if I don’t have what it takes to be a writer? Apparently it’s due back on Friday, until then I will have to continue my fretting and sleepless nights. I have this heavy lump in my chest thinking she is going to hate it.
In other news Nanowrimo is going really well, yesterday I hit the 50,000 mark which means I’m more than half way to my target of 100,000 nifty spiffing words 😉 I love writing this story, it’s like 3 years of thinking coming together making it all fit nicely with each other.
Tomorrow is the last day of the working week in Abu Dhabi so if I have no visa news then it will be Sunday at the earliest that I will know. Fingers crossed everyone

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50,000

Well I can’t believe it, I’ve actually hit 50,000 words. I usually struggle to hit it before the 20th, but this year it all seems to be coming together nicely. I still have over 2 weeks to get to my personal target of 100,000, so well ahead of schedule.
Since I got back from the lakes I have been writing non stop, I really think taking that day out to think and organize my thought was the best thing I ever did. I know exactly what I want from the characters and where I want to go now, which is a lot more than I did Sunday morning. I finished fixing my story holes now and have for the most part spent the day moving the story along. I am about half way through which is very good, and have added some elements that never even crossed my mind when I started. For Thursday or Friday I plan to get to the library so I can move what I’ve got on the iPhone over to the mac, I really sucks relying on the iPhone for Internet!
Well I am going for a well earn’t sleep, ready to crack on again in the morning.
Good luck to all other wrimos out there with hitting your targets!

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Staying Ahead

Well it’s still going quite well, I’m ahead of my target if only slightly. Yesterday was a writing free day, instead I went up to the lakes with the in laws. My FIL was checking that the boat was still moored up at Ambleside, and then we went out sailing for a couple of hours. It was nice and windy so we had en invigourating time out there, MIL stayed on shore, I think she’s had enough near death experiences.
While the day added nothing to my word count, it did give me some time to think about where I wanted my characters and story to go. I keep getting stuck in places, so leave them and go on to the next chapter, but yesterday sorted some of the sticking points out. So today I’ve been going back to the places I left off and writing them further. I love Scrivener because I’ve been able to divide up the chapters, which means I could just go straight back where I had jumped from instead of trawling through everything I’ve written and inevitably get hung up on some silly things.
Well it’s back to the mac now, my break is over 😉 but there will be a new update in a few days

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And We Are On Target(ish)

I say ish because while I’m more than on target for 50 000 by November 30th, I should really be over 20 000 to reach my 100 000 target. So tomorrow it’s get up at dawn (well maybe 9) and write about 8 000 word which should bring me up to 25 000 and on the right track. At least next week will be quieter and I only have to worry about myself. All the moving is done now, well except the big move, but that will come next week hopefully. And then Abu Dhabi and chilling, no to shabby at all.
The story is sort of progressing, whenever I get stuck on something I don’t dwell on it, but skip forward instead. That has certainly saved me a lot of time wasting. I think it helped as well that the sequel is already written, I can fill it out a bit with Della and her Mr rights budding relationship. I still can’t believe he has no name, major Right just doesn’t have the right ring 😉
Oh well at least Rupert and Adele are enjoying hating each other, where would my life and writing be without them? Hopelessly bad, but then I’m not sure they change that. Isn’t it odd how I know how many kids they have and the kids names, but I have no idea how they even begin forgive each other.
Oh well, I still have a few chapters I need to get through before that is an issue, and even more before they reveal it to each other.

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Goodbye My Little Gerbils

So the day I knew had to come has arrived. The day I say a very sad farwell to my two gorgeous gerbils. I’ve been trying to rehome them for about a month now, asked everyone I know, and some I don’t, but no one has been able. I called all the animal sanctuaries and pet shops who rehome, but no joy, not until last night when I called the pet shops again and Pets at Home in Bromborough had space available.
So off we went today, my MIL and I, with the cages in the back. The trip over the water was surprisingly uneventful, we didn’t even get lost once 🙂
The pet shop and the people could not have been nicer, they were so helpful, put Bongo and Wentworth right into the huge clean display tank and put me to ease explaining they would not be split up and adopters were vetted before they could take them home. The big cage came with them so if their new family wanted and had room for it they could put them in there.
It was kind of heartbreaking to see them running around so carefree and happy, I’m sure they won’t miss me at all, but it’s also good because I knew they were not scared and would adapt nicely.
I’m really going to miss them, they were amazing company, always pottering about so you knew you weren’t alone and always willing to be picked up and cuddled for comfort 😉
So here’s to Bongo and Wentworth, the two most amazing gerbils in the world. Who ever adopts them I hope you give them a wonderful, loving home.

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US Election 2008

Well it’s finally here, the presidential election of 2008. Doesn’t it feel like the run up has been going on for years? And why on earth do we care so much? I have no ties to America, but I’m so excited. I would be devestated if granpa McCain won, the US needs a change and the Republicans have had their chance. I might have been more receptive towards a new R president if he/she appeared able to lead, but McCain just seems like a reenergised Bush. Factual gaffs and messed up speeches is again the order of business, I’m sure there must be as many McCain making a fool of himself on YouTube as there are Bush ones, and who wants that to be their presidents legacy?
In this time of economic upheaval what America needs the most is a strong president who is going to be taken seriously. They need an inspiring speaker, who will fire them up and introduce change as a good thing. Barack Obama is all these things, and will be the best thing for America NOW

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Nano2008 The Beginning

Nano has just started and I’m writing 24/7. On Friday i bought writeroom for my iPhone, a brilliant buy, well worth the money. I haven’t tried the wifi function yet, but emailing my writing works really well.In any case it’s only for the times when I’m not by my mac, so don’t have to rely on it too much.
The story so is, well it’s progressing I guess. It’s not amazing writing by anyones standards, but then I suppose nanowrimo is one of the times where it’s actually quantity over quality! One of the stranger things for me this nano month is the fact that I started writing on chapter 2, leaving the prologue and ch 1 for later. I know exactly what will happen in those to section, but as of yet I’m not sure how I will make it happen.
The male mc was nice enough to give me a whole chapter from his POV, it was unplanned but worked surprisingly well. I had no idea about the various emotions that one was carrying around, but it certainly gives me a hand in how to approach a few crucial scenes.
My female mc is also being very good, because she has temporarily escaped the angst planned for the first two bits she is in a brilliant mood, not OTT enthusiastic, but certainly not depressed.
Well it’s time for me to return to 1814’s London, but I’ll update you more in a few days.
Tudels

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