Friday, August 13, 2004

Mission accomplished!

mood: content
music: none

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I've been busy just recovering for the last week--so much so that I haven't really spent any time at the computer other than to quickly check for important e-mail, decide to answer it later, and go back to reading my book. However, I'm pleased to report that I finished the novel (after expanding it from 50,700 words to 65,000) and put it in the mail an entire day before the deadline. And it felt fantastic! I was happy with the way it came together in the end, liked the changed I made, and have only one problem--I still miss those characters! Fortunately there's much more to see and do in Nearspace so I may be heading back to them before long.

So for the past week I've mostly just been reading (Northern Suns) and doing stuff with the kids, who were really very patient and good while I was chained to the computer during July. Now I have to get busy and catch up on the submissions I have waiting--half a dozen stories that need just a little tweakage before I put them in the mail. I have three new stories percolating and I have to get the Scriptorium updated. I actually got an e-mail yesterday from a reader who's wondering sadly what happened to it--it was a great source of inspiration for them. So I'd better get busy.

But today I have to spend the day packing for a weekend camping trip, and Terry's on vacation next week. So I guess the writing will be on hold for a short while longer. Not really a problem, since I'm mentally working on those new stories. Maybe they'll be ready to emerge by the time the week is over.


One thing I learned today: The full name of the Statue of Liberty, which re-opened this week, is Liberty Enlightening the World. Considering the current state of the U.S., this seems kind of sad to me.