Friday, July 29, 2011

Violet keeps an eye on things

Friday, July 29, 2011
Dark Moon
Pluto Retrograde
Neptune Retrograde
Cloudy and pleasant

Got a lot done yesterday, but it’s never enough, is it? Took two trips to the dump to get rid of the garbage and recycling. Something dripped out of one of the bags, so I was one stinky human by the time I got home and took a good soak in scented water!

Took my mom to the doctor, which always takes for damn ever (can’t they ever learn how to book patients in a way that keeps them on time?). But she’s better. Worked with my students for a bit.

Got a little bit of writing done, but not enough. Seem to have worked things out with the difficult client, at least for the moment.

Another busy day on the agenda for today. Managed to spend some time in the garden this morning. If the blossoms on the pumpkin vines actually make pumpkins, I’ll have a lot of lovely ones in the fall. The cucumbers are doing well, as are the peppers (we’re getting peppers) and the eggplant. I had to do some staking, but things look good.

I’m already starting to think in terms of planting bulbs in the fall for next spring, and what I want to do differently next year!

This is the anniversary of my father’s death (he died in 1972), so there’s always a bit of sadness, even when it’s a good day.

To the page for a bit, with my students, before I have to hit the ground running.

Devon

ASSUMPTION OF RIGHT available from Champagne Books and Amazon Kindle.
Annabel Aidan webpage here.

Thursday, Jul 28, 2011

Thursday, July 28, 2011
Day before Dark Moon
Neptune Retrograde
Pluto Retrograde
Sunny and lovely

Yesterday was busy. Grocery shopping and getting the food for the next couple of weeks sorted out for my mom’s trip. Lunch with a friend at a gorgeous place on the beach in Falmouth — great food, great company — always a wonderful way to spend the day. Worked flat out with my students until nearly midnight. Didn’t get things resolved with the client and it’s disturbing me out of proportion.

Had a bad night, woke up feeling like crap this morning. Made myself go to yoga anyway, and was glad I did. Chatham Beach was magnificent, we had about 50 people in class on that wonderful expanse of beach, and the teacher reads the class perfectly, creating sequences that fix whatever ails us that day! I am incredibly grateful to have found the class.

Got to take lots of garbage to the dump — probably have to make 2-3 trips, work with my students, take my mom to the doctor, do stuff for the Mermaid Ball, and get things resolved with the client. I am willing to walk away from this job if that’s what it takes. The client misinterprets flexibility and compassion for weakness, and doesn’t respect that I have a life, much less a career, outside of what this client wants (and the wants change from moment to moment). The client needs an on-call staff person, and I’m not it.

Figuring out how to use the anger and the annoyance at the lack of respect and turn it into creative energy. There’s a book in here somewhere,whether it’s a parallel story about a modern person’s buttons pushed because of something that happened in a previous life or something a little more straightforward. I don’t know what it is, but the lemons of this experience will wind up as lemonade somewhere down the line.

Onward.

Devon

ASSUMPTION OF RIGHT available from Champagne Books and Amazon Kindle.
Annabel Aidan webpage here.

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Waning Moon
Pluto Retrograde
Neptune Retrograde
Sunny and pleasant

I looked at the calendar, realized that Mercury goes retrograde on the 2nd and said a bad word! 😉 No wonder I chose August as the month off — I wanted to stay home and lay low. No chance of that now. It’s retrograde from the 2nd to the 26. I will have to keep my mouth shut and smile a lot. And hopefully get some great deals on yoga clothes and garden statuary! 😉

Yoga on the beach was wonderful yesterday. A cloudy, cool day (wore my sweat jacket all class) with seals playing just off shore. They paused and watched us from a safe distance for awhile — too funny!

Didn’t have time to get online when I got home. Had to take care of a few things in the garden, including a patch on the side I hoped would be a wildflower paradise, but, instead, started looking like a vacant lot! Took care of that, pulled some of the coleus out of the urn because it crowded everything else, deadheaded, and took care of a few things. The mower was a pain in the you-know-what. It hums along for a few minutes, then sputters and dies and won’t restart. Not the way a mower in its first season of usage should behave.

Our retired gardening neighbor came bearing more gifts of beans and cucumbers and complimented me on how nice everything looks! Praise from the master! I nearly fainted.

Headed out in the afternoon for a site job. This client basically wants full-time staff and I’m not it. Nor do I do domestic or personal assistant work. So more discussion has to happen here.

Got a little bit of writing done, but not happy with it, and got some revisions done.

Came home, barely had time to scarf down some dinner, and headed back out again for a committee meeting. The woman who was so awful to me at the concert didn’t show up, so it was a lively and fun meeting. I think the event will turn out well.

Back home, a few hours spent with students, fell into bed exhausted and overslept this morning.

Got to rush out and go grocery shopping, with an eye towards the next couple of weeks. My mom will be away, and I’ve got to pack up the food for her, so all she has to do is pop her meal packets in the microwave. And I have to have some food in for myself, too. Then, I have lunch at a great place on the beach with a friend, and back to work with my students this afternoon and evening. I’d wanted to attend a lecture on turtles, but I think I need to focus on my students first. They’re keeping up with their work, and I need to keep up with the responses.

I also want to get some writing in there, and some work for the Mermaid Ball.

Devon

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Waning Moon
Pluto Retrograde
Neptune Retrograde
Cloudy and cool

Took my mom to the doctor yesterday morning and got that sorted out. Took all morning, but at least everything seems to be okay. Which means, of course, they have no idea what’s going on, but at least they took the time to fit her in and she feels better. Re-stocked cat food on the way home. Caught up with my students in the afternoon.

Reading a mystery where many of the elements in it are wonderful — plot, setting, inventive ways to deal with things we’ve seen before. However, the protagonist keeps making the same STUPID mistakes and having the same conversations about them. She’s not learning. This is the second book in the series, and keeps referring back to the first, where, it’s obvious, she made the same stupid mistakes and hasn’t learned from them.

Not someone I want to continue to spend time with.

I want to see growth in characters, and, more importantly, intelligence. It’s not cute and endearing when a female character acts like an idiot, nearly gets killed, and does the same thing again and again. It’s offensive.

Even shows I usually enjoy seemed banal last night, which is unfortunate.

Up early for yoga on the beach. It looks like it wants to rain, but I hope it holds off until we’re done. I need this morning’s class! 😉

Will spend a few hours with my students, and, hopefully, on my own writing, when I get back. I’ve got to work on site this afternoon, and I have a meeting (that I’m not looking forward to) this evening. I need to have my guard up for that. Living the principles I work on on the mat and in meditation group does not mean allowing poor treatment.

Prepared for battle or not, I’ll be glad when this day is over.

Devon

ASSUMPTION OF RIGHT available from Champagne Books and Amazon Kindle.
Annabel Aidan webpage here.

Monday, July 25, 2011

Monday, July 25, 2011
Waning Moon
Pluto Retrograde
Neptune Retrograde
Sunny and warm

The weekend was busy. And hot. Not unbearable, and there was a breeze, but still. . .

Saturday, I ran errands, did my hair (back to the preferred shade) and then caught up on student work until midnight. Yeah, there was that much to do. Lots of students, and they are taking the assignments seriously, which is a good thing.

Also managed to sneak in some outline work, here and there, when I had to take breaks from the computer.

Didn’t sleep well on Saturday — too much stimulation from the student work. Up a little later than usual on Sunday, yoga, meditation, which helped. Headed off to Osterville for the meditation walk. It rained on the way there, held off while we walked, and then rained as soon as we finished! Lots of fun. Suffered serious monkey-mind during the walk. The wheels in my head were creaking so much, I’m surprised no one turned around to say, ‘shush!”

Having to stand firm on some personal and professional boundaries. “No” means “no” and I’m not on anyone’s staff, nor am I interested in being in that position. I am not on call to anyone but myself. I’m trying to apply the principles of compassion I’m working on in yoga and meditation, without being a pushover.

After the meditation walk, brought home the papers, caught up on local news, got up the next round of exercises for both classes, commented on work in one of the workshops.

We went to PetSmart to re-tstock the cat cabinet, but the power was down, and no one could check out. So we’ll go back today

Read Yasmine Galenorn’s NIGHT VEIL. I like the way this series is developing, and look forward to reading more. She has an interesting contrast in the fathers in this series and the Sisters of the Moons series; I like watching the way the two series develop simultaneously. She’s turning out three books a year — quite the schedule.

My mom woke up in the night with a terrible earache. I’ve got a call in to the doctor to find out if that’s a side effect from the adjusted medication or something new. And what we can do about it.

Busy day. This week will be brutal, work-wise, because the two workshops overlap, and I’ve got to give the students in the Revision workshop exercises work every single day so we can cram about three months’ worth of work in the two weeks. But then I’ve got August off from physical teaching, and I can focus on prepping the classes through the end of the year — because there are a lot of them.

And focus on THE SPIRIT REPOSITORY.

Devon

ASSUMPTION OF RIGHT available from Champagne Books and Amazon Kindle.
Annabel Aidan webpage here.

Saturday, July 23, 2011

Saturday, July 23, 2011
Waning Moon
Pluto Retrograde
Neptune Retrograde
Hot and humid

Yesterday would probably have been a good day to have the air conditioner in, but we had fans, so oh well.

I had power and connectivity issues, which kept me out of the workshop forums, so I’m behind in that, which is frustrating.

On the up side, I wrote a lot, close to thirty pages, and then wrote more in longhand when I went to the site job in the evening. It wasn’t what I was supposed to work on, but that’s what pulled me most strongly, so I did. The New Mexico chapters are going really well, which points out the weakness in the Prague chapters, so, at some point, I will have to go back and rethink those. This book (or, I should say, series, in which the first draft is one big mess) has an unusual process, but I have to just roll with it. Because that’s what “process” is — an active journey to get somewhere creatively.

TORCHWOOD was very good last night — Jane Espenson wrote the episode, so it’s no surprise. I like where it’s going, and, especially, what it has to say about pharmaceutical companies. I don’t think they’re all that far off the mark, when it comes to that theme! The ensemble scenes were paced wonderfully, and there were a couple of really great scenes between the characters of Gwen and Esther that were great. And there was a great phone scene between Jack and Gwen (although, generally, I’m not a fan of phone scenes). I watched it to enjoy it last night, but I’ll watch it a few more times to break it down and learn from it.

I’ve got a bunch of errands to run today, including heading up to Plymouth for one last blowout at the sole Borders store in the area, which is about to close. The mismanagement has been so appalling. I hope the executives who made all these bad decisions will have to face consequences. They won’t; corporate executives never do, just hide behind “company policy” which is something that has to change.

I am very fortunate to live in an area with many thriving independent bookstores that get excited about books and the people who write them, and aren’t just interested in cycling as many titles through as quickly as possible.

I thought my hair was getting sun-streaked from all the beach yoga, but I got a good look at it in the light yesterday and it’s not “sun-streaked”, it’s gray! Out comes the hair dye. Got a few more years before I’m willing to go that route. I’ve picked when I choose to do so, for a pivotal date. But it’s not here yet!

Have a great weekend!

Devon

ASSUMPTION OF RIGHT available from Champagne Books and Amazon Kindle.
Annabel Aidan webpage here.

Friday, July 22, 2011

Friday, July 22, 2011
Waning Moon
Pluto Retrograde
Neptune Retrograde
Hot and humid

Yoga on the beach was fantastic yesterday morning. Came back, got some work done, checked in with my students.

Site job was fine yesterday afternoon, and managed to get some outlining and a few scenes done on a script, although I haven’t struck the right tone with it yet. They want me to come back tonight for a few hours. I’m not taking my computer with me this time.

Up this morning, dealing with the garden. More ants in the front yard, so I dealt with that. The vegetable bed’s looking pretty good, but everything needed a good, long drink.

Having a good writing morning. Extremely happy with this last scene, leaving my chapter on a cliffhanger, and raring to get into the next scene. So that’s what I’m about to do. Madly in love with my characters and how they’re evolving. I’ll be more objective in revisions! 😉

I’ve got a lot of work to do with my students this morning before I head back off to the site job. And I need to take my mom in again. And I’ve got a kazillion things to do for the Mermaid Ball. Step by step, inch by inch, just keep working, and it all gets done, right?

Battling another migraine, or maybe the last one just roared back. Will do some poses later that should help.

Have a good weekend, all!

Devon

ASSUMPTION OF RIGHT available from Champagne Books and on Amazon Kindle.
Annabel Aidan webpage here.

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Thursday, July 21, 2011
Waning Moon
Pluto Retrograde
Neptune Retrograde
Hot, hot, hot

I tried to consolidate the errands that had to be done before I could crawl back into bed and just let myself be sick and miserable for a day, but most of the day was gone before I could get everything done. Damn tourist traffic! Seriously, though, it’s a good thing for the local businesses here on the Cape, so I try not to whine too much.

My mom’s having health issues, and that has to be dealt with, too. Fingers crossed that everything will be okay. At least here, the doctor calls back within an hour, not the three days it always took in NY.

One of the committee women came to check on me after the concert unpleasantness, and came bearing gifts of produce. That’s what people do here, they all have gardens, and since my planting was late, my harvest will be late. Takes “late bloomer” to a whole new level!

I rested up for a few hours, let stories spin in my head. Several different sets of characters are yammering for my time. I’m making notes, but I’ve got other projects that need attention. There’s something that really wants to be written, and I think it’s a play, which is a good thing, because I was afraid I was losing my chops when it comes to script writing. But I’ve got to get SPIRIT REPOSITORY out the door first.

I managed to give my students some time. They had assignments due, and it’s not their fault I was under the weather. They were actually on time with their work!

Another good B’way friend is going to come visit in September — so looking forward to it. I’m really missing — to say I miss Broadway these past few days isn’t quite correct. I miss the camaraderie, the sense that if things go south, even the people on the show you don’t always get along with have your back. Friendship builds on time and shared experience as much as that spark of connection, and I haven’t been here long enough to build a new support system. I work hard to maintain my former one, but it’s still a case where you can’t just call up an old friend and go vent in a bar over frothy drinks or a few good shots of single malt, and say things you don’t really mean, but it feels good to say them in the moment, and you can trust that those words won’t get out there and hurt anyone.

Working on POWER OF WORDS, developing the relationships as the characters work on the television series makes me miss the positive aspects more. Each production, whether it’s stage or screen, is a shared experience no one outside that immediate production can participate in. You live lifetimes in a few months, and there are really strong bonds. There are people you stay in touch with; people you don’t stay in touch with regularly where it feels like you pick up in the middle of the sentence where you left off, and people who drift away, because they were part of your life just for those moments. It’s not like working in an office or a school or any other environment, because you are creating together, building and sharing worlds together. And when you’re away from it for awhile, it’s easier to forget the bullshit! 😉

I’m posting this Wednesday night, because I’m off to yoga on the beach early Thursday morning, and then I’ve got a local gig on site instead of working from home. I hope it won’t be as hot as the predictions!

I hope to get in a few pages early in the morning before I leave for yoga at 6:30.

Devon

ASSUMPTION OF RIGHT available from Champagne Books and Amazon Kindle.
Annabel Aidan webpage here.

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Waning Moon
Pluto Retrograde
Neptune Retrograde
Sunny and humid

So last night was “testing”, to say the least.

The day was great — loved yoga on the beach, mowed when I returned, and was still loose enough from yoga so the mowing didn’t hurt (in spite of the mower misbehaving). Wrote in the afternoon. Was racing to finish a scene before I was picked up for the night’s event.

The jazz concert itself was held up in an enclave above the beach. Originally, just after the Civil War, it was set up as a church camp. There’s a central church, and summer cottages all around it. The cottages evolved over the decades, were bought and sold etc. Some of them are in the fourth or fifth generations of families. One woman, there with her three kids (who were adorable, smart, and hilarious –and I am not fond of small children, generally) has been coming here her whole life. Her parents own two houses at the end of the street, and her brother and her uncle own houses just across from the concert site. A lot of people just sit on their decks and listen to the music.

Unfortunately, for me, it was not the blissful summer musical experience it should have been. I was asked to letter a sign when I got there — fine, my handwriting isn’t great, but I got the information and did the best I could. I was asked to man a table, which I specifically had said I was uncomfortable with, but they were short-handed, so I agreed to handle it until someone more public-friendly showed up. What was displayed and explained had been discussed and the majority agreed upon it in the last meeting. The audience starts to arrive; some of them stop and ask questions. I’m not hawking anything, because that’s not what I do, but I had actual conversations with people and some of them were interested/excited about what was going on. All good, right?

Until one of the committee women, who’d been outvoted in the meeting, sails up and starts SCREAMING at me, in front of everyone, about how stupid it is and I’m not doing it right, etc., etc. I told her that this was what we agreed on in the meeting and if she wanted to take over, she could, and that she could not speak to me that way. She said, “no, no, no”, backed off for about two minutes, and then, as the next wave of audience came, she attacked at an even higher pitch. So I stood up and said, “I’m happy to have you take over” and walked away.

The chair of the committee (who’d just stood by and watched) came up and started making excuses, “oh, that’s just her way”, etc., etc.. I told her that it was inappropriate behavior, especially in front of the audience. I did not tolerate that kind of behavior when I was being paid a lot of money to do events in NY, and I’m certainly not going to tolerate it when I’m a volunteer.

I went and helped with the lemonade, instead! Believe me, I considered simply walking away completely, But why should I be driven off by someone who thinks she is a big fish in a small pond?

The concert itself was lovely. Lots of families brought their kids, and the kids were dancing and having a marvelous time. At intermission, several of them came up to us and ASKED if they could help pass out lemonade! They were really good at it, and I told them that they were a big help, and that it made a wonderful difference in the evening. It was completely true — it kept people from overcrowding the table and us getting behind in the serving.

We cleaned up after, I came home, and had a nice, big glass of wine. I still felt emotionally bruised, but I have my lines, and if one crosses them, there are consequences. I never raised my voice or lost my temper, but I held my ground. If she pulls the same thing at the event at the beginning of August, I will leave the organization. Not everyone is the right fit for every organization. If there’s an individual — who is not in charge, mind you, and wasn’t there to either set up or clean up — who simply steamrolls over everyone and it’s allowed, that is not the organization with which I choose to donate my time. I’m lucky — I get to choose with whom I spend my time, both personally and professionally. I will not stay in a toxic situation. Why should I? There’s no value in it for me on any level. They wonder why they have so few people they can call on to help with events? Last night is a perfect example. It’s up to the leadership to diffuse this type of situation, not stand by and let one individual spread poison and vitriol. And to do so in public simply makes the organization look petty and disorganized. Why would a broader public support that?

Of course, I woke up with a raging migraine this morning, and I have a long, long list of things to do. I also have to take my mom to a medical appointment. I’ve got two classes to teach, work to do for the Mermaid Ball, and, of course, writing. Scenes are whirling around my head, and I don’t want to lose them.

And you know, sooner or later, I’ll kill off a character based on that harridan in a book! It’s all material. One of the many perks of being a writer.

Devon

ASSUMPTION OF RIGHT available from Champagne Books and Amazon Kindle.
Annabel Aidan webpage here.

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Waning Moon
Pluto Retrograde
Neptune Retrograde
Sunny and warm

Late getting online today. I went to yoga this morning — it was wonderful. My attitude had already adjusted a little bit on the way there, and it was just the gentle shove I needed in the right direction. Barely any traffic coming back on 6, and then I mowed the side lawn and back terraced area. It’s supposed to get really hot over the next few days. I can let the meadow grow for awhile, but I really needed to get the terraced area done. The front will probably be okay until the weekend. The mower was a pain in the butt the whole time — the spark plug had to be adjusted, then something else had to be adjusted, and something else and so on. Urgh. A new mower shouldn’t be having so many issues.

A huge gray and white tabby streaked across the lawn when I mowed, leapt halfway up a tree, glared at me, then leapt down into a run and took off across the neighbors’ yards. Gorgeous cat. And what an athlete!

Yesterday was a pretty decent writing day. The New Mexico chapters are coming along well on POWER OF WORDS. The Prague chapters still need work, but at least I have their basic structure. I switched into third person omniscient POV in the Prague chapters, and that is jarring — doesn’t fit with the rest of the piece. So, when I revise, I have to go back and figure out from whose point of view I want each section. At least I’m moving the plot forward, growing the characters, and exploring arcs. The rest is all fixable, and the layering will happen.

Got stuff done for the ball, and prepped for tonight’s concert. Watched some TV — EUREKA and WAREHOUSE 13. I really like what they’re doing, character-wise, with WAREHOUSE 13 this season.

Started the “Revise in Company” workshop yesterday, and got them started on their first exercises. Checked in with the “Reviewing for Craft” workshop — we’ve talked and read now, for a couple of weeks; it’s time to start writing reviews.

Going back to the page for as much as I can this afternoon, and tonight is the jazz concert.

I hope it won’t get as hot as they predict — I really don’t want to use the air conditioner this summer!

The garden is growing nicely, although most of my stuff is much later than the neighbors’. That’s okay — as long as I have happy, healthy plants and Bessie the squirrel doesn’t keep snatching all the blossoms from the pumpkins and the zucchini for her little brood.

Back to the page.

Devon

ASSUMPTION OF RIGHT available from Champagne Books and Amazon Kindle.
Annabel Aidan webpage here.

Monday, July 18, 2011

Monday, July 18, 2011
Waning Moon
Pluto Retrograde
Neptune Retrograde
Sunny, hot, humid

Spend some Christmas in July time with me (as Annabel Aidan) here! You can comment and win a 10 page critique from me. Even if you don’t want the critique, stop by and say hi after the interview. Susanne always asks interesting questions.

Busy, busy, busy, especially since I don’t feel great. Late getting this up today, because I was dealing with the class that starts today.

The weekend was pretty warm, but good. I was a little under the weather, do didn’t get as much done as I would have liked, and am worried about my mom.

I wrote quite a bit, which was a good thing, and worked on the Mermaid Ball, but still feel behind. I always feel behind. I spent some time with the students on the class that started a couple of weeks ago, and, this morning, started the revision class. I pitched some more classes, and I also did some more work on the applications for the intensive. Some people dropped out, some want to be on the wait list.

Ran around and did errands. Couldn’t find some stuff I needed. Hauled up the newly painted bureau to my bedroom and rearranged some things, but haven’t had a chance to fill it yet. Unpacked books. DId laundry.

Read three books by an author I’ve read in anthologies. Liked her work, picked up these three books, which are part of a series. I feel like the first book is missing, but the first book I read is, supposedly, the first book in the series, and I feel like a lot of loose ends dangled, but the last book I read is the last book — so far. I liked the premise and the characters, but felt the execution was shady.

Made myself join the meditation walk on Sunday morning, not allowing the “I don’t have time” excuses. I needed it, it was good for me.

I’m feeling burned out and overwhelmed right now, and not sure how to shift things. There is a list of things that have to get done, period, end of story, within a finite amount of time. I need to finish them, figure out why I’m having so much resistance, and resolve it moving forward, but it must get done whether I’m resisting or not. I need to break some patterns, but in a graceful way that still keeps promises without making similar promises down the line that I don’t want to/can’t keep.

A bad night between storms (internal and external) and an alarm going off at 5:30 this morning, probably because of a failing battery, didn’t help.

Watched Rufus Sewell in the ZEN series, where he plays Aurelio Zen. I really like the tone of it — unique and interesting. Got frustrated with FALLING SKIES because I was ahead of the story in the promo and didn’t like the way the characters are or are not catching up. I liked the scene where Maggie teaches Annie to shoot, though. That was a little gem in kind of a mess of an episode.

Back to work, and hope to get everything sorted in a timely manner.

Devon

Saturday, July 16, 2011

Saturday, July 16, 2011
Waning Moon
Pluto Retrograde
Neptune Retrograde
Sunny and pleasant

Wrote quite a bit yesterday, and did work for the Mermaid Ball. Took my mother to the doctor. There are a few things where we need to be cautious, and I’m worried.

I’m deep in the writing, and it’s always a little disorienting to look up and realize I’m sitting in my office and not the world of the book. I added some material to the Prague section, but the details of what makes Prague PRAGUE need to be layered in. I did add in a comic scene about the statues on the tops of the buildings, which helps but I need more sensory detail. Each location has to be very rich in what makes it unique. Each location has to work like an additional character, because that’s why one shoots on location — for that additional something. And, when one location is substituted for another, due to budget or contract constraints, it doesn’t always work.

Got some good news — a producer is interested in doing another production of one of my plays. Once all the details are ironed out, I will post the information. It was produced in New York last spring; it will be nice to have another production.

Watched TORCHWOOD last night — liked this episode better than last week’s, but it’s still a little heavy-handed for me this season. It brings up some interesting issues, though. Dichen Lachman was on it (love her work), and there was one small featured role, David, that brought some good comic relief in the midst of it all. Unfortunately, every time Barrowman and Myles aren’t on screen, I’m impatient for them to get back, which is unfortunate. But I’m interested to see how these episodes unroll.

I need to do some work in the garden today, do more work for the Ball, and write.

Devon

ASSUMPTION OF RIGHT available from Champagne Books and Amazon Kindle.
Annabel Aidan webpage here.

Friday, July 15, 2011

Friday, July 15, 2011
Full Moon
Pluto Retrograde
Neptune Retrograde
Sunny and cool

I had a really good writing day — finally. Thirty three pages on POWER OF WORDS, which isn’t what I’m supposed to be working on, but there you have it. I did the Prague section,and am moving on to the New Mexico section. When I go back and rewrite with a real eye to “re-envisioning” the book, I need to layer in the setting. The book takes place in various locations (as does the piece they’re filming within the book). I need to bring those locations to life. Right now, I’m focusing on plot and character and how to juggle the multiple storylines, which is taking a lot of page time. Chapter Eighteen finishes on page 409 right now, and these two Prague chapters need a lot of work. Ultimately, this will be the second volume in the series (so it will be more like page 109 in the volume,not 409)– the first will deal with auditions, the second with filming, the third with the first season, etc. I think it makes more sense for it to be a series of books rather than a serialized story, because, much as I hate to put maps and cast lists and things in, this particular piece needs it. It’s a huge ensemble, and that’s part of the point. Cutting characters and storylines rips out the heart of the piece, but, as a single piece, it’s completely unpublishable.

However, it needs to be written before it can be placed into a sensible structure and have those types of practical decisions made, and it will take a few more years to get the whole thing written. And then I need a good series title, and, within that, good individual titles. I’m already titling chapters, which is something I rarely do. It’s old-style saga set in contemporary times in an unusual environment.

But working most of the day on it has left me tired and fuzzy-headed this morning. I slept well, though, and overslept.

And I have a LOT to get done today.

I got out four proposals yesterday, so it wasn’t all fiction, but I’ve got a very long list of things that need to get knocked off TODAY. And I would be a good idea to mow the back terraced area a bit — it’s getting kind of long. But the garden looks good.

I better get to it. My head is filled with storylines and characters who want their lines. And I’ve still got to push through this difficult section on SPIRIT REPOSITORY so I can get into the home stretch. I’m hoping a day or two away, working on something else, gives me perspective. I’m paying for the fact that I’ve been working on it in spurts, rather than steadily. While that works for POWER OF WORDS, which is naturally set in sections, SPIRIT REPOSITORY is not, and the lack of discipline with it on my part has hurt the overall piece. Thank goodness for edits.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Devon

ASSUMPTION OF RIGHT is available from Champagne Books and Amazon Kindle.
Annabel Aidan webpage here.