Thurs. Jan. 31, 2019: Good, Radio Busy

Thursday, January 31, 2019
Waning Moon
Sunny and bitterly cold

Hop on over to the Goals, Dreams, and Resolutions site, for January’s wrap-up.

Client work was okay yesterday. There’s a lot of detail work that needs to be done, and too many interruptions. That’s why I prefer to work remotely. Or at least have an office where I can close the door. I admit, I was exhausted by the time I left. Completely wiped out.

One of the tools that I’m using with this particular client is something I will adapt to my own marketing. I’m going to sign up on Twuffer, and I’m going to schedule my marketing tweets for Twitter a couple of weeks to a month in advance. I’ll still do my regular interacting, but that’s going to streamline some of the marketing. I’ll try that for a few months, see if it helps.

Had an excellent day’s work on the new short radio play, “Tap o’My Heart” yesterday. It goes out later today, along with the two-part version of “Light Behind the Eyes.” I’m pleased with both of them.

I’m getting to work on the comic mystery ghost story radio play, and also got an idea for one set during the Straw Hat Circuit theatre days. Those will be fun.

Amazon is causing issues with Draft2Digital. They’re trying to force authors to only publish through them instead of using them as a distribution channel. There’s a ton of additional paperwork and “checklists” to now do for each of the releases. My editor has also prepared a letter on publisher letterhead, just in case. I wish the trade issues with Canada would get fixed, so we can move ahead on the print editions, too — although I bet Amazon will cause problems with that, too.

I had a phone meeting this morning with a potential new client. Call never came. After a half hour, I sent over an email asking if we should reschedule or move on. The client wanted to do the call right then. I refused, due to other commitments (because whenever someone asks for a “short” phone conversation, you know it’s not). So we’re rescheduled for tomorrow morning – which means I’ll be posting late tomorrow, too. This time, I am the one initiating the call. So we’ll see how that goes.

It’s bitterly cold here, and I had some errands, then some admin. Then it’s back home and back to the page. I have a lot to get done.

I went through my sewing projects yesterday, too. I want to get back on track with those. Because what I create myself is better than what’s on the rack in the stores.

Onward.

 

Wed. Jan. 30, 2019: Preparation and Boundaries

Wednesday, January 30, 2019
Waning Moon

Hop on over to Ink-Dipped Advice for the latest business writing post.

Trying to catch up on a lot of things on the one hand, I’m doing a lot. On the other, I still feel as though I’m far behind.

Meditation group was good on Monday. There’s something wonderful about being quiet in company.

Had a decent writing session first thing Tuesday morning; then client work, then grocery shopping, then another appointment., and got out a few pitches. I had to put my foot down with a client who wants to change the parameters of a job into something that’s not writing. Sorry. No reason for me to be there if that’s what the gig is turning into. Today, I will be with a client for a few hours, and then hopefully back home to do some more writing. I have to prep some article pitches, too. I need to get them out by the end of the week. I’m also trying to write ahead on all the Upbeat Author posts for February, and the Ink-Dipped Advice posts.

I was delighted to receive a copy of the re-release of Ron MacLean’s novel HEADLONG, for which I wrote the foreword. It looks great, and it was such an honor to write the foreword for one of my favorite books.

I’m prepping some radio plays to go out this week as requested, while trying to get back on track with the novels, and juggling research for the plays. I have to work on some monologues this weekend, too. I hope I won’t be sick again and can try them out in February.

I want to get back to actual writing on the anti-gun violence play this weekend. I need to get the first act done sooner rather than later.

Plus, I’ve got cleaning and purging of unneeded papers and all kinds of stuff to do from the basement. Plenty to do, and it’s up to me to bend time to get it all done.

My hosting plan renews tomorrow with A2. I’ve been quite happy with them, and will stay. I’m still trying to wrest the registrations away from 1&1 and get them over to Name Silo. It will have taken over a year to get things straightened out, but the sites are much better, in a visual and a useful aspect, and more effective for my work.

Heads up — I have a morning appointment tomorrow, so the Thursday blog will go up late. Hopefully, there will be some good news in there!

I’m in a getting-things-in-order phase before my next leap. I just have to remember to keep things in order, and not get messy again. I tend to nest wherever I settle to work, and pile up project bits. Once I file something or put it in a drawer, my subconscious thinks it’s done. So if I put things away at the end of the day, my creative part of my brain moves on to the next thing the next day.

Tues. Jan. 29, 2019: Creative Weekend

Tuesday, January 29, 2019
Waning Moon

Busy weekend, but in a good way. Not a lot of words down on the page, but plenty of project brainstorming and development.

Friday and Saturday morning were about cleaning and cooking ahead for the weekend. I’d just finished when my guest arrived.

Lucy, the newer cat, loves having company. More people to give her attention!

We had a good catch-up session over drinks and h’ors d’oeuvres. I roasted a chicken and we had rumbledethumps (a Moosewood recipe), and chocolate mousse for dessert.

We talked and talked and brainstormed projects. People who haven’t worked in theatre or other production don’t realize how much time it takes to develop projects and get them into production. YEARS.

We watched an awful movie about the Stork Club, although it was interesting to see details about the club, and the Edith Head costumes were great.

Sunday, we had a leisurely morning capped by Eggs Benedict and prosecco. Then, we headed out to see a bit of the Cape — some local shopping, a stop in one of the libraries, then out to Dennis to see the Cape Playhouse (where I worked a few years ago), The Cape Cinema, and the exhibits at the Cape Cod Museum of Art. There were several interesting exhibits going on, and they really do make use of every inch of possible space. A chorale concert was getting ready, about to start just as we were leaving. We took a scenic drive back along 6A and through Sandwich, for the old buildings and the lighted sculptures.

Back home for more conversation, maps and projects, cocktails and h’ors d’oeuvres, and then I made baked scallops with noodles and spinach for dinner. More conversation, more project brainstorming. Watched a few episodes of MISS FISHER (which is theatrical and fun and has brilliant clothes). More conversation, and a late night.

All in all, a creative weekend. I’ve been lucky enough to have some really good brainstorming sessions with people over the last few weeks. There’s a ton of information to process, and then I have to sit down and sift through it and apply it to projects. Who are the best producing partners? What other artists can be included? Where do we get the funding? Because WE ARE PAID TO CREATE. This is our business, not our hobby. Our vocation as well as our passion. Because without integration and application, it’s all just yapping.

I was up early, weight training, yoga, meditation, some writing. Prep for some meetings later this week. Writing ahead on some blog posts for various commitments.

Worked with a client yesterday for a few hours, then had some admin work to do and some pitches to get out, then meditation group.

Quiet evening at home, recovering!

Today, I’m with a client for a few hours, and then have some more pitches, etc., after my first writing session of the morning.

I can’t believe January is almost gone. I have so much to do. Being sick put me way, way back, and I’m scrambling to catch up.

Mon. Jan. 28, 2019: Bringing Back the Artist Date #UpbeatAuthors

Monday, January 28, 2019
Waning Moon

 

How often do you do an Artist Date?

What is an Artist Date?

If you’ve ever read any of Julia Cameron’s work, you’re familiar with the concept. It is one of her tools that I find useful, although sometimes I let it slide too often.

One of my promises to myself this year is to bring back the Artist Date.

When I teach long-form workshops, that’s also one of the weekly assignments.

Her rule for the Artist Date is that it must be done on one’s own, once a week.

That’s fine, if you need the alone time. But many of us spend most of the time working alone, so sometimes we want to have companionship when we go out and do an Artist Date.

For me, the Artist Date is something I might put off doing, but which, if I commit and DO IT, will feed my soul.

Often, that means going to a museum to look at paintings or other art forms. Sometimes, it’s listening to live music or going to a play. Other times, it’s going to a bookstore to find something I didn’t know I needed, or wander through a yarn shop and find the perfect yarn for a new project. Or go to the wonderful local chocolatier and buy myself a lovely concoction.

Sometimes, it’s taking a notebook or a book and going to the beach or one of the local nature sanctuaries and just spending some time BEING there.

Committing to it once a week and doing it makes an enormous positive difference.

Yes, you might have to give something up. You have to MAKE the time for it. You know what? The laundry will still be there, waiting to be folded and put away when you get back. Or someone else in the house can take a turn helping out. Have a few hours less of television.

If you can, occasionally, take a personal day and have a daylong Artist Date where you travel somewhere you’ve always meant to go, and really give yourself a treat.

I find that making the time for a weekly Artist Date creates more pockets of time in the rest of the week. My week is less stressful and more creative when I do the date than when I skip it.

If you’ve never try it, I encourage you. If you’ve done it and let it slip away, I encourage you to reinstate it.

Enjoy!

Fri. Jan. 25, 2019: Company for the Weekend

Friday, January 25, 2019
Waning Moon
Sunny and cold

Yesterday was an icky, stormy day. I did what I had to do out of the house early, in order to get back before the worst of the storm hit – which it did by lunchtime. I was glad to be in for the day.

Got some updates done on the websites. There are changes happening in the master calendar, and I have to make sure the sites reflect that.

Did some sorting and purging of material that came out of my office. A lot of it isn’t going back. Some has to be put aside to be filed next week. I’m now consolidating all my files on the ongoing series projects in one project bin, and the fragments and ideas I’m playing with in another bin. That will make it easier to keep track. Like Twyla Tharp, I’m big on project bins. That would probably be a good blog post.

Found the requested radio play and gave it a read-through. There’s only one word to which they might object as not family-friendly enough, and I’ll offer them an alternative. I’m also going to give them an option to split the play they have into two segments, if they wish. I’m going to look at the two short horror plays; if they’re not too gruesome, I’ll write up a third, and have that as a short option. Plus, I’ve been toying with a comic ghost story that might be fun. So there are options.

I’m thrilled that my radio plays are getting such warm receptions.

Re-read an old multi-media piece that was commissioned, but then the company went out of business before it went live. It’s a lot of fun. It could make a good long radio play or a stage play.

This morning, I was out the door early to do the big grocery shopping for the weekend. I’m looking forward to having company. Books and food and wine and conversation.

Pitched for a gig that’s a stretch, but I think I’d be a good fit. If I don’t try, I won’t have the chance, right? All they can do is say no.

Have a little bit more house cleaning to do and a couple of loads of laundry. And then . . .I start the cooking!

And, somehow, I will also manage to write, in and around all of this. Because, the writing comes first.

Have a great weekend!

Thurs. Jan. 24, 2019: More Writing Opportunities

Thursday, January 24, 2019
Waning Moon
Rainy and milder

The fluctuating temperatures are rough on my body. I dress in layers, so I can adjust. But zooming back and forth between the 50s and the 20s every few hours is taking a toll.

Have had some steadily good writing sessions in the past few days, and I intend to keep that up, even though I have company coming in for the weekend.

Got another acceptance for a radio play last night, for one of my comic noir mysteries, by a company in the Midwest. They’ve also asked for more scripts. So that makes me happy.

I love writing for radio. It’s my favorite format.

Still sick; can’t seem to shake this. It’s been hanging on for most of January, and it’s slowing me down.

Working with my editor and publisher to recalibrate the release schedule for this year, because it’s more important for the books to be good than just spit them out. And, because of the problems the WH is causing with international trade deals, we’re having problems with the print editions. But it will all sort out. Patience, communication, and showing up to do the work will get it done.

I’ve been researching both Canaletto and the Algonquin Round Table for plays, and working on the monologues for WOMEN WITH AN EDGE RESIST. So I’m juggling a lot. I have four plays to write this year, along with three-four novels for the end of this year into next year, and a couple of radio scripts. Plus adaptations. Plus getting some of my film and television scripts into contests.

So it’s a lot. It’s the good kind of busy, but it’s busy. At the same time, I have to keep up constantly pitching to clients and for article assignments. No wonder my brain is tired. I will have to build in some vacation time this year where I do absolutely NOTHING. Or my brain will break.

In the meantime, we have lousy weather, and I’m trying to get everything done before the worst of it. I will be alternating this afternoon between writing, reading, and cleaning the house in advance of company.

I hope you’re all having a wonderful, creative time.

Wed. Jan. 23, 2019: Just Trying to Keep Up

Wednesday, January 23, 2019
Waning Moon

Yesterday was busy with client work and then admin work and then trying to get some more writing done, and also trying to get things tidied up. There are still stacks of things that came out of my office that have to be filed or put into project bins or tossed.

Today, I’m with a client in the morning, and then hope to have a good writing session in the afternoon (after another one this morning).

Had an awful headache when I got out of work yesterday. I was working on different computers, and dealing with too small print.

I’ll be late blogging tomorrow – – probably around noon. I have a meeting in the morning.

One of these days, I might actually get well, too. Imagine that!

Meanwhile, I can console myself with the World Book! 😉

And, of course, by going back to the page.

Tues. Jan. 22, 2019: Happiness is a World Book

Tuesday, January 22, 2019
Waning Moon
Sunny and cold!

If you haven’t joined the Reader Expansion Challenge over on A Biblio Paradise, I hope you’ll consider it.

I was pretty useless over the weekend. Still sick.

I was terribly disappointed at not being able to go to the Women’s March in Boston, but I was too sick. The photos from Boston, New York, and DC looked great.

The storm started earlier than expected on Saturday. They said after midnight, but it started around 3. I was doing research on the Algonquin Round Table and a few other things.

I got some writing done over the weekend, but not enough.

Sunday, I cleared everything out of my office and put down the rug my landlord brought over. It’s a pale gold, and makes the room much lighter and brighter. I set up a large table as a workspace (my dad made the tabletop years ago).

I’m not putting everything back into the office — I’m sorting and purging and packing stuff. So it’s a viable workspace once again. It had gotten too cluttered and messy. It nearly killed my back, too, which wasn’t fun.

My printer still isn’t working, which worries me.

I was sickened by the behavior of the Covington Catholic High School boys toward a Native American Elder. The longer version of the video doesn’t nullify or change what they did, contrary to all the back pedalers. The written statement by the smirking kid (actually by the right-wing PR firm his family hired) only shows he’s trying to Brett Kavanaugh his way out of it. Let’s not forget that the reason they were there in the first place was to advocate for men controlling women’s bodies, instead of women’s bodily autonomy. No 15-year-old boy, his parents, his school, or his religion has the right to decide what I do with my body. Their initial purpose — to deny women’s rights — was then expanded to include their racism.

Mitch McConnell’s state. Gee, what a surprise. The PR company part of McConnell’s PAC. Even less of a surprise.

I had to go into work with a client yesterday, in spite of the holiday, and then head out to Chatham to pick up a set of World Book Encyclopedia I got on craigslist. Encyclopediae make me happy. It’s from 1989, a good one to have in print, since it will refresh my memory on pieces I write that happen anytime before then.

We hit a snow squall driving back, but it wasn’t bad. Then, I settled in one of my reading chairs and started leafing through it. It’s pretty wonderful. Although it doesn’t mention Canaletto, which was disappointing.

I have always wanted specifically a set of World Book, since I was in third grade. I have an Encyclopedia Brittanica Jr. that I still use. We got a volume for $1.99 every time we spent $20 at the grocery store. I also have a set of Audubon’s Nature Encyclopedia, which I also still use.

I prefer doing this type of research in print.

Of course, I do my initial research, and then work forward for any new information since it was published. But it’s a great starting point, and I think putting these entries only online is a disservice. It’s not like one can trust Wikipedia.

Just trying to stay on schedule with the different projects, market properly, and make sure I have plenty of other work coming in.

Had decent first writing sessions yesterday and today. Trying to build my momentum back up.

Exhausting, but necessary.

And I wish I could shake this illness.

Onward.

 

Mon. Jan. 21, 2019: Sickness & Guilt – #UpbeatAuthors

Monday, January 21, 2019
Full Moon
Martin Luther King Jr. Day

 

Let’s take a few minutes today to commit to the dream of a better, more equal world that Martin Luther King Jr. believed we could achieve.

I’ve been sick the last two weeks. Around here, we nickname it “the Cape Cod Crud.” It’s a cold, not anything that can be fixed with antibiotics, but it sticks around for weeks, especially the cough.

I had to cancel some client work and I’m behind on some other writing. I got my radio play in one time, because it’s about to go into casting, and because I did the rewrite as soon as I’d sat with the notes for a couple of days, instead of procrastinating. Of course, then it needed another rewrite, but at least I knew where I was going.

One of the self-care items on my list that I’m trying to come to terms with is to stop feeling guilty whenever I’m sick.

On an intellectual level, I know I’m sick. I know it makes more sense to stay home and get well instead of pushing and getting sicker. Also, I don’t want to expose anyone else to germs, and risk getting them sick.

But I feel guilty that I’m not getting things done.

Even though I communicate clearly and make alternate plans to make sure everything gets done when it needs to get done. I don’t just throw up my hands, announce, “I’m sick” and let it all go.

I plan, I communicate, I ask for help, I delegate.

Yet I still feel guilty.

When colleagues are sick, I’m happy to step in and help. I don’t think less of them because they’re sick. I want to lift some of the worry, take on something that needs to be done, so they can rest and not fret.

So why do I feel guilty when I’m the one asking?

It makes no sense.

All I can do is recognize that’s what’s going on, remind myself that I’ve made plans so things aren’t dropped or forgotten or ignored, and that I do my part of help when those around me are sick. The sooner I can take care of myself, the sooner I get well and can fulfill my commitments.

Because I make plans for the work that needs to be done while I’m sick, it eases the worry, and I can use the energy that would be used for worry for healing instead.

Now, if I could only do the same with the energy I waste on guilt!

How do you deal with this? Please share you ideas in the comments.

 

Fri. Jan. 18, 2019: Writing, Reading, Resting, Repeat

Friday, January 18, 2019
Waxing Moon
Snowy and cold

Although I managed to get a few things done yesterday morning, it wore me out and I had to rest in the afternoon. Coughing up a lung the entire time.

Just worn out.

I did finish the book for review and wrote the review. That is off today, along with the invoice for the last batch of reviews.

I plan to do more writing, in and around resting. Write a chapter, rest for an hour, write a chapter, rest for an hour, and so forth and so on.

We’re supposed to get another big storm tomorrow night, through Sunday and into Monday, so that will be interesting. We have wood for the fireplace and groceries and wine, so I think we’ll be okay.

I’ll be writing, reading, resting. Repeat.

Have a lovely weekend.

Thurs. Jan. 17, 2019: Ideas Come Even While Sick

Thursday, January 17, 2019
Waxing Moon
Sunny and cold

I’m still sick. Which means I’m behind on everything.

I had to cancel client work yesterday. There was no way I could go on site, without a voice, and hacking up a lung every few minutes.

I stayed in bed, reading, all morning. Reading for pleasure, and nothing that required too much concentration. In between dozing off now and again.

In the afternoon, I went over the radio script revision one last time. The original director wanted a minor character cut, so that’s what I did; the new director (the one I get on well with) liked him, so I put him back in and I also added him into the last scene.

Smoothed things over, did a few proofreads, and then, the pain-in-the-ass bit — added the line numbers.

You can’t format Word (or Pages) to put in the line numbers the way they’re needed. I don’t have Final Draft software for my old Mac, but I hear you can’t format that for radio scripts, either.

Which means adding the lines by hand on each line, and changing the spacing.

When I’m forced to work in line-numbered scripts for radio, I put the lines in last, because any revisions screw up the lines. You can’t just change one thing and have it adjust. It has to happen manually.

It’s a major pain in the ass, not to mention a time drain. Usually, it falls to the production manager to finalize the format on the production script (having held that role in multiple productions, yes, it fell to me). But smaller companies make the writer do it.

So I did it, and the script goes off today. I also did some dramaturgy.

And when I proofed it, right before sending, there were major line mistakes, so I had to do it all over again. I HATE NUMBERED SCRIPTS.

It makes me eager to get back to reworking the stage play into a full-length, rather than a one-act. There were so many layers in this particular undercover operation.

I wound up not sending a proposal to a particular summer conference because I was too sick to word it properly, and because it interfered with another conference I want to attend in DC a few days earlier. Rather than split my time and lose four days out of a week travelling to try to get a couple of days at each conference, I’m only going to one.

I’ve been asked to speak at the Writers Night Out in May; I will send my acceptance today. It was nice of them to think of me. I’ll have to make sure my handouts are up to date.

Did a little bit of noodling with a new idea. Not quite new — I’ve been working on variations of this for years. Sort of gothic, but with a twist and some comedy. It might never go anywhere, but lying in bed feeling miserable made me remember all those gothic-style books about invalids and governesses and brooding fathers and cliff top mansions.

I need to get some groceries in before tonight’s storm, but I’m not really well enough to do much of anything else. I have to finish a book for review. I need to get started on the contest entries. I have galleys to work on.

I’ll be glad when all the galleys are done and the books are ready to go, and I can work on the next Coventina Circle novel. It’s GRAVE REACH, Lesley’s book, and we already have the cover!

I didn’t do my weight training this morning because just picking up the weights exhausted me. Hopefully, I’ll feel up to it later in the day. I don’t want to start skipping. I did my morning yoga and meditation. Although I stuck to my meditation practice yesterday, I didn’t do yoga.

But I do get tired quickly. Pushing hard on the radio play yesterday took a lot out of me physically, although it was good for me mentally. I have to take it easy, or I’ll get sicker again. My whole body aches from coughing.

It will be nice when I’m not coughing all the time, too. So much for Robitussin’s 12 hour cough relief. I’m lucky if it works for 2. It’s not like I take it often, either. Maybe once a year. When they charge $16 for a small bottle, it damn well should work.

I miss Contact Cold Medicine and their “tiny time pills.” That always worked the best for me.

I have to get ahead on some blog posts, and then it’s back to the page for me.

 

Wed. Jan. 16, 2019: Trying to Get Well

Wednesday, January 16, 2019
Waxing Moon

Yesterday, I was sick, but I knew there was delivery coming onsite for a client. I went in to accept delivery and take care of a few things, and then went home and back to bed.

I can’t seem to get my feet back under me. The cough is driving me to distraction. I don’t feel all that bad otherwise.

Working on the radio play – it’s due at the end of the week. Finishing up a book for review.

I couldn’t go to the open mic night to test out the new monologue – I don’t have a voice. Laryngitis. Which just represents so much on multiple levels right now.

Most of yesterday was spent trying to get well, and that’s what I’ll do today. I can’t afford – on any level – to be sick.

Not on deadline, not with client work.

Healthy wishes appreciated!

Oh, by the way, for the Reader Expansion Challenge – I’m going to read a horror novel. I don’t read much horror, so that’s how I’m stretching for next month.

Horror novel due a few months after Valentine’s Day seems, somehow, apt! 😉

Tues. Jan. 15, 2019: The Waves of Different Opinions & Ideas

Tuesday, January 15, 2019
Waxing Moon

There are several links for you to check out today.

Over on A Biblio Paradise, join the Reader Expansion Challenge, where we stretch each month to read beyond our normal genres and new-to-us authors, then share them. I hope you’ll join in.

Yesterday, on the Goals, Dreams, and Resolutions site, I talked about using each week as a building block on your goals, and, this week, to add one more thing.

Today, on the same site, I have my mid-month check-in up.

I didn’t feel well on Friday. It didn’t help that I had printer problems. I changed the drum, no problem. But now the paper won’t catch. I can’t be without a printer, and I can’t afford a new one right now. So, I’m basically screwed. I’m tired of disposable printers. I want my printer to work, for years on end. Or be fixable. Not with these crappy plastic parts that stop working if you breathe on them wrong, and then you have to buy a new printer.

Actually, this Brother laser has been great. I’ve used it daily for about seven or eight years, which is amazing. But I’m on deadline and need it working now. The first time it ever had a paper jam, it shouldn’t just give up the ghost.

Read FIT AT MID-LIFE: A FEMINIST JOURNEY. The book is very well done, and still depressed the hell out of me. All this talk about running and cycling and swimming and triathlons. I don’t want to do any of it. I hate running and cycling hurts. I can’t swim. So, I don’t know what I’m going to do. Deepen the yoga practice. Stay with the weights and add as I hit levels of fitness. Try other things to find something I like. I’d like to try the rowing machine (can’t swim, so can’t actually row on the water). But I have to be careful with my shoulder, from when it was dislocated and I still have issues. I HATE treadmill desks and standing desks. Not doing them. So, we’ll see.

I managed to finish the requested revision of the radio version of “Confidence Confidant” — so I can send it off this week. I cut one character, brightened some dialogue, clarified a few things, added some sound cues. I did not implement the sexist request to make one of the female characters more “likable.” That would change the point of her character and the piece.

I don’t like the particular way they need it formatted — between using multiple fonts in the script (something I’ve never encountered before, anywhere) AND using line numbers — adding in the line numbers, after reading it through several more times and making more tweaks, is the absolute last thing I will do, and takes the longest.

But, overall, I feel good about the revisions. I’ll probably update the BBC format and the stage play, and re-register/re-submit as necessary. I still plan to expand the stage version into a full-length, adding in active scenes of what happened in the New York jail.

So, yes, I still want to write more about Kate Warne. Next year, I might do another short play about another of her cases, where she posed as a medium.

I was also delighted that the proposal to write a play about Canaletto’s Sisters for 365 Women was accepted. I’m looking forward to that. Of course, the minute I announced it, some random guy started telling me what was wrong with the idea, since he’d done a dissertation on a contemporary of Canaletto’s. First of all, I’m still in the research stage — I’m sure I would have discovered the points on my own. Second, the classy thing to do would have been to say, “Hey, I’d love to be a resource” and then privately tell me where he felt I got off track. Instead, he chose public humiliation.

Not interested in dealing with him.

I’m tired of internet bullies. Not engaging.

I’m also tired of people who claim to defend others’ rights making demands that if I don’t do/like/say what they want, they’ll block me. I don’t care. I will do/like/say whatever I want on my own timeline; I won’t trash what you like, although I may say it doesn’t work for me if you’re inviting discussion. If you into something I’m not, providing it doesn’t hurt anyone else, I’ll just keep scrolling. It’s not my business.

But if you are inviting discussion, then don’t get mad when people have different opinions or experiences. There’s a way to disagree while being respectful and kind. Really, the stupid lately is off the charts.

I’ve barely been on Facebook for weeks, and, I have to say, I don’t miss it. I was offline almost all day again Sunday; when I checked the news, that’s when I found out about Stratford, so I kind of wish I’d stayed off all day!

I’ve let go of a bunch of people in my life lately, which was necessary. Last year, I did a lot of reconnecting and catching up. But I’m not doing all the heavy lifting any more. Hey, great, glad you’re doing well, and we can both continue on our separate journeys. I learned that the one I’d always looked upon as the “one that got away” was better off away; I learned that some people that were once important to me at a particular stage of my life are well and happy and creative where they are. That’s great for all of us. Want to connect further? Great Ball’s in your court now. I’ve opened the channel. What you do from here is up to you. But I’m no longer always going to be the kin-keeper, the organizer, the connector. Can’t make the time to stay in touch? Fine. Be well. I have people who actually do make time for me on whom I’ll spend my energy.

It’s official: I’m teaching a workshop on Character Closets: Wardrobe at a Character Development Tool at the NECRWA conference in April. You can learn more about it here and sign up here. I’m putting together a fun presentation, and I hope to reconnect with people from previous conferences and meet lots of new readers and writers! We’re finally allowed to promote our workshops!

I was heartbroken to learn that the American Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford burned down on Saturday night. That was such a huge part of my early theatre career, even though I never had the chance to work there. But I attended Shakespeare performances again and again and again, to learn. Christopher Walken as Hotspur, and, later as Hamlet, among other experiences. It was a beautiful, wonderful place.

The official line is that it’s devastating to the community, but I’ve heard rumors about the town wanting to demolish it or sell it to developers for years, so I’m suspicious about the cause. It’s just a little too convenient.

I was sick as could be on Sunday. I bundled up and read — worked on the book for review, read a book lent by a friend, and did research on the Algonquin Round Table for another project. That way, at least I didn’t feel like I’d lost a whole day.

Back to writing first thing Monday, which at least got my week off to a decent start. I’m so far behind where I want to be.

Had a great conversation with the director and the producer of the radio play – who totally backed me in what I felt were sexist notes. The director also asked that I put back a character the previous set of notes had asked me to cut. Easy fix.

Client work, and a quick trip to the library; then I had to skip meditation, because I was still coughing. I’m losing my voice, so I’m not going to be able to test the monologue on Wednesday, either. That’s frustrating.

But this desperation for rest that I’ve had for weeks has now manifested into illness to force me to rest. Only I can’t afford to let any of my deadlines slide right now.

Client work again today, and then rest. There are also still decorations to put away.