Fiddlehead fits and starts

Here's today's progress on my 19th century D.C. spy caper about a powerful Difference Engine that will end the Civil War - now with warhawk conspiracies, clockwork assassins, two presidents with more in common than they know, three disgraced spies with less in common than they think, and a Bonus! not-at-all mad scientist who can save the world if someone will just give him a chance:
Project: Fiddlehead
Deadline: September 15, 2012
New words written: 1351 (not my finest count)
Present total word count: 3020 words





Things accomplished in fiction: Got chapter one underway. The not-at-all mad scientist is somewhat annoyed at these silly intruders who are trying to kill him and destroy his life's work.

Darling du Jour: "'Yes,'" Gideon breathed, but he did not smile. Turning on the apparatus was not the hard part. It was the first hard part."

Things accomplished in real life: Met an old friend from grad school for lunch, and gossiped about people we haven't seen in ages; picked up a dress I'd left at a seamstress for alterations; drove out to Southeastern Salvage in search of an interior door that will fit our guest/game/cat room, but this proved trickier than we'd hoped; spent awhile on the phone with my stepmom, who (along with my dad) will not be visiting on Thursday after all - due to circumstances beyond their control.

Other: I'm disappointed that the dad/stepmom can't make it this weekend, but hey, they'll be here next month ... which gives me more time to tame the yard jungle and perhaps do a little detail work around the house, including finding a door to fit that damn guest room. It also gives me a chance to get a jump-start on Fiddlehead - which clearly didn't happen today. Tomorrow likely won't be a high word count day either (though you never know), as I have a lunch get-together; my pseudo-sister-in-law is passing through town, so we're trying to arrange a bite to eat with Laura and Mike. Then at three I have an interview with a journalist in North Carolina (in advance of ConTemporal).

Son of Other: I'd actually like to get a little more writing in tonight, but the truth is, I'm exhausted and have a raging headache. Maybe I'll go to bed early, wake up early, and catch some work hours in the a.m. before lunch and interview. What? It could happen. The cat usually gets me up around 8:30 or 9:00 anyway. Somebody has to open the curtains and let in the morning sunbeams. And by "somebody" I mean "yours truly, because the husband's powers of ignore are stronger than mine."