Catching up

As I said yesterday, we've a bit if catching up to do with my 'Writing Life' blog so here's the first instalment.

14 October

A sad day, yesterday. The weather didn’t help – and may have even caused the problem. I have decided that the summerhouse is no longer a practical proposition for working in and I have retreated indoors and to the comfort of the study. It’s not that I can’t bear the cold (sometimes I actually enjoy it) but now that I’ve finished the first draft of MALAREN, the purpose of being down there seems to have evaporated. And with yesterday being rather dreich as the Scots would say, it seemed like the natural time to pack things up and move out.
Which all gave rise to a general feeling of melancholy. I am reminded of some of the words to Danny Boy - The summer’s gone and all the roses falling. My summer has definitely gone and I am rather regretful. I had a vision of what the summer would be like – mornings in the summerhouse, writing, afternoons working outdoors in the sunshine. I succeeded in accomplishing the first but not, I fear, the second, and spent the time working indoors instead. I remember using the barbecue once or twice early on in the season, but hardly at all recently. As for my intention of building a path (that was supposed to be my outdoor project for the year) I’m afraid it went by the wayside. So I’m feeling a little glum ...
Anyway, all things must change and it’s an opportunity to start something new. The question is what? Firstly I’m going to draw a line under Writing Life (March to October) and archive it off. That means I can start the next phase afresh – Part Two, if you like. Then I need to set some objectives for this next phase, however long it may be. I am minded that I have a trip to Chicago coming up in November and I would like to be doing something positive in the period beforehand. When I come back, I will probably want to settle down to a writing project for the winter. As yet, I’m not sure what that will be. My plan for 2013 suggests I should focus on getting AS DAD LAY DYING polished up but I have a feeling that MALAREN is a better prospect. It’s much more of a natural follow on to BIRDS OF THE NILE and probably more marketable. I am also still without an agent and I really ought to have one. So what if –
1. I continue with my promotional programme for BIRDS OF THE NILE
2. I polish up Chapters 1-3 of both AS DAD LAY DYING and MALAREN
3. I try and snare an agent for either
This would then dictate my project for the winter ie. bringing whichever of the two is best done next up to a publishable standard so that by sometime in the spring/summer of 2014, I have another book ready. Well at least it’s a plan ...