Writing, writing, writing...
Today was The One Day of the Year -- no, not Melbourne Cup, but Anzac Day, & as such, is a public (you could say religious, in a secular way) holiday. But us self-employed people can choose whether or not to take holidays, especially if a deadline is looming. So I spent the morning writing a rather delightful story about assistance dog puppies being trained in prison by hardened violent criminals, in an effort to rehabilitate them & give them the experience of true doggy love (awwww). It had to be flicked back to the professor I'd interviewed for official approval before I can file it.
But this afternoon was mine to what I liked with it. I was planning to go for a walk through the park and end up at the newly enlarged shopping centre at Broadway to have a stickybeak at the new shops, but a heavy downpour prevented that (& saved me some money, no doubt!) So, what was I to do? I had a sudden inspiration. My god, I can actually work on my own writing with a clear conscience and sufficient energy!
The short story I decided to tackle was one I'd started some time last year, part of my Harry collection, and like the protagonist, I had become well & truly stuck. I'd abandoned it, got sidetracked into doing fun research about Newtown in the late 1970s, and amassed lots of fascinating detail about bombs and brothels & blood in the streets, none of which helped my character move on. (But it will be used some time for a fun & gory story, as it's all way too good to waste.)
So this afternoon, I reread Harry 3 & made major alterations to the first few pages, then chopped out a whole largish chunk, & joy of joys, actually wrote two whole new scenes. Of course, I haven't yet got my character out of her slump, but she's starting to move, and she's met the person who will help her change. The best bit, I think, is that she's started to speak for herself, instead of me telling her story.
I have Dorothy Sayers to thank for getting me back into tackling Harry 3. I've been borrowing Peter Wimsey stories from a friend, & re-reading them for relaxation. Sayers has some very good and pertinent things to say about writing and working out character and plot, and making people real, in Gaudy Night. Harriet Vane's thinking through her approach to her rather clichéd mystery novel's plot and characters is an important subtext of the story. Reading her thrashing it through got me thinking about my stories, & when I finished Gaudy Night rather reluctantly at lunchtime, I was, albeit unconsciously, primed to get working.
But this afternoon was mine to what I liked with it. I was planning to go for a walk through the park and end up at the newly enlarged shopping centre at Broadway to have a stickybeak at the new shops, but a heavy downpour prevented that (& saved me some money, no doubt!) So, what was I to do? I had a sudden inspiration. My god, I can actually work on my own writing with a clear conscience and sufficient energy!
The short story I decided to tackle was one I'd started some time last year, part of my Harry collection, and like the protagonist, I had become well & truly stuck. I'd abandoned it, got sidetracked into doing fun research about Newtown in the late 1970s, and amassed lots of fascinating detail about bombs and brothels & blood in the streets, none of which helped my character move on. (But it will be used some time for a fun & gory story, as it's all way too good to waste.)
So this afternoon, I reread Harry 3 & made major alterations to the first few pages, then chopped out a whole largish chunk, & joy of joys, actually wrote two whole new scenes. Of course, I haven't yet got my character out of her slump, but she's starting to move, and she's met the person who will help her change. The best bit, I think, is that she's started to speak for herself, instead of me telling her story.
I have Dorothy Sayers to thank for getting me back into tackling Harry 3. I've been borrowing Peter Wimsey stories from a friend, & re-reading them for relaxation. Sayers has some very good and pertinent things to say about writing and working out character and plot, and making people real, in Gaudy Night. Harriet Vane's thinking through her approach to her rather clichéd mystery novel's plot and characters is an important subtext of the story. Reading her thrashing it through got me thinking about my stories, & when I finished Gaudy Night rather reluctantly at lunchtime, I was, albeit unconsciously, primed to get working.