The Update O' Crushing Guilt, Part II: What I've Been Up To
The simple explanation for my absence from the blog is that I've had a busy October, choosing countertops and cabinets and flooring and carpeting and paint colours and whatnot for the new house.
This ought to be exciting, but mostly I've just found it tedious and a bit nerve-wracking. If you buy a house ready-made, you can always blame the builder for any building or decorating decisions you don't like. But if you're doing it yourself, you've got only yourself to blame.
I hope I will not be annoyed with myself in a year or two for choosing this countertop, for instance. It looked cool on the swatch, but it may or may not be practical in the long run, seeing as it's so definitely green as opposed to the noncommittal mix of colours we have on our present countertop. Still, I found the pattern so interesting I couldn't resist it.
Right now the house is half bricked (back and sides) and half drywalled (upstairs). It's fascinating to see it taking shape. The whole thing seems much more real now that I can actually walk around the place instead of just seeing it on paper or looking at a bunch of skeletal two-by-fours. I'm not especially looking forward to the moving day, though. I have a lot of boxes to pack by then. Plus, we've been told the builders are two weeks behind, so it'll be mid-December instead of late November. Brr and double brr.
Another reason for the blog-neglect is, of course, The Novel. I've edited up to Chapter Fifteen now--three-quarters of the way there!--and hope to be able to finish the first round of edits and turn it loose on my beta-reading team by the beginning of November. I am also hoping that by early November I will know whether or not I have an agent. I met a few agents at Bouchercon the first weekend in October, and one in particular seemed genuinely interested in the book, so I've sent him the first three chapters and am awaiting his response.
The kids are still growing apace, and Simon in particular is chatting up a storm. But the most recent family funny came from Nicholas, who informed me one day as we were going out that he wanted to play "The Lord of the Rings game". He'd heard a very sketchy version of the story from my husband, and he's been fascinated with it ever since. "Who can I be?" he asked.
"You can be Frodo," I said.
"Who is Frodo?"
"He's the hero. The one who takes the evil ring to Mount Doom."
"Okay, I'll be Frodo. Who can Simon be?"
"Simon can be Sam. He's Frodo's best friend, and Frodo couldn't have done it without him."
"All right. And who will you be, mommy?"
I thought a moment "I could be the Lady Galadriel. She helps Frodo on his quest, and gives him gifts." What are mothers for, after all?
"Oh," said Nicholas. A pause. "Then I guess that means Daddy must be Sauron."
Snerk.
This ought to be exciting, but mostly I've just found it tedious and a bit nerve-wracking. If you buy a house ready-made, you can always blame the builder for any building or decorating decisions you don't like. But if you're doing it yourself, you've got only yourself to blame.
I hope I will not be annoyed with myself in a year or two for choosing this countertop, for instance. It looked cool on the swatch, but it may or may not be practical in the long run, seeing as it's so definitely green as opposed to the noncommittal mix of colours we have on our present countertop. Still, I found the pattern so interesting I couldn't resist it.
Right now the house is half bricked (back and sides) and half drywalled (upstairs). It's fascinating to see it taking shape. The whole thing seems much more real now that I can actually walk around the place instead of just seeing it on paper or looking at a bunch of skeletal two-by-fours. I'm not especially looking forward to the moving day, though. I have a lot of boxes to pack by then. Plus, we've been told the builders are two weeks behind, so it'll be mid-December instead of late November. Brr and double brr.
Another reason for the blog-neglect is, of course, The Novel. I've edited up to Chapter Fifteen now--three-quarters of the way there!--and hope to be able to finish the first round of edits and turn it loose on my beta-reading team by the beginning of November. I am also hoping that by early November I will know whether or not I have an agent. I met a few agents at Bouchercon the first weekend in October, and one in particular seemed genuinely interested in the book, so I've sent him the first three chapters and am awaiting his response.
The kids are still growing apace, and Simon in particular is chatting up a storm. But the most recent family funny came from Nicholas, who informed me one day as we were going out that he wanted to play "The Lord of the Rings game". He'd heard a very sketchy version of the story from my husband, and he's been fascinated with it ever since. "Who can I be?" he asked.
"You can be Frodo," I said.
"Who is Frodo?"
"He's the hero. The one who takes the evil ring to Mount Doom."
"Okay, I'll be Frodo. Who can Simon be?"
"Simon can be Sam. He's Frodo's best friend, and Frodo couldn't have done it without him."
"All right. And who will you be, mommy?"
I thought a moment "I could be the Lady Galadriel. She helps Frodo on his quest, and gives him gifts." What are mothers for, after all?
"Oh," said Nicholas. A pause. "Then I guess that means Daddy must be Sauron."
Snerk.