Your Lovin' Give Me A Thrill
April 17
Whee. I got paid today. Money, money, rah rah rah. Now I can pay bills and buy food and suchlike.
I sat down and made a record of all the money I've gotten for writing this year, and all the money I'm supposed to get at some point; it's a surprising amount, especially taking into account the semi-steady monthly income I get from writing reviews. Very odd. But gratifying to see my work beginning to pay off in coin of the realm. It's been paying off in terms of creative satisfaction for ages... I definitely have to file as a writer on my taxes next year, which means I have to start keeping track of book receipts, office supply receipts, etc. Ah, well; such are the rigors of professionalism, n'est ce pas?
They're giving me more and more writing jobs at work. It's lovely. I wrote a chunk of our obituary for Damon Knight, covering his teaching (remember, this is the guy who co-founded Milford, taught at Clarion for 27 consecutive years, wrote one of the best how-to books ever on the subject of short story writing, held a monthly workshop even as his health declined... lots to cover) and his internet activities (he e-published a book recently, and was active on various forums since back in the GENie days). I handed my paragraphs over to my esteemed editor, who declared them good and scarcely changed a word. That's gratifying. I kinda like this magazine business. More and more at my job they have me doing things I like, less of the scutwork... I do layout, make corrections, and write, mostly; granted, I also do data entry and carry heavy things, but I do less and less of that, and everybody does some of that stuff. It's a small office, we all do a little of everything, which I like. The job has a lot of variety, which makes it more enjoyable than it would be otherwise.
I read Slain in the Spirit by Melanie Tem tonight. It's good, an unusual book in many ways... I'll review it, I think. And thinking of writing reviews reminds me of all the other things I need to do... I have to correct my "Witch's Bicycle" proofs, and organize the piles of paper on my floor, and clean my room, and send out stories, and revise other stories, and print out Rangergirl so I can read it... I should make a list.
It's already Wednesday night. Time is so fast-flowing lately.
Exciting things are coming up. Heather and I have reservations at Chez Panisse next week, for our anniversary (1 year!). This place would be far beyond our price range, but Scott's Xmas gift to us last year was a very generous gift certificate, which will pay for enough to bring the meal within the grasp of mere mortals like us. I love dining out, it's one of my chief pleasures in life, and I love Heather (also a chief pleasure); what's better than combining the two? Wiscon is soon, too, relatively; and summer brings with it a host of interesting things, parties and eventually Worldcon... Mmm. Life is good.
I don't think anything of interest writing-wise happened today; neither acceptances nor rejections, no checks or contracts in the mail, and I haven't written a solitary word on my own time, before this journal entry (busy reading Tem, which is indirectly a revenue-generating activity, so I don't feel too bad).
I'm sleepy. I want Heather to come home (she had a late appointment), so I can cuddle with her on the couch, watch some Twin Peaks, kiss her ear, tell her how much she means to me...
Let's see. I'm happy about the Supreme Court overturning the ludicrous Child Pornography Act; now it's no longer technically illegal to stage a performance of Romeo & Juliet! Yay! (Of course, identical twins are still illegal, since cloning is forbidden; but we're taking baby steps, here.) That's about it as far as my opinions on current events, though.
G'night, until next time.
Words written since February 1, 2002: 53,350
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