Almost There

September 14

Wow. Haven't written here all week; sorry about that. I didn't do much other writing, either, only about 700 words. We got a couple of Sopranos DVDs, you see, and I read the (rather excellent) Empire of Dreams and Miracles, the anthology of the Phobos writing competition, and that more-or-less ate up my evenings, once you factor in going to the gym and hanging out with Heather and pointedly not washing the dishes and so forth.

But anyway. This is it. The big weekend. The last push to get the draft of my novel done. I think I have 10,000 to 12,000 words left to write (or, roughly, 40 to 50 pages). Maybe I'm overestimating. Maybe, lord Ganesha help me, I'm underestimating. Either way, I'm diving in.

It's noon. I'm two BART stops away from a good coffee shop. I've got a notebook and some stolen hotel pens. It's light out, and I'm not wearing sunglasses.

Hit it.

7:00 p.m.

I've done 3500 words so far. I went to the café and wrote for a while (good stuff, too; it's going incredibly well). Then Heather joined me, and we got lunch/dinner at a little place on University. Then to the comic store, where I bought the first volume of Promethea. We came home, and I read Promethea (now I want Volume 2!), and now I'm going back into the ink mines (though I'm going to work on the computer, now, instead of the notebook).

8:00 p.m.

All right, I did another 2500 words, and that's enough for tonight -- my brain's burned. I've got one more small transitional scene, and then it's the big climax. That'll probably take about 4,000 words, then I'll have some falling action, happy reunions, etc., and then I'll be done. Lots to do tomorrow, more than I did today -- but I'll get started earlier tomorrow, won't sleep until nearly noon like I did today. I should manage. I've got two short scenes to write and insert earlier into the novel, but I won't stress if I don't manage those tomorrow; they're not integral to the plot in any way, they just flesh out characters and relationships, and I can always add them during revision, if I don't get to them tomorrow.

Whee!

Words written since February 1, 2002: 159,500

Words written since last entry: 6,700

Send me your heartfelt good wishes.

Tim Pratt
P.O. Box 13222
Berkeley, CA 94712-4222

Read about my current publications.

Join my notify list.
Send a blank e-mail to:
Tropismjournal-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

Post on my newsgroup

Buy a chapbook, Living Together in Mythic Times. $2.75. Quantities limited, remaining copies feeling lonely. Buy with PayPal, if you distrust the mails.