My father loves to say that life is what happens when you're planning something else, and he's pretty much right. Best laid plans and all. I had really, really hoped to be done with the first draft of Sequel #1 (ack, my kingdom for a title!) by the end of 2012, but alas, no such luck. I was delayed for a month by illness in November, and then the holidays are never a great time to accomplish much of anything except eating and drinking. I was just starting to get my arse in gear when bang, my mother had hip replacement surgery and then a heart attack while in the hospital. Good news is that if you're going to have a heart attack, the best place to do it is while you're already in the hospital. She's home now, and recovering nicely. Still very scary, and very distracting.
And then, of course, I've come down with some upper respiratory virus brought home by my children. Daddy is sick too. I've now lost track of time, as my carefully planned schedule shattered and fell to pieces.
Thankfully, I do have my writing to fall back on. The "day" job work, as much as I enjoy the paycheck, isn't nearly as soul-satisfying. In an act of defiance of the universe, I spontaneously decided to enter a "first look"-type writing contest whose deadline was today. The contest fee supports a good cause (the local writers conference) and I figured I could use the critique. And, since the finalists will have one week to submit a polished MSS in March, I figured that if by chance I got that far, I could use a deadline to keep me on track!
And then, of course, I've come down with some upper respiratory virus brought home by my children. Daddy is sick too. I've now lost track of time, as my carefully planned schedule shattered and fell to pieces.
Thankfully, I do have my writing to fall back on. The "day" job work, as much as I enjoy the paycheck, isn't nearly as soul-satisfying. In an act of defiance of the universe, I spontaneously decided to enter a "first look"-type writing contest whose deadline was today. The contest fee supports a good cause (the local writers conference) and I figured I could use the critique. And, since the finalists will have one week to submit a polished MSS in March, I figured that if by chance I got that far, I could use a deadline to keep me on track!
Also, I'm very happy to share with you an interview I recently gave to Mandy Barnett. She has a nice author interview series going on, and I encourage my gentle readers to visit her blog for more great stuff.
Detours are just detours. If you keep the destination in mind, you'll be on the right path, even if it seems to lead you the wrong way.
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