Creeping up on the book....

overcast, cold, rain temps 5

Dear God - is it ever cold! And damp - and rainy. Torrential downpours yesterday - we now have three 'lakes' around our home - thank heaven Trudy's a water dog. So are we, now.

Still, it's not bad at all. I love this stage of writing (except for the cold terror). Sat by the fire today, sipping cafe au laits, eating cereal, and writing. Actually, for the past 2 days I've been editing. Have been away for 10 days and that's really hard at this stage in a manuscript. Took 2 days to get caught up on paperwork - then started in on the book yesterday.

I was frightened. Wanted to do anything but work on it. Afraid I'd lost the thread. Afraid I'd lost the desire. Afraid I'd get back to it and discover it really was crap.

So I decided to be kind to myself...to creep up on it. So I put up the previous 4 chapters and started by reading/editing them. To get back into the world I'd created. The characters. Remind myself where I was with the plot and sub-plots. It worked and I think I'm back to spped. What I think I'll do now is speed ahead with the main story line, and finish that. Drive it home. Then in the first revision pick up the threads of the sub-plots.

That's the plan.

Books, of course, never go to plan. Remember that wonderful Somerset Maughm quote - There are five rules for writing great novel. Unfortunately no one knows what they are.

Set up the screen porch Friday night - put out the table and chairs, rocking chairs and uncovered the sofa. Had a wonderful breakfast out there yesterday - then the rains came. Our porch roof has leaked for a year now...almost ruining last summer which was warm but rainy so we couldn't eat out there.

Fingers crossed it gets fixed soon...Gary's coming Thursday so we hope this is it. Frustrating for him and for us.

God - it's raining again.

Exercised today - always feels good and now Michael and I are curled up in the TV room watching the Players...they're all bunched up together, within a couple shots of each other. Very exciting!

Will try to blog tomorrow...I feel like I'm finally getting back into my routine. Terror level down to amber.