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The major speed bump of the week, the big report I had to write, kept me away from Book IV a couple of days, though I wrote some after choir practice (staying up too late, after midnight, to finish a scene.) I didn’t want to leave Book alone that long, and Book definitely did not want to be left that long. By the time I finished the report, Book’s frustrations had taken over my brain and I was a very grumpy camper indeed. After a pause to eat, attempt recreational pursuits (boring, annoying) I went back to Book last night, and said “Fine, but no later than midnight; I’m really tired.” Book leapt forward, dragging me with it, and it was after midnight once more when I finally said “Enough, cannot keep eyes open…”
The report this year was about 5200 words and includes pictures. It’s built every year on the structure of the previous reports (which are designed to fit with the form that must be used, but expand the form to fit our situation) but the sections do have to be rewritten every year, and photographs chosen from those I’ve taken that year to illustrate specific points. Some of the photographs had already been cropped, shrunk, and converted back to jpegs, some hadn’t, which meant time spent searching the year’s photo files and then working on the ones chosen. In addition, the writing for this report must be polished…and then the report must be printed out, proofread, corrections made and a new printout…etc. So 5200 words for this report takes longer than 5200 words of straight-run first-drafting. I actually did start on it (but not full-bore) a couple of weeks ago.
Progress on Book IV this week was 5400 words in four days, instead of 8000–most of it the first two days, when deadline panic hadn’t quite set in. Chances are that this week’s production won’t reach 10,000, because of many other factors that the report put off. However, Book will not let me off entirely, so in a few minutes I’ll be deep in Book again for an hour or so.
On the map of Start to Finish, Book is (at this moment) 37,140 words. If all those words were final words, then it would be just over 20% done, but my experience is that words surge in and out of a manuscript, and my stories are better if many more words are written than finally show up for the group photo at the end of the project.
Must go now. Book has hold of one arm and is pulling hard.
Comment by Kip Colegrove — January 28, 2011 @ 1:06 pm
Fascinating, to read a poised and polished scene like, say, the evocative rose garden moment early in Oath of Fealty, and think of Book in one of its earlier incarnations hauling the author implacably over the rough ground of a first draft.
Comment by green_knight — January 28, 2011 @ 4:22 pm
My Pentax will take 2MP JPGs and RAW files simultaneously – it’s *wonderful* to have small files for sorting and viewing and the full glory of RAW if I want it. Another alternative might be to include batch processing of RAW files as part of your workflow – that should save time.
After considerable searching I found a utility that will extract a JPG file with the in-camera settings automatically, which gets rid of the need to post-process in most cases (I’m pretty good getting white balance etc right from the start). That, too, cuts down on processing times.
I haven’t had time to write since my revelation how to write the next scene, so I share your grump. Next Wednesday the electricity company will make a hole in my garden to plant new stays for a new power pole: I’ve already dug up the edging in the back to mark a safe path away from my roses in the front. Some plants aren’t going to survive the experience, but *don’t they DARE touch my roses*.
Comment by elizabeth — January 28, 2011 @ 6:50 pm
Editor comments came today. After the trip to the county tax appraisal district office to turn in the report, then a garden center to pick up new herb plants, then spouse arriving home feeling sick, then Editor comments–I gave up on writing more today and went out to do the mowing he would have done if he’d felt better. (Acres, all told.) It was clear and pleasant today, with rain predicted through the weekend and part of next week, with several nights of hard freeze (low 20s.)
The small tractor just got back from repair work yesterday; the big tractor won’t start and is on the list to be taken away for work in the official shop when a) they have time and b) the ground is hard enough to take a truck and trailer to where it is. (Big and small are relative: the small tractor is a lawn tractor but not the smallest; the big tractor is a 45 hp one, small by modern farm standards. It’s attached to a six-foot shredder or brush hog, depending on your terminology–a giant mower.)
Forward progress in IV will be very slow until CRISIS revisions are finished…just enough to keep it ticking over. I’ve been gently informed that I need to spend plenty of time on promotional activities for the releases (paperback of OATH the first of March, hardcover and e-book of KINGS the 22nd.)
green_knight: Get some bright colored tape and tape off the roses–blaze orange is good if you can find it, or yellow. Hand a sign on the tape, or stick a sign in the ground: “Roses–please do not damage.”
Comment by Linda — January 28, 2011 @ 8:15 pm
Funny, your books grab me by the arm too … I had to re-read the first 3 Paks books this week. (The temperature not breaking zero for three days may have helped the books maintain their grip).
I’ve been cross country skiing over my rose bushes … the snow is more than waist deep and there’s a good protective crust on it. I am, however, also reading every seed and plant catalog as soon as I come in from the mail box. I expect to see the garden again in April. I could envy you if I hadn’t spent time in Texas in the summer.
Comment by Vikki W — January 29, 2011 @ 11:09 am
Linda, a wise person I know said it this way, “Life is full of trade-offs.”
Elizabeth, hope your husband gets to feeling better. But what a wonderful excuse to get out into this unseasonably nice weather while you can.