I lived in the micro-ecosystem of Northern Virginia for too long. The cycle of seasons shaped my life in subtle ways – yes, ways that impact reading and writing, if you can image it. Fall was always a time of reading, digging into books and sketching stories. Winter was a time engaged in equal parts writing and reading. Spring was a time of looking back at what I’d done, and summer a time of prep.
It’s like being a farmer, only with unread words. No, really.
This move to California, though, is forcing me to change that cycle. There is no winter. And in a land that is in the midst of a drought, the rainy season is what I think of as Spring back east. I mean, look at these trees and hills!
That’s right – the trees are in bloom, the hills are green, and while my friends on the East Coast are finishing up their shoveling, I’m looking at a shining sun. Oh, it’s not all roses – I’ve started adapting enough that I think it’s a cold day out at 56 now, but still.
And then there’s the writing. A few weeks ago I began on edits of the first draft of Chrysalis. Yesterday I decided that marking paper wasn’t good enough and started transcribing/writing again. It feels good to be putting words down, and that’s a good thing since there are plenty of scenes and chapters to write from scratch (first draft was fine for a first draft; also, missing a lot). I’m wishy washy on tools at the moment. I tried Plume, but while I think it’s on the right track and a great blend of what I liked best about Scrivener, it’s still not very approachable as far as import/exporting while working goes. For now, I’m using FocusWriter again, this time with an Open Office Document so I can easily switch to the beefier word processor when needed.
But enough about writing. It’s a Sunday afternoon, which means in a few hours I’ll probably be taking a couple of girls to Pokemon battles. I used to dread going, then accepted it with resignation. But you can only go and watch other people play games for so long before you find yourself getting sucked in. I’m not watching the show – sorry, not happening – but I understand the mechanics of the game well enough to build and play my own cards. And so I’ve joined the gang.
Hope you’re all having a good Sunday afternoon,
Mike