I can’t believe this marks a month of consistent posts. That has to be a record. This week I’ve been largely getting disheartened by politics, but that doesn’t make me any different from anyone with a brain right now. 2016 will not be a glorious year to study for the history students of the future, that’s for sure.

So, other than finally getting Hillary’s shimmy song out of my head and (thankfully) not allowing Trump to get in there at all, what have I been up to?

Creative – new ideas and first drafts

I finished the first draft of Things That Die In The Light this morning. It felt fantastic to write ‘The End’. Even though no one finishes published books with ‘The End’ these days, it still feels so damn satisfying to write. It’s taken a little over two months (I think!) to get this done, which I’m very proud of. I’ve been doing a lot of other projects over the summer, so carving the time out to get this done has turned it into something of a labour of love.

Luckily, I have another idea that I’m itching to start. I’m going to give myself a few days off from writing to work out the last final plot twists and turns, but I hope to be able to get going by the middle of next week. Starting a new novel is always part scary and part exciting, but at the moment it is more of the latter.

Editing – the slow, tortuous road to publication

This week I have been editing a competition entry. I am not a huge fan of the traditional submission process, but I do occasionally see competitions and publications that interest me. Condensing down to 1000 words is always fun, but the ruthlessness will come in handy for larger projects too. I prefer to be brutal with my editing on paper, so it is unsurprising that my printer ran out of ink. Some days, it seems like the universe just wants to jerk you around to see what you’re made of.

Publishing – and all the other bits that go on behind the scenes

Dirty Little War has been out there for nearly a month and has done great. I’m very grateful for everyone who has bought it and given it a positive review. I’m already looking at the publication deadline for the next full length romantic novel I’ll be sending out into the world and let me tell you, it is going to be tight. But I love a challenge, so I’m determined to stick to the plan, drink copious amounts of coffee and just get sh!t done.

Oh and I also submitted my tax return. That’s four hours of my life I’ll never get back, but I’m glad it’s done for another year.

Planning and dreaming – what’s coming up next week

So, the first week of the final quarter of 2016 is already over. This year is slipping away so quickly. Next week I have set myself the arbitrary yet ambitious goal of getting 5000 words of the next ‘first draft’ done. Ambitious because that’s essentially 2500 words a day by the time I actually start it. I’m also planning to get a head start on some work I need to do for December. Yes, December. I’m planning to take a break over the Christmas holidays, so I don’t want Christmas Eve to roll around and I find I still have a mountain of things left to do.

Writing Best Bits

Definitely getting to the end of a first draft. I’ve got to that stage in my life where I don’t even feel bad any more if in the future I decide that it’s rubbish and I need to start again. I know that a lot of people never make it to the end of their first draft. It’s not easy to keep going when the doubts creep in. But in the end, it’s worth it.

Weekly success score: 8/10