Daynote - Thu 5th Sep 2024

Genuinely stunned to find this date has arrived. I shouldn't be, because I've been thinking about this final week for literal years of my life. But we're finally here, right before the book comes out, as reviews start to land and promo goes out and people tag me on social media with photos of my book in their actual human hands. It's wild and only going to get wilder.

ON DECK: I am, for the above reasons, a bit distracted today, so I managed 757 words on SCARLET this morning. Yesterday I had a lovely call with my editor to chat about the next week of activity, and got about half a dozen emails over the course of the day filled with exciting news. It was a very good day on the publishing front. Should be able to talk about/shout about most of it pretty soon.

This morning, I also put out a wee promo reel.

Making these book trailers has been my not-so-secret delight over the last few months and I've really enjoyed developing a new skill, especially when I'm using tools like Canva to do it. I'm sure I could get a copy of Final Cut and really go to town with this stuff, but farting around in Canva and producing fun promos to share on social media is the perfect distraction. And it gives me stuff I can use in the future.

The golden rule of book promotion for me is to only do the stuff I really enjoy, because getting your books out there can be a real grind sometimes, so you should enjoy at least some parts of it. And nothing kills morale faster than doing stuff you hate, to seemingly zero effect. Focus on what you enjoy and what you're good at.

LISTENING: I really enjoyed this episode of Scriptnotes with Ryan Reynolds talking about making the Deadpool movies.

WATCHING: Hooray, SLOW HORSES is back on Apple TV! I've been reading the Slough House series just ahead of each TV season so I finished SPOOK STREET, the basis for this season, just a couple of weeks back. As ever I'm fascinated by the changes and choices made for the TV version, and completely captivated by the performances. One of the best shows on streaming at the moment. Worth the Apple TV subscription on its own.

READING: More NINTH LIFE last night and it continues to be gritty and excellent.

UP NEXT: Seven days. That's all that's left. If you're one of the six or seven people who read all my daynotes and blog posts and newsletters, thank you for coming with me as I blurt out all my feelings about this journey towards publication.

I'll try and post each day in release week, and I'll also be trying to keep the writing pushing forward. I'll need the distraction and the respite, to be quite honest. There's a LOT of things happening in the next week. Too many to easily summarise here. But stay tuned for more.