Daynote - Thu 21 Nov

Kicking around the Big Smoke once again.

Daynote - Thu 21 Nov
Photo by James Padolsey / Unsplash

The rosy fingers of dawn find me ensconced in a cafe in London, doing some edits, after a cosy night on the sleeper. I usually sleep pretty well on trains. Something about the gentle rocking motion knocks me right out. And the secret is to try and get your head down and get to sleep before the train starts moving, because the Caledonian Sleeper goes much faster for the first couple of hours and then slows right down. Best to sleep through the rattly bit if you can.

ON DECK: I'm still working on PROJECT SHARD edits this morning. Trimming down some interstitials and adding some additional explanations/discussions for something that wasn't clear enough in the last version. Aggregate word count is -6! Hooray, I cut more than I added for the first time!

TOOLS: Honestly, having a phone that loses 1-2% battery per hour instead of 10-20% is so nice. But I definitely stand by my first assessment - this phone is kind of functionally identical to my old one, just faster with better battery life. Although, to be honest, that's all I really wanted, so I'm happy.

LISTENING: I recently re-discovered the Talking Scared podcast, and I've been listening to a few back episodes. Really enjoyed this one with agent sibling Stu Turton. I don't write horror, but I do think it's one of the purest forms of writing in how directly it affects reader emotions, so I love listening to horror writers talk about what they do and how they do it.

WATCHING: We watched a bit more of ARCANE last night before I got on the train. I continue to love this second series. I really like the impressionistic pre-credits sequences too.

READING: A couple of chapters of THE PEACOCK AND THE SPARROW last night while waiting for trains. It's superb. I can really see why it's been getting the accolades it has.

LINK: Oh hey look a new heading! I thought this post on the PubTips subreddit about self-promotion for writers was superb. I wish I'd read it a year ago. It would have saved me a lot of time and stress.

UP NEXT: Off to Waterstones Islington after work tonight for Lorraine Wilson in conversation with Claire North. Really looking forward to it. Then I'm back on the train to Scotland just before midnight.

And tomorrow I'll be at Waterstones Braehead for their Christmas Shopping event, along with a whole heap of other great authors, including m'friends and colleagues Nick Binge and Gareth Brown. Come along to meet authors, get books signed and have a lovely bookish Friday evening.