Daynote - Wed 18th Sep 2024
I use this image on my daynotes whenever my brain feels a bit like this, and today is one of those days. I'm not exactly in a slump, per se, but definitely a bit of a post-release haze/comedown. To forestall any concerned queries, this isn't a mood/sadness thing, more of a fairly dramatic shift in overall stress levels (downwards, thank goodness).
On the plus side I got out for a wonderful walk in mid-September sunshine this morning and I've mostly finished sorting out the logistical chaos of the last couple of weeks. Plus we got a new mattress delivered yesterday and I slept better than I have in literal years? It was almost comically better than the mattresses we've had since around 2014 or so (the first was a good bed that we just hung on to for too long and the second was a not-great one that seemed fine at first but rapidly degraded). It's amazing how your body can get used to crap sleeping conditions and how profoundly a good mattress can change that.
ON DECK: Reasonable progress this morning, 347 words on PROJECT SCARLET after some more outlining. I'm at around 10,000 words now, with a rough target of 15,000 - 20,000 words before I send the pitch, synopsis and sample to my editor. It'll likely be somewhere around 17k in first draft, I'll see where the scene breaks naturally fall. But there will be editing to do before I send it, so I've no idea what the final word count will be.
Also had a call yesterday chatting about numbers and was very pleased. Signs are good that A RELUCTANT SPY is landing well with readers, which is very, very good to hear.
LISTENING: To be quite honest, a bunch of my time right now is being spent listening to my own audiobook! It's out now! And it's great! I also enjoyed this episode of Always Take Notes with Carissa Broadbent. And indeed their last episode too, with Kevin Barry.
WATCHING: Another RINGS OF POWER. Lots of people mistrusting (or putting too much trust in) their jewellery.
READING: Pretty close to the end of NINTH LIFE now and then I'm doing a beta read for a writer pal.
UP NEXT: Now that the rest of the sample is fully outlined, I expect to pick up speed and get 3-5k before the end of the week. Then another couple of thousand words next week and some editing. Again, it feels so good to be back in a routine.