Following through on commitments

Here I am, a day late, posting my next entry. I had expected to strike problems in maintaining my promise of Friday updates, but I hadn't expected one to hit so soon.

Bugs!

One of the banes of a teacher's existence. My daughter has been off sick for three days this week. Being a kind and sharing chicken, she wasted no time in giving me a serve of whatever bacteria have taken up residence in her system. I struggled through a full day lightning carnival of volleyball yesterday with the help of copious amounts of cold and flu drugs, but promptly died in a most uncreative heap on my lounge chair last night. Nothing of note could possibly make its way out of my extremely muddled brain in that state. I felt so bad that I even 'watched' a movie - a pleasingly predictable rom-com that made me realise the last thing on this planet I want to write is something pleasingly predictable.

Reading

I have been indulging my passion for excellent erotic fanfic this week by trawling through the entire LiveJournal of one of my favourite writers. I'm constantly amazed at the diversity of work this gorgeous lady delivers. I'd love to mention her here, but I'll get her permission before I go there, just in case. Some of you will know exactly who I mean without even mentioning her name.

 I've also managed to finish a book series that I've been sitting on for months. If you want to feel extraordinarily uncomfortable, I recommend you go and pick up the first of this series, Gone by Michael Grant. It's one of those book series that I've loved and hated in equal measure and absolutely NEVER want to see made into a movie because it would be way too disturbing. The final book took me a good six months to finish because I just couldn't see how it could end in a way that made me happy. I'm pleased to say that it did, although I was left in tears. Be prepared for a six-book addiction!

Holidays

We have only five days left of this term before the mid-year holidays. With my UK trip pending in October, I don't plan to do very much at all during this two-week break. I've been keen to experiment with my wonderful camera, so I might take my daughter exploring in some pretty places around Perth to hone my skills. I really must do some sort of course to extend my skills and learn how to use the functions on my camera. My pics turn out fairly good, but I'd love to be more knowledgeable. These were taken from my usual position behind my computer, so I'd like to see what my camera can do when I actually go searching for great images. That way, I'll be ready for all of the wonderful scenery in the UK.

Writing

Speaking of skills development courses, I'm planning to attend a creative writing course in Perth run by the Australian Writers' Centre and one Natasha Lester. Natasha's website has proven most inspiring, but I feel rather guilty about being unfamiliar with her writing. School holidays can rectify that problem. Unfortunately, I will have to wait until after my trip so I can afford to do the course, but I believe it will be a good investment in my writing future. I'll make it my November goal.

The good news is, I will not be resting on my laurels. Now, you won't get to see any of this...yet. I am fulfilling my promise to write something towards my personal novel project.  I already have ideas scribbled down in my notebook. Some of these will never be used but some will evolve into the real deal. At this point, with mixed feelings about how I want the plot will go, I feel the need to get to know my characters. I'm going to give each character a page (to start with at least) and try to flesh them out. I need to find out all about them. They will have physical attributes of course. I can already 'see' some of them clearly in my head. But they don't yet have substance. I need to find out how they will react in the situations that will arise in my story. They all need to be distinct from each other. They need their own agendas, their own flaws, their own attitudes, philosophies and personal histories. They need their own style, speech affectations, mannerisms, emotional baggage. There are going to be major cultural differences and foreign ways of thinking. I need to see how they will conflict and complement to bring this story to life. Wow, I'd better get cracking.

So, with this thought, I'll sign off this post and pull out my notebook. Thanks so much for taking the time to read. See you next Friday!