Here we go again

Have started now on edits for Nothing Sacred. It looks as though I have some work ahead of me, but nothing I can't get easily done by the end of March. Of course, it helps having done this last year, too; I have a better idea what's going to happen, and when. As much as you can in this business, anyway.

One mistake I made last year which I won't be repeating was sequestering myself from reality a little too much while I did the edits for Love Minus Zero. It was me and the manuscript, all alone and going crazy during the day, for those three dark winter months or so. This time, I'm keeping up my mending gig at the school library and have taken on a weekly reading project in Dan's class as well (some people could talk me into anything). Also making sure I get out for lunch / coffee dates at least once per week for the duration of this project. I have two lined up this week. It's all good, this getting out stuff.

Of course, tomorrow after spending the morning at school, I will tune in to the inauguration stuff on TV, at least for a little while. That'll be something to see.

2009 speeds past already!

Plunging headlong into this New Year, seems like it's going to be another crazy one. The holidays were spent doing the usual holiday things -- eating, drinking, visiting. It was very cold most of the time. We watched a lot of movies. My very talented friend Dallas gave me a framed photo she took in ye olden days of the National Hotel's neon sign. I love it! It's hanging in my office over my drawing table, which I have sworn to actually use this year (see below).

I'm rereading The Sun Also Rises right now, first read it when I was about seventeen. It's so good. I don't want it to end. Read lots of graphic stuff over the holidays, have The Best American Comics 2008 anthology which I'll get back to when I'm done Hemingway. Reading all these graphics made me wonder about reframing the second novel as a graphic. My drawing skills are very rusty, but my sister thinks I could get them up to speed. It's an idea I've been toying with a long time, years. Maybe I'm afraid to try, I don't know. I figure once I'm done the edits on the short story collection I can look into that.

Speaking of which, I have not yet started on the edits. But yesterday I got word that I have been conditionally approved for an Alberta Foundation for the Arts grant for my travel expenses for my tour. They're even giving me exactly what I asked for. Yay! I have to write up a report for them which is due February 1 and I need to get in touch with the writing program person at the AFA for some advice on what to include in this report. So that's going to keep me occupied for the next little while. I'll send my new editor an e-mail pretty soon, though, so we can get the ball rolling with edits.

Got back into the school library and did some mends this morning. That was good. I need to get out more, spend more time doing worthwhile stuff.

And right now I should get back to work.