That means I have a fresh bag of Tootsie Rolls, a new can of Stephen's Gourmet Dark Chocolate mix. Plenty of Cafe Vienna, and a new computer. Not so sure about the wisdom of that last item, but last week, a crack in the case of my laptop became a break and a chunk of it fell off. This new one has "issues" that I'm dealing with. Most of the time, though, it lets me type.
"What..." you may ask, "are you writing for NaNoWriMo this year?"
I might answer.
Of course, the short answer is that I'm writing the fourth book in the "Photo Finish Trilogy," F/Stop. Yes, and there will be a fifth book, too. Some trilogy.
My Sausage Grinder tier patrons, who want to see what I write without the benefit of rewrites and edits, will start getting access to the new draft Tuesday evening. I'll be making daily updates to my draft, and they can follow along almost as I'm writing it. Of course, the first drafts of Shutter Speed and Exposure will remain available to Sausage Grinders throughout the month and probably longer.
I don't want my Wayzgoose/NathanEverett patrons to languish. I'll also be posting the rewrite draft of my Steven George and The Dragon sequel, Steven George and the Terror for patrons. That one is not a NaNoWriMo entry because I entered it in first draft back in November of 2008. It's been sitting in my files patiently waiting for a rewrite which is now in progress. Editors can expect that one before they see F/Stop. It's much shorter.
This is my nineteenth consecutive year of participating in NaNoWriMo, and I have "won" every year. That means I completed 50,000 words of a new book. Add to that, nine "Camp NaNoWriMo" successes. Most of the books I've written while producing 2,271,924 words in those eighteen years, have been published. I am grateful to each of you who have found it in your hearts to buy one of them. Thank you!
Aside from all that, things are peaceful in Las Vegas. Have met up with my friends Al and Donna and we have already been to two shows: Reckless in Vegas, and Gary Lewis and the Playboys. Both fun shows.
I got the dental implant taken care of last week, so I shouldn't have any more problems with that. The rent is paid. I think I'm ready to roll.
Here's an interesting tidbit, though. Maybe you'll give me a hand. I hope you've read and voted for your favorite Halloween contest stories--or will tomorrow when they are released. Last year, my story didn't place. It was a Wayzgoose story called "The Burgundy Chamber." I'm thinking now of expanding it. I could create a whole series of short stories with this cast and setting, or I could do a novel that launches from this point. I've started doing research on some of the holes in the short story. It is intentionally vague about time and place, but it liberally mixes things up. If I turn it into a real novel, I need to know the time and place of the story, and a lot of backstory on the main characters. I'll probably need to find a Victorian country mansion to model the house on that fits with some of the preconceived notions I've already painted. I'd guess there is a good three months of background work and plotting to do before I jump into that story, but if you've got ideas, let me know.
Happy Halloween!