Post-Proposal Post

I submitted the grant proposal this morning at 4 AM... for a 6 AM deadline—not my most shining hour. Regardless (or "irregardless", as my Dad would say), the thing is done, and I can start to catch up on my own writing. There were only a few days this month that I actually did not write, so I'm pretty proud that I didn't let work completely devour my life. Actually, in addition to this morning's grant proposal submission, I actually finished the revised plot summary for the novel. Deeply reworking something so large has been an interesting/challenging/frustrating/rewarding experience. Although the tone, characters, and general setting have survived, I don't think much of the actual writing from the first draft is going to be useable, and that feels a bit disheartening. Having written two novels without a pre-ordained plot (thanks to Chris Baty's fun book No Plot? No Problem!), I have discovered that it is awfully inefficient for me to write a 50,000 first draft that, in the end, is only a sketch for the real writing. Next time I write a novel (hopefully beginning later this year), I will try thoroughly plotting it before hand to see how that works for me.

Today's self-indulgent breakfast: single-serving homemade brownie with homemade tangerine marmalade and a tiny dollop of Edy's "Samoa" ice cream. I totally deserved it.

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Today's writing totals:
Blog: 233 words
Novel: 139 words (plot, plot, plot)
Journal: 321 words
DAILY TOTAL: 793 words

JANUARY RUNNING TOTAL: 4,794/15,500 words

Other people's stuff

I'm still pounding away at grant proposals (...and miles to go before I sleep...), so I will do what all the other bloggers do when they don't have time to write original content. Link, link, link!

Here's an article in Locus by Cory Doctorow on "Writing in the Age of Distraction." (h/t to Pen on Fire) I particularly love that he recommends using a no-frills text editor like vi or Emacs. (I know at least two readers of this blog who will nod sagely in agreement.) For me, I'm still using Bean. I liked WriteRoom, but the $25 price was hard to swallow for such a stripped down product.

Donald Morgan has compiled a fascinating (and long!) list of Biblical inconsistencies. As an ex-Fundamentalist Baptist, I'm still stunned at how much of this stuff I just glossed over. (h/t to Church Discipline) Mr. Morgan has written a lot of other stuff critical of literal interpretations of the Bible, but for me the quintessential tool of Biblical exposé is not the pen—it's the Lego.

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Today's writing totals:
Blog: 124 words
Novel: 604 words
DAILY TOTAL: 728 words

JANUARY RUNNING TOTAL: 3,269/15,500 words (Egad! 2,231 words behind my pace!)