Today, as I write, is Sunday the 37th of COVID. This thing has dragged on forever already. I have no intention of getting political about it, but although I don’t share the unbridled and uneducated enthusiasm of those who want to open the country back up immediately, I do at least share the same goal: something akin to regular life again.
The longer this goes on, it seems to me the greater the risk of some kind of revolution taking place. Not necessarily a political one, it could be some other kind of paradigm shift. I’m just alert to the very real possibility that what passed for normality just three months ago is nothing like what ‘normality’ is going to look like next year, and the change could easily be something totally unwelcome.
Enough of that!
Yes, there are more cheerful things to consider.
Everything being the way it is, our Easter celebration was put off until Friday just gone. A little Easter Egg Hunt at home for the kids once it warmed up, then grilling and a few beers for evening dinner.
But What About The Book?
Well, I have been making progress. It’s still painfully slow, but by my estimation I’m now half-way through the revision. That’s only a little misleading because I’ve had to pause the read-aloud after Chapter 1 because of the way I’ve had to organize my life right now. That’s obviously going to have to change. I hate the sound of my own voice, but it’s too useful a tool to spot errors that have otherwise gone under the RADAR.
I’m currently in the middle of the first scene of Chapter 8 and by my current estimates – which aren’t reliable, but they’re the best I can come up with – I should reach the end about May 18th. That doesn’t take read-aloud into account, so we’ll see what happens.
Making Changes.
I’ve incorporated a number of changes, none of which really affect the plot at all.
To give you an idea, I’ve set the time to a particular calendar, although not a particular date. This should stop ridiculous errors, such as in Mel Gibson’s Apocalypto, where the human sacrifices are stopped because of a total solar eclipse but the main character’s way that night is lit by a full moon. I’m only aware of the moon showing up in one of my scenes, and I’ve adjusted it so it’s now in the correct phase and in the right part of the sky for the timing of the scene. If it shows up somewhere else, I just need to refer to the calendar and make sure it matches the phase and position reality would have it in.
Also, the organization of daily life at Blackwater used to be based solely on my imagination, which was further based on what I’d gleaned from documentaries and relevant readings. It’s now closely based on the foundation of a much more rigorous schedule, meaning people have particular jobs to do and particular times and places to do them.
A final example is the roles certain people fill. Previously job roles were fairly ill defined, which lead to Polly taking care of the Laundry and cleaning in the Study. These jobs fall more naturally to Sally, who’s further down the pecking order, and who now can enjoy having the honor of an official description.
So… Now What?
If I can get 10,000 words revised by the end of the week, it’ll bring me through the first major plot point, and two thirds of the way through.
It’s a good goal. Completely unachievable, but I need something to aim for.
I’m actually looking forward to getting an Editor now. Having revisited some sources, I’m no longer convinced that it’ll take the better part of $3,000 for an editor, in fact, I think if it comes anywhere near close I’m going to have to skip out on paying it. I’ll let you know.
One side note, I’ll be taking the SFDs of the first five chapters offline. They’re embarrassingly poor and the work I’ve been putting in shows in the latest draft.
Well, I think so anyway.
Meanwhile, I have a little housework to do on this website, and then back to regular daily life.
Have a great, healthy week.
Categories: COVID-19, My Life, Revision, The Old Man, Work Update
Andrew Wellington 
Leave a comment