Sunday Update - Week 40

Good Morning!  It's Week 40 of 2014, which means there are only 12 weeks left before a whole new year. Since I didn't do much last week, let me start out by saying what I hope to do in the next 12.

First off, I'm planning on doing NaNoWriMo.  (50K words in 31 days.)  I have a new story idea that's been percolating in my head for a couple months now, and I'm anxious to get started.  It's an urban fantasy with an Arthurian angle.  To that end, I've been trying to give myself a refresher course on all the major players in the old story, so I can stay true to certain aspects.  But hey, it's urban fantasy, so obviously, I'm not even going to be close to most of the aspects.  We'll see how it works out.

Second, I've been busting my bootie to get manuscripts whipped into shape for publication.  Dying Embers is back out into the world.  Djinnocide is this close to being ready to go.  And I'm in the early stages of getting Wrongful Termination into shape.  To that end, I also plan on picking one of my dystopian stories to get ready by the end of the year.

On the home front, the weather is getting cooler - which means the ticks and the snakes are going dormant for the year, which means I can go back into the woods again.  I already know I have clean-up work to do on the trails.  And a huge branch feel onto a smaller tree right off the yard, so that has to be taken care of so it doesn't stunt the new growth of the little tree.  (It's not broken - just bent.)  I also have to separate my irises and find a new bed for the ones I need to move.  Then, of course, the leaves are starting to fall, so there'll be loads of raking to do.

Now, onto the stuff I accomplished this week.

Like I said, Dying Embers has been sent out.  I got the auto-reply that it's been received, so that's all I can do about that for another 12 weeks or so (unless I hear back sooner).

I'm about 50% of the way through Wrongful Termination's note-taking.  Pages and pages of notes, but hey, this was kinda first drafty, so that's to be expected.  I still love this book and I'll love it even more once I make it pretty.

This past week also saw a lot of time being devoted to Maxie kitty.  He was feeling poorly due to an infection in his mouth.  And then he came home from the vet's and while he felt better, he also felt like being picky about his vittles.  It's been a trial trying to figure out what he'll eat and then fixing meals for him rather than just opening a can.  Last night, he had chicken, tilapia, rice and kitty formula mixed in a bowl.  Not his favorite meal, but he ate some and got those important nutrients.  This morning, he ate almost like a normal Max.  We'll see how that goes.

So, I've been kinda wrapped up in taking care of kitty, which leaves me too tired or too dragged out (between the worrying and the constant 'I want food' from Max) to really accomplish too much.  Except for last night when I was so frustrated, I sat down here and wrote a few pages in a totally different new story.  The beginning is edgy and gritty, so it fit my mood.  I'll revisit that much much later - like spring or summer of 2015.  It just felt good to write new words.  I can't wait for NaNo.

How have things been in your world this past week?  What plans have you got for the next 12?