Where am I?
I’m still close to home, although I plan to get much braver and travel further in the future. I’m lucky in that there are so many beautiful spots to settle within a five-minute walk of my house.
I’m being more stealthy than last time, as I’m sitting in a neighbour’s field. I have set myself up so that I have a lovely view, but no one can see me from the road, because of the long grass.
As I settle down, it’s drizzling with rain and hoping that’s because we are in the clouds. I didn’t bring waterproofs. The views are hazy, shrouded in mist, and the distant mountains come and go taunting me. One day I will find them, but today I’m content watching them change, and form a distant end to my world. Closer to me, the hay meadows are ready for cutting and contrast sharply with the green of the forest. The tall dry grass rustles and whispers as the breeze comes through. I hear a cricket call and his friend reply. This afternoon the air will be full of their chatter. But now i shiver in the damp air.
Note to self: Add something waterproof to a permanent kit bag when I have one. It’s going to take me weeks to gather everything I need.
The upside of the cooler air is the amount of birdsong. I love being serenaded. There is a wood pigeon somewhere behind me heralding in the day.
Steve helped me to set up again today, so once again I have a small table. I better not get used to these luxuries.
It is now the middle of the afternoon and it’s so hot that I’ve rigged up a sunshade. An umbrella is the way to go.
What am I working on?
I’m still working on the silver chalice. When I finish and republish, I will change the name to Death of the Rector. I have a character thread to change and update, and I want to change the concluding chapter to give a more satisfying ending. Once those two things are done, I will spell check and transfer the new draft to my e-reader to see how I’m doing. I’m worried about the characters because when I plotted the original story, I knew nothing about character arcs, flaws, needs, and desires or any on the things which are so fundamental now.
I am also drafting the book review of Intuitive editing, which I hope to have published before you read this.
Update Review is here.
What’s in my lunch box?
I have purchased my first new pieces of gear. A new flask and a sensible sized lunch box. The flask is a real treat because it means I get coffee with my ham sandwich for breakfast.
Lunch will be couscous, a tomato salad, and cottage cheese, and randomly, a chicken wing which was left over from our BBQ at the weekend. So, I’m a fancy pants today. I’ve even got pudding, a bag of plums from the garden.
What am I reading?
The last two chapters of Tea and comfort. I know it’s taken me ages, and it’s not because the book is bad, it’s because I keep running out of time and reading fiction isn’t high enough on the priority list. I need a solution, a solution for that.
The craft book that I am reading is Show and not tell and really getting it by Janice Hardy.
There is the third book that I have read on the subject. Previously I read the book and when I finish, I’m sure I understand the concept. Then when I come to draft my next story, I realise I haven’t understood it. I will persevere and one day I will understand. The best authors are in it for the long term. We just keep writing.
Even if the book is brilliant, I realise that the silver chalice won’t get the benefit. I hope my next book will. I’ll let you know.
Reflection.
A constructive day today. It turned out that I needed both shade and shelter, and an umbrella will solve that problem for next time.
Having a stunning view helps my brain think more creatively. I don’t know why that is, but it felt as though I was drinking in and feeding my imagination simultaneously.
My back hurt after sitting in the tiny camp chair all day, so I need to fix that for the future.
Once again, a day outdoors in nature was a wonderful experience and restored something in me. Roll on the next.
Abigail Thorne 