SUSAN TIPPETT BRAITHWAITE

It’s my first journal entry of 2022, and the first since…jeez, the 8th December last year. So, what’s that? Wow, four weeks to catch you up on.

Don’t worry; I have no intense desire to go into immense detail about what I got up to.

Strap in; this is going to be fast.

Review 9th December 2021 to 5th January 2022

My goal for the 15th was to hit 78,325 words on Running The Asset. I got super close with 78,010.

For the following week—the 22nd—I reduced my goal to adding only 1500 words (79,510). I had to cut my writing time down to allow for the extra craziness of getting up at 0130 for Jez’s work, Yule, and doing my big 2022 goal setting and planning sessions. I got close to my goal with 79,379 total on the manuscript.

My goal for the 29th was, well, a bit limp. With Hogmanay on its way (at the time), I had the traditional BIG house clean to get done. So, I set my sights on an easy target, get the draft to 80,000 words.

Did I do it? Yip! I actually hit 81,288 words. And, for the first time, I actually celebrated hitting a milestone instead of shrugging it off and ploughing ahead without acknowledging the achievement.

If you were wondering, my celebration consisted of doing my nails with my favourite dark burgundy nail varnish and watching The Crow with Jez.

And, finally, my goal for today—5th January—was to get my arse back on the site with an update (check that one off the list) and the first post in the Things in Scots: Running the Asset series (and check that off, too!). But, I couldn’t stay away from the story, adding another 387 words taking the draft to 81,675.

This Week’s Writing Goals

My goal this week is a bit of a sidestep from the writing. As I’ve gotten deeper into the story, and lived with the characters, some things in the original outline had to change. And with those changes, there were ripple effects in the story.

I’ve tried forging on, sorting the ripples as I got to them, and making notes for things that need to change in earlier sections of the story for the edits. But it’s a bit of a mental juggling act. And instead of more balls getting added to the mix, it’s flaming chainsaws, oil-coated bowling balls, and the odd over-cooked grenade.

The point is, I need to get the outline cemented and the remaining scenes blocked (gaaahh, blocking!). So, draft writing time becomes outline writing time, for now.

The Goal

• Cement the outline 

That’s it for today. Thanks for stopping by, and take care.

Susan