Wednesday, February 4, 2015

ROW80 Weds morn in Galveston

We're still settling into our tiny condo in Galveston (think studio with a bedroom).Yesterday was a stay-at-home, rainy, somewhat cold day, wherein I made friends with the kitchen (truly a one-butt kitchen), decided the oven was decoration, and relearned how to make toast in a frying pan (delicious!).

1. WRITING. Revised Chapters 3-4 in Rivers of Stone. On track with reading Cowie and read The Writer magazine (craft). By SUNDAY: Revise minimum of 4 chapters in ROS and read 2 chapters in Cowie and Elizabeth Lyon's Manuscript Makeover. 

Discovered that for the most part the class barriers between those who were to become the 'gentlemen' of Hudson's Bay (the apprentices) and those who traveled in steerage pretty much continued after they landed, even to work assignments, the food they ate, and where they slept. 

At this point, mid 19th Century, family connections and the type of work you did determined what kind of future you had. So people in their letters talked about who was related to whom, who married whom, and how they fit into the pecking order. And when they met a stranger, maybe this litany of relationships was how that stranger became the cousin of a friend and someone who was 'family.' Much more gossip than I anticipated.

2. COMMUNITY/MARKETING: Generally good progress here. Stay current with ROW80 and NOVELS-L. Keep e-mails under 300. Will review 2 indie writers each month. Decided not to worry about marketing this month as the BookBub promotion plays out.

What's next? Tracking the time spent (and not number of words) on revising seems to have upped my productivity. My uber-goal to finish Section 1 (15 chapters) this round.

Had fun starting my applique project, watched The Big Burn and Person of Interest last night. Haven't even gotten the camera out yet, but each day seems simpler. Staying in a completely different place seems to reaffirm what's essential about home -- family, friends, and, OK, a toaster! Today, I plan a walk along the beach between rainy periods and after a morning of writing.

Check in with what other ROW80 writers are doing HERE and wish us all well.
One of my favorite mermaids,
found long ago on E-bay

6 comments:

  1. Sounds like a fantastic time, Beth. And i hear ya about the toaster. I would go crazy without one!! :-)

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    1. Guess I could say I miss a can of Ajax too and a nice mixing bowl and a butter dish. But to simplify, even for a month, is rather nice. Thanks.

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  2. Glad you're settling in. Great job on the revising.

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    1. Thank you, Fallon. Switching to time spent rather than word count has made a difference. Hope that continues once I encounter one of those plot holes. :)

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  3. Looks like you are getting into the swing of things in your new place. My kids panicked when we moved into our new house and the toaster was not easy to find. Good luck from your ROW80 blog hopping friend.

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    1. I can live without the toast, but if the wifi went down . . . hehehehe. Or I didn't have instant coffee . . . Miss the grandkids, though. Thanks for stopping by and commenting.

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