I’m now about 13,000 words into Line War and only one planet has been depopulated. I must be slacking. Readers might be glad to know that a certain brass guy has become a little miffed with certain recent events…
Well, the dieting regimen I mentioned last month http://theskinner.blogspot.com/2006/09/before-getting-into-this-writing-game.html certainly seems to have done the job. That is, the regimen whereby I eat bugger-all, smoke plenty and drink espresso. I can even tuck in my shirts, having now lost precisely one-and-a-half stone, have a 32 inch waist and am thinking that maybe I can ease up a little.
My camera replacement (after a series of unfortunate events involving a bottle of coke and a hangover) is a Nikon Coolpix L4, and seems to do the job I require of it. I considered getting myself a digital movie camera then forgot the idea. Do I want to experience a larger proportion of my life through a lens?
Barrel of stout brewing away in our kitchen here. Should be ready in about a week, whereupon I’ll move it out in the shed to keep it cool. Um, maybe I should keep to the diet…
After the recent demise of our VHS video recorder, we searched in the local supermarket for a cheap replacement. Nothing doing; old technology. I finally bowed to the inevitable and bought a DVD HDD recorder (Liteon). Excellent machine, and somewhat easier to use than the old VHS.
Short stories: one called Bioship has been taken by George Mann for his The Solaris Book of New Science Fiction.
Right, back to work.
21 comments:
"have a 32 inch waist and am thinking that maybe I can ease up a little."
i read that, noted my own 35 inch waist after a year plus of kung fu and 'healthy eating' and wept.
i am weeping still...
Perhaps I should also add that I'm cycling 30 miles a week, going on three 3-mile walks and weight training 2-3 times a week in my garage.
Regarding martial arts: I used to do shotokan karate and once trained so much I knocked my weight down to ten-and-a-half stone and my waist to something ridiculous (this was three sessions a week because a new club had opened and members from the old club were going there to help support it, and because I was training to enter competitions at Crystal Palace). However, I was in my twenties then...
oh. jesus. 30 miles a week... ok, i feel slightly better. 8)
shotokan karate is just a few hops from mastumura kenpo, which i was doing whilst living in seattle. in fact, the club was shotokan right up to a few months before i joined.
now, however, gas prices being what they are and the kung fu joint i joined being a 45 minute drive one way, joining a gym seems like a brilliant idea.
polity agent is still making it's way too me currently, and i fear i may have prolonged that wait by ordering morgan's black man in the same batch and failing to check "ship each item as soon as available."
so i can keep weeping on that note. 8)
When I was young and fit I took a course in full contact origami but never got past the round-ended scissors level due to accidently poking myself in the eye with them.
However, I did achieve third dan status in the ancient practice of Feng shui (wind and water), until, that is, I was banned for the use of excessive wind and poor control of my water.
Now I seek enlightenment by studying my navel (in a mirror, obviously) and drinking copious amounts of Guinness, the wind seems to have stabilized but after about five pints the water problem kicks in... perhaps I should change to shorts?
At least my trouser legs wouldn't get wet then...
Wax on... wax off... :)
Hey Neal!
Hope this isn’t too personal but do you have daily word count goal when your writing a book? When I'm writing I usually do 1000 words/day. 2k on a Sat/Sun. Or do you quit when your fatigued? Just curious.
Jim
Lay off the smoking as well.
Its too dangerous for your long term productivity.
Heh I know I am being selfish, but tough ;)
Skar
e.jim, I have a rather complicated arrangement on word counts. I used to aim for 10,000 a week - 2,000 per day of a five day week. With the huge amounts of editing involved this isn't tenable, so every editing day I count as a 2,000 worder. Anyway, in that count I include everything: journal, emails, this blog, this reply. I also keep a 'word bank'. If I don't achieve my aim that's a debit, if I do achieve it, that's a credit. Presently I'm 3226 words in debt. My aim at present is to go 10,000 words into credit, then I'll exclude something from the word count - probably the journal.
Yep, Skar, I really need to stop smoking, but my life seems so mapped out that I'm like that guy in the movie Airplane - hanging upside down from the ceiling saying, "I really picked a bad day to give up sniffing glue."
bascule, thanks. 8)
yeah i wondered on the suspicious "9 - 11" days to ship. i sucked it up and went back in and clicked "ship as items become available" thingie. PA should roll in next week. 8)
My copy of Polity Agent arrived yesterday in NYC from Amazon UK. Like it so far. Copyediting seems a little rough, though.
What is copy editing ?
Skar
Skar, I go backwards and forwards through the book until my eyeballs start bleeding. It then goes to my boss and main editor who uses up about three pencils on the typescript. I make the alterations as I see fit. It then goes to a copy editor who goes through it all with a dictionary, English grammar and a microscope, putting commas where they should be altering punctuation and spelling to house style and, really, everything.
Hiyahs Neal,
Had my delivery from Amazon today, Polity Agent, 9Tailfox and Ender's Game. Originally I'd ordered Polity Agent and Morgan's Black Man but the latter was delayed and had no date so changed my order.
But... although I'm pleased with the two paperbacks, I'm very disappointed with the condition of the hardback, Polity Agent. The cover is badly scratched and has small rips in it, the book seems to fall open at specific pages and there are fingers marks over it, all which leads me to believe it's be read by someone before being sent out. I'll be complaining to Amazon forthwith.
However, this is the first time I've ever had a problem with their service, must be that your book is popular!
That's bloody terrible. Demand a new copy, Bob, and be quick about it (I don't know how many 1st editions they printed).
bob,
threaten to punch them in the throat. it's always worked for me.
8)
Had an email back from Amazon this morning, they're going to send me a new Polity Agent.
Should get it early next week and they want the old one back and will refund postage, which I'm pleased about, however, I'm surprised their quality control let the original one out.
yup, hard to argue with the old throat punch.
Glad to hear that the inimitable Mr Crane will be back! Hoping that he'll be a little more forthcoming about his inner processes & thoughts, etc. this time around..(In between slicing, dicing, mangling and pulverising his opponents, that is.)
Hi Alex,
I didn't threaten them with violence, just notified them that Neal had dispatched a certain alloy based person of copper and zinc to negotiate on my behalf... seems it worked :)
I would just love to see an eight-foot-tall brass man, with wide-brimmed hat and long coat, kicking down the door to number 10 with his hobnail lace-up boots. I visualize all the armed police firing their weapons to no effect. I see him coming out spattered head to foot with blood and bits of intestine. Then going next door to number 11. It's a dream I have...
LOL - I'm not sure that the Torchwood people would be able to contain that particular situation!
The replacement Polity Agent arrived today and is perfect, sent the damaged one back. I'm surprised it got past their quality control, if it had been sold second -hand then ok, but not new.
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