My writing routine is boring but effective. Every day I wake up at 6am, make a cup of tea, write until about 8am, and then get ready for my day job. Progress can feel slow at times, especially when working on a long story, but mostly I’m just happy I get to write fiction at all.
Writing
I am currently in the midst of my largest novel to date, an historical horror fantasy. At just over half-way through, the first draft is a pinch under 100,000 words. I imagine a good portion of that will end up in the bin during editing. Still, it is an achievement considering my last project The Mermaid was less than 40,000 words, and the one before that (a trunk novel) ended up at around the 80,000 word mark.
Life
It’s October already, my favourite month of the year. The smell of burning leaves in the air. Starlit nights. Horror movies on the TV. That’s the stuff.
In September I visited Berry Pomeroy Castle, supposedly one of the most haunted castles in Britain. The ghosts stayed well hidden, but I was lucky enough to see a specialist from the Wimborne Militia fire an authentic 17th century musket. The noise just from that one gun was incredible. Much louder than a firework. The cacophony of an entire unit of musketeers firing at once must have been deafening. I certainly don’t envy those poor pawns of history, slogging through miles of mud and gore just to blow out their own eardrums and choke on gunpowder smoke.
The guy from the militia also had some swords with him, including a medieval-style longsword. I snapped a picture for my growing catalogue of research, just in case I ever get around to writing an epic fantasy.
Plans
for the month is 120k words. I’ve got a few other commitments coming up, though, so progress might be hampered a bit. Time will tell.
If you’re working on a creative project at the moment, remember to be kind to yourself. And ask questions of the world around you. Inspiration can be found everywhere, even in the most unlikely places.
Until next time.
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