Well, I finally did it. I finished polishing up Rules one last time and emailed a query to an agent tonight. This is the first time I've queried an agent so I'm a little bit nervous!
The good thing is that I'm finally happy with Rules so I don't plan on going back and continually tweaking it anymore. At least, not unless I get a full request and then I'll obviously have to give it another run through! So, with Rules out of the way, I'm free to move onto No Maternal Instinct and also study.
Study took a back seat this week while I completed Rules but it's top of my list for April and May, after catching up with my sleep first!
Thursday, March 29, 2007
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
getting closer!
I'm getting closer to finishing Rules. I have just 20 more pages to polish up. Of course, they have been polished twice before. This is the final, final, final polish before I start querying agents.
Today, I spent my lunch hour in Starbucks, sitting at a table with a hot chocolate and a piece of lemon victoria sponge, red pen in hand polishing the previous few chapters. I felt like JK Rowling!
I would desperately like to finish Rules tonight but it is just after 11.30pm and my dh has just pointed out that I have to go to work tomorrow. I've been tired all week because I've been up late every night either working or writing.
Roll on the weekend, and Easter! And the end of May because then my three exams will be over and I'll be going on holiday!
In the meantime, roll on tomorrow lunchtime when I'll be looking for somewhere to sit quietly with my final 20 pages.
Today, I spent my lunch hour in Starbucks, sitting at a table with a hot chocolate and a piece of lemon victoria sponge, red pen in hand polishing the previous few chapters. I felt like JK Rowling!
I would desperately like to finish Rules tonight but it is just after 11.30pm and my dh has just pointed out that I have to go to work tomorrow. I've been tired all week because I've been up late every night either working or writing.
Roll on the weekend, and Easter! And the end of May because then my three exams will be over and I'll be going on holiday!
In the meantime, roll on tomorrow lunchtime when I'll be looking for somewhere to sit quietly with my final 20 pages.
Monday, March 26, 2007
hello world!
It's nearly 9pm. I've just got home from a work related course, which I went to straight from work. I've still got to eat my dinner and I have a thousand very important and non-writing related things to do but...here I am, sitting on the sofa having logged onto my laptop because something very exciting happened as I was sitting the number 4 bus on the way to my course today. The opening paragraph for No Maternal Instinct came to me! I just have to get it into a word doc before I do another thing! This ms has been brewing away in my mind forever. I still don't know the plot but at least I finally have my opening. This is going to be one of those mss where I just write and then piece it all together at the end. Boy, am I excited! But don't panic, I haven't forgotten about finishing Rules. I have printed the final chapters and will start going through them with a red pen during my lunch break tomorrow. Just gotta get this opening down while it's in my head - and while dinner is still cooking!
Sunday, March 25, 2007
nearly there!
I didn't get Rules completely finished this weekend but I. AM. NEARLY. THERE! I edited 17 chapters this weekend and I am happy with them. I'm on the final stretch. I couldn't do any more over the weekend because I still have to limit my computer time because of the headaches. I'm going on a work related course tomorrow night after work but hope to get Rules sorted by Wednesday.
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
a good day!
I had good news today that I can't blog about - but I wanted to mention it anyway because it seems like I only blog about being ill or feeling down about my writing most of the time. Today was a good day! There was the good news, plus the headaches I've been suffering from lately seem to have just about gone (touch wood) possibly due to all the changes I've made to my usual working habits, including dramatically reducing the amount of time spent writing on my laptop in the evenings. On the writing front, I am nearly finished revising Rules again (I will get it done this weekend) and I'm also dying to start a new ms that has been brewing in my head forever! I'm off to study for a short while before heading to bed.
Saturday, March 17, 2007
yippie!
Yippie because it's the start of the Formula 1 season tomorrow! Actually, in six and a half hours, since it's in Melbourne, Australia. I'm toying with the idea of setting the alarm for 3am so I can watch it! Sundays are just not the same without a couple of hours of F1.
It's been an odd week. I'm having eye sight problems, which has meant raging headaches and spending as little time as possible in front of a computer - difficult when sitting in front of a computer is what I do from 9am-5pm week days. I'm booked in for an eye test on Monday morning so hopefully things will settle down when the new glasses (I know I'm going to need new glasses...) arrive.
And I also tried very hard to break my wrist during the week. Not hard enough, thankfully. My wrist is bruised and hurting but not significantly so.
The up side of all this is that I've got plenty of study done this week. My eyes, it seems, are able to cope with everything other than staring at a computer screen. Also been reading My Three Husbands by Swan Adamson, which is hiliarious!
It's been an odd week. I'm having eye sight problems, which has meant raging headaches and spending as little time as possible in front of a computer - difficult when sitting in front of a computer is what I do from 9am-5pm week days. I'm booked in for an eye test on Monday morning so hopefully things will settle down when the new glasses (I know I'm going to need new glasses...) arrive.
And I also tried very hard to break my wrist during the week. Not hard enough, thankfully. My wrist is bruised and hurting but not significantly so.
The up side of all this is that I've got plenty of study done this week. My eyes, it seems, are able to cope with everything other than staring at a computer screen. Also been reading My Three Husbands by Swan Adamson, which is hiliarious!
Sunday, March 11, 2007
famous people
Which famous person, dead or alive, would you most like to meet and why?
I'd been pondering over my answer to this question - it's one from the magazine that I mentioned on Friday - for ages so switched on my laptop so I could email a few friends to ask their advice. Sally was on MSN so I asked her and as she was writing back to me, I came up with my answer...
Sir Peter Blake!
It's a wonder I didn't think of him instantly considering I have an inspirational quote from Sir Peter Blake's last diary entry before he was killed on my desk:
"To win, you have to believe you can do it, you have to be passionate about it, you have to really "want" the result -- even if this means years of work, the hardest part of any big project is to begin, we have begun, we are underway, we have a passion." Sir Peter Blake, Tuesday December 4, 2001
Who would you like most to meet and why?
I'd been pondering over my answer to this question - it's one from the magazine that I mentioned on Friday - for ages so switched on my laptop so I could email a few friends to ask their advice. Sally was on MSN so I asked her and as she was writing back to me, I came up with my answer...
Sir Peter Blake!
It's a wonder I didn't think of him instantly considering I have an inspirational quote from Sir Peter Blake's last diary entry before he was killed on my desk:
"To win, you have to believe you can do it, you have to be passionate about it, you have to really "want" the result -- even if this means years of work, the hardest part of any big project is to begin, we have begun, we are underway, we have a passion." Sir Peter Blake, Tuesday December 4, 2001
Who would you like most to meet and why?
Friday, March 09, 2007
exciting news!
I've had a pretty cool day!
I'm going to be in a magazine! Of course, it's a purchasing magazine so it's probably not that exciting to anyone but me...and my manager! I got the phone call about 4.30pm today. It all has to be run passed our corporate affairs people first but I'm going to work on it this weekend just in case they give it the green light.
It's nothing flash - just a piece for a people & jobs page where they have a half page Q&A with someone in the industry each issue.
In other news, I made a bit of a fool of myself today! I went to a very important meeting where a police chief inspector was giving an update on an issue - and yes I am delibrately being vague about where and what this meeting was!
As we were sitting waiting for the meeting to start, I browsed through the agenda then leaned over to my colleague and said in a loud excited schoolgirl-ish voice "the chief inspector is going to be here". My colleague pointed to the person sitting directly in front of him, who turned around and grinned at me...the chief inspector himself!
Opps!
Then another colleague and I had a giggle after the meeting when, as we were collecting our coats from the cloakroom, we spotted the chief inspector's hat... Ah, women can be so childish sometimes!
Tomorrow should also be pretty cool. I'm going to an RNA meeting where I'll meet Jessica Hart for the first time, which is pretty cool because I've been working on her website for about 18 months and we've only spoken on the phone once. The rest is done via email.
And since the meeting's location is near Oxford St, first I shall be visiting Books Etc - which is like my idea of heaven! - and will probably spend an hour or so in the Starbucks inside Books Etc doing some study - less cool but important.
I'm going to be in a magazine! Of course, it's a purchasing magazine so it's probably not that exciting to anyone but me...and my manager! I got the phone call about 4.30pm today. It all has to be run passed our corporate affairs people first but I'm going to work on it this weekend just in case they give it the green light.
It's nothing flash - just a piece for a people & jobs page where they have a half page Q&A with someone in the industry each issue.
In other news, I made a bit of a fool of myself today! I went to a very important meeting where a police chief inspector was giving an update on an issue - and yes I am delibrately being vague about where and what this meeting was!
As we were sitting waiting for the meeting to start, I browsed through the agenda then leaned over to my colleague and said in a loud excited schoolgirl-ish voice "the chief inspector is going to be here". My colleague pointed to the person sitting directly in front of him, who turned around and grinned at me...the chief inspector himself!
Opps!
Then another colleague and I had a giggle after the meeting when, as we were collecting our coats from the cloakroom, we spotted the chief inspector's hat... Ah, women can be so childish sometimes!
Tomorrow should also be pretty cool. I'm going to an RNA meeting where I'll meet Jessica Hart for the first time, which is pretty cool because I've been working on her website for about 18 months and we've only spoken on the phone once. The rest is done via email.
And since the meeting's location is near Oxford St, first I shall be visiting Books Etc - which is like my idea of heaven! - and will probably spend an hour or so in the Starbucks inside Books Etc doing some study - less cool but important.
Tuesday, March 06, 2007
feeling flat
I'm feeling strangely flat tonight. I'm not sure why. I had a great day at work and came home to a perfect night of tv viewing and also had the added delight of finding my level 5 graduate diploma certificate in the post.
I'm quite proud of it! I've taken it out of its "please do not bend" envelope several times to stare at it. I'm even thinking of getting it framed. The institute has commissioned a frame company to produce frames with the institute name on them in gold lettering.
It may sound stupid but I'd like to get it framed. When I graduated from journalism college, I had that certificate framed (OK, probably my parents paid for it!) and I hung it on the wall in my office. These days that certificate is in a box in a filing cabinet at work but then a journalism certificate isn't really relevant to procurement!
This certificate won't be making it onto a wall at work because it's simply not the done thing in the team I work in. All going well, I'll have a certificate for the next level in September, which reminds me, I need to get studying!
The excitement of the certificate arriving was dulled somewhat by the arrival of an email from our landlord saying he needs to put the rent up. It's not a mega increase and wasn't unexpected given recent interest rate decisions, however it does mean that we are now at the very very very high end of the scale (OK, right at the top!) for a place like ours in this area.
Unfortunately, we are going to have to give moving some very serious consideration.
We've been here four years now and I like this place but it does have its faults - such as being like a sauna in summer and an ice box in winter! But a potential house move is something I could well do without right now seeing as how I seem to be back where I was in 2005; with an ill husband and the prospect of losing my job.
So, on that less than cheery note, I'm off to flick through my copy of Carole Blake's From Pitch to Publication, Donald Maass' Writing the Breakout Novel, and Janet Evanovich's How I Write.
I expect things will seem rosier tomorrow. I certainly hope so.
I'm quite proud of it! I've taken it out of its "please do not bend" envelope several times to stare at it. I'm even thinking of getting it framed. The institute has commissioned a frame company to produce frames with the institute name on them in gold lettering.
It may sound stupid but I'd like to get it framed. When I graduated from journalism college, I had that certificate framed (OK, probably my parents paid for it!) and I hung it on the wall in my office. These days that certificate is in a box in a filing cabinet at work but then a journalism certificate isn't really relevant to procurement!
This certificate won't be making it onto a wall at work because it's simply not the done thing in the team I work in. All going well, I'll have a certificate for the next level in September, which reminds me, I need to get studying!
The excitement of the certificate arriving was dulled somewhat by the arrival of an email from our landlord saying he needs to put the rent up. It's not a mega increase and wasn't unexpected given recent interest rate decisions, however it does mean that we are now at the very very very high end of the scale (OK, right at the top!) for a place like ours in this area.
Unfortunately, we are going to have to give moving some very serious consideration.
We've been here four years now and I like this place but it does have its faults - such as being like a sauna in summer and an ice box in winter! But a potential house move is something I could well do without right now seeing as how I seem to be back where I was in 2005; with an ill husband and the prospect of losing my job.
So, on that less than cheery note, I'm off to flick through my copy of Carole Blake's From Pitch to Publication, Donald Maass' Writing the Breakout Novel, and Janet Evanovich's How I Write.
I expect things will seem rosier tomorrow. I certainly hope so.
Monday, March 05, 2007
woman appeals for egg donor on buses
I'm not busy tonight, I'm just tired. But I'm still going to point you in the direction of another couple of websites:
Woman Appeals for Egg Donor on Buses
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/6420111.stm
A 54-year-old woman and her husband are advertising for an egg donor on London buses in a last-ditch attempt to try to have a baby. Linda Weeks, from Maidstone, Kent, is spending £2,000 on the appeal, which will run for a month from 19 March. Mrs Weeks and her husband Richard got married in 1993, and the 50 adverts include a wedding day photo. "If we don't have any luck this time, then that will be the end for us," Mrs Weeks admitted. Her fertility clinic in London cannot continue to treat her after the age of 55, meaning she has just over a year left to find a donor.
You can read more about Linda Weeks' story on her blog:
http://infertilewoman.spaces.live.com/
And you can also learn more about the egg donor process here:
http://www.logancentre.co.uk/docs/donor1.htm
I don't know why but this is something that interests me. I've researched the process before and I like the idea of helping someone in this way. Have you done it or do you know someone who has?
Woman Appeals for Egg Donor on Buses
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/6420111.stm
A 54-year-old woman and her husband are advertising for an egg donor on London buses in a last-ditch attempt to try to have a baby. Linda Weeks, from Maidstone, Kent, is spending £2,000 on the appeal, which will run for a month from 19 March. Mrs Weeks and her husband Richard got married in 1993, and the 50 adverts include a wedding day photo. "If we don't have any luck this time, then that will be the end for us," Mrs Weeks admitted. Her fertility clinic in London cannot continue to treat her after the age of 55, meaning she has just over a year left to find a donor.
You can read more about Linda Weeks' story on her blog:
http://infertilewoman.spaces.live.com/
And you can also learn more about the egg donor process here:
http://www.logancentre.co.uk/docs/donor1.htm
I don't know why but this is something that interests me. I've researched the process before and I like the idea of helping someone in this way. Have you done it or do you know someone who has?
Sunday, March 04, 2007
things
I had a manic week at work last week and have spent most of the weekend sleeping as a result. However, I am now curled up on my bean bag with a rug and a pillow, alternating between studying for an hour or so and writing for an hour or so. Shortly, I'll take a break so I put a roast on for dinner.
As I'm busy, I'll direct you to two fantastic sites:
Go to http://phillipa-ashley.com/blog to read about a cool competition Waterstones are running. I've got the Waterstones magazine and March's Cosmopolitan (much to my husband's amusement because he knows I do not normally buy magazines like that!) and am currently pondering over my entry.
And also visit http://www.jessicahart.co.uk/ for information on a Romantic Novelists' Association event on March 10th which I will be going to. I'd love to know if anyone else is going.
As I'm busy, I'll direct you to two fantastic sites:
Go to http://phillipa-ashley.com/blog to read about a cool competition Waterstones are running. I've got the Waterstones magazine and March's Cosmopolitan (much to my husband's amusement because he knows I do not normally buy magazines like that!) and am currently pondering over my entry.
And also visit http://www.jessicahart.co.uk/ for information on a Romantic Novelists' Association event on March 10th which I will be going to. I'd love to know if anyone else is going.
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