Daynote - Fri 10 Apr
An exciting announcement... later today.
There's going to be a lot of dog pics for the next few days. But if there's one thing I know about the internet, it's that it quite likes dog pics.
Today's walk was along Leith Links and the old railway line, with a brief pitstop for a bacon roll and a coffee. Since it's a Writing Friday, I was able to take my time with the walk, which was really lovely since it was a perfect blue-sky morning.
Stay tuned for a very exciting new announcement later today - can't say more right now, but I'm very, very much looking forward to talking about this news.
ON DECK: I'm forging ahead with the last few chapters of Project VAULT. I'm not sure I'll quite finish it today, but I'm aiming to get very, very close. I've got about ten chapters left to write, all quite short, and I tend to increase my tempo as the end gets closer. I may also finish the short story I've been working on today as well. But I've got a wee surprise event later this evening, so I'll have to finish up at some point.
TOOLS AND PROCESS: Normally, I don't write at the weekends, except for the odd bit of notetaking or brainstorming. I've tried writing 6 or 7 days a week in the past, but I've found that it really feels like self-imposed homework on Saturdays and Sundays in a way that it doesn't during the week. I function best with clear boundaries between work and rest.
That said - I'm staying at my friend's house looking after his dog this weekend. And since it's not my house, there's not the usual collection of jobs to do, fun distractions and, of course, my wife Valerie to hang out with. So I'll have more time on my hands, and a book that's so nearly finished. In those circumstances, the impulse to write is much stronger.
LISTENING: Recently I participated in the first actual-play scenario for new TTRPG podcast and Youtube channel Narrative Damage (see here for the first episode in this three-parter) and Marco Rinaldi, the host and Keeper of Arcane Lore for Narrative Damage, just posted a fascinating post-mortem 'damage assessment' of how well the scenario held up. Spoilers abound for the scenario and our playthrough of it, but if you're interested in how these games are planned and played, it's a fascinating review.
WATCHING: I watched ISS on Netflix last night, a surprisingly good thriller about the International Space Station becoming a proxy battleground between Russian and American astronauts during a global conflict on Earth. The zero gravity effects were occasionally a bit wobbly, but it was a pretty well-played and tragic series of brutal misunderstandings and conflicts. I like to think that in real life the astronauts would probably ignore the kind of orders they receive in the film, but that wouldn't make for much of a thriller.
READING: Still reading NO WAY OUT by Max Connor (aka Neil Lancaster, Bookshop, Waterstones, Amazon), though not making huge progress thanks to all the writing I'm doing. I'm hoping to balance that out a bit better this weekend.
LINK: Waterstones Edinburgh West End has posted a promo for my launch event, in just under eight weeks time!
Don't forget to grab your ticket here!
UP NEXT: A full day of writing ahead of me (which I should really get started with, sheesh) then, as above a VERY EXCITING ANNOUNCEMENT. Keep your eyes peeled on various channels from about 5pm today.
Onwards!