Here it is Friday, and I think I've talked myself into a Friday Funk. I had lunch with a dear friend today but was almost put out that he was a bit late--because much as I wanted to visit, I also wanted to get the grocery behind me and go home to do nothing, well not much. Of course, once we got to lunch I enjoyed it a lot and forgot about being in a rush. My friend's daughter is getting married in July, and he thinks it's maybe the most difficult thing he's ever done--of course, his wife is doing it, not him! The grocery was a fairly quick trip, and I meandered home to lounge. Kept thinking I'd get back to my Scottish novel but a new issue of Southern Living and a lot of little details to tend to at my desk got in the way. So now it's evening, and I have to go water my flowers--the sprinkler is broken and the sprinkler guy is sick and can't fix it. I may never get to that novel!
Yesterday was the same way--I'm not sure where the day went, but I know I didn't get much done, didn't even do my yoga. Before I knew it the time was ten at night, and I was sleepy.
I think I've been a bit frightened off the mystery by the dedicated professionalism of the bloggers on Sisters in Crime and various subsites--Senior Sleuths and AgentQuery. They know more websites than I can imagine, and they seem to spend hours researching, querying, etc. I realize these days writing isn't enough, but I can't wrap my mind around all that they do. I feel like I'm taking baby steps in a whole new world. Meantime I haven't written anythhing in several days--got distracted by page proofs and other things. But the second novel is rattling around in my head, and even some ideas for improving the first. I really should make myself read the first novel again (and send out more queries) but an author wrote to me today to say he'd worked so long on his current manuscript he no longer knows if it makes sense or not and would I read it. He's published two books with us, so it's not like a blind query, and I told him of course I would. But I told him I also know how he feels. I'm not sure I have the fortitude to go through the first novel again, though when I do read bits and pieces of it, I say to myself, "This really is pretty good." A funny thing I wonder is if my age is against me in the competitive world of mysteries--publishers are looking for authors whose career they can build. Well, they might build mine for ten years but realistically probably not more. Still, if I found a publisher I could turn out two books a year--and I think then I'd retire from my day job. I almost retired today anyway, suddenly, because of some accounting procedures (I have a hard time understanding the right-brain obsession with budgets!) and a really huge conflict with an author. But of course I didn't.
Okay, out to water those flowers and then on to Scotland--or maybe to my mystery. Who knows?
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