Random thoughts on what I think is Day 74

On Day probably 74, I've got to the end of a third-ish draft and have 42,351 words of my novel(la) sorted. The second draft was printed out and covered with blue ink additions and rewites. Then I put it aside for a couple of days and out came the green pen, and further re-writes.

I think what I really need is one of those pens with 15 (?) colours in it, like I had at school. As I remember it, there was one year at school when everyone had one of those pens; it became a necessity, although I don't ever remember using many of the less common colours, mostly because they were too light/faint to be clearly read. But right now, with this penchant for covering one manuscript with colour-coded rewrites, it would be very useful.

I'm just about to print this newly completed draft, and then the coloured rewrites will happen all over again. Printing it out is always a big thing for me. For a start it will take a wad of 189 sheets of paper (which is a lot, when by now I though no one would be using paper - that's what they told us in the 1990s!), and also it makes what I've written so far permanent. I can't distance myself from it. If I stumble across a section which doesn't flow, which is just plain daft, it's mine - I can't deny it.

In much the same way, I'm also delaying passing it to anyone to read. I love having people read my short stories (although I do pace or walk out of the room) because I pretty much know my short stories are ok. But I'm not a novel writer, however much I would like to see, at some stage, a couple of them published, alongside - hopefully - a few collections of short stories...

I have my dream back-catalogue already in my head - is that weird?

Well, that's all for this post - I told you it was random!