Not a lot done this weekend, due to spending a large proportion of the weekend sat around talking about nothing much. I think I've actually met someone who can give Student With No Razor a run for his money :) The rest of my time was spent watching the rugby and celebrating the result (England are Six Nation champions -- Grand Slam finally -- trounced Ireland 6-42 -- best team in the world, or so they say).

I'll try and get a bit more done this week.

Oh, yes, and Elydian finally has himself a blog up and running. Click the link to find out that everything sucks :)

***** SPOILER FOR MISERY (the book) BY STEPHEN KING:

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She cut his foot off! Muuuurrhhh!

Okay, breathe in. I just about get over that . . . altho' I spent the night scratching my left foot with the toes of my right, checking it was there. I'm not usually a squeamish person, but legs and feet are the major exception. Gets me everytime. So yeah, I get over it, and then

She cut his thumb off! Muuuurrhhh!

Still, it was a good book.

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***** END OF SPOILER

Next: a book by Ben Elton, the name of which totally escapes me (I wouldn't normally read Ben Elton, as I think he's a bit of a git, but it came with Student With No Razor's recommendation, and not liking the person is no reason not to read the book) and Krondor: Tear of the Gods by Raymond E. Fiest.

This, it seems, is the way of my replotting process at the moment: by the time I get home, cook dinner (I say cook, but it's nothing quite so fancy), iron a shirt, have a bath, and review whatever's in my pile I usually have enough time to detail one scene. This book's going to take me all year to plot at this rate, let alone actually write.

Weekends, that's the way forwards. If I can just bring myself to stay in Swin for a weekend I might actually make some progress.

Am currently reading Misery by Stephen King, a book I've wanted to read for years. It's probably been the King book that's been most recommended to me when people found out that I read him. So far it's turning out pretty good.

Later . . .

I had myself something of a revelation about the re-plotting I'm doing for Dearest . . . on the walk home from work yesterday. I think I may have a way to sort out some of the problems I'm having in working out how the characters are getting from here to there. It may work, and it's so deceptively simple a move that I spent the rest of the evening kicking myself for not spotting it earlier.

As is always the case when such revelations strike, I had neither pen nor paper on me. So I was forced to send myself a text message containing the important details. If I hadn't made some sort of note I would have surely forgotten about how it was to go about.

Luckily, I'm used to the funny looks I recieve when I suddenly stop in the street and start texting on my phone even though it has made no noise. I'm thankful that the new phone I bought on Friday has predictive text, for now it means I'm standing in the way for a lot less time.

In other news, I finished Dune again. Damned if I can remember that ending though. Worries me slightly; did I even finish the first time round, or am I just losing my memory prematurely? I'm fairly sure I must have finished it because I wrote the aforementioned book report, but even so . . .

And, I've been seconded to the wastewater group at work. Wouldn't be so bad if we hadn't been completely mistaught the whole subject at Uni. Looks like I've a fun couple of months ahead. Tomorrow: pipe wrapping.

Later . . .

Don't Smile, You've Broken Your Neck

No real writing news to report. After garnering some reviews of the second draft of Tymmy, I've taken it down from the 'shop. It needs a lot more work before I can even think about sending it out, methinks. The reviews were encouraging, and they should be quite helpful when I get around to the rewrite.

I haven't written anything new for a while. Dearest . . . continues to sit in the corner and growl at me. The replotting process plods on.

I've spent a lot of time reading this past couple of weeks. Having recently finished Quest for Lost Heroes by David Gemmell (I'm really getting into Gemmell's stuff -- that makes it four of the Drenai novels I've read so far, and I've enjoyed every one) and Pratchett and Gaiman's Good Omens, I've now started to reread Dune. I first read that book for a book report back at KS&CC, and wanted to finish the series for many a year. It's being a fun experience so far -- I have forgotten so much about the book that it surprises me. I seem to be reading from a different angle as well (with my head tilted just so . . . :) as I'm noticing all these little details about plot and foreshadowing and characterisation that I'm sure I wouldn't have noticed ten or more years ago.

(i think the book report when something along the lines of, 'dune is really cool. there are these big worms and this funky spice that turns your eyes blue'. i wish i still had it, as i'm really interested to know what i thought of it, and how much effort i put in to it. i suspect, since i never really had any love of english when i was school, that it wasn't much effort, but there you go. i have an unsettling idea that i drew a picture of a sandworm on the first page)

As for the much postponed redesign of this webpage, I have had some difficulties with my webhosts. It seems to be sorted out now, but I'm unsure whether or not to get internet access in the grotty bedsit or not. For now, I think I'm going to have to do an Axl Rose and put it off yet again. It will look really sweet, though.