Post-Nano Plans

I'm feeling very pleased with myself because I wrote a snail-mail letter tonight. My best friend from Augusta (Georgia, not Maine) sends me about five cards a year, and I really suck at sending them back. I got a Thanksgiving card this week, for instance. So now I have the thing written at least.. I just want to find or make a nice card to go with it. Now watch it sit on my desk for two or three weeks before I think "man, this is too old to send now!" and throw it away. :)

We stayed home most of the day again. I'm afraid my aunt is going to be very mad at me for avoiding her, but it hasn't been on purpose. She comes to my grandfather's house every other week, and it just so happens that we've missed her there for the past five times or so. We went to Gatlinburg, I was sick, etc. M has a sore throat and is feeling generally icky, and my head has felt stuffy too. My grandfather is really not supposed to be exposed to illness if he can avoid it at all, so we try to stay away from him when he's sick. It's not worth the risk, and all that.

I'm also in a pretty good mood because our lava lamp works again. It's been unplugged for ages, and then the bulb was bad, and then the bulb broke when unscrewing it, so it had to be removed with pliers, etc etc. It still has a Swedish plug-in thingie on it. Those are so ugly. I don't know why I don't like those round plug things look. Luckily, this is not something that affects my life much, I just thought I'd mention it. I think that Nano made me feel a little guilty about writing heaps of random crap if it wasn't in my book, so now I have compensation issues.

M has nagged me for several months/years about writing more. I was lazy and afraid and procrastinatory, so I'm feeling excellent about getting this book written. We went to eat last night and M kept bragging on me for finishing a book. He says, "We should get you a present." I agree with him on that one, and he pulls his wallet out and rifles through it, as if looking for something to give me. He finally pulls out a square of paper that claims to be a certificate for a laser printer. :) He's so sweet. I told him that he wasn't allowed to use it because he didn't finish his book. I'm not so sweet, am I? I did agree that he could use it just a little bit, though, so it all worked out..

Anyway, that was actually not where I was going with that. M asked me last night when I was going to write book number two. He got much more answer than he had anticipated, for as it turned out, I actually do have a Plan, and I kept on talking for a very long time about this plan. I think he had expected me to say something like "I don't know" or "When I get done editing this one" or something like that, but he got a lot more value for his question-asking buck than that. I am majorly rambling here. Maybe Nano wasn't good for me after all.

So, the writing plan. I'm going to spend December working on a website--you know the one. I'm also going to do some market research and perhaps some short article writing. I have one thing that I'm going to edit, and then I'm going to see if I can find a home for it. I'm not expecting too much else for December, because I'd like to do Christmas things, and I need a break from this book. In January, I'm going to give it its first edit, which will be done by February. In February, book two gets started. In March, book one gets its second rewrite.

Of course, there's a lot of room for changes there, but that's what I'm thinking of right now. I think the important thing right now is that I do have a plan for further writing and I'm not just planning on closing the file and never opening another. Of course, next time I don't think I'll insist on writing so freaking MANY words a day. :)