a couple of macros from our walk today

24942

This is my total word count at the moment. Look how pretty, look how symmetrical!
This novel is going well, and I'm really excited about all the stuff that's happening in it. Writing it has been fun.

Back in 10,000 words.

Woooooooohooooooo!

I just received the official notification from Descant that my story, Imagined Proximity to Death, (Descant #149) was nominated for the Journey Prize. Or to be more precise, the Writers' Trust of Canada / McClelland & Stewart 2011 Journey Prize.

I heard via email about a week or so ago, but now as the letter is taped to my fridge with my favourite duct tape, I no longer have any reasons to believe the initial email was an elaborate hoax.

I'm beyond thrilled! Still feels rather surreal, to be honest.

a follower! Hi there! :-)

I have a follower who is not someone I already know, and not a duplicate of someone I already know (Hey, Chris! You're following me in double doses. It might cause health problems, and who knows what.)

So now I feel I have an obligation to the wild world wide web to maybe blog like once a week. And because Stacy (HIIIIIIIII!!!!!) reads my blog *always* and warms my heart (*always*).

Deep thought of the day: Came home tonight to my driveway completely blocked by a knee high wall of already frozen snow. Well, thank you! And, my dear husband, it was NOT like this when I left the house in the morning. I have blisters now from all of the angry shovelling.

I'm still here (sort of)

I set aside my almost finished experimental novel about the Chernobyl accident, and for the last two weeks I've been working on a new novel. I'm 17,000 words into it, and I think about it when falling asleep, and when I wake up.

It is a very different writing experience from my first novel (Swearing in Russian...) In Swearing my protagonist was extremely isolated and introspective, and being in her head was often difficult, as it was such a different mental space. In the current draft I'm writing mostly dialogues--my protagonist is meeting all those strange people, and there's a bit of a mystery going on.

I know that others manage to blog, and FB (may I use it as a verb?) and write novels, and send out short story submissions, and what not. I'm only managing my novel and my kiddos right now. I will blog more when this novel is out of the first draft stage, I promise.

Getting ready to fly

I don't know what I've been bying on Amazon, but I just received a notification that I might also like Customized Learning: Potential Air Force Applications.

In other news, when I work more on my novel, I blog less. I've been writing more. I'm happy about it.

I've wanted to decorate a wild tree for years

Someone else did!

And I couldn't resist snapping this picture! Someone lost a sock??? Or maybe another attempt at tree decoration.