January 31 - My writing life

The computer came back on Tuesday afternoon and was able to get back on schedule. I felt so deprived for the days the machine was missing and the limited internet access frankly was the pits. Hard to imagine how much our lives resolve around a machine. For a writer the computer has been a real savings in time and money. The days of typing the manuscript and making sure you had a carbon since you were typing the script to send out to publishers. Usually you could get away with sending it out twice before you had to retype. There was also white out what fun that was. I graduated to a typewriter that allowed you to make the changes without using the liquid. Finally the computer. The first one I had was an Apple with the large floppy discs and I had to load the writing program every time I sat down to write. The machine only saved chapter by chapter. Does anyone remember the continuous paper and how sometimes the tear was right and sometimes wrong? Those were the days.

This week also found me involved in contests, not enterine but judging for three. Two were relatively easy since there were only a few pages to read. The other required books. I do like judging contests of both kinds. Finding someone who has talent and might become published is a real treat. Also finding a new writer who's prose sings is always fun.

Now to my own writing. I;m moving along on Confrontations and hopefully I'llhave it finished by mid-March. Sure hope so. I do hate endings and I've been living with these characters for about six or seven years. Writing the end to a series will be a great moment. Then I have another series to conclude but it is a quartet of novellas so that's not too bad.

Have been also reading on my Kindle, two chapter members mss and they were both interesting and fun reads. Also have been sorting through my shelves of books and re-reading many. Sometimes I wonder why I kept some books. So the shelves are dwindling once again.