Saturday, June 19, 2010

Writing in the Present Moment

It's smack dab in the middle of saturday. The girl and I went to the market and mooched around a bit. The day was slowly cooking up to be a nice hot one. I got a bleeding heart to set out but I'll wait til it cools off some.
I've read the Globe & Mail and eaten a good lunch.
Now there is no way around it. Work.
Yesterday I spent about four and a half hours in a waiting room at the hospital. Waiting for a friend who had some proceedures done. I had brought my writing bag and as well - in a moment of genius and because I'd just bought new printer ink - 60 pages of the wip to work on. I got through the whole thing - writing my changes, putting notes and ?'s in my spiral wip diary and occasionally connecting to the merry band of fellow waiting folk.
Since the last pandemic scare there are no magazines in the waiting rooms of our hospitals. There was no television in this one for which I am profoundly greatful. Just a few rows of chairs with their mean chrome arm rests so you can't stretch out for a short or long zzzizz. On the wall were several versions of this sign "Please answer the phone in the GI waiting room. Nurses will call this phone when your loved one is ready." The sign has changed throughout the years but they leave all the signs up - just in case.
The point is that there were very few diversions. One woman was reading a book called 'Blood and Glory' or something close to that. I asked her if it was a mystery but she told me it was about the blood of Christ that could save so many people. And that, my dear people, was that for that!
The thing is, the weird and wonderful thing is - that it was really joyful to be working on my manuscript. I know, I know - I posted about that very thing in the Friday Challenge but still. It was ...um...delicious and satisfying. I keep getting this deep rush as I work on this revision. That I'm really and truly learning at last what it is to be a novelist - a writer of novels.
And now I will get to it. Just wanted to report from the land of revision...

9 comments:

Mason Canyon said...

Sounds like the day is going well despite the heat. I think Bleeding Hearts are beautiful but I seem to kill each one I get - bad thumb. BTW, love the background. Makes me think peace and calm, but at the same time could be the beginning of a storm just drifting in.
Have fun writing.

Mason
Thoughts in Progress

Mary@GigglesandGuns said...

It seems I get some of my best work done in waiting rooms. Writing, revisions and characters--oh my, the characters!
Stay cool and productive!

Maribeth
Giggles and Guns

Talli Roland said...

Enjoy the heat! I'm jealous - it's like Autumn here. Good luck with the revisions.

Unknown said...

I'm glad you got so much done. I always take writing things with me in case we get stuck somewhere. I love it when things get done.

CD

Jan Morrison said...

Hi all women! I just transcribed all the changes and that is it for today. Thanks for the comments - feel I need to clear things up. When I say heat - it isn't like anywhere that I think you're imagining. It is probably colder than spring in England for instance! But still just a bit too warm to stick a plant out in the baldheaded sun of it!
I'm not suffering is what I mean. It is GLORIOUS! Tomorrow morning we'll escape in the canoe. yay.

Tricia J. O'Brien said...

Wow, sixty pages of revision in the hospital waiting room. You are on fire!

Jan Morrison said...

Hi Tricia - I think I am! This is the plot revision go through though - not language or dialogue etc...! Still, I am pleased.

JournoMich said...

What better way to spend the waiting time? Good for you for thinking ahead...and getting lots done!

Love the new blog...peaceful but inspirational.

Michele

Jan Morrison said...

Thanks Michele - I have had a problem with the new designing tool - I don't find them as easy to install as before and I'd really rather have my own photo as the masthead but blogspot used to take my download and reformat it to masthead size but now I find it just makes it ginormous. This background was the closest I could find to a seascape that I might photograph!