Monthly Archive: July, 2020

31 July 2020

Camp NaNoWriMo – Day 20 (last day)

With me finishing the revisions of Twee Tales Too on Wednesday, I already had an extra hour today. Then when I checked in to the content-editing workroom, there was no work, so that was another extra hour today. I hoped that would be enough to finish today’s work. First of all I had the last 3,106 words to write for this...

Categories Uncategorized

30 July 2020

Camp NaNoWriMo – Day 19 of 20 (in the end)

So this great plan of mine to be at my desk by 9am and write for 4 hours was foiled before I even got there. The poet was working from home and he had a Skype meeting (or a Team meeting) at 8am. For 4 hours. (FOUR hours!) I fannied around for a bit, doing what chores I could, making...

Categories Uncategorized

29 July 2020

Camp NaNoWriMo – Day 18

As well as arriving very late to my desk this morning, I then got distracted. Three times. First of all, I saw that Martin Lewis, our money saving expert, has helped produce a textbook for schools, designed to teach kids about personal finance. The pdf for this book, and the teachers’ guide, are both free to download. Hard copies of...

Categories Uncategorized

28 July 2020

Camp NaNoWriMo – Day 17 + How to calculate your hourly rate

Although technically I wasn’t at my desk at quite 9am today, I was still working. I was doing my daily email declutter, responding to emails and turning down work. I had around half a dozen work invitations in my inbox this morning, and not one of them was suitable. Apart from being topics of no interest to me when an...

Categories Uncategorized

27 July 2020

Camp NaNoWriMo – Day 16

Oops, skipped a day … From this week, my 10-project writing planner has a new project attached. It’s a proofreading job, and I want it finished by the end of Friday. Next week, I add a different project to my planner. This week’s proofreading job means I’ll have 2 projects on the go at the same time for the first...

Categories Uncategorized

24 July 2020

Camp NaNoWriMo – Day 14

After quite a bit of rigmarole (see yesterday’s post) I finally started work yesterday afternoon. I was keen to do some work for the client as well as some writing for myself. So I allocated us both at least an hour each. I wrote 1,908 words and my average speed stayed at 26 words per minute. I couldn’t spend a...

Categories Uncategorized

23 July 2020

Irritating interlude

Yes, I know they always happen and we should always build in some sort of contingency. But I’d only just got into a good rhythm of work when this week happened. And not only this week. Wednesday happened as well. Wednesday was not a good day. I had so many chores to do that by midday I still hadn’t started my...

Categories writer at work

22 July 2020

Camp NaNoWriMo – Day off (rant alert)

Time was already tight this week with so many errands and deliveries booked in, so when the internet fell over – yet again – yesterday morning, I was not a happy bunny. Every time the internet crashes, which is around twice a day at the moment, it takes time out of my already busy schedule. It takes time while I...

Categories Uncategorized

21 July 2020

Camp NaNoWriMo – Day 13

On Saturday we managed to get out for another bit of a drive. We ended up in Lincoln, as I’ve never been before. We had a lovely meal at a pavement table, as we had the dog with us, and even the slight drop of rain didn’t spoil it. We’d managed to sit at the only table that was sheltered....

Categories Uncategorized

20 July 2020

Camp NaNoWriMo – Day 12

After all of my bluster about starting the day writing, on the very first day I failed spectacularly. Friday was a Very Busy Day. The poet’s car was due in for its MOT. I had a hair appointment. And it was deadline day for the Greek client, and he’d asked for an early submission if possible rather than a later...

Categories Uncategorized

17 July 2020

Camp NaNoWriMo – Day 11

Leaving my own work until the end of the day doesn’t work. It doesn’t get done. Especially if I’m busy on client work that has a solid deadline. Soft deadlines work for other people. They don’t work for me. So I need to do my writing work first – or at least ‘my own work’, whatever that may be –...

Categories Uncategorized

16 July 2020

Camp NaNoWriMo – Day Off

The day started on time yesterday, but much of the morning was spent on admin. I checked in with the content editing job first thing, but there was no work waiting for me. They did this a couple of weeks ago too. I checked in at the start of my designated time, three times in the week, there was nothing...

Categories Uncategorized

15 July 2020

Camp NaNoWriMo – Day 10

The poet went back to work on Wednesday 1 July, his furlough over for now. Within 7 days of him mixing with people again, we both had signs of a cold. I’m about 2 days behind him. I work from home anyway and have done for a long time. This means that I’m not mixing with many people, catching their...

Categories Uncategorized

14 July 2020

Camp NaNoWriMo – Day 9

After a weekend that didn’t feel like a weekend, I was hardly raring to go yesterday morning and I was later to my desk than I would have preferred. It wasn’t so bad, though. My Monday morning check-in didn’t have any work for me, so there was an hour saved. Before I started writing, I checked the job board and...

Categories Uncategorized

13 July 2020

Camp NaNoWriMo – Day 8

I didn’t get a lot of my own work done on Friday. In fact, I didn’t get any of my own work done on Friday. I was finishing a client edit that needed to be back by teatime as I didn’t want to be working on it until 11 o’clock on a Friday night. So as soon as I was...

Categories Uncategorized

10 July 2020

Camp NaNoWriMo – Day 7

Admin time was a little longer yesterday, 25 minutes instead of 15. I stopped when I started to get distracted again, and I closed down social media and webmail. I don’t have notifications for my webmail anymore, and I never really had notifications from social media. Sometimes, when an app is updated on my phone or if I get a...

Categories Uncategorized

9 July 2020

Camp NaNoWriMo – Day 6 (of 23)

Yesterday I started the day with just 15 minutes of admin before hurling myself into the novel. I wrote for just over an hour, and I added 1,956 words to the mix against that daily target of 1,860. I’m really happy with the way it’s going. I added two additional scenes that weren’t in the plan, and two additional characters...

Categories Uncategorized

8 July 2020

Camp NaNoWriMo – Day 5

I say Day 5, but is it really Day 7? It was certainly Day 7 of the month, and it’s probably Day 7 for a lot of other campers. But I’m not doing a 31-day writing month. I’m doing a 23-day writing month. Because I don’t work at the weekend. Monday was a Very Busy Day. Tuesday was slightly less...

Categories Uncategorized

7 July 2020

Camp NaNoWriMo – Day 4

We had a good weekend … apart from the dog not feeling very well. He has a bit of a garbage-mouth, so we’re not surprised when he gets the runs every once in a while. We are keeping an eye on him, though. The intention was to do some work on Saturday if I could, and I did manage an...

Categories Uncategorized

6 July 2020

Camp NaNoWriMo – Day 3

I had a good day on Friday. I wrote up several scenes, mixed them about a bit, and added some new material. It was also the first job of the day, and this time I didn’t spend all day about it. There’s a rather nifty new gadget on the NaNo website whereby you can time your writing. I gave it...

Categories Uncategorized

3 July 2020

Camp NaNoWriMo – Day 2

Yesterday started well. I was ready for my desk by 10am, after doing household chores and other faffing. I sat down with my ritual cup of tea, and I started to write … and then I got distracted. First of all I was distracted by some pictures I found online that I hadn’t seen before, and so I grabbed copies...

Categories Uncategorized

2 July 2020

Camp NaNoWriMo – Day 1

I think I’ve made a reasonable start for Camp NaNoWriMo. It was my first job of the day and I spent longer than my designated hour on it. I also already had a few words in the bank, about 2,000. But with a daily target of 1,860, I think it’s doable. I’d already typed out the first scene and started...

Categories Uncategorized

1 July 2020

Camp NaNoWriMo – and so it begins

Yes, it’s started. And for the first time ever, I’m joining in with a Camp NaNoWriMo. This should be a little easier than the usual NaNoWriMo, as there are 31 days in July as opposed to the 30 days in November. But this time I’m just writing on normal work days, so that’s weekdays only. If I get the urge...

Categories Uncategorized