Retreats are amazing for getting stuff done, but there always seems to be a digging out when I come home. Sigh. Today: catching up on emails and volunteer work. Did get a grant application finished and mailed in before the deadline this week for When Words Collide–have another one due in two weeks, then grant writing season is over for this year!
Rainforest retreat
Retreat at the Rainforest is, as always, awesome. Took the critiques from my beta readers, organized the comments and rephrased them into positive scenes, determined where in the novel they go, and copied the notes above each appropriate chapter. Have re-written the prologue, mined old chapters out of previous versions and inserted them, interwoven two stories and edited chapter one. Nothing like a few days with nothing to focus on but the novel.
Novel into my crit group
Finished revisions on “Alexandre” at my writers’ retreat this weekend, and it is submitted to my critique group. Very happy! Tomorrow: off to my OTHER writers’ retreat, where I plan to revise the other novel, based on critiques I got from three great pre-readers. Looking forward to seeing everyone at the Rainforest!
Hit the 2/3 Mark in Revisions
Just finished revising chapter 22 out of 31 chapters. It’s going very smoothly. Hope to have it to my critique group very soon! Excited!
Also, the library’s writers’ workshop last weekend was great. I attended an excellent seminar on writing humour, and touched base with several writers’ groups and old friends. A good time was had by all!
Writing Speculative Fiction at the Alexandra Centre
My course on writing speculative fiction began at the Alexandra Centre on Tuesday and will run for 10 weeks. I have 7 students and am very excited to be working with them. Our first stories for critique are already submitted!