Went back and added a few lines of dialogue to plant the info I needed for the next chapter. Very straightforward to start the next chapter–carrying on from a scene 2 chapters back that ended on a high note.
Working on Chapter 13
…and Chapter 13 is half way through the book (I have it plotted out to 26 chapters). Yay! And, I always find the second half goes faster than the first half.
And another story out
Whew! I now have 4 stories out working for me. And as a reward: I see the Hobbit tonight!
Another story submitted
I have been really lax on keeping short fiction out in the mail, but did submit a story this week. Now, back to the novel!
My First Work For Hire
So, here’s something cool–I just did my first work for hire. An opportunity came via a friend to write the Alberta Ballet’s version of the Nutcracker (based on the synopsis in their program) for oral story telling at their children’s parties, so the kids would understand what what happening when they saw the ballet. The length was to be 15 minutes, and man, oh, man, is the plot complex–and some of the motivations are extremely unclear. But two of us collaborated with a 4-day turnaround to create a text that we are both proud of, and which the ballet company loved. Cool, eh? The payment is in tickets to the dress rehearsal, so the equivalent of $24, or $0.75/word. Not bad, eh? Unless I get there early and scoop the $800 seats.