HOW COOL ARE MY KIDS?

I had a surprise Father's Day yesterday. I say surprise because we have Luscious' kids this weekend, and it had been organised that they see their father today for Father's Day, while we caught up with my family. Well: I had a workshop to run at the writer's centre yesterday, and before I went Lyn and the kids made me breakfast, (pancakes with fresh squeezed lemon juice and sugar on top) and the the kids pulled out presents they'd been shopping for, and gave them to me! A leather bound writing journal and They Might Be Giants' latest album The Spine are now my proudest posessions :)

I was flabbergasted, and more than a little teary and touched- not only wasn't I expecting anything (the kids have their own biological father, after all), but the fact they went out with their Mum and made sure to find gifts they knew I would absolutely love was just brilliant. I floated the rest of the day, and am still smiling about it now.

HELLBOY AND ZIM

It's been a boysie weekend this weekend: Friday night we went to see Hellboy at the cinema (Big, dumb fun, and I'm such a fan of the comic books that I happily overlooked the many weaknesses in the film), and last night, while Cassie and Luscious went to see Jersey Girl in order to wash the testosterone out of their eyes, the boys and I stayed at home with crisps in hand and watched the newly-released Invader Zim DVD.

Doom doom doom doom doomie doomie dooommm....

COMPENSATION

The date for the trial over Sharon's death draws nearer: a pre-trial conference is only a few weeks away now, and I spent Friday afternoon in conference with my lawyer. It's been a hard few days, with tension before the meeting and after due to the nature of the proceedings: the doctor who killed Sharon and the Health Department have delayed, prevaricated, and basically done their all to make this a painful and traumatic experience, and I'll be glad to cast their vile shadows from my life.

MY WRITING WEEK

A productive week at the KSP. Apart from yesterday's writing workshop, I ploughed through a significant portion of the novel and am now almost 50 000 words in. I'm aiming for somewhere between 80 and 90 000 words first draft, as I'm sure to be adding words in rather than cutting them out in future drafts, so to be well and truly past halfway is great. I had planned to reach 50 000 words by the end of the residency, so to do it a week early feels like a real achievement. Oh, and I've completed my 5th short story, to boot :)

A real highlight was an engagement at Helena College, a couple of miles down the road from the centre, where I spoke to some creative writing students and ran some writing exercises past them. I spent over an hour with the kids and was delighted at their talent and fearlesness as writers. They even presented me with some gifts at the end- a thank you card, a copy of their yearbook, an Helena College keyring and a matching pen which is my new writing pen!

So, to totals...

Monday 30th August

Novel Words For Day: 2277
Total Words For Day: 2277
Novel Words at KSP: 27 847
KSP Cumulative Total: 36 637
Novel Cumulative Total: 37 936

Tuesday 31st August

Novel Words For Day: 3019
Total Words For Day: 3961
Novel Words At KSP: 30 866
KSP Cumulative Total: 40 598
Novel Cumulative Total: 40 955

Wednesday 1st September

Novel Words For Day: 2642
Word Total For Day: 3221
Novel Words at KSP: 33 508
KSP Cumulative Total: 43 819
Novel Cumulative Total: 43 597

Thursday 2nd September

Novel Words For Day: 2929
Word Total For Day: 4020
Novel Words at KSP: 36 437
KSP Cumulative Total: 47 839
Novel Cumulative Total: 46 526

Friday 3rd September

Novel Words For Day: 2907
Word Total For Day: 4201
Novel Words at KSP: 39 344
KSP Cumulative Total: 52 040
Novel Cumulative Total: 49 433

And the short stories, which are all first drafts at the moment:

Blake The God (Humourous SF) 2533 words
Pater Familas (Horror Flash Story) 810 words
Untitled Piece as Yet (SF) 2056 words
Murderworld (SF) 3960 words
Untitled Piece as Yet (Horror) 3015 words