We’re home! And I am exhausted. We packed up camp last Friday (I’m exaggerating–all we packed were clothes, food, books, and that sort of stuff. Camp is fully furnished, thanks to ancestors with foresight.) Oh, and the pets of course (two cats, one puppy complete with a cone of shame on her head since she was spayed recently.) We drove home late Friday night and left everything (except the furry things) in the cars overnight. In the morning, we unloaded and started the long process of getting settled. It was much more major this year than ever before since we had the whole inside of the house repainted and new floors put down in September, which meant we had to virtually pack up and move out. We’ve lived in the house for almost thirty years, so it was high time to both renew and get rid of stuff. But it created a tremendous amount of chaos. After four days of unpacking and organizing, with lots of puppy help, I am pretty frizzled. But now everything is clean and light and airy, and I have my birdfeeders up and the hot tub is full, so life is good again. One of my artistic daughters is going to help hang artwork and deal with curtains this weekend. And one of my nieces and her boyfriend are going to help us close up camp, which is a whole other process I dread (bringing kayaks up from the water, cranking the stairs up above ice level, getting a futon off the porch…) Oh well. I’m not complaining. I soooo love both places where I’m fortune to be able to live.
And I’m soooo looking forward to a winter of writing. (But not writing Winter. I already did that. Hee hee.) First and foremost, get Flights of Dragons out. That should happen soon. The cover is underway, the manuscript is at the proofreader’s. Then I’ll concentrate on Wings over Water. Not sure yet how much time it will take to edit that, but I can’t wait to get going on it so my my kayaking dragon book will join the rest of Notice.
Beyond that… I’ve started a new novel. It’s still in very early stages and I’m not sure where it’ll go yet, but it looks to be fantasy, and it’s got horses in it, and it’s tentatively called Windkind. I’m not sure if I’ll look for a publisher or self-publish, or what. I’m having fun with it during lulls in the publishing process.
I always get more done without the lake completing with the keyboard. But I need time on the water in the summer with my camera to help clear out my head and refresh my soul. Writing and publishing are not easy, for sure.
So here I am, enjoying the end of fall foliage, getting ready for winter’s cozy evenings, and loving the newness of my house and the feeling of keys beneath my fingers again.