Reading, riting, revising

More books read:

• Anonymity Jones, by James Roy
• Gravel, by Peter Goldsworthy
• The Three Loves of Persimmon, by Cassandra Golds

Books begun:

• So I am Glad, by A. L. Kennedy
• Sixty Lights, by Gail Jones

As for writing, I've mostly revised the first of the 3 sections of The Brides of Rollrock Island, and started in on the middle section, which is where all the major revisions have to take place. So far I've got about 9000 words of that mid-section, both new and remodelled; there's another large chunk of remodelling to do, then two completely new chunks to write, not sure what size.

I had to pause on the short-story writing while I got back into the novel, so nothing new there.

Today I went to Draftbusters (ooh, there's a picture of me—haven't had hair that long for a while) for the first time in nearly a year, just for the company and to hear about other people's mad projects instead of staring bug-eyed at my own. That was healthy.

Walked about 10km yesterday. That was healthy, too. Did you know it's nearly summer out there? I got a tiny bit sunburnt, even.

I've managed to read some books

• Tove Jansson, The True Deceiver
• Lloyd Jones, Mr Pip
• Joanne Horniman, About a Girl
• Gail Jones, Black Mirror
• James Bradley, The Resurrectionist
• Cassandra Golds, The Three Loves of Persimmon
• Gil Adamson, Help Me, Jacques Cousteau

Hm, now I just need to write some.

Yellowcake cover

Here is Zoe Sadokierski's lovely cover for the collection, due out from Allen & Unwin in March next year. Weird and wonderful, no? Just like the contents! I'm very happy with this.

NSW Writers' Centre workshop

Sydney people! I'm running a writing workshop, 'Leaping in the Dark: The Craft of Story', at the NSW Writers' Centre on Sunday week. It's six hours' worth of inspiration and hard work.

It's the last workshop I'll be doing for a while—I'm taking at least a year off from workshopping after this—so get in while you can. Bookings are 'strong', they tell me, but there are still some places left.

October noodlings and doodlings

Well, so. Yesterday I finished the lovingkindness story for Yellowcake; it's very loving and kind, but a little sad, too. I took off its broken wing completely in the end, and fattened up its middle. Now it just needs to sit and prove in a corner for a day or two before I read-through-and-fix it and send it off. And then I'll have finished, not just a story, but a whole BOOK!

The design of which (oops! must answer that email) A&U sent to me the other day. I've seen the cover, which is wonderfully yellow and weird and continues the begging-to-be-a-boxed set design that Zoe Sadokierski has done for my collections. The interior theme is moths and locks of hair. It looks a treat.

Re the set of 4 stories, I think the second one will be a story that I've been trying for years to get right. I've left it alone for long enough now that I think I can come back and have another go at it with a reasonable expectation of completing it properly—more than that I'm not prepared to hope! It involves olms and has a steampunkish aura. (Except steampunk wasn't around when I started it, so clearly the problem was just that it was before its time.)

I've received the full set of editors' comments on The Brides of Rollrock Island (or whatever it will be called) now, and I'll be dividing my time between revisions and the 4 stories between now and Christmas. Can I do it all? Well, I aim to. And it might even be publishable; you never know your luck.