Friday, December 29, 2017

Almost New Year's

For the past couple of weeks, I have been writing ten pages or about 3500 words a day.  I figured I would reach the end of my manuscript by New Year's Day and then take another three weeks to rewrite it.  I have had no time to review that  the last year as I've been too busy with the here and now.

By now I feel out of words. 

When I wasn't writing, I started going through all the stuff in my yarn room.  It's included finishing some projects that needed the ends woven in.  I found that I had three French knitters that I never figured out how to use.  Well, now I have, though I'm not sure I need to keep three of them.  I started making a bag of give away yarn.  It's funny how my taste as changed and some yarn I thought was really attractive doesn't appeal to me anymore.

I remember hearing about a woman who wrote a clean out your clutter book and she said if it doesn't give you joy get rid of it.  I think that is a great way to decide what to give away.

I have a pile of bags and boxes ready to put outside in the morning and yet when I go in the room I've been working on, it seems like I've barely made a dent.

  It is freeing to let go of things.  And  less is definitely more. 

I plotted out the last part of the manuscript today and just have to write the scenes now.  I am anxious to start rewriting.

Happy New Year!

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Please refresh my memory : is the next yarn mystery out soon ? What about Molly and friends ? It seems like it has been a looong time since the last book ! I had to laugh about your "yarn" cleanout. I have a fabric room like that. My kids always warned me not to let any of their babies get in there--we'd never find them again. I did lose a camera for several months, and countless times have had to but more lace, buttons, even patterns because they have been eaten by something living in there ! So many of us do have a bit of the "hoarding"
tendency--it goes with crafting !

Oh my gosh, I got through after only proving once that I am not a robot. A real record !

Linda O. Johnston said...

I admire you for working on getting organized. And I'm sure your words will return and your writing and rewriting will go well. Happy New Year!

Betty Hechtman said...

Anonymous, I can see where it's all a little confusing with my books. On the Hook, the next Molly and friends book comes out in May of 2018. The manuscript I'm pushing to finish is the Molly book after On the Hook. I've been calling it The Chain Gang. I was writing the next Yarn Retreat book, but it got pushed to the side because of other deadlines.

I used to sew all the time, so I certainly understand fabric room. Also understand buying more stuff because you can't find something you know you have. It's a real treasure hunt as I go through the yarn room. I found a book I'd made up of all the columns I wrote for my college newspaper, some of my son's baby toys and a ton of projects that aren't finished. Also some of my favorite books from when I was a kid. The ancient copy of The Golden Book of Poetry is missing its cover and the pages are a little ratty, but the poems and illustrations bring back memories.

Betty Hechtman said...

Linda, I took a little time off to go on afternoon trip with Jakey and his parents. We walked around Balboa Island and I came home refreshed and full of words. Happy New Year to you!

Linda Osborn said...

One of these days I will attack that sewing room, maybe get the machine to a place where it can actually be used ! I used to make and sell dolls and doll clothes like crazy, but have gotten lazy. The first comment above was from me, and I thought I got through on only one "robot"--but actually they just changed my name to anonymous and let me in that way ! The wonders of computers....

Betty Hechtman said...

Linda, I thought anonymous was probably you. So you made dolls and doll clothes. How neat. I just got rid of two old sewing machines and have one that is still in the box. I am hoping to find a place for it. I used to sew all my clothes and my mother's clothes. Now I'm more likely to make a Halloween Costume for Jakey.