Not exactly Jessica Fletcher
Jessica Fletcher, Murder She Wrote
This week’s project ~
You know the opening credits of Murder She Wrote, when Jessica is sitting at her desk typing away while the cheerful theme song bops along in the background? I love those opening credits. I never skip that part! By the end of the song, she’s written the final page of the book and has closed the manuscript cover.
My writing process is… not that. It’s more like having food poisoning. You know it’s in there and it needs to come out - but you have no control over when it happens. All you can do is be in the right place at the right time and hope for the best. That’s my writing process. It ain’t pretty. I wear noise-cancelling headphones and every now and then, when I realise I’ve turned into Quasimodo with a tech neck, I lurch my shoulders back into place and groan.
I’m trying to write six chapters per week - but do NOT be impressed by that number, because my chapters are only a few pages long. Also, it’s a pretty shitty first draft. So when I’m done with this stage of the process, I will have a lot of work to do. But I’m writing again! Hooray for me!
Books!
I just finished Anthony Bourdain’s book Kitchen Confidential - WOW, it was so good! He narrates the audio version and I highly recommend it - his voice is commanding and so entertaining. I also finished The Salt Path by Raynor Winn. It was slow-going but cinematic - the movie is on my list to (eventually) watch.
Earlier this week, I went to the Women’s Prize Summer Party which was a fabulous and friendly event - but mostly I stood around looking awkward and tried not to stare at the literary LEGENDS who were in attendance. Seriously, every year this event gets more and more star-studded. I felt like a Huge Nobody - just a 53-year old girl from Indiana who conned her way into a ticket. I took a glass of champagne, put my head down and tried to blend in. Rachel Clark, author of The Story of a Heart, won the prize for Non-Fiction. Yael van der Wouden, author of The SafeKeep, won the prize for Fiction.
Travel / Where I’m at, where I’m going ~
I’m still in London and I’m still looking for a new place to live - it’s not going well. We might end up putting everything in storage and living the nomad lifestyle for a while. Honestly, I’d prefer that option! But it would be hard on other members of the family, so the search continues.
I’m also prepping for my summer relocation to France. My office is the staging area: boxes of books, a few yoga mats, extra dog food, etc. This time, I’ve decided to make the drive to Lake Annecy in one day. It’s a long slog, but totally do-able. The key: entertainment and nourishment. The only thing worse than airplane food is rest stop food, so I’ll pack a food bag for the road: whole grain/seeded crackers, good cheese, hummus and veggies, fruit and nuts, a stack of PB &Js, air-popped popcorn, some dark chocolate, a thermos of iced water and a thermos of hot water for tea. I’m even bringing a package of Rummo spaghetti and a jar of Belazu Aubergine and Parmesan Pesto for when I arrive late that night and need a hot meal.
Today’s fun project: queue up a bunch of podcasts and buy three extra credits on Audible. The next time you hear from me, I’ll be in France!
xo, L
Print by Liana Finck 2022, Gifted to me by my daughter. :)