Progress is slow going on the novel. That’s normal for me though. The schedule works in waves. My weekends with my daughter tend to be all about my daughter and I clear the headspace of anything unrelated to our activities together. So if there’s any progress on the novel it’s minimal.

The nose goes firmly back on the grindstone tonight. I’ve phase drafted up to chapter three, which is about seven or eight scenes. So far, I love where the story has taken me. This is partly because I’m paying a lot more attention at this stage than I normally do. It’s also because I’ve adopted the strange concept of having an imaginary writing partner.

Oh yes, as crazy as that sounds, it’s working out great. There’s nothing quite like going over a scene and asking what ‘so-and-so’ would do. It also has me thinking outside my normal boundaries, looking for places to take the scene or characters in a new direction, and gives me a strange sense of security—I guess a kind of confidence in the work that’s going down, because somehow what I write seems like something that ‘so-and-so’ would approve of.

The added confidence is a real boost. I know intellectually that there’s no one there in my head but me. I know that I might not even be thinking like the person who I imagine helping me. However, just the practice of stepping outside myself affords me some added comfort about the work.

Additionally, this isn’t going to be the typical military science fiction novel. I’m not certain yet if this is a good or bad thing. I’ve read a lot of military science fiction, and while I have a great deal of respect for the genre and those who write in it, I feel like it’s missing something.

I’m reading John Scalzi’s
Old Man’s War right now and it might actually have that extra Schtuff I’m looking for. I’m not too far into it, but I can tell you I didn’t want to put it down once I started reading last night, which is always a good sign. Plus, I didn’t realize until last night, that if by some miracle someone actually wants to publish my novel, it would most likely end up on the shelf right next to Mr. Scalzi. So far, I’m thinking that would be pretty good for me.

In other writing news, I got another rejection for my short story ‘Burnt Benediction’. I’m sending it right back out tonight.

Additionally, I’ll try to post more of my progress here this month. My posts here have been rare because it’s just too easy to say something quick in Facebook. I’ll quit being so lazy.