Progress

I've been on leave from work for nearly two weeks now (just needed a break) — little to do all day, so you'd think I'd be able to get some decent writing time in. Not working out that way, alas. I spent most of today, for example, finishing off the last two books of Garth Nix's "Old Kingdom" trilogy. Very good books, incidentally; well worth reading. The sort I can sit down with and get totally lost in, for hours on end.

I am getting a little writing done, though. Currently deep into a scene with Itsuko and Suzue, continuing their argument from last chapter. I spent most of yesterday trying to describe Usagi from Rei's point of view. Not sure how well it came off, but it seemed okay at the time! When I go back and look at it again after posting this, I'll probably see it differently (I usually do) and have to rewrite it. Just one of the reasons I write so slowly; every day starts off with rewriting what I wrote yesterday ...

(No doubt this is an appallingly bad writing habit. Hard one to break though; and in any case, the next-day's perspective often gives me a much better insight into a scene. Plus, since everything's been rewritten several times by the time it's posted, it's usually fairly well polished.)

Still to do in chapter 11:

• The rest of the Itsuko/Suzue conversation. Not much left to do on this.
  
  
• A big combat scene. (It's been a while since I did one.) The intro to this is written; now I just need to fill in the action. It's a vitrimorph attack in a mall, and I have nothing whatsoever planned, so it'll all be off the top of my head. Well, we'll see how it comes out.
  
  
• A couple of dream sequences. One of these is written, but got ripped out again into the "discarded scenes" file. I may be able to salvage parts of it.
  
  
• A family confrontation for Miyo.
  
  
• The resolution to 'S' Division's discovery of Itsuko's identity. I may end up cutting this off and leaving it as another cliff-hanger (since my outline for chapter 12 is still fairly sketchy). Not sure of the cut-off point, though.
  

I should probably add an entry here, sometime, about the "discarded scenes" file I mentioned. Some interesting stuff in there. Also some just plain odd stuff!