So I was working on Wednesday and I suddenly realised all my main characters have at least one of my traits – I hate waiting for something and not being able to do anything else because – well, because that’s how the situation is. Which made me laugh, of course.

We also watched Guy Pearce, Kylie Minogue, Julian McMahon, Jeremy Sims and Asher Keddy in most of Swinging Safari. When I first saw it, I thought it was something from the 60s. But then we got stuck watching it. Talk about bringing back some memories. It was really quite funny, even though I felt they mixed some of the 60s stuff with the 70s stuff.

Stu asked, at one point: “Where did they get all the retro stuff?” I turned to him and said: “Did you see the kitchen? And the wall unit? They’re the modern thing, now. And Asher Keddy’s white room is a modernistic room that would fit in any house today.” So architecture and decor have done a complete 160 degree turn and are revisiting some of the most iconic times.

And when you think about it – the 60s and 70s houses were amazing – at least those that had money to build whatever they wanted really changed how housing could be built at the time. Now? Well, I think our city’s nickname has gone to Ikea. All the buildings and houses seem to be flatpacks …

So this week I really don’t have a lot to talk about, I know there are people out there who say I don’t “shut up” but sometimes, just sometimes, life goes treadling along happily.

I will say that we successfully cleared down 90% of the dining table and we hope to be picking up a second-hand solid oak table to take its place today. Not so big but lots of character by the looks of it. I’m thinking it’s played a lot of DnD. I’m hoping it sees a lot of jigsaws and drawings done on it while it’s with us.

We’re also clearing out a heap of stuff. We have a junk pile in the corner, but that can be worked on during the week. Once we get the table swapped we’ll have more room to move around.

Which reminds me, I really need to do some art today ….. ooooh and there should be a new table for me to do it on!

Well, it’s hard to imagine but I have been working a whole year! Didn’t think I’d get this far but I must be doing something right.

For my own stuff, I’ve started fixing up those errors that were pointed out to me in Consequences 2 and I’ll take a fresh read of that over the coming weeks.

I’m about to read Dark Reign without it being in Scrivener so that I can see how it flows and whether there are any holes in it.

On a different note, after putting up with gremlins in our car for 5 years and having a computerised module replaced 5 times, we are finally rid of the Everest. I will grant, it was one of the first models, so there were bound to be bugs and we did think it was the battery as we had it tested earlier this year and it had lost 30% of its storage capacity so we changed it. Didn’t matter. Gremlin came back. This time, the car went into limp mode (meaning it had registered a major fault) on Stu then when he took it to the dealership, it went into valet mode on them – now that’s a funny one ’cause it shuts everything in the car down to stop the car from being stolen. We had never set it up and didn’t know anything about it. Apparently they had to ring head office to find out how to get it out of valet mode. So, the owner of the dealership said enough is enough and we pick up a new 2019 Everest on Friday. Stu says it’s my birthday present!

So last weekend I had a break from writing and I think it did me the world of good. We went to a wheatbelt town called Dalwallinu and checked out the wildflowers of Western Australia. Although it had been a short season and we missed the big flowers, there were some miniscule flowers called “carpet flowers”. And that’s what they did. They carpeted the ground like a coloured lawn. It was spectacular (for someone who’d not seen them before).

Saturday night had a bonfire put on by the local townsfolk and at one stage we could see a log take on the visage of a flame-breathing dragon.

But now it’s time to get back into writing – or editing as I’m doing at the moment. Can’t wait for this part to be finished so it’s back into free writing. Anyone want to take over editing? Just kidding. It’s all part of the process!

So the next few days are going to be a bit busy. We’re working hard tomorrow with various things, same with Saturday and a possible slow down on Sunday. And then it starts again next weekend!

I have been a bit slack here and not posted anything. Not that there wasn’t anything to post, I simply ran out of time last week.

Having said that, I am still struggling to get my hours at work reduced to 3 days a week and therefore next week might be a struggle again as I’m back to 4 days and now need to apply again for a trial period. Not sure what their argument will be this time because I have possibly broken a drought for me at work. Nothing more needs to be said.

Over the next few days I will be working on botanical art – it’s something I have become fascinated with and the course I had signed up to had time limitations on it that I couldn’t meet. So I had to give that up – but I downloaded their hint sheets before I did, so I’m hoping they will help in my burgeoning sketching.

I am taking a break from writing this weekend, I feel I’m able to do that and I got some great, constructive feedback from a long-standing friend, so I want to make sure I’m in the right headspace when I return to writing. Therefore, this weekend is a holiday.

This is something every writer needs to conquer. Otherwise we don’t get anything done.

So, here I am, sitting at the computer and writing an interview between Troy and a member of the press while assisting Stu in pulling our kitchen cupboards apart and decluttering it.

Now this is a monumental task. I thought we’d done a pretty good job when we remodeled the kitchen in 2017 but today has taken it to a whole new level. We’re keeping various frying pans for different reasons, but we’ve gotten rid of just about every other pot. (Because I have a 5 level stackable steaming pot.) Which has freed up a huge amount of space in our pot cupboard. Then we’ve reorganised the drawers next to the cooker. I think we’re the only people we know of with a spreadsheet of what’s in those drawers. They hold everything from baking ingredients to tea and also herbs and spices!

We’ve finished the cereal drawers and started on the big one. Which one of the self-closers was broken so luckily we had a spare set but that means that we have to put both on. Stu’s currently doing that while I’m writing this. Then I think that’s it apart from cleaning off the benchtops. We should get time to take the 2 boxes full to the Salvos but otherwise it’ll have to wait until Tuesday.

Next weekend we get to work on the dining room. Anyone want a great table for DnD? Too big for us! Getting a smaller one but keeping the chairs. A lot cheaper.

If someone writes a book with Dramans in it, please let me know. My notebook with some exclusive notes in it was stolen on the weekend and I haven’t had it returned.

Don’t worry, I’ll write a proper post later this week.

Well, there are times when life sets a challenge for you and this weekend just gone set mine. Everything that happened was my fault but it still made for a less than happy weekend. Here I was excited by a windfall and now it seems the universe is bent on teaching me a lesson.

Hang on. This is me. I like learning! Okay, have learnt lesson. Now let’s get on with life!

I think I’m at the point that a lot of writers get to. Will anyone enjoy this book?

Dark Reign is entirely different to Dark Dimensions and that concerns me a little because I wonder if people are interested in the trans-dimensional travel or how Troy battles a vampire-free world or how much he changes it from its original form.

I find myself wondering what people are truly after in a sequel – more of the same or a completely different type of book. I’m always hoping it’s a completely different book because that’s what Dark Reign is turning out to be.

It has politics, definitely, and battles – but the big – oops, I’ll stop before I give it away.

The main thing is this. Every book is completely different from the one that went before it. And although characters may be the same, the story itself is usually extremely different.

So, I think I’ve spoken before about characters who go off and do things a writer doesn’t plan – or say things a writer doesn’t plan.

I’ve had someone say to me that this can be a good thing. At the very least, the writer is learning more about the characters and can ensure they react more correctly to stimulus (usually nasty situations). Because you have to understand that sometimes, if a character goes off plot, then it means that you’re doing something with them that they don’t want to have happen. (Don’t ask about Troy or Marek, they have their own thoughts on this.)

What we all have to remember is that a character is a person – whether they’re based on someone or not. Although we put them through rigourous testing (situations) that don’t have a history in our own past, their reactions may be a reflection of things we have seen or observed in people around us.

Yesterday, our car was in for some repairs and they needed it all day. Now because of my injured foot (yes, those who went through it last year, same foot, different toe and different injury – although same cause), I didn’t want to spend all day wandering through Perth’s CBD. So we decided to spend the day on the trains.

We took a train as far north as we could go and then a train as far south as we could go before coming back to the city. Which was a great idea as the north and south lines are on the same tracks – no getting off and on trains! But the other interesting thing about doing something like that is the amount of people watching you can do.

There is an immense variety of people who catch trains – those who only get on for 1 or 2 stops, those who hit the doors to get off but then walk down to the next set to disembark and of course, school kids. Rowdy, noisy, nosy and generally unkempt! But full of character, too. Maybe it’s something I should do more often – but take a notebook or tablet computer with me to make notes. Oh, wait – I had a notebook – in the bottom of my backpack somewhere. I know I did …