Back to the wild river

Just before dusk. Whatever time of year, they congregate in small groups to head into town and join the massive gathering at the piers.

As if someone clicked fingers, they surge into the aerial choreography they are famous for. And just as abruptly settle down to rest. A wonderful display for us. For them, it's just a getting ready for bed routine, same as any other day.

While it feels great to have passed the 50,000 word target in this year's Nanowrimo, it feels even better to just get back to what I always do - write words on pages with a pen. Back to the wild river, then. Phew! It feels so good.

Thanks to everyone who has supported my Nano progress this month. Ax

Within reach

Feels like I'm starting to see the daylight again. 46, 743 words have taken their toll. But feels like I'm within reach of the target of 50,000. Once I'm past that, I'm going to have another novel free day. And beyond that? Slow down!!

I can feel myself running out of steam and I've developed a cough that frightens the birds away. Guess it's not helped by being indoors typing typing typing! The only thing for it, if I can stay awake, is to stroll the beach and touch the kind of mindless drift that waits for me there.

Great timing that the Pigbaby poetry festival starts in town tonight. Sure to spark off a few interesting ideas. If I retain my voice I'll be putting my name on the open mike list to read something recently penned. So, if you're in Brighton, why not come and hear a whole range of poets and poetry?

Wordcount - 46743

Last line - She comes through the crowd, looking for someone, seeking them out like a beast snuffles for truffles or acorns in an oak wood bedded with dry golden leaves.

Red tab

It's a complicated. You have all these jigsaw pieces littering your floor and no picture to help you. Some pieces fit snugly together, create a sense of a bigger scene. It threads out and away into another room so it's impossible to get an overview. A few other pieces are shaped differently, more angular, cut from different board. You like them, but they might even be from another jigsaw.

In progress, my sketchy new novel. I was trying to do this year's Nanowrimo differently. Trying to avoid the chaos that has run through my other tries and attempting to learn new things about writing a large work as I go. However, it seems like the words are on the run and loving every minute. And I'm weary, sitting in the middle of the floor surrounded by all those jigsaw pieces, wondering how to ever make them all fit.

So it was interesting yesterday, when the tiredness got to me, that a new character breezed in like a red tab on empty pages and before I knew it, I had written another 4 pages of text. I promptly went for a walk by the sea and fell asleep in a rare glimpse of the sun.

36051 words so far.

Last line - Something church-like about the resonance, as if the walls are still humming every sound they ever heard.

Boneshakers

Some people preferred to ignore the whole mutual admiration proceedings and got back to their novel.

Who could blame them? 60 miles from London to Brighton in an old boneshaker probably made it impossible to read on the way.

Every November, the members of the Royal Automobile Club hold their annual run down to Brighton. And now that I live just 87 steps away from the finish line I have no excuses not to go. Spectators line the route for most of the way on the back roads as the cars reach top speeds of about of 25mph and attempt to whizz past like Toad of Toad Hall. Some are still powered by steam, many required a bit of a rebuild on the way, hopefully near a nice country pub that brought them a cheese sandwich and a pint of shandy. All you old car buffs need to take a look here.

If you'd like to join them, please note that your car has to have been manufactured before 1905 to qualify! Most are polished and decked out to perfection.

I love the battered ones as well as the shiny ones. A few are for sale. Nice purchase if you have a heavy piggy bank and a barn to keep your precious car in.

You could always ride down on your Penny Farthing......

Or drive down in your road engine.....

And after a race to the sea, many of them can't make it home again, so have to be hauled onto trucks and trailers just like this one!

Like the girl in the first photo, I have a novel to get back to. Great to have a few distractions on Sunday and Monday before I resumed the wordrush.

Wordcount is 21657.

Last line - Never practice music in a room with a view.

Strange tilt

The world has taken on a strange tilt. Reason being, I'm bleary-eyed after writing so many words these last few days. Today, a wave of tiredness hit me, left me brain dead and asking - Sketching a novel in 30 days? Am I insane? All because of Nanowrimo. Yes. And I chose to do it for a reason that seems to escape me at the moment.

11008 words so far. Another 800 or so in my notebook waiting to be typed into the computer and added to that total. A job for tomorrow, I think.

Happy that I reached my 10,000 by Saturday aim.
Daunted by how much more I need to write.
Aching across my shoulders. Typing and playing the violin are a bad combination, obviously. They do sound quite good together, though. (Groan. See what's happened to me?)
Hopeful that it will feel better again in a couple of days.
Looking forward to well-earned day off writing on Monday.

Today's last line - In that simple village hall, how many shoes have been worn out? How many fiddle strings?