The Halfway Point

Writing and storytelling have always come naturally to me, so while I know authors who complain about writer’s block, it’s not something I’ve ever experienced myself. That may be because of my years in the small town newspaper business, where you had to get an edition out on the street, and you couldn’t fill it with blank pages because you had writer’s block.

I never have a plot outline when I sit down to write a book, and I usually don’t even know where the book is going. But while I’m working on one book, I always have two or three others rolling around in the back of my head, getting things lined up as to how I think the story will go. But more often than not, that will change when I start writing.

Yesterday was another good writing day for me. The words just kept flowing, almost nonstop, and by the end of the day, I had cranked out another 9,000 words in the first book in my new family saga series. That puts me a little over 50,000 words, which is about the halfway point. I started the book on May 30, so I’m making good time with it. I’m looking forward to seeing how the story is going to go. Hopefully, I’ll be able to get some more done today.

While I was doing all of that, Terry was baking three loaves of her delicious banana nut bread, a loaf of French bread, and then made a wonderful dinner of spaghetti with homemade sausage-tomato sauce. I ate so much I could hardly move.

As for tomorrow, I don’t know what’s going to happen or if I will get any work done at all. I have an appointment at 2 o’clock at Park Place Surgical Center in Maitland, Florida, for the RF nerve ablation on my back that was delayed because of the COVID-19 shutdown. For those not familiar with nerve ablation, they basically insert a needle into your back and then pass a very fine wire through the needle, then send an electrical current through the wire to sever the nerve, preventing the pain signals from reaching the brain. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that this will give me some relief because I certainly need it.

The very nice (and expensive) Lifeform chair I bought last year has helped a lot, and I can now work at my desk for hours in relative comfort. But I still have pain when standing up from a sitting position, or when bending over, and I can’t lie down or get back up without hurting. Rolling over in bed or walking up or down the three steps from one level of our house to the other makes me wince and sometimes snivel. I’m sure Miss Terry is sick of hearing my whining by now. With any luck, this will help.

They tell me the procedure won’t solve my back problems, but it is supposed to give me some relief for a while. I have heard that the procedure may need to be repeated anywhere from a few months to two years later. At this point, I will be grateful for any relief I can get for as long as it lasts.

It’s Thursday, so it’s time for a new Free Drawing. This week’s prize is an autographed copy of Big Lake Blizzard, the fourth book in my Big Lake series. This copy has the original cover before I commissioned Elizabeth Mackey to design all of my book covers. To enter, click on this Free Drawing link or the tab at the top of this page and enter your name (first and last) in the comments section at the bottom of that page (not this one). Only one entry per person per drawing please, and you must enter with your real name. To prevent spam or multiple entries, the names of cartoon or movie characters are not allowed. The winner will be drawn Sunday evening.

Thought For The Day – I was going to take one of those Viking river cruises until I learned that you don’t actually get to pillage the towns and villages along the way.