I would LOVE to read whatever you’ve written. Keep going, just keep writing. You can always fix it afterward. Try not to let the editor in you interfere; just churn it out for now!

Great news about the fantasy author! Wish I had one like that – I’m currently working on an autobiog by a dyslexic depressive with a compulsive eating disorder. Light reading it is not…

And no – my NaNo novel is neither HP nor WoT; probably more like a rather more rubbish David Eddings. I thought his books were fantastic when I was about fourteen; now I realise they’re a bit trite and actually rather poorly written. I might send my novel to you to read if I ever get past the point where I can read it myself without wincing.

ARE you writing the next HP/WoT/etc.?? When can I read? And how the blazes are you doing this while editing?

Got a new client today, and a FANTASY author at that! Mind you, she hasn’t finished the novel by a long shot, but she wants me alongside for the entire process. Usually these types scare me off and I decline, saying I only work on finished stuff, but she and I hit it off. And this is after rejecting three previous. Not that I can afford to, but I just for some reason couldn’t make myself do the others. Something about them. And I couldn’t get it together in general, until today.

So I’ll start by reading her first few pages and giving her a sample edit and then we’ll work on this piecemeal, which is actually okay for me right now since I’m at the clinic, and go until she’s done and then we’ll draw up a query letter and so on. I’m quite excited, to be honest, not least because she’s a D&D geek and is playing WoW right now. I thought of you when she told me that. We might even end up playing Diablo III when it comes out, online. God.

Anyway. In a week I’ll be starting a book on WWI soldiers or summat (almost 400 pages!! Yes, I’m lacking in good judgment), and when I’m finished that I should have enough for another ticket to England. I’m hoping to open an account so I can squirrel away some freelance money for next year’s visit…

PS. On Sunday I went to visit my Yorkshire friend (who actually hasn’t lived there in something like 30 years but her accent is as strong as ever) and she made me Yorkshire pudding and mushy peas—like, *real* mushy peas, the Bachelor’s kind that you soak for two hours and then cook till mushy. She says no one she knows likes them. I loved them!! Colin thought they were gross.

PS. http://www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-sha2.htm

I am so ungrounded right now I don’t know which way is up. My greatest accomplishment lately was finding a few old Nancy Drew books I didn’t have to add to my collection. This week I’ll have worked over full-time at the clinic thanks to the high volume of paranoids regarding the blasted (which is not the word I want to use) swine flu, and yes, I’ll call it swine flu and not worry about whether or not that makes people freak out and not want to eat pork even though you don’t get it from eating pork. If they don’t get afflicted with the flu, they’ll find me to contend with otherwise. GRR.

On the other hand, although I resent all the time it’s taking up and I’m especially resentful of even having to work in the first place (the holiday really spoiled me!), these extra hours are making up for the fact that I didn’t get paid while in England.

I’m off to deal with some editing clients myself. I’ve been putting them off and I still want to. Suddenly I feel like a huge fraud. I have no idea how to do a proper query letter and manuscript critique. At least, that’s how I feel. Nor do I want to. Hopefully the client doesn’t end up here and read this comment.

So…how’s it going? And please, please, give me a hint about the story?