My other life

My normal pattern of working on The Novel, so far, is to have a few days or weeks of progress, and then anything up to several months of a more or less predictable mood arc, stretching from intense self-satisfaction, through optimism, unfocused determination, niggling frustration and curtain-chewing irritability, finishing up with a feast of self-excoriation in glum sauce, served on a bed of blank and soul-crumpling despair - at which point the only way to make myself feel better is to open the fucking file and add to it already.

I think I'm currently at the "niggling frustration" stage, and I'm trying hard to short-circuit the rest of the cycle. (My curtains won't stand much more abuse.) It would be nice, for once, not to have to reduce myself to a tearful, sleep-deprived heap before I'll go near the beast again.

So, a two-pronged attack: (1) Attempt to avoid, for as long as possible, the equation of Not Writing with Bad Radzer - because that's completely counterproductive. (2) Institute a reward system, say per 1000 words. Ideas welcome!

(And it'll get done. Eventually. And really, when it comes down to it, on the grand scale of things, who - other than me, and I'm biased - gives a fuck whether I finish my novel in 2003 or 2004 - or 2010?)

Chuckle

Go and read ailbhe's Reflections on housekeeping.

Just do.

Word of the morning

postliminy n: The right of returned exiles, prisoners, etc., to resume their former status; the right by which persons or things taken in war are restored to their former status.

On the knowledge of one's limitations

Cú Chulainn, near death, places his hand on his heart and says, "I give my word and I swear by the gods of the air, that I did not know until today that it was not a heart of stone or bone or iron that was within me, and if I had known that it was a heart of blood or flesh that was in me, I would not have done half of the valour of the deeds that I did."

Sometimes I know how he feels.

(The passage is from Aided Con Culainn, quoted and translated by Liam Mac Mathúna in the paper I'm proof-reading this morning.)

Unable to resist...

Why you would want to know the following is unclear to me, so let's say this is for my own edification in years to come:

( The BBC 100 best-loved books thing )