Out of the woods

Good news all. After a week in the woods, I have emerged with six chapters written.

What I need to do now is keep up the momentum I've created and not let work take over again. It's back to the grind tomorrow, and I hope that it won't end in another three month long dry spell. I think the hubby and I have created a plan though to prevent it. Every second weekend we'll try and slip away.

Yes, I said we. Because the only downfall of my week was the realization that I don't like spending nights alone in the wild anymore. Before I met my hubby I was quite the independent lady. In fact, I once went to my parent's cabin alone for almost two months! Then I fell in love, got used to having him with me wherever I went, and Voila. Eight years pass and I find myself alone in the woods, terrified at the slightest creak and shimmy. Needless to say, the remedy for this was to have Reg come up to the cabin every night. Good for me. Bad for him. I'm a very lucky woman to have a man like him in my life.

So aside from the scary nights, here's a quick rundown of how a day progressed.

I'd get up around 8, make coffee and have some grapefruit. Take a quick scroll through what I'd written the day before. If it wasn't snowing or raining I'd walk down to the pond with the camera to see if I could spot the two ducks that had holed up in the little bit of the pond that wasn't frozen.

Back at the cabin, I was working at the kitchen table. One thing I discovered was that a lack of distraction is wonderful. No TV. No internet. Just me, some music, a vase of tulips and a lovely view. I'd sit and write, whole scenes jumping out of my head, onto the page. One thing I didn't do was sit and stare at each sentence, reworking it over and over.

My goal for this trip was to get as much of the story out of my head as possible. There'll be lots of editing and tweaking to come, I assure you. But now at least I have a clearer idea of what's happening, who my main characters are, what makes the chemistry between them work, why they care for each other, what is the primary obstacle that they need to overcome. With each day came new ideas, whole chapters coming alive.

It was a heavenly week. I proved that I can make progress on this, and I have a better idea of what's happening next. I need to stay out of the over-thinking pit, at this stage at least. There'll be lots of time for that once I have a complete draft in front of me. For now, I'm just going to write whatever comes to me. It seems to be working that way.

All I need is some peace and quiet, a pretty view, and a good husband not too far away come night fall.