February.

Hey gang,

It's been a while, and some of you may have noticed the website update. I've been meaning to do it for a while and update the copy on some of the pages, but with everything I've had going on I've been too busy to dedicate the required hours to do it. However, I currently have the flu and I am through the worst of it but still feeling rotten so I thought I could do it while I feel no pressure and can be gently productive.

I know it's only the start-ish of Feb but so far, 2024 has been really good to me! I've done a hike with a bunch of new people I met through a friend, and explored a new part of the Bristol area, I've been to Stratford-Upon-Avon to see one of my best friends Shannon, I've officially started my half marathon training with my PT, and I got a bunch of PR's in my weightlifting group. I also went to London last week for work and caught up with my pal who I haven't seen in four years, although I'm pretty sure I caught this flu from that trip but it was well worth it to have such a lovely time with my old friend. We had pizza at an Italian place somewhere near Kings Cross and I'll never find it again, knowing me. I've also rallied a bunch of people at work into hiking up Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon) with me in the summer for charity, so I'm also organising that.

Right now, however, I am tucked up in bed in the middle of the day feeling a little bit sorry for myself as the lemsip wears off again. I thought, however, it might be a good time to tell you about the current writing project I have on the go.

It's a novel called 'The Green Skull', and it's inspired by something I wanted to write when I was 19 but didn't have the skills to do it at the time. It's actually the project that inspired me to apply for university, so it's nice to be able to revisit it now over a decade later. It tells the story of a mother and her adult daughter who both believed the other to have died in a terrible event, learning that the other is alive and trying to find each other across countries at war with each other.

I'm currently around 15k words in and as part of my Writing Club's Fantasy February challenge I wanted to double that word count by writing 500 words a day. That would have been easy but it is now the 7th and I have yet to write 500 words at all, let alone per day, but such is the nature of having the flu. I am currently working on the structure of the plot, and have been utilising my handy revision cards and pin board. I'm also splitting it into parts (for now) which is something I've not done before in my own writing, but in my reading of fantasy I really like it.

The most enjoyable thing about working on this project is that for the first time, I'm not overthinking the decisions I make. I don't have time, I have limited time to write and if I waste it overthinking my decisions then I get nothing done. I need to be able to show evidence of being able to work on a longterm prose project in order to be accepted onto the PhD programme (that was the feedback they gave me last year). So when I do get the chance to sit down and write something then I take it.

This has been quite a rambling post, and I'm okay with it - I will provide more in depth updates on my new projects when I am better, it's just nice for me to have finally got the website looking how I want, and the copy a lot better/happier (lol, 2023 was not the happiest year I've had).

See you next time, F x