Day	What	How Much	Pen	Ink
21 February 22 February 23 February 24 February	First draft of “Golden Hour”. Buying some groceries and mentally preparing for second draft.	Five manuscript pages. About $24 worth.	Parker 45 Sheaffer Sovereign II Pelikan P1 PenBBS 487	Montblanc Royal Blue Herbin Lie de Thè Pelikan blue-black TWSBI Royal Purple

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Day	What	How Much	Pen	Ink
14 February 15 February 16 February 17 February	First draft of “Golden Hour”.	Seven and a half manuscript pages.	Pelikan P1 Moonman M2 PenBBS 487 Sheaffer Sovereign II	Pelikan blue-black Diamine Writer’s Blood TWSBI Royal Purple Herbin Lie de Thè

Day	What	How Much	Pen	Ink
7 February 8 February 9 February 10 February	First draft of “Golden Hour”.	Seven manuscript pages.	PenBBS 487 Parker 45 Moonman M2 Pelikan P1	TWSBI Royal Purple Montblanc Royal Blue Diamine Writer’s Blood Pelikan blue-black

Day	What	How Much	Pen	Ink
31 January 1 February 2 February 3 February	First draft of “Golden Hour”. Some New Year arting. Buying yet more bird food. See Monday	Three manuscript pages. Below… 20 kg. The same	Pelikan P1 TWSBI Diamond 580 ALR Lamy 2000 Moonman M2	Pelikan blue-black Herbin Rouge Hematite Edelstein Topaz Diamine Writer’s Blood

On the subject of bird seed– it’s been below -25 the past three days (normal February stuff, here), and birds eat a lot to avoid turning to feathery lumps of ice. That bag may last a week.

The progress on the story seems slight, but compared to the whole of last year, I’m pretty happy about it. The deadline is not frightening me yet.

And finally– Merry Water Tiger, all. Tuesday’s pen and even more the ink was chosen specifically for the day, and I was taken with an urge to do a bit of art with them. I share, with the proviso that I make no claims to skill in graphic arts (that’s my brother’s department).

I am not a cat (a statement which is true in at least three separate ways)

Day	What	How Much	Pen	Ink
24 January 25 January 26 January 27 January	A story outline for an anthology for which I was invited† to contribute. Collecting my van from its alternator surgery. “The cats are out of food.” The barest beginning on “Golden Hour”, the story mentioned above.	(What I think was†) an extremely persuasive 500 words or so. $600. Sigh. Three ravenous moggies.‡ Two manuscript pages	Pelikan M30  Parker 45 Moonman M2  Lamy 2000	Diamine Honey Burst Montblanc Royal Blue Diamine Writer’s Blood Edelstein Topaz

† Yes, I’m very excited about this. Also, the editor I sent the outline to seemed very enthusiastic about it, so my self-assessment may be accurate.

‡ The smallest of our cats is large. The biggest encroaches upon Maine Coon dimensions. It’s really in our own best interests to keep them in food.

“People are made of… it starts with an M… rhymes with ‘eat’?”

Negligent? Tuckered Out!

Day	What	How Much	Pen	Ink
28 June 29 June 30 June	First draft of “Anne’s Big Day”.	Six manuscript pages (and probably three more to done).	Waterman Executive Platinum Curidas Lamy 27	Edelstein Olivine Platinum blue-black Diamine Writer’s Blood

Yeah… I kind of missed the film last week, didn’t I? A sign of how damn tired I am from The Regular Job’s demands, which over the past two weeks have been enhanced by a self-inflicted demand to make sure the people who are looking after my usual duties have an easy go of things.

I am, at least, taking a good long break– I don’t put rump to office chair again until 19 July. I also don’t have a lot of projects in mind for the vacation period other than writing and some personal pen-work, which is good, because that mass of killingly-hot air which has been afflicting the north-west coast of the continent will arrive here… sometime tomorrow.

Although it will have shed some heat along the way, for which I am extremely grateful.

Here’s two films because there wasn’t one last week: One jolly interesting and one quietly amusing.

I don’t expect to be making up any entertainment deficits when I return, because I know my limitations. See you in three weeks, everyone, unless I melt in the interim.

Day	What	How Much	Pen	Ink
10 May 11 May 12 May 13 May	A story best thought of as carb cleaner for my writing engine. A probably over-ambitious edit on “Legion of Candles”.	Nine pages! Needs to be under 5000 by month end, currently… 6008. *gulp*	PenBBS 500 Pelikan 140 Pilot Vanishing Point OMAS Arte Italiana	TWSBI Blue Monteverde Malibu Blue Namiki Black† Diamine Honey Burst

Yes, indeed; production! I won’t tempt fate by proclaiming myself cured, especially with a story I don’t expect to ever see the light of day, but there’s a glimmer of optimism to be seen.

†You won’t actually find this on the linked page (yet) but… I mean, it’s black ink. One is very like another.

Day	What	How Much	Pen	Ink
3 May 4 May 5 May 6 May	A very little work on the website	Most of the stuff I’ve been saying I’d update.	OMAS Arte Italiana Sheaffer Balance Craftsman PenBBS 500 Sailor Pocket Pen	Diamine Honey Burst Diamine Writer’s Blood TWSBI Blue Jentle blue-black

Day	What	How Much	Pen	Ink
26 April 27 April 28 April 29 April	“Willful Murder” (working title). Something I’ll present tomorrow	4 manuscript pages (again?!). Simultaneously more and less effort that you’d think.	PenBBS 500† Pelikan 140 OMAS Arte Italiana Sheaffer Balance Craftsman	TWSBI Blue Monteverde Malibu Blue† Diamine Honey Burst† Diamine Writer’s Blood†

† So, clearly I didn’t get any updates on the site on the weekend. I got distracted by the possibilities of…

OK, it’s a little circuitous. My wife acts, and since the provincial government chased film production out of the province a few years ago, she’s been concentrating on the stage. This outlet to her creativity was somewhat stifled by the current plague, since live theatre is exactly the sort of thing the phrase “super-spreader” was invented for.

The theatre has decided to push on with the new season, though, and my wife has been cast in a leading role. How this? They’re presenting Sorry, Wrong Number in its original format– a radio play. I will, of course, offer a link when the play goes public; the “no public gatherings” command has been turned into a disadvantage, as local theatre goes online and global.

I’ve been on the fence about getting a (somewhat) decent microphone, and this has pushed me over the edge. Our Yeti Snowball arrived this week… but that’s just the catalyst. Since I’m having trouble wringing words out of my head, I’m spreading out into other media.

…and I’ll roll some of that out tomorrow.

Day	What	How Much	Pen	Ink
19 April 20 April 21 April 22 April	“Willful Murder” (working title)	4 manuscript pages (like pulling teeth, it is!).	Sailor Pocket Pen PenBBS 500† Pelikan 140 Sheaffer Balance Craftsman	Jentle blue-black TWSBI Blue Monteverde Malibu Blue† Diamine Writer’s Blood†

† I am going to try to get a load of updates to the site complete this weekend, because this is getting silly and I really want everyone to see what Writer’s Blood looks like– it’s an amazing dark burgundy. I say “try” because a large chunk of my Saturday is taken up with a meeting of the Sask Writers Guild board meeting.