Exhausted, writing a novel and reading

Exhausted and everything is going wrong

I’m having one of those lifetimes where I’m exhausted and everything seems to be going wrong. First struggling with the internet, then the television went wrong and now the freezer. Things happen in three’s, and does the internet count? I’m fearful for what is going to break next. Our plasma television is with the ‘Currys Know how’ team, two men took it away and didn’t put anything on it to protect it. Yes, their van did say ‘Know how’ so not two random men.

I’m sitting here, thinking about my issues, exhausted after doing the two-school run again, and I’ve just baked a birthday cake  for my husband’s birthday tomorrow.

I’ve been too tired to look at my novel. I’ve talked about it, but I haven’t turned on my laptop to write in days. I know the longer I leave it the harder it’s going to get. Its lovely when people appear interested in it, but it is one thing talking about it and another writing it.

My writing

I’m trying to get myself out of my writing funk, I’ve been sat here with my notebook. I had planned to write things down. At 75000 words I need to work out where the story is headed and where it is going to end. I feel like that the hill I’m climbing is getting ever steeper.

I’ve been asked what my protagonists’ journey is and how she has changed over the course of the book. I’m the author, I should know that answer, but instead I’m blank. I don’t know is not a good answer, I need to work it out, there is a lot I need to work out.

My reading

With feeling exhausted, my reading has fallen by the wayside. I’m still reading ‘GX Todd’s Hunted’ , I need to finish it as part 3 ‘Survivors’ is out at the end of the month. Life has been so busy that shutting myself away in a room with my book is not happening. As I’ve said before with my Kindle I can read in the dark, to the early hours, I can’t do this with a paperback.
Also, because my novel is Science fiction, I’m aware that I need to read more of the genre. To be honest I have read very little Science Fiction and it scares me when I hear real hardened Science Fiction experts tear apart a story.

The technicalities of time travel are unknown to me. My novel is not meant to be a satire, I want it to be believable, but how can it be believable when it involves time travel?  A friend said about hard Sci Fi and soft Sci FI, this is definitely soft Sci Fi. With a hard Sci Fi novel, I am completely confused by the technicalities, I’m lost when my lap top refuses to work, let alone understand fully about worm holes and time. I’m hoping that my readers will forgive this and just enjoy the book without it needing to be completely believable.

Life and children

Until you start to write a full-length novel you don’t appreciate what an awesome task it is and how mentally exhausting it is.

On top of the novel are my husband, our children, their reading and schoolwork, then my job and life. Yesterday I finished work late, then both children refused to read to daddy. It is no wonder that I am exhausted. My daughter then insisted on copying her reading book, word for word. It was good practice for her writing skills, but bad for my patience. 18.30 and I knew I still needed to hear my eight-year-old and eat dinner. 19.00 and the book was still not read, finally by 19.45 she had read it and I then had to sit with my son. Why are children so awkward? I’m pleased that they do both work hard and they did both read eventually but why make it all such a struggle?

Ways out of this spiral

1. Give up, call it a day and just go back to bed
2.  Shut out the family, lock the bedroom door and read
3. Ignore advice of other writers and keep writing

If these are not options

1. Try and stay positive, focus on how far you have come, rather then how far you have to go.
2.  Cuddle up with the family and enjoy them now. There is no race with the book, it will be written when you are ready.
3.  If you can, try and write something everyday. Whether it be your novel, notes for your novel, a blog post or short story.
4.  If you can, it is important to read (thought I am failing miserably at this.)  Books will help to fuel ideas for your writing.  Reading within the genre you are writing helps you to understand what is expected by readers of the genre.  It also gives you greater awareness of what has already been written.
5.  Don’t give up, keep writing and improving and one day you will get there.  If it takes years that is fine, there is no race.

Facebook live

Here are my Facebook lives from the last week.

Late blog post today – 1st October 2019

Today and new Ruby and Freda short story – 4th October 2019

Today

I have baked a chocolate cake for hubby’s birthday tomorrow. Again, no novel writing going on. I’m wondering when I will reach 80 000 words as right now, I seem to have ground to a halt.

I had the two school pick up today, I was grateful that one is 15.00 and the other is 16.00. Right now, exhaustion is taking over and I could really have done with more sleep rather than baking and being mum’s taxi.

Maybe tonight I might go to bed early, I think sleep would do me good.

For more see, The curse of self doubt, writing and children