As reported yesterday, I am editing my novel and I spent the morning changing sentences, not changing sentences, adding words in, taking words out and reminding myself of all my characters (I haven’t been in this particular book for a little while). I suppose I am doing, what is known in the trade, as a line edit but I also know I have to do some more developmental stuff. This includes, increasing the depth of at least some of the characters and readdressing the ending.
So, how do I get to creative swimming? Well after a few hours of editing, I headed off to the pool to get that all important exercise in. I will return to the exercise in a little while, but I can report that I spent the whole of my session, thinking about the super powers and flaws of some of the characters. These thoughts were driven by having to address the ending in the book. If I cut a certain element out (which I think I have to), how would it impact on the emergence of ‘The Mandrake Agency’ and, in turn, the characters that will go forward into new adventures? You see, creative swimming.
I was terrified I would lose my valuable thoughts between the pool and getting back to Scrivener to record them. My tactic was to keep repeating the thoughts over and over, like a PIN number you need to remember. When I reached the car, I recorded my garbled message on to Voice Notes. The next challenge will be now translate them back into words on the page.
I said I would come back to the exercise thing. I am sure that the swimming is doing me good but yesterday, I tweaked my lower back as I was plodding up and down the pool. I felt it tension in that last few lengths and it refused to relax in the sauna or with stretching. The reason I share this is because the ‘Experts’ continually say that exercise is the only way to get better from these things, in my case today, sciatic pain. I know there is something more wrong with those joints in my back than a good stretch/ therapeutic exercise can help with, but at the moment, the only response I am getting from the doctors is ‘can you take your blood pressure for the next seven days’ (of course communicated by text because why would a doctor from my surgery want to have actual human communication – can you see me shrugging again?). Yes, I can and will take my blood pressure for the next seven days but this is not addressing the constant pain I have had for nearly two years now -arghhhhh! Yes, exercise is part of the solution but only when the actual problem is identified and acutely treated.
The blood pressure will definitely be up!