It’s been far too long between posts so here’s a quick recap of what’s been happening over the past few months and where things are headed.
My partner and I moved from Perth, Western Australia, to Toronto, Canada, in June this year. Why? He was accepted into a two-year fellowship here to complete his medical specialty training and the practical experience is meant to be well worth it. Plus, two years in Canada!
I took leave from my job (two years’ worth, very luck) with enough money coming in from my job (due to excellent leave arrangements) to make us not have to worry about money for a while. After eight years there, it was strange saying goodbye (even if it is temporary), as well as saying au revoir to family and friends (and our cat), packing up and moving halfway around the world.
Me outside the Montreal cemetery. There are surprisingly few photos of me over here.
But we’d be fools not to take this golden opportunity.
In the four months we’ve been here, we’ve settled into Toronto and been taking a few trips out of the city over that time. So far we’ve been to Montreal, Quebec City, Pelee Island, Chicago, New York and Ottawa. More are yet to come so stay tuned.
As well as all the travel I hope we get to do (Canada is such a big place), the time off from my day job should translate into oodles of time to write fiction. Oh, if only it were that easy (and I were that disciplined).
Having said that, after four months of pretty much stagnation, I’ve picked up the pace a bit (going from that of a rock to a snail and edging up to turtle) and getting back into the habit of writing. I’ve got plenty of ideas and more coming all the time – midnight seems to be the most creative, which coincides exactly with when I’m trying to sleep. I’ve been editing bits of a story I wrote last year and adding bits to a story I started at the beginning of this year and only got about a fifth or a quarter of the way through.
NaNoWriMo starts soon and, unlike back home in Australia, the cold weather is coming in, so it is the best time to make a good solid effort at getting a complete book down. I’m not sure whether to keep going with the one I’ve started or begin the sequel to The Beckoning Blood.
The plot for the sequel is coming through in dribs and drabs and I might just have to start writing it to see what happens. The sooner that happens, the sooner I’ll know and can edit accordingly. I have a few days left before I have to make a decision. I like NaNoWriMo for the forced deadline and pseudo-peer pressure it gives.
Other than my writing efforts and various other life things, I’m indulging in a lot of reading, going through books more rapidly than I have in years. It’s actually becoming difficult to decide what to read next.
Really enjoyed reading Daniel Suarez’s Daemon and FreedomTM recently, excellent technological thrillers. Now I’m onto Bridget Jones’s Diary: Mad About the Boy. Quite a shift. I’m definitely not mad about it but it’s an easy read and will be done soon.
So that’s a bit of an update for now. I’m hoping to make it a regular thing, you know, like a blog should be. Any ideas for posts are warmly welcomed.
Oh, and Halloween is coming up, which in North America is meant to be huge. Stay tuned.
Ottawa in the autumn…I mean, fall
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