Edits and covers and feathers, oh my!

Feather headpiece - Diva
Blouse - thrifted
Dress - vintage (70s Jonathan Logan), thrifted
Shoes - thrifted

Yesterday we went out to the little town in the country where my mum lives. The weather has returned to its semi-autumnal state after the glorious sunshine on Saturday, but I think I photosynthesised enough then to keep me going for a few days.

I'm starting on the edits for The Cry of the Go-away Bird very soon - the marked-up manuscript is in the post and on its way to me! I'm really looking forward to getting stuck in to them ... but I would really love to have the revisions on my current book nearly finished before it arrives, as it will be difficult juggling the two. I am heartily sick of my work-in-progress (which is natural; you always reach this stage), but there is still a lot of work to be done on it.

In other exciting news, my publishers are starting work on the cover design for Go-away Bird this week! I can't wait to see the options. I needed to send them an author photo, and so LOML took some shots for me yesterday while we were visiting Mum. These are my three favourites - it's exciting to think that one of these could, potentially, be looking up at me from a book cover soon!

Plot party!

Friends of ours have recently bought a plot of land outside the city, and are starting to build their own house. They held a 'plot party' - a land-warming - on the property. It was the perfect Saturday afternoon. Despite the forecast being something like 'warm and sunny, with cloudy patches, wind, some rain, changing to cold winds in the afternoon', which basically means 'we have no idea what the weather is going to do, but hurricanes are unlikely', it was a glorious day. The only structure on the land at the moment is the gorgeous old corrugated iron barn: we set up tables and chairs inside it, spread out picnic blankets, got the barbecue going and spent the day eating, drinking, talking and lazing in the sun. And listening to the soothing sound of the neighbouring farmer shooting rabbits. But even that didn't spoil the idyll. My friend Christina and I had great fun playing around in the paddock, too (and it's not often you get to see me play air guitar on this blog!).

The importance of hot beverages

Beret - vintage, thrifted
Trench - thrifted
Dress - 80s, thrifted, altered
Leggings - Glassons
Shoes - No 1 Shoe Warehouse

I have been working in cafes almost every day recently - I go through phases of doing this rather than working at home, particularly when I am feeling a bit Overwhelmed by Life and need to be away from the house. My beverage order at the cafe, however, varies according to mood. To whit:

1. When I'm feeling ferocious and energised ("Right, Book. It's just you and me. Are you feeling lucky? Go on, make my day,") I order a whole pot of plunger coffee meant for two people, and power through it by myself in an hour.
2. When I'm feeling relaxed and thoughtful, ready to consider different possibilities, look at the big picture and be open to change, I order a pot of Earl Grey and sip it slowly, making it last for as long as I can.
3. When I'm horribly stressed and on the verge of a panic attack, I order a chai latte to calm me down and help me concentrate. The scent of cinnamon is very soothing.
4. When I'm depressed and convinced that the book is the Worst Thing Ever Written, I order a hazelnut latte with extra syrup, cream and marshmallows.

This is a digression, but can I just complain very quickly about the lack of table service here? So few cafes do it. It's a real pain having to get up to order another coffee when you're hauling a laptop case and a pile of books around. I don't want to leave my handbag or laptop on the table while I order, because that would just be stupid, but then I have to carry them all up to the counter. And then back again. And someone may have stolen my table in the meantime, even if I have left my coat on the chair or a strategically placed notebook by my empty cup. It is very frustrating. All right, rant over.

Off I go! Today is an Earl Grey day, I think.

P.S. As I mentioned above, I am feeling a bit overwhelmed by current dramas in my life, and I'm afraid I've fallen behind in replying to comments. I do hugely appreciate every comment left, and I apologise for my late response - I'm going to try and catch up this afternoon and tomorrow! Thanks for your patience.
P.P.S. I have all these exciting things I want to tell you, but I can't yet! Some interesting pieces of news will be coming soon, I hope.