It's been a frustrating week.

I've wanted to get started on the next section of my manuscript, but craziness in day-job land is taking up all my time and mental energy. It's been a month since I hiked up Mount Wilson and I'm eager to get on the trails again, but my feet have been slow to recover from the workout I put them through. They could really use the approaching winter downtime, but I'd like to get in at least one more trek before the off-season begins. And I've missed my opportunity to participate in the Moorpark Library's upcoming local authors panel. Now I'll have to look into setting up more events on my own.

When I was a kid, my mom told me over and over that "we don't make a big fuss over minor annoyances." And actually, that is a good practice to follow. None of the things tying up my life right now are particularly bad. I'll get through them all with no permanent damage. But they're still annoying.

One good thing that's happened is that I think I've figured out something significant about my writing process. I've always needed to have a general outline of a book before I could write it, but I've realized that as I write the first draft (which I always do in order), I need to work out a much more detailed plan every couple of chapters before I can write them. It's like I need to choreograph the upcoming action in my head, or work out a mental storyboard or something. I noticed it in the Mathematical Nights books because I have to stop and work out a new math problem every chapter or two. Looking back, though, I can see that I've been doing it all along.

Unfortunately, the reason I realized this fact is because I haven't been able to work on the math problem or choreograph the action for my next two chapters, and so the manuscript is currently going nowhere. But that won't last forever. In fact, it might very well clear up before my feet feel completely ready to hike again.