My writing week (20)

Hi all,

The University of Canberra's writing department has gained a bit of prestige with the winner of the first Prime Minister's Literary Award for fiction being an ex-student. Steven Conte won with a historical novel called The Zookeeper's War. He also did a PhD in literature at Melbourne University. I wonder in any of the teacher's I had for my master's taught him. He's a first time novelist and 42, so good on him to beat the usual bunch of award winners. Incidentally, it took him ten years to write.

Increased hours at work and tired eyes reduced my writing output this week from last week, but my word count was still good compared to previous weeks. I am probably three-quarters of the way through chapter 15, at the "refusal to return" stage. I just looked that up in The Writer's Journey and my main character is about to literally refuse to return. As I have previously said, although I did not plan this novel with the Writers/Heroes' Journey in mind, it is definitely following it.

Unfortuately, I did not finish reading the novel I am critiquing. If work had not interfered I think I would have finished it. I have two chapters yet to read, about 24 pages. Hopefully I will find time this week, but my hours at work are set to be even more this week.

I only managed to read a few pages of a novel and a non-fiction book this week.

And the world didn't end when CERN turned their LHC particle accelerator on, but they are still yet to collide any particles together, I think that occurs sometime in October. I fear death by blackhole a lot less than death from a Putin-McCain confrontation.

Graham.