More of the same, but a little different.

I've been busy over the last six months, which is why you haven't see very many blog entries. My father has dementia, and other profound ailments that have rendered him unable to walk. My siblings and I cared for my Dad, me staying overnight with him a few nights a week. Also, I'm available for any other times when my siblings can't cover it.

    Dad cannot be left alone now. These days he can't even shift himself in bed, I have to move him. He's literally helpless as a baby. The dementia makes him hallucinate, and sometimes forgets he can't walk. I know that sounds weird, but if one of us doesn't watch him, he's liable to walk up the steps to go to bed and instead have a terrible fall. His mind simply ignores or blocks the pain, even though his one knee is bone on bone. With his heart, doctors have ruled out any knee replacement surgery.

    I became disillusioned with my novel and changed my whole approach to writing. Now I outline everything. (Yes, this too.) An outline is necessary to corral my imagination. Description being important in fiction, as everybody knows, my problem is writing descriptions that become plot points. Then I feel obligated to describe it every scene thereafter. That's turning description into a set piece, then turning the set piece into a plot point. Or you could think of it as taking a wrecking ball to the book. As a result, my novel went in many directions and becomes unwieldy. The one draft was over 600 pages, the second was on a pace to reach 800 before I quit. I proved I'm not a lazy writer, but I've said that before. It wasn't that I was too lazy to outline, either. I couldn't make an outline work prior to this. Yet, after writing every day for years, outlining has been very easy.

    I am going to get book done, along with all the short stories I have in the pipeline. Maybe I became discouraged for a while, I admit, but I've come through it and I'm ready to turn pro.