My WIP is 62,000 words (and some change). It's not finished, but it's getting closer. This weekend I went to a writing conference and work retreat. Every chance I got, I dropped my butt into a chair and hunched over my laptop. I brought several books along. My usual routine--drink water... write... pee... drink water... write... pee... read... and repeat.
Drinking lots of water as I write helps remind me to get up and run (before the pee runs down my legs).
Unfortunately, one of the books I brought was so good, I did more reading than I planned. Saturday night I stayed up past midnight reading, and ended up with only 50 more pages to read. On Sunday I woke up early and finished it.
At the core of this story are strong women--four of them filling the pages for most of the story, and then a new one appears towards the end. The Invention of Wings is the real-life story of Sarah and Angelina Grimke--two abolitionist and feminist sisters, along with the slave that was given to Sarah as a birthday present when Sarah was a young girl. In reality, the slave girl dies before she becomes a full-fledged adult but Kidd has written a fictionalized version, and it is stunning.
The voices of Sarah and Handful ring so true. Mauma (Handful's mother) is such an engaging character. Not many books drive me to read while my eyes are watering from being overly tired... and yet I continued to read.
It was that good...
On a semi-side note, my WIP is part novel and part cookbook. At the end, I'm including recipes from my made-up writing critique group. If you have an incredible recipe you'd like to send me to include (I'll include your name in the recipe's name), send it to sroslawski@yahoo.com (I've got the directions for some delectable dishes so far).
What accomplishment do you have to celebrate? Confetti-covered minds want to know...
