Writing in the Time of Coronavirus

That's my desk and my Monster.
Hands OFF the Monster!

Slacking is what my marketing guru jokingly called me today as we were discussing my next newsletter. She wasn’t wrong. I’ve had a ton of stuff that I needed to do and simply haven’t done it. The novelty of working from home hasn’t quite worn off yet.

I’m extremely thankful that my job is one that: A) allows me to work from home; and B) allows me to work fulltime. I’m deeply concerned about all the friends, family, and acquaintances who have reported diminished or lost income due to the current global health crisis.

So, a quick update on what’s going on with me.

First, I was sick. It wasn’t Covid-19, but I’m extremely happy that my manager allowed me to start working from home nearly a full week before the orders in California came down strongly recommending stay-at-home. I was down for a good two weeks, and we had an interesting time getting DayQuil from the stores. Totally understandable given the panic that ensued the following week.

I’m better now.

I don’t love my desk, though. At one point, I became obsessed with rolltop desks, and through a friend in the furniture business, acquired one. It’s big, heavy, and hard to move around. It’s also dark under the hood.  It’s nice enough, and I’m happy to have it at all to work on. Set up was pretty quick once I headed home. All it took was a reasonably cheap monitor for me to hook my laptop into, and I was set. It took more time to clean off and clean out the rolltop desk than it did to actually set up my computer and get rolling.

I’m rolling now.

What a lovely bookmark!

Projects are apace. The Constable Aubrey novella—did I mention there’s a novella?—is still with my publisher for review. The audio version of THE CLOCKWORK DETECTIVE is moving forward. The same goes for the audio version of TEARS OF HEAVEN. I’m hoping to have more news for everyone in the coming months. Fingers crossed! I ran out of bookmarks from the Dickens' Festival in February, so I just ordered more. Those should be here in a couple weeks.

Books are still being written.

Work continues on the Marrin stand-alone book, the Jane stand-alone book, and the next Constable Aubrey novel. That is to say nothing is really happening. Bits and pieces of dialogue and scene description come to me from time to time, but actually sitting down, banging out the witty and the deep like I normally do when I’m on self-established deadlines. Rest assured, there will be more books, and they will be coming soonish if not soon.

Stay safe!

Above all, keep listening to the experts and following the advice being given. We’re still in the opening stages of this thing, and an abundance of caution is well warranted. It’s crazy to think that washing hands is one of the best things we can do—it almost seems TOO easy. But it’s true. My buddy, Dr. Rick, explained this too me repeatedly, and constantly urges me to continue the habit. Stay safe!