On Tuesday I started a script - a short script, maybe a radio script. It has nothing to do with the M-book. But I had inspiration around another setting and wanted to capture it on the page. So I did. The only relationship it bears to the project is that it is writing and it is about writers.
On the project itself, I feel like I am making no progress. A more accurate description is that I'm making very slow progress, which sometimes feels like nothing. But this is a stage I know I must go through before I can move to the next draft.
I am reading the entire manuscript, as is, from beginning to end. I am trying to not edit as I go; reading for where it is now, making notes. I bought large supply of sticky notes because there are some things I want to be able find easily. Some places need only notes on the page, or perhaps in another document - a running list of sorts, perhaps, but not yet. But I'm a fan of sticky notes as a way to get back to a place more quickly.
I bought colored sticky notes because color coding works well for me; at other times in my left I've been called the Color Coding Queen and I'm okay with that. I created color coded systems when I was stage manager and ran lights for theatrical productions. There are things in the M-book I need to monitor in terms of repetition, the appearance of people/stories/places, which time period sections (chapters?) belong to, eek the gaps or missing transitions. Having a quick glance color system will help me with the flow of the story and events in addition to clearly marking the places where I need something more or have a piece which needs to be moved.
I also bought a new pen. A colored pen and, no, it is not red. I opted for purple. Solid, regal, it will stand out on the page and I like purple. After I bought the pens, I thought, just for fun, I'd look up some meanings of purple and, yes, I have confirmed this is a good color for making notes in the memoir :
According to Emily Gems:
Put some violet in your life when you want:
- to use your imagination to its fullest
- to re-balance your life
- to remove obstacles
Purple pens, multicolored sticky notes, a fresh printing of the book (don't worry, I promise to reuse every page; but I work best with the physical pages for notetaking at this stage), a pack of bubble gum, Lindor 90% dark chocolate, a new batch of cold brew decaf in the works and another quart already in the fridge. I'm diving into the next stage, the next draft - after I finish reading this one.
