A happy new year, a merry Christmas, etc. usf. usw. I haven’t worked on any creative projects, excepting my band, since before December. In the second to last post I detailed how I thought I’d figured out a way to save my novel; well, I began implementing that, and I wrote the first act, around 25,000 words, before Christmas. Then I took a nice long break from everything because I felt like I was burning out pretty savagely from that, my music projects, the novel, the video game, the trillion other thoughts bouncing around in my head. And then January has been so nuts at work since I came back from Christmas, I’ve not done anything there, either.

Until now. I started writing the second act earlier this week, and I’m reasonably certain everything is now working and that I have structure for the novel which actually works. The opening act is similar, but condensed, with more action, and plot points that actually speak to the characters’ motivations rather than just scenes of them standing around discussing stuff and not actually being active at all. Also, they encounter the antagonists much earlier on again than they did in the last version, which I prefer; there’s something interesting about having an antagonist who only appears towards the end, like a Big Bad type thing, but it wasn’t working in the context of my manuscript. The second act starts from Mo’s perspective, and starts to reveal internal factions within the antagonists, further complicating the kids’ situation. I’m only a few hundred words in, but by the time I finish his chapter, the kids should have a decent understanding of their enemy, their potential allies, and what they need to do next.

There hasn’t been a devlog in a few months because I’ve done nothing to the game since I got my first working prototype done back in November. It’s a bit dumb because I’ll probably have forgotten absolutely everything I learned about G script and video game coding, but whatever - I can always relearn it. I did recruit a writer to help me do some side content, a talented girl I know from work, and while we’ve not brainstormed anything yet, we’re planning on doing a monthly meeting to motivate each other to write/code, and maybe talk about where she could help me, if she has the time.

That’s it, creatively. Still recording material with my band, still writing new songs for them. I FINALLY finished laying a new kitchen floor - it’s only taken me like six months to get it done - and it’s the best feeling ever having a nice, new, shiny, cheap, but most of all clean, floor in there. I also bought myself an enormous Modigliani print which I framed and put up above the sofa; I love it, it’s one of my favourites of his (my actual favourite I unfortunately couldn’t find), and it’s certainly going to be a talking point when I have guests over.

So that’s my new year update, thirty days too late. But like I said, I’ve been busy. I’ll check back in the next time I do - well - anything, really.

Remember to wash your hands.