Writing Update 3/31/13

Another week has passed me by and my fingers have been busy at the keyboard once again. How have I done? Last week I wrote that I needed to write over 20,000 words to finish the second book in my Sci-Fi series. Well, I didn't quite get there. As I write this (on Friday night), I am still 10,000 words short of finishing the draft manuscript. Hopefully by the time the weekend is over I'll only be 4,500 words short. So all in all, not a bad effort.

I started writing the first two books of the NotDone series on February 15th. My expectation is that the second book will be complete on April 3rd. That's 48 days from start to finish for a total of about 84,000 words - or approximately 1,750 words per day. I can be pleased with that effort!

Anyway, I'll end the post with a sneak peek at some raw unedited manuscript. Enjoy and I'll be back to report on my progress next week.

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Effy walked slowly back to her compartment, kicking dust from the edges of the corridors with her boots as she walked. She still ached a little from the explosion the other day but at least she wasn’t as banged up as Chelsea. She muttered a brief prayer of thanks for her friend and turned the corner into the corridor where her shared compartment was. Absentmindedly she reached up for her scarf to pull it free. Yes, she remembered now. She hadn’t managed to find it this morning when she had been looking for it. In fact she hadn’t seen it for a few days, now she thought about it. She racked her brains to try and remember. Of course, the other night. That was the last time she had seen it.

The Mid she had seen had frightened her. Of course she wasn’t going to admit that to him, but he had come from out of nowhere. It was just as well she had finished putting the treasures away in her hiding hole. Perhaps she had dropped her scarf nearby. She had been in a hurry to get away from him. She smiled to herself. He had been scary and handsome at the same time.

Effy took one last look around her compartment before setting out for the abandoned tunnels one more time. She had discovered them purely by accident many months ago one time when she had been out exploring on her own, trying to sort out a few problems inside her head. Since then she had gone back several times.

A few minutes later and she was standing in the corridor that concealed her treasures. She lit a small flashlight and shone it around the floor, looking for her scarf. It was nowhere to be seen. “Damn it,” she said out loud. “I have no idea where else it could be.” She aimed the flashlight at random places on the floor one more time and was just about to return to her compartment when she noticed something out of place. About ten paces in front of her, to her left, was a small pile of scattered dirt. It shouldn’t be there. She always made sure to leave no trace of the holes she kept secret. Quickly she rushed over to the dirt and bent down onto her knees. It was as she suspected; the brick hadn’t been replaced exactly as it should have been. Someone had been here. Damn it. The Mid. There was no other explanation. He must have seen her. Frantically she pulled at the brick, digging at the dirt, until it came free. She put it down beside her and reached a small hand into the hole. Nothing. The hole was empty. It couldn’t be. She pulled her hand free and shone the flashlight inside, peering into it as best she could. No, her teacup and saucer had gone. Of that she was quite sure.

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