I have a bunch of P-Con stories I want to tell, but I need to get away from the computer, and I fear that by the time I’m willing to come back and blog a lot I’ll have forgotten them. That, though, is a price I may be forced to pay, because I don’t want to be at the computer any more right now and am planning a Ludicrous Speed Writing Blitz over the next three days, which will not make me want to blog. Even as a procrastinatory technique. I’m pretty sure of it.

I’m at 106K on this book, and I still have somewhere between 40 and 70,000 words left. I can say with great confidence that the book will not reach 200K. I can say with somewhat less confidence that it won’t reach 180K. Short of that, though, all bets are off. (My editor’s going to kill me.)

But this morning, for the first time on this book, I had a flash of “the end is in sight!” It’s still a long damned way away, but there is a tiny bit of light at the end of the tunnel. I saw it, however briefly, and I am *glad*. I think that’s part of what’s inspired me to dig in and make a headlong rush for Ludicrous Speed. That, and, as I said at the con this weekend, I am not Douglas Adams. I do not love the whooshing sound deadlines make as they go rushing by. And this one rushed by two months ago. *grits teeth*

(I am, in fact, just about *exactly* as far behind as my injured hand took to heal. The only good thing in any of this is I did get HANDS OF FLAMES revisions /and/ line edits done, so those aren’t hanging over my head in any way while I try to finish this book.)

Arright. Off to get away from the computer. With any luck, tomorrow’s posting will represent a major jump in my YTD wordcount. And, um, also a major jump in the book’s wordcount…

ytd wordcount: 122,600
miles to Minas Tirith: 235.4