7 Quick Takes – Buckingham Palace, Bowling and (not) Bothering

Join us at ConversionDiary for the highlights of our weeks.

~1~

So. It’s been a week since I returned from Dubai, and, uh, I’ve still not written anything about it, have I? Sorry about that. I’ve not even sorted my photo album yet. I actually planned to write something about my scant activities, but I’ve had posts backed up. Not that I matter that.

~2~

What have I been doing? Not much, actually, but that’s the way I like it. A friend shared with me this list of introverts’ qualities and it does highlight some of the reasons I prefer my laptop to the great outdoors (when I’m indoors. Sorry. It’s complicated.).

~3~

Actually, I went to the ‘tour’ around the State Rooms of Buckingham Palace on the 12th. These open for about two to three months every summer. We weren’t allowed to take photos, obviously, but I did Instagram this snap, though, once we were in the garden and on our way out.

I liked going ‘round the State Rooms for their inspiration for setting and the look into the timeline of the English royals. In fact, I’d go to any stately house for its relevance to novel research. Later, the bus took us to Windsor, which surprised me by being a much smaller town than I expected, but, whilst the castle was closed, it was nice to see the exterior of the place.

~4~

To occupy my time but not my brain, I’ve been watching daytime television, things like Countdown and Come Dine With Me. Sounds strange, but actually, I like watching cooking shows. Some are inspiring, but mostly it’s convincing me that it’s easy to do these things. I’ve become one of those people who procrastinate due to fear.

~5~

We also went bowling at the weekend, which was a nice distraction, but it’s certainly not something at which I have skill or revel. I guess one can count bowling as a sport, and I’ve never been a sports person. I’d use the excuse of hurting my wrist on one of my first goes, but… My bowl was just too curved, and I didn’t care enough to compensate.

~6~

On the other hand, it’s going to be a busy week for me coming up. I’m going back to Reading tomorrow for a friend’s birthday, so writing will be quiet at the weekend, and I’m still trying to sort out the rest of the week. We’ll see how things go.

~7~

Have I been writing this week? A little. Not much. I’m not too concerned with the first draft of my contemporary novel. It needs some lightning inspiration, the kind I had with my steampunk novel, and, at the moment, I don’t have the emotional energy to deal with anything in a contemporary feel.

I’ve been editing, though, and that’s…going well? Slowly, but then I’m not a quick editor.

Chapter 13, and I’m missing a paragraph or two.