Sunday Circle

The Sunday Circle is the weekly check-in where I ask the creative-types who follow this blog to weigh in about their goals, inspirations, and challenges for the coming week. The logic behind it can be found here. Want to be involved? It’s easy – just answer three questions in the comments or on your own blog (with a link in the comments here, so that everyone can find them).

After that, throw some thoughts around about other people’s projects, ask questions if you’re so inclined. Be supportive above all.

Then show up again next Sunday when the circle updates next, letting us know how you did on your weekly project and what you’ve got coming down the pipe in the coming week (if you’d like to part of the circle, without subscribing to the rest of the blog, you can sign-up for reminders via email here).

MY CHECK-IN

What am I working on this week?

My check-in will be a little short this week, on account of a horrible cold that is making staring at a screen less fun than usual. But once I’m up and about again, this week will be about the thesis prospectus and a small pile of post-its full of instructions after talking to my supervisor on Friday.

What’s inspiring me this week?

The penultimate episode of Riverdale hit Netflix on Friday and I officially give up trying to predict what’s going on in that show. Their ability to ratchet up tension in slightly unexpected ways is fantastic, even as the show itself revels in the fact that it’s cheese. Easily the most interesting TV show I’ve seen in years.

What part of my project an I avoiding?

Going by my habit of going “I’ll cancel the next thing on my schedule, but maybe I’ll make the one a few hours later,” admitting that I’m sick and probably not going to get a lot done 🙂

The Sunday Circle is the weekly check-in where I ask the creative-types who follow this blog to weigh in about their goals, inspirations, and challenges for the coming week. The logic behind it can be found here. Want to be involved? It’s easy – just answer three questions in the comments or on your own blog (with a link in the comments here, so that everyone can find them).

After that, throw some thoughts around about other people’s projects, ask questions if you’re so inclined. Be supportive above all.

Then show up again next Sunday when the circle updates next, letting us know how you did on your weekly project and what you’ve got coming down the pipe in the coming week (if you’d like to part of the circle, without subscribing to the rest of the blog, you can sign-up for reminders via email here).

MY CHECK-IN

What am I working on this week?

Setting aside creative work entirely this week and focusing on getting the rough draft of my Thesis Prospectus written. It’s not a big document – just 4,000 words – but that’s a deceptively short amount given what I’m trying to pack into it (and my lack of familiarity with the format/voice required after nearly a decade away from academia).

What’s inspiring me this week?

As you can probably guess from Friday’s post, I’ve been enjoying James Ellroy’s Black Dahlia this week, and in particular the first four chapters. The write-up of the boxing match is incredible and I’ll probably spend the next few weeks pulling it apart so I can better understand the blocking and techniques that went into making it so good.

What part of my project an I avoiding?

Not my project, inherently, but my sleep schedule has gone to hell over the last few days, which is probably a sign of how much I really, really dislike the idea of doing the prospectus write-up. Much as I love the research side of the thesis, and banging on about literary theory in general, I still really dislike the writing-up and assessment side of things.

The Sunday Circle is the weekly check-in where I ask the creative-types who follow this blog to weigh in about their goals, inspirations, and challenges for the coming week. The logic behind it can be found here. Want to be involved? It’s easy – just answer three questions in the comments or on your own blog (with a link in the comments here, so that everyone can find them).

After that, throw some thoughts around about other people’s projects, ask questions if you’re so inclined. Be supportive above all.

Then show up again next Sunday when the circle updates next, letting us know how you did on your weekly project and what you’ve got coming down the pipe in the coming week (if you’d like to part of the circle, without subscribing to the rest of the blog, you can sign-up for reminders via email here).

MY CHECK-IN

What am I working on this week?

I’m rebuilding the novella plan at the moment, after realizing that it’s somewhat counter-intuitive to have a stranger-comes-to-town story where the stranger leaves town in the second act.

What’s inspiring me this week?

I picked up Joan Didion’s South and West because it was basically raw notebook material rather than finished work. It’s basically daily notes as Didion travels through the American south, for a book that never never ended up getting written, followed by some short notes for a book about California. I’m a huge fan of Didion’s essays in general, and the clarity of the notes is pretty incredible.

What part of my project an I avoiding?

The combination of Easter and university holidays have largely resulted in me becoming fairly antisocial and feral. The coming week is going to be fairly heavy on social events, and I am totally not prepared for the shift in gears and the impact that’ll probably have on getting writing/research done.