So as I said, yesterday was the first quiet day. I actually managed to get some writing done in the morning, drafting the rest of a new prologue to the novel. I think it's better. Possibly much better. I think when I was trying to draft the novel before, I was so caught up in figuring out the storyline and the characters, that I just didn't bother to actually *write* it well. Which meant that my lovely 120,000 word second draft is in some ways still more of an outline (a really really detailed outline) than an actual novel. Goofy, but I think possibly true. In trying to write more beautifully, the prologue is already (I think) more oblique, more complex, and more interesting than much of the writing in the old draft. Although in retrospect, I think I rushed some of yesterday's work too, and I may take one more stab at the prologue today. I have some time from 9-11, so if I'm focused, I might be able to get some writing done then.
Yesterday afternoon, I actually walked down to Montpelier town, leaving campus for the first time. It's a pleasant 15-minute walk (10-minutes for some, but I walk sloooowwww), and the town itself is charming. Two bookstores on the first block (one named Rivendell), a Ben & Jerry's store, many little boutiques selling cute clothes, cafes, a movie theatre showing Howl's Moving Castle, which I will have to figure out whether I have time to sneak out and attend. V. nice, and it was good to walk around for a few hours and get some mild exercise -- mostly, I've been eating and sitting here. Also sitting and eating. Sometimes followed by more eating, and then some sitting. All accompanied by excessive amounts of talking, of course. Does talking burn calories?
