Fared a bit better than last week in the teeth of the holiday schedule disruption storm, logging 5K on “The Winter Palace.” Herewith, the final Magic Meter for 2012:
That projected final word count is looking a bit more accurate now. If you compare it with the previous Magic Meters, though, you’ll see a graphic illustration of just how awful I am at estimating story lengths.
Here’s Week 1:
And here’s Week 2:
See what I mean?
Determining the significance of this graphic illustration is an exercise I leave to the reader.
Anyway, your last snippet of the year:
“I . . . don’t know. If I can do it.”
“What do you fear?”
Mother and Father. The soldiers. Everyone else in the castle. It was tricky enough sneaking away undetected every night. But to bring someone else into the tunnels, even someone who could make himself disappear—that seemed like madness.
“I’m not afraid of anything.”
“Then will you help me? As one friend to another?”
She looked to the castle again, at the King’s Tower, brown against the pale blue sky. Her eyes narrowed as she considered. Truly, what did she fear? Why should she worry? She had come this far without getting caught, had discovered wonders in the Winter Palace that no one else but Gan even dreamed of. She owed him, no matter what Father might say.
“Just to look,” she said.
“Yes, of course.”
“Only for a few minutes.”
“A few minutes. Then I must return to my home here.”
She closed her eyes. “All right, Gan. Meet me at the West Tower at sunset.”
When next we chat, the first draft should be done—unless, of course, I’m wrong about the length of this piece. What are the odds?
On second thought, don’t answer that.
Write Club update: A by-invitation antho project that I submitted to has apparently fallen through. No publishers are interested. A shame. I thought it was a terrific concept. Response time, 6 months.
Headlong into the new year . . .
