I see that it’s been two months since I last blogged. So, time for an update.
I’ve been doing plenty of walking in the mountains and I’ve been taking my kayak out for runs up and down the coast. It’s not yet been warm enough for swimming and frankly I haven’t had the energy. The weather here has been odd: clouds and sunshine interspersed with periods when we have been swamped by Sahara dust. A few times outdoors it has looked like a sepia photograph. The stuff gets everywhere and with it continuing there seems hardly any point in cleaning my car, though occasionally I wash down my terrace to stop tracking the stuff into the house. Today is windy and cloudy and everything is covered with that dust. Even my Greek neighbours are now saying, ‘Come on, it’s the end of May, where’s the sun?’
Though I have been walking and kayaking my energy has been low. This is due to the panic/anxiety attacks. They now mainly hit me in the morning as I try to catch an extra forty winks. It is almost as if my mind is fleeing from something that occurs while I am asleep. I have noticed I’ve been having more nightmares. Some do involve Caroline but generally they just involve fear. I had a couple that I used to have decades ago – involving a flood I am trying to escape and then seeing a mountainous wave approaching and thinking, ‘Fuck it, I‘m dead.’ Apparently nightmares like these are quite common. Anyway, since I am of a scientific turn of mind, I started to recording my ‘bad moments’ and plotting them on a graph. Thankfully the trend is downwards.
About seven weeks ago I got book III of the Transformation trilogy back from the editor and have, intermittently, been going through that. I would normally bang through this stuff in a week or so but, for perhaps the first time ever for me, I saw a deadline looming. However, I’ve finished with the edits and now there is a just a little wrangling to go through about the title. Hopefully, after I dispatch this back to Macmillan, I’ll be able to get back to some writing.
That’s all for now. I’ll try to update this more regularly.
Hi Neal, just loving your ‘creations & creativity’ 🙂
IN the last four years I have come back to reading SciFi – and found the ‘landscape/cosmoscape’ rather changed, as being born in 1951 I was steepped in Andre Norton, Hal Clement, Clifford Simak, Harry Harrison, Robert Heinlen, Arthur C Clarke, Asimov, etc etc etc – all the Gollanz-published SciFi of the 60’s & 70’s). [ ‘hard’ scifi is my preferred Scifi option ]
Have read all the Ian Cormac novels and associated ‘singles’, at least twice – plus the ‘Onwer ‘trilogy; then had a break of about two years, dwellving into some of the ‘more modern’ authors – L E Modesitt, Alistair Reynolds, Greg Bear, Gregory Benford, Ben Bova, Paul McAuley, David Brin, dada dada 🙂
Very recently I bought copies of “The Engineer Reconditioned”, and then “Dark Intelligence” [sorry, but have to get most of mine 2nd hand, or new from Book Depository UK – when they have them at an affordable price for me 🙂 ]
Anyway, I just gotta say it was SUCH A DELIGHT to get back into stories based around the Polity, AND ESPECIALLY involving Amistad, one of my personal favourites – and am also loving the (seemingly) redemptive aspects revolving around Penny Royal, and the fact that the Atheter Gabbleduck is also an active component of this ‘Transformation Trilogy’.
Yes sir, I just gotta say I am really re-enjoying that “Polity” universe that you have created 🙂 🙂 – so THANK YOU!
Now excited with the expectation of getting into War Factory & Infinity Engine.
Also, I read the dedication of “Dark Intelligence”, and do want to offer my condolences on the loss of your Caroline! We always want them to live forever!!!!!
Gregg Thorn 🙂
Perth,
Western Australia