If I Seem Sluggish

You guys, the Butcher has been in such a cleaning frenzy for our company (let me be clear, his company) this weekend that he didn’t buy me any Diet Dr. Pepper yesterday, which meant that I was forced to drink A&W Cream Soda for the minute bit of caffeine it contains.

I have never, in my life, had a cream soda. Frankly, it sounds disgusting.

But it was, actually, not quite that bad. I mean, it was fine. It’s just that I’m used to starting my day with the metallic taste of artificial sweeteners and it didn’t have any.

But I’ll note that the cats got their favorite kind of food. Somehow he remembered that.

Ben & Sue: Keeping Things Moving

I’ve made a massive change–John is now a woman. Well, a girl. But he’s she. Martha, called Moll. And, like John was, she’s our narrator. John isn’t completely gone, I don’t think, since I need my narrator to move freely through the Reconstructed South. But he’s just an identity, I think, not a character.

The part that I more need to fix in this draft (9th for those counting at home) is how to keep momentum. I really enjoy thinking about what it would be like to spend time with these character just walking around a Nashville that kind of looks familiar and kind of doesn’t. But I need a driving reason to include these stories and not others. And I think having a stronger narrator will make that happen. I hope, anyway. I’m kind of freaked out about it. But it must be done.

I think, anyway.

I’m going to give myself a month to see if this change in perspective helps.