Last time I did an update (Aug 5) I was still confined to left-handed writing and typing. Well, more x-rays of my elbow on Aug 12, and the doctor said I can write and type … but no lifting beyond about 1/2 pound. I posted the news on Facebook … and immediately received a number of editing requests. Thank you, everyone! A relief after a month of no income 🙂

So what have I been doing since August 5?

Social Media: Updated my LinkedIn with lists of my writing and editing experience and education

Reading and Notetaking:
– The Writer’s Business Plan – Tanya Price (which includes great templates!)
– Flight Calls – Brenda Schmidt
– continue to read short stories, poetry, and interviews with authors in journals including The New Quarterly, the Malahat Review, Glimmer Train
– How to Negotiate Anything – K.K. Rusch (part of The Freelancer’s Survival Guide)
– The Moonlighter’s Guide to Online Writing for Immediate Income – Connie Brantford
– Writing Online: Write Your Dreams to Reality – Seann Platt
– Abundance – Robert Kroetsch and John Lent
– Prairie Fire – anthology by writers from Canada’s prairie provinces
– “Writing Family History and Memoir” — chapter 24 of W. Zinnser’s On Writing Well, 30th Anniversary Edition. This chapter is a new addition from the 25th Anniversary Edition, and if you’re interested in the topic, you’ll certainly want to read this chapter!
– Write On – another anthology
– notetaking from Create Your Writer Platform by Chuck Sambuchino (which I read earlier this summer)–another excellent read
– Reader’s Guide to the Short Story – by James H Pickering — a very good overview and “how-to” for short story writers
Things I’ve been researching:
– writing personal essays — reading lots of articles, and also picked up a copy of The Art of the Personal Essay by Phillip Lopate – a wonderful collection of personal essays.

Writing:
– starting to journal again (though handwriting right handed is hard on my wrist…)
– write new posts on my websites/blogs, including this site (normajhill.com), penandpapermama.com, and My Church Journey
– finish notetaking (some by dictating with the Windows Speech Recognition, and some typing!) of The Heaviness of Things That Float by Jennifer Manuel
– go for walks, take photos, and write posts on PentictonPedestrian.Wordpress.com

Website and blog updates:
– add writing and editing articles link page to this site (normajhill.com)

Tutoring (Yes! School holidays are almost over…)
– order a great package of lesson plans and worksheets, with a focus on Canadian geography and history, as well as other Canadiana topics, from Homeschool Canada Shop

Workshops/Presentations:
– I’ve been requested to do two workshops in October for a local writers’ group–I’ll post more about it as I do more preparation!

Editing:
– working on editing a memoir with a client
– proofread an anthology/ collection of sci-fi stories by First Nations writers
– proofread a book about suicide from a First Nations perspective
– working on editing the first book in a series of children’s books with a client
– working on editing another children’s book with another client

Beyond all that, I’ve had a wonderful time with my grandchildren at local parks and at Skaha Beach, enjoying our beautiful sunny South Okanagan summer 🙂