“Oh, raven, what you done /I long to see you but you’re gone /the wind has wrapped you in its wings”

And at 76,000 words I’m declaring it a second draft, and returning a full half-day early from my Internet vacation. (Hi!)

It’s a muddle, but perhaps less than a muddle than usual for one of my second drafts. Not only the right story, but quite possibly the right first 2/3 of the structure, for all that there are underpinnings and arcings and characters to think about. And I kept my last line between first and second draft, which doesn’t normally happen, either.

Now to step back for a few days, look at the big picture, and get a handle on all the things I still need to research.

(Writing happened during my Internet vacation, but I do still owe stories and readings and emails to some of you. Still working on it!)

I have some thoughts on things learned by stepping back from social media, and a bunch of character letters, and some other odds and ends I’ll start posting over the next few days.

In the meantime, here’s “Raven,” by Jen Hajj, a Tucson Folk Festival discovery whose music has been getting much play on the current book’s playlist.

How have you all been?

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