Yellow rose of Texas

Dress - '50s, from Luncheonette Vintage
on Etsy
Belt - thrifted
Shoes - Zara

This dress makes me feel very Texan. Not only does it have a prairie, square-dancing feel, but it also has a subtle yellow rose print on the cotton. I love it.

We have Ants! With a capital A. I had forgotten what it was like to have ants - we had a dizzying array in Zimbabwe, and you couldn't spill a drop of orange juice without attracting hordes of them within seconds, but I can count on one hand the number of times I saw an ant in New Zealand. I don't feel nostalgic, though, so much as annoyed - the ants infested our favourite oatmeal that it took us ages to find, and we had to throw the whole packet away. Stupid ants. And now I feel like they're crawling all over me, even though they aren't (I hope). Someone is here now blocking up the ants' magic portal (and he keeps asking me if I am going square-dancing today), so hopefully we won't see them again for a little while. Although ants always find a way back in.

Anyway. In more import-ANT (ha) news, I have been working on the revisions today. Here's the plan, which should result in a finished product in a month's time:

Week 1

To read through the hard copy of the manuscript, marking it up and adding pages as I go. I am also writing a new chapter by chapter summary of the plot, as I have made some further changes that should make the book feel more cohesive as well as upping the character development and dampening down the melodrama that I'm afraid crept in towards the end.

Weeks 2 and 3

Make the changes (which will include writing a couple of new chapters) and check them. Checking the changes is an important step, as I am hell on wheels for introducing new typos and inconsistencies when I make corrections.

Week 4

Read the whole thing aloud, in its entirety, to LOML every night. Reading it aloud shows you immediately where the writing is clumsy or laboured, and where things don't make sense. Reading it aloud to someone else doubles the benefits, I think.

So that's me, for the next wee while. What are you up to?

P.S. I have uploaded some more vintage dresses to my Etsy!

P.P.S. Check out BestFriendAlly's new blog on the TV3 website - just as hilarious as her other blog but with fewer swear words.

P.P.P.S. The lovely Grechen has posted a picture of the Ladies Who Lunch blogger get-together at Mandola's last week - so much fun!

From left: Anslee, me, Cathy, Esosa and Elia.