Just a quick post to announce that I won't be blogging over the next week since I'm flying out bright and early Monday morning to attend RWA in New York. Once I'm back in Seattle at the beginning of July, I'll talk about the conference, what I've been reading lately, random research notes, and my writing life in general again.
An update on my hand issues–I've been seeing a physical therapist regularly to treat the pinched nerve in my neck, and my symptoms have definitely improved. I've gone from having basically 1.25 hands in December to having 1.75 hands now, maybe as many as 1.9 on a good day. In other words, my left hand doesn't feel quite normal–there is still a vague sense of pins-and-needles or tightness even on the best days–but it's a usable hand again. I can carry a medium-weight bag of groceries in it without yelping in pain. I can type. Between my improved hands and getting used to Dragon software, I've been putting out a decent word count on my new historical romance manuscript. Life is much better than it was six months ago.
I hate the timing of this, right after my first two books came out, because the injury slowed me down enough that I wasn't able to produce a quick follow-up to A Marriage of Inconvenience and The Sergeant's Lady. But, if I can use a cliché for a moment, it is what it is. I'm happy with what I'm writing now, I'm writing as quickly as I can, and I haven't given up hope of making a 2011 sale and having a 2012 release after all. And if I can't manage that–well, it will have to be a 2013 release, and I'll just have to survive having a year without a new book out.
As for where I go from here, I'm going to get a second opinion on my hand to try to determine whether the issue is just the pinched nerve or if there is also carpal tunnel involvement, and whether I need surgery to truly fix either problem. If my current condition is the best I'm going to get, and/or if surgery carries a high risk, I can live with that. I still can't do heavy lifting with my left hand, and if one of my hobbies were gardening or carpentry it would be more of an issue, but I can write, I can do my day job, and I can cook. That's a lot more than I could do at the beginning of the year. But, on the whole, I'd rather not go through the rest of my life with a slightly numb hand, so I'm going to continue to follow up and see what can be done about this.
Hope things continue to get better with your hand; relax and enjoy yourself in New York - sounds like you can use the 'vacation' (I know, not really a vacation, but it's a break from your daily routine).
ReplyDeleteHi Susanna - I didn't realize you were having hand problems. I was just checking your blog to see what you had coming up. That's so frustrating. I had a pinched femoral nerve in my hip last year and couldn't walk for almost a month. A year later I've still got some residual weakness and aches in my hip, but I'm back to working out regularly and grateful it has resolved to this point. Best wishes on your recovery. Nerve injuries are just so slow to get over. There's no real cure or treatment. Without my chiropractor I don't know what I'd do. I've resigned myself to the fact that I'll be seeing her once a month for the rest of my life!
ReplyDeleteBy the way, I also saw your posting on your WIP - I'm totally fine with infidelity the way you described it - especially in historical romance. After all, times were different back then. The book actually sounds fantastic. I like books that aren't more of the "same old, same old". Probably why I loved both of your books LOL. Anyway, best wishes on it. I'll definitely want to read it.