… and breathe …

Last night I finished a job that has been hanging around since before Christmas. It was billed as a “heavy proofreading” job, but it turned out to need a LOT more work than just a proofread and it was taking up a lot of time and energy. BUT … it’s finally gone now. I was so happy that we nipped out yesterday evening just to get it off my desk and to deliver it. I hope they don’t have too much of a shock when they see the amount of green ink on it.

Yes, green ink. I edit with green ink. This dates back to when I used to teach for a living. I taught adults, and adults are so much more precious than kids. They really, really don’t like red ink all over their work as it, apparently, is quite derogatory and makes them feel as though they’re being treated as a child.

For the record, I have absolutely no problem with red ink. It stands out so much more and is easier to read. But as I don’t want to offend anyone inadvertently … (I always much prefer to know about it when I’m offending someone …) I send my edits and proof corrections back with green ink. For edits only I’m going to see, I use red ink.

Now, can I find any green Biros (ballpoint pens) anywhere in the shops? Staples, my favourite stationery supplier, has closed down all of its physical branches. I always used to get my green Biros from there. But now, I’m lucky if I can find a pack of four Biros and one of them is green. I don’t shop at Staples any longer. I prefer my stationery to be touchy-feely before I buy.

A few weeks ago I spotted a pack of four green Biros in Tesco. But when I went back to replenish my supply (this “heavy proof” used a lot of green ink), they’d stopped selling them. I can buy a pack of four in red, blue or black. I can buy a mixed pack of four in red, blue, black or green, and I can buy a mixed pack of ten, including two green. But then I get a surplus of red, blue and black that I’ll never, ever use before the ink dries out. In some stores, I can even buy boxes of fifty – so long as they’re red, blue or black. But I can only get packs of four, ten or fifty in green online.

It looks as though I’m going to have to succumb and order a box of fifty from Amazon. But it’s not the same, is it? πŸ™

Anyway, this wasn’t supposed to be a mini-rant on the lack of shops that sell green pens. It’s supposed to be a positive, upbeat look at the week ahead.

I’m very excited with the prospect of having time to do my own work again. I still have a healthy number of editing and proofreading projects to do (four and two respectively), but hopefully they’ll fit into my daily three-hour slot.

  • I have a history book to finish, and I have to book in a couple more visits to the factory in Birmingham during February as well as order some pictures and arrange some photography (courtesy of the poet). Today I saw a news story that will bring the end of my book right up to date.
  • I have the rest of a novel that needs to go out to my beta readers, but I have some extra tweaking to do first.
  • I have a new cosy mystery waiting to be written. Cosies seem to be the new black at the moment, so I’m hoping I haven’t missed the boat with that one.
  • And I want to work on some short material, a short story or an article query, something I can shift quite quickly when I’m otherwise working on longer material.

Now that the heavy proof is out of the way I can settle into the new schedule I started last Monday. The diary has been filled with this other job with crosses against anything else that wasn’t a household chore. I want to start seeing some ticks against my own work – and lots of them.

I’m already twenty minutes into “client time” (oops!), and my Outlook just reminded me I’m overdue for my “morning coffee”. I’d best crack on … but at least I managed to do something forΒ me first. πŸ˜€

So, how is your week looking? And do you have any thoughts on green pens?

6 thoughts on “… and breathe …

    1. They may do, but Smiths is a trip to Meadowhall … I don’t even know if they still have a branch in town. Worth a pop, though. Thank you! πŸ™‚

        1. … if they’re cheaper than Amazon or Staples … I think both of those are the same price. I hate buying stationery online, though. I mean, what’s the point in not being able to touch it all? πŸ˜€ Looks like it might be the way to go, though.

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