Opening CeremoniesPOSTED JUN 5, 2012

London is certainly indulging itself in 2012. The ol' queen turns 60 (or maybe that was her reign) and then they'll have the Olympics in a few months. Union Jacks galore!

Here across the pond I had my own little opening ceremony. Today I began the writing process for my second novel, The Day The Rain Came Back. Hopefully I will have a completed first draft by the end of 2012, and I plan to have a progress bar up well before that (tracking first draft, then revisions). The outline still has holes and there is no estimate of word count yet. Caffeine was the same way when I started typing it. Some details just can't be filled in until an author gets to know his characters. I'm excited to be back at the keyboard. It's hard work. It's rewarding work.

I decided to commemorate this day for DRCB as I had for Caffeine five years ago. In 2007, I drove out to Orient Point, NY to type the novel's first paragraphs (I'd already moved to FL, but was in NY on vacation). Long Island's north fork was an interesting place that I hadn't been in a while. So, what interesting place could I visit from Fort Myers to type page one of this novel? I know, how about Lee County!

My local friends might be scratching their heads right now, since Fort Myers is already in Lee County. So I shall be more specific...

A few years ago I shot a beach wedding in Boca Grande. I noticed on the map that most of the barrier island belonged to Lee County, even though I had to drive deep into Charlotte County (almost all the way through it) to get there by road. This makes Boca Grande a "practical exclave" , unless one has a boat or really feels like taking a swim. Since there's a small branch of the Lee County Library there (it's too hot to type outdoors), I decided to type the first scene there. I took some time to explore the town afterward, noting the odd combination of Lee County road signs and Charlotte County businesses, such as a branch of the Englewood Bank & Trust, with all phone numbers bearing Charlotte's 941 area code instead of Lee's 239. It's also the only place I've seen in Lee where beach parking is free! :)

So yeah, that's my geopolitical oddity of the day. Any excuse for a mini road trip.

This whole week I've been posting clues about DRCB on Caffeine's Facebook Page . Click "Like" to find out what hints I dropped, and to keep up with it's progress.

 Previous Post: Nothing like a fresh canvas
 Next Post: 30 Years of Ryan G