I made it through the first pass of copyedits, just going through the manuscript to see what had been changed and dealing with the little things -- suggesting a different change, okaying changes with questions, rejecting changes that were incorrect. I don't have a lot of the latter. Usually, I can see what the problem is with the thing being changed, but I disagree with the way it's changed and suggest something else rather than saying to just not change it. I've flagged a few things I need to go back to and think about because they're more about actions and events or worldbuilding rather than actual edits. That will be today's task.
Otherwise, I'm in full trip-preparation mode, with some housework thrown in because tomorrow someone's coming to check the foundation. I don't have a problem, but my neighbor (I live in a four-plex) thinks she does, so they have to come measure the floors in the whole building, and that means the floors need to be cleared. It's not like I have to do a panic clean, but I do want to tidy up a bit more, and that's part of the trip preparation, since I hate coming home to a messy house after spending time in a hotel. My goal in getting ready for this convention trip is to not be running around like a madwoman on the last day before I leave. I want just about everything done, so that on Tuesday I can just put the things on the checklist in my bags, and then on Wednesday morning all I have to do is eat breakfast, wash the dishes, make the bed, get dressed and throw the makeup/toiletries I use that morning into my bag before I leave for the airport. To make that happen, I'm starting to work through the to-do list now.
Meanwhile, I've decided for sure that I'm going to start looking for a new house next spring. I've met one of my big financial goals for making that possible, and it looks like the others will also fall in line. The main thing holding me back is getting this house ready to sell, which will require a massive decluttering project and some repairs. There's also updating that needs to be done, but I'll probably want to talk to a Realtor before I do too much work because I'd rather cut the selling price and let the buyer do their own updating the way they want it than go through the expense, hassle and upheaval of remodeling, only to sell it. It just depends on how hard that will make it to sell, if people in the market for this kind of house just want a turnkey situation or if they'd be open to remodeling. In my wildest dreams, my neighbor who's a contractor and who gutted and remodeled his own house might be interested in buying mine to remodel and flip. It would be convenient for him to have a project to work on that's a few steps away. I just know that if I'm going to go to the expense and hassle of remodeling a house, I want it to be one that I'm going to be living in for a while, since there's a good chance that I'll want or need to do work on the new house to make it what I want.
I love this house, and it was exactly what I needed when I bought it, but it would require a lot of work to get it to the point where it will continue to be comfortable to live in, and it still wouldn't entirely meet my needs because there's nothing I can do to make it have more kitchen counter space, more kitchen storage space, room to have more than two friends over at a time (and nearby parking for guests), or a guest bedroom in addition to a home office. It would also be good for tax purposes to be able to have the home office be just an office and not also a storage space for everything that doesn't fit elsewhere in the house.
I saw a listing for a house in a part of the neighborhood I like, even closer to the library than I live now and closer to the riverside park, and it had a pass-through fireplace between the master bedroom and the master bathroom, so that the fireplace was over the jacuzzi tub in the bathroom. I was already picturing the reading nook I'd set up by the fireplace in the bedroom. And that house was even in my price range. Fortunately, the good thing about subdivisions is that there are probably at least a dozen identical floorplans in the neighborhood, so the odds are good that another one will be up for sale when I'm ready to buy.
But first I need to write a couple more books and get this house in some kind of order.
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