Tag: typewriters

Royal Family Portrait

Another package arrived at my door this morning, and through the wonder of Facebook real-time conversations, an idea was born to take a family portrait of the Royals.

Mr. and Mrs. Royal, the proud parents.

Mr. and Mrs. Royal, the proud parents.

Papa Royal is an Aristocrat with a script typeset from 1963. Sturdy, a little round around the edges, but his soft side becomes apparent when you see his cursive writing. Mama Royal we’ve met before in Meet Pinkie Pie. She’s actually seven years older than Papa – quelle scandale! Pinkie is a doting mother, watching over her children from her spot on top of the bookshelf.

Mama and Papa have three lovely children.

The Twins.

The Twins.

Two rambunctious Royal Portables keep their parents on their toes. Although they are twins, they have very different personalities. The blue one, from 1930, is the younger brother and is a people-pleaser, always typing smoothly. He has an adventurous streak, however, and has the scars to prove it. The brown one from 1929 is a complex machine, fastidious in keeping his faux wood grain exterior spotless, but stubborn and rebellious, sometimes refusing to advance his ribbon, even if it starts to shred. Now that the twins have been reunited (the brown one just got home from a semester away at school today), the two are inseperable, each seldom leaving the other’s side.

The Baby.

The Baby.

The Royals recently welcomed a new member to the family, a Royalite from 1964. Her pastel yellow body and light weight belie an easy-going, competent machine. She’s fiercely protected by her two older brothers.

Family Portrait

Family Portrait

Don’t they make a lovely family?

Their friends and neighbours can only sigh and listen to this on repeat:

Want to learn more about my typewriters? Check them out here.

Milestones

I crossed the 100,000-word mark on the first draft of The Unseeing the other day. Woooo!

It was a nice feeling to check my word count and see six digits for the first time. I’m past my uninspired funk and I think I’m about 5,000 words away from the ending. Between here and there I’m not quite sure what’s going to happen though – my outline has been stubbornly vague and my head isn’t filling in the blanks either.

However I’m heading on an extended road trip tomorrow – 9 days of exploring the Pacific Northwest and northern California – and I’m sure all that time in the car will lend to some daydreaming and idea sifting. It’s our tenth wedding anniversary this month! Also the first time we’ve gone away without the kids – our last trip alone together was to Paris almost seven years ago, when I was pregnant with Kid 1. I ended up setting the books I’m currently writing in that city after I fell in love with it – I wonder if Portland or Seattle will become the inspiration for a new story?

And if you’re into that sort of thing, stay tuned for some exciting typewriter posts. I have four to pick up at a shipping drop point once we cross the border, and have been busy restoring another one at home for the past week. I don’t know if I want to introduce them one at a time, or all together, but the blog is going to get a little typewriter-heavy in the next while.

Lastly, I decided that rather than knocking down walls in my house to make space for a small office for myself, I’m going to build myself a little outbuilding in our backyard, insulate it and make it my writing headquarters. If all goes according to plan, construction will begin next month.

Big achievements accomplished, and big things on the horizon! These days it feels like everything’s coming up Nicole.