In keeping with my new crazy plan to treat my writing like a career instead of an oddball hobby, I've embarked on an attempt to actually work on writing every single day. (This is like a new year's resolution preview, here, but I figured I'd get started on said resolution this week instead).

I've been writing two stories somewhat simultaneously, which was a bit distracting, so I decided to blow through the shorter of the two yesterday, just to get the first draft off my desk. The time travel story is done, though it's not as short as I'd originally envisioned -- it's about 3,000 words all together, which is still pretty short for me. Should be easy to revise, mostly a question of paring it down to the essentials and trying to make the narrator's tone of weary lyricism consistent throughout. I don't know what to call it, really, and I don't love any of the titles I've come up with. It's about a time machine, a guy named Morris, his wife Penny, and their failing marriage. Here are some of the titles I have in mind; feel free to weigh in with which one you like best, or suggest something different.

• Pretty Pennies [this is the current leading contender in my mind]

• Morris and the Machine [has a certain old-school feel to it that seems to fit in]

• Penny Dreadful

• A Penny Saved [also not wholly inappropriate]

• Assorted other variations on idioms involving the world "penny" most of which come off looking like bad puns. (In for a Penny, Penny Wise, Penny Whistle, etc.)

Thoughts?

Next thing to clean off my desk is the Mr. Li story. I might finish it this weekend. If it's not done this year, it'll get done early next year.