Worked on former GN yesterday. I went through tidying up and pulling it into something that reads like an actual book (that was the objective, anyway). I got through the first part and into the part that's been a sticking point, deliberately working with the idea that I need to undercut myself and drain some of the drama from the sticking point before it happens. This felt like it went well.

I think when you're working on problems in the front of your mind, the back of your mind is working on them, too. I think the back of your mind sometimes secretly works on things when the front of your mind is overwhelmed--and novels are overwhelming, no question about it. There's just too much going on, too many threads to keep straight. What sometimes happens with me is that the back of my mind deconstructs a problem and presents it to me when the front of my brain is relaxed; i.e. when I'm half-asleep and half-awake. This happened last night; my head suddenly sorted out several overlapping issues, organized them very simply and clearly, and presented them to me. Fortunately I got up and wrote them down, even though I was mostly asleep and it was a pain. So now if I can take that clarity and apply it to the ms and not get sidetracked or confused, I may very well be through the sticking point.

That's a big if. But I've mostly sorted out the notes I scribbled--they were almost unreadable--so that's one thing.

Come to think of it, it feels like I do most of my best big-picture thinking when I'm not at the computer, but am engaged in some kind of mindless activity like driving the same old route, or walking a dog or mowing the lawn. But it doesn't happen when I'm exercising hard enough to be breathless, like jogging or on cardio machines. Dunno why.