Editing a novel is a back and forth process. I send the manuscript to my editor, then wait for her to get back to me with comments and suggestions. I make revisions, then send it back to her and wait for the next stage of comments and suggestions. I actually like the editing process, because I can feel it making my story better.

I’m waiting to hear back from my editor right now, and while I wait I should ideally be working toward crossing things off my long “to do” list or resting up my eyes for the next round of revisions. Unfortunately, I keep finding myself getting stuck on the internet (they don’t call it the web for nothing). Today I spent several hours looking up the websites and blogs of various artists, whose links led me to other artists, whose links led me……and so on. I also spent way too much time researching button-making machines (saw some cool art buttons in a little shop on Main Street yesterday, then saw something on TV about a one inch button art show… got thinking about how it would be fun to make some buttons of my own, as well as work on some other art, and ….. next thing I know I’ve been staring at the computer screen for two hours, and I haven’t actually made or accomplished anything).

Anyway, here’s a photo of two artists in Tokyo’s Harajuku district who were selling buttons and other things they’d made. Sadly, I just lost the button I bought from them last spring. It had a D.I.Y. (do-it-yourself) and anti-war message. My goal for the next week is to take up the D.I.Y call to action and actually make some art of my own instead of just drooling over other people’s…..

P.S. I just checked one more site (how many times have I said that) and discovered Blim gallery rents out their button-making machine.