I am noodling with a change to my novel drafting process. Specifically, I am considering taking one to two days off per week to work on short fiction. It's not such an issue with this book, but the Sunspin project will be a long haul indeed. Such a writing pattern might keep me fresher and let me take my mind out for a wander every now and then. So maybe worth testing here.
And meanwhile, some WIP...
Another side street beckoned. This part of the city was too monied for mere alleys. I slipped into the deeper darkness and pulled myself swiftly to the vestigial roof of small gatehouse.
Half a dozen men ran by a few seconds later. They wore two different uniforms, and seemed more a mob than an organized pursuit. I could see several more passing by in the larger street. Somewhere nearby the tiger roared, but it did not appear in pursuit.
In truth, I was more afraid of the tiger right now. It had a nose.
After a short while longer, the clattering and shouting had died down. Occasional calls still echoed, people walking the streets, but there were no longer packs on my heels. I slipped down off the gatehouse roof and walked quietly down the alley into the deeper dark.
At almost the same moment that I heard a twanging snap, a crossbow quarrel grazed my cheek without actually burying itself in me.
By the Wheel, they were trickier than I'd credited.