Storytime

I've just had two weeks holiday. Actually I have a few more days left of said holiday, but my two weeks are nearly up. Sadness 😢 It has been a very good two weeks...and even though I intended to sit back and do nothing, or as close to nothing as possible I have actually done a lot. I went to visit my sister and her menagerie. This trip I took my daughter and grandson. Nothing like some time in the country with family. Little Leobear loved it. So many animals to pat and see... And most enjoyed it. We walked...we played... we sat on the front verandah and pondered the universe. We went to the gallery to see some of my sister's art... It was a very much needed respite by all three of us. Then there was Mother's Day and I did this.. Mother's Day Classic...proving that I am fitter than I thought I was and that you do feel your legs after a very quick 8 kilometres are accomplished! I have done a hell of a lot of gardeni...

Once upon a time there was a woman who wrote short stories. Sometimes very short stories, sometimes a little bit longer. Every now and then she wrote a poem, not very long poems it must be said. She enjoyed this dipping into here and there. Testing her abilities. Then one day, in a burst of over enthusiastic belief in her capabilities she began a novel. It began with a simple idea...what if I did this... (very much like how this garden bed grew...a simple idea)  This was only the first attempt at a novel. Over the years, and there has been a lot of those as well, she began quite a few novels. She finished first drafts of many of them. Three novels made it to second draft, and one famously made it to third. Thousands and thousands upon thousands of words were written, re-worked, re-jigged, re-wired, re-edited, refused, rejected. These many thousands of words lie forgotten and neglected deep in her computer's brain (hopefully). She is now working on another WIP...this s...

I wish I had the magic solution. Perhaps a pill to take when procrastination calls. Maybe some medicine when the muse vanishes. Something, anything, so that I do make myself sit down and write. Yes I know it comes down to dedication and determination. Throw in deadlines as well...why not. But in reality there are times, when nothing, makes the writing easier. Yet there are times, when I do get into it, that I really enjoy. Totally relate it to my gardening. I had plans...BIG PLANS. So much was going to be accomplished...yet at the moment I'm in a state of near total exhaustion. We are lucky if I manage home after work and get a meal cooked. By the time Little Miss is safe in bed, it's time for my bed and sleep! Yet, months ago when I put in my rosemary clippings (see above)...they looked like nothing. Little twigs set in the ground. Fast forward a few months and heh presto. My Rosemary Hedge (see what I mean about having big plans...this will be a hedge of ro...

Last weekend I had the great opportunity to attend a workshop with Kate Cuthbert from Escape Publishing.  She was a great speaker, full of information and eager to share her knowledge. She got us thinking about our works in progress, and then she made us write about our characters. Now, at the moment, I'm working away on my novel. I'm on second draft but have just done a major time shift, and rejigged scenes etc but after this workshop I realised I know nothing about my characters. Paper cutouts...shadowy figures that do what I want them to do. (Mind you, every now and then, one or more of them do tend to go a bit wild and apparently do whatever they please). The more exercises we did, the more I came to realise, how much more work I need to do on my characters. Not necessarily for what they do in the book, but for what they do out of the book. Interestingly I thought I knew my characters...but when Kate asked some in-depth questions, not necessarily to...

My dad is in hospital down in Geelong and I've become quite used to travelling back and forwards. And of course, when someone is in hospital, you tend to go to visit, then travel back home. You may have a spot of lunch or a cuppa somewhere while there but the reason you are a couple of hours away from home is to visit said sick/ ill person. Last weekend I travelled down with my sister, her hubby and daughter (so much better to travel with others than a solo drive) For an hour before we visited Dad, we played tourist. Now Geelong is no stranger, we lived there for a couple of years when I was a tween (grade six to year 8 or thereabouts). But walking along the waterfront, even in the cold grey day, dodging showers as best we could...was just what we needed. I just adore the Baywalk Bollards. We didn't walk past all of them, over 100 I hear, but we managed to stroll past quite a few. Just loved their quirky characters... and how they capture Geelong's ...

Last weekend I went away with my writing group for a retreat. And after all the preparation I had done in readiness (see last post), I was more than eager to get there and get thinking. Every time I go away with this group of writers, I am amazed at how little  much I achieve. Usually I do a lot of walking. After all, isn't that meant to help the creative cogs churn? Some may call it procrastination but I call it 'clearing the head'. Most retreats I do a LOT of 'clearing the head.' But as I was so prepared this time, I actually got a lot done. You may notice pad and pen at the ready. And if you zoom in it actually says 'we solve the world's problems, one sip at a time.' Not that there was a lot of drinking done... This was at a lovely restaurant where we went to help celebrate two milestone birthdays. The food divine...and afterwards a nice 'clearing the head' along the pier. It wasn't all sunshine and clear skies....ther...