WISE WORDS

Call Me Fickle but...

Well, very wise words I thought when I re-read my last blog. However, my characters became rather shy and decided to leave ‘town’ for a bit! I didn’t write a thing all week, but that was probably because of a delightful little six-month-old granddaughter I have renamed Little Miss Sunshine.

I’m a bit ‘precious’ about my writing. It’s like, I suppose, having a new baby and only you know what makes them happy and interactive. When other people are around, I feel a little on ‘show’ as though I need to perform, so in protest, I don’t! I know this is a little immature of me, but I am going to work through it. We have more visitors for the most of the month, I’ve made a commitment to my novel, and it deserves my attention, so it will have it. It probably will make me more efficient with my time and perhaps with my writing!

Anyway spurned on by the experience of living with a young baby for a week, I have just submitted my next article on Suite 101, Grandparents Today, so out of a barren week comes some solace! I also have just received a second payment of $15 from the website so my grand total of earnings has now reached the dizzy heights of $27 dollars! A week ago that would have been about thirteen quid, but with all the financial shenanigans (I just love that word, perhaps I should try using an odd word in each blog – but don’t hold your breath.) going on I’m not sure any more. OK - so it’s not exactly a fortune and probably won’t keep the wolf from the door but the point is I have been paid something. Though it wouldn’t matter if I hadn’t – its never stopped me from writing before!

On My Bedside Table
My reading has taken a bit of a dive also but I’m now reading an Ian Rankin novel. It is a Rebus one and according to my Man Friday, he is one of the best crime/thriller writers out. It’s not a genre I’ve been drawn to before, but his character and setting descriptions are pretty vivid, so there is always something to learn. I started to read "The Widow and Her Hero" by Thomas Keneally. He wrote Schindlers List, which I’ve not read but was deeply moved by the film. Anyway, I had great difficulty getting through the first few pages until I realised there wasn’t one piece of dialogue. It’s purely told through a narrator recounting the experiences of her husband (well I think, as I haven’t finished it). Anyway, it was difficult to get any sense of character or of things moving on. It really brought home how essential characterisation is. On the other hand, maybe I just need to persevere with his style, as the accolades are quite positive.