HERE COMES SUMMER...

I Think!

Finding the time to write has been a little fraught just lately. I don't think I've really got back on track since the wipe out by the thunderstorm. This was followed by a trip to the UK to see loved ones and then a return home to one of the coldest and wettest Summer Solstice (is there a plural I should have used?) I have ever known! But I'm happy to report that we are now basking in some lovely warm sunshine, but on Monday I wondered if we'd ever see light again. What is going on in the world? I blame the Ash Cloud. Last year it was the terramoto (earthquake) in Abruzzo - the earth is a little unbalanced at the moment. My writing world however is levelling out a little, thank goodness. 


Anyway I've spent the week catching up with emails, editing, critiquing and proof reading duties which needed to be done. I've also caught up with most of my Writers Abroad pals, many of whom have had interruptions, welcome and not so welcome, so I'm not alone in my struggles. I've just finished editing four short stories for submission by the end of the month (whisper: which is next week!) and now I'm catching up with my blog. I haven't completed a Suite 101 article for ages, to be honest I'm a bit bored with it. However, I was really pleased to receive a comment on the article I did on alternatives to Ning. 


I hope your writing endeavours are fruitful and if not... keep on trying!

Don't Think Just Write

WRITING INTERRUPTIONS?

Storms and Sojourns

A big summer storm wiped out our internet broadband connection (and the surrounding village) last week. So I was back to crusty old dial up. Well I gave in after a few attempts as it was just so slow and I mean, very slow. But it has had its benefits, this enforced spell without the internet. It has meant that I’ve had a little more time (well, okay, a lot) to get some actual writing done. It really struck me how distracting the internet can be and I thought I was fairly good at having my ‘online’ time but now I realise I wasn’t really. If I was stuck on a storyline, or there was something I subconsciously had put in the ‘too difficult’ pile then I would tell myself it is time to do some research on net. Quite a reasonable suggestion given the fact I don’t have access to a library here. However, when an hour or two has passed and my Man Friday knocks on the door with a cup of tea, or even later with a large G&T, I realise that I hadn’t done a spot of writing. Not one paragraph, or teeny-weeny little sentence, not a word, not even a thought. And the research? Well I often can’t recall what it was I had started to research in the first place. So when I next have a day like that, I think I may well just switch the router off and pretend that I can’t connect with the ether, and get on with some writing.

Which reminds me, this morning I started a new journal. Most mornings I try and spend at least 20 minutes free writing in a large A4 hard backed, lined journal. Using a favourite fountain pen, I prop myself up in bed and use a prompt, a first line, a proverb, an image or even a dream or an eavesdropping to start to write. I usually pen about four pages, which for me is about 500 words and I often use some of the entries to develop short stories, or create a character so it’s a very beneficial part of my writing day. There is nothing like opening that new journal and seeing the ink fill the page for the very first time, I love it and with over 10 full journals, I guess I have done for some time.

Before the enforced blackout from the internet, I did manage to upload a new submission to Suite 101 on the Festa Della Repubblica – Republic Day in Italy, which is a national holiday, held on 2^nd June. I also blogged a non-fiction book review on ‘Discovering the Writer Within’ on Louise Charles - follow the link on the right hand side of the page.

Happy Writing.

Don't Think Just Write


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