Monday, January 26, 2009

MORE THAN THINKING

I am a good editor; I love nothing better than ripping writing apart, cutting and stripping, always trying to sharpen and hone – that’s why I never get to the end of anything except poetry! That and ideas for new novels. I can’t sit down and write a simple short story because I find subtext, themes and before you know it there’s another book in the wings. So, it’s either poem or novel; there’s nothing in between – even the flash fiction I write demands to be big, bigger, biggest.

Inspiration, stimulation and perhaps increased circulation has got me moving in the right direction and I’ve been working on two of these poor, neglected works. Maybe this year. Have I said that before? Definitely.

This time though, I’m approaching projects that are well developed and am charmed by the characters and their stories – bloody impressed is what I am! I created these babies and they’re okay, so I should finish them. I will. Then why am I fannying about on here?

Alright, I’ll do something in a minute; I’ve also neglected my lovely blog; I’m supposed to be a serial blogger, but not this month, or last month. Hopefully when I look back on this time, from my busy writing routine, I’ll name it My Thinking Phase and have fond memories of how comfortable this sofa was. I’ll wonder why I thought I could write whole novels from that position instead of sitting properly at my desk or at least a table. But I know writers who write in bed!. Why can’t I be a better writer on my sofa?

Of course it doesn’t help that the telly is flashing in the background; I can’t hear it over the noise of the washing machine but I’m still aware of the movie and keep pausing to catch up – it’s a bomb on a plane thing, and I have seen it before – yeeeaars ago…so why am I watching it? Because I can.

Saturday, January 24, 2009

RESOLUTIONS

All I’ve got to do is stop
eating trash – start
walking fast, to slow
down the onset
of death.

All I’ve got to do is be
energetic
tick the boxes – see
entertainment
in gym.

All I’ve got to do is swim
instead of float
facing front – not up
pay attention
take part.

All I’ve got to do is grow
a love of sport
bore myself to death –
not list’ning, go
away.

All I’ve got to do is find
a way to play
when I’m not looking –
vacate my mind
maybe.

All I’ve got to do is stop
messing around
pound the pavements, right?
You’re hounding me
I’ll try.

All I’ve got to do is learn
to accept death.
Flattened by a bus
or heart attack –
who cares?

Monday, January 12, 2009

HOLD THE FRONT PAGE

I’ve been writing!!! I think I’m back in the swim. Also been spending time on the collaboration site Protagonize but it seems to have been taken over by young writers from a site that’s closing down; it’s all very cliquish and busy with their chatter. I’m hoping the excitement of a new place will settle and things will return to some kind of normal, but it still has the same effect on me – it makes me write, is still stimulating as long as you don’t mind being ignored. I’m not there for ratings – I want more than that; I want writing practise and collaboration.

This has been a great weekend in that I’ve done nothing but read and write…and watch a little telly; I’ve been cool, calm and collected. There has been NO decorating or cleaning or cooking – tomorrow is another day and I plan on doing all three. The slow cooker is set on top with a chopping-board, bags of ancient potatoes and all the veg from the fridge; I’ll be making Stovies (Glaswegian stew with sausages). I’ve lived on pies all weekend; they were wonderful, mostly because I haven’t been able to cook or heat pies for the past 18 months. My little oven & grill is great…but the good news is that I’m being given a gas cooker, but will have to pay to have it fitted. Still, it is good news; I haven’t stirred anything in a pot for a long time.

I’m beginning the New Year with bank charges and visits to the dentist for root treatment – but what a slap in the face! I hope it acts as a torrent of cold water to wake me up and make me use the space I’ve created for anything other than watching bloody TV. I will turn it off. I spent hours last weekend in front of so many repeated episodes of CSI. This weekend might’ve gone the same way if I hadn’t set up the table in the corner here and brought in my twirly chair – I usually curl up on the sofa with the laptop which is not really conducive to writing. I promise to turn it off and write.

Tuesday, January 06, 2009

AWARD


I’ve been given this award by Jo over at http://norwaynomad.blogspot.com/ though not sure I deserve it for neglecting the blogging world over the last few months, but I accepted it gratefully/graciously, and am ready to pass it on. (bow) I thank you. Oh it’s too much, I’m embarrassed and my ball-gown is getting soiled by my happy tears. Okay, enough of the speechifying, I would like to present this award to the following people, for their wonderful blogs:

BetteJo at http://bettejosbeadcreations.blogspot.com/
Poppy at http://poppyveins.blogspot.com/
Mum’stheword at http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/
Jenn at http://www.jennashworth.blogspot.com/
Tania at http://titaniawrites.blogspot.com/


The RULES for presenting this sought after Award are:

Pick 5 blogs that you consider deserve this award for their creativity, design, interesting material, and also for contributing to the blogging community, no matter what language.

Each award has to have the name of the author and also a link to his or her blog.

Each award winner (upon acceptance) should show the award and put the name and link to the blog that has given her or him the award.

Link to the Arte y pico blog, so everyone will know the origin of this award.
Show these rules.

Monday, January 05, 2009

TURNING

I’ve just finished reading Dodie Smith’s ‘I Conquer the Castle’. It’s absolutely fabulous. I bought it a while back – see earlier post – and read a couple of chapters but had gone back to my phase of not-reading-books-but-reading-blogs-and-watching-too-much-telly. So, I picked it up last week, when I’d finished the first novel I’d read for ages, Carol Shields’ ‘Swann’. Now that was interesting for different reasons but I’ve left my notes on that in a little book at work, I hope – I can’t find it here. Anyway, back to the castle; this is a book to dive into – amazing narrator, I loved it the whole way through and wanted to live there, with them, but only in the summer and autumn months.

It’s cold here; the sun has shone like a little liar through the windows all day but I was suspicious and put on my boots and woollies even though I would be in the car, mostly. I did everything I was supposed to and treated myself to skin treatments for my poor old face which seems to be suffering from some kind of teenage flashback – SPOTS; the kind that turn up and hang around for ages then another arrives just as that one is fading – so that there is always two…and I can’t keep my fingers off them. Disgusting I know, but there it is. In my new life I’m going to be rid of them, fitter and healthier. I might even attempt to walk around my loch.

Just been over at Poppy’s place, catching up; she wasn’t in so I had a good read but no tea or sherry or cake. I need to get back to my literary life; been back with readitswapit.co.uk and getting rid of novels I’ve read or don’t want to. This morning I received a beautiful hardback, ‘Essays on Women’s Lives’ by Kennedy Fraser. I’m going to prowl through that next, before a second Carol Shields and a Margaret Forster. But first, I’ve got to get up off this sofa and TURN THE BLOODY TV OFF!

Sunday, January 04, 2009

FIRSTS

This is my first day of doing nothing and boy was it good? Oh yes! I did crochet 100gms onto a blanket while watching telly but that doesn’t count – I can do that with my eyes shut and it only took an hour. I feel as if I’ve been eating all day; I’ve had meals, even pudding – all from New Year’s Eve leftovers. My first dinner party in the new flat was successful even though there was a hitch with the mashed potatoes. Five grandchildren and their parents around my little drop-leaf table; I need to get a board to make it bigger for next time.

Time has disappeared under all this house-moving, decorating, xmas, new year and birthdays - we have three birthdays: 20th 24th and 26th. Power Ranger turned 6 on the 20th and had a family party with all his cousins there; it was pretty mental. When I was a child we were all shy about dancing, either by ourselves or in a group – especially the boys. You should’ve seen these boys go; number-one grandson, Bouncer, suggested a dance-off and they were up birling and twirling, legs all over the place, elbows jigging, faces twisting… I was ill laughing, but I made a terrible judge. I could knock a couple out but couldn’t make the choice at the end. Stunningly noisy.

So, I’m trying to set myself some routines, one of which is swimming or/and aqua aerobics, but the main ones have to be writing and art – I’ve just gotta get myself under some kind of control; I can feel life drifting under the front door!

My friend, Oracle, is beginning a new job tomorrow; I wish him well but will miss him at work so much. Even at work, I need to conduct my spare time when I’m not on the phone; I’m going to set myself some writing tasks – I think everyone has a blanket so I should stop crocheting, for now.

Right, that’s me sorted. All I have to do is do what I’m told, what’s expected of me.