Pages

Tuesday 10 May 2022

What have I been doing?



Blooming May by the River Thames

Sometimes I really have to think about what I have spent the last few weeks doing. A friend said to me recently that I have such wide interests. That is true, and can mean that my concentration wavers. Trying to fit in all my passions can end up with me not giving enough attention to one thing. In the past I definitely used to get waylaid by any new obsession. Those things that held my attention enough I would eventually come back to. Those things are music, reading and writing. I was also good at starting things and not finishing them. I have tried hard over the years to change this, and to a great extent I have achieved this. But I do have a 'waiting list' of things I want to do, but as yet cannot give enough time to.

One of my more recent obsessions was online courses. I would sign up for free courses on FutureLearn or OpenLearn and realise I had too many on the go at once. When it comes to writing, I have amassed rather a lot of work that needs editing. I try not to have two things on the go at once (I don't count poetry as that is a nice side distraction when I get stuck with other writing, or I just have the need to write it). I find it hard to switch between editing one document whist writing another. Too many characters and storylines to contend with. Do others have this problem?

Recently, I have been reading feedback on a novella I have written. It is out for more feedback now as an issue arose and I need to know it that's one opinion or me! I need more beta readers, that's for sure, and that should be my next priority.

Having started off well with my submitting earlier in the year, I can feel myself flagging. I have reached my goal each month, but I have to push myself. I do think having the right frame of mind helps and I seem to be having a lull in enthusiasm right now. Instead, I have been on a reading frenzy, and getting round to finishing those half read books that have been lingering on my coffee table. These are non-fiction. Last year I began reading a book on Victorian England and abandoned it for fiction. I got back into it a few weeks ago and have really enjoyed it. I bought it for reference purposes really as I have written something set in the Victorian age (it needs editing, of course!) and this book has been helpful. Another book came my way about musical history, and having read that, it sent me back to another book I abandoned on Early Music. Several years ago, I attended a course at Morley College on Early Music,  but the course was cancelled after only two lessons.There were only three of us in class. I was pretty cheesed off (for once it was not me giving up!). I particularly loved learning about how music began and the simple way of writing music. One of my great regrets is that I cannot seem to learn to read music (I have tried several times).

I have finally heard from The People's Friend that they are taking a poem of mine for their Fireside Book 2023. I'd given up on this as I was told I'd hear by March. I think this poem has been with them now for a year. Still, Visual Verse published another of my poems last month. There are 18 pieces of my work on their website, but I know there are more. One year I was published by them every month. I still enjoy the challenge of writing to a picture prompt within the hour.

My writing has taken on a darker and more weird (surrealist?) flavour in recent weeks. I've been writing a lot of flash fiction in this style. The more I write flash fiction, the more I enjoy it. It's a bit like knitting on large needles, you have a finished item quickly!

So, what keeps you motivated to write and what takes you away from it? Here is my lineup. 

Distractions/not want to write:

  • Mood
  • Sunshine (I don't want to be indoors when the weather is good)
  • Trips out (for content for my travel blog!)
  • Rejections
  • Other interests

What motivates me:

  • Mood
  • Ideas
  • Acceptances
  • Writing buddies
  • Certain friends
  • Workshops/courses
  • Trips out
As you can see a couple of things appear in both lists. What never bothers me is writer's block or lack of ideas. Sometimes I get overwhelmed by how much writing I have and how little of it has been published, and how little of it I've just not got round to editing! I love the writing process, but it takes time to edit. What do you struggle with?

To end with, here is a little challenge (no prizes, sorry!). Write a piece of flash fiction or a poem using all the following words (the order doesn't matter, unless you want to make it harder!):

clock
envelope
rhythm
sneering
slide
egg

Good luck! If you want to post your efforts into comments, do, but please be aware that anything published here would not be eligible for submission to magazines or competitions as they would consider it already published.

No comments: