Kick starting writing

It's difficult to get motivated on a cold and frosty January morning, but the lure of good company and chat and the chance to be creative enticed us back to Coney Island yesterday. A cosy welcome and cranberry and orange muffins also helped.

We had much to talk about, catching up on each other's news and plans with many of us taking active steps over the coming months to focus on our writing. Focus was in force yesterday when we completed two writing exercises - a short story and a poem with some fun prompts. 

With tasks to be completed before we meet again, it was the right kick start to writing we needed in the new year. This supportive group together with some of the lovely gifts I received at Christmas that will help in my planning, researching and writing, will keep the motivation and focus over a cold, dark January.

Timing is Everything

December is always a busy month - so much going on in the run up to Christmas, and this year has been no different. Despite not feeling so festive this year, preparations started early with cards being written, treats baked, presents made, bought and wrapped (with special cards for writing friends!)

This left time to enjoy Christmas catch ups with friends, theatre outings, Christmas dinners. There were writing group catch ups - online and in person, with writing friends from across Europe, to much closer to home. There were a few opportunities for writing exercises, but with so many other activities happening, my writing time was squeezed out. Rejections continued to be received as editors tried to clear their backlogs before the holidays.

But amidst the rejections there has been perfectly timed writing joy during the last week. My story, 'Class Writing' was published in this week's Sunday Post's, 'PS' bumper Christmas supplement. I didn't think I could be more delighted to see my story in print, until I saw the accompanying artwork. It could not be more perfect for my story.

And today I received a perfectly timed Christmas delivery through the post. Despite a few glitches, Jonathan Humble at The Dirigible Balloon worked tirelessly to send out this gorgeous anthology of children's poems 'Sky Surfing'. All proceeds go to the Juvenile Arthritis Research project.

It's perfect timing to read my poem included, 'Calendar Countdown' with the book arriving just in time for Jolabokaflod (the Icelandic Christmas tradition that involves exchanging books and reading them together on Christmas Eve (while eating chocolate!))

You know what I'll be doing later. Is it any wonder I still believe in Santa? Merry Christmas!

Defying Darragh

All year we look forward to our writing group's Christmas get together. Last week,  we were putting the final preparations together, anticipating the fun we would have, catching up, sharing stories and enjoying our Christmas meal together.

So, with a Yellow weather warning turning to an Amber warning because Storm Darragh was on its way, we were anxious as to whether our festivities would go ahead as planned. During the night as the storm arrived, I listened as the rain battered the roof and the wind grew stronger tossing bins and their contents round the garden. Fearing what storm damage daylight would reveal, we knew rescheduling our Christmas get together was an option. 

Thankfully all of us had got off relatively unscathed and our routes to Coney had not been impeded by fallen trees. We expected some debris from an early high tide, but were very fortunate that was all that Darragh had left behind. It was a strange experience watching the wind blowing the tide out, as the the tide was coming in.

The wind continued to deliver an icy blast while we were there, but surrounded by good company and food in cosy surroundings we ignored it. We tucked into seasonal cranberry and orange muffins over coffee, catching up on news.

Later we completed a short writing exercise, creating some memorable characters and sharing our work. It didn't take long for all of us to clear our books away and set the table for our much anticipated festive lunch.

As always, everyone pitched in to the preparation of this delicious meal. We left Coney very full and very thankful for a delicious lunch shared with good friends and another year of being part of this group of supportive writers.

I love Paris in the fall...

A few days away from routine are always good for rest, relaxation and sparking creativity. While Paris may not be the most restful of locations, we found plenty of creative inspiration in the city of light on our recent break.

As well as taking in the main sights, we stumbled across commemorative plaques, statues and artists practising their craft.

I was thrilled to find the famous bookstore 'Shakespeare and Company' while we were exploring the left bank. I was spoilt for choice in this Aladdin's cave crammed with books. It was good to see some of our own local writers' work stocked in the shop.

Finally I made a choice I'm not regretting, complete with the famous bookstore stamp.

While I didn't get any free time to write while there,  writing was never far from my mind. Rejection emails still arrive no matter where you are in the world. Undeterred, I stocked up on a new notebook.

And as I prepared to get back into my routine, it was a real pleasure to be seated beside a lovely local writer on our flight home and chat. No matter how marvellous a trip, returning home is always good, and this was especially true this time, as I found one of my short stories has been longlisted in a competition 😀

Coney Calling

We might only be into November a couple of days, but already it feels dull, dark and dreich most of the time. Yesterday a dull day was brightened considerably by being back at Coney. 

We caught up on each other's news - it seemed much longer than a month since we'd all been together. We talked about memorable characters, shared our 'homework' - (yes - sometimes we get homework  - and sometimes we even remember to do it!) and then completed some writing exercises thinking about our characters and how they might clash with others in our stories. The results kept us entertained.

Over seasonal apple and cinnamon muffins, biscuits and coffee, we shared some of our work and made plans. I also thought about what makes a story work. The previous evening I'd been to see 'The Vanishing Elephant' at Belfast's Grand Opera House. It was an amazing performance  - brilliant acting, music and puppetry, but at the core was good storytelling.

That's what's most important  - having a good story. So later, while I waited for inspiration to strike, the muffins were finished off as I delved into the latest issue of my writing magazine.

More books and more bookish events

Last weekend saw the inaugural Louis MacNeice festival in Carrickfergus. I managed to pop down to the festival launch on Saturday. It was good to catch up with friends there and hear the plans for this first festival. It's great that a group of people had the vision to plan this festival and I'm sure it will go from strength to strength. Also good to see some of the museum's MacNeice artefacts on display, including a selection of family letters.

During the week I managed to acquire a few more books in that same town. I'm looking forward to starting to read the short story collection by Seamus O'Kelly this week - it seems a fitting choice in this Irish Book Week.

But first I need to finish reading something in the current pile.....

A good week for writing

It's been a good week for writing. Although there have been a few rejections this week, there have been several high points, some of which have been the fruits of labours undertaken earlier this year.

On Monday evening we had great fun at our SCBWI Ireland quarterly Zoom meeting with our special guest Shirley-Anne McMillan, Children's Writing Fellow at the Seamus Heaney Centre at Queen's University, Belfast. Shirley shared her writing process with us and then set us a challenging writing exercise.

Yesterday was Bookshop Day, so I called down to my local bookshop The Secret Bookshelf to have a chat with Chris and Jo, browse what's new and of course I came away with a bag full of books. Among the purchases was a Christmas gift and one of Shirley-Anne's novels, ' The Unknowns'. I also got a lovely goodie bag filled with all sorts of writing/ reading treats.

And today I was absolutely thrilled to see in print that I'm one of The Sunday Post's short story competition finalists. 

As children staying at our grandparents' Fife house we couldn't wait to read The Broons & Oor Wullie in this paper. Almost as exciting as it was today to track down a copy of the paper and open it to read my name alongside the other finalists in black and white 😀

Just the motivation to start writing another story....