Early

I am dropping in early this week. I have no blog as I have three different lots of edits to do. Remember this happened to me a few months ago, well I am now at the final stage of these books.

I won't be posting at all next week as I shall be in Edinburgh at the Festival, but more important is that I will be meeting up with my friend Loren Teague who lives in New Zealand. This will be a marvellous reunion for both of us. So please excuse me for being absent without leave!

Hope you like the picture, it was taken one on of

my walks last Sunday and shows the wonderful

Eden Valley in Cumbria. Any visitors from the USA

to England, please remember, there is more to

the UK than London!!

Kind regards, Margaret.

How About Three?

I know it's a long way to New Years, but I've decided to make some resolutions and streamline my life. I decided to start with my Yahoo Groups. At last count I belonged to 22 of them.

They are all great writing groups but I was inactive in all of them. The worst thing I did was sign up to be guest moderator in one and then totally forget to show up. Not only did I not show up, I didn't even remember that I'd forgotten. So time for a resolution. I decided to cut back to three.

It was hard to chose but I decided to go with the groups either associated with my publishers or where my fiction was a good fit. And now I'm working at welcoming new members, applauding other writer's successes, buying as many e-books as I can and writing reviews for them. And it's exhausting! I don't know how writers do this and get any of their own work done.

So my question: How many groups do you belong to and how active are you? I'd love to keep this up because I've met delightful, talented people but I know as soon as I'm knee-deep in my next story that I'm probably reverting to my hermit self.

Behind the Pen

Most people assume (mistakenly, I believe) that the only person responsible for a story is the writer, but that's just not true. It's not the whole story...well, behind the story.

I'm talking first-draft story here. We all recognize (and are grateful for!) the work of editors, publishers, cover artists and lots of other, often under-recognized, folks who help bring a story to life. But first-draft stories? They're not completely the result of one person's work and vision, despite what most people believe.

Take it from me. I know. I couldn't possibly write as much as I do if I didn't have someone who helps make my world a calm, peaceful place where creativity is encouraged. Yeah, I'm talking about the person who brings the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and diet soda while I'm staring off into the distance, formulating the outline of the next story--oops! Ignore that "staring-distance-formulating bit"...I meant to say "while I am working."

I know I'm not the only one who has a wonderful helper (insert "husband" in my case) who helps make a career choice work so well. There are usually others who facilitate writers' journeys. I've read story after story of writers giving credit where it's due...to the person behind the person who pushes the pen.

So, this Friday morning I just want to take a moment and thank my husband. He helps me in untold ways, bringing an added measure of joy to the writing side of my life.

Hope you all have a great weekend. Me? I'll be staring, thinking...I've still got the next story to firm up before I put pen to paper. I'm hoping there are a few pb&js in my weekend, too. ;-)

Bringing it Forth

Kathy's wonderful post had me thinking about the whole process of creating a novel. Kathy is in the early stages but there is a long way to go. Lots of writers talk about giving birth to their novel, and yes it is just like that. The whole process is akin to pregnancy. This is how I see it anyway.

First there is the exhileration, hey the birth of an idea, voices, feelings, something there inside you. You are not sterile, your mind has not vegetated, you are creative. This carries you along, and fortunately you don't have all those horrid early feelings you have in pregnancy, like morning sickness and a general feeling of lassitude, but you have those good feelings to carry you along. Your baby is doing fine - those characters are swimming around your mind and getting up to all kinds of things.

Is it all plain sailing? Of course not - you get past the middle and then that lumpen feeling sets in - where is this going? When will it end, what will I do when it does end? Will I be a successful mother and know how to turn my creation into something sellable.

Then it's over - there it is in the crib of the computer, looking at at you, all perfect, you read it over, marvelling and of course doubting, because this little guy is going to cause you a lot of worry when it sets off on its own into the competitive world of book publishing. And like many parents you do wonder, is this the kid that is going to keep you in your old age? All our hopes and dreams and aspirations are in this little fellow. We hope he won't let us down.

Oh yes, Kathy and I are in the early stages now and enjoying it, we don't have to worry just yet, now is just the perfect time...

Cheers, Margaret.

Could You Come Back Later?

A man with a deep voice is softly telling me his story. "You can't substitute one obsession for another. I know. I've tried."

That's how my stories start. I hear a voice. The whole process is so woo-woo that I hesitate to discuss it with non-writers. Generally I'm delighted to hear that voice. It means I'll be going on a journey with new characters.

But this isn't a good time for me. In fact, it's a terrible time to start a new story. I just limped through the finish line with my last novel and my husband is recovering from open-heart surgery. Did I mention I'm in a fibromyalgia flare? Yup. Fibromyalgia is one of those illnesses that rears at totally inconvenient times making you ache and giving you insomnia.

My new character thinks I should listen to him during my sleepless nights. At 2 AM he says, "Let me tell you about my brother. He sort of looks like Prince Harry without the naughtiness. I'm the dark one. We are color coded for our respective personalties." He asks, "Aren't you intrigued yet?"

I tell him he sounds kind of creepy and is about as welcome as an alligator at the door.

He laughs. "You need me. You know."

I can't argue with that. I am a writer -- a scribe -- and to turn down a story is unthinkable. "All right," I tell him, "let me go get a pen."

The Economy

Is a scary thing these days. Maybe I'm naive but when gas prices sky rocketed I didn't know what a domino effect it would have to the rest of the word. I'm talking with regard to businesses, jobs, our personal lives. Oh, I knew some things would be effected, but gosh, now it's getting down right scary! And it's just starting.

My hubby keeps telling me to watch it. Meaning, of course, my spending. I'm making good money but all of a sudden everything else has gone up to a ridiculous point. I used to make it to work and back on a tank of gas that ran $26, now it's closer to $50. Groceries for the two of us has jumped from $80 a week to around $120 for the same stuff. If anything we've cut back.

I've noticed small mom and pop businesses that have been around for like, ever, are closing their doors. And they're not re-locating! Big companies are laying off people. I have a friend who has worked at the same job for 6 years. The other day they let her go with $5000. Now you're thinking, well, she got something. That should carry her for a while. Okay, what about the health benefits she lost? This is a person who had a heart transplant 10 years ago and takes thousands of dollars worth of meds a month to stay alive. How is she going to survive?

Another friend works for a huge company that hands out generous bonus checks to their employees every month based on their productivity. Unfortunately it's not individual, which means they put everyone in the same pot. You might have one person who excels and another one who could care less. Their bonuses are based on the whole team. For the first time in her 5 years with the company she didn't get a bonus last month. She couldn't make her car payment. What's going to happen if next month is the same?

Houses aren't selling, now is the time to buy but people can't afford to buy. People who've fought to keep their credit good are going to be forced to make a decision that will ruin it in order to survive. Get behind on payments. Drop things they need like insurance, take the meds they need every other day instead of every day. Get rid of their beloved pets because they can't afford to feed them anymore. It sounds ludicrous but it's a fact becoming more apparent every day.

A sad fact that the economy will get worse before it gets better. But what can we do but ride out the storm?

Between books...

...and feeling kind of... oh, I don't know. Untethered. Is that the right word for it? You know the feeling; I'm kind of "between jobs" and while it's loads of fun not to feel pressed to form the story, make the characters think, feel, speak or watch the word count build I'm...well, I guess I'm just not used to it. And it's left me feeling...yes, untethered is the right word. I'm like a balloon without a string, ready to blow off on a wayward gust but so far...no gust.

*Sigh*

In the meantime I've cleaned the house from top to bottom (twice!), organized the closets, straightened out my desk drawers, baked, gardened, hiked through the meadows, played with the cat, talked the ears off Hubby--well, you get the idea.

I'm waiting. I need to decide what comes next. Why is it when you want a calm day, you get wind? When you're looking for a breeze, you get stillness.

What about you? What's up in your world? And are your days filled with gusty moments or calm, quiet, watchful (hopeful!) ones like mine?

Hope you have a great weekend. Me? I'm looking for a breeze...