Month: April 2020

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Keen, But Not Obsessive

carolyncordon

At the moment, much of my writing time, and writing related thoughts, have been taken up by thoughts about Covid-19. So much so, that I’ve decided to relegate my Cosy Murder Mystery series idea to second position, and focus on the Anthology I’ve decided is much more important to do right now.

Being relevant, and in the moment, and also being a worthy thing to do in terms of being for the greater good, ‘Plague Invasion – Creative Writing in Response to Covid-19’ will be a more important book than ‘Hot Winds of Death at Talloola, a Cosy Murder Mystery’, will ever be. I am OK with that. The former book will never make me any money, and will probably cost me a bit of money, while the latter book, if if was finished and got published, could well be a money earner.

Making money isn’t why I write though. I write because I’m a writer, writing is what I do. Or if I’m not actually writing, I’m often, perhaps usually, thinking about writing related things. This Anthology I’ve decided to work on publishing is a way to reach out to others, and bring out the truths of what it’s like to be in Lock Down, to be worried, to be unemployed, all because of a virus.

Nature often inspires me …

To me, it feels as though we are trapped in an historic moment, and can’t get out, unless or until, something can happen to open up the trap door. That key to release us may be a vaccine, that we can have to keep us safe from Covid-19. There are relevant people working on that, on a vaccine, and from what I’ve been hearing, it’s getting closer.

But it isn’t here yet, so in the meantime, I am calling out for written works about this dangerous virus. Details of what I’m after are below. I want as broad a range of works as possible, all looking at writing inspired by the prompt of ‘Covid-19’. The book that comes out of this project with be an anthology, titled “Plague Invasion – Creative Writing Responses to Covid-19”, and it will be published, and available for sale. If you want to be involved (and I hope you do), check out the details below:

1/Plague Invasion Anthology – submission guidelines

Up to three poems (each poem up to thirty lines), or 2,000 words of prose, fiction or non fiction.

For prose, up to three pieces, up to that total word count of 2,000 limit as above.

All accepted writers can buy one copy of Plague Invasion at cost price.

Further copies for accepted writers will be half retail price. All prices are plus p&h.

 *Send submissions to kittycordo@gmail.com*

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2/ Another, possibly related thought:
After an online that with a friend last night,  my head was buzzing a bit, but once I was nice and warm in bed, I slept like a lamb. 

I had the weirdest dream though, and for a change, I can remember the dream. It was at a dog show, and there were a couple of hundred schnauzers and their handlers, all lined up and going into the show ring, all at the same time. I was one of those show people, my Schnauzer was more my pet, than a show dog, and she wasn’t particularly groomed up ready to show, she was just neat and tidy …

Hmm. It seems to me, that dream means I’m setting out on a big project, but I’m not worried about it, because I know what I’m doing, and I’ll quietly get on with getting it done, with lots of others all set on doing the same thing with me.

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So there are some what I’ve been doing. If you’re interested it being involved in the Anthology, please let me know, send something in

I’m not into dream interpretation, but that’s my guess on what it might mean, if in fact it means anything.

Are there any dream experts out there, with thoughts about this? I often dream, but rarely remember my dreams. This one feels like an important dream.

What do you think? Do you think dreams have meanings? I’d love to know more about other people’s thoughts on this, please leave a comment, I’d love to talk about it further!

So, I’m keen to get this Anthology published, and am working toward that being done, but I’m not obsessive about it. I am eating my food, I am sleeping, I am doing other things, as normal. Life continues on, but with the addition of this Anthology …

inspiration

Feedback and Ideas Requested

carolyncordon

I’m a teensy bit excited about this project I’m currently working on to be honest, and I hope lots of others will be excited about it too. The range of works that can go in an anthology, means that both serious things, and silly things can go in there. Could I or should I use an image like the one below, as the front cover of this anthology? (Comments welcome on this question)

An anthology is: A published collection of poems or other pieces of writing. (https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803095416186)

So poems, fiction, non fiction, stories, articles, songs, all and any of these can make their way into an anthology. And the works that get published in the anthology I’m working on can be deadly serious, or ridiculously funny, sensible or silly. It will depend on what is submitted for possible publication, and what meets the needs of the editor (Carolyn Cordon).

The editor has been thinking about this, quite a lot these past few days, since the “Plague Invasion” Anthology began to become a possible reality. Thoughts and ideas have flown in, and out, been tweaked and twitched, and at the moment, these are relevant details for those interested in submitting work for this anthology.

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Plague Invasion Anthology

Up to three poems, or 1,500 words prose, fiction or non fiction.
For prose, up to three pieces, up to that 1,500 limit as above.
All accepted writers can buy one copy of Plague Invasion at cost price * this point may be changed to ‘All accepted writers will receive on copy of Plague Invasion for free (plus p&h)’
Further copies for accepted writers will be available at half retail price.
All prices are plus p&h.
If I end up going mad, or broke doing this, it was probably still worth it.

That final point was a bit of silliness, I am feeling confident that I can do this, and my sanity will remain intact, as much as it ever is … Haha, humour in times of challenges is a fine thing, if we can find things to laugh about, life seems to flow better, much, much better.

Did someone mention toilet paper?

White Gold in Pandemic Times

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I would really appreciate knowing what you think about any of this, Good, bad or indifferent, I need the feedback to keep going, and going in the best directions, thank you!

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My New Project, Thoughts and Ideas

carolyncordon

My thoughts and ideas regarding my new project are growing, as I think about the enormity of what I’ve done. I am not a publisher, as such, I am a writer and poet who has self-published my own work … They’re two things, two different things. Or are they?

To some extent yes, when I’m publishing my own books, I can just do whatever I want, and if it goes well, great, if it sinks, oh well, I’ve lost a bit of my own money, and I grin and bear it. But this new project is something else, something big, and involving many others, who are trusting me with their words, their thoughts. It is humbling, and it is a little bit scary.

some of my self published books, and my poetry collection (Tense and Still) published by Ginninderra Press

I tell myself, yes, I can do this. And step by step, I am doing it. It’s only been a couple of days, but there is already some interest, with some pieces of relevant writing already with me. I will do this, because I have to. I’ve made an offer, accepted work, and now must put the words together, into an a book.

So what is this project? Briefly, I am going to publish an anthology of written responses to the Covid-19 problem that is causing illness and deaths throughout the world, as long as having many, many people suffering from having to remain ‘locked down’, staying in their homes, instead of going to work, or school, unless they have jobs classed as ‘essential’.

I put out this call for submissions on this blog a few days ago, and have been exploring ways to keep on getting more interest in what I’m doing. I will be contacting local press, I’ve been putting the information out on Social Media.
What more can I do? Keep on doing what I’m already doing, and remain open to any other ideas and options that may come along.

I am also in Locked Down. I have a chronic illness, that possibly makes me more vulnerable to getting this illness, it I am exposed to it, apparently. So I’ve been staying at home. I know all about staying at home. I’ve lived through being a stay at home mum, without a car, and now public transport ( a long time ago, my son is now 26). And I’ve lived through having a broken ankle, last year, when I spent almost all of my time during the day on this sofa I’m currently sitting on, unable to walk.

So being in lock down mode seems quite commonplace to me, really. When I had that broken ankle, I saw it as a great chance to get some writing done, and I wrote poems about my broken ankle, and I connected with a publisher I know, and they published the poems I wrote. I came up with a good title that attracted interest (“Angles on Ankles“), and bang, a new book appeared.

That arrow amused me so much! Surely it was easy enough to tell which was the broken ankle, it was a swollen lump of an ankle!

I hope the title I have for this Covid-19 Lock Down project has the same effect, plenty of interest and a book that attracts a lot of interest. My proposed title for this anthology is “Plague Invasion” and it certainly feels to me that this virus is a plague that has invaded our lives and our homes, even as we work hard to keep it away from us, by staying home and washing our hands.

If you’d like to be involved in this anthology, leave a comment and we can discuss it! Or send me an email: kittycordo@gmail.com
Thanks, yours in words,

Note the ‘lock down’ messy hair, and the slightly manic smile. These are crazy times.

Carolyn Cordon, writer, poet, blogger, dreamer, believer!

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Putting My Own Work Forward

carolyncordon

This idea of mine, as outlined here yesterday, to organise an anthology about Covid-19, and its affect on us, the creative writers, who see things, think about them, and respond with our main tool, our words, and writing abilities, is real, it’s happening, and people have indicated they’d like to be involved. This is one of those humbling moments, to have other writers acknowledge that my idea to do this was a good one, and a healing idea perhaps, or at least a chance to try to understand it better.

I’ve received the first response to my call for creative writing submissions, and I felt almost scared about reading that response, at least before I’d written my own work for possible inclusion in the Plague Invasion Anthology. I’ve written my own first response now, a poem, an acrostic poem, in fact, and I will share it here, to share one possible way other creative writers may like to go.

And, because it’s relevant to my own poem, here are some trees.

And now, here is my own poem:

Plagasion

My Acrostic Response

Please stay at home. Or go back to work.

Leaving it up to us? Or just confused? 

Anger, anguish, thinking of loved ones lost,

Going down sad old paths, or fresher grief.

Aware, or maybe not, that grief takes time …

Stay together, this journey is one untravelled

In our lives before, the rules fluid. No-one

Owns this problem, unless Nature does, and

Nature is trying, yet again, to make it better …

So that’s what I’ve done, now, will you put pen to paper, or fingers to keyboard, to produce something that might be suitable for “Plague Invasion” and Anthology of creative writing in relation to Coronavirus – Covid-19? I hope so.

If you wish to submit your work for consideration for this project, here again, are the relevant details:

send your work before 31 July 2020, by sending it as an attachment, to kittycordo@gmail.com, using the subject of ‘submission, Plague Invasion’
If you would like to know more about this, feel free to send me a query, at the same email address, with the subject of ‘query Plague Invasion’.

Thank you, and best wishes to you, in these troubling times

Carolyn

Carolyn Cordon, Editor, Poet, Writer, and Dreamer.

inspiration, writing prompts

Call for Creative Writing Submissions

carolyncordon

I am a poet and writer, but I am also an editor too. Obviously, if poets and writers are going to present their best work/words, they will need to edit their work, before they ever show it to other people, whether friends, family, or writing buddies. And they will have to do an even more intense job of editing their work before they present it to a publisher, if they want to make the grade, and get their work published.

I have done these things, and have been published, and still receive royalties for my work, many years after publication … So with all of my experience with books, and also as the Editor of the Mallala Crossroad Chronicle, a monthly newsletter that is distributed in Mallala and beyond, as well as being available at the Facebook page. This newsletter has been going for fifteen years, and I have been the sole editor for most of those years. It is a popular item and well received indeed.

I have also been the President of Adelaide Plains Poets from it’s beginnings, it is a great group, a writing group that meets every week. The Adelaide Plains Poets also has an annual Poetry competition, and a Festival of Books too. These popular avenues assist in bringing the love of words to many others, both local, and all around Australia.

So there are my credentials regarding creative writing. The reason I want to make this clear, is that I want people to feel confident in sending me their own creative words, to be involved in being published in an Anthology. I have put together poetry collections of my own, and have also had my own creative words published in other Anthologies with other editors. So I know a bit about both collections and anthologies.

my most recent poetry collection

And if I’m going to put my attention, and my money, into putting together a Creative Writing Anthology, I want it to be something that is likely to attract attention, both of writers initially, and of book readers, once it is published. And what is the thing that is taking up the attention, and time of us all at the moment? It’s the coronavirus, or Covid-19.

The working title of this book at the moment is “Plague Invasion”. Does this get your mind working, thinking about possible ideas? A poem about being in Lock Down, and finding it so dreary you turn to creating a vegetable garden? Or an article on the same topic, perhaps. Or you may think about the work being done to keep us all safe, and the craziness of wearing face masks, whether they’re needed or not.

The uncertainty of the whole thing, and the stupid risks being taken by some levels of society, could become an article or a flash fiction story perhaps, of one of the risk takers, whether an eighteen year old person sitting closely together with their mates, or a more mature person just back from their most recent cruise, and infecting others and bringing about the closing down of some small towns.

All of these topics would be suitable, and more. You may have knowledge of all of this from a medical viewpoint, or perhaps you have knowledge of previous plagues from the past. These would be suitable too. I will be looking for as many different ideas, and viewpoints as possible. And as an avid dog lover, I would be very interested in having a look at all of this Locked Down situation from a pet’s point of view.

The memes I’ve seen about this indicate dogs loving having their humans present more often, while cats very much dislike it. What do you think? Write about it and send it in! Anything you have that may fit into this theme, that’s what I want you to send to me.

So, if you have something, please get it to me before 31 July 2020, by sending it as an attachment, to kittycordo@gmail.com, using the subject of ‘submission, Plague Invasion’
If you would like to know more about this, feel free to send me a query, at the same email address, with the subject of ‘query Plague Invasion’.

I imagine there will be around 70 to 80 pages in this anthology, it would be wonderful if it got to 150 or so pages, the answer to the size of the book depends on how many responses are received.

I look forward to reading your response.