Wife, mother, Poet, Writer, Art Installationist, Stand Up Comedian, Dog Enthusiast. Spending most of my time being creative in a variety of sometimes quirky ways!
I have suffered in my life, I have had wonderful things occur in my life. Concentrating on the wonderful things makes it easier for me to live a great life.
I had planned to work on my next poetry collection today. I said to myself yesterday, and I was working on it – you can do a whole chunk of that tomorrow, and maybe get it all done, and then you can send it off to see whether the publisher is interested in publishing it. I didn’t say it out loud, just in my head.
But out loud, or in my head, either way, it hasn’t actually happened, not yet. Unfortunately life steps forward far too often and says, hey, you have to do THIS RIGHT NOW! and when you take a look, yes, you do in fact have to do that thing. Today, the thing has been looking at my current financial situation, and talking with organisations about it.
That is all done now, more or less, but the idea of getting back onto working through my poetry collection, though an attractive idea, hasn’t captured me, not yet. I feel like doing something physical right now is more important. I’ve had my bottom firmly planted on the sofa for far too long today. So the plan for the poetry collection is still there, and I now say, I plan to get up, do some walking, exercising type of things, and when I come back, the poetry collection reading/editing action will happen! I hope …
So goodbye, I’m off to see the pond, clean things up there a little bit, do some step ups while I’m there, then keep on with the walking, to see whether I can do 2000 steps or more today! After that, some more water, and yes, back to the poetry collection, to see the lovely words there, and perhaps make them even lovelier!
Yes, that is what writers, do, they write. But they also edit, fluff around, and procrastinate, as well as thinking about words, editing their work, and various more difficult things regarding marketing of their work …
And they may do a variety of other things, housework, or course, paying bills, and other ‘normal’ things that all of us do at times, when we must. But today I have been a writer-in-residence, sitting with my books at a cafe, chatting to people. And I have connected with others on Social Media, most importantly using 5 random words offered for a five word challenge.
I used those five given words, to write some more of my novel, which I’ve been neglecting far too much lately. And I send that new piece of my novel to a friend, who I’ve been sending bits and pieces of my novel too, since she asked to read it. But the ‘progress’ in terms of story and word count are woefully inadequate …
But another thing I’ve been doing today is going through, and editing my poetry collection I wish to submit to a particular publisher as soon as I can. I went through twenty or so pages today, and hope to get through at least that many pages tomorrow, with the view to send this off before the end of the week, bearing in mind that this will be a shorter week, because of Easter. I’m enjoying my reading, and editing of this book, and hope the publisher will also enjoy reading it, and will accept it for publication.
I’ve also delivered a few more copes of the newsletter I edit, and spoken with one of the advertisers, with good results. I have other writing projects I’m working on, or will be soon, as well as another book I’m thinking about putting together, with a view to self-publishing it. And of course, there is the Covid-19 anthology I am hoping to have out to be launched in late July, at the Adelaide Plains and Gawler Festival of Words …
I’ve seen an early version of the front cover for that book – Plague Invasion – and I like the cover very much, eye catching for sure! This is a very important book, and I am hoping for good things with it, in terms of copies sold. This Covid time has been very trying, and this anthology will show some of the challenges we have all faced, so it can be read about in the future, and hopefully dealt with effectively if we ever need to deal with such a thing in the future, which it seems may well keep on happening. Not happy times, but being forewarned is to be forearmed …
And I have another book idea, a little chapbook, that will include illustrations as well as text. The text is mostly already written, I just need to extract it, and provid the illustrator with the it, so she can provide the pictures … I suspect I will be seeing this illustrator, who is the person who provided illustrations for three of my previous books. This new chapbook will include the same character as the previous three books mentioned.
This will be a fun little project, that may prove to be a winner in terms of sales, who knows? It just seems like a good way to use or more correctly reuse words I wrote for the newsletter mentioned previously. So how many books am I currently working on? I think that was five books, I’ve been busy, and will be even busier! Whew, it’s a good thing I like words, isn’t it?!
Yes, today I am getting out there, and talking to people in public, giving an writing workshop that will be quite different to anything anyone has ever done, I expect. Those attending will be using words already written and published, to write their own creative words, and who knows where their new words may go …
And after the workshop and lunch are done, I will be the guest poet at the Gawler Poets at the Pub event, where poets can come along and have a few minutes to read their poetry to a keen audience, for the cost of a gold coin! Yay! what poet wouldn’t want that?
I’ll have copies of my own books for sale today at a special low price, so here’s your chance. If you can’t be in Gawler today though, that low price will also apply tomorrow, when I’ll be doing my Writer-In-Residence gig at the Gallery 14 cafe in Hamley Bridge. I’ll be having lots of fun times with words there again on Monday, as I do every Monday 10.30 am (not public holidays).
My biggest writing related news for today is that I checked whether the copies of the Mallala Crossroad Chronicle had been printed yet. They were, and so after my visit to see my mother today, I headed south, picked up the copies and then headed north to deliver most of them and then go home.
I’ll be delivering a few more lots of the newsletter later on, and as appropriate, but the big deliveries are done, hooray! This newsletter has been going since 2004/05, coming out every single month, and it is getting bigger and better every year, I think! I am very proud of this newsletter, and the community loves what I do. Or some people do anyway, I know because they tell me so!
Other news for today – this is actually related to that newsletter, to some extent, I will explain. One of the things that I’ve been putting in each issue of the Crossroad Chronicle, is a little piece from a made up character, Buster the Dog. Buster is in three of my published books, that were illustrated by Allyson Hean. I imagine what Buster may be wanting to say to the people reading this newsletter, about all manner of things, current events, the weather, and random other things.
My idea was that if there are enough of these things already written, perhaps I could publish them all in a little chapbook, with the text on one side of the page opening, and an illustration connecting with the test on the other side … The unit cost of such a book would be about $3.50, or less, I would think, and I would sell the little books for $5 or $6 each, making a little bit of money, and sharing a little bit of fun, as will as spreading my name as a writer. Good idea or not? What do you think? The world needs a little more fun, and more words from a smart dog, surely?!
The dog on the cover of the book on the left, that is Buster the Dog.
I haven’t asked Allyson yet if she is interested in being involved in this project, but I will do so soon, and if she says yes, I will be sooo thrilled! uh oh, I just did a little checking, and there aren’t as many Buster the Dog pieces in back issue copies of the Chronicle as I’d thought … This means what? I’d have to write some random things to go in such a book, I suppose.
It’s OK, settle down, Carolyn – I re-checked the number, and I think there will be enough, actually. Numbers and I aren’t the best of friends, but I think I’m right with this one. And hey, if there aren’t enough already, this project will take a while to accomplish, and I write a new one every month these days, and I’m thinking up to 20 of them will be a good number.
And to finish off, my most exciting news is that I am the presenter of a writing workshop and am the guest poet for the March Gawler Poets at the Pub event, happening next Sunday (28 March 2021). I have the workshop worked out, with the relevant hand out printed, as well as having copies of the entry form and guidelines for the poetry competition Adelaide Plains Poets have happening now, and until 2 July 2021, when entries for the competition will close.
The theme for this competition is “Recovery”, and the entry form, and guidelines, are on this blog, look around, it shouldn’t be too difficult to find. And if it is, leave me a message, and I can send a copy to you!
So, a big word related day, with many more to come!
I am a writer, I’ve named myself that for a good few years now, and at the beginning, it felt a bit presumptuous, but I’m over that now. I write, therefore I am a writer. And I now have eight published books to my name, and three other books on their way to being sent off to get printed, or considered by a publisher. So yes, I am definitely a writer.
Being a writer, is a title I am happy to admit to. Sometimes getting the needed words written, and written well enough can be difficult, and other times getting the time to write what you want to write can be difficult too.
some of my books
But if I put my mind to it, and commit to getting a good bit of writing down, it can flow, and flow well. I’m fortunate in that I don’t need to have a paid job, so finding writing time is relatively easy, most of the time, if not always.
But in my mind, for me, the hardest part about this whole writing thing is to get the word out about my books and writing to other people … If I was a business person, I would send out, or have my ‘people’ send out press releases, telling of my most recent product or service. If I was a sportsperson, journalists would write articles about me, and come begging for interviews with me.
But I’m not any of those things, I’m a writer, and though ‘being a writer’ can rightly be called a business, it is also an art, and art and business only mix uneasily, it seems to me. The idea of marketing oneself, and what a writer has done, as a business may market their new ‘whatsit’, feels like cheapening the ‘art’ side of what a writer does. Typing out all of those words, to produce a book is not simply churning any old words, they must be the best words possible.
So struggling to make the best ‘art’ possible and putting that literate side of what a writer does is a difficult, but it is also the most enjoyable part of things too, when the words flow, and what you are doing feels just so right, so special, so what you must do … Writing isn’t just a job, it is a calling, and if a writer isn’t writing, they are often thinking about their writing, and wishing they could be sitting down and writing … It feels like the thing they love to do, the best thing in the world, when it is going well!
That part of it is wonderful, making art from words, who wouldn’t want to do that, I know it is one of the best things there is in the world, for me, I love it! The other part, having to deal with the piece of writing I have created, finding the best home for it, whether poem, article, short story, or book, selling my ‘art’ as one would sell a commodity, that is the bit that doesn’t come naturally.
So really, the hardest part is stepping back, taking off the ‘writer’ hat, and putting on the ‘marketer’ hat, and selling that book to a publisher, and then selling those published books to book buyers! That is what I think anyway. I would love to read what other writers think about all of this. I love books, I adore signing copies of my books, and talking about books, I just find the part about actually finding ways to sell those books to invisible ‘others’ difficult … And advice bout this would be most welcome!
