Playing Catch Up

Gosh, I am such a rubbish blogger, aren’t I?

Anyway, the postman brought me a lovely treat this week, a copy of Janet Gover’s new book The Farmer Wants a Wife. Especially lovely, as although it was on my ‘to buy’ list, I actually won the book in a competition run by Nell Dixon on her blog to celebrate the launch of her new LBD book, ‘Animal Instincts’. I love LBD books (and if you’re not familiar with LBD, then all I can say is ‘where have you been!?’) I’m really enjoying Janet’s novel, so many thanks to both Nell and Janet for the treat.

Some writing news of my own (at last, I hear you say), I have stories in these two publications this week:

Shame about Best stopping fiction, just when I’d sold them my first story too after a few (cough, cough) years of trying! Sigh, it’s not the first time that’s happened, I’ve seen out the fiction in a few magazines now. Not that I’m paranoid or anything. Anyway, I’m really pleased with the lovely illustration in Best. It’s a thrill too to be in the Weekly News alongside stories by two of my writing buddies, what an honour!

And continuing the me, me, me theme, I sold a coffee break tale to My Weekly this week.
So all in all a good week that makes up for all these weeks of blanket rejections and brown envelopes from the VAT man and tax man.

And it looks as though the sun will be shining for Mother’s Day tomorrow. Ooh I expect I will be spoilt rotten by the kids, but perhaps I ought to go and give them a gentle reminder just in case... What about you, anything exciting planned?

Blogging Bother

Ooh, we’ve had a bit of trouble this week. Not from me, I might add, but from the other blogger in the house, the teenage boy. He’s been an enthusiastic and conscientious blogger for some time now with a merry following of, ahem, teenage girls. I knew there had to be something in it for him.

I took a bit of interest in the early days, but haven’t really followed his blog for some time now because it’s a bit like reading your son’s diary; you know you’re going to end up learning something you really didn’t want to know.

Anyway, in short, the teenage boy has turned into Piers Morgan with less discretion and ending up getting his knuckles rapped by Head Office of the well-known charity shop he volunteers for after divulging details of a little wheez going on behind the scenes. Then he vented about something at school which didn’t go down too well in some quarters so again there was a lot of fur flying and what can only be described as a colourful verbal exchange.

It would have been okay if he’d kept his blog anonymous, but of course it was linked to his facebook account, twitter and the six o’clock news bulletin. He suddenly became a ‘wanted’ man.

Much to his disgust, ‘what about free speech?’ he’s been heard exclaiming, his blog has had to go underground and he’s not very happy about it all. Ah, the joys of technology, eh?

Still, a couple of good things have come about since he started all this. A while ago someone left a comment on one of his posts saying they liked his writing style and would he like to contribute an article to their website, an American funny tales site, which he duly did. (Mother goes off in a sulk as no one has ever asked her if she’d like to contribute anything anywhere) And he’s been bitten by the writing bug, spending hours locked away in his bedroom writing short stories. Should I be worried about this peculiar teenage behaviour, I wonder? Still, he could be doing worse things up there, I suppose.

So, are you a lone blogger in your household or are there others amongst you?

Just a quickie

I was determined to keep to my resolution, so at the eleventh hour….

This week….

One short story written.

Three stories submitted.

One story rejected.

Number of words written on novel – big fat zero.

Books bought – One – I Can Make You Thin by Paul McKenna (If it works I’ll post a photo of me in all my new svelte loveliness.)

Things given up for Lent – Three – Chocolate, cakes and biscuits.

I’ve tried in previous years to give up just one thing like chocolate, but then have fallen foul of a mischevious biscuit disguising itself as plain old boring and then finding, when I’ve taken a ladylike bite, it has a scrummy chocolate filling. Most frustrating, so for that reason all those scrummy things have been banished this year.

Things baked – 16 – Nigella’s scrummy, if jaw-aching, breakfast bars – peanuts, cranberries, oats, coconut and condensed milk. Very definitely not a cake though. Do brioches count as a cake, I wonder? Croissants? Pain au raisins? I can see I will need to do a little research on food classifications over the coming weeks.

So did you give up anything for Lent and, if so, how’s it going?

Now, where was I?

Sorry about that, I slipped out the front door to pick up a few groceries and got a little waylaid. Like you do. It was a life-enhancing few months, but I’ve come to realise that true happiness lies not in wild abandoned nights with swarthy young men, but in domesticity and the school run. So here I am.

Thankfully, George is very forgiving; the accountant, tax man and vat man, less so, but after a bit of sweet-talking on my part, I think I pretty much have the demands of the men in my life under control now.

On the writing front, I may have mentioned a while ago, that I was about to start on the second novel. I’ve done a lot of mentioning to anyone who might listen, but not very much writing. One idea flits into my brain and takes up residence and then the other idea muscles in on the whole scene so I’ve been doing a lot of dithering. In a reckless moment, I’ve had a few of those recently, I rejoined the RNA so it would be a good idea to get going on the novel soon. Any minute now, in fact.

Novel No. 1 is out there, but I suspect is being treated with cold cruel contempt. When it next comes home with its tail beneath its legs, I may wrap it under the duvet for a couple of months for some much needed tlc.

The short story writing is going well, though. I’ve written a few since Christmas and have been busy submitting, that always make me feel better. My February 20th resolution is to blog at least once a week, that can’t be too difficult, and to catch up with everyone else’s blogs.

Thanks to everyone who asked about me. When we get together for that coffee, I’ll tell you all the juicy, eye-popping, glorious details about those missing months.

Good Habits

That’s what I’ve been trying to get into. I went on a course last week. Sadly not a ‘how to write a bestselling novel’ course or even ‘how to write an averagely good novel’ course or a ‘sell more short stories’ course, but a ‘learn how to be a better driver after having had an accident’ course.

I had a very lovely letter from the local constabulary offering me a place and asking me not to be offended (humph) and suggesting that I would really enjoy it and it was up to me, I didn’t have to attend, but if I didn’t they’d see me in court (cue evil laugh).

I was a little nervous about the whole thing as a friend had been on the same course and she told me that after the classroom based theory stuff you were let loose on the roads with a trainer observing your every movement. Scary. Still I needn’t have worried as I met some lovely people and it was extremely worthwhile and enjoyable and the driving, through the Buckinghamshire villages, on sunny autumn days was much better than I could have anticipated. My lovely lady trainer was very encouraging and I got to share the car with a very fit, in every sense of the word, young policeman who wasn’t there in a professional capacity, but in a ‘must take more care on the roads’ capacity.

So if you are a road user, please take it easy out there. I heard lots of sobering statistics. There are a lot of idiots out there (no not me silly!) and it’s really not worth getting heated and wound up behind the wheel. I let everyone cut me up now and just smile sweetly. Stay safe!

In other news, as newsy people say, Google Alerts notified me that a passage from one of my short stories, which appeared in an anthology a while back, has turned up in a Media Studies Intermediate exam paper this year. Cool eh? The poor candidates had to read my piece and then plan a media product inspired by the passage, mentioning target audiences and other technical media type stuff. I’m just glad I didn’t have to do it. I wouldn’t have known where to start.

Half-term’s here all ready? How did that happen? I still haven’t got into the swing of things after the summer holidays and now I’m having to wind-down again.

Helllooooo!

Is there anyone there?
It’s awfully quiet around here. Where have you all been?
Me? I’ve been under the duvet. That lovely man from the BBC, Robert Preston, Economic Supremo, who only has to open his mouth for the markets to go crashing to the floor, said the other week that if the recent government bail-out didn’t work we should all turn off the lights, get under the duvet and not bother coming out again. Well I like to be at the front of a trend and I don’t need much telling, so that’s where I’ve been.

Hmmm, it did get a bit lonely and boring under there after a while and the kids were looking awfully hungry so I popped my head up late last week and everything looked much the same, apart from this lovely surprise waiting for me!

An award from the very lovely and extremely talented Tam and the equally lovely and very knowledgeable Womagwriter. Thanks!

I now have to answers the following questions with one word answers (could be tricky).

1. Where is your cell phone? Handbag
2. Where is your significant other? Reading (as in Berkshire, not as in newspaper)
3. Your hair colour? Natural Warm Auburn (it does say on the box)
4. Your mother? Stratford-upon-Avon
5. Your father? Laughing in a heavenly pub somewhere
6. Your favourite thing? Dog
7. Your dream last night? Muddled
8. Your dream/goal? Novelist
9. The room you're in? Living
10. Your hobby? Writing
11. Your fear? Small furry scampering things
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? Here
13. Where were you last night? Sofa, SCDing
14. What you're not? Logical
15. One of your wish-list items? Can’t think of anything!
16. Where you grew up? Hemel Hempstead
17. The last thing you did? Bathed
18. What are you wearing? Dressing gown
19. Your TV? Friend
20. Your pets? Spotty
21. Your computer? Crutch
22. Your mood? Contemplative
23. Missing someone? Dad
24. Your car? Classy as in E, soon to be replaced with a bicycle
25. Something you're not wearing? Knickers
26. Favourite store? Borders
27. Your summer? Great!
28. Love someone? Always
29. Your favourite colour? Yellow
30. When is the last time you laughed? Today
31. Last time you cried? A week ago last Thursday

Now I'm off to write my 100 lines, 'I must try harder with the blog, I must try harder with the blog,....'

Back into the Groove

Well, not exactly, but I thought if I said it aloud and wrote the words down here on my blog it would give me the necessary shove in the right direction.

Ooh what a misog I was in my last post. Sorry about that. Don’t know what came over me, well I do really, but I’m so over all that now. And there’s only a certain amount of wallowing one person can do, isn’t there? I don’t think I’ve quite reached my personal limitation, but I’m nearly there.

The nits are on the retreat. I think.

The rejections have been turned around and are on their way back out there again.

Okay, so the economic black hole is growing larger by the minute, but I’ve taken on board all your spiffing advice and have gone into denial about the whole thing. I mean there’s not a lot I can do about it anyway, so why worry!

And today I finally got down to starting the re-write on IYCSTH. Hooray! At last! I was feeling a bit like the little girl at the back of the class, staring out of the window, not having a clue what was going on or what she should be doing with everybody else scribbling away frantically in front of me. But slowly things have fallen in place and now I have a vague idea of the direction I should be going in. Promising, huh?

Things are definitely a lot cheerier this end. Oh yes.

I hope things are cheery your way too.