Category writer
Inspiration is a process… or is it?
Trying to find the inspiration to write about inspiration, I stared at the screen after I’d signed up and nothing came to mind – what the hell was I thinking! I plucked this theme off the top of my head because I’d been lost for ideas to post about and suffering the odd bout of […]
Lost in my Daydreams
My husband claims he can’t remember his dreams. I know he dreams by the way he fidgets and mutters in his sleep. He’s never once mentioned anything when he wakes up: no comments about weird images or nightmares, neither does he suddenly in the middle of the day realise the thing he’s thinking about isn’t […]
The first tweet of spring
Just set up a Twitter account. No followers, not following anyone. This is probably due to the fact I’ve no idea what to do with Twitter. I’m not especially good at turning my life’s events into bite sizes. My first tweet could reflect what I’m doing like — typing blog post while eating lunch. Or […]
The ineffectual worker tries to multi-task
I’m a impulsive cleaner. When it comes to housework, I’m not one for setting aside a time to do it. Instead, it leaps out at me at an inconvenient moment. I might be in the middle of making a cup of tea when I spy a child’s fingerprints on the wall. I wipe it off […]
The art of conversation in text
Sometimes the dialogue I write is in the form of emails or text messages. Obviously, it’s probably down to the publisher on how they handle the formatting, but when writing, do you bother with the subject, the names, the dates? I don’t. For one reason, I’ve no specific date in mind. Does it have to […]
One of Many – Lymond Chronicles
Dorothy Dunnett was one of those authors who researched at great length. I’m justifying my approach by emulating her style – that’s what I tell myself. She was the historical author who took fact and interwove fiction amongst real events and characters. The fictional hero, Francis Crawford of Lymond, had a delicious mix of improbable […]
#amwriting, but really #amresearching
Sometimes I lock into the research side of things and lose sight of writing. Even the most seemingly trivial of facts warrants a quick check, then I’m following a trail, like breadcrumbs in reverse, seeking the origin. Are authors chronic researchers who like to write on the side? Does it give purpose to amount of […]
Wildlife photography
I’m not a photographer. I own a basic camera with a simple zoom and little else. I snap, rather than take photographs. A point and click kind of person. In the early 1990s I started a subscription to the National Geographic. I love the wildlife photos – the exotic scenes of distant lands. I cut […]
The Great Whin Sill – a cure for writer’s block
I’ve been stuck on the Dunstanburgh chapter of my book for some time. I love the castle, the bleakness, the scale of the ruins, the view out to sea, the harsh chill of the wind, the sense of a haunting presence. The closer something is to your heart, the harder it becomes to write it […]
The three P’s
I had a tinkle on the keys. Not these ones, but the piano kind. I would love to play more often, but with my husband working at home, the time is limited and I prefer to play in an empty house. I play. I don’t practise, no repeating of tricky passages until I get it […]
The Quiet Writer 