Maternity Leave has started....

....will I get chance to do any (real) writing before the baby comes in 69 days time?

My last week I actually had to ring in sick on one day due to a bad back. Consequently, most of the week was spent in bed reading; The Killing Kind by John Connolly, which I quite enjoyed. I have seen him at WaterStones and bought (and tried unsuccessfully to read) Book of Lost Things.

Feel bad that March has arrived and I did not complete my goal for February of entering one competition. However, I have maintained both my blogs.......and done a load of decluttering. I also feel bad because it has been a while since I have attended a meeting of the Poison Pens. The next one is the 14th March so - body and mind willing - I am going to try my best to attend and take something with me!!

Finished my Jan/Feb/March copy of MsLexia and started a short story book but gave up after 3/4 stories as I didn't like them - a bit too graphic for me! MsLexia is certainly very different to anything I currently read on the subject of 'writing'. The 'new writing' section is certainly more literary than that which you find in Writing Magazine; although that is not to say I liked (or understood) all of it - especially the poetry!! Writing Magazine is due in the next few days and it only seems 5 minutes since the last one arrived - and so the circle starts over......

Still nest building....

......and reading when I wear myself out. As well as the very good The Brilliant Book of Baby Names: What’s Best, What’s Hot & What’s Not by Pamela Redmoind Satran & Linda Rosenkrantz, Collins (2007), I have also finished Enough: Breaking Free from the World of More by John Naish (2008) which is to the point when discussing society's obsession with more, more, more. The book can almost be summed up with one of the quotes:

It is not the man who has too little, but the man who craves more, that is poor.
Seneca, Epistulae Morales

He also quotes Charles Handy who says; a few years ago decided we didn’t need to maximise our income; we wanted to maximise our life.

I feel that my nest building this week has followed at least some of the principles in Enough as I have been ruthlessly streamlining all the crap and papers I have acumulated over decades and have given some books away, sent a good proportion of books, clothes etc. to the charity shop, put another load in the recycle bin and I have a small pile for ebay....

It certainly feels good and can only be of benefit to both baby and my writing!?

Baby Business...

Nothing more to be said other than this seems to have been a week full of baby stuff rather than writing stuff. I have been visiting new babies, waiting for news of babies being born and there was the dreaded bloods appointment with the midwife for me which was less than pleasant.

One side effect of the baby business (I am currently 28weeks) is that I have gone all 'nest building' this week and as my study/spare room is going to have to be the nursery - at least temporarily - I have had chance to go through all my books; both fiction and non-fiction. Some have been moved to pride of place in the lounge, some have been shifted into the loft. A few remain in the room on my 'writing' bookshelf and then of course there have been a number consigned to the charity box.... It actually feels very good to know I have streamlined them.

During all this I did have chance to read another non-fiction book; Life's too f***ing short by Janet Street Porter (2008), which I thoroughly enjoyed. I also managed to request details about the MA in Creative Writing at Lincoln University which will have to wait til next year (at least!) I suspect. It looks like they expect approx. 20hours a week for reading/writing/study. The information they sent showed that I will have to start reading wider than a few crime novels. The reading list is massive and obviously contains a lot of literary titles - back to A Level English I think!! But first, back to the sorting......

Reading Matters...

Pleased with my little self as during the 2 days I have not been at work this week I have managed to finish a number of (non-fiction) books:-

Master Class in Fiction Writing (already mentioned and recommended). Seen on The Book Show in Tony Parsons ‘Write Place’.

Lateral Thinking: A Textbook of Creativity by Edward de Bono (1970). As recommended by Mike Skinner from the streets re: dealing with Writers Block – "don’t discount an ideas as all could be useful".

Crime Fiction: From Poe to the Present: Martin Priestman (1998) A brief history, but ends 1995ish. Still interesting and asks the question –What Next?

Patricia Highsmith: Plotting and Writing Suspense Fiction (1983). Highly recommended.

Phew!! Going to try to get to work today (snow permitting) for a rest!!

Goal for January Completed

Pleased to say that despite everything I managed to send off two entries to a Humorous Poetry Competition in The Writing Magazine. And over the weekend I managed to read (and can recommend) Master Class in Fiction Writing by Adam Sexton.