Tragedy in life.....

Tragedy in life doesn't lie in not reaching your goal - the tragedy lies in having no goal to reach.

Benjamin Mays - American minister and educator   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_Mays
quoted in Motivate Yourself by Frances Coombes  www.francescoombes.com/index.html

Non Fiction Books....

Over the past few years since having Jamie (who is now 5) I have struggled to read any fiction books, but I have managed to read lots of non fiction.  Having the psychology background and a keen interest in self help etc, the majority of the books I have read have been in some way, shape or form, trying to help.

The most recent book - and I shall not name names - I was recommended via an email (I suspect from the author himself) as he does have his own website.

I was amazed at how much information in the book was obvious and just common sense!

It was not until the last chapter or so that I felt there was anything new, and that wasn't really a light bulb moment.

In fact, I turned over expecting there to be more to the book, but the rest was just references and acknowledgements.

Obviously someone is still impressed by these books and they are still being published.

Now, let me find out which publishing house.......

Do be kind....

Do be kind to yourself.  Fill pages as quickly as possible; double space, or write on every second line.  Regard every new page as a small triumph.   

Roddy Doyle

Quoted in Writers News - November 2013 www.writers-online.co.uk

What Do You Do?

Loved this letter from Peter Wilson-Ward (Milton Keynes) in March's Writing Magazine www.writers-online.co.uk

When asking 'What do you do?', the inquirer actually wants to know: 'How do you earn your money?'  They aren't interested in what makes you tick.

It's the left hemisphere of the brain that needs to place people into categories.  I might earn my living doing one thing, but my heart and intellect are those of a writer.  And it's irrelevant that I'm unpublished. 

The left hemisphere places such imporatnce on labels.  It's that nagging voice that worries about the future and the past, obsesses about status and the ego Me.  Our society is all about the left brain.

But creative people know its from the right brain - when allowed to process in the background - that the ideas come.  It lives in the present moment.   It's slow and wants only to quietly observe and feel at one with the world around us.

Why should we engage with those who want to define us with their categories?  Let's not play that game.  I am not my job.  I am my passion - a writer.

Not Enough Book Cases

Hubby has said I can't have any more book cases as it will 'ruin his plaster', so today I have been forced to assess the state of the existing books and book shelves that we have.

NO.  I refuse to get rid of any books.  I got rid of far too many just before my son was born and there are still a load in the loft that call to me....

However, what I have found today is that the whole process of simply moving some books around has been beneficial.

It makes you see / notice / remember what books you actually own.  Rearranging a few, reminds you of what you have, where they were bought, people you were with.  It has sparked a number of ideas and helped me to remember forgotten details.  It has also helped to shift my priorities around as I move the books from room to room.

And I can definitely feel the energy moving around....

Elmore Leonard's 10 Rules for Writing

• Never open a book with weather.
• Avoid prologues.
• Never use a verb other than 'said' to carry dialogue.
• Never use an adverb to modify the verb 'said'.....he admonished gravely.
• Keep your exclamation points under control.  You are allowed no more than 2 or 3 per 100,000 words of prose.
• Never use the words 'suddenly' or 'all hell broke loose.'
• Use regional dialect, patois, sparingly.
• Avoid detailed descriptions of characters.  (keep the characters talking and the reader will discover what they look like)
• Don't go into great details describing places and things.
• Try to leave out the part that readers tend to skip.

Reproduced in Writing Magazine: June 2014  www.writers-online.co.uk

Homework...

Jamie brought some homework home this week and I thought it would be a great writing exercise.

We are going to be working towards creating a class rainbow poem (the letter says).

They are working with colours and linking colours to senses and feelings. 

For homework the children were asked to think about the following with regards to their favourite colour:

• What would your colour taste like?
• What would your colour smell like?
• What would your colour look like?
• What would your colour feel like?
• What would your colour sound like?
• Is there anything in the world around you reminds you of your colour?

Jamie's answers - for the colour Blue - were:

• Tastes like: Blueberries
• Smells: Nice and fresh and clean
• Looks like: Bright and Shiny
• Sounds like: A swishing sound
• What reminds you of your colour: Blue sign, Blue Sky, Blue Sea.

Now, your turn......