How is everyone coping with the weather? As I write this, we’re still experiencing hot, sunny days, perfect for the beach, lazing and swimming. But maybe a bit harder for getting down to writing? Don’t panic. Cooler and wetter weather is on the way, and our gardens might well be recovering by the time you read this.
This month:
- I’ve entered a competition
- I’m disappointed in a favourite author
- I’ve pix of a new hobby (writing-related!) plus
- The second of my three Workshops.
- I managed to get round to entering a novel-writing competition. I don’t like writers being pessimistic about their writing but, on this occasion, I’m not overly confident of getting shortlisted. I think this particular competition tends to go for more literary writing, which is not me. But entering competitions is a good discipline for getting my work ready for other people’s eyes. And I had to get my synopsis down from 1000 words to 400 – another good exercise. If anything happens, I’ll let you know!
- I recently bought a paperback of one of my favourite authors. Couldn’t wait to start reading but, almost from the start, I was really disappointed. There were far too many characters introduced in the first chapter and I felt the writing was not nearly as good as other books. Then, I looked at the front page and discovered that this book had first been published in 1991. This author has gone on to write several extremely popular TV series so I can only assume that her writing has improved over the past 14 years. Note to myself to check the publication date!
- My new hobby is BOOKBINDING. I went on a day-long workshop in Worthing which I loved. And then I was lucky to see a free course advertised on the Internet. There were four class in the course of a week – each an hour long plus half-an-hour of Q and As. Excellent instruction. These are the books I’ve made recently, trying out different stiches for the spines. If you’re interested, click here. Now I’ve just got to write in them!
4. The second of my Workshops is called Ups and Downs. Click here. Usual format – a bit of chat, then exercises and writing practices.
Last month, I did the Observation exercise myself when I went into my local shopping centre. The day before I had tripped over in the garden and slightly hurt my big toe!!! That meant that I couldn’t walk as fast as I usually do, so I had more time to look around and notice things that I have never noticed before. I hope some of the exercises have worked for you.
Whatever the weather, I hope you have a good month of writing!
Best wishes
Linda
PS Some people have told me they have trouble getting through to the Workshops from the email. If that’s the case, then ignore the email link and go to your search engine and input letsgetswriting.co.uk. You should be able to use the links from the blog. Sorry!
Let's Get Writing 