I'm Scrambled!

I'm trying to stay calm and focused. *deep breath* It's not that my mind isn't full of my characters' conversations, or that I have a block in my plotting. But sometimes too many ideas can bring you to a standstill as suddenly as writers' block can. My thoughts are like the wires tied in knots behind my desk. Computer wires are tied around the curly telephone wire, the kettle wire is getting steamy with the bt connection and the printer wire looks like it's doing a bit of heavy petting with the answer phone cable! So many points of communication, but all in one big fat stationary mess. That's the metaphor for my brain at the moment. (not the heavy petting bit....)

I write lists, I make notes, I jot down words and phrases I like, I scribble conversations and I annoy my husband by switching on the bedside lamp to record ideas which have sprung to mind during the night. I think the only thing that can help me unravel my thoughts and get this plot into some sort of order, is an Enigma machine!

Oh and don't get me started on procrastination. *goes and makes a cuppa*
Because my ideas are one big tangle at the moment, instead of trying my hand at deciphering my bouillabaisse of ideas, I write a poem or short story for my writing group. Which is great, because I'm keeping my hand in and even winning some competitions. But a book doesn't write itself and I know I'm going to have to stop saying, "I'll start Chapter 8 tomorrow/at the weekend/next Monday. (sounds a bit like my diet!)

And life! Boy, can't life get in the way of writing? The children, the house, the dogs, the shopping, the chores, work (earning some money is actually quite a good idea) the garden, nights out with friends.... Wonderful diversions, but diversions nonetheless!

Do you have any ideas to make me knuckle down? (no smart comments about tying me to a chair) How do you fit writing into your day and how do you untangle your metaphorical wires of thought? I'd seriously love to know.
Must dash, time to write.....think I'll just take the dogs for a walk.......

Stylish Blogger Award

Thank you so much to the talented and lovely Janice Horton who has awarded me a Stylish Blogger Award. (http://www.janicehortonwriter.blogspot.com/) In accepting this award, I understand that I have to tell you seven things about myself and award others the accolade too.

1. I have a deep fascination for all things Victorian. I especially love old photographs so I can see what they wore, where they lived and imagine what lives they led. For my third novel, I'd love to write a historical romance set in that era.

2. I think I have mild OCD! Number 3 is very important to me and it's not unusual for me to pick up the third newspaper or un-hook the third trolley from the supermarket. I've even given my hero, Daniel, (in my first novel Lies and Linguine) the same problem, following a trauma in his past.

3. I have an old-fashioned bicycle with the basket on the front. I'm looking forward to cycling along the village lanes when the weather warms up. I like nothing better than putting a little picnic, pen and notebook in the basket, and cycling somewhere pretty so I can write.

4. I'm on my writing group's committee. The group meets twice a month where we read/listen, give/receive positive criticism, enter competitions, socialise and have guest speakers. I would recommend joining a group to any writer.

5. I was educated at a girls' convent grammar school, where all the teacher's were nuns!

6. I live in a tiny pretty village where there is only one pub and no shops. I set my book, Lies and Linguine in this village, although my protagonist did pay several visits to Cornwall too!

7. My dream is to live and write in Charente, France, one day. I will cycle to the local village and buy French sticks and strawberry jam for le petit dejeuner. The sun will tingle on my skin turning it golden. The flowers will blossom in their beds and my vegetable patch will swell with bulbous deliciousness. Dragon flies will flit on the pond in my garden, occasionally breaking the surface tension of the water with tiny ripples. I'll pick ripe figs and bake tarts, speak French fluently and smell sweet wood-smoke on evening strolls. My words will flow like warm honey onto the pages and publishers will be trying to track me down..... Well, we all have dreams!

I've enjoyed reading and following many blogs, but sadly I can only choose a handful to pass on the Stylish Blogger Award. Here are some of my new friends and the lovely blogs they've created and whom I've chosen to award.

http://madameguillotine.org.uk/

http://talesfromthevillage.com/

http://www.crystaljigsaw.blogspot.com/

http://mariamkobras.wordpress.com/

http://zenandtheartoftightropewalking.wordpress.com/

http://www.trevoseactive.co.uk/

http://megantaylorblogstories.blogspot.com/

http://1lovelife.blogspot.com/

An last, but certainly not least, a lovely new blogger http://theracywriter.blogspot.com/

First Public Reading! Ahhhh!

I've worked hard for my dream and thanks to a wonderful agent called Juliet, it has come true. Thank you Juliet for having faith in my work.

I know that finding an agent isn't a ticket to publication. Having read Natalie Whipple's blog, I know how difficult it is in the publishing world right now. Plus, you only need to read the papers/writing mags etc. But I can't tell you how wonderful it feels to find a professional in the business who sees something in my work, and that they're willing to put their name next to it.

I'm a member of two writing groups in Nottingham. Tomorrow, Nottingham Writers' Studio are holding a Word Of Mouth event at Antenna. I am reading the first chapter of Lies and Linguine, and although I'm very proud, my stomach flips each time I remember that I'm doing it! Will the public like it? Will the male audience yawn as I read contemporary women's fiction? Will it stand up against the wonderful other writers who are reading?

I suppose all writers have moments of doubt. But reading my work out loud for the first time is a bit like the nightmares I have when I'm naked in public!

I hope my next post is letting you know that I didn't fall over my words or even worse - chicken out!!!

'Tweaking!'

I'm back! Has it really been so many months since I last gave an update?
As well as moving house and setting up a new business with my husband, I've also found time to write. I've started my second novel called Sugar and Spite, but at the moment I'm tweaking Lies and Linguine. That's the new working title of my first book.
I've had some wonderfully helpful feedback from two literary agents and two publishers. Before you congratulate me - wonderfully helpful doesn't always mean good. Yes I've had some confidence-boosting praise, which acts like the sugar that makes the tweaking easier to swallow! I've been told my novel is better than chic-lit, very competent, pacy and engaging with some good imagery. Not only am I delighted to hear this, but I'm grateful that these busy professionals took the time to let me know what they liked about Lies and Linguine. Not as lovely - but equally as valuable, is the tweaking which is also suggested! My antagonist is apparently too antagonistic. Having re-read my book, the agents are absolutely right. If I was Tess, the protagonist in my novel, I wouldn't have stuck around for half as long! So I've spent the last two months tweaking Blake! This encompassed giving him a conscience and some redeeming features. Just enough to make Tess stay with him until the last straw!
I've also joined Nottingham Writers' Group since I last blogged. We meet twice a month, alternatively listening to a speaker or sharing our work with the other writers. I'd recommend this to any new writer as it helps to receive positive critisism by people who understand that your work is precious to you, but that it also might need improving with the help of tactful suggestions. At last night's meeting we held the 'Verse of the Year' evening. I will hunt out my entry and post it shortly.
I've sent out two further submissions to literary agencies and I'm crossing everything!