Winter is Coming
Time for writing!
We’re having a beautiful autumn in Southern Ontario. But I have to admit, I’m looking forward to winter. It’s been six months since my last post! I did draft a newsletter in August, but ran out of time for editing. Summer was crazy-busy made more so by the major renovation of our living area, including the kitchen. But now, the renos are complete, my kids have moved out, and the craziness of summer is dying down.
While I wasn’t writing here, I was definitely still writing in-between things. It’s amazing what you can get done in the spaces that open up for you. I’ve been working through the book, Story Genius, by Lisa Cron. I have a lot of books on structure as I’ve been playing with the structure of my novel for the last ten years, or so. And it’s still not right! I’ve got to tighten up the opening and ramp up the climax. And I’m still trying to boil my story down to its essence: The dreaded pitch.
I did have some writing excitement to keep the heart beating with the love of words. An essay I wrote was published in a collection entitled, Aging in Place. The launch took place at our local library and we each had a few minutes to present our piece. This would only be my second reading, so it was an opportunity to learn more. Of course, first I had to buy a book on doing readings. (I buy a book before embarking on anything new.) Thankful for Amazon’s quick delivery, I purchased: how to READ for an AUDIENCE, by James Nave & Allegra Huston.
Last spring, I’d said I’d had enough of doing workshops; it was time to get back to writing. And then I did a workshop with CeCe Lyra which blew me out of the water. It felt next level. The amount of content and the detail was overwhelming. I actually prefer to watch the recording so I can stop it when ever I need to slow her down. I took two of her workshops: Writing Interiority and Writing Emotion, and I’m registered for her next class: Editing at a Line Level.
In September, I took a break from the novel for the month while I tried my hand at a short-story for a local contest. I wanted to take everything I was learning and put it to use, even if it was for a different form. I don’t write a lot of short stories because of lack of time. I have a pretty tough skin, but I’m really hoping to at least make the long list.
And this weekend, I get to take part in our library’s Local Author Book Fair. I’m part of two collections, one is a short-story collection, Beneath the Surface, and the other is the essay collection that came out this past summer, Aging in Place. Both are published by our local publisher, The Ginger Press, in Owen Sound Ontario.
I get to hang out at the library for two afternoons and talk to other writers and readers and be surrounded by books. Of course, I’ll be taking my writing with me for the quiet moments. I’m reading two excellent books on writing: Alone With All That Could Happen, by David Jauss, and Building Great Sentences, by Brooks Landon. And I finally broke down and bought Janet Burroway’s book, Writing Fiction. (They came out with a reduced price version.)
There seems no end to the learning and maybe that’s why I love being a writer, I love learning. I’m working up to another rewrite of my novel, but I’m still working with my structural problem and I’m worried I can’t see the forest for the trees. I have considered hiring a book coach for someone to bounce ideas off of before I do all the re-writing. Is that cheating? Published writers have editors to work with which feels like the same concept. Whatever I decide, I’m looking forward to winter so that I will have more time to write!
