In Australia the end of June marks the end of the financial year. Retailers hold sales, and everyone works out if they need to make more deductions ahead of preparing tax returns. Then it is July and the pace slows a bit amid winter's chill, except for accountants. For me, it's time to take stock … Continue reading Mid Year Writing Stock Take
Creative Writing
Abstraction Distraction
I'm in online writing groups. They are peopled mainly by novelists, and mainly those who self-publish. What's interesting is a proportion of novice writers seem more concerned with publication theory than writing practice. For example, when posting working drafts, this cohort worry about how to define it for Amazon. Some sling single chapters or incomplete drafts … Continue reading Abstraction Distraction
Circle of Writing
The endless round of editing, pulling apart and putting back together continues. With writing, there's always more to see than can ever be seen. More to do than can ever be done, in between life and work and the required commute and chores and sleep. If you've been following along, you may recall I had a collection … Continue reading Circle of Writing
More please
In writing, as in physics, once things begin to happen, they keep happening. I've just had another story accepted and it'll be out next month. It will be the second published from my once upon a time ex-almost collection, so at least some of it was on the right track. A lot of time is spent … Continue reading More please
Over a barrel
Ideas Kaboom! The idea of creative writing is plastic. It's a vast global business, it's a singular remote activity, it's digital and ancient, it's free and expensive, it's a past time and a career, it's a legacy and aspiration, you can study it, you don't need to, it takes myriad forms, it's individual and there … Continue reading Over a barrel
Admiration x 3
I'm not into certain kinds of inspiration. I'm not on Pintrest for the words across artist landscapes or landscaped bodies encouraging me to be all I can be. I'm not a Just Do It person. In fact if you instruct me to Just Do It, I won't. Probably. I'm contrary and often, resistant. Sometimes I'm … Continue reading Admiration x 3
Sometimes, a flurry
While waiting to hear back from editors and opportunities, I've been submitting stories again. Often writing works like that. A lot of nothing but waiting, or a lot of nothing but editing, or a lot of waiting while submitting. There's even a lot of writing, in the appropriate moments. It's cyclical. So, I'm at that point where I've … Continue reading Sometimes, a flurry
Here Be A Story
Some days it's me and the pixels, typing things and making stuff up. On some rare days, it's me celebrating some good news. Today is that day. Yes, indeed, it's that time again everybody, when I get an electronic communiqué to inform me a lil thing I wrote has found its home in the world and it's … Continue reading Here Be A Story
Something weirder this way comes?
I'm in two minds about the use of historical people and spiritual concepts in fiction. On the one hand it seems disrespectful to tear precepts and practices from their cultural contexts to insert them at will into stories. Then, on the other hand, that's what writers do and have always done. I used the poetry of John … Continue reading Something weirder this way comes?
Filling the void
Few things are as intimidating as a blank page. It's a truism that, well, holds true, still. At least for me. I worked out, some-when, that fixing this is mostly about momentum. My ancient, rickety high school knowledge of physics and the difficulty of starting anything has helped me reach this realisation. But once started, sometimes … Continue reading Filling the void
Writing Bec 