WRITING IS A SECOND CHANCE AT LIFE

“Writing is a second chance at life. Although we can never go back in time to change the past, we can re-experience, interpret, and make peace with our past lives.”

Jane Taylor McDonell, Living to Tell the Tale

Writing fiction has the power to transform even the ugliest of memories into something else, maybe beautiful, maybe funny, maybe hard and ugly too, but in a different way. Through changing the details of your memories writing stories you can free yourself from the pain of the past and create happy endings where perhaps none existed before. Trouble is (or maybe it isn’t a problem at all) when you write fiction based on the facts of your life, the memories get mixed in with the made up bits and you can’t really remember which is which. 

Create something beautiful from your uglies and let them go forever.

Love to all,

Edwina

ADVICE FROM BERNIE

Bernie, youth worker and dog trainer extraordinaire has this to say about the writing journey, “It’s just like the jumping dogs. You need to: look up, aim high, believe in what you’re doing, and the reward is on the other side of the wall. No point looking
down at the ground when you’re on the way up.
Classic.

NEW BEGINNINGS

Back from retreat and ready to make a new start. Time to move on from angst about Thrill Seekers ever coming out (in my lifetime anyway) and make this blog more useful to those who read it by sharing hints and tips to nurture the writer’s spirit. Writing is a joy in itself but the path to being a recognised, published (and paid) author is long and often holds many challenges.

In the words of a song I heard once on Sesame Street, “It’s a long hard road, But I’m gonna make it. It’s a long hard road, but I’m gonna try. It’s a long hard road but I’m gonna get there. I’m heading for the morning sun!”

Keep focused on the work itself. Sit down every day and do your best. Feel the joy of creative expression, enter that zone where everything else fades except the words on the screen or page and the characters in your head. Become one with your story and let it do all the work. Then sit back and trust that the very same source your ideas came from will find the right beholder/publisher/readers.

Trust.

As one of my all time favourite writers, D. H. Lawrence said,

 ”The creative, spontaneous soul sends forth its promptings of desire and aspiration in us. These promptings are our true fate, which is our business to fulfill.”

So if, like me, the urge to write is strong in you, you get grumpy if you don’t write every day and depressed at the thought of ever stopping, then there’s your answer. Writing is not just a career. (All this hard work for, most of the time, very little return, you’ve got to be kidding!)

It’s a calling.

So, what are you waiting for? Write something!

Lots of love,

Edwina

ON RETREAT

I’m off for a six day yoga and meditation retreat with Clive Sheridan. Preparing for a whole week without cleaning, cooking and even writing. A real holiday! YAY!

GRIFFITH REVIEW FICTION SPECIAL

I’m excited. Griffith REVIEW has just asked me to read from my story “The Raft” at their Christmas party. That’s on the 10th of December, so if you’re in Brisbane, please come along to Avid Reader book shop in West End on the night. I’d love to see you.
“The Raft” is in the latest issue of Griffith REVIEW. It’s their summer fiction special which has lots of famous writers including Frank Moorhouse, Kate Grenville, Nikki Gemmel, Rodney Hall, Will Elliot, Krissy Kneen, many others, and me! It’s a great read. I’m really enjoying dipping into it at bedtime. Love the photo essay too.
“The Raft” is an excerpt from Thrill Seekers which WILL be out in the new year, even if I have to fly over to England and print it out myself!

BLOG ENVY

Feeling very inadequate as a blogger, after seeing this funny, educational and entertaining post http://www.murderati.com/blog/2009/10/31/kill-your-squirrels.html

It must’ve taken her days! When –  I stop work, the children have left home, I don’t have a yoga practice and daily walks to keep up, family and friends to communicate with, a house to clean and meals to cook, and don’t want to use every other minute for my actual writing projects – then you can expect the same from me! Until then, just click on the link.

Have a great day one and all.

THE EDIT

No, not from Ransom. Yet. This was a very thorough and vigorous go through of my “Broken” story for Asia Literary Review. Tim Cribb there put lots of work into it and though at first his addtions of whole parapgrapsh were offputting, once I took on his intention and reworked them into my own voice, I think we’ve made a really good story. Thrilling to have someone read your work so closely and carefully. Onwards and upwards dear friends!

Working hard

I’m keeping myself very busy redrafting the grief book. enjoying the work.
Writing is a great job.
I’m moving chapters around, taking out huge chunks and making them appendixes, fiddling with sentences and words as well as structure. It’s shaping up now. I’m starting to get a feel for what it’s going to be in the end.
Get ready. Here comes another one!

RIDING THE WAVE

The stars seem to be shining in my favour this week. The lovely editor at Asia Literary Review has passed Bittersweet on to an agent friend of his there in Hong Kong. She specialises in US and UK publishers with an interest in Asia. Oh, I hope she likes it. Trying not to compulsively check my emails twenty times a day and give the poor woman a chance to read it. Wish me luck!

ASIA LITERARY REVIEW

I’ve just broken the record (well my own personal best) for fastest acceptance of a story. YES! Last week my friend Fave told me that Asia Literary Review  seemed to publish stories similar to mine. So on Thursday I sent off “Broken” – a short piece about a Dalit boy. Finally got to my emails again yesterday afternoon and there were three from ALR accepting Broken for publication and wanting it as the opener for their December issue. YAY! Talked with Tim Cribb, one of their editors last night, all the way from Hong Kong. They are an excellent quality, international journal and I am pleased as punch (whatever that actually means).