Goodness ... is that the time?

… that’s what my mother used to say, glancing at her watch and dashing about in the 1960’s.

Goodness … is that the time?

Well, here I am again, realising that my last post was several months ago. What on earth have I been doing with my time?

So … a bit of an update.

On the writing front, I’ve finished my third book - Thicker than Water. it’s quietly resting in the depths of my laptop, waiting for me to get back to it to start my third draft.

And on to the next. Dinner at Six Sharp is the working title for my fourth book. Just writing that - fourth book - fills me with conflicting feelings. Pride in myself for sticking at it and completing another 80,000 words-plus story. And just a slight frustration that after four years, I’m still at it; waiting for that call.

But - I am still at it. So I congratulate myself from time to time that I haven’t given up.

On Friday this week, I’ll be presenting CROW - my second book, to an agent in a zoom pitch through the Australian Society of Authors. My time and energy these last few weeks has been taken up writing and learning a three-minute spiel that I hope will catch the agent’s attention and curiosity.

…And after that, back into editing Thicker than Water, completing a course with the Australian Writers’ Centre and getting on with my fourth book. Enough there to keep me busy each afternoon while my man on the couch … rests on the couch.

So … everyone has to have balance - right?

I’ve been busy with the other parts of my life - a road trip to the mainland with the man from the coach (with trusty dog!) - catching up with family and old friends. Knitted a cardi for my daughter, cooking and reading, and just enjoying being at home during the colder months of the year.

Two beauties I have been / am reading …

All the Broken Places by John Boyd. This is a sequel to The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, and the structure of this book really had my writer brain firing. It’s written from the same person’s point of view, but time shifted from chapter to chapter. Another writing masterclass while sitting in my blue chair overlooking the Tamar River.

The other book is Still Life by Louise Penny. This is our book club book for August and I am thoroughly enjoying it. Notes I have written so far to report back to the group are …

Louise describes characters in a surprising way. The reader learns about each character, not just by how they look but peeking into their inner soul and insecurities.

Her descriptions of everyday items leaves me catching my breath and re-reading them. Bits like a murmuring fire. So surprising, unexpected and satisfying.

Still Life is set in Canada and it’s interesting to compare it similarly with English writing. So different from American literature, Louise writes with a gentleness and homage to the minutiae of daily life.

Reading is such a pleasure for me and a vehicle for learning my craft in the most delightful way.

Happy reading, knitting, cooking - or whatever you do to nourish your soul in these cold months of the year.