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Saturday 14 January 2012

That one small change

Well, just to let you know how last night went. The film was wonderful and if you haven't yet seen it, the scene where a panicked Joey gallops through the hellish, barbed-wire battleground of No-Mans land is a heart-breaker.

The man sitting on the other side of me, (not H.I.) did an awful lot of sniffing and there was quite a bit of throat-clearing going on around the audience as well. Oh, and the strangest thing happened when I took out my mobile phone to call a cab - whether planned or not I don't know - as we came out of the cinema the time on my phone said 23.11! Eleven minutes past eleven. I love strange little coincidences like that.

Watching the film brought to mind the first novel I wrote called, Another Time Another Place, which was set in dockside Liverpool before and during the first world war and the story went rather well up to a certain point. But there was a point where it wasn't working and I could never get my head around what it was that was going wrong with it, so I put it to one side.

Then during the night my creative, unconcious mind must have been doing its job while I slept and suddenly, in the wee small hours I woke up and immediately thought "that's what it is!" My eureka moment had struck.

I couldn't wait to get back to it and change that part of the story. So, leaving the comfort of my snugly duvet for the teeth-chattering cold of the kitchen, I put the kettle on and pondered. I knew exactly what had gone wrong and I could see the story unfolding in my minds eye; it was such a simple thing - why hadn't I thought of it before?

Now, as I'm sure many of you will know, it is quite impossible to change just one part of a work in progress as, after that, the other parts don't quite sit right, I call it the domino effect and when you dislodge one piece you have to bolster everything else, otherwise it all comes tumbling down, so that simple thing - that one small change - isn't going to be the five minute job I envisaged, so is this my project for 2012? I'm not sure.

But one thing I do know, the change may just be the glue that holds the whole thing together, I hope so, but until then I'll keep chugging away relentlessly and I'll let you know the outcome in due course.
Keep smiling.
She x

Friday 13 January 2012

Warhorse

Him indoors and I are off to see Warhorse tonight so I must remember to take the hankies. I have been dying to see this since I saw the puppets on Alan Titchmarsh show a few years ago and I didn't have time to go and see it when I was in London last year.

 I am thrilled that it is now on the big screen. Tonight is the premier in our local cinema and as I haven't been since we went to see Mama Mia I was quite surprised to see the seat prices are in the range of a tenner each, but twenty pounds isn't really expensive for a night out these days - skinflint moi?

Oh well, I'll let you know if H.I. lets a stray tear go, me, I'll be sobbing into my popcorn!
Speak soon
She xxx

Thursday 12 January 2012

I have decided to send my work out more regularly this year, after all if I want to be published it's the only way. I've been doing lots of notes and research for my next novel, which is the story of Laura who runs a very successful business with her husband until something happens and she has to re-think her lifestyle and go back to where it all started, with some shocking revelations. Sounds like a blurb...It very well could be.
   There has been major work carried out on the field/hill opposite my house and workmen have been laying new gas pipes since just before Christmas, so this has given me a good excuse for not venturing out and getting on with my writing. I always think January is a dead kind of month anyway and I'm sure it goes a bit faster than other months.
   I have re-joined the RNA NWS, that's the Romantic Novelists Association New Writer's Scheme in the hope I can write a book that's good enough to publish. I joined the scheme in 2004 and didn't re-new my subscription in time last year, but I made sure I got everything in place this year and I'm looking forward to going to the annual conference, which this year is in Penrith, and meeting up with all the other lovely writers I usually converse with on line.
Another resolution I have made is to blog more. So hey ho, that it for the time being. I'll be back soon
Stay warm xx