I’m teetering on the periphery … wanting to write that first word, that first sentence, that first page and chapter of a new novel, but I just don’t know where to dive in. I know who the protagonist is, his back story (he was a minor character in a previous novel), and what his problem is. I know what his journey has to be in order for him to overcome his problem. I just don’t know how to set that ball rolling. Continue reading
A writer needs her fingers
My hand shortly after the fall. It doesn’t look too bad.
It involved inappropriate footwear, a dark night, possibly a little ice, a speed bump and a retractable dog leash with a hard handle.
My hand got jammed and it hurt a little. It became swollen and colourful but I didn’t really believe anything could be broken. Besides, I was at the cabin during the holidays and I didn’t know where to go for help.
Five days later my pinkie finger still didn’t seem ‘right’ so I had it x-rayed, and sure enough, it was broken and required the insertion of 2 metal rods the size of coat hangers to repair it.
My hand after surgery. Worse.
I have a history of being in denial re fractures. Thirteen years ago I walked around on a broken ankle and a broken bone in the other foot for almost a week before I had them x-rayed. This fall also involved a retractable dog leash. (In that case – and to my credit – a clinic doctor told me he thought both ankles were simply sprained and didn’t require x-rays.) Eighteen months ago I broke an elbow while travelling in Europe but completed my holiday before flying home and discovering that it, too, was broken and required surgery. (Once again, a medic led me to believe it wasn’t badly damaged.)
My splint for 6 weeks. I’m getting used to it.
I hope there will be no more falls, but if there are, I wonder if I will have learned my lesson – get x-rays.
In the meantime, I’m becoming fairly proficient with my left hand, and can type quite quickly using only the pointer finger of my right hand. If I had to break a finger the timing was good, I’m at the research stage of a new writing project so am reading more than writing. However, I do miss my pinkie finger and the 4th finger which shares the splint. Like my elbows and ankles, I will not take them for granted ever again.
Angels
There are angels at the nursing home where my mother resides. They are disguised as nursing staff and care aids. Their work is hard and often thankless, yet they treat the residents in their care with gentle humour, loving touch and respect. Their delightful smiles and cheery voices brighten the day for so many. They may be ordinary beings but they are doing extraordinary work. After spending some time in their presence I now see them as precious angels here on earth. I am so grateful for the care and caring that they give to Mom.
On Reading ~
“If you don’t have time to read, you don’t have the time (or the tools) to write. Simple as that.”
― Stephen King 
My name is Shelley and I’ve read 50+ books this year. I am a bibliophile.
There, I’ve said it.
Seriously, I did squirm a little when I tallied up the books I’d read in 2014. A little voice in my head asked, “Is that, maybe, just a little excessive?” Am I truly trying to hone my craft (writing) as Stephen King suggests or am I simply using reading as an escape?
We all try to find balance in our lives, making time for work, family, friends, exercise, recreation. When I look at it that way, I realize that reading is my recreation. I don’t follow any TV shows, I don’t play games on the computer, I don’t have many other hobbies. I choose to read quality books, often books selected for one of the 3 book-clubs I belong to. And, as Stephen King argues, a writer has to read. I tell creative writing students that all the time. (Throw out the TV if you want to get published.) I wish there was a measurable correlation between the number and quality of books read with the quality of your own writing. I’ll just have to trust that there is one. As for 2015, I intend to keep on reading, feeding my addiction, escaping, learning and honing my craft.
Dancing in the Rain
Yahoo! I have just signed a book contract for my latest project, another Y/A novel titled Dancing in the Rain. The title may change, but it was inspired from this quote by Vivian Greene. (This is not the cover of the book… that is yet to come.)
For years I’ve been asked by young readers to write a sequel to my earlier title, Dancing Naked, but, although I appreciated their interest, I never gave it much thought. I’d moved on to other projects.
Then, a few years ago, a young woman wrote to me to say she’d read Dancing Naked many times as a teenager, and even though she is an adult now, she’s still waiting for the sequel. She wants to know what became of Brenna, the baby who was born at the end of Dancing Naked, and her mother, Kia.
That set me to wondering what became of Brenna too. She’d be a teenager herself now. How was her life turning out? And Kia? Is she doing okay?
I decided to write the book to find out and I’m absolutely delighted that Orca Book Publishers has agreed to publish it.
This will be book #10, a nice round number. Thank you to all those wonderful readers who encouraged me to write this book. It wouldn’t have happened without you.
Never say never
Well-meaning people often ask if I’d consider writing fiction for adults as opposed to writing for teens, as if writing for adults is somehow more respectable. Until now I’ve always said “probably not”. (Never say never.) I’ve always felt that my writing ‘voice’ is best suited to the teen genre, and my ideas for books have always featured teen protagonists. I also have great respect for Y/A literature and feel blessed that I’ve been able to contribute to this wonderful field.
Recently, something changed. Maybe it’s because my daughters are grown and I’m no longer immersed in teen culture but I was unexpectedly hit with a story idea that was clearly for adults, not teens. The idea is based on my own short but comical stint with on-line dating. (That experience had to come in useful for something.) I created a character, began to write and now the story is practically writing itself. No other novel has poured out of me the way this one is. Granted, it is a light story, hopefully funny, and the characters aren’t trying to overcome seemingly insurmountable obstacles as my teen characters always are. I may finish the book and decide that it is just silly trash, but in the meantime I am having lot of fun. Maybe this is the start of something new.
A child who reads…
We know it’s important to feed our children nutritious food, to provide exercise and fresh air and to nurture and love them. I would argue that it’s equally as important to read to them when they are small and encourage them to continue to read as they grow older. It is through reading that they will grow to be truly empathetic, compassionate human beings, because, as Joyce Carol Oates says, “Reading is the sole means by which we slip, involuntarily, often helplessly, into another’s skin, another’s voice, another’s soul.”
Would there be war, greed and intolerance if we could, indeed, slip into another’s skin?
I don’t think so.
And another quote by an unknown author. “I have never met a bigot who was a reader as a child.”
Neither have I.
(Photo credit: (Patricia Polacco)
Happy Vegetarian Day!
Who knew? Not me. Apparently October 1st is a day designated for bringing awareness to the ethical, environmental, health and humanitarian benefits of a vegetarian lifestyle.
Here’s a little Simpson humour to mark the occasion.
The Real News
I found this on Facebook and thought it was brilliant. There are so many items I’d like to add under the What You Should Know About heading. I’d also like to change the YOU in the captions to WE on the left side and US on the right. 
Sadly, I’m afraid if the news did tell us what we should know about, no one would read it. It’s just too difficult to hear, unless there was always a how- an- individual-can-make-a-difference component added on. That’s really what we need to know.
Wrapping food the healthy way…
…. for you, your food and the planet. Made from hemp, cotton, beeswax, tree resin and jojoba oil, Abeego is a lovely smelling new food-wrap product. It’s a reusable, biodegradable and antibacterial alternative to plastic wrap. You simply mold it over a container or around your left-over food. 
No, I don’t own shares in the product. I simply tried it after reading a newspaper story about the young woman entrepreneur who created it. Now I love it so much that I’m buying it for all my friends. It’s everything it claims to be and I no longer have to feel uncomfortable about using that plastic throw-away (never to decompose) film. Every little bit helps our ailing planet.
http://abeego.com/
