Pot Luck Club
I write my blog (nearly) every week, on a Monday. Being a structured person, I work to a fixed monthly pattern which changes occasionally, but is currently: week 1, Music and Me (an overview of music that has influenced me); week 2: Elizabeth Chats With… (where I interview a guest, usually but not always, from the world of writing and writers); week 3: Elizabeth Reads… (book reviews, usually themed) and week 4: Meet the Family (where we look into the background of one of my main characters). And most months, it’s all sorted and I just have to write each post. But what happens when there are 5 Mondays in the month? Then we all take pot luck, that’s what. So here’s a bit of reflection; a free offer for writers; and a bit of something ‘wot I wrote’ as Ernie Wise used to say.
Reflection
I went to a funeral on Friday, for one of the founder members of Chudleigh Writers’ Circle. He hadn’t been to a CWC meeting for years, and most of the current members didn’t know him, but he’s published in our first anthology and I remember his poetry with affection.
Two weeks ago, I went to the funeral of Katy Clarke, a much missed friend, who first introduced me to Swanwick Writers’ Summer School and the whole community of writers that’s out there. She always encouraged me in everything I wrote.
In the past eighteen months, I’ve been to three other funerals and missed two more due to commitments I couldn’t get out of. Why, I pondered as I walked home from church in the sunshine, were so many people dying around me? Before coming to Devon, we lived in Kent for more than twenty years, but I only went to one funeral in the whole time we were there.
And that’s when I realised the difference. When we lived in Kent, we merely lived in a house in a town. Here is Devon we are part of a community. Before I met Katy, I was a solitary writer; now I’m a member of the writerly community. Being part of a community is a wonderful thing. It offers support, focus and safety. But it also results in responsibilities and inevitably, time moves on, as do people.
So I’m going to look on this abundance of funerals as a reminder that I am a member of one or more communities – and that’s a great place to be.
Great Resource for all Writers
For all you writers out there, have you heard about the Indie Author Fringe, organized by the Alliance of Independent Authors (ALLi)? This is a free, online global conference for authors, run fringe to the major book fairs: London, BEA & Frankfurt Bookfairs, broadcasting 24 sessions of author education over 24 continuous hours, so that authors around the world attend some live sessions, no matter where they’re located. There are also competitions, giveaways and discounts, contributed by sponsors.
The folks at ALLi have pulled together some of the top advisors on the indie author scene to bring you the most up-to-date self-publishing education and information available. Here’s the link to the Indie Author Fringe Speaker Page where you can see the speakers and topics we have lined up for our June 3rd event, fringe to the BookExpo.
Registration couldn’t be simpler, just and you’ll get all the information you need straight to your email inbox. You can also visit the for more information about how to enter our Book Description Competition.
See you at the Indie Author Fringe on June 3rd!
And Finally… Noises In The Dark
She listens in the darkness. A gentle hissing intake of breath and a quick snort. A groan and a mumble as he breathes out. A quiet moment, then the pattern is repeated. Sometimes it’s barely audible. Other times, after one too many glasses of Pinot Noir, the pillows vibrate and she hears him in her dreams.
She puts in her ear-plugs, knowing sleep will soon come. She smiles, glad she made this recording before it was too late. Over fifty years she’s learned to cope with the snoring. It’s the silence she can’t stand.
Noises in the Dark was published in Flashing on the Riviera, a collection of flash fiction available to download for free.
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