I like to write humour.
But I admit I’m not great at it.
I really cannot write funny stuff on command.
When a funny idea hits me, I’m good to go. Or when I’m writing something serious that needs a bit of Read more
Humour Me
Category: on writing
The Love of the Challenge
Believe it or not, we are presently living in a significant historic moment.
Eventually, generations to come (our grandchildren) will be learning about our lives in History class. The teacher will talk about a time period full of a coronavirus that spread like wildfire, borders closed to travellers, businesses closed to shoppers, schools closed to students, protests of police brutality on minority groups, the want and need for diverse literature, leaders struggling to keep their tweets politically correct and kind, people struggling with anxiety and depression… and novelists who could not write.
These are frightening and uncertain times for many of us, so novelists not being able to write is not the end of the world. If you are one of them, just relax. Instead, concentrate on trying to work from home, while teaching your kids new Math skills, while making supper, while doing dishes and laundry, while cancelling all your travel plans, while telling your aging parents you can’t visit just yet. Honestly, you don’t need the added pressure of trying to create a novel.
But, what if you are lost without your writing? You need to write, but can’t?
Read moreWRITING IN DANGEROUS TIMES
I always thought I knew a lot about danger. Like what part of New York to avoid at night after the Theatre Production ended. How to be wise when traveling in a foreign country like Britain or France or Spain with a Canadian Flag on my back pack. How to recognize scam phone calls: especially the ones that begin “Don’t hang-up”.
I also believed I had experienced just about everything there was to experience; marriage and divorce times 2, childbirth times 2, and cancer (only once thank goodness). I had started over many times, moved into and out of a myriad of homes and apartments and always made the transition eventually. So just what made these last 12 weeks so damned hard?
Read moreSocial Justice in the Time of Covid
So, where did I leave off? Ah, yes, my first jittery days in quarantine, and still in a grocery store without a mask (I wear one now). Read more
Writing a Short Story During a Pandemic
To stay writing inspired during Covid 19 time, I took Lori Twining advice (see her blog, ascribewriters.com/everything-is-cancelled-almost ) and registered for the online Master Class. This was perfect for me as the classes are in short chunks and doesn’t require me to do anything more than listen to a professional author talk about their writing process. I wanted something to keep me inspired to write during this pandemic when it can be hard to focus. The first class I took (David Sedaris) discussed the importance of journal writing. The author uses his daily journal entries as inspirations for his humorous essays.
I’ve never been a daily journal writer in my every day life. But when I travel, I keep a journal. I have notebooks stashed in my closet from my three months solo backpacking trip in Europe in my early twenties and my year of adventure in India and Nepal. Even a week long canoe trip earns a thin, water-stained book. But in my “normal” life, I never thought of journaling about every day events. Mostly because it doesn’t seem like anything exciting happens to write about. But David Sedairs writes in his journal of the small things such as a taxi drive to the airport or a visit to a shop. Nothing dramatic like being taken hostage. On a side note, you should always carry a small notebook with you at all times just in case you are taken hostage so you can journal the experience.
Read moreTrouble with Transitions
When I was raising my kids, they had a lot of tantrums. “The books” said to look for triggers, such as transitions. Does your child have trouble with transitions? Not only did my child have trouble with transitions, I realized I too had trouble with transitions. Certainly, not to the same extent, but “changing gears” for me took an extra push, an extra effort. And this showed up in my writing routine.
When I’m writing a first draft, there is a perpetual motion forward, of keeping the fire burning and just going. But now I’m editing and fine-tuning what is to be my final draft–except for some copy editing. I’m working on getting the rhythm and pacing of my plot, sub-plots and character arc, perfected. It’s an exciting time as I’m closer than I’ve ever thought to getting the story right, getting the rhythm right. I can go back and fix the prose, but getting the structure nailed down is vital.
Read moreEditing and Pruning
While I’ve recently had more time on my hands, staying at home and practicing social distancing during this pandemic, I decided to tackle our spring pruning. With my brain relaxed and hands engaged with this down to earth task, I couldn’t help thinking about the similarities between editing and pruning trees.
Read moreWriting In The Time of Covid
I’m not sure if I’ve spoken much about my “writing break” in this space, but like we hear with Covid-19 jargon, I think I flattened the curve of writers block-itis and am on the downside of the peak.
When I finished writing my last novel in the summer of 2019 (“Thursday Afternoons” by Bella Books), I hung up my keyboard for an indeterminate amount of time. The old “TBA” as to when I would start writing fiction again. I just…lost it. The drive, the inspiration, the energy. I felt like I still knew how to write; it was more a matter of feeling I had nothing to say. Read more