Virus

[Today's Scribbler's Corner freewriting topic]

The minibus had dropped people off at the side of farmland and ditches, so when the curve of the M50 appeared over the hill they gawped.
"Isn't it usually a car park?" Jess moved to turn on the radio. Brendan shook his head at her hand which she withdrew.
"We'll have you home in no time" Brendan said, a spliff in one hand and a tinny resting between his knees.
The bus croaked and wheezed as he swung it around the feeder road to join the empty tarmac.
"It'll be weird to have tv and radio again."
"You'll feel great. These retreats just reset your media noise to neutral. Sometimes I go months without picking up a newspaper." Brendan grinned.
They took the Dublin ramp with still no vehicles in sight.
"Drop me off here" she said. "I can walk the rest of the way."
"Nice one. Stay loose!" Brendan made a peace sign. She raised her hand as thick smoke from the engine engulfed her vision.
Trudging through the wasteland towards her parents' house, she tried to remember a time the place had been as quiet. She passed the corner shop, a closed sign swinging in the breeze. She'd never known Jimmy to pass up making a bob. Even on Christmas Day. Another breeze gaped the door open; a bell rang, but there was only darkness inside. She shivered within her heavy winter coat.
Crossing the empty main road, her stomach tightened as she spotted the high fence erected in front of her estate. Two soldiers were sharing a smoke in front of it, leaning on their machine guns.

Training

One of the reasons I started this blog was to hopefully dispel some of the myths that surround writing. When I started my novel many people I spoke to thought I would have a publishing deal before I started the novel and that I wouldn't need to rewrite or edit my work. I wasn't surprised - I don’t know the ins and outs of most jobs that I haven't done before.

Before I started writing my novel I had some work experience as a copy writer and editor. When I lived in London I wrote and edited an internal magazine for a large pharmaceutical company. Then I ran away to Australia and wrote a series of articles geared to fellow travellers on a career break. On my return to Ireland I found work as a training writer for web-based learning, which was my career until eighteen months ago.

Now I'm not going to pretend that these jobs were hotbeds of creativity and glamour. But they did hone my writing and editing skills and teach me to approach writing like any other job or project - instead of waiting for inspiration, you can kick start any writing assignment by just getting some words on the page, even if it’s just freewriting. Thanks to my days as a lowly foot soldier I rarely have days when I cannot write.

What I do suffer from is days when I am slower than others. Like any job, some days everything falls into place, your productivity is through the roof and you swan around the office like you own the place. But other times you’re swimming against the tide regardless how many hours you've put in, and only frequent ranty tea-breaks with co-workers will get you through the day. (In my case you're my co-workers and this blog is my rant!)

Less productive days can result from the task in hand - if I'm writing a scene with a lot of tension, dialogue and emotion it just takes longer, regardless of the amount of freewriting I do to warm up. But sometimes it's just one of those things.

Regardless of how I'm feeling though, I'll always be able to get started without much ado. I might not crack my top target for the day but I will have managed a minimum word count, even if I have to chain myself to the computer all day. If I really get stuck I'll go over my previous work and check for errors, or do some research.

But I can honestly say that getting stuck is very rare, and I can thank my training for providing that shortcut. When you work to tight deadlines you just cannot wait for inspiration. You just have to find a way to make it happen, regardless of your mood.

I Heart Tay

Just having a nice cup of tea and a sit down and watching a Spaced marathon.

Life is good.

Post-Edit Glow

Well I've gone and done it lads. The second story is finally done and dusted. Just in time too, as my head is as empty as a well in drought. I'm feeling light-headed - and very happy.

Tonight The Ours and I are going to The Doctor's apartment for dinner and a few cheeky scoops, and tomorrow we're having lunch with a friend we haven't seen in ages. I'm going to relax and enjoy every atom of this post-edit glow before I have to start all over again...

Have a great weekend.

Hairy Edits

I've hit a rough spot with the edit that I'm trying to work through at the moment - which means I'm moving a lot slower than I'd like.

Having to analyse specifics (such as metaphors, dialogue and general word use) AND big picture concerns (like overall flow, character and reader interest) at the same time can be head-wrecking. But I'm keeping the head down and trying to have faith that it will all come together at the end.

I came across this website yesterday that cheered me up - Hairy Babies, an Irish t-shirt and hoodie company. Now, who's taking the horse to France?

Six Word Memoir

Holler tagged me for a six word memoir. I am:

Loud
Optimistic
Impatient
Ambitious
Opinionated
Perceptive

I tag: JJ, Jen, Karen, Alix and Debs.

Now that I have run out of reasons to procrastinate, I should finally get some writing done. Hopefully.

Old

Scribbler's Corner was cancelled, but as I'd already left the house I went shoe shopping - and ended up with these.

Apparently ASICS are now called Onitsuka. A further example of the world conspiring to make me feel old. Dayum.