Winner 2012

So this is the (main) reason why I have been missing for the whole of November at least! For anyone who does not know, winning NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) means writing 50,000 words in one month. This is equivalent to a book of about 150 pages. Having achieved this, I am about halfway through my story (for the first book in the series that is!) My goal is to complete a further 50,000 words by the end of the first week in January and to complete my first edit by Easter. My first novel will then be ready for Beta reading, with a view to querying the manuscript in the Autumn. I hope you will all hold me to this plan of action!

 After struggling with an e-mail provider that seems intent on doing everything they can to get rid of me, I have finally decided to let them have their way. I am abandoning my old Supanet e-mail address and am now running with a parallel gmail address. I have suffered ignored e-mails, twice being put onto monthly charges for a service I do not receive, and to cap it all a draconian restriction on inbox capacity, 1000 times less than gmail allow. It's a shame when I have been with them for 12 years.

Work is good, right?

How embarrassing! No sooner do I leap back onto the blogging stage than I am swept away by a white water torrent of deadlines which inundate my evenings and weekends. Not that I am complaining ... well, actually I suppose I am ... not that I should be complaining; this flood will, ironically, keep the company on a sure footing for the rest of the year. We are looking to recruit two new members of staff with more to follow next year. I haven't looked up the word recession recently, but I think it means a state of mind where you fool yourself into believing your future is no longer in your own hands. The real lesson of the last 12 months for me is that we can take back our future and beat the recession if we decide to.

Foto curtzy of teh interwebs

So, what's new? I am getting a rather different birthday present next week. Free loft and cavity wall insulation. I know - lucky old me! This has meant that over the last three weeks we have had to empty the loft. Bear in mind that we have been accumulating loftware for 25 years, moving such cherished items as broken printers and other people's unwanted books from loft to loft. So time to tackle the dross and make a mega donation to charity shops and the local tip. Of course what was left had to go somewhere, so that meant clearing out and sorting the garage. Amazingly it all fitted in the garage except for the bikes, which had to go in the shed. So ... you guessed it ... that meant clearing out and sorting the shed. And the green house. And, for some inexplicable reason, the cupboard under the stairs. I think Sarah was just in sorting mode. So will we go back to hoarding in the loft? No comment!

It's worse than it looks - that wood is well above head height!

Anyone else out there struggling to balance demands, or do you still find time to do the things you really want to do? Is anyone else an inveterate hoarder (and can therefore feel my pain!)?

Too long gone!

When I decided to step back from my blogging to concentrate on writing, I little thought that my day job would take over and consume my time in the way that it has. I am pleased to say that the efforts have borne fruit and my company is recovering from the recession very well, despite the fact that according to the doom-sayers the recession in the construction industry shows no sign of abating. My only regret is that my writing has been the 'collateral damage'.

I have missed blogging, my friends that I made here, and visiting so many wonderful writers out there. I have missed learning so much from the wisdom of those who are travelling the path ahead of me, and I have missed the memes and blogfests too!


So I have come back, and although I cannot be here every day, I am determined to blog once every week as an absolute minimum. Surely I can find something worthwhile to say in a week?!

This week I would like to share with you a flash fiction competition I stumbled across, with a prize of $250 and this rather snazzy winner's medal.

The site is Lascaux Flash

The idea is to write 250 words (not including the title) inspired by this intriguing picture. The picture, it should be noted, is for inspiration only and the competition is not judged on its interpretation.



The competition is hosted by the Lascaux Review - an excellent on-line magazine, which is well worth a visit .

As they say themselves: "Please spread the word. About the contest as well as the Review. We're new, but we're here to stay."