In my blog at the moment an chat with our webmaster.

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Okay. So the authors I respect most and the authors I share online work with all say approximately the same thing. It goes something like this: “Everybody gets rejected. Even (Insert favorite author here.) was rejected. Don’t take it personally.” I have heard and read this ‘old saw’ more times than I can count. It is beyond cliché…which is ironic when you consider it comes from a group that normally avoids cliché like the bubonic plague. But here’s the thing – I DO take it personally. And I think, if they are being honest, most writers do.

The impetus for this rant has its roots in winter when...Read More Here...

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I must admit I do like to be entertained when I go to see a show, which is why I awarded five stars to this freely adapted version of 'A Midsummer Night's Dream', seen at Coram's Fields last Saturday. A Beatles score and lots of slapstick may not be to everyone's taste, but it is to mine.


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I am not ‘mailing the post in’ today despite what you, my gentle reader, may think. I am merely in education mode; a phenomena which overtakes my general sensiblilty every now and then. Harry Partch (1901-1974) was one of the most interesting and daring composers of the twentieth century. When his ideas for a 41 note octave couldn’t be realized with traditional instruments he set about designing and building instruments which would be capable of producing the tones in his head. Remember, this was BEFORE electric instruments or electronica had been ...Read More Here...

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Okay. So this is strange, perhaps very strange, but if you were to write a Science Fiction short then this is a must have soundtrack. This is from Richard Waters website: “The Waterphone was invented and is patented by Richard Waters (pat.#3896696). Each instrument is unique and ...Read More Here...

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If that sounds to you like the recipe for a great day then you are right. I worked on the boat this morning. (Yes! It’s in the water.) I came home about noonish and read from the Collected Works of Edna St.Vincent Millay while I ate salad and a sandwich. After an hour in my journal I pulled out the fiddle and ran 6/8 jigs until ...Read More Here...

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I've blogged before about procrastination, whether it's happening because your Inner Critic has found a dozen reasons for you Not Getting On With It, or he's declaring that it's all been done already, or he's dressed up as someone else to persuade you. Or sometimes you've dealt with all of those and still can't write, because you've simply run out of fuel.

But, assuming your Inner Critic has been gagged and bound, you're brimming over with ideas and energy for the next writing piece of work, you've cleared the house and the diary of humans... so many of us still find that we still can't get going. Suddenly we need another cup of coffee and some desk-tidying and email-answering; or we can only manage ten minutes or so, before we're reaching for the forums for writers or mums or steam train enthusiasts, for Facebook and its kin, for Scrabble, for a bit of very trivial research, for the blogs, and if all else fails, there's always Solitaire. And then you've finished your coffee, so you'd better go and make another, to drink while you start writing. And then when you get back you'd better just check FB and a couple of other places before you start...

We've all been tempted and most of us succumb, and there's no denying that the Internet has made it a hundred times worse, because the tools we need to write are also the tools we can use to avoid writing. A well known agent, joining Twitter, was startled to see just how many of her authors were tweeting away, in the hours when she'd foolishly assumed they were beavering away on their overdue manuscript. The trouble is, it's just too easy to kid yourself that you're only diverting for a moment: you're not really Not Writing. Not really. Oh dear me, no.

I've been known to go downstairs and unplug the router. You can get programmes to shut down your internet access for a set amount of time. I find even just disconnecting the internet does mean that when I'm tempted re-connect I'm more conscious that I'm Not Writing. But that doesn't always stop me re-connecting, and sometimes I genuinely do need to be online, for some stages of revisions, in particular.

So what's going on?

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I have a series of poems published in The Linnet's Wings this month. Go to the link, click on the magazine cover to read on-line or buy on Kindle or print http://www.thelinnetswings.org/?stn=1427&pageno=11

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Trae was in town for a couple of days to play a dance and conduct workshops. He’s a great fiddler and storyteller but perhaps his greatest attribute is the documentation of Michigan fiddlers’ lives. I went to the morning workshop where we learned McIlmoyles Reel and shared a few memories. I must have had a good time because I went home, blew off work, and played violin for the next couple hours. Trae also spent a few minutes showing the basics of podorhythmie; the French Canadien custom of tapping feet to the the music to provide ...Read More Here...

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I am going to write a few blogs like this to help other writers concerning ideas. The first is the storage.

Hands up if you haven't ever had writer's block - if you don't, then this article may not be applicable to you. If on the other hand, you sit down at your compute screen and your brain suddenly wipes clean. If it is a Monday morning, this is not unusual to be seized perhaps by a moment's panic - remember old Corporal Jones flapping around, screeaming 'Don't panic Don't panic' when your inner gut is in a state of paralysis.

Well, don't panic because you cannot think of anything to write about. It is not a crime that deserves the ultimate sentence. It happens to just about everyone I am certain.

They say ideas are all around us and the truth is, there are. First of all, carry a notebook or if you are financially affluent, get one of those hand held recorders for temporary storage so that when you get home, you can type the ideas out in noteform. If you have a notebook, do not rely on your handwriting after a period of time, especially if it is your own version of Pitman or speedwriting. It can let you horribly down so when you get the chance, type it out on the word processor.

Now for the storage part for future reference. Get a large ring binder, yes I mean large as you will be surprised how this will fill up. Divide it into twelve months of the year or seasons, even both if you wish. Make it appealing with clip and word art, after all you will want to use it at some point when your mind has gone into melt down. Insert your ideas in noteform into the appropriate month you are in.

Become a kleptomaniac in terms of post cards. Store them in a shoe or appropriate sized box if the cards are large, file them under nature, British and International scenes etc. notable photographed painted portraits, country houses if you visit natinal Trust properties. This can be an asset as an aide to memoir if you are trying to describe somewhere. Oh yes, keep your camera with you as well so you can take piccies of something that interests you and put it on your computer. You can also set up an ideas folder on your computer to refer to as well.

Also collect cuttings of something that draws your attention. If you have a leaning towards major or petty crime where writing is concerned, then cut it out or make a photocopy. Listen to the radio or television news as well. My current piece of work is just one example. I heard a few years ago about a police detective up in the northern part of Scotland, who is investigating the mysterious death of a woman. I then heard another piece a few days later about a man from around about the same area, who was killed outside his house.[oddly enough, an area I am fairly familiar with owing to the fact my father who was in the Royal Navy] I strung the two ideas together so hence that is what I am working on.

Writing is an exciting activity and potential means of earning a living, so don't spoil it by wringing your hands over writer's block. Collect and store your ideas and you will find that you will never run out and face that 'Monday morning' terror.