Clashing Events

One of the biggest challenges I face is finding out about events that are scheduled at the same time.

Tomorrow I am hoping to go to the Stanza meeting, especially as I missed the last one (performing at Najma Hush’s exhibition ‘Diverse Dancers’) and it will also make me write a new poem.
But in the city – several Counties away from where I will be there are two great events.
In the Library a bunch of really good poets are performing.
Then later on Ddotti Bluebell is hosting Word Up at York’s Bakery (which I thoroughly enjoyed last month) – I have to miss both of these events due to geographic location and my inability to teleport!

Then on Saturday I am missing Amanda Bonnick’s Special Mother’s Day Poetry Event at the Oxfam Bookshop, I know I would have loved this evening with the Worcestershire poets.

It doesn’t get much better in April – I want to go to 42, as I usually do – but the Pigeon Park Press are hosting another spoken word event, I missed the last one as it clashed with an event I was already attending.

Next week there are some events but my writing diary is fairly full so I have decided I will take most of the week off from events and concentrate on writing. Plus next week I have a full week of work and a day that Mr G and I have both booked to FINALLY start decorating our home.

When the Going Gets Tough!

This post is for everyone who has a DAYJOB and is also trying to forge a writing career.

This is probably how your mind feels most of the time.

©EmmaC 2014

 

I promise you this is not my culinary disaster (and although my friend posted it on social media, she probably didn’t expect it to be used on my blog!) – this is what happens if you don’t prick potatoes before cooking them.

Today the stress in my head (at the day job, from the day job, from thinking about the writing life I would rather lead, in trying to imagine the evening before it was even lunchtime!) built up to this explosive point… I felt like these potatoes…

If you have ever felt the same read on.

©N Lewis2014

Even these beautiful roses have sharp bits.

No-one can have a perfect life, there are always sharp bits! I know a good few people lucky enough to be full time writers, they no longer have to balance that life with a dayjob, and even they still have sharp bits.

Remember living the life you dream of doesn’t mean you will lead a stress free, smooth edged life.

Dream, of course, but keep your head somewhere in reality.

 

Learn your triggers and have a mental list of how to get over the stress once you have made it home. Any way you can relax and let go of it is good. Here is a list of things that work for me;

 

• Reading a book
• Having a lie down/power nap
• Taking a bath

 

• Working out (I rarely do this in the face of confronting my stress – but it always works when I do)
• Rage it out in a free write
• Phone a friend and have a bit of a moan

 

• Chill out with a magazine and a cuppa
• Watch a film
• Go for a walk

 

And remember why you are in this dual/ split life place to begin with.

 

 

 

 

Another idea is to visualise (and manifest) sometime in 2013 I created this board of dreams, actually a board of what I wanted my life to be – not dreams but reality! Some of these aspects are already coming true, it serves as a visual reminder….

 

©N Lewis 2014

 

Almost central are the words THE SMARTEST DECISION I EVER MADE…

giving up my full time career after 14 years and with it the salary and the pension is okay, it is just that, the SMARTEST and BRAVEST decision I have ever made. And no matter how bad my day has been by 5pm or 6pm at the latest, IT  — IS — OVER! Whereas before there  was barely time to grab dinner before working away for another 5 or 6 hours. That 60-80 hour relentless working week is not sustainable – it is why so many teachers took strike action yesterday.

Finding time to write can be a challenge, if you do find time keeping energy up can be hard, but how worth it – think about how writing makes you feel. Better than most things in the world? Then keep going!

Try to hold onto the good days and let go of the bad – in the same way we let go of rejections and celebrate our publishing successes!

Just keep going!

 

 

Three Word Prompt

 To find out more about this freewrite activity ^ click the image.

 

Prompt: Write down the first words that comes to mind when we say . . . home. . . soil. . . rain.

My Response:

Home finally means something to me again. Sometimes my mind wanders back to Roslin Close and my childhood home, I see my family, as we were, younger and looked after, protected. I might be doing something as mundane as washing up and my head will take me back in time.

I have been nomadic, rootless, I enjoyed the freedom of movement. There comes a time for settling and when that time is right, you know. Our together house is definitely home, I love coming back here. We are itching to decorate the face of it, but the spirit is already shining.

Soil in the allotment under all the wild, overgrown grass and weeds we have to go and get rid of. The soil used to be stony but over the years with planting and replanting the land has been worked and the soil is healthier.

Rain has fallen in our Country for months, it finally stopped  a few weeks ago, we enjoyed the sun shine and dry for a few days and now Winter has returned. The flood waters have finally dropped.

 

42 – 3rd Anniversary

 Had a great night at Drummonds 42, some spectacular stories and poems! I had written 2 Zombie poems, to fit the theme. I was wondering how I would manage as this is not a favoured genre.

You know sometimes when you are trying to write something, the universe just delivers? Last Friday whilst I was at the Quiet Compere, Mr G was playing a new game on the playstation and I arrived home to a screen full of Zombies, it inspired to write ‘My Non-Existent Post Apocalyptic Zombie Plan’ and ‘Carnage’. I left these poems to soak and came back to them today to edit. Which took the best part of an hour.

It’s good to write outside the box sometimes.