Isn't it always the way that suddenly, when you're least expecting it, an idea will strike you - almost knock you dead - and bring to life that other, older idea that has been festering away at the back of the dark closet of your mind for months, if not years?

That's just what happened to me this morning. I don't even know what I was thinking of at the time. But suddenly the closet door creaked open, and out came that earlier concept, shaking off the mothballs, blinking against the light and... Wham!... It caught sight of the new idea. Fireworks... Champagne corks... The perfect union was formed (if there is such a thing!).

This is how inspiration takes me. I always find that, to get a novel or script idea to take off, there has to be a second idea to ignite the first. It was the same with my film script. I had one idea, but it took a chance discovery when renovating an old house to really provide the skeleton on which to hang the flesh.

That time, I knew where the idea came from, and they were two pretty disparate concepts that just seemed to sing together.


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Okay, so, as promised I'm coming back to this topic.

You may recall that I mentioned in a previous post that I'd watched "Bridge to Terabithia" and then (about three quarters of the way through), wished I hadn't. I thought I ought to elaborate on this rather harsh, but totally honest, statement. After all, to read it, you might think my opinion of Katherine Paterson as a writer wasn't up to much.

I don't usually comment on films - I've lost track of the amount of films I've watched of books I've read that have left me feeling utterly disappointed, not to mention embarrassed. Howl's Moving Castle was the worst of these, I'm extremely sorry to say. Having taken Paul with me to see it, I had high hopes of impressing him with my wonderful taste in books. Ooooh dear.

When I said at the end, "I was quite tempted to leave halfway through," he looked at me, stricken, and whispered, "Why didn't you say so?"

Even I had a job keeping track of it, and I must have read it at least twenty times.

The film of "The Dark is Rising" by Susan Cooper was a similar case in point. I always know when I'm not going to enjoy one of these film adaptations, when I find myself some where near the beginning clutching my own head, and howling "No... no... no...!"

How Dare Howl's castle walk around on legs? How VERY DARE Will turn into an American (sorry, you overponders out there - I know Susan Cooper's one of yours by adoption, but really...)?

A million treasured internal images were shattered when I watched those films. I weep still.

"Bridge to Terabithia", on the other hand, suffered no such disadvantages. I'd never read it. I'd meant to when the film came out, but had not yet got around to it when it appeared on UK TV last week. It had a good write up, and with the amount of books I'm planning to re-read in the near future for my book blog, It didn't look like happening any time soon, so we switched on, in fairly eager anticipation...


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Well, here we are again. Two - sorry, three now - days into 2011, and I'm only just managing a post. I did manage to send Happy New Year tweets to my tweeps, but in case anyone was feeling left out, "Happy New Year!" and here we go...

I have recovered from the excitements of New Year. Not as deadly as those of two days before, but still another four-in-the-morning fiesta (you probably won't be surprised to hear, by now).

I've managed to laze about and consume two huge roast dinners since then, first berating myself for my lack of productivity, and then reminding myself that I'm probably producing quite well - if only in the fat department.

Such thoughts inevitably turn the mind to plans for the year ahead.

As soon as the Christmas tree's down, it'll be out with the running machine. And about time.

And I've already mentioned on Twitter that I plan to finish my WIP by the end of the year. I should think so too. I wrote the first 10,000 words in about a week. Don't know what I'm playing at, really. The whole thing is planned out, I wouldn't mind, and I've already rewritten the start at least twice (could have been three times, actually), due to my firing off in the usual seat-of-pants way at the beginning.

Which makes me wonder whether it's better just to go for it, with only the vaguest notion of where you're heading, or to plan pretty thoroughly way ahead of the game.

Obviously, there are pros and cons to each side of the argument.

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I cannot believe that I have actually managed to wriggle out of writing anything at all for almost a month. Even for me, this is bad. I am ashamed - but only a little.

Since my last post was about my hitting my head on a doorstep, you could be forgiven for wondering whether I had incurred rather more serious injuries than I'd at first thought. Happily, though, I suffered no more than a sore head for a week or so afterwards.

So what has prevented me from writing - or, rather, facilitated my wriggling out of it?



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Well. Maybe I've gone off the snow now, to a certain extent. Mainly due to the fact that I took the kids down the local social club, after posting my last blog post, and had an accident in the snow.

I was coming out of the back door of the club, when my legs suddenly shot out in front of me. . There was nothing to save myself on, and somehow I went down flat and cracked the back of my head on the doorstep of the club. It was the first thing that hit the floor.

Not only did it scare me (I was expecting blood to come oozing out of my ears at any moment), not only did it hurt, but worse than anything else, I felt a proper 'nana.

Nothing hurts more than your pride, does it?!

Anyway, everyone was really lovely to me - thanks all! - and got the kids and I all home safe and sound - but I've not felt up to much since then. Two days on, not only do I still ache all over - my stomach muscles are shredded, oddly - but I've also come down with some ghastly virus. I'm supposed to be going out with the girls tonight, but I can't see it happening.

Which brings me onto the point of today's post...

I have two "Why is it...?" questions that keep running around in my head.



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I was on a course yesterday. Not the most inspiring of days, since the tutors spent half the time going over the various parts of the assignment we have to hand in on 17th February. Can’t wait. It’s not all bad news, though. According to one of the tutors – who gave feedback on the first part – my case study is “really lovely” (what?). I had been planning on totally rewriting it, so that’s something I’ve wriggled out of.

From my course (which finished at 2.30 – only three and a half hours earlier than I usually leave work), it was but a short trip to the wonders of Lakeside, our nearest out-of-town shopping centre. Much as I desperately wanted to go home and get on with the staff panto, I felt it was only polite to spend the next five hours wandering aimlessly around TK Maxx. Rude not to.

How long can it take one person to choose a woolly hat for her youngest son? Over an hour, I’m here to tell you. I was at Lakeside, ostensibly, to buy Christmas pressies for the masses. I managed three (small) pressies, and spent the rest of the time gathering up armfuls and trolleyloads of things I’d never realised – until that moment – I needed.



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Welcome to my blog!

I am the original wriggling writer… Forever trying to wriggle out of actually parking my bum on a seat and putting words on paper… Don’t know why – I love writing with a passion – but sometimes it all just feels like too… much… effort…

The excuses I come up with range from the reasonable – kids, teaching, housework (yeah, right) – to the ridiculous. Here are some of my latest get-out clauses:

I absolutely had to play SSX, Banjo-Tooie, and… um… Singstar. Had to. Life or death, don’t you know?
It was imperative that I watch House, Bones, Fringe and just about every other one-word-title American series on Sky. Had to be done (really – the planner was nearly full. Disaster loomed).
I urgently needed to read other people’s blogs and books… ABOUT WRITING.
Guess I could have called this blog OWN WORST ENEMY dot com.

Does anyone have any even more pathetic reasons for avoiding writing? I’d love to hear them… I’m always up for a new angle on avoidance tactics ;~)

Tonight I’m not avoiding writing the WIP. I’ve been asked to write the staff panto (roll of drums…).

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