Somehow the clock is broken and this year ran fast. In a surprise twist that I (and only I) did not see coming it is Christmonth already! Also known as Tinsel Time and elve o'clock. At this time of year the shadow is permanently over the yard arm and we look back bewilderedly at the last eleven months and ask what the hell happened, and squint ahead fearfully at the year threatening to jump out and ambush us before we are any where near ready for it.
AKA time for a wee stock-take of 2018 and some prognosticating over 2019.
So, in review:
- I was honoured to participate in my third year of the Otahuhu Project, a magnificent programme operating in a cluster of deserving South Auckland schools, bringing authors and students together to work on writing skills and a love of books. Long may this project reign.
- I visited lots of other schools and had a real blast - thank you to all the schools who invited me and the NZ Book Council who bring authors, illustrators and students together in the best possible way.
- I attended my first ever KidsLitQuiz World Final and associated celebrations, and oh my goodness it is just the best to have your reading habits outshone by smart, witty, engaged intermediate age students from all round the world. It was a real privilege to be a part of this.
- I was disappointed to find that one of my favourite stories I have written could not find a home. I'm still pushing on, but it's sown a few seeds of doubt about the story and my writing skills.
- But then a picture book has been accepted (see you in 2019/2020, little book!) so all is not lost.
- and I am working together with the Ahoy imprint (of the Cuba Press) on bringing out a collection of my short stories which I have always wanted to do. More news on this soon I hope
- there may be other book news shortly - fingers crossed - watch this space...
- I assisted on, and then ran, a 'Write Like an Author Camp' over the October school holidays. This was a new experience for me and I learnt some new skills and unearthed a few latent ones.
- I got invited on a couple of writing retreats on Waiheke Island with some very good writer friends. These were wonderful - a good way to refresh your writing mojo, grow your writing project, and talk shop.
- I became part of the Storylines (an organisation I have belonged to for many, many years and benefited from in many, many ways) Management Committee and I'm really pleased to be able to contribute to such a hardworking organisation with some truly great goals.
- a kind person (to whom I am extremely grateful) made a wikipedia page about me which you can see here. This is quite a thrill!!
- we put our house on the market - results are currently mixed - no one has bought it yet but it has never looked tidier :)
- I achieved 25 rejections, three acceptances, and 8 submissions/applications are still in play.
Looking back on it all, I realise I had forgotten some of these things (and I suspect there are some things still missing from this list) and in the grand scheme it has not been too bad a year at all. Getting and staying published is still proving challenging but my writing career is still alive and I give thanks and raise a glass to that.
And in 2019?
- Hopefully a book, maybe even two, will be launched.
- Hopefully my current project will be completed - I estimate another four months of work on this.
- A new game plan for finding a publisher for my much loved manuscript.
- Maybe moving house, if we sell the current one.
- Attendance at at least one writers retreat
- aiming for 50 rejections.
The rest I have no control over. While an unfilled dance card is always a little daunting, as a writer I always have some incomplete projects to fall back on and keep me out of too much mischief and there will always be new ideas that spring up as well. And if my thumbs are threatening to twiddle there are plenty of good books I haven't yet read to get on with.
What about you guys? What are your 2018 highlights? And what are your most ambitious plans for 2019?
Showing posts with label Otahuhu Project. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Otahuhu Project. Show all posts
Monday, December 3, 2018
Thursday, December 8, 2016
The end is nigh...
I've started this post about five times - clearly I need more coffee. Hang on, just gonna go make myself a cup. BRB............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Righto
So, now that I am correctly caffeinated for my end of year rant, let's get started.
What to say about 2016?
I ended up being way busier than I expected to be, doing a lot of school visits, running workshops and getting involved in some amazing projects. I did heaps more talking (and writing of talks) than I did writing but it was just that kind of year. Thank you to all the wonderful people who invited me to be a part of things. I did lots of things that scared me and for the most part I was so glad I did. Not everything worked out. Some things terrified me too much and I won't be doing them again. Knowledge (and experience) is power. Actually most things will always scare me but some things aren't worth a repeat fright. I guess the bottom line is that doing things that terrify you isn't a cure, it's more of a life management plan.
2016 also demonstrated that it is impossible to plan ahead in too much detail when you are a writer. I put my name down for a couple of things in 2016 but for the most part I wasn't anticipating the invitations, requests and suggestions that I received. I think it's the fruit of my 'long game' philosophy. The last three years have each been distinctive anomalies compared with the previous 13 or so years, (the Dunedin Residency in '14, the Pah Homestead Residency in '15 and the Book Award judging and Otahuhu Project this year). Is three years of different now a trend? I might have a better idea at the end of 2017 so I'll have to get back to you on that one. On current evidence, although I only have a few fixed points (repeats of a couple things I took part in this year), next year has the potential to strike out in a new direction. I suppose enough uncertainty eventually becomes a certainty of its own. I am, if nothing else, adaptable. Saying yes to (nearly) everything is a key contributor to this but I have been liking the results of this approach to my work life so for the moment it's still my MO. I will just have to accept the randomness that comes with it.
My picture book with Donovan Bixley, Fuzzy Doodle, took flight in the middle of the year. It's a thrill to have a book come out and I thank everybody who has encouraged, supported and said nice (or otherwise) things about Fuzzy. Writers pray that their books will be reviewed, so it does break my heart a little when a review does nothing more than summarise the plot, especially when it is just based on the back cover blurb. I've had a few of these for Fuzzy and there is so much more to the book than that. I appreciate that space for reviews is shrinking but I know a lot can be done with so little (especially as a picture book writer). I loved this very brief review of the book on Goodreads by Miss Wilson - A visual transformation that improves with each page turn, much like the content it discusses literally and metaphorically. Only eighteen words, yet so delicious and intriguing. It can be done! And most recently there was a lovely and thoughtful (and longer) review of the book here by blogger Steph Ellis.
And to cap off an exciting and interesting year, I recently took part in a wonderful event showcasing the students' work from the amazing Otahuhu Project I was involved in. I was so impressed by, and proud of, what the students achieved. They are our writers and illustrators of the future. Thank you to the school, the dedicated teachers, the NZ Book Council and the fabulous funders of this amazing initiative. Long may it continue!
So what of 2017. Just a few things booked so far. And a few more prospects hovering. I have a ticket to see Adele in concert in March and I am out of the country for New Years which will be weird. This last fact somehow seems like some kind of portent about the year to come. That the usual order of things might be shaken up. Time will tell I guess. I'll keep saying 'yes' to things. Keep trying to learn more about this business I am in. Keep trying to pass this information on. Keep trying to produce more written work because without that I will stall, stagnate, become stale. From time to time I throw up my hands and say 'I give up'. Being a writer and staying published has more than its fair share of challenges and issues and more than a whiff of futility about it. On the days that all I can see is the wood of the door I am banging my head against, I feel certain this industry and I cannot remain together. But repeated examination has slowly revealed that it is not what I do, it is who I am. I could no more give up writing than I could stop being human so I shall stay on, thumping the keyboard and staring out the window and into the distance, mulling ideas over and attempting to turn them into stories. 2017? Here I come...
Righto
So, now that I am correctly caffeinated for my end of year rant, let's get started.
What to say about 2016?
I ended up being way busier than I expected to be, doing a lot of school visits, running workshops and getting involved in some amazing projects. I did heaps more talking (and writing of talks) than I did writing but it was just that kind of year. Thank you to all the wonderful people who invited me to be a part of things. I did lots of things that scared me and for the most part I was so glad I did. Not everything worked out. Some things terrified me too much and I won't be doing them again. Knowledge (and experience) is power. Actually most things will always scare me but some things aren't worth a repeat fright. I guess the bottom line is that doing things that terrify you isn't a cure, it's more of a life management plan.
2016 also demonstrated that it is impossible to plan ahead in too much detail when you are a writer. I put my name down for a couple of things in 2016 but for the most part I wasn't anticipating the invitations, requests and suggestions that I received. I think it's the fruit of my 'long game' philosophy. The last three years have each been distinctive anomalies compared with the previous 13 or so years, (the Dunedin Residency in '14, the Pah Homestead Residency in '15 and the Book Award judging and Otahuhu Project this year). Is three years of different now a trend? I might have a better idea at the end of 2017 so I'll have to get back to you on that one. On current evidence, although I only have a few fixed points (repeats of a couple things I took part in this year), next year has the potential to strike out in a new direction. I suppose enough uncertainty eventually becomes a certainty of its own. I am, if nothing else, adaptable. Saying yes to (nearly) everything is a key contributor to this but I have been liking the results of this approach to my work life so for the moment it's still my MO. I will just have to accept the randomness that comes with it.
My picture book with Donovan Bixley, Fuzzy Doodle, took flight in the middle of the year. It's a thrill to have a book come out and I thank everybody who has encouraged, supported and said nice (or otherwise) things about Fuzzy. Writers pray that their books will be reviewed, so it does break my heart a little when a review does nothing more than summarise the plot, especially when it is just based on the back cover blurb. I've had a few of these for Fuzzy and there is so much more to the book than that. I appreciate that space for reviews is shrinking but I know a lot can be done with so little (especially as a picture book writer). I loved this very brief review of the book on Goodreads by Miss Wilson - A visual transformation that improves with each page turn, much like the content it discusses literally and metaphorically. Only eighteen words, yet so delicious and intriguing. It can be done! And most recently there was a lovely and thoughtful (and longer) review of the book here by blogger Steph Ellis.
And to cap off an exciting and interesting year, I recently took part in a wonderful event showcasing the students' work from the amazing Otahuhu Project I was involved in. I was so impressed by, and proud of, what the students achieved. They are our writers and illustrators of the future. Thank you to the school, the dedicated teachers, the NZ Book Council and the fabulous funders of this amazing initiative. Long may it continue!
So what of 2017. Just a few things booked so far. And a few more prospects hovering. I have a ticket to see Adele in concert in March and I am out of the country for New Years which will be weird. This last fact somehow seems like some kind of portent about the year to come. That the usual order of things might be shaken up. Time will tell I guess. I'll keep saying 'yes' to things. Keep trying to learn more about this business I am in. Keep trying to pass this information on. Keep trying to produce more written work because without that I will stall, stagnate, become stale. From time to time I throw up my hands and say 'I give up'. Being a writer and staying published has more than its fair share of challenges and issues and more than a whiff of futility about it. On the days that all I can see is the wood of the door I am banging my head against, I feel certain this industry and I cannot remain together. But repeated examination has slowly revealed that it is not what I do, it is who I am. I could no more give up writing than I could stop being human so I shall stay on, thumping the keyboard and staring out the window and into the distance, mulling ideas over and attempting to turn them into stories. 2017? Here I come...
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