Karma loves me today...

Don't look! (you looked didn't you) - I'm about to eat a meat pie. I don't have them very often. I am not going to think about the calories or the fat content. I KNOW on my deathbed I am not going to be saying 'I wish I ate one less meat pie'. Sometimes a little of what you fancy does you good. Excuse me while a take a bite. Mmm, mmm, mmm. The best pies (that I have ever tasted IMHO - I don't what to get into an argument about something as sensitive as the issue of who makes the best meat pies) are from The Fridge in Kingsland but the one I'm having now (Mackenzie High Country Roast Chicken Pie) is a close second - even better than home made and I make a pretty mean meat pie.

If you are a regular reader you will know I am interested in the phenomenon of coincidence. Most of the time I can tell myself that coincidence is random but today's coincidence has freaked me out a little. Folks, I have a new writing project. I am particularly excited about this one and a publisher has more than a passing interest in it. I need to do some research before I begin and I already know what info I need to be reading around to enable me to get started. I called my brother this morning and before I said anything out of the blue he mentioned one of my key sources. Okay there are reasons he said this so its only a semi coincidence (although I had like two minutes before been discussing it with someone else on a different phone call - cue twilight zone theme tune), but then I said I needed to ask him some questions because this particular era in history is a hobby of his. "Oh," he said. "I just got this book and it has THIS and THIS in it," and folks I honestly felt that spooky old chill down my spine because this is EXACTLY what I needed and I had been scratching my head a little about where to get started to find this info. I cannot help feeling that karma would really like me to write this book and the way I am feeling about it I am very VERY happy to oblige. One day I am also going to write a story about karma and coincidence. Probably when I figure out what the universe is really trying to tell me :)

And after posting last time about the perseverence of Stephen Parrish, and asking the question 'what kept him going', it was excellent to get a response from the man himself (yay, I love the global community that is blogging!). Yes folks you need writing skills and imagination and sticktoitiveness, but without a doubt you cannot survive in this business without believing in what you write. If you don't, how can you expect anyone else to. And the beauty of 'belief' is that it is independent of the genre you write in, the age you write for and the literary/commercial qualities of your work. If you don't believe, maybe its not the right project. When it is, you will know, and it will show. Have an excellent weekend!!!

Sigh...today is not my day...

When I go on holiday I expect to be without an internet connection for most if not the complete duration of the vacation. I've done this before and survived just fine with only a few tics and other (mostly hidden) side effects. We changed provider and have been offline from Friday to Tuesday. I mostly do not phone people, I e-mail them. And they mostly e-mail back. I felt cut off. I spent an hour on the phone this morning trying to figure out why I wasn't connected despite a brand new shiny modem. This has all been horrible. Especially as i felt the internet was one way to try and keep informed about my travelling girls, who are hopefully back tomorrow although one did not make her scheduled flight from Orlando and i have no idea if she will be turning up at Auckland Airport tomorrow. Did I mention how horrible it was. Have I said how horrible it is not knowing where one of my daughters is? She is one of sixteen who missed the flight so at least she is not alone but I can't imagine she is enjoying the unexpected adventure. I know I'm not. Hmm. She is never leaving the country without me again. Ever. Ever, ever. I am meant to be doing an assignment, already overdue that I am having trouble getting the required books for. The libraries do not have them. The book shop did not have them. And I cannot logon to the university library. I am not having a good day. Maybe karma is telling me to hibernate. There is too much going on to hibernate. I have author visits coming up. I am meant to be racing welshcake to the end of our respective novels. I am crabby and distracted. At least I got to read the graphic novel Hicksville by Dylan Horrocks. I am not much one for the genre but this was brilliant. And he's a Kiwi. Small mercies.

Jumping through hoops with a glass half full...

So while I'm feeling confused and blue about the hoops I'm having to jump through to move forward with my writing, I'm slowly coming to realise that if I let it get me down and suck the energy out of me, I won't be moving forward with anything. The bottom line is, no matter what else is happening, I should keep writing. After all, it is obeying those pesky and intrusive words that won't let me give this career away. I have thought about giving up before and aside from the fact that i'm not much good at anything else, the stories just REFUSE to go away. Sure, I can moan and groan but that will not make someone say yes instead of no, or pick up my book in a bookshop. In fact moaning and groaning will probably have the reverse effect. It probably isn't good for my karma either. I think karma works better with a cheerful outlook, a glass half full kind of mentality and I have been forgetting this too much recently. One thing I will do in addition to keeping on with the writing is not accept everything as its given to me. Sometimes questions need to be asked and even if things cannot be changed I want a better understanding of how they work and how I fit into it all.