Back to School

So, this morning was hectic. After a month and a half of mostly relaxed mornings, we were up and out of the door by 7.50am! Now the house is strangely quiet. I'm already wondering how my daughter's day is going, what homework she'll have and what books she'll be reading for English.

I was the kid who read with the torch under the blankets (no duvet back then!) and last night I found myself in the same situation - telling my daughter to put the book down, turn the light off and go to sleep - it was a school night after all. And her response? 'Only if you read it after I've finished it.'

And the book? Small Steps by Louis Sacher. Now I read Holes and recommended it to her so it seems fitting  that she should read Small Steps and recommend it to me. For me to have passed on my love of reading to my daughter makes me a very happy writer.

Writers read a lot of books and for all sorts of reasons. To refill that creative well, to escape from reality for a while, to learn from writers I admire, for relaxation and for the sheer joy of it. So I find I have my own homework! And it will be a joy.

Romantic Novelists' Association Conference 2016

I was pleased to be able to join hundreds of people from the writing industry when we all gathered together for a conference organised by the RNA at Lancaster University last weekend. 

This was my third conference and it was a hectic, fun and exhausting weekend of lectures, workshops and appointments with editors, agents and publishers, not to mention the chance to catch up with writing friends.

Based in the George Fox building, 

we were spoiled for choice in the diversity of subjects being discussed.

There were Charlotte Mursell and Clio Cornish from HQ, a division of Harper Collins talking about how to reach the top in commercial fiction.

Alex Brown and Kate Bradley gave us ideas and an insight into Alex's own journey on writing a commercial novel.

And Kate Walker gave a fantastic lecture on how to pack an emotional punch - an essential, if difficult, task in writing romantic fiction.

But is wasn't all work. There was the gala dinner on Saturday night and here I am all dressed up with good writing friend Melissa Morgan

All in all, a fantastic way to spend the weekend.

Back to School

Half term is a great break for parents and children alike most of the time. For me, there’s no lunch box to pack, no rush to get to school by 8.30am and no uniform to iron to name but a few. It also means as a writer that I don’t get to spend the time I’d like to at the keyboard which tends to make me twitchy! Bearing in mind that I’m happiest writing every day, even if it’s only fifty words as it helps keep me in the story, I find it so much harder to take a break from writing as it takes a while to get back into it and to remember where I was up to.

But being forced to stand back also makes me take stock and be sociable again. It’s the chance to meet up with friends and family and to press pause on life albeit temporarily and reacquaint myself with a social life. There is fun to be had with real people and not just the fictional ones in my head! So I have done more than poke my head out of my writing cave, I’ve gone out and had a look around. 

I’ve eaten out at Hickory's in Rhos on Sea,

   


         
          visited Penrhyn Castle















been to a food slam in Menai Bridge,





 


















and even succumbed to temptation and bought a pair of boots from Schuh in Chester. (Fabulous shop, just far too many wonderful shoes to choose from!)

Now however with half term over, I need to knuckle down and get back to work as half term also brought with it the delivery of my RNA conference pack, that wonderful bundle of paper from the RNA detailing all that’ll be going on at the conference in July. I love pouring over it, selecting those talks and lectures that I want to attend but there are the all-important appointments with editors. And that means deadlines.

So now the holiday is over and it’s back to work and back to my writing cave. I shall be holed up for the next few weeks preparing, polishing and honing those chapters I’m taking to the conference this year. 

Time

Time. We can all feel it passing but can't do a thing to stop it, halt it or turn it back. Should we make the most of it? Yes. Do we? Personally, no. There's always something to do first before I can afford to make the most of it.

I think there are certain moments in life that make us stop and pause. We've all heard the sayings 'live in the present' and 'it's called the present because it's a gift'. Then there's the whole concept of mindfulness. But unless it strikes a personal chord, it's unlikely to generate more than a passing nod of agreement.

I was catching up on friends' Facebook posts as they travel around Europe in a camper van with their two children. It's the stuff of dreams for many and they're keeping a record via their website, appropriately named Tin Can Family. 

I was struck dumb by Lottie's blog post What a canoe trip taught me about life  and her thought provoking and touching words. It's not everyday that someone tells you something that makes you sit up and notice what you've got, but when they do, it's worth paying attention. I don't want to think about how many times I've thought that once I reached a certain milestone, I'd be happy, successful or able to relax. 

So it was with a glad smile and a light step that I took a break from writing to meet up with my good friend, Melissa Morgan. There was lunch, yes, cake too, and time to sit in the sun for a good long chat. Time with friends is precious and as Jane Austen put it so well in her book, Persuasion:

… ‘that is not good company … that is the best.’

#Smugface

Well, what is she up to now? you might wonder. My dabble with technology continues albeit at a snail's pace and this time with Facebook. I am rather pleased to report that I now have an proper Facebook web address. So, here it is:

www.facebook.com/SarahSnowdonWriter

 and it would be lovely if you got chance to stop by and see what I'm up to. Click on this link to go straight there.

A New Book

I love that excitement when I start a new book - the rush of possibilities, the chance to give names and back-stories to those voices in my head (does that sound weird?!) and the moment when I can create something new. But there's always the flip side to anything. The self-doubt that I'll be able to do it again, trying to remember how I managed to write a whole book last time and always wondering if the conflict between my characters will carry through to the end of the book.



So last week, I headed to beautiful Betws y Coed to meet up with writing pal Melissa Morgan to talk about heroes, character motivation and writing progress. There's nothing like a change of scene to spark a few ideas and the wild waters and quiet woodlands provided the perfect backdrop. 


















And this week? I'm following the advice given to me by author and tutor Kate Walker: BOCHOK. Bum On Chair, Hands On Keyboard!

Learning from the Past

Before I start, I should warn you that there's no grand social faux pas that I've learned from. Sorry to disappoint! It's rather more literal.

Last week, I went with my family for a short city break to Cardiff. While we were there, we visited St Fagan's National History Museum which details a history of Welsh life. It's a 'living museum' and therefore, in my view, far more interesting than looking at something in a glass case.

I was enthralled. This visit has not, I hasten to add, spurred a change in direction for my writing. I am not going to attempt to pen a historical novel with my woefully inadequate knowledge of history but will try and encapsulate what I learned.

The buildings that have been taken down from across Wales and resurrected at St Fagan's are presented as close as possible to how people would have lived and it was those little details that hit home and brought the places to life. The smell of the peat fire in the 1700's farmer's cottage. The linen at the window that diffused the light rather than making the room darker. And the high threshold that would have kept the thresh inside the house.


The devil's in the detail, so they say, and it's the little things that count, so I am going to try to include the little details that will really bring my writing to life.

And as an attraction, if you're in the area, St Fagan's is a great way to spend your time. From a grand house built on the site of an old castle to a farm outbuilding that dates from the 1100's and all surrounded by farmland, it was a peaceful, beautiful and enlightening.