I’ll tell you how I’m feeling today, if you tell me too. Not for us, the false niceties papering over our humanness. Not for us, the filters to smooth out our skin on social media, to give the grey pallor of our faces a sunlight hue. I’m tired and overwhelmed, and I know it will… Read More Are You Feeling Overwhelmed?
Some days it seems as though my mobile phone has become an extension of my body: another limb or brain. Or a succubus. Why is it that we long to reach certain goal posts as children, ones which as adults are no longer enticing? Children as young as ten clamour for their own phones. What… Read More On Communication Overload
A friend of mine recently asked me how I manage to find the time to write. She has young children, younger than mine, as well as a start up business, and it seemed to her that she’ll never be able to steal a moment for her writer self. She’s wonderful, this friend, passionate and committed… Read More Creative on Demand: On Time and Tricks to Get your Mojo
When I was a child I hid under the covers after lights out with a pen torch, determined to finish one more chapter. I took books with me into the loo because I couldn’t bear to be away from the characters for a few minutes. I read in jumps and starts on car journeys when… Read More Savouring Words: A Two-Fingered Salute to Rushed Reading
There is a frail old lady in our neighbourhood, who wanders the streets in the afternoon dressed in a sari. The saris are always tatty and loosely worn. The old lady passes fellow pedestrians without acknowledging their presence. It is as if she does not see them at all. If you say hello, she barely… Read More Losing and Finding Stories
I’ve been neglecting my writing practice of late. We’ve had a whirlwind few weeks with visitors and getting our ducks in a row ahead of our move to Switzerland this summer. My husband has been offered a job there and we are looking forward to the adventure. Right now, I’m sprawled across our bed, watching… Read More In Praise of Slowness
Regular readers of this blog know that I’m a fan of flash fiction. (You can find out why here, in addition to links to my favourite flash competitions). Over the past few months I have been in the judging seat for @postupak’s Flash! Friday competition. Handing in my final winners list today made me think about how… Read More My Love Affair with Flash Fiction: From Courting to Going Steady
This post was inspired by @JEdwardPaul, who wrote a brilliant piece recently that touched me about writing frustrations. I’m not feeling my usual self at the moment. That’s probably why I’ve been a little quieter on social media than usual. My sense of equilibrium is off kilter, and the standard quick fixes to make myself… Read More The Ebb and Flow of Words: Interruptions, Muses and Emotional Well-Being
It’s happened time and again over the years, others intruding on my boundaries. It happens repeatedly, determinedly, in a steady drip-drip that eventually causes me to let down my defences. A slow, stealthy creeping into my personal space, a disruption of carefully planned routines. It is the neighbour who comes by for a friendly cuppa… Read More Protecting our Space as Writers
This week I’ve been thinking about how the year has passed so quickly. Do you remember that feeling when you were at school and the weeks seemed to drag? Or how it seemed that you were fifteen forever? Every birthday took an age to come round and you really, really, wanted to be older, worldly,… Read More How Writing Challenges can Help you Make the Most of your Writing Time
It is birthday season in the Stelter household. The past few weeks have been a whirlwind of familial activity, so much so that I have had barely a chance to put pen to paper. With a four year old and a ten month old, even at relatively quiet times it is difficult to create the… Read More Parenthood, Creativity and Time
This week, I got the chance to be in a quiet room by myself to focus on my writing. Our son is eight months old, and the urge to write has been getting stronger now that he is sleeping better and I have more energy. Some friends and I decided that each week two mums… Read More The Ability to be Alone