I love my new room with my spacious new desk and absence of distraction so much that I've written another book since my last post. I'm in the process of self editing it and have even passed the MS on to my trusted readers (3 members of my family). Is that a good enough reason for not blogging for a while? One of the advantages of my new room is that my laptop has no internet access BUT the new cable is now in place and my desktop will shortly be moved up there. I wonder if I'll be as prolific once I can access my email and ... my BLOG! or will the temptation prove too great?

Other news is that CUT SHORT has reappeared on my publisher's website with a new publication date of March 2009. By this time next year, all being well, I will (finally) be a published author! I know I shouldn't be feeling this excited after such a protracted wait - and I have been in this position before - but I'm really excited. Let's hope it all goes ahead this time.

Although the book is still a way off, you can read about the book, by googling CUT SHORT Leigh Russell and clicking on No Exit Press Stock List and finding it there.

I am very excited because my new desk has arrived. I ordered it from a catalogue and somehow got the measurements wrong - it's HUGE! I'm really pleased that it's larger than I expected. I'll have room to spread out. I can't wait to finish sorting everything out so I can get settled. (I'm resolutely ignoring the little voice in my head saying I'm procrastinating...)

Is location important? If I was really inspired, I'd be able to write anywhere. When I first discovered my passion for writing, I scribbled whenever and wherever. Now, after a year of incessant and obsessive creativity, I've slowed down to take stock. Will my new desk herald the start of a new burst of creativity? I plan to be very disciplined...

Today's question is linked to the last post about the need for silence or bustle - how important is it where you are when you write?

I wonder if other writers prefer silence or background bustle when they write? I used to think I needed absolute silence to concentrate but I find I often put the radio on when I'm writing. I can even write in front of the television (shocking admission!) Music distracts me, but people talking on the radio seems to help me to think. I have also enjoyed bursts of creativity sitting in Starbucks. Isaac Asimov wrote that he found the buzz of a busy venue (like an airport) energising. I think I'm the same sometimes. At other times I prefer quiet.

I have been writing at home in a small room in the middle of the house. I like the fact that it's small but hate being in the centre of the house. My study is, effectively, a corridor that people walk through as it is a short cut from the front door to the kitchen. This is where I am going to make a confession...

One of the reasons I enjoy writing is because it sometimes gives me a feeling that I have some control over something in my life. The decisions I make about my writing may not be completely 'free'. I often reject an idea I would love to keep because it does not work. My characters frequently run away with my words and seem to write their own stories. But it is between me and the words on the page. No one else can dictate to me (until the MS reaches the editor, of course! But I'm still enough of a novice to find even the idea of having an editor incredibly exciting.)

I was going on to say that it annoys me when people walk through my 'space' when I'm writing because I am such a control freak. But that's not it.

To create an imaginary world, like all writers I lose myself in that other place, the world that springs from my imagination. And it's vexing to be distracted from that other, imaginary, place.

So... I'm moving upstairs to an empty bedroom. Not only that, I've bought a NEW DESK! It should be delivered soon. All that remains will be to arrange for my computer to move upstairs with internet access (will that require cables? I've no idea.)

I'm looking forward to having a private space of my own, where I won't be disturbed. I wonder if I'll feel lonely and fret for the irritating interruptions I now grumble about? I have a sneaking suspicion I'll be continually trotting down the stairs to seek out distractions... or blogging. Or will I be incredibly self disciplined and focus on my writing...

What if...

When I first started writing, I painstakingly wrote in neat long hand. I would only use pencil so I could make corrections without spoiling the appearance of my writing. When I was satisfied, I typed it up. I always kept a hard copy of everything I wrote, just in case my computer failed.

Gradually as my confidence in my writing grew, I became less dependent on my rituals. Now I find I can "create" in long hand or on the keyboard with equal facility. I prefer the keyboard as my typing is faster (and neater) than my handwriting. Despite the increased speed, I still tend to produce about 2,000 words in a day. More than that seems to exhaust my brain!

I no longer feel compelled to print out everything I write. This has probably saved a small forest. It has also saved on print cartridges, not to mention the time I (still) spend shredding discarded versions of my MS.

There is still one ritual... I weaned myself off the hard copies by using a memory stick. One day someone warned me that these are not 100% reliable. My work is now saved on not one, not two, not three, but four memory sticks. Neurotic or logical? If one m/stick could fail, why not the second? The odds must be the same each time... Are four enough? I know it's bonkers, but what if I used only one memory stick and it failed just as my computer died on me? After all, without my "What if" imagination, would I be writing crime fiction in the first place?

ps

It is not true that I spend longer saving my work than writing it.

update

It's been a while since I last wrote on this blog. I've been busy writing. My publisher has postponed the publication of my first book, CUT SHORT. We missed the 2008 Spring date. I have since learned that such delays are common in this business. My publisher did not want to bring the book out over the Summer as this would clash with festivals in which they are interested, after which everything is focused on Christmas. So we've rescheduled, as the Americans say, until early 2009.

I now understand why producing a book is likened to producing a child. After the fun of the creative process, it's a long, long wait...

I'm more excited about the book itself than the publication. When I was waiting to hear about the deal with my publisher, a friend said to me the nightmare would be that in the end no one would publish my writing. But that's not it. For me the nightmare would be that I stopped writing. It has been an amazing thrill to find a publisher, but that's not what this is about for me. It's all about the writing. I love it.

CUT SHORT is listed on Amazon as due out next month. On my publisher's website it's March 2009. Like Hamlet, I don't know when it will be, but I know it will happen. And whenever it is, I'm ready! In the meantime, I'm writing.

My MS has gone back to the editor... and it's gone from my head. Over. Done with. History.

As soon as it left my hands, I paid two (only slightly overdue) bills, sorted out my phone, checked my post (tax disc due up shortly on my car) and bought a completely impractical pair of purple boots... I feel like a zombie returned to life!

I wonder if all writers have another project in mind when they finish a MS? What must Tolstoy have felt like when he put the final full stop to War and Peace if I feel so strange after finishing my little scribbles?

How do other writers cope with reaching the end of a book? Is it a cause for celebration or a sense of loss?

Of course, it's not quite done. There are still the next lot of edits to deal with, but I'm not thinking about that now... (although there is a little voice in my head asking whether I won't be disappointed if there isn't any more work to do on the MS. Can it really be finished? Is that it?)

Thank goodness I'm writing a series. Yes, I've already started rewriting the next book...

People commonly compare writing a book to giving birth. I never really understood the parallel, until now... After complications with my first pregnancy, I was told my second wouldn't be allowed to go beyond term. On my due date, I packed my overnight bag and dutifully went into hospital where the consultant decided everything was fine and we should let nature take its course. I picked up my bag and went home to wait.



Over the next two weeks, I received phone calls from almost everyone I knew:

"Hello, you're home!"
"Yes."
"What did you have?" and "How's the baby?"
"Er... I haven't had it yet... I'm still waiting."



Now that I've told everyone I know that my first book will be published in April, (as it appears on Amazon), my publisher has postponed publication until the summer. Apparently this happens all the time: delays with the designer, the editor, clashes with other publications, and goodness knows what else besides.



Coincidentally, the current publication date is... my second child's birthday!