Getting There - by Susan Barclay

Drinking in the view at at the end of the day. Who could fail to be inspired?

I planned to work on this post while my husband and I enjoyed a cottage rental this week. Pffft. And when we returned home on the 30^th, I thought I could get it done that evening. Pffft again. We arrived to find computer issues that needed attention. So I am writing this June 1^st and back-dating it. 

We were asked to showcase a work-in-progress, so that’s what I’m  doing. In fact, I used part of our vacation to work on my WIP. I spent the mornings writing while my husband read, then we took the afternoon to explore the area, and watched a movie together in the evenings before heading to the beach to catch one of God’s glorious sunsets.

I call myself an eclectic writer. I write children’s picture books, personal essays, short stories for adults, poetry. But my focus this year has been on the novel I started ten years ago. It’s a work of contemporary fiction that deals with family dynamics, and particularly the difficult relationship between a mother and daughter. Themes of understanding and forgiveness are also explored. The idea was sparked when I threw together a short piece for a critique group that was meeting for the first time. One of the participants that night thought the nugget contained the makings of a novel. 

I gulped. It did?

So here I am ten years later, still working on it. Granted, I’ve taken long breaks since beginning, the longest stemming from writer’s block. I’d come to point B and knew where point D was, but I wasn’t quite sure how to get to point C. Thankfully, the block has broken and I am moving forward. I don’t work from a detailed outline and tend to go with the flow, an approach that has both its challenges and its joys.

Over the holiday, I worked on revisions for the first ten chapters. I still have a number of chapters to edit before I pick up the story and work my way through to the end. While I had hoped to complete the novel by the end of June, it looks like I'll have to extend my deadline to the end of the year. The main thing is to keep pressing forward.

Here’s a teaser from early in the novel to whet your appetite for more. In this scene, the mother and daughter are having a tense telephone conversation. The story is told in first person, from the daughter’s point of view. 

 I felt sick to my stomach, but somehow I couldn’t stop myself. I wasn’t like this with anyone but Mom. “Nothing’s eating me,” I said. I tapped my fingers on the arm of my chair. “I’m tired, that’s all. Tired of pandering to your emotional insecurities.” Mom drew in a sharp breath, but I pressed on. “Ben and Jackie wouldn’t have asked you to go if they didn’t want you. So, go. Enjoy your grandchildren and have a good time. Is that so hard? Does it have to be such a big deal?”

“Somebody got up on the wrong side of bed,” she answered. “Maybe I should talk to you later when you’re feeling more reasonable.”

“I think this is as good as it gets today, Mother.”

I heard the phone click. “Mother?” I held the phone away from my ear and looked at it in surprise, then brought it close again. "Mother?” The dial tone sounded an accusation. “She hung up on me!”

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For more of my writing, please visit www.susan-barclay.ca

Brrrr... by Susan Barclay

As I write this, we're in the midst of another January cold snap. The urge to hibernate is strong, but since I have a part-time job outside the home and am part of a car-pool for getting my son to school, it's not an option. If I had my 'druthers', I'd be somewhere warm, soaking up the sun. Instead I find myself surfing the net, looking for inexpensive trips south, knowing I can't possibly go anywhere before the end of April. And even then, not somewhere far away.

Work on my writing progresses well. I blog regularly and tweet often. At the end of November I reread my WIP and wrote the pivotal scene. I've since gone back to the beginning for revisions and am all the way up to chapter four. Considering how much my writing has improved since I began my novel (ten years ago, cough, cough), the reworking of it is a pleasure and will no doubt provide a better experience for future readers.

It's true, while I haven't shut myself away, my novel has enjoyed lengthy periods of hibernation. I started off strong, but then hit a certain point in the plot; let's call it a cold spell. I knew where things were going to end up; I just didn't know how I was going to get there. So I wrapped it in blankets and focused on other projects, including picture books, short stories and personal experience pieces. From time to time I'd hit on an idea, pull back the covers of my novel, try out some thoughts, and put it to bed again.

You see, hibernation isn't just good for bears, skunks and other animals. It can also be good for your writing. Much like a nap refreshes and restores, a writing break gives your brain a chance to percolate and drum up new, or better, material. When your imagination wakes up like this, you're back on a roll. And how exciting and adrenalin-pumping is that?!

Don't be afraid of putting your work to sleep for a while. It's not going anywhere. It'll be there when you're ready to get back to it, and no doubt better than it was before.

Now I think I'll go back to sleep for a while. Baby, it's cold outside!

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For more of my writing, please visit my website at www.susan-barclay.ca

He's Still Working on Me - Susan Barclay

Remember the little ditty, "He's still working on me?" If not - or if you'd just like to hear it again - here's the clip. (I tried to insert the video, but Blogger wasn't cooperating).

Anyway, it's true. He's still working on me. As this year ends, and I look back over the last 364 days, the basic message I've received from the Holy Spirit is this: "Girl, you've got too much clutter in your life, and it's getting in the way of all that I have for you. It's getting in the way of us.We need to deal with that." Deal with it we have, though I have a long way to go.

I'm one of those people who was raised by someone who grew up during the Great  Depression. Many such individuals have a mindset that says not only "Waste not, want not" (which can be at the essence of good stewardship), but "Never throw anything away; you don't know when you might need it" (which can be at the heart of hoarding). In addition to these proverbs, I heard sayings like, "A penny saved is a penny earned" and "Clean your plate - there are children in India who'd be happy to get that." The story of the naughty kittens who lost their mittens was a parental favourite whose meaning was all too clear - lose something and there's big trouble ahead!

My dear mother is also a very sentimental person who attaches meaning and significance to objects, even though the items may have little value otherwise. For example, if my husband is fixing something at her house and uses one of her father's hammers, heaven help him if he doesn't return it to its original location. She'll think he's lost it. Or if she gives us her parents' plastic measuring cups, we'd better not leave one of them too close to a hot burner or pot on the stove! We're "careless."

She means no harm, I know. She's a product of her upbringing and temperament. Is it any wonder, though, that today I have too much stuff - either on display or in storage - in my little bungalow? Is it any wonder that I struggle to divest myself of it? I've made some progress, giving away clothing and small household items through my church's "Sharing Days" program. I've offered a few things to a local "reuse" group. I've even sold a few things. But my biggest problem is paper clutter and books (which, of course, are not clutter to an avid reader, writer, and librarian!). My six filing cabinet drawers are filled to capacity, and there are piles of paper waiting to be filed. Every once in a while I go through and weed out papers I no longer need. And finding a paper I do need can be a nightmare!

There are books to help people like me. I've borrowed some. I bought one. As always, the best instruction in the world can only help those who apply the information. And there never seem to be enough hours in a day to tackle it all. I'm caught in a vicious cycle - leave the clutter and the writing will never get done, try to write and the clutter is a constant distraction. Help!

Well, you know the only help for someone like me comes from Scripture (Psalm 121:1-2). As I recognize the scope and source of my problem and understand what needs to be done, I look to God's Word for wisdom. There I find:

 For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven... A time to search and a time to quit searching. A time to keep and a time to throw away.  (Ecclesiastes 3:1, 6, NLT)

 Look straight ahead, and fix your eyes on what lies before you. (Proverbs 4:25, NLT)

And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever. (1 John 2:17, NLT)

These will be my 'life verses' for 2012. I will post them on my computer, my fridge, and my bathroom mirror. And they will keep me going in the right direction as God continues the good work He started in me this year.
May He continue working in you as well. Happy New Year, everyone!

[For more of my writing, check out my website and my writing/general interest blog.]