Round about now, quite a lot of those people who made New Year resolutions are feeling guilty, as most of their good intentions have fallen by the wayside.
I didn’t make any resolutions. Not much point really, for all the things I would love to change have evaded any control on my part for years. The absence of any good intentions has not meant that I started the year in any better mood though, quite the opposite really. My own personal black dog of depression is back and reluctant to leave me. If he were a real dog, I would enjoy his company, but as he isn’t, I don’t.
How can you be so enthusiastic one minute and under the table the next? My life is beginning to be choked with overwhelming chores, suffocating the creative in me. I am finding it harder and harder to make my brain understand what I am trying to do. Very confusing, but this will pass, they say, and I for one, cannot wait.
They say that once you have learned how to do something, your mind and body will never forget how. ‘Like riding a bike’. But have you ever attempted to ride a bicycle after several years have passed? You will remember the basics, of course but it will feel strange, and some of you will come unstuck and fall off.
This is why we should all practice our craft every day, and this includes writing. If we fail to do this, thinking it will all come back to us, it will not be the same. It cannot be the same for our minds and bodies don’t remember all the details. I know mine doesn’t.
The nuances of style and technique dull with lack of use and become blunt. Even tiny fragments of brilliance need to be polished frequently to maintain and improve its shine. So all I have to do now, is find a fragment and a duster!
I finally found myself a lovely new camera, one that I can actually use. The first one I bought was a complete disaster. It was supposed to be idiot proof and it wasn’t. This was probably where the black dog made an entrance, as I felt frustratingly stupid.
Then I had a brainwave. (I do have them from time to time) Maybe the makers of my old faithful had a more updated version on the market. Lo and behold, they did! It is substantially better than my old one, with more features, yet with all the familiar controls.
Along with writing, photography is very important to me, and with this new camera, I hope to enjoy it more and more.
Maybe 2015 will be the year for more of these achievements. I sincerely hope so, for I am not getting any younger.
Speaking of achievements, I have just uploaded The Ninth Life to Smashwords.com and for the month of January, the eBook is free.
If you have ever done this, you will know it is not easy. They have this thing called the meat grinder, which you have to get past, formatting wise. I have always fallen foul of this thing when I have uploaded Anita’s book there, and this is the first time I have managed it with no problems whatsoever. I must be improving. (Or something!)
It would be wonderful if some of you could read it, and maybe say a few words?