April 2021: school holiday edition
Hey everybody,
Jess here. I'm writing from the middle of the second week of school holidays. It's been a good week-and-a-half so far, but anything writing-related has pretty much gone on the backburner as I have become the Entertainment Committee for my eight year old daughter! It's been a relatively low-key holiday so far, but I've managed a trip home to see my parents, some clothes shopping for the sprog, and some books read. There've been cat dramas, and patio planning, drawing and lots of cookies. It's been a whirlwind, frankly!
Writing updates
As above, it's been Q-U-I-E-T. Every school hols I make promises to myself that I'll get something done, and every time I wind up feeling overwhelmed and sort of let down with myself. Obviously that's not my daughter's fault, just a failure on my part to set realistic expectations for myself.
Usually I wind up doing something completely different (photography mostly, which is both family-friendly and creative), though this time I've been busy finishing off a sweater I started knitting over a year ago, and then starting a second one! Mostly while watching the first five seasons of Line of Duty (which is amazing), but also while I was up visiting my parents too.
I dunno. I think it's important to recognise the fallow periods and just go with them sometimes, even if it's imposed from without rather than within.
Other news
Even though the writing has been quiet, I was lucky enough to be interviewed for our local paper, the Eastbourne Herald. I was really pleased that I got half a page and two photos! Though the scan isn't great, here's a copy for your perusal :)
Otherwise you can check out the issue here at Issu.
Books
Only one book finished this month, but it was a good 'un, Susanna Clarke's Piranesi, which was a Christmas present last year. I really enjoyed it. Basically about a man who has an unreliable memory, who spends his time wandering around an immense mansion (that also has rushing tides on its lower floors), documenting the rooms and trying to understand its secrets. Magic, mysterious, and beautifully-written.
After that, three books on the go now:
- The Fifth Season, N.K. Jemisin
- The Witch Hunter, Max Seeck
- Anatomy of Story, John Truby
I'm nearly done with The Witch Hunter, which is proving to be a quick-read thriller. While there are bits I've picked at, it's one of those books you read sort of knowing what you're going to get before you start it. I'm not sure it's the top of my favourite thriller list, but it has reminded me that a good thriller now and then is a good guilty pleasure. Plus, it was a Christmas present from my Dad!
The Fifth Season I'm reading because I remember my sister saying how much she loved N.K. Jemison, and I've never read her before. I'm perhaps a third of the way through the book, and as someone who lives in a seismically-active part of the world I've really enjoyed so far reading about these geomancers who can protect or kill on a whim.
Finally, Anatomy of Story is another book I'd heard so much about for so long. It was finally time to take the plunge. It's dense and fascinating, and I gave myself permission to annotate with a pencil as I went through it. In particular I was really interested in Truby's discussion of how setting should mirror your protagonist's journey, and also how the symbolism of common geographical motifs can direct the structure of your story! A river, for example, always depicts a linear journey; a "road trip" of sorts. Mountains, on the other hand can depict a separation of oneself from society, and if you have mountains, you must have lowlands in some shape or form to better illustrate that separation and divide. Interesting, huh?
blog round-up
- No posts in April! Let's just say it's been a distracting time. You can expect May to resume as per normal :)
cool links
So just the other day I decided to re-install Instapaper on my phone. After logging in, I was really pleased to find a whole lot of articles I'd saved two years ago. I thought it'd be interesting to list the ones that look, well, the most interesting :)
Think of it as a mini-time-machine to 2018...
- The secrets of a diary written on castle floorboards
- Pocket Notebooks: A Brief History | The Art of Manliness
- The Allure of Gothic Horror, by Seannan McGuire
- How Jim Jarmusch used music to put a spell on Hollywood
- How Repo Man got my cultural motor running
Thanks again for subscribing! I'd love to hear from you about anything. Just hit reply, or email jess@jessicanickelsen.com
Until next time, Jess