tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6155313218057815442Thu, 12 Nov 2009 19:54:41 +0000http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.com (Emily Gale)Blogger179125Subscribe with My Yahoo!Subscribe with NewsGatorSubscribe with My AOLSubscribe with BloglinesSubscribe with NetvibesSubscribe with GoogleSubscribe with Pageflakestag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6155313218057815442.post-3866431745436571782Wed, 11 Nov 2009 01:19:00 +00002009-11-10T17:24:25.890-08:00We've done "books are like babies" to death, now let's try "books are like carrots". This is what happens when you want to see the results of your efforts so badly that you harvest prematurely... Cute effort, but basically no good to anyone in the long-run (after we'd killed ourselves laughing and taken a photo, we left it to wither on the kitchen bench). So next time you think your manuscript ishttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/compossible/~3/VpmkhnGa7hw/patience.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Emily Gale)3<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/compossible/~4/VpmkhnGa7hw" height="1" width="1"/>http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/2009/11/patience.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6155313218057815442.post-970197972155551335Mon, 09 Nov 2009 08:52:00 +00002009-11-09T01:28:50.455-08:00I don't write book reviews these days, but I wanted to mention Threads by Sophia Bennett because it's the first book I've read in ages, which makes me want to shout from the rooftops: I'M ME AGAIN!I think I'm just recovering from the author's version of cold feet before a wedding. The build-up towards my own book being released reached silly proportions (in my head, I mean) and I found I could http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/compossible/~3/vDk-7Mh-kpU/threads.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Emily Gale)6<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/compossible/~4/vDk-7Mh-kpU" height="1" width="1"/>http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/2009/11/threads.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6155313218057815442.post-1465397908168090332Thu, 05 Nov 2009 08:58:00 +00002009-11-05T01:38:25.334-08:00A good-writer-friend of mine (she's a good writer and a good friend) recently asked me if talking about my novel as a NaNoWriMo project worried me at all. I said "no", with the gusto of a writer who discovered the benefits of NaNo a little way along the line, as if I have to make up for the times I've privately thought that NaNoWriMo was a bit like "rushing your homework". Because, I have to http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/compossible/~3/jZlUL-Gv0g4/one-for-nanonaysayers.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Emily Gale)4<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/compossible/~4/jZlUL-Gv0g4" height="1" width="1"/>http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/2009/11/one-for-nanonaysayers.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6155313218057815442.post-2745368574361032593Fri, 23 Oct 2009 23:46:00 +00002009-10-23T17:30:08.599-07:00I get different reactions when I say I write for teenagers. Some people are very excited, because they know what a lively and varied genre it is, and they don't care who sees them reading a book that's marketed to folk much younger than they are. Sometimes people are not really sure what to say - maybe they would never consider reading teenage fiction, or they don't know any teenagers, and it's http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/compossible/~3/DJLSIFZPMgU/my-number-one-fan.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Emily Gale)7<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/compossible/~4/DJLSIFZPMgU" height="1" width="1"/>http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/2009/10/my-number-one-fan.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6155313218057815442.post-6176913460367654800Tue, 20 Oct 2009 08:18:00 +00002009-10-20T01:53:47.550-07:00It's 7pm on the day I gave up housework to see how that might affect my writing life...and it's a monumental disaster, people. I thought that if I stopped mopping the floor or hanging up the washing I'd maybe free up the odd minute for my book - okay, that was a bit optimistic considering the fact that I have a 2 year old at home full-time and that any time he sees I'm not occupied (and, no, http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/compossible/~3/zo25gZ8KViA/holy-marigolds.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Emily Gale)8<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/compossible/~4/zo25gZ8KViA" height="1" width="1"/>http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/2009/10/holy-marigolds.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6155313218057815442.post-163808484738743873Mon, 19 Oct 2009 12:02:00 +00002009-10-19T05:12:56.185-07:00Housework Ban to commence at 00.00 hours.Ben linen: cleanHair: de-liced (nb. no actual lice located...may have been hoax)Floor: toy-free, raisin-free, Playdoh-freeDinner tonight: crackers, and some salami we'd forgotten about from...a while agoThe Australian: tetchyThe children: obliviousMe: ripping off my marigolds with my teethBrace yourself, Household, for what happens when: Mummy Goes http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/compossible/~3/We0i1k2Edi8/before.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Emily Gale)4<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/compossible/~4/We0i1k2Edi8" height="1" width="1"/>http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/2009/10/before.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6155313218057815442.post-1982946581469893351Mon, 19 Oct 2009 00:43:00 +00002009-10-18T17:48:49.680-07:00I've tried to embrace Australian Idol, really I have, but gawd-blimey-guvnor it's dull as ditchwater compared to the brilliant/awful/brilliantly awful British X-Factor. Thank you, YouTube (nasty ITV.com won't let me watch the show from Oz). And I can only agree with Simon Cowell when he says, at the end, that it's a bit like watching The Exorcist for the first time: you know you shouldn't put http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/compossible/~3/twMtS3Dj53E/nobody-does-it-better.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Emily Gale)7<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/compossible/~4/twMtS3Dj53E" height="1" width="1"/>http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/2009/10/nobody-does-it-better.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6155313218057815442.post-593422209444436990Sun, 18 Oct 2009 07:24:00 +00002009-10-18T00:34:19.163-07:00Egads! A spanner in the works only hours before The Experiment II is due to begin. Or rather, not a spanner but a nit. A nit with no wit, crawling in The Girl's golden locks...and so I must avail myself of one of those blasted combs and wash all linen. And try to find the Czech word for 'nit' so I can explain to our houseguest why we suddenly smell like a laboratory. For logistical reasons all http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/compossible/~3/ejCBd8sdqVE/pre-publication-infestation.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Emily Gale)0<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/compossible/~4/ejCBd8sdqVE" height="1" width="1"/>http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/2009/10/pre-publication-infestation.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6155313218057815442.post-7623264659531757455Fri, 16 Oct 2009 02:16:00 +00002009-10-15T19:31:05.429-07:001. Girl, Aloud will now be available from November... What's that you say? The November that's in just two weeks? Why, yes indeed, that's the November I mean.2. Inspired by the talented and successful writers I know who claim they don't do any housework, I'm giving it up as an experiment for one week, starting on Monday. I will post before and after photos for your viewing pleasure. When I http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/compossible/~3/hsz06xHDjNo/two-things-i-thought-id-mention.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Emily Gale)3<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/compossible/~4/hsz06xHDjNo" height="1" width="1"/>http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/2009/10/two-things-i-thought-id-mention.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6155313218057815442.post-5100647351180576337Wed, 07 Oct 2009 06:55:00 +00002009-10-07T00:22:35.452-07:00It was gratifying to discover that I have the ability to stay away from the internet for a whole week. (There's a point to this; I'll stop bigging-myself-up in a sec.) I'll be honest: it was really really really really hard. I gave up meat for 10 years but a week without Facebook was tougher.The soaring word count helped (10k in total), as did the fact that I used my friend Sam as a replacement http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/compossible/~3/nHbIElRLoUY/experiment.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Emily Gale)10<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/compossible/~4/nHbIElRLoUY" height="1" width="1"/>http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/2009/10/experiment.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6155313218057815442.post-7090768824807256413Sun, 27 Sep 2009 03:32:00 +00002009-09-26T21:10:55.426-07:00I am a yo-yo.I can't tell you how that compares to being, say, the walrus, or a rock, or an island, but there's something about about my wiring that makes any promise I make to myself or any mood I manage to get myself into become very intense but inevitably short-lived. Up, down, up, down, happy, sad, happy, sad, industrious, workshy, healthy-eating, binger, chilled-out, laid-back...unlike my http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/compossible/~3/stMKKVUMPB0/yo-yo-bye-bye.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Emily Gale)8<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/compossible/~4/stMKKVUMPB0" height="1" width="1"/>http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/2009/09/yo-yo-bye-bye.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6155313218057815442.post-7575402951999552888Sat, 19 Sep 2009 08:05:00 +00002009-09-19T01:20:15.331-07:00Go to Help! I Need A Publisher! and read a better version of what I've been trying to say recently, by Nicola Morgan.I don't know about you, but I need to examine my work- (or lack of work-) habits and make resolutions several times a year...okay, several times a week...just to get the books written. That's not a sign that my passion for writing is deficient but just an indication that like so http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/compossible/~3/UIPjj_7zRQw/choose-writing-choose-life.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Emily Gale)8<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/compossible/~4/UIPjj_7zRQw" height="1" width="1"/>http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/2009/09/choose-writing-choose-life.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6155313218057815442.post-5832286661398900432Fri, 18 Sep 2009 07:38:00 +00002009-09-18T00:52:49.575-07:00Like a lot of...er, people...I used to think there was only one place I could do it: in my bedroom with the curtains drawn, completely alone, with a cigarette on stand-by for afterwards.But now I can do it almost anywhere.I am of course talking about writing. Back in the days when I thought it was the surroundings and props (kind of wish I hadn't started this now) that would help The Muse to http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/compossible/~3/ox-1DOMcLvI/weirdest-place-youve-done-it.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Emily Gale)6<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/compossible/~4/ox-1DOMcLvI" height="1" width="1"/>http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/2009/09/weirdest-place-youve-done-it.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6155313218057815442.post-1684434983476903023Thu, 10 Sep 2009 05:52:00 +00002009-09-13T20:52:40.757-07:00I plan my novels much like I plan my outfits. Here's roughly how I plan an outfit:Decide outfit absolutely must consist of these particular earrings or this particular bag. Sigh with relief that I'm off the starting block. Reward self by doing something completely different, carrying around in the back of my mind a fuzzy image of the final outfit with that one clear detail. Realise it's the nighthttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/compossible/~3/5iBu0Y6ndNI/planning-permission.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Emily Gale)8<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/compossible/~4/5iBu0Y6ndNI" height="1" width="1"/>http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/2009/09/planning-permission.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6155313218057815442.post-1022743363940749787Tue, 08 Sep 2009 02:11:00 +00002009-09-07T19:15:21.964-07:00It's fair to say that about 95% of the really cool stuff (and 100% of the truly disturbing stuff, but don't let that put you off) I read on the internet comes from This Man, who has started blogging. Go there. Enjoy.For example:39 Truths About All Of Ushttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/compossible/~3/snGVc4kb0cY/new-blood.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Emily Gale)0<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/compossible/~4/snGVc4kb0cY" height="1" width="1"/>http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/2009/09/new-blood.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6155313218057815442.post-3183747287552675043Thu, 03 Sep 2009 03:46:00 +00002009-09-03T03:02:09.153-07:00There are some really good excuses for Not Writing. Even if the novel is going well, even if it's already taking up half the space in your head and writing those characters feels like coming home, sometimes Life decides the novelist is having it a bit too easy (thanks, Life). Moving house was my latest good excuse. I knew that if I said it out loud: 'I'm so annoyed with myself for not writing http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/compossible/~3/OQidu-JEeuk/excuses.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Emily Gale)6<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/compossible/~4/OQidu-JEeuk" height="1" width="1"/>http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/2009/09/excuses.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6155313218057815442.post-1325723376540588631Mon, 31 Aug 2009 08:37:00 +00002009-08-31T01:39:05.073-07:00http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/compossible/~3/Y7G9f6zBqQA/probably-not-cure-for-writers-arse-alas.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Emily Gale)2<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/compossible/~4/Y7G9f6zBqQA" height="1" width="1"/>http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/2009/08/probably-not-cure-for-writers-arse-alas.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6155313218057815442.post-7674210442839395746Fri, 28 Aug 2009 12:25:00 +00002009-08-28T06:23:37.387-07:00News in brief:We moved.Six doors down the road.Using trolleys, friends, neighbours and small children.I am a tad too weary to go into it.So I shall end this, frankly trying, week with a Meme, courtesy of the always fabulous Keris Stainton.Theme: Call Yourself A Writer?1. Which words do you use too much in your writing?Probably and maybe creep into first drafts a lot - I take great pleasure in http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/compossible/~3/fsp5mMqJqeY/me-myself-and-this-barmy-boot-wearing.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Emily Gale)3<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/compossible/~4/fsp5mMqJqeY" height="1" width="1"/>http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/2009/08/me-myself-and-this-barmy-boot-wearing.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6155313218057815442.post-2144502864566601590Tue, 18 Aug 2009 08:01:00 +00002009-08-18T02:56:19.157-07:00There is a mystical force that makes some days go swimmingly and others sink, even if all the circumstances are the same. Why is it that some days I have agreeable children who eat the nutritious food I lovingly prepare from scratch, while I manage to whip around the house making it shiny, achieve a dozen other miscellaneous things and then write a decent 1000 words on my novel before falling http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/compossible/~3/Xp-Nr4T1ghk/some-days.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Emily Gale)5<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/compossible/~4/Xp-Nr4T1ghk" height="1" width="1"/>http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/2009/08/some-days.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6155313218057815442.post-8646403404866948099Wed, 12 Aug 2009 03:43:00 +00002009-08-11T20:51:14.436-07:00I was a Parent On Duty at the Girl's kinder/nursery (take your pick) last week. This usually involves twenty-six children climbing on me while the teachers look on with a 'you're more trouble that you're worth' look - I just don't seem to have any authority. Children see me as a climbing frame / clown / object of derision.Now that the Ugg boots are a little too disgusting to wear outside, I have http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/compossible/~3/oYZx_HJON5I/for-geri.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Emily Gale)3<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/compossible/~4/oYZx_HJON5I" height="1" width="1"/>http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/2009/08/for-geri.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6155313218057815442.post-7937981035981300561Sat, 08 Aug 2009 08:22:00 +00002009-08-08T01:34:23.810-07:00I have finally grown up, and it's all thanks to that crafty lot over at Berrylicious Buttons for running a competition I couldn't resist entering (describe in 50 words or less why cloth napkins are better than paper napkins). I have never owned cloth napkins before! It's a whole new world of sophistication. Those of you who remember The Australian's big issue with wiping his hands will be http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/compossible/~3/DlUuAKwuhxQ/touching-cloth.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Emily Gale)7<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/compossible/~4/DlUuAKwuhxQ" height="1" width="1"/>http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/2009/08/touching-cloth.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6155313218057815442.post-4523866734040997594Mon, 03 Aug 2009 01:38:00 +00002009-08-02T19:02:32.117-07:00Since our cat arrived on the scene, both of our fish have died (RIP Sam and Jam), but unless the autopsy reveals Death By Intimidation, the cat's in the clear.The Australian and I have a good history of keeping fish (we even accidentally bred them once, leading me to run around the flat screaming FISH BABIES FISH BABIES!) but these two have only lasted since March (The Girl's birthday present). http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/compossible/~3/fJGBE43Yv6k/mothers-ruin.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Emily Gale)4<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/compossible/~4/fJGBE43Yv6k" height="1" width="1"/>http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/2009/08/mothers-ruin.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6155313218057815442.post-3968733670187031415Wed, 29 Jul 2009 21:27:00 +00002009-07-29T14:33:51.233-07:00Apparently we are moving house with one of these. Yep, I mean the trolley, not the van behind it. To complement this plan I shall be handing boxes to passers-by: "Just pop that seven doors down, would you? Ta."http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/compossible/~3/-M8OlS47YlI/i-wasnt-kidding.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Emily Gale)3<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/compossible/~4/-M8OlS47YlI" height="1" width="1"/>http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/2009/07/i-wasnt-kidding.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6155313218057815442.post-7900328402354411590Tue, 28 Jul 2009 09:05:00 +00002009-07-28T02:42:55.610-07:00Oh, Life, you surprising thing you. Just when I thought we'd decided on the next step:Move baysideGet dog......You pull one of your famous stunts and we find ourselves with a rather different outcome:Moving 7 doors down the roadGot catMoving down the road seems horribly unadventurous; just a bit too easy. Maybe emigrating took it all out of us and we'll have to move seven doors at a time from nowhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/compossible/~3/BaoQGQj6ezs/flexible-perplexible-me.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Emily Gale)5<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/compossible/~4/BaoQGQj6ezs" height="1" width="1"/>http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/2009/07/flexible-perplexible-me.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6155313218057815442.post-6021510442008329899Wed, 15 Jul 2009 11:58:00 +00002009-07-15T05:47:33.358-07:00I've come to the conclusion that I'm more of a homebody than I ever imagined. When I went away to university, when I officially moved out of the family home for good, and again when I emigrated, I allowed myself to believe that I was slightly more exciting - that I wasn't bound by piffling concepts like "feeling settled". But the gig's up. I don't need to know where I'm going to be in five years http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/compossible/~3/j-ZJfBJf-GM/theres-no-place-like.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Emily Gale)4<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/compossible/~4/j-ZJfBJf-GM" height="1" width="1"/>http://mummywrites.blogspot.com/2009/07/theres-no-place-like.html