The Mini Library

I have recently found myself with the distinct luxury of having a 'spare' room.  My son has flown the nest and so it is time to decide what to do with the space he left behind.  After much pondering (well actually not a lot of pondering at all really) I have decided to create my own little library.  Being a writer goes hand in hand with being an avid reader also and having a house with its own library has always been a little dream of mine.
Now as I have said before my house is not big so this is not going to be anything like the grand plan I would like it to be, but it's a start!  I have been scouring the internet for ideas for this room but I think basically I'm just going to fill it with books - oh and a sofa! Whereas the writing corner was to be light and airy and inspirational I want the reading room to be warm and cosy; somewhere to snuggle with a good book!  Here are a few of the images I've found of some very creative idea's of others..............

As you can see there are some ideas here that haven't been thwarted by size, odd shaped walls or even stairs, therefore my relatively square room should be a doddle! Obviously the main ingredient is going to be books, so at the top of all birthday and Christmas lists from now on is going  to be book tokens!  I'm already looking forward to many a happy hour scouring the book shops!  I'm really excited about getting started with this project - as you've probably gathered - although it is going to be something for later in the summer.  Updates will be provided!

Happy reading everyone!

Kim

The writing Corner

For those of you who read my blog regularly you will know that I am currently in the process of redecorating my house, not a huge project when you consider the size of the place (it's tiny!), but I bought the place from an old lady in her nineties and suffice to say the place was built in 1981 and there it has stayed ever since!  This last year I have been re vamping the downstairs and am pleased to report that the task is nearly finished and hopefully no longer a distraction for my writing.

I have been without a designated writing area for about six months now, which at the start I didn't think would really be a problem, I have a laptop so surely I could park myself anywhere and carry on writing?  This unfortunately has not proven to be the case and it is only now that I have my little writing corner back that I really appreciate how much I missed it!  I have read blogs from other writers speaking of the merits of creating your own writing space and now I fully understand what they mean, although different writers seem to like different things included in their 'space'.  So, here is what is essential for me..............

Firstly although I am not really an antique kind of person both the bureau and the clock belonged to my Grandad and are here out of sentimentality more than anything else.  I'm sure Grandad would be pleased to see them both still in use.  (I can still picture him sat here, sorting out his papers - he was much more methodical than me.)

Next, no window.  Others have said how inspiring the right view can be, but for me I think having my writing area by the window would be just too much of a distraction.  Instead I have two pictures (with more to go up) that are there for inspiration purposes.  The first is of my wonderful Grandchildren Darcie and Henry.  I started to write the Prudence books when I learned that my daughter was expecting my first grandchild, Darcie and she and her little brother now are still a constant source of inspiration.  The other picture is by local photographer, Ray Mears and is called 'Woodland Walk'.  I love pictures of trees and intend to get more to go up around the house.

Next to the clock is my scentsy, which for those of you who don't know is a device for melting scented wax without having to use a naked flame - much safer to have especially when you have cats in the house.  I am currently enjoying a 'by the sea' moment - very inspiring!  Flowers are another option to create the right aromatic mood, but again when you have cats, especially the clumsy pair that I have, flowers around electrical equipment is not a good combination!

And finally the one ingredient always needed to ensure a productive writing session - a cup of tea!

So that's it, I have my writing corner and this is where I intend to stay for the rest of the day.  Let me know if you feel there are any vital things that I have missed that you would have in your writing space.

Happy writing,

Kim

Mini Menopausal Meltdown!

I mentioned in my last post (Yes, I know this was back in January!) that 2015 had been something of a stressful time; setting myself the target of getting two books finished that year as well as having lots of other stuff going on in my life - the day job, the continued effort of trying to lick my house into shape on limited funds, and dealing with what my Gran would have called 'being at that 'funny' age'.  I think we give it the more affectionate term 'the menopause' these days.  Now I don't want to be all dark and dismal, but to be quite honest the menopause sucks!  Mood swings have been marvellous things, I've been going from being happy, buzzing with idea's and inspiration to 'what the heck am I bothering with all this for?' at the flick of a switch. I know that writing can do this to you anyway; writing highs and lows are part of the process, but throw a few raging hormones into the mix and, well, lets just say it's probably a good thing I live on my own! There are no two ways about it I have been a grumpy old mare at times!
I'm not about to now tell you all the wonderful things I've done to combat this stress because, to be quite honest I haven't.  I've done what most people do, carry on regardless, but since my last blog post in January I have hardly written a word.  In my head the third and final volume of the Prudence trilogy is formatted and finished, but every time I sit down to actually write anything I end up staring at my laptop for about half an hour and then going off to make a cup of tea and not going back!  It probably doesn't help that Prudence is in a bit of a dark place in her story as well.
My sleep pattern seems to be all over the place too, hence why I am sat here at ten to one in the morning writing this post when I know that tomorrow, at work at about three I'll be desperate for a little re-charge nap.
 Getting back into writing will be the perfect tonic for me, that much is obvious but that is the common sense side of me talking and the hormones can be very argumentative when it comes to common sense. Who needs common sense when your hormones are quite determined that now is the time for a little unnecessary meltdown?
There have been some positives, it's not all doom and gloom on the writing front, some little things  have happened to stop me from giving up completely on the whole writing process( and a little encouragement goes a long way).  Recently a friend told me how she had gone to see her granddaughter and had arrived to find her curled up and engrossed in my book.  Little things like that mean so much.  It may seem trivial, but to me this was a real little person who was enjoying spending some time with Prudence, - what more could any writer ask for?
So here I am, digging in and trying to swim against the tide of my hormones!  If anyone has any hints about surviving the menopause with your sanity intact please let me know.  I'll be the one sat in the corner staring at my laptop and talking to the cat..............


Kim