Back in the Saddle - Getting Back to a Writing Routine

Are you about to start something? Thinking of going back to something? Putting off going to a class or a group because it's a long time since you've been and it seems too much of an effort to get leave the house and get started again?

It's the time of year when we traditionally get back in the saddle, return to classes, resume hobbies that we stopped for the summer. My adult education students will be returning to their creative writing classes this week, and that got me round to thinking about how much harder it is to get started again than it is to simply keep going.

A couple of years ago, I was physically very active as I went to several dance classes a week, as well as swimming regularly and using my rebounder at home every day. All that went by the board this past year as I had a very heavy schedule of work commitments that clashed with my usual classes and often kept me at work on the computer till nearly midnight.

When I was in a regular routine, I automatically took part in my various activities without giving them a second thought. But having had a break, I am surprised at how difficult I am finding it to get myself back in the groove.

Take my salsa classes, for example. Every week, I say to myself, 'I must go back to salsa this week,' yet I always seem to find some excuse to put off going. Yet if I am to get fit again, I know that good intentions are not enough. I actually have to go to the class, put on my dancing shoes and get dancing.

I have come across lots of writers who have this sort of problem. They are going to write a novel one day. They really are. They have a really fantastic idea, but they just haven't got round to putting it on paper yet.

The trouble is that the vast majority of them never will. Being a writer is not just about having talent or imagination. It's about getting down to it. Putting pen to paper. Starting to write and keeping going till you reach the end of the novel. And then going back to the beginning and reworking it all until your book is in its final form.

It's a lonely business being a writer. Many people find it really difficult to shut themselves away and sustain a long project to the very end.

That's where writing classes and writing groups are invaluable. Once you have made the initial effort to go along and get involved in one, you look forward to going back, week by week or month by month, spending time with your fellow writers and hearing what they've written. It also spurs you on to make progress with your own writing so that you have something to share.

So if you've always wanted to write that novel, but never got round to it, why not join a writing class? Did I mention that I have room for a few more students in my Advanced Class? It's on Thursday evenings from 7 - 9 at The Manse Adult Education Centre in the centre of Huddersfield. Give the Centre a ring - (01484) 437150. Ask for Gale's Thursday writing class.

Meanwhile, I'll just go and dig out my salsa shoes...

Freeing the Writer Within

Recently I came across some rather ancient cassettes about creative writing that I'd bought way back in the late 1980s and I've begun to use them with my classes. The one I've been using this week is Natalie Goldberg's Freeing the Writer Within, which is a recording of a workshop she led back in 1988 based on principles about timed writing which she explained in her legendary book, Writing Down the Bones.

I had read Writing Down the Bones many years ago and it was one of the books that influenced me the most when I began to write. Basically, it's about how to let your mind have free reign when you're writing, so that what emerges is powerful, authentic and real. I find her approach refreshing compared with lots of creative writing advice, which can become formulaic.

If you haven't read Writing Down the Bones, do give it a try. And if you come across the CD version of Freeing the Writer Within, do listen to that too. There's nothing like hearing someone's voice when you have only read their words on the page. And another thing that my students really enjoyed was being able to join in the timed writing exercise, read out their own work and discuss it, then listen to what the workshop students in America had written. It was very interesting to compare our responses to the pieces of writing with theirs, and to hear the advice that Natalie gave.

'There's Been a Murder...'

We've been having a crime spree in our adult education centres. Not a rash of graffiti and muggings, I hasten to add, but several weeks dedicated to the art of crime writing. And jolly good fun it's been too.

Of course, someone had to sow the seeds of violence and in this case it was the Huddersfield Literature Festival, organised by the lively and imaginative playwright and university lecturer, Michael Stewart. I had been meaning for some time to introduce my students to crime writing and as the Literature Festival had included in its schedule an evening performance on the subject, entitled Bloody Brits, this seemed like the perfect trigger.

After they'd spent weeks analysing crime novels and reading about post-mortems, murders and grisly discoveries, I decided that my students were now ready to unleash their violent tendencies and put their shady plans into action, so I announced that each of the three classes would have their own crime writing competition. The best two stories from each class would receive a prize - a crime novel.

I've already received the first lot of entries. The prospect of a prize has spurred most of the students into action, even though I gave them a very tight deadline. (Well, the cops don't get to choose when they dash out to look at a dead body, do they?)

Who will win? I haven't finished reading all the entries yet, so I don't know, but suffice it to say, there could be some surprises. It probably won't be a case of the prizes just going to the usual suspects.

I only hope it won't be my blood that's spilt when I have to announce the results...

Shamed by my Students!

Yes, that's right, I've been shamed by my creative writing students. It isn't as if they've done anything embarrasssing like putting a car on the roof of the Adult Education building or telling the powers-that-be that my whiteboard handwriting's a mess. No, they've been paragons of virtue - having things published, winning competitions, and even writing 100 words a day for an internet challenge.

That's what really got to me. Here are my students undertaking to write 100 words a day on the internet and how many words have I written for my blogs over the past few months? Have I been setting them a good example? Should I have 'Could Try Harder' on my termly report card?

It isn't as if I dislike writing my blog entries. In fact, I find them very relaxing and I get a real sense of achievement when I see them on the internet, especially if someone actually reads them and sends me a nice comment. I had got into rather a good routine of doing them late in the evening when I was chilled out after a day's work, and I found this rather a good way of winding down and putting the day to bed.

The trouble was, of course, that the day's work had started to end later and later. Was I going to sit down and write a blog when I finished my lesson preparation or my PGCE assignment at midnight?

Then there were all the other things that I ought to be doing every day as well, things which regularly jostled with the blog-writing in my mental time-table. Like getting some exercise. (Sadly, the MacAlpine Stadium, once my second home, is now but a distant memory as I haven't been to swimming or aquafit for months.) Or practising my clarinet and saxophone, especially now that I'm in a clarinet trio/quartet that actually plays in public from time to time. Or giving Reiki treatments to myself and my family, now that I've had my first attunement.

There are so many things I could feel guilty about not doing. But that would be a waste of the precious time that I do have. So I forgive myself for being human, being tired, not always being the most organised person in the world. I hope you will forgive me too.

And if you're still beating yourself up about something you haven't got round to doing, maybe you could try forgiving yourself too. Maybe if you do, instead of squandering your life on regrets, you'll release some vital energy to do something positive.

Namaste!

Be Specific!

When we're writing, it's easy to grab at the first word that comes into our head. Take, for example, the sentence:

The fortune-teller wrapped her Tarot cards in a cloth.

How about being more specific about what type of fabric the cloth was made of?

The fortune-teller wrapped her Tarot cards in a square of silk.

Or:

The fortune-teller wrapped her Tarot cards in her damask cloth.

You could also give a fuller description of the cloth, by naming the colour, but again, a little attention to detail goes a long way. Compare this sentence:

The fortune-teller wrapped her Tarot cards in a red silk cloth.

with this one:

The fortune-teller wrapped her Tarot cards in a crimson silk cloth.

You can also play with the word order to add greater emphasis:

The fortune-teller wrapped her Tarot cards in a cloth of crimson silk.

Doesn't that sound more poetic?

Try making simple changes like these to your writing and see how they bring it to life.

'Christmas Comes But Once a Year!'

When I was young, the run-up to the Christmas season used to last about a month. Santa would arrive in the big shops, and we children would get excited about our annual visit to see him. The silver Christmas trees would appear on the canopy of McGills, the department store opposite my flat, just as they had the year before and the year before that - in those thrifty days it didn't seem necessary to change the Christmas decorations annually.

But over the years, shops have gradually extended their Christmas shopping season. When my son was small, I used to think it began at half term, in the last week of October. That was when the shops were beginning to stock up with Christmas cards and gifts.

But this year, I was rather shocked to discover that my favourite local garden centre was already setting up its Christmas displays before the kids had even gone back to school after their summer holidays! Lots of other shops seem to be getting in on the act, too - even Lidl!

It seems a bit of a shame to me, as it's hard to stay excited about Christmas when you're thinking about it for a third of the year, instead of just a month. But on the other hand, what about those people for whom Christmas doesn't come just once a year? People who may be having their Christmas celebration at an unseasonal time?

It might be because the family can't get together at Christmas, so they're rescheduling it to fit in with them. Perhaps someone isn't sure that they'll still be alive and well enough to celebrate Christmas in December, so they're making the most of the time they have left. I have even heard of someone who is so mad about Christmas that they celebrate it every day of the year! I don't think I could cope with that much Christmas pudding though!

Why not use this as a trigger for your writing? You could write an opinion piece about how we've lost the spirit of Christmas by having the shops full of Christmas tat for months on end.

Or maybe you'd prefer a short story about someone who is celebrating Christmas in an unusual setting or at an unusual time of year. You might have a central character who is obsessed with Christmas or one who hates it and can't wait till it's over for another year. What would happen if they were thrown together?

One thing is sure - if you want to submit your Christmas story to a magazine, you'd better get a move on. Magazines really do start planning early for Christmas.

Settling In

We've had two weeks of adult education classes now and I'm starting to settle in and get to know my students. We're gradually sorting out the awkward admin work that eats into lesson time, making sure that everyone has filled in an enrolment form properly and paid their fees.

Practical niggles are being resolved too, like the fact that one classroom I teach in at a local secondary school has no board rubber. I have endured two lessons where I had to wipe the whiteboard with tissues, a laborious and messy process. But now I have managed to get a board rubber of my own from the adult education centre. I shall keep in my briefcase, on permanent standby.

It's really exciting to hear my students read out their writing to the class, especially if they are new to the course. I'm constantly surprised at how inventive they can be and how different everybody's writing is.

Already we are getting used to working together and all my classrooms are filled with the sound of laughter. In my view, a class that is relaxed enough to laugh is a class that is relaxed enough to learn.

I'm getting used to my PGCE class too - to being a student as well as a teacher - and I'm finding it useful. Not only do I have the support of my tutor and fellow students - it's also a handy place to find a well-qualified plumber or electrician if you need one!

The belly dancing enrichment classes have also restarted so I'm getting a physical workout at college every week as well as a mental one. I look forward to the return of my waistline.

I hope that you too are settling into the new term, as a student, a teacher, a parent. Education is a precious resource. Let's cherish it and make the most of it, whatever our age.

Strong Writing - Find a more Effective Word

One way you can make your writing stronger is to choose a powerful, interesting word, rather than a weak or overused one. Yesterday we looked at how we can improve our writing by choosing our verbs carefully. Today we're going to see how we can use a thesaurus to find just the right adjective.

A thesaurus is a book, rather like a dictionary, which helps you find words which have similar meanings. I'm currently using the big Collins Thesaurus A-Z which has a RRP of £25, but was on sale in WH Smith recently for £6.25. Let's use it to find alternative words for strong.

Under strong, we find fifteen basic meanings listed: powerful, fit, self-confident, durable, forceful, extreme, decisive, persuasive, pungent, highly-flavoured, keen, intense, staunch, distinct, and bright. The Collins Thesaurus lists several alternative words for each of these definitions of strong, and also includes opposites for several of them.

In this posting, I'm using strong to describe writing, so the best synonym, or equivalent word, from that list of basic meanings is forceful. Its given alternatives are powerful, intense, vigorous. So instead of saying,

You can use a thesaurus to make your writing stronger.

I could write,

You can use a thesaurus to make your writing more vigorous.

But if I was describing after-shave instead of writing, I might want to use a word that is listed under the pungent option, as these are more appropriate for smells and liquids: powerful, concentrated, pure, undiluted.

If, on the other hand, I wanted to describe a person who had a strong character, I might look at the self-confident option, where I would find determined, tough, brave, aggressive, courageous, high-powered, forceful, resilient, feisty, resolute, resourceful, tenacious, plucky, hard-nosed, steadfast, unyielding, hard as nails, self-assertive, stouthearted, firm in spirit.

So you can see that by looking up just one simple word, you can find numerous others which may give you the exact nuance you are looking for. Using more telling words (another one I found in the Thesaurus) will also make your writing more engaging and memorable.

Strong Writing - Choose Powerful Verbs!

It's easy to fall into the trap of thinking that it's the adjectives you choose, the words that describe things, that makes your writing vivid. But sometimes you can make your writing a lot stronger by choosing verbs that are powerful and descriptive.

Take these two sentences for example:

The cheerful man walked down the street.

The man sauntered down the street.

Which sentence do you think is stronger? Although the second sentence doesn't even have an adjective and it's one word longer than the first, it's much more effective. Not only does the word sauntered describe the way in which the man walked - it also suggests something about his mood.

Compare these two:

The man walked home unsteadily.

The man stumbled home.

The second version is more economical. It expresses the same idea as the first sentence but in more neatly, without having to use the adverb unsteadily. (Remember, an adverb is a word that describes a verb.)

So when you next sit down to write, make your writing strong - choose powerful verbs!

Free Writing Booklets in The Guardian and Observer

It's that time of year when the newspapers are giving away freebies to try to get people to buy them regularly. It's been particularly useful for me and my class this week because The Guardian and The Observer have been giving away booklets every day about creative writing. They contain many handy hints, food for thought and writing exercises.

On Saturday 27th, The Guardian is also giving away a 110-page guide to English - another very useful free gift for my students. From time to time we discuss grammar and punctuation. There are always a few things that catch a lot of them out, so it's useful to do some revision.

Let's hope that all this talk of creative writing will inspire more people to put pen to paper and try it for themselves - or sign up for creative writing courses and discover the joy of discovering writing in the company of other like-minded people.

So do buy The Guardian this week or if you know someone who's a regular Guardian reader, ask them to let you have the creative writing guides. Happy reading!

After the Milestone - The Post-100 Posts Post-mortem

Yesterday's post was actually a milestone, and even I didn't notice! It was actually my hundredth blog on Blogspot.

I feel as if I should have done something to mark the occasion, like giving away a Renault or blowing out the candles on a cake. No doubt if I scoured the internet I would be able to find an animation of a cake with a hundred candles on it, but I'll make do with giving myself a pat on the back.

To have sat and blogged for a hundred days (even with holidays and a few gaps in between) is quite an achievement. It shows commitment, stickability, ingenuity, which are all qualities that a writer needs.

Anyone can claim to be a writer. Anyone can claim to have a book in them. But it's applying the bottom to the seat and knuckling down to write, day after day, that gets the work done.

I hope you're managing to apply that sort of stickability to your own career as a writer. Keep going, even when you don't feel like it. Turn your writing into a habit and soon you won't have to force yourself to sit down and write - it will become your pleasure, your daily fix of creativity.

Writing is Like Love

When they discover they are expecting another child, parents sometimes wonder how they could possibly love it as much as they love their existing offspring. They worry that there won't be enough to go round more than one child, but when the new baby arrives, they usually find that their love quotient per child hasn't been reduced - they have even more love to give.

Writing is like that. Your ability to write increases the more you do it. It isn't as if you have a set number of words inside you, 100,000 say, and once you've used them all up you'll have nothing left to say. You write more, you get more to write about.

Of course, it's a good idea to keep feeding your creativity so that the ideas you have to work on are good quality ones. But commit yourself to writing and the ideas you have to write about will automatically multiply.

Confessions of a Creative Writing Teacher - Why I Love Marking

A lot of teachers regard marking as a necessary evil, something that goes with the job but which encroaches on their precious free time. But I love it!

Marking my students' writing is one of the best things about the job. Being with them at their classes and teaching them face-to-face is pretty terrific too, but as I can't teach seven days a week, marking is the next best thing.

I think creative writing must be one of the very best subjects to mark as every piece of work is unique and every student has their own unique set of strengths and weaknesses and their own unpredicable learning curve.

Even if I set everyone the same task with the same stimulus material, I end up with stories that are totally different from one another and all fascinating in their own right.

Of course, you get to know people through their writing, more than you would through their maths or their IT homework. You get to know their interests, their preoccupations, their attitudes to life, their past. And it's all fascinating.

I used to wonder how my friend used to always remember the names of all her creative writing class members, because when I'd been a member of a class or group I might still not know everybody's name even though I'd known them for years! But once you've read and marked a student's writing, you not only remember their name, but you build up your own unique understanding of them as a person.

That's why, when I begin teaching again next week, I can't wait to get on with some marking. Bring it on!

Progressing in Fits and Starts

It's a well-known educational truth that people's learning doesn't follow a nice, even, upward line. We often progress in fits and starts. Sometimes we'll seem to be making really good, fast progress, then suddenly we'll appear to get stuck at a certain level for a while, then again we'll start to progress rapidly.

It's a bit like the way children grow. Any parent will know that sometimes a child's clothes will seem to last for ages, then all of a sudden they outgrow everything. I see that when I compare my son with his contemporaries. For ages, my son will be the tall one in the group, a good half-head taller than his friends. Then I'll see them all again a couple of months later, and they'll have nearly caught up with him.

Progressing in fits and starts can be a little bit disconcerting when you're trying to master a new skill. It's all very well when you feel as if you're making rapid progress, but it can be really frustrating when you hit a patch when you appear to be stuck or, even worse, when you appear to be sliding backwards. It's especially worrying when you don't understand why you've ended up in this stuck patch.

This is something that affects creative people too, both when we're learning our new craft and when we're practising it professionally. It would be lovely if everything were predictable and we were so in control of our creativity that we could maintain a steady output, nicely spread over the year, with spaces for holidays.

But in real life, it just doesn't happen like that. All we can do is be grateful when things are going well, when we are full of ideas, when we are working fast and delighting ourselves by our output. And when we hit a plateau and things aren't going too well, the best thing to do is not to worry about it.

Remember that change is one of the constants of life. Our mantra for the tough times must be 'This too will pass.' We will become more productive; the barriers to our understanding will be lifted; eventually, we will be on an upward trajectory once again.

Have faith - and trust in your creativity!

Do Clothes Make the Man?

My son's new school term begins tomorrow and he's going back with a new suit, even though he's only 14. The school reviewed its uniform policy last term and decided to ditch the familiar blue blazers and grey or black school trousers or skirts in favour of black suits to be worn with an orange and black school tie (to match the school's new orange logo).

It struck me that it must feel slightly odd for a teacher to be confronted with a class full of young teenagers who are sitting in black business suits. But then it must feel even more odd for the staff at Eton whose pupils wear frock coats and wing collars.

That got me thinking about the clothes that people wear and the sort of judgement we make about them because of the way they dress. I remember one lady I knew in Buckinghamshire who was a farmer's wife, salt of the earth, but she dressed a bit like a bag lady.

She once went to look at a show house and the estate agent was very snooty to her, as if to say, 'There's no point in showing you our houses as you wouldn't be able to afford them.' Little did the estate agent know that this middle-aged lady with scruffy hair and no make-up owned a farm that was worth ten times the cost of the most expensive show house!

Some actors say that if they want to get inside a character they are going to play and really understand them, then they need to wear the character's shoes. Once they get used to the feel of the shoes, they know what the character's walk will be like and then everything else falls into place.

How could you use some of these ideas when you're creating your own fictional characters? Could you make a person look and dress contrary to their type, so that they are an enigma to the people they meet? Could the character have a particular item of clothing or a particular accessory that is the key to understanding them?

What is it about them you need to know or imagine for them to really come to life in your mind?

Enjoy Your Talent, However Small

This morning I was back at Music Centre to play in two bands, along with a dozen or so adults and several hundred children - not to mention the parents and grandparents who had brought their children along and who sat and listened to them play for an hour and a half.

I have some musical talent, but it's relatively modest. I didn't start learning clarinet and saxophone till I was in my forties. I don't pick things up as quickly as I used to and my fingers are clumsy, but I have a fairly good ear. I know I would be better if I practised for an hour a day on each of my instruments, but I can't see that happening in the near future.

So I'm happy to sit in Junior Band with my saxophone next to a ten-year old and a twelve-year old, knowing that although I may be better than they are at writing university essays about music and I have a Dip. Mus. after my name, I don't have their natural talent. And I know I'll never play as well as their dad who is a very gifted professional saxophonist and composer.

But to me, it's still a great thing to be able to make music with other people. It's thrilling to sit and play as part of a large band and hear the wonderful sound we make together and realise that I'm part of that too. It's great to have something to work towards and people to share my interest with. It's fascinating to discover new music and revel in the sheer delight of it - and I can't wait to play the 'Pirates of the Carribean' medley again in Intermediate Band!

If you're just starting to write or you're beginning writing classes or workshops, maybe you doubt your talent as a writer. There are so many fantastic books that have been published, so much wonderful poetry, powerful plays for stage or television. Where you are seems a long way off from the achievements of these marvellous writers. How can you ever hope to bridge the gap?

It's easy to think it's all too difficult and you're too ordinary. You don't have that magic something that all these famous writers have. You'll never have books in the bestseller lists or write plays like Shakespeare.

But think of yourself as joining in the music. Think of yourself as a small part of a big band in which everyone is playing different instruments. Alone, you may feel feeble and inadequate, but when you join forces with others the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.

When you write, even in a small way, you are part of the symphony of words and creativity that is formed by writers everywhere. You are adding your own unique sounds, your signature flourishes to it, and your contribution helps to increase the total creativity of the universe.

So when you sit down with your pen and paper and worry that you may not have what it takes to be a writer, don't worry. Be happy! Enjoy your talent, however small! You may not know it, but really, we're all playing the same tune.

Rain - Reasons to be Cheerful

Today in Yorkshire we've had torrential rain for most of the day, and I gather it has been even worse in some parts of the country. I spent the afternoon trailing round town with my son, looking for the last few bits and pieces he needed to take back to school with him and getting very wet in the process. Even with an umbrella, it wasn't very pleasant to be outdoors.

But it looks as if this extremely wet weather is set to continue for the foreseeable future, so we might as well put it to good use. If you can't beat 'em, join 'em, as they say. Let's think about some reasons why we should be cheerful about this rainy weather and grateful for it. Doing so will certainly stretch our imagination, so let's treat it as a warm-up exercise to increase our creativity.

I'll get you started with a couple of fairly obvious reasons:

We can be grateful for the rain because...

...plants need water to grow
...it will keep the reservoirs topped up.

It's your turn now. Try to come up with ten reasons why we should be grateful for the rain. Not only will the activity develop your creativity, it should also make you feel a bit more cheerful and happy to be alive, rather than miserable and fed-up.

How My Death Saved My Life

Now that's an interesting title, isn't it? Fortunately, it doesn't refer to me and my life - it's the title of an autobiography by the American speaker, author and visionary, Denise Linn.

I encountered Denise Linn through listening to broadcasts on the internet from Hay House Radio. Denise has a regular radio show which I really enjoy listening to on my podcasts and she's one of my favourite broadcasters, lovely and warm and empathic and full of joy.

I did know a little bit about her life as she'd talked on air about the incident which provided the title for her book. When she was younger she was shot by a sniper and suffered horrendous injuries as a result. The medics thought that she wouldn't survive the attack and had to fight to save her life.

What I knew nothing about was her extraorinary childhood in which she had to cope with a mother who was a paranoid schizophrenic. It makes riveting reading, hearing about her turbulent early years. It's a real miracle that someone who endured an upbringing like hers could manage to turn into someone so calm and cheerful, who could help and inspire so many other people.

If you like biographies, or if you are interested in spirituality, healing or mysticism, I heartily recommend this fascinating book.

Creating New Writing Classes

Some creative writing lecturers drift on from year to year with basically the same class full of basically the same people, shedding one or two students from time to time, picking up a couple of new ones. I might be in that position tomorrow night when the enrolment takes place for the course, 'Continuing to Develop in Creative Writing', which is a follow-on class for my last year's Open College of the North West students. Most of them are keen to return, although I'm very pleased that I already know of a few new people with some writing experience who are going to join us.



But today has been the day for forming completely new classes, two brand new classes, both on 'An Introduction to Creative Writing', but one a daytime class, the other an evening class, and in two different centres. It was a fascinating experience to meet so many new students all in the one day and to hear about their reasons for wanting to write and their writing aspirations.



There are the makings of two very nice classes. I hope we manage to recruit a few more students to ensure that the classes will be big enough to run, but we've certainly got a really good core of very interesting people. It's been really useful for me to be able to meet them all and talk to them before the first class so that I will be able to tailor my teaching to their needs and preferences, even at Week 1.



Meanwhile, I've been continuing to market my courses. It's a curious development that institutions can no longer afford to publicise their adult education by sending out a prospectus to every household in the locality - if we tutors want to make sure we have students, we need to be pro-active and do some marketing for ourselves.



I spent part of Monday morning getting my son to help me design a poster using the Word Processor so that I would have something that I could give to libraries and shops to spread the word about my courses. I gave out some of them on Monday and Tuesday to various venues.



I happen to have sent a copy to one of my students, a graphic designer, who very kindly produced a much more professional-looking flyer for me to use, based on the information I'd provided. Thank you, Mark. Your word has been much admired in the Adult Education Department and my boss is now encouraging the other tutors do do their own marketing too! I'm a trend-setter!



So I spent this wet and windy afternoon driving round Huddersfield, exploring parts of Almondbury which I'd never been to before, taking even more of the new, super-duper improved posters to other venues. I hope the flyers will prompt a few more people to enquire about the courses and enrol for them. Time is running out, in that my last enrolment session is tomorrow evening, but it will still be possible to enrol after that by ringing The Manse Adult Education Centre.

I was delighted when one of this morning's new students produced one of my posters from her bag and told me that the librarian at the Central Library had given her it when she asked if there were any creative writing classes available. That one obviously did what it was meant to do - and I'd only handed it in to the library less than 24 hours beforehand!


To all my students, returning and newly enrolled, and to all those of you around the globe who are starting or continuing with writing courses this term, may you have a very happy and rewarding learning experience and develop in your craft!

Autumnal Images for Writing

Here in the north of England, it's just starting to turn autumnal. The darkness is falling earlier; we're finding the mornings darker too; and the leaves are starting to turn to their familiar seasonal shades of red and gold. It's the time of year when we may remember the line, 'Seasons of mist and mellow fruitfulness' and feel like writing a poem of our own.

To write a poem about autumn, why not go for a little walk in a park or a tree lined street and observe your natural surroundings. Pay attention to the little details like which trees are starting to turn first. In my garden, it's usually our Norway Maple that's the first to blush red and shed its leaves.

Listen to autumnal sounds like the crackle of feet on dry leaves (or with the weather we've had, it might be the swish of windscreen wipers as cars drive through flooded roads!) Most of our local children will have gone back to school by the end of this week. We saw a couple of children running round a shop this afternoon, giggling non-stop. What sounds do you hear from a school playground the first week when the children go back to school?

Jot down some words or phrases that come to mind and see if you can come up with words that reflect the sounds of autumn. 'Crisp' is one that comes to mind - it conjures up the crunchy sound and texture of dry leaves on pavements and also ties in with idea that apples are ripe for picking.

Good luck with your autumn poem - e-mail me your finished work to gale.barker@tesco.net and I'll display the best ones on this blog.