As tasty as mum’s puddings: alberta’s check in

Very short check in this week I’m afraid.  It might be that I will have to duck out of this round, giving it another week and hoping appointment for cardiologists comes through soon.  Have spent so much time asleep this week, have acheived very little, the time I am up is filled with essentials such as walking the dog, cleaning the loo:( boring stuff like that. Even cooking has become a monumental effort.

However, although I only managed 4000 words on short stories, with the help of my dragon, lovely creature, I did post another blog in my food security series and a book review for one of my reading challenges.  I have updated my reading challenge 2012 list page.

I have had a lot of time to read:

The second book of  The Ice and Fire- Clash of Kings by George R.R. Martin – I am so pleased I have finally got to these books – just amazing reads – have the boxed collection on my wish list at amazon now:)

I also read The Memory of Love by Aminatta Forna for the chunky book group up here in cyberspace -   Not an easy read emotionally dealing as it does with the recent war in Sierra Leone.  A novel of beautiful writing but tragically sad.

Relics of the Dead by Ariana Franklin for the book group here in the village: medieval Glastonbury, unexplained bones and skull dugerary.

I finished of Witchfinders by Malcolm Gaskill – non fiction about witch hunting in UK in 17th century.

And for light relief:) Troll’s- Eye View ed by Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling collection of great reworked fairy tales

I may not have the energy to write but all this lazing around has had enabled me to strengthen the structure of Ancestor’s Tale in my mind and I have imagined better (I think) scenes so that when I can get back to it all I shall be ready to go.

Have a working title of The Threshold Tapestry for my folk tales, just happened tonight so my little bar hasn’t changed yet. So I have been engaged with words this week but not mine.  not a wasted week, just not what was planned.

Not planning any goals for next week – it’s a game of wait and see:) we used to have a dish called a wait and see pudding when I was a child- always exciting so maybe I will have a good week – as tasty as mum’s puddings always were

I hope everyone had a good week and the coming one will be good

Why do some words steal away?

As writers we all appreciate that the English language is in a constant state of change. We maybe think that this change comes about gradually over decades or centuries. But it is apparent, now that we have the busy frantic world of cyberspace to contend with, the changes are in fact very rapid; or has it become more rapid because of cyberspace?

 I have been intrigued, in the last year, over some of the language, which I still use on an everyday basis, which is considered obsolete and archaic. Especially by editor software programs. Some of you will remember the consternation I suffered on finding that the word ‘founder’ was misunderstood by so many of you. Used, in the way that I wished it to be understood, it meant something foundering on an immovable and deadly obstacle, such as a ship foundering upon the rocks. But so many people only knew the word meaning somebody who began something as in, someone who foundered a university. This would of course turn my sentence into total nonsense. Some of you did, of course, still know the other meaning of this and that founder is not yet an obsolete word. And I only had to change the order of the words for the meaning to become clearer.

 Then quite recently somebody was asking if there was any suggestions for a new word for friends who were closer than kin. We know our kin, they are our blood relatives. Unfortunately we don’t always like them that much. And friends can become very important. Very close friends, more important than kin whom we don’t like very much. When I was growing up they were kith.As in kith and kin.

I was intrigued and went to the dictionary, to find out that kith is considered obsolete and is only known because it goes with kith and kin. I have always used it for my very close friends. Investigating further I discovered that originally it meant

 Kith: knowledge, know, familiar country, friends and acquaintances.

 The whole ‘kith and kin’ expression originally meant native land and people.

 So maybe we do a new word to describe very close friends who are closer than the kin we don’t like very much.

 About 12 months ago I followed a discussion online about the word ‘quick’. There was a teacher reporting that her children had asked what quick meant in the expression ‘quick and the dead’.  She didn’t know, and neither did any of her many followers. I ascertained that she was far younger than I was, most people on cyberspace are I have to say. But it amazed me that they didn’t know the expression. You do not have to follow the teachings of Christianity I would have thought to know the expression.  (It is in the Book of Common Prayer and it is mentioned at least 3 times in the Bible.) We were taught the Bible as part of our education when I was a child, not just for religious reasons but because it is one of England’s finest pieces of literature. Well, when I was a child, the King James’s version of it was considered to be so. In the same vein as Shakespeare. Many, many, of our expressions, proverbs and sayings originate from this version. So many quotes, illusions and references, drawn from this work, enrich our other literature

 So I’m thinking, okay the powers that be decided we were all too stupid to understand the King James’s version of archaic English, despite its richness and beauty and the fact that many centuries of us had managed to learn what it all meant! And brought various new versions out since then, maybe they don’t say the ‘quick and the dead’ any more, but, what about biting your nails down to the ‘quick’- has that also vanished?  We do still say ‘quicksand’ and ‘quicklime’ – well I think we do. Do people bother to question why quick are in any of those? It can’t mean just fast, speedy, it would make no sense; you are sucked down by quicksand it is not fast and speedy, you are slowly consumed.

 So what does quick in the ‘quick and the dead’ actually mean.

 The ‘quick and the dead’ originally meant all souls alive or dead. Jesus is supposed to be able to judge the quick and the dead when the day of judgement comes.

 This is because the original meaning of quick meant

endowed with life or alive, so quick meant alive.

The alive and the dead. In the old days, no not when I was growing up:)  a woman would ‘quicken’, which was when they first felt their baby move in the womb.

 Quicksand is quicksand because the sand appears to move and was deemed to have a life of its own. Quicklime bubbles therefore it has a life of its own. And when you bite your nails ‘down to the quick’, you are biting them down to the tender, very sensitive part under the nail, which is ‘alive’ as opposed to the dead part that is the nail. In the dictionary ‘quick’ in this alive sense is referred to as archaic.

Maybe some of you reading this also did not know that it meant alive and also think the only meaning of it is fast and speedy. It is going the same way as founder (meaning to come to grief on something sharp like rocks.) Probably before I cast off my mortal coil, kith, quick and founder will  have vanished. Along with many others that I have discovered while I’ve been up here listening to the chatter of the web.

What makes one word leave us and one stay? – we all know dead, kin and the founder of an institution.  Why did the others fold their tents in the night?

 I’m not complaining, well not very much! Because I do like the fact that English changes all the time and many of the new words coming in I have gathered to my self with great glee, much to the disgust sometimes, of my friend from forever/editor.  I have to confess to a little sadness at losing some of them. But hey, if English is to be a ‘quick’ language as opposed to a ‘dead’ one, we have to put up with these things.

 Row80 update

 I have achieved wondrous word counts this week but very little else. I have to go back for some more tests for this old ticker of mine and in the meantime the doctor has given me some new pills. Which haven’t yet kicked in. So my energy is way, way down.

Last week I waxed lyrical about my Dragon, my new bestest friend. And this week, because of my new friend, I have managed to finish another four short stories for my folktale book. An amazing 16,000 words:)

 This was accomplished in four one hour sessions over two days. The only two days I had the energy to write anything. I couldn’t have managed this word count if I had been feeling well, not in two days, so I am well pleased. It means word count wise I am well on track.

 I have this time around completed the music of a new trailer before I even have the storyboard, but the music has inspired the storyboard. And I have been playing with layering and pasting the photographs, so the trailer for The Storyteller’s Tale is progressing well. This was also something I could do sitting in the armchair without too much effort.

 I have been absent a lot from places like Facebook and Goodreads, only just managing to keep up with Triberr, I feel as I have committed myself to these tribes I do have to do those as often as possible.

 I am managing to keep up with the garden, 30 mins a day and walking the dog for the same, so I am getting fresh air sunshine and exercise which I know is doing me good even if I don’t appreciate it:(

 Next week

 I will have to start editing the short stories, and write two more.

 I would like to get back to posting, reviews, depends on these new pills.

 I would like to write more of Ancestors Tale and possibly edit some more Blue Moon, which might be possible now that I’m so far advanced on the folktales.

 I do hope everybody has had a good week, and that the coming week will be all that they wish. Keep smiling everyone.

I fell in love with a dragon – alberta’s check in

This week I fell in love with the Dragon. I should, as a Welsh descendent, have a rampant red Dragon here, however the Welsh Dragon is a little too militant my liking, always being displayed on flags and leading knights of yore out to battle. I rather fancy the Oriental dragons those with good luck, goodwill and wisdom.

Karen, it was, who gave me the incentive to get going with this wonderful bit of software. I had bought it at the backend of last year, in the hope that it would help with my wrist problems. On reading that I had to train the thing, I put it to one side, until I had more time. When do we ever have more time? However, as I have already reported, I had major crash of energy this last ten days, as my fibrillation started going odd on me.  A lot of time has been spent sitting on sofas and comfy chairs:) so I have had plenty of time this week to really get to grips with the little bits of software, that have been put to one side.

I love that Dragon:) It is amazing; not yet trained so there are a few issues! It is so fast, I had not realised how much faster I can talk, than I can type. One thousand words in 20 min, as opposed to typing 1000 in 40- 50 mins. These are words that are much better spelt, than ever I type. As long as I enunciate correctly, there are no typos, no dyslexic mixing of letters. Hardly a red line in sight. I love it. Punctuation is as erratic as always, because unless I tell it to put in commas, exclamation and question marks, of course they do not appear, and as I very rarely punctuate my thoughts, this is still a major problem:(

I began with blogs; I always make little notes before I write a blog, so this was the usual preparation for using the Dragon. I dictated and before I knew it I had a blog and another and another and. . . .  I am way ahead now.

I decided to get ahead on my book reviews and I have now got eight written. So cheered by all this activity, yesterday I thought I’d try some fiction.  Could I actually dictate fiction to this microphone? It went swimmingly well; except for one wobbly bit, where I was dictating an incredibly sad scene in The Ancestor’s Tale which made me cry. I am one of those crazy people who cry over their own inventions! Unfortunately trying not to cry made my dictation a little muffled. I had to keep stopping. Switching off, blowing my nose, wiping my eyes. For goodness sake! At this point the Dragon was having a real problem working out what I was saying.

There is a thing called selective deafness, my dragon has it. Trouble hearing me, as I cried.  At one point I muttered, under my breath, very softly!

‘Oh get a grip, you daft old woman, it’s fiction for goodness sake.’ Oh yes, you bet the Dragon heard that alright, it typed it out beautifully, word for word and not a single typo!

On the fiction front I can dictate as fast as for the blogs and yesterday, with hardly any effort at all, I clocked up 8000 words between The Ancestor’s Tale, Blue Moon, and a little short story writing. The beauty of this beautiful bit of software, is that I can, in fact, now take it easy, put my feet up. I don’t need the laptop on my lap; I just need to have a long enough flex to my microphone. This has helped the ankles no end, as well as my wrists, as well as resting the old ticker.  So as you can see alberta had a good week, despite all her ailments.

An interesting point, a young friend of mine brought up today, was at what stage does one cease to be a writer?  If I am dictating my words, can I call myself a writer? It was tongue in cheek, but a pertinent point. So I decided, I have now become a storyteller. I am still an author but maybe not a writer.

As  I was playing around with this little bit of software, I decided to have a go with some other software, I was not to sure about. I have been searching for some pictures for my Storyteller trailer, to depict nightmares, migraines and mental instability. Stock photographs don’t tend to have these. I thought, I really must get a mastery over layering and transparency in my photo editor. So, sitting back in my nice comfortable chair, with my feet up, I started playing.

Yay, I finally got it; I can layer. So I managed to layer together a picture of a brain, (I cut a piece out of it) inserted some rats and a cobweb, I’ve merged them, feathered them, layered them and many other fancy words I don’t yet understand! Magic:) I need a lot more playing yet before I have it looking brilliant:( but hey yay I’m on the way.

I am now spending a lot of time dreaming up horrendous pictures that I can put together. I have to work out a book cover for Blue Moon and Purple Turtles.

My friend from forever/editor is being a nag, she wants a volume of fairy tales, as a stand alone book, nothing to do with Purple Turtles. We have discussed this, in a reasonably friendly manner! But I like to keep my editor sweet so I have decided to go along with her. Now I have to find a new title and new cover for this one. At the moment I’m just going to call it Folk Tales when I talk about it as I don’t actually have a title for it yet. But I do have outlines, rough notes and finished tales, for a volume of about 60,000 words. So I think to keep editor happy Folk Tales will be the one that comes out first and Purple Turtles will have to wait, I do have quite a fair bit of Purple Turtles written already, awaiting final edits so, won’t have to start from scratch on that one.

I’ve been happily playing with my music software, trying to find psycho type combination of notes for The Storyteller’s trailer. I also have downloaded the free audacity software and I have been practising, to see if I can record the short stories for my sister to listen too.  It’s not as easy as it ought to be:(

ROW80 : So this week I have achieved

1  The Ancestor’s Tale, 6000 words first draft

2  Blue Moon, I did a first edit on 6,200  words – and I wrote 5,401 new words

3  Posted on Kiss a frog, and put up a review on Prudence MacLeod’s book Dark Star

4  8 book reviews, and 5 blogs to have in store

5  Caught up on my backlog on triberr, updated my independent author network page, did quite well on my twitter not so well on Face book.

6  Signed up for a few book spotlights, and trailer spotlights.

7  Played with and got a better understanding of various bits of software.

I am still awaiting the results of my hospital test, still having to take it easy, sleeping, I would think, on an average about four hours during each day. But I have had a splendid week, a strange one to be sure, and I’m very excited about the future of my writing. This Dragon of mine promises me good word counts, so I can begin to catch up on this year, with far less stress and effort. Editing also promises to be easier because of the lack of the initial spelling mistakes and punctuation. Because I can see a good future with this piece of software, a great deal of stress from my self-inflicted deadlines has been lifted. So results all round. Karen I owe you an incredible debt of gratitude.

I hope everybody else enjoyed the week as much as I have and that the coming week is a successful one.

palpitate or fibulate? that is the question: alberta’s check in

Well I hope everybody has had a good week. I have to confess that this check-in will not really be about any writing that I have done this week. Because basically I haven’t. I posted on the Facebook page that I had had to go to the doctors. And that has really taken up most of this week.

 When I began walking my sister’s retired guide dog back the beginning of March it was in the expectation that I would become healthier and fitter. That’s how it’s supposed to work! I was assured by the doctor that some exercise would in fact improve the pain in my arthritic ankles, so I walked through the initial two weeks of pain and sure enough the pain decreased. Although I didn’t loose much weight I became a little leaner. Of course exercise is good to reduce swelling around the feet, isn’t it?

 Then I had to accompany my sister on her 2 mile walk to and around the village each day, assuring her that it would do me the world of good, I would become even fitter. If one exercises on a regular basis this is what happens. Isn’t it?

 So why wasn’t it happening? Not only did my ankles even larger, to the point when it was very difficult to actually walk, elephants knees had nothing on my ankles, but finding any kind of energy at the beginning of each walk was a real problem. And instead of becoming fitter every day, I found I had to sleep after every bit of exercise. None of this was supposed to happen.

 They have been treating me with very high doses of aspirin for about six years now since it was discovered I had atrial fibrillation. I assumed since then that when I felt tired suddenly it was because I was fibulating, it was no big deal, 15 mins on the bed and I was fine again, and it didn’t happen very often. So I was expecting these new problems of mine to be connected in someway

 He listened, he asked questions, he said I was palpitating as I sat there. I was? I felt fine. He sent me off to have an ECG at the hospital. And although they would not give me the results on the spot, they never do, they also mentioned palpitations. How come I wasn’t aware of them? How many of you think of a rapid, over rapid beating of the heart when you hear palpitations?

I felt like a heroine’s mother or mother-in-law in a Regency novel; they always laid back on their cushions and velvet pillows having palpitations when anything went awry, taking smelling salts and holding their heaving bosoms. Had the meaning of this word changed since I grew up? Because it seemed to me it was the exact opposite of fibrillation.Very puzzled  I went home and looked in my dictionary:

 palpitation:  A rapid heartbeat. Yes! – hang on ‘tho, wait a mo’

palpitation: tremble, quiver, irregular, for goodness sake quiver? tremble? I have a nervous, timorous heart, the mortification of it:(

Whatever? The fact remains that I have felt exhausted all week. I have managed to walk half an hour a day, to do some basic housework but have spent far too much time asleep. I have found it difficult to write, sitting up seems a chore! I’m not writing this. With Karen’s kick up the backside, thank you Karen:) I have dusted off my Dragon and have been using it to write my blogs. The Dragon is a wonderful beast.

So enough of my complaints, excuses and whatever’s, Just explaining why I might not be achieving much in near future, but watch out when they fix me:)

This last week I have been re- posted! not painful.  An inerview I did last year with Morgen Bailey, she has re-posted it here.  She does good interviews – a real expert at it – def. worth checking her out.

I also managed the following:

1:  Sorting out some promos for my books, collecting together information, bios, book covers, links etc. E-mailing them out to various sites who will be spotlighting them, I hope, this month in July. As this round has started so poorly, and pretty well the whole year has been a bit of a bust so far, I am thinking that maybe finding hosts who spotlight one’s books, and using the various groups and networks that I have, to highlight them myself, might be an easier, and less time-consuming, way of advertising my publications, then any kind of touring or guesting would be. Not sure yet, but that might be the way to go.

2   I have posted the second part of my food security blog, also a short piece for the Insecure Writers.  I have another 2 ready to post.

3   I have managed to keep up with Twitter and Triberr, having at long last worked out how to use all three of my blogs on it. I joined the Indie Exchange tribe as well, so I think I’m all right now. I haven’t done so well on Facebook, or Goodreads.

4     Have updated my profiles on various sites I am on, adding my trailers and Jack’s Tale.

5     Have done some extra research reading to add some depth to the short stories I wrote for last workshop

 6      Read All Quiet on the Western Front for book group – have read it about 6 times now and it’s still a brilliant book, am reading Blood River this weekend for another group.

This coming week all depends on my energy levels but I want to

a)     Now I have got the hang of Dragon, I fully intend to start dictating my novels, as well as my blogs. I can do this sitting in the armchair with my feet up, so idle:) I could begin to enjoy this life. I wonder what my word count will be once I start dictating them, it would be fun if I could increase them!

b)     Continue networking – Karen tells me this can be done on Dragon as well.

c)      Will continue trying to work out Storytellers trailer, pictures and music.

d)     If I can’t get into garden, will indulge in mega read and catch up on my reading challenges – oh it’s such hard work being poorly sometimes:)

I hope everyone has had a good week and all the best for this one coming.

Some days cake & icecream is a siren call

Some days one can wake up and feel that there is a sniffling persistent rain in one’s soul, which doesn’t even leave a rainbow clad puddle. That drear grey skies weigh heavy on the heart.

Some days one can wake and feel that the wind in one’s mind is from Russian Steppes and chills the blood. That the world feels like pewter.

Some days chocolate and cake and peanut butter ice-cream are siren songs to bewitch.

On those some days one knows that writing is a pathetic time wasting dream. That one will never sell another book, who would want to read it?  Why bother? Best take up bridge.

On the other hand

More days than some days, will bring a head full of sparkling clear sunshine.  Song will float gently from one’s lips. A feeling of such power and laughter. And one knows the world is there for those who dare. When salad and fruit become the food of creativity.

Security of creativity can be as transient as the British weather:)