Here’s hoping you had a wonderful holiday.  It’s not over for me.  We Catholics celebrate until January 6, which makes for continued reflection on the Christmas Season, with lots of good vibes left over to take us into the New Year.

Like I shared with my friends on Facebook, I got a wonderful Christmas surprise.  My publisher got my second book cover posted.  I’m learning all the time that it’s never to early to start the marketing process.

Matter of fact, it’s never too early to start doing the things that’ll take us closer to our goals.  As we roll closer toward 2010, I’m thinking about what I’d like to achieve next year and what steps I need to take to meet my dreams.

One of the things I’d most like to do is take things a little easier.  My responsibilities are not likely to lessen, but I’d like to come to a place where I remember that the world won’t come to an end if I don’t meet some stressful, self-imposed deadline.

I’d like to spend more time with my child and I want to do more writing.  I want to appreciate the things that make life beautiful: nature, friends, family.

I’d like peace and contentment.

In rushing about trying to achieve this or that, paying bills, worrying about the next dollar, I often forget that life is a journey to be savoured.

I want to slow down.

I want to experience joy.

I want to live.

Two Thousand and Nine has proven an interesting year for me.   Many of my goals centred around writing, and I’ve met most of the targets I set.  They helped me walk a narrow path where I had to make choices about how I spent my time.

In another three months and a bit, I’ll have a book on the shelves.  Who’d a thunk it? Book publication will be a reality because of discipline and persistence.  On the writing network I frequent, my 2009 Writing Goals started with five things I needed to do.   A few items on the list are still undone; however, those are low priority.  The important stuff I conquered in stages.

I enjoy the process of creating a story.  That’s when I have the most fun, but editing is a challenge — at least, before I start rewriting.  When I’m immersed in editing, I relish making each sentence better and crafting an attention-grabbing story.  It ain’t easy to stay focused with a job that demands long hours, an eight-year-old who thinks everything revolves around him, and the lack of motivation that creeps upon me every so often.

Despite the business of life, I carved time out to edit three novels, all of which were accepted for publication.  Though it may seem like it, my intention is not to brag, but rather to show how a not-very-focused writer can get some work done when she tries.  And, like I always say…If I can do it, so can you.

I’d like to encourage you to get moving on whatever it is you’ve longed to do, but have never found the time or energy to start.  Whether it is to write a book, travel to some exotic location, or do something adventurous you’ve never done before.  With each new day, comes new opportunities.  Use them.

Time is not something that’s promised to us, therefore, make the best of what you do have.  I’ve wasted a fair amount of it this year, but going into 2010, one of my goals will be to make better use of my time.  I’ll continue to use lists, because they help me stay organized.  And I’ll try to consult them more frequently to keep on track.

Now that I’m at the end of this article, I’m gonna go tackle the thing at the top of my To Do list.

I’ll see you when I get done writing my next chapter.

Meantime challenge yourself.  Concretize your dreams.  I dare you to make a physical list.  Then work out how to get some of that stuff done.

Happy Holidays & God Bless

This year has been quite an interesting one for me. I’ve had some financial crises, which ate up a fair amount of mental energy.

In short, I spent a lot of time feeling sorry for myself.

I was full of resentment, blaming my husband for our problems. I still blame him for some things, but I also acknowledge I could have handled some of our issues differently. I’ve come a long way though, in that I don’t spend time feeding the negative energy that comes with blame games.

Good things happened that balanced the challenges. I found many of my high school friends through Facebook, I got publishing contracts for three books and I’ve matured as a result of the harsh realities that hit me in 2009.

More than ever, I’m into positive thinking. I remind myself that happiness is a choice. I can get up each day and choose to be miserable, or I can work within the confines of my situation to improve my lot. It’s much easier, not to mention less stressful, to keep a smile on my face and a song in my heart. I know that sounds corny, but it works for me.

In the past week, I’ve come across a song that was released ages ago – Praise Is What I Do — that really stuck a chord with me. I’ve been playing it constantly, absorbing the words and simply giving thanks. As I type, I’m listening to it.

To complement the mind shift I’ve experienced, I came across a photo a couple of days ago that was taken by Kevin Carter. The photo won the 1994 Pulitzer Prize for feature photography. It was taken during the famine in the Sudan and captures the picture of a vulture waiting for a starving child to die. The little girl was creeping toward a food camp.

The suffering of another human being shouldn’t be the yardstick by which I judge my life, but the picture was also a wake-up call for me.

In the midst of my situation, I’m not hungry, I have a place to sleep, I have a loving family, and I have a supportive network of people among whom I can find a listening ear  — or expression through instant messaging or email — if necessary.

Despite my habit of whining about the lack of money, and moaning about my situation, I have more than enough of everything to satisfy my immediate needs.

I’m thankful for that.

The Christmas breezes are here, the jingles are on the radio, the storefronts are glittering with goods begging to be bought.  The difference between this year, last year and others in the past, is that my disposable income is nil, and I suppose this is the case for many other Jamaicans.

Not that there is a lot I need.  In an ideal situation, I’d have wished for an e-reader (notice I didn’t say Kindle, which is in the arm and a leg range), a laptop computer, a digital voice recorder and a new cell phone.  Okay, so I’m wishing for a lot, but a girl can dream, can’t she?

With a kid in school and school fees being what they are, some of this stuff will remain in the realm of dreams.  Need I mention the electricity bills, which have skyrocketed in the past months?  No wild spending for me this year – not without a bonus, which I know I ain’t getting.  No way.  No how.  That’s the reality of the situation.

However, bills or not, Christmas is always a joy for me.  People are more cheerful and mindful of each other.  In church, it’s a time of waiting for Christ’s coming; a time of reflection.  Whom do I want to be?  What do I want to be to others?  How can I be a blessing to other people?

Let’s face it, when the hype is over, we’ll be left with our challenges, which we’ll have put on the back burner as we revel in eating, overspending and gift-giving.  After the revelry, what’s left?

The choice is up to us.

Here’s wishing you and yours the best for the season.

In 2004, my pals at Blogit suggested I write a novel.  I hemmed and hawed over it for a bit, and then decided it sounded doable.  I didn’t understand what a mammoth task I had taken on, but I read reams on writing fiction.  Still, I made tons of mistakes.  The grammar and sentence structure were in place, but I had point of view issues, as well as the habit of including details that didn’t matter.
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With continued reading and the help of other writers, I improved.   I’ll remain forever grateful to the people I met at the online workshop, The Next Big Writer.   Workshops are wonderful tools to help writers improve their skills.  They can also be dangerous.
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We all have our ideas as to what good writing is, however, in giving my opinion to other writers I try not to sound as if my views are the only ones that count, and that I have all the answers.  Of course, I don’t. I’d be silly to think I have a handle on this art form that tons of people struggle with daily.
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When I do a review, I mostly concentrate on grammar and sentence structure because that’s where I excel.  Half the time, there are things wrong with what I’m reading that I can’t put a name to.  In those instances, I may note that I couldn’t put my finger on what I thought was missing, but I still give encouragement to the writer.
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The last thing I want to do is confuse another writer, but inadvertently, it happens.  I was reading Tirz’s blog post, wherein she pointed out that her book relies strongly on voice and that the narrator was unreliable.  In my mind, there’s nothing wrong with that.  I like a little unpredictability.
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She also noted, and I’m quoting her here, that people wanted explanations.  They want everything to be boxed off and clear and concise. But I don’t think this book will ever be completely normal. But does that mean it won’t be satisfying?
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My response to the above would be to write, first of all to purge and satisfy herself, and then on the edit, make sure the reader understands what the story is about. If she, as the writer has some sense of where she’s going with the tale, and knows what her character should achieve, then it’s okay to pursue the current path.
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The facilitator at the workshop I attended always told the group never to ‘write down’ to the reader.  Always assume your reader is more intelligent than you, is what he’d say and I try to remember that when I’m tempted to explain the obvious.
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It sometimes boggles me when I post chapters and someone remarks that they missed this and they never understood that and suggest that maybe I should have done x or y.  Usually, I go back, read slowly, and check the order and clarity of things.  After I’ve done that a few times, and I’m content that all is as it should be, I comfort myself that the fault lies with the reader – especially if nobody else mentions the problem that particular reader pointed out.
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Writers tend to be deep thinkers. Sometime we think too much.  Yesterday, I read that there are many manic depressives among writers.  That said, I’d rather rake through my storyline with a fine-tooth comb than believe right off the bat that my story isn’t working.  With my temperament, next thing I know I’ll be wallowing in the doldrums.  Maybe if half-a-dozen people tell me it isn’t, I might believe, but I’m not going to sacrifice my story because one person wanders over, has a read and can’t fathom what I’m doing.
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I’m reviewing a novel on tbnw that I can’t make head or tail of; it’s kinda too high-brow for me.  I’m a simple-minded gal, you see.  However, I admitted up front to the writer that I didn’t have much of a clue as to what was going on.  Some of the stuff, I do understand. Other things fly right over my head.
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Better educated writers than I seem to have grasped the concept of the story, and that’s okay.  I make my contribution in the grammar department – but I wouldn’t go out on a limb to offer advice on any of the speeches he’s written for his characters that are related to economics or the working class.
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They might very well not be ’working’ for the novel, but what the heck do I know?  I made a general comment that the book would have a very small niche market and the writer knew exactly what I meant.  He agreed with me.
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But I’m thinking about Tirz’s question…when you’re doing something new, how can you trust someone on plot?…my answer is that you can’t. If the writer doesn’t have all the answers, then it’s a good idea to get the book written before accepting any judgments on the work.  At least when the story is done, there’s a solid lump of material that can be moulded to fit the author’s vision, or it can be rearranged at will.
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I don’t think the middle of the process is the time to wonder if everything makes sense.  Too many people do this, get discouraged and never finish. As with all my projects, I enjoy the journey, taking all the criticisms, compliments and the are-you-sure-you’re-allowed-to-do-that questions in stride.
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The time to doubt myself is when I’ve gone into labour, squeezed out the baby, only to find it’s missing an arm, leg or some other vital body part. Even then, I don’t despair. Reconstructive surgery is always an option.
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We writers are good at that.

A friend of mine did me a favour this morning by sending the link to a talk given by Chimamanda Adichie entitled The Danger of A Single Story.

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Ms. Adichie spoke about stereotyping countries and people, based on limited experience. For example, many see the African continent as a place where chaos and suffering reign. We never think about the other side that we don’t see, and perhaps that is because what we see on television in news clips usually covers only one aspect of what happens on that continent.

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She spoke about people in Africa being stereotyped as non-readers. We have this same concept in Jamaica, and actually have a saying that if you want to hide information from a black man, put it on paper or in a book. However, part of the problem is that books are so expensive as to be out of the reach of low income earners.

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Novels do get passed around by friends, but half the people I know are not habitual readers. And I don’t see non-readers encouraging their children to read. And now more than ever, it is extremely important that our children are able to understand and process what’s happening in the world around them.

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Having heard this message from Ms. Adichie, I have a deeper appreciation for my culture. I’m sure many can relate to hearing about Jamaican gangs in the news. In Jamaica, we’ve seen a sharp increase in crime over the years, which is frightening, but along with that, there are the good things that identify us as Jamaican. Our athletes have done us proud for years, our music is known internationally and I’ve heard it said time and again that Jamaicans are warm and helpful.

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In my writing, I try to showcase my country, but by their very nature, some stories cannot capture everything Jamaican. My romance novels do not explore poverty (as of yet), however, the family drama, Dissolution, has some scenes set in a middle class neighbourhood and others take place in the ghetto.

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Ms. Adichie has raised a new level of consciousness in the writer who lives inside me. I’d like to think I can do even a little bit to turn around some of the inaccuracies that exist in people’s minds as it pertains to life in Jamaica. I’m not aiming to write a Travelogue, but hey, it won’t be much of a challenge to write about a country I love and revere.