New Decade, New Direction?
It was a lovely clear, crisp and sunny afternoon today in the Dyfi Valley, so I ventured out for a walk, following a part of the Wales coastal path. The sun was warm on my back and there were hardly any people around, just the sounds of the waders and geese across the river on the RSPB wetlands of Ynys Hir.
I do love this time of year - at least when the weather is like it is today - because January heralds the start of a new year and all the possibilities that holds. And 2020 is particularly significant as it is a new decade and a good opportunity to look back over, not just one year, but ten years and see how far we've come, or not!
Sitting here now, looking at a spectacular sunset, I am thinking a lot about my writing and how that has fared over the last decade. The rejections, of which there have been plenty; the 'almost theres', of which there have been some; the beginnings of books which, initially so promising, never got beyond three chapters; and the industry one-to-ones, which veered between encouragement to indifference; and at the end of it all, publication seemingly as far away as it's always been.
It's all part and parcel of the life of a writer, of course, but sometimes, inevitably, we look back, take stock, and wonder if we're on the right track at all. Happily, nothing is ever wasted in the business of writing and growing as an author is part of the wonderful journey towards that hoped for publication contract. Overnight successes are as rare in writing as in any other career but, even after twelve years of writing, giving up isn't an option. Perhaps a new direction might be the way ahead for 2020?
I do love this time of year - at least when the weather is like it is today - because January heralds the start of a new year and all the possibilities that holds. And 2020 is particularly significant as it is a new decade and a good opportunity to look back over, not just one year, but ten years and see how far we've come, or not!
Sitting here now, looking at a spectacular sunset, I am thinking a lot about my writing and how that has fared over the last decade. The rejections, of which there have been plenty; the 'almost theres', of which there have been some; the beginnings of books which, initially so promising, never got beyond three chapters; and the industry one-to-ones, which veered between encouragement to indifference; and at the end of it all, publication seemingly as far away as it's always been.
It's all part and parcel of the life of a writer, of course, but sometimes, inevitably, we look back, take stock, and wonder if we're on the right track at all. Happily, nothing is ever wasted in the business of writing and growing as an author is part of the wonderful journey towards that hoped for publication contract. Overnight successes are as rare in writing as in any other career but, even after twelve years of writing, giving up isn't an option. Perhaps a new direction might be the way ahead for 2020?
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