Where am I?

Writing.

I guess it is my new calling. Not something I had foreseen happening, just something that came from necessity.

After a forced voluntary redundancy last year and a whirlwind free training course provided by the government, I found myself with new qualifications and a desire to get back to work but with no avenue (or so I thought) to pursue that.

OK, that’s fine, I can handle that. Let’s take a different tack.

I did OK in English classes at school, I even had a flair for poetry. To become a writer, I just need to learn how to do it well enough to earn an income.

Hmm… OK…. That is where it gets tricky. I need money now.

Earning a living from writing could take years till I gain enough skill, experience, recognition to make it work. That is if I don't give up in the meantime like I usually do with my hair brained ideas.

And who/what do I have to thank for this, besides my lack of motivation since finishing my Accounting course last December? The dreaded Virus of course.

Covid-19, singularly responsible for the isolation of every reputable household in the state, country and possibly the world. Thousands unemployed just like me, unable to work in isolation, which makes my search for a job a long shot with so many more job seekers to contend with.

I suppose I shouldn't complain. I had at least been lucky enough to embark on not one, but two family holidays before the lock down. I even managed to make one of those a cruise. Double lucky not to have come home with the virus like so many others returning from cruises at that time.

We made it back into the country with two days to spare before lock down restrictions were enforced.

Which brings me back to the writing.

With so much time on my hands at home and with no inclination to 'sort the spare room' like I promised hubby I would do. (That would come sometime, this year maybe, if the need arises) Instead I could concentrate on learning the craft to better writing.

I'm not coming into this blindly; I do have some unrecognized masterpieces (my description) under my belt.

An unpublished manuscript for a children’s picture book I wrote after a course at RMIT with Judith Rossell, a famous (oh, she’s going to love/kill me for saying that) children's author and illustrator.

a short screen play (like 3 minutes long) I wrote with the purpose of making it into a short movie.

A handful of monologues I wrote whilst I was deep in my hobby of acting

The odd speech at a wedding, etc, etc.

So, this is me, taking the steps I need to better my craft. Write 600+ words per day. It does not need to be a literary masterpiece, just start writing. I may not be very good at it at first, but I have made a start.

Yes, this is it.

Making a good go of it, I signed up for a few online writers’ courses since the internet is thankfully still in operation and a saviour to many a soul.

With:

* two courses from the Australian Writers Centre,

*an entry into a writer’s competition that runs every month of which I have already submitted one short story,

*ideas for a poetry competition I still must check out,

*a recommendation to read a novel from Stephen King (lucky Hubby is an avid reader of said author and has just about everything he has ever published) about his experience becoming a writer.

*two cheap (but thorough) courses from Udemy.

That should be enough to start with to keep me going during this forced isolation… let's see how it all goes shall we. This blog will detail my attempt, my fears, my feelings, and exasperation on the journey to what will one day hopefully be the beginning of a successful writing career.

Cheers, Suze