Tuesday 4 December 2007

Quantity....

I've promised to have a go at blogging every day. Who have I promised? The other racers who are so much better and more diligent than me, and myself. So that is what I'm going to do. Blog every day.

As a consequence my blog may often be quite dull, badly typed and quite short but I'm giving it a go. Today I finished reading the proof pages of the next Ruby Parker book 'Musical Star' It's my favourite Ruby book so far, I've really enjoyed writing it so it was was fun to read it through in its proper printed form. Somehow when you see your work in book form its as if someone else has written it and at last you can look at it with a dispassionate eye and read it from a distance. Also this book had a sort of 'fourth dimension' in that it features a musical and I asked a talented teen I know to write some music to go with the song lyrics I produced. Hopefully the songs will go on the website at some point - they are really good!

I am also forced to tidy up today, because people are coming. As you may know I don't really ever tidy up unless I have visitors, because there simply aren't enough hours in the day to prioritise dusting over a) writing books and b) thinking about writing books.

'Get a cleaner!' people frequently advise me, but I find I can't do that. Call me old fashioned but it seems wrong to me the notion of 'getting' another human being to clean up after me and my small family in my small house. Maybe its my proletariat upbringing but essentially the thought of asking another person to clean for me appalls and embarrasses me much more than a carpet that needs a vacuum.

So that's it, my first ever daily blog. I can see its not my finest work, it lacks drive, impetus and intrigue but much as I'd love to stay and improve it, chuck in a plot twist or two - maybe introduce a love interest, I can't, I've got to wash the kitchen floor.

What I might do is use this space to write a fictional blog - a sort of serialised story a little bit every day - what do you think?

13 comments:

sheepish said...

Sounds good to me, I shall be very impressed. I always have good intentions about just about everything but some little demon gets in the way. Perhaps I should blog about that. Shall look forward to reading your story.Good luck.

Lane Mathias said...

I think it's a great idea and I look forward to the first instalment:-)

Jen said...

Sounds like a brilliant way to blog while warming up the writing muscles...

Good luck with the daily blogging - I wish I had your oomph!

Sarah*G* said...

Sounds great. I love reading everyones blogs. Even it is about their day or what they are writing or the fact they are bored. I would write my blog everyday except for the fact my husband thinks I am obsessed as it is!

leatherdykeuk said...

Aha! Here you are!

I blog daily at livejournal so it isn't as onerous a task as it may seem. I was blogging daily at jasfoup.blogspot.com as well until someone hacked into my google account and took it over, thereby locking me out of my blogspot journals.

Good luck to daily blogging.

Helen Shearer said...

Hi Rowan,

A serial in blog form sounds like a bloody great idea. I'd tune in.

Zinnia Cyclamen said...

I'd read as well. I wrote the first draft of my first novel as a serial on my blog a couple of years ago (three times a week, though; I couldn't manage daily), and it seemed to go down well with my readers.

I have a cleaner and she's terrific. I pay other people to do far more embarrassing things for me than that (think smear tests for a start - and no, I don't indulge in private medicine, but I do pay for it through my taxes). And I pay people to do other stuff round the house like fix things and decorate for me; I'm not sure I can see any difference between that and cleaning. I swear my cleaner does in three hours what would take me six. I'm not 'getting' or 'asking' her to do my cleaning, I'm employing her. I know she needs the work and needs the money, and I've been glad to be able to refer her to a couple of friends and act as a referee for her to strangers. And what's more, I used to BE a house cleaner, when I was completely unskilled and unqualified and needed to earn a living, and I was very glad that people were willing to employ me when I needed the work and the money. (My mum has worked as a house cleaner too, and my nephew worked as a factory cleaner. And when my cleaner was a child, her family used to employ a cleaner - so maybe experience makes a difference to acceptability, from both sides?) If I fell on hard times, I'd make a lot of other economies before I let my cleaner go, partly because I wouldn't want to take her job away from her, and partly because she saves me and Top Bloke so much time and angst. But, hey, that's just my twopennorth, and if you can't, you can't.

Lucy Diamond said...

Zinnia, I totally take your point and it's a valid one, but I am with Rowan on the cleaning thing.

I tried to have a cleaner once, when I was struggling with a one year old and a newborn baby (and a shabby old house that we'd just moved into) but when the cleaner turned up, all she could talk about was how she'd had eight children in Glasgow and how much time she'd spend ironing their clothes (with glances at my crumpled clothes and the kids' scruffy outfits) and what a lot of toys my kids had - hers had had nothing!, and how she would end up smacking her children to keep them quiet... (I still remember her shaking her fist as she told me this bit)
And it was so stressful, the thought of her coming round and judging my pathetic mothering and disgracefully untidy house that after two weeks, I paid her off. Couldn't do it. Never again!

I've accepted now that with three young kids my house is never going to be a show-home, and that I'd rather spend the time playing with them than worrying too much about it! Obviously when they are all at school, the place will be immaculate...!

Anyway, cleaning aside, just wanted to add that I LOVE the thought of a blog serial. Yes please!

CC Devine said...

Once you get in the routine of it then I'm sure it'll become easier and enjoyable. Look forward to reading more!

Anonymous said...

Definitely a good idea! Daily blogging is quite difficult when you have so much else to do as well. Cleaning the floor is something I desperately need to do.

Crystal xx

Fiona Mackenzie. Writer said...

I love the idea of a story in serial form on a blog.

Sign me up please :)

KeVin K. said...

Writing a blog uses different writing muscles than writing fiction. One is a blend of essays and memoirs and political rants and observations on life while the other is a blend of essays and memoirs and political rants and observations on life you pretend was said by someone else. Really. Quite different.
I personally have my doubts a person can blog intelitgently every day, but I've come to think the attempt is good exercise.

sheepish said...

Okay so where was yesterdays or are yoy not starting yet!!!!!