June 7, 2024

Inching forward. Still

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Hmm. Well, May came and went and I’m still writing but this book is getting there. Not an easy process and while I can honestly say I’ve not suffered the so-called writers block, there have been more stop-starts than I wanted or expected. Some of it down to the paid writing work, but life in general also has an impact on time at the laptop. After all the house still has to be cleaned, clothes washed and dried, meals cooked – and shopping done. And of course there’s our lovely new rescue dog, Badger to be walked and made a fuss of.


That said the end is definitely in sight. I’m much more focused than I was to begin with, and while there are days when the words don’t flow as well, the feeling after a day when they do, and progress has been made, is brilliant. I just want to keep going but I know now from experience that’s unwise. Far better to stop, leave it and watch an hour of television, or read a book instead.


Last night I made a pact with myself to get up early – if I woke up early – and write some more. Despite the frosty cold that’s what I did. It’s like a compulsion now and I don’t want to stop. Only to scribble another blog post for the website, so the few readers who are either regulars (hah!) or who stumble upon it and are perhaps inspired to browse for a while, may return.



How many words have I written so far? No idea. I stopped counting weeks ago but the draft I gave to my lovely writing friend Shirley, who has encouraged me from the beginning, and is a valued beta reader, looked alarmingly fat when I printed it out a month ago to give her. It’ll be even fatter now. I’ll receive her verdict next week, but I know her criticism will be kindly given, as well as valid and pointed. Until then, better keep going. At least I’m on the downhill run.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Magni

Fiona's gift

By Anne Layton-Bennett • June 14, 2026
It’s taken far too many months for this marvellous model to grace the dedicated desk space in my office. When Fiona comes to visit next she will be very surprised, and hopefully gratified, that her amazing creative talent is finally on display. We’ve known each other for a very long time, and during the insanely busy time when I was helping to run the flower farm, working part-time in a school library, doing a spot of journalism on the side, and fighting the proposed pulp mill that is the subject of the manuscript I’m hoping to get published, Fiona cleaned my house each week. There’s only so much a person can do after all, and it has to be said cleaning our house during those manic years was fairly low down on the list of my priorities. But Fiona is a woman of many talents and she certainly possesses one that I so don’t have: sewing and dressmaking. So over the years she’s also made a few garments based on the pattern of a favourite garment that I was particularly fond of, and she’s also done some clothing alterations for both of us. My skills with needles and thread are limited to sewing on buttons, and taking up hems on John’s too-long pairs of jeans. Anything else is beyond me. But this fabulous model is the pièce de résistance – along with the beautiful crocheted knee warmer she gave me last year. This was when winter was approaching and so determined was I to finish writing the book, I decided to get out of bed at the insane hour of 5am and get in a solid hour’s writing in before dog walking and the demands of the day took over. Fiona was also one of many Tasmanians who needed to be circumspect about her opinion of the pulp mill. It was a project that polarised people, including families and friendships. She was one of several who passed on snippets of useful information, but on the basis of anonymity so it couldn’t be sheeted home to her.  Needless to say Fiona will be one of those whose contribution will be acknowledged – when this book is finally accepted by a publisher.

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