Scriptwriting is more involved and is, therefore, more difficult to construct. I  rediscovered this when a faithful friend pointed out that some feedback on the last instalment might be in order. She was bang on the money, of course; whilst the content and subject for last week’s instalment were sound, some key elements of the story were still in my thoughts, rather than on the page. I’d also managed to load a lot of content into a short piece and not everything flowed naturally without more explanation; other stuff did not belong. I happily did a re-edit, gently chiding myself for not paying more attention but glad to be reminded that writing, is challenging, this is still a learning process and we all need a little help sometimes. Equally, it’s not just about writing. Stimulating ideas is its own process. Up to now, my creativity has flowed well, but this week it took a nosedive and although the page did not stay blank, my first attempt lacked substance and fell short of anything I’d produced so far. There was still time to get something suitable together for my weekly, self-imposed deadline, but I would have to press on. Writing has become a full-time job. I applaud all those people who juggle writing, with other employment and family commitments; because it is not easy at the best of times.

However, that was just the beginning. There was also some concern that although my new regime had worked so far, maybe I should revert to serialisations. Before I could fully re-group and explore this idea, I was tempted with an upcoming competition challenge. Yes, I had notions of this for the future but I wasn’t convinced I was ready. My weekly commitment, friends, domestics and general well-being were challenging enough. I questioned if I had the structure, discipline, time and experience to tackle this now. My resolve lasted about half an hour before I registered my entry for the competition, spurred on by the promise of feedback and the as yet unknown, but provided criteria.

I already had a full, tight schedule when heard about the life-changing news a sweet friend had received, so I visited to offer my support.  I warned her when I arrived, she would probably end up giving me more support than I, her, such is her nature. So said, so done. I made a record of the impromptu get together, wondering if it would provide a better source of material than what I had, but it was too personal. I was back to square one; with a mild panic settling in and one untapped source left to pursue before the hair pulling began. But there was even more to come; an email from a very dear friend, can I edit a short piece, only 700 words approximately, deadline end of the week and what’s my hourly rate? I had to step up, yet another gear. I’d scheduled the business stuff for few more weeks in the future, but here it was. Also on the horizon was the visit from a lovely uni friend I haven’t seen for years, planned 2 weeks ago. So this is a writer’s life, wow!