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So It's A New Year

So it's 2010 and time for all those new year resolutions that we make every year ~ well maybe that's just me. As usual I have made a few and set a few goals and I am determined to stick to them. I am going to share a few with you all and if you see me breaking any please feel free to give me a swift reminder!!
My first resolution is to stop Twittering during the day ~ it takes up far too much time and I can always spend a little evening time catching up. Second resolution is to stop all FB games ~ way too time-consuming and a complete waste of time. Those two resolutions will free up time to concentrate on what is really important and that is my writing.
I have done very little writing in the last year or so and I so want to get back to it. In December 2008 my short story was short-listed in a competition run by the local paper yet I haven't written since. My ultimate goal is to have a piece of my work published and distributed nationally but I am going to take baby steps to get there.
I have set myself the task of writing for at least one hour every day. My intention is to enter a variety of writing competitions so that I will hopefully get some feedback. At the same time I will begin work on a full length novel. It won't be easy but it is possible and with the help of a little cosmic ordering I will get there and then you can all rush out and order my book!!!
Meanwhile I leave you with a Pantoum ~

The Snail

Slithers through the grass
house upon his back
leaves a trail like glass
a silver shiny track

House upon his back
he lives inside a shell
a shiny silver track
to mark his progress well

He lives inside a shell
signs his name in slime
to mark his progress well
he slowly takes his time

Signs his name in slime
you'll never see him run
he slowly takes his time
until his work is done

Slithers through the grass
moving to and fro
leaves a trail like glass
wherever he may go

Back on Form

Whilst I realise that I have been neglecting my blog, what I have been doing instead is making lots of new jewellery. After a busy run-up to Christmas at the end of last year there have been times when I have not felt inspired or indeed enthusiastic about my jewellery-making. Until now!! Just in the last week or so I have begun trying new ideas and producing some pieces which I am very happy with. I have used chain maille for the first time to produce bracelets and have been able to find some great new beads to work with. It is becoming increasingly clear to me that I would benefit from returning to work in some capacity as I am beginning to miss the dynamics of a working environment and feel that I am in danger of losing my motivation at times. What I have gained recently though is a great group of people with whom I Twitter on a regular basis and these people have kept me sane!! Sometimes I feel I know my fellow tweeters better than I probably do but I hope that they gain as much from me as I do from them.

Spring Fairs in the Air

Well I have to admit that my jewellery production since Christmas has not been great.After so many fairs I really felt the need to step back for a while and plan my next moves! Sadly my friend and co stall-holder has decided that she no longer wants to come to jewellery fairs but would like to investigate other crafts and is busily sewing and embellishing at the moment. Good luck to Sue with that but I would rather you came back and helped me!! LOL We do have one last venture planned together however for later this month. Sue has a beautiful daughter who was adopted in China and we are going to be selling jewellery at a special weekend get-together involving many other families who have adopted and their wonderful daughters.

Read All About Me!! Prima Magazine Article

At last the March edition of Prima magazine has arrived in the shops and I have been able to see what they made of the interview with me and I wasn't disappointed. The content is more or less accurate but anybody who knows me would agree that the tone of it isn't very "me"!! A big thanks to my friends and Crafts Forum supporters who have taken the trouble to have a look and to my new found friends at Twitter too. I must confess that Twitter has become a large (and disruptive!) influence in my life but I love every moment of my time tweeting. If you decide to give it a go then come and follow me by going to my profile page and clicking on the follow box, go on you know you want to!

Take A Look & See What I've Been Doing Today!

It's not easy to get going again after Christmas and New Year but now its time to really get going again. So to show that I really am working on my jewellery and not spending all day long on Twitter (though I find it hard to resist checking in on a regular basis) I thought I'd share what I've been up to this morning.

Getting Motivated

Well here we are on the 15th January so it is high time to get creating and sharing the results with you. I have been a little distracted by Twitter - in a good way - where I am having a lot of fun tweeting with my followers who include Jonathan Ross, Will Carling, Stephen Fry and Philip Schofield. Hello to all tweeters if you are reading this! I haven't been entirely idle as I have not only been making jewellery but I entered a writing competition judged by Alexander McCall-Smith (he of the No1 Ladies Detective Agency) and my short story was shortlisted. Also coming soon will be my interview by Prima magazine for the March issue due out beginning of February.