I am delighted to welcome a one-time client of mine, Morgana Morgaine, to guestpost for me today. Her recently published book is a goodie and her story will inspire any of you out there who are stuck in a rut or think you may be too old to make a change and do what you love. If you love playing with words then  the way she writes will delight you as much as it delighted me. You could eat them!

Morgana here, I just published a new book:

“Borderless Broads, New Adventures for the Midlife Woman”

I wrote bravely and boldly in “Borderless Broads” because I chose to write from what has moved me, inspired me, been a source of spiritual hunger for me, and —made me laugh in life.  I chose to tackle a few “issues” that have always been sources of “I wonder why this is the way it is and how could it be done differently”.

My own midlife striptease preceded writing the book in order to cast off (as best I could) many of the learned domestications that get in the way of an honest and energetic voice.

I wrote about woman “eating her wildness” and then I wrote how I really feel about “things”, world things, spirit things, inner things.  Listening for what wanted to be said…..

So, the book is about unzipping all those parts of yourself that you have kept under wraps and choosing to change your experiences  in midlife —asking yourself,  “if not now, when?”

It’s about borderless as a state of mind. A state of mind that calls you to become less identity bound and more focused on who you really are rather than who you were trained to be.

As a writer, borderless mind requires fearless and fierce in what you say, what you write and how you choose to experience experience.

A mentor once told me that the reason we don’t all “see” the same thing or react to the same things is because what we selectively see is ours, ours to respond to, ours to engage with in some unique way; the foundation for making a difference.

It is a kind of call to creative action.

For writers, this call is to speak boldly and bravely, clearly communicating our connection to whatever the “it” is in our writing;  to share our “take” on life experience, to take an energetic stand so the reader can find us in the writing!

Neutrality lacks bravery. I see it as a bland entrenchment in the trance of social agreements!

So, what helps brave writing? Humor helps.  Courageous conversations help.  Writing about what really moves you helps.  Putting your instincts and intuition first and your intellect second helps.

Asking just whose voice is running your writing helps.

So, as a writer, are you eating your wildness or are you writing so as to LIVE LIFE FULL OUT?

“A woman needs a little madness or else she never dares cut the rope and be free!”

(Zorba the Greek with a bit of gender change!)

And oh, never underestimate the power of humor to inspire bravery in us all!

Morgana@MorganaMorgaine.com/www.MorganaMorgaine.com

“Borderless Broads” available on Amazon.com

I am delighted to have my friend and fellow walk-in-the-woods mate, Kathy Voyles, to guestpost for me today. She is a writer through and through and we are always much moved, and often amused, by her writing at our monthly writers’ circle.

Last night she attended an event I wish I had been to too, and was both moved and inspired by The 11^th Pen Writers Awards

I like to think of myself as a writer for that’s what I spend most of my time doing. I’ve pretty well had a go at every sort of writing, editing newsletters on human rights issues  and self determination, writing on food issues, on travel, on death and dying, and am now having a bash at picture books for kids.

It’s hard sometimes, juggling children, managing houses, being chief cook and bottle-washer and sitting in front of a blank screen, waiting for words to come. It’s a lonely business spewing out words, but we do it because we must.

We must spin those words, play with them, push and pull them into place. We want to share them, too. I love my writers support group that allows me the joy of reading my words to real humans. Often, it’s that reading aloud which shows me what works, what doesn’t, what is meaningful, or what falls flat in the air. Sometimes our writing becomes therapy and is not really meant for others to hear but allows healing of self and soul. Those writings can be tucked away and left alone.

But the very main thing is I can write. I can write in the comfort of my office without fear and inquisition. I write in warmth, with white light and without putting myself or anyone else in danger (unless it’s from poor prose). What I write will not mean the pounding of fists on doors in the middle of the night,  or dank urine stained prison cells for my family, threats, torture, rape or slow death.

Do we writers realize what a luxury this is? Writing in the warmth?

No, I would say we do not, which is why I make a point to attend and support the International PEN Novib Writers Awards every year in the Netherlands and why I encourage you to, as well.  Every year this award touches my heart deeply and humbles me in every way – it makes me realize the resonance, power and the fear that words bring.

These words, say the authors on stage, must be written, even though every letter, every syllable, every sharing of them, spells danger for themselves and all around them.

This years winner Asieh Amini is from Iran, a journalist and poet who become an activist after she followed up the story of a 16 year old woman put to death for having sex outside marriage. She also campaigns on those sentenced to the hideously inhumane punishment of stoning.  She is now living in Norway after staying Iran became untenable for her and her family.

“Such cruelties must be written about. How can I be happy when children are being executed,” she says and begins to read her poems in her mother tongue.

Asieh’s poems are short and catch your soul.  Tears begin to flow from mine.

“You turn into a butterfly, I hang,” she writes as the young girl goes towards the hangman’s noose.

“The sun is slipping down the wall”

These lines and others need to be heard as often as we can bear, until these horrific acts are mere figments of history.

Each year, as I sit and listen to the stories of the writers who write in the cold winter of inhumanity, I wish there was no need for such Awards.

Alas that time will not come quickly for as Freedom House has reported that freedom of the press in the world is at its lowest ebb since records have begun. 23 journalists were killed on the job in Somalia.

We who write in the warmth must support those who write in fear and honesty. I encourage you therefore to attend the Winternacht festival and meet them, connect with them and bring their words into the world.

www.writersunlimited. Nl

January 20 – 22^nd at The Theatre Aan Het Spui The Hague, The Netherlands.

Kathy Voyles

“Foodie, Activist, Gardener, Speaker, Connector – A legend in her own lunch box”

See our brand new, bright, shiny blog http://schoollunchbox.wordpress.com

Today, I am happy to welcome Matt Krause here to share his insights on getting inspiration. Matt is the author of a Tight Wide Open Space, inspired by his life as an expat in Turkey.

No matter where you go, there are usually plenty of other people around.  If you learn how to draw inspiration from them, you’ll never run out of ideas.

Listen carefully to the details people mention in passing in conversation, little incidentals they blow past as they talk about something else.  These details can be opened up and explored and turned into full-blown stories.

For example, in Perking the Pansies Jack mentions there is a picture of a former lover displayed in his home.  Jack only mentions this picture once, giving it a sentence or two in an entire book.  But the presence of this picture suggests there’s a fascinating story to tell about Jack’s husband Liam, and about Jack and Liam’s relationship.  I think back on my ex-wife and previous girlfriends, and not one of them would have stood for me displaying a picture of a former lover in our home.  So when I hear about this picture, I start wondering what unique abilities to tolerate and understand Liam has that few of us others do.

Another way to find inspiration is to toss out an idea and see how people respond to it.  In a conversation people will grab an idea and take it in directions you didn’t know existed.  If you throw one idea out to 10 people, you’ll get 6 or 7 different kinds of responses, and a couple of those responses will surprise you.

For example, when I first mentioned my upcoming project (a 1500-mile walk across Turkey and the Middle East, see heathenpilgrim.com for more info) to my grandparents, they were puzzled.  They couldn’t figure out why their grandson would want to do something like that.  But then they saw a connection between my project and a Bible story they already knew, Paul’s journey in Acts, and my project began to resonate with them.  Within an hour they were telling their friends their grandson was following in the footsteps of Paul, and their friends, also familiar with the Paul story, began buzzing with excitement and couldn’t wait to hear me talk about the project.

After my journey, when it comes time to tell my story, I doubt I’ll tell it from that Biblical angle, since I don’t see it that way and so coming from me it would sound hollow.  But in seeing how others interpreted my idea, how they grabbed hold of it and quickly reframed it in a way that exploded with life in their minds, I learned another way to look at my project.

A third way to find inspiration is to give your work away.  I don’t mean sell your books for free, I mean recognize that your work does not belong to you, it belongs to the people who inspire you.  Acknowledge those people by name, and when someone praises you, deflect the praise onto the people who inspired you.  You are simply a scribe who puts a finishing touch on stories other people start.  Remembering this helps you step outside of your own head, which is the worst place to look for inspiration.

We writers don’t have to look far for inspiration, because the people around us are already providing it.  We are just polishing the mirror so when they look into it, they will see something about themselves they didn’t see before.

I have just read this super book in one sitting. Written clearly and accessibly, reading Kama’s words is like sitting down over a cup of tea with a friend. With a lifetime of international moves behind her, a divorce, the experience of an empty nest (and her children in another country), few authors could be more suited to writing such a book.

The Happy Migrant.  I love the title and the book’s content and voice is consistent with the cheery, upbeat tone of its words. Divided into chapters, covering before the move, leaving family and friends, embracing the new location and relationships, Kama has shared every scrap of her experience and knowledge, it’s evident from her ideas and solutions that she knows a lot about spirituality, mindfulness, Neuro Linguistic Programming and counselling techniques. Each chapter has checklists and tasks and that makes the book practical as well as comforting.

I tell authors that they should be sure that their book does one or more of the following:

• Inspire
• Support
• Inform
• Entertain

Kama’s does the first three very well.

Her book is available from her website TheHappyMigrant

What a joy it was to speak to Yolanda Solo. She is a writer who is definitely on the same page as me. Writing anything, spotting opportunities, going for it and making a pretty job of it too. Now based in Spain, this How To Book – Spain, the Expat Survival Guide – was born out of her own relocation problems.

Always with a laugh up her sleeve and a positive outlook, listen to this if you need to believe you too can make it as a writer overseas.

Yolanda can be found at www.yolandasolo.com

Listen to the interview here.

My friend Kathy Voyles is a self-confessed foodie. In the talk she just gave at our local TEDx event in The Hague, she introduced herself as a Food Inspirer. But, to me, Kathy is much more than that. Not only has she reignited my love of food and cooking, but she has reminded me how important food, its provenance and how vital it is that we share important food with important people.

So, why am I telling you this, here, on a blog about writing?

Simple. Kathy’s talk is a brilliant example of someone who has found her story and found a way to communicate that story perfectly so that it fits her brand. As she tells her story, the audience is sucked into it. Together we learn a little about her childhood, growing up on the farm in New Zealand. We lick our lips as she tells us of her father’s love for tiramisu, her mother’s for caramel meringue and we nod knowingly when she shares insights into the value of sitting round a table with great minds, inspired by the man who created The Eden Project.

In her short talk, in short, Kathy obeyed the rules of a great storyteller. She was passionate, she told stories, she shared her emotions, gave us food for thought, and then, at the end, there was a call to action. A takeaway.

This blog post may seem to have been about speaking and storytelling, but I believe that writers too have much to learn from Kathy about authenticity and giving value and about sharing and inspiring. If you can do on the page what she does on the stage, then you are most definitely on the right lines.

As I was walking back from a beautiful morning walk, yesterday, with my friend Kathy, I happened to notice an upstairs window.

There, on the sill, was a removal box emblazoned with a logo I had not seen before: Writer Relocations.

Like any good blogger I know to use my cameraphone to capture anything inspirational and so I did. I often just kind of know something I see is inspiring, so I take the picture and decide what to do with it later.

As I walked down the Malakkastraat I mused for a while about how I could use this one for the blog. Then it came to me – writers need to move.

If I get writer’s block, then a solution that always works for me is to move. I either move my computer to a different location, take my laptop downstairs or to the window overlooking the street, or I move myself, sans computer, outside. Being outside never fails to inspire me. As Tom Evans once explained to me, it has something to do with moving your legs and arms, known as cross-crawling, that can get the creative juices flowing. But for me, it’s the very fact that I am outside and walking through the streets or the forest that causes a gazillion inspiring things to jump out and grab me – like the box in the window, today.

Simply, if you get up off your chair and move somewhere new a whole host of opportunities and unblockers will hove into view.

I remember when I first read Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg, and how she advocated the practice of going to a coffee shop and just sitting and writing. ‘Put your pen on the page and go!’ she advised. And, enamoured by the power of speedwriting, I began to do just that. I just ‘went’.

There you have it, movement, again.

Don’t stare at a blank screen, just get moving; move your fingers over the keyboard; move your body to a new location; move your eyes around the room, or better still, move your arms and legs, put on your walking shoes, you know, the ones that have a big tick on the side and that remind you to ‘just do it’?

Exactly!

Writers relocate. They have to.

Sorgvliet woods

Apparently the bluebells are early this year. Two weeks early, in fact. The warm, dry (?) February is the cause.

I love the way that the woods are carpeted in blue for a few weeks in spring.

And, marveling at the beauty of the bluebells, got me thinking about my to do list. Like you do.

In Holland we have to submit our accounts for VAT processing every three months. So, as the bluebells and the aconites, the daffodils and the magnolia blossom scream out at me to go out into the woods and join them, instead, I have had to endure my usual Grumpy Week and get filing! I have a deadline and I meet it. Just. Panting, I run into the accountant’s office, two minutes before closing, hand over my messy file and race off again. I’m so tired from forcing myself to get the nasty job done on time that jubilation that the job is over is far from my mind. Instead, I collapse on the sofa with a cup of tea (OK, I admit it, something a little stronger).

Sound familiar?

Then it is time to consider the bluebells of the woods.

Most of us worry about the things we have to get done. We admonish ourselves for procrastinating. We do the jobs we have to do and we do them in the nick of time.

Well, now that spring is definitely in the air why don’t we  promise not to do some of the things on our lists ‘on time’ for once, but to be like the first fragile stems of bluebells, and do them early?

Imagine how that might feel?

It would feel good.

Doing something early makes me feel proud of myself, free and more alive than ever. Doing something early makes me feel I have a darn good reason to celebrate! That I deserve an extra walk in the spring sunshine. That I can take time to smell the flowers.

How difficult would it really be to do something early?

Don’t spend so much time chasing deadlines that you have no time left to go and look at the bluebells. They’ll be gone soon. Don’t miss them.

Anyone who ever claimed that they needed to ‘get in the right mood’, have the perfect pen, take a week off or create exactly the right spot in which to sit and be inspired is simply procrastinating!

Look at the plain old motel on the left. It has a view of a road and a scrubby parking lot.

That very place inspired a wonderful song and it only took a couple of hours.

To read the story and how I found myself on the trail of the Rolling Stones, read this month’s column at The Hague Online, where I am writer in residence.

Read it here and enjoy. Then stop procrastinating!

In yesterday’s Times, there was an article by Alain de Botton about boredom in which he reviewed a new book by Peter Toohey on just that subject. The piece begins with a reference to Emma Bovary.

In yesterday’s article, de Botton explores the subject of boredom further and goes on to examine the way Dutch art also celebrates the mundane. While, in Vermeer’s Girl Reading a Letter in the Open Window, little seems to be happening, in fact the beauty of the piece is in the way the light falls on the curtains, the expression on the girl’s face and the pinkness of her cheeks. Not only was Bovary my favourite novel, but, living in Holland as I do, I am surrounded by and entranced by exactly this kind of art.

Boredom is a good thing. It is only when we are doing nothing else in particular that we find the time and space to pay attention and to notice what is going on around us. For the writer this is essential.

Today, I plan to be very bored and I can’t wait.