25 May 2014

The Writing Process Blog Tour



“It is necessary to write, if the days are not to slip emptily by. How else, indeed,
to clap the net over the butterfly of the moment? For the moment passes, it is forgotten;
the mood is gone; life itself is gone. That is where the writer scores over his fellows:
he catches the changes of his mind on the hop.”
Vita Sackville-West

Tour de Blog – Writing across Continents


I am thrilled to have been asked by my good friend, poet and book designer, Bee Williamson, if I would take up the writing baton in what is going around creative circles as The Monday Writing Process Blog Tour.

The aim is to connect writers and readers around the world in a continual blog-hop, where writers are invited to reply to four questions about their writing process and then pass the baton to other writers.

Bee Williamson posted her answers last week  Bee's Article
who was tagged by writer and reviewer, Carol Middleton Carol's Article

So here I go, hop-scotching across Cyberspace carrying a baton (ditching the white cane temporarily) in this tour-de-force for writers everywhere. Keep reading to find out who is itching to go, preparing to receive the baton for the tour to continue next week. Writers, rev those creative engines...ready, set, GO!!

What am I working on?


When I’m not fiddling among Google Search Engines, I am either expanding thoughts for future short stories, polishing articles that need a final buff, updating my website and blog or planning my next strategic move. I like to divide my time between writing, networking and doing market research, depending on energy levels and my mood.

Currently, I am nearing the completion phase of an e-book – a collection of personal essays, a selection of posts that were either published here or on other sites, rewritten with brand new content. The intention is to provide readers with a download that can inspire them through personal anecdotes that show it is possible to take hold of this ‘blind thing’ and turn it into a positive experience.

My helper elves and I are working furiously to make my second e-book available in time to launch alongside International White Cane Day in October this year.

How does my work differ from others of its genre?


I think my writing has differed from others as I have grown into the message of my work. Since taking up the craft of being a writer, the words and thoughts have not only shaped my writing on the page but have given me much to reflect on. The more I listen to the voice within, the more urgent it feels to write.

Think of a little pebble dropped into a still pond and how beautiful it is to watch tiny ripples move slowly out from the centre. This is how my writing seems to be moving too. The theme that has ‘dropped’ into my life, has resonated with many others and now I am being asked to teach, to mentor and to ‘speak my life’, not just write about it.

Why do I write what I do?


One – because I love playing with words and the magic they give to uplift, to move and inspire: writing for me is creating with colour and tone, capturing images for the mind to see.

Two – because it is truly a part of me, I see stories in everything.

Three – because I have stories worth sharing. It has been the frustrating times – when things have gone wrong – that have served as my life teacher, posing the greatest test to my ability to persist, to find other ways around annoying obstacles, to push me forward until I can see the light shining bright at the end of an oppressive tunnel.

By sharing the insights I have found to be most helpful, I hope to bring a lamp to lighten the darkness so that others may see.

How does my writing process work?

Imagine a butterfly flitting around to whichever flower takes her fancy, but wearing little red booties that keep her grounded. That’s a bit like me!

I love the freedom to choose which stories I want to work on when the inspiration is there and yet I can sit for hours and days, lost in time, to complete a writing deadline (yes, wearing my little red booties and sipping coffee to keep me grounded).

Writing energy does seem to flow best in the early morning, yet I also burn the midnight oil when the creative mind has packed up and gone home but the editor’s brain is committed to working in the quiet hours, to inspect the day’s writing.

Some days I work between two stories, allowing thought and inspiration to colour the writing, until I hit a blank. So I peer inside the other document, and stay there for a while.

Being a writer is a multi-faceted profession and I actually do enjoy the other sides of networking and marketing which some see as a necessary evil and interruption to their writing. For me it is an added pleasure to move into wider circles of fellow-creatives to learn from their successes and failures.

One part of the writing process I truly value is being able to block out specific time for writing, like J.K Rowling, who guards the time allotted to her craft, “ as a Hungarian Horntail guards its firstborn egg.” 




Now may I introduce you to two talented writer friends chomping on the bit to pick up the writing baton. We race from my home city of Melbourne to the United States to meet Amy Bovaird: and then fly across to the country of Colombia, to see what Alvaro Alvarito is up to hold on tight, this part of the run gets exciting...!Please check their blogs after 2nd June when they post their answers and continue the tour...

Amy Bovaird - is an upbeat vision-impaired author and experienced world traveller. She is legally blind with Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP). She worked as a specialist in second language acquisition for nearly thirty years, with a career taking her around the world. Amy views life as a personal adventure, and has traded her overseas experiences for an every-day adventure into blindness. Her book, Mobility Matters Stepping Out in Faith, is coming out very soon!

Alvaro Alvarito - was born in Colombia, South America and grew up in Europe. He is legally blind, a disabilities advocate, a Podcast Host for nearly 4 years doing Low Vision Bureau (LVB) Show, a Bilingual Podcast where he talks with visually impaired and blind people and organizations from all around the world, raising awareness about the ABILITIES of the
visually impaired and blind community. He has been Blogging for years and is a Social Media and Assistive Technology enthusiast.

© 2014 Maribel Steel 

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