Snow Moon, Snowdrops, No Snow.

Coming to the End of a Novel

February is the month of the Snow Moon. Perhaps you were lucky enough, or enough of an insomniac like me, to catch sight of this year’s Snow Moon; so called by native Americans, to track the changing seasons. February in North America is the time of heaviest snowfall, these are lean winter months and hence it is also known as the Hunger Moon. In my novel, Sometimes a River Song I chose to mark the changing seasons by naming the moons to reflect this tradition:

February. Hunger Moon. Snow melt and river running high and wild. Sorrow locked inside me and no one got the key. I cannot speak. Who to tell? Only the river and it too full and too busy to care...

Whether snow falls or not here in the North East, and it falls much less than it once did, February for me is always marked by the emergence of the snowdrops in my front garden. We’ve lived in our house now for thirty-five years. Since my son was a baby. The snowdrops have always been here. Other things like the lupins and the swing in the back garden have come and gone, but with my partner John's patient care and transplanting the snowdrops have increased year by year. Until now when they've become a feature which causes people to stop and remark on them.

Nothing says that winter is coming to its end more than the snowdrops in my garden for me. I imagine you have your own unique ways of marking the changing seasons, the small things you notice and celebrate, it is inevitable in our cyclical lives.

The last two winters for me have been marked by the arrival of three beautiful granddaughters, who have brought with them the gift of innocence and love and have changed my life beyond measure.

This year, the (soon-to-be) end of winter is marked by the completion of my latest novel, A Little Madness in the Spring. When I say completion, I mean it's ready to be printed off as a manuscript, that can be parcelled up and sent to my editor.

Finishing 70,000 plus words seems like the perfect time to me to begin this new Writing Days newsletter, so let me say again thank you for joining me in my new project. If you know me, you will know that I love, and need, and cannot be without a writing project of some kind.

Of course, the end is far from the end when it comes to a novel. In fact, as long as its out there being read there is no end, because once the book is inside covers, it is made new every time a reader comes to it. Readers have rich imaginations, and as a writer I count on that. I love hearing from readers and getting their take on the story, there's no greater pleasure for a writer to hear from someone who has read your novel/stories/poems.

But how to get here, to reach the end of such an endeavour? Among other things I drank, or more likely half-drank hundreds of cups of coffee and tea, often brought silently by John who always seemed to know when not to interrupt. I survived the loss of 15,000 words with the help of my son David, who retrieved them for me and saved my life. I suffered numerous stiff necks. Still am suffering! Bad backs also. And I learned to ignore the timer that I bought to stop myself from getting bad necks and backs - how clever is that? On a more positive note, I took a trip to the mountains in southern Spain, solely to write.

La Taha - village where Casa Ana is situated.

Seriously - there are as many ways to get to the end of a novel, as there are books out there, but for me reaching the end is achieved by never really letting the book out of my sight, so that even when I’m not writing I'm thinking and I'm reading. I'm admiring someone else’s novel, poem, story, and thinking how can I emulate that in my work? Thinking dare I steal that word there? How can I make this novel better? I guess I'm driven, which is both a curse and a blessing.

Other ways of getting to the end that work for me are:

Writing on - which means not going back time and time again to what is already there but trusting that what I’ve done works and knowing I can always stitch together the gaps and make good any problems later on.

You can always edit a bad page you can’t edit a blank page, Jodi Picoult

Briefing myself - so that when I finish writing whether it be in my notebook or on the screen, I jot down notes of what I will be writing next and I sometimes write the first sentence. This way, I have a head start and I don’t come to the page, blank and cold.

Pencilling in time - spotting the opportunities, thinking I’ll be able to write on Thursday morning and again on Sunday, this kind of thing, making appointments with myself for writing. But also snatching time when it occurs and making myself sit down to write whether I feel like it or not.

Overcoming self-doubt, imposter syndrome, et cetera (huge for me) - I put on blinkers, remind myself how excited I was at the outset, spend less time on social media and more time reading inspiring books about writing and being creative. These are books, I’m sure I will be talking more about in this newsletter. Books, like Danny Shapiro's Still Writing, Elizabeth, Gilbert’s Big Magic - Creative Living Beyond Fear.

Trusting the book is also a part of this. I try not to listen to the critic on my shoulder, or to the editor in my head but trust the book to tell me what it needs and where it’s going.

With this particular book I wouldn’t be where I am now without a blissful two-week writing retreat at Casa Anna in Spain. I wrote 15,000 words there which really moved the story along. I suppose that this is about prioritising the work. I would say I'm generally someone who prioritises my family and friends over the work and that’s how I want it to be because at the end of the day what’s most important to me are people. However, every now and again I need to find ways of prioritising the work.

Loving what I do is also crucial. It propels me forward, as do my writing friends with whom I talk about the work. It’s essential to have other writers to share it all with. And I’m very lucky in having an encouraging and sympathetic editor who cheers me on.

What Next?

By the time the snowdrops are over, although I will still be editing this novel, (publication date not yet fixed ) I will be thinking about a new work and what it is I want to do with my writing days in the coming year. I will also be looking forward to spending time here in this newsletter with you.

I’d love to hear your ideas about getting to the end of a long piece of work. Please do you leave your comments or questions below?  I’d love to hear what you’re reading. I am currently reading Exiles, by Jane Harper. If you don’t know her work, then she is a consummate writer of Australian crime fiction, a refreshing change from Scandi Noir, very much about human relationships and a minimum of violence. I also recently finished, The Colony by Audrey McGee. I loved this book for its beautiful evocative prose, it’s simplicity it’s quiet, understated, story.

Recommendations are welcome. I find it increasingly difficult to find things I want to read or enjoy.

Can’t thank you enough for joining me, and please share Writing Days with anyone you think might be interestedsee you next week.

Coming soon: sneaky extracts from A Little Madness in the Spring