“You never have to change anything you got up in the middle of the night to write.” These wise words are ascribed to Saul Bellow, a multi-award-winning man of letters and general Very Clever Chap, and if he thinks it’s true, it probably is.
When I was writing The Diary of Isabella M Smugge, I frequently awoke in the middle of the night and came downstairs to write down chunks of narrative, plot and dialogue which had come frothing out of the seething cauldron of my feverish little brain. Sitting at my laptop in the dining room tapping away while the family slept made me feel like a real writer. You know, someone with a website and a brand and a person who did social media for them.
It’s a chilly, wet day in October as I write this and I am now someone with a website, something approximating a brand and Lovely Jason, surely the most helpful and supportive social media person that ever there was[1]. Lots has changed for me this year. I’ve now got two novels under my belt [the second being The Trials of Isabella M Smugge] and from 1st January next year, I’ll be a full-time writer. I’m taking the leap of faith!
So, dear readers, here for your delectation are my Top Five Good Things about being the author of that doyenne of lifestyle bloggers, Isabella M Smugge.
I get to make up loads of fun stuff. I mean, is this even a job? On government forms, am I allowed to put, “I sit in a room by myself giggling and writing about on-trend ottomans and chilled quails’ eggs” under, “Your Occupation”?
I have become an expert on trends. I don’t follow them – life is most certainly not imitating art – but I do know what they are. This is most helpful and makes me sound like the kind of woman who never wears olive green two seasons after it went out.
People often write really nice reviews and post them online for all to see. I read them and have to pinch myself. They make me feel like I might be a real writer after all.
Going to the village, purchasing two decaf cappuccinos and bacon rolls for Mr Leigh and myself, then buying the Guardian and Times on Saturday counts as work. Honest. Because I need to read through all the papers and supplements, trend spotting and look out for pretentious things I can use in book three. And you can’t expect me to do that on an empty stomach.
For the first time in my entire life, I’ve found something I want to do all the time. I’ve heard others speak of this experience, and yearned for it, but now it’s here #excellent #dreamcometrue
I was having a good chat with my friend Danni yesterday and found myself talking about Isabella and her family as though they were real. What would happen if she accepted the Head’s invitation to a St Dymphna’s reunion at which Lavinia would be present? What about Daddy’s family? Where are they and why haven’t we heard about them? What’s happening with Amanda in Dubai? How adorable are Davina and Toby? We sat in the car outside Danni’s house gassing for a good half hour, ideas and themes fizzing and popping away in my brain.
I’ve got several set pieces formulating in my mind for book three (we really need Issy and Lavinia to meet) and I’ll probably start writing it after Christmas. But for now, poor Isabella has her Trials to get through, what with giving birth on the NHS and trying to get Johnnie back. Making her up and writing about her world has been one of the most enjoyable and rewarding things I’ve ever done. Thank you to everyone who’s joined me on the journey. I couldn’t do it without you.
[1] Lovely Jason runs Social Shapes, a digital marketing agency and is available for hire. I heartily recommend him.