Flaming Nora: A Writer's Life: Sitting down in Lockdown

Sunday, June 21, 2020

A Writer's Life: Sitting down in Lockdown

Strange times, eh?

Just a couple of weeks into lockdown, I was sitting in our garden thinking how quiet the world was without traffic. How peaceful. Then I stood up from where I was sitting and twisted my ankle. As my brain scrambled to make sense of what was happening, I did what I realise now was absolutely stupid and pathetic but at the time seemed to make sense. I put the foot that I'd just twisted back onto the ground to steady myself, and went over on it again. Yup, twice-sprained in a couple of seconds.

My foot swelled up, it hurt, and when it wouldn't improve after a week of (NHS111 recommended) rest, ice, compression and elevation, I was advised to go to the fracture clinic at the local hospital. The good news is my ankle wasn't broken. The bad news is that it was a soft tissue injury that turned my foot black and blue. I was sent home from hospital, given a moonboot to walk in (not a good look) and instructions to rest.

I'm not the sort of person who rests. I'm a do-er. I like being up and about, walking, cycling. Instead, I've been pinned to the sofa. And so I've made the most of each minute of enforced sit-down in lockdown by writing every single day.

Last night I took stock of all that I've done during this strange time. And in no particular order, here it is. I was surprised when I wrote it all down, there's so much I've done. I tend to take my skills for granted. Well, it's time I shouted about my achievements. I know from experience that if I don't do it, no-one else will. I think I might have to sit down more often. Preferably not with a bad foot.

If you'd like to know more, simply click on the links.

Written my 6th novel for Headline, a saga set in the coalmining village of Ryhope, where I was born and bred, and set in 1919.
Was interviewed on BBC Radio 4 Woman's Hour about my gritty novels set in a northeast coalmining village in 1919.
Won the Evesham Festival of Words Short Story Award 2020
Interviewed by The Guardian about writing in lockdown.
Was featured in my local newspaper The Sunderland Echo in my pinny.
Reading my novels was listed in my local newspaper The Sunderland Echo as one of the most mackem things to do during lockdown
Featured on the FemaleFirst website with 5 things I want my reader to know and 5 things I don't
Written my weekly soap opera Riverside each week for The People's Friend magazine.
Written short stories to submit to women's magazines.
Worked with Ryhope Florists to offer my Ryhope-set novels with their bouquets.
Was asked by two local libraries to record online author talks to replace the talks I was due to give this summer.
Set up my YouTube channel and, gulp, recorded myself speaking about my books.
Was interviewed online by TripFiction website about place and setting for my novels.
My novel Pearl of Pit Lane offered as competition prize during May with Mslexia magazine
Ran a competition to win a my novel The Tuppenny Child on my author Facebook page
Had two short stories longlisted, one in the University of Essex prize and one in the Limnisa prize.
Donated a box of my novels set in Ryhope 1919 to Ryhope St. Paul's church for distribution to those self-isolating
Donated a box of my novels set in Ryhope 1919 to local NHS hospital ward
Blogged daily for the Coronation Street Blog where I edit a team of 16 bloggers
Set up a twice-daily quiz for Corrie fans to join in with at the Coronation Street Blog Twitter @CoroStreetBlog
Set up daily Coronation Street A-Z fun posts and Coronation Street By Numbers fun posts for Corrie fans to join in with at the Coronation Street Blog Twitter @CoroStreetBlog
Wrote Coronation Street weekly updates for my mailing list of almost 2,000 Corrie fans
Regularly updated my Coronation Street fan website corrie.net

Away from writing, I also did some of this:

Set up a crazy golf course in garden (before I hurt my foot)
Made some art for Grayson Perry's art club on Channel 4
Read a lot of books
Watched some excellent films
Watched some awful films

And until my foot recovers completely, I'll be continuing with daily chair-based yoga followed by chair-based cardio exercise every afternoon.

Here's to what the future may bring. I have a feeling interesting times might lie ahead.