WASHING DISHES & DANCING THE TANGO

Mornings, when I’m not fully awake, when the promise of the day beckons and the world has a hushed, dreamlike quality, are my favourite time of day. I sit in my cosy chair by the window in the kitchen, clasping a large steaming mug of hot coffee, watching the sun rise above the row of pine trees along the back lane. I relish these quiet moments as I gather my thoughts before the approaching day, with its pressing demands, impinges on me.

It’s in these moments I am genuinely grateful for the many blessings I have in my life; food in my belly, clothes on my body, and a roof over my head. When I think of the wars taking place in many parts of the world today, writing fiction seems an indulgence. But yet...

 

the kitchen's a mess,
the dishes are not done,
but I sit writing.

As far as my WIP goes, I’m on the read aloud edit which I’m really enjoying, and a title is emerging. Yeah! Writing my novel is the most important endeavour, and has to take priority. Despite the struggles and dramas involved in writing, I find creating and inhabiting a fictional world is a deeply fulfilling activity.

These days much of my time and head space outside of my WIP is spent on research about marketing - what achieves results and what doesn’t - particularly with regard to ebooks. As always with the internet there’s a plethora of information, and for every piece of do this, there’s an alternative opinion. The result is I’ve gained more knowledge, but am no wiser.

When I first started blogging, (Feb. 2013) I posted twice a week, but after three or four months this schedule ate too much of my writing time, so I reduced to a weekly post, which I’ve managed to maintain – though I’m not sure how. However, recently that pressure is building again, and as the activities surrounding the writing increase, I’m considering posting less often. Or maybe varying or changing the format, content or direction of the blog. I wonder if I’m running out of enthusiasm for blogging, but it’s more that I don’t have time to write a quality post, and don’t want to shove anything down. I have the utmost admiration for those bloggers who post regularly and have done so for years, but I’m not sure this is my route.

The trouble is blogging is addictive and I find it adds spice and variety to the working week; writing, posting, and responding to comments are more instant than writing and publishing a book, and that interaction is real and to be valued.

No matter what occupation or status we have in life, we have to choose what works best for us, and for me, although my novel is my main concern, promoting what I write is eating up more time than I’d like. And something will have to give. So this week it’s a short post, and I leave you with a poem written as a response to a prompt that requested using a cliché as a starting point – I’m sure you’ll spot mine! 

AFTERNOON DANCE

Inside imitation suns shed lambent light

on floorboards glossy with beeswax;

gilded mirrors poise on walls,

serene musicians seat themselves,

striking chords, plinking and plonking

till orchestral harmony arrives.

Outside the warm sun simmers the earth,

orchids raise their hearts;

a light breeze disperses summer fragrances

of rainforest rosewood and jacaranda

on sea kissed skin.

Dancers float in,

toes pointed, backs like boards,

arms extended, heads erect.  

Dresses revealing tastes of honey,

Arrowed jackets and trousers.

Assuming positions,

eyes spark in expectancy

as adrenaline streams through limbs aligned,

and partners sensuously synchronize,

ready,

in twos,

to tango.

I’d love it if you checked out my debut novel, One Summer in Montmartre, or popped over to Wattpad and read any of my posted stories... just click on the links to the right.

Join me on Twitter at: teagankearney@modhaiku   

Thanks for visiting my blog, and please do leave a comment.

To all story lovers out there, good reading, and to those of you who write, good writing.