Busy times. My writing has been more or less put on hold due to work commitments and family events. However, just over a week ago I attended a workshop held by Norwich Writer's Centre at the beautiful Dragon Hall in Norwich. The day had two topics - Crossing Genres, which the workshop leader Emma Healey did in her debut novel 'Elizabeth in Missing', and Writing the Big Concept. Most of the other participants had, or are doing, a Masters in Creative Writing at UEA and were interesting and entertaining. I came away feeling inspired, with what I feel to be a pretty good understanding of how to cross genres (and why one would do it). Now I just need to think of a Big Concept that inspires me - sometimes I feel quite glum that the topics that I am naturally drawn towards Asperger's Syndrome and Alzheimers have been the subjects of many writer's work.
Where next? Emma Healey, quite naturally, didn't reveal the concept of the book she is currently writing. My guess is that it's illness related. Lisa Genova is working on a book about Motor Neurone Disease, after her stunning books on Alzheimer's ('Still Alice') and Huntington's Disease '(Inside the O'Briens').
Thought, and inspiration, required.
In the meantime, I need to get back to a half written short story and , yes, there is a medical fact at its heart.
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