A friend and client
thought I should introduce you to the real Patricia Anne Elford, the one who this
week discovered she hadn’t cashed a for-editing cheque after it had been
sitting, sealed, unnoticed, under a bathroom countertop container for six months.
The clerks make the
mistake of asking me how I am and I tell them how I am, and why. I stop
mid-sentence, grasping for words of polite conversation. Most of them know I'm
a writer and, I think, consider me to be eccentric. They are kind souls who
treat me with as much courtesy as if I had large amounts of money in their
branch and they manage not to giggle or roll their eyes before I exit.
Quite often, this is
also the state I am in when I go to the pharmacy or take Lickorish, our
18-year-old cat in for his biweekly respiratory-improvement needle. Why?
Because I always try to work at my writing and editing when I am as fresh as
possible. When I take husband/chauffeur/Robert’s oxygen tank to the car for me
to complete our “outside world” tasks, I’m actually exhausted, having worked
from early morning (sometimes, during
part of the night, when the quiet soothes and my mind is free), and I am ready
for a drop-dead-into-bed nap, not interaction with other human beings. Thus I
scatter the breadcrumbs of my idiosyncratic reputation all over the community.
But, now YOU will know
some of the ways I’ve been spending my time:
- I’ve been editing for several clients, work I
thoroughly enjoy when they’re eager to do their best and are willing to take
advice. I’m thrilled when they have been shortlisted or won awards for their
books or single pieces. I’m equally as happy when they have produced a work
that is well done and well-accepted by family and friends.
- I’ve been doing some
periodic creative work for the Petawawa
Grannies, that being my part while others are doing theirs.
- I’ve been writing and submitting, gaining a first
for my already-published non-fiction piece with insights into The Lord’s
Prayer, in the last InScribe Winter Contest and (interest was expressed re. possible future use of a poem written about
my husband’s being on oxygen 24/7) and a third for a wedding message (which I misnamed a devotion and possibly
created incorrect expectations) in the unpublished non-fiction area of
their Fall contest.
One of my poems, “Christmas
Memories, Past and Future”, was accepted for Christmas with Hot Apple Cider, a brand new anthology in the Hot Apple
Cider Series, a great book I’m more than happy to promote.
- During my absence, I’ve written
a couple of book reviews for books in which I wasn’t involved as an editor,
though I don’t make as much time as I might to do more of that. I’m a fast
reader but I take that responsibility seriously and can’t rush it.
This is a lengthy post but
it has been most of a year that I’ve been in
absentia!
Thank you very much for
checking in. I truly appreciate it.
- Sell some of the
woodworking machinery my husband is no longer strong enough to use. (He chose which ones. That was HARD.)
- Accept and complete
another editing contract. I’m available! Have references; will edit.
- Get serious about
getting my own book manuscript, The
Cuddle of Cats—Talk to Me; I’ll Listen. Listen to Me; I’ll Talk, polished
up for publishing. Among others, our veterinarian, who holds an important
position in the CVMA, has read it and is happy to write an endorsement! I expect
to donate a percentage of the book’s earnings to the local SPCA. Excerpts read
in public reading events were well-received, so, there’s hope.
The Column Links:
May God bless you for persevering to the end of this post! Thank you.
