WRITERS' INK

Costa Blanca News’ weekly feature supporting local writers, in conjunction with Writers' Ink

WELCOME to our Writers’ Ink group’s weekly words. We provide news, views, tips and examples of writing by authors and poets, local and beyond.

WHY I WRITE

Warm greetings,

THE REASONS I took to writing were twofold. I realise that now. After more contemplation… at first, I thought it was the desire to reach in - share and copy, the mysterious worlds of Hans Christian Andersen and The Brothers Grimm; their stories offered as a release from the separation sadness from my parents, presented by evacuation to South Wales in World War II. As if… stories I read by candlelight, the flickering shadows on the walls enhancing the creepy, frightening, while enticing tales, until my aunt banged on the ceiling and shouted: “Blow out the candle and go to sleep Joycee.” But, looking back, it was more than that – the reason too sophisticated for my young mind to grasp.

The other part of ‘the fold’ was emulating my father, who had excellent English and was a dab hand at calligraphy. The forming and actual writing of the words were, for a long time, more important than the story… and I was proud to later receive my Pitman’s handwriting certificate. I also took a brief course in calligraphy but it proved to be too slow for my pen, although I remain a great admirer of its form. In the end, I suppose, it comes down to expression, for when life bubbles up inside one, what better way to share it if it manifests itself in an art form. Apart from ‘The Bluebells of Scotland’ played on an inherited piano, I wasn’t cut out for music, although I loved/love it. It wasn’t until later in life that I tried watercolour painting, which I also took to, but wasn’t a natural artist as my eldest son proved to be.

Letter writing and poetry at first captivated me and I ran a poetry group ‘Odes For Joy’ and won a few prizes. Meanwhile having three sons and running a business, put my writing on the back burner, until we sold the hotel husband and I had been running and was commissioned to write a factual book about running a small hotel. This lead to another factual book and updating a few ‘in-house’ ones, until the hotel book went to a second printing ‘life, ‘ living abroad for a short while and travelling, ate into time and we were- suddenly, it seemed – faced with semiretirement in Spain

The first, more serious ‘writing lure’ was The Torrevieja Writing Group, and while there, I won the first International Short Story competition run in Torrevieja, with ‘Worth its Salt’, and it was after that the words came more easily. As I admire and respect those handy, 26 letters of the alphabet and am fascinated by what makes human beings tick, writing was and is an on-going ‘must’. Although I admire all forms of good writing, I prefer to write from facts, and leave the paranormal fantasies and horror to those with that type of imagination, although I also enjoy composing murder tales and detective dramas, and the above win was my only ‘time travel adventure tale’.

I joined the local U3A: University of the Third Age (still functioning) and ran a class for them for a few years, but now belong to another group: Writers’ Ink, which has sporadic meetings due to the virus, although we do have an online connection with our members via Facebook, and are delighted to hear from them.

I published a memoir: ‘My Gentle War’, in 2005, containing excerpts from my dad’s war diaries, and wrote many short stories which were included in anthologies; also more poetry and several other books. I have just finished writing my 10th book called The Dobrowski Portrait, set in Poland and the UK, and am awaiting a publisher.

Strangely, I have never been that ambitious, although I harvested more than a few coppers from my first two books and via winning a few prizes, but nowadays most of my writing is unpaid: weekly columns in the Costa Blanca News (at least 350 columns over the years) a monthly blog (https://joylennick.wordpress.com/) and various other bits and pieces…but the pleasure of writing and the joy it often (usually) brings is inestimable. I love it!

Why do YOU WRITE? Please let us know.

Sincerely

Joy Lennick (on behalf of Writers’ Ink) FACTUAL: Running your Own Small Hote;l Jobs in Baking & Confectionery MEMOIR: My Gentle War

TRUE ADVENTURE: Hurricane Halsey; From the Prairies to Passchendaele FICTION NOVEL: The Catalyst ANTHOLOGYOF SHORT STORIES

With the late author Jean Wilson Sontag Where Angels & Devils Fear to Tread HUMOUR (with husband Eric Lennick)

The Moon is Wearing a Tutu NUMEROUS SHORT STORIES In various anthologies

POETRY: Celtic Cameos & Other Poems; Many in Collections

Most books on Amazon and Kindle. WordPress site: https://joylennick.wordpress.com/