Writing and Life, Tracy Rees

What do we really need to write? The perfect pen? A luxurious notebook? Silence? Chocolate? I had many such ideas when I was an aspiring writer. Now that I’m writing my sixth book to contract, I’m far more pragmatic.

I think most writers have a perfect writing day. It might begin with a run before breakfast, a morning’s work at a large, tidy desk in a quiet study, preferably with a beautiful view. Perhaps business and admin for an hour or two after lunch, then a brisk walk to clear the cobwebs and sort out plot tangles … 

In reality this perfect day rarely, if ever, happens because writing, like any job, any activity, doesn’t happen in isolation. It takes place within a wider framework called Life. Life can intrude in any number of ways: Twitter, the need to clean the bathroom, the roofer suddenly turning up three weeks late… It’s easy to resent Life for intruding on the calm waters and clear headspace that seem so critical for writing.  

And yet Life also feeds writing. It’s a close and complex relationship between the two. The more we learn about ourselves and how to manage the tricky old business of Life, the better our writing becomes, this I firmly believe. And the better we manage the practical realities of being self-employed in a challenging, unpredictable field. 

I might want five clear, uninterrupted days each week to walk, dream and pour out the words. I’m unlikely to get them. I do have that tranquil study with the lovely view (though I can’t claim it’s tidy!) but I’m not always there. I write on trains, in other peoples’ houses, cafes. I prefer to designate a beautiful notebook to each novel and use a blue Bic biro, but inevitably inspiration strikes when my project notebook isn’t to hand and I end up scribbling ideas on receipts with – horrors! – a black pen!! I’ve learned that desirable isn’t the same as essential. When needs must, writing can be done on the fly, in short bursts, in the unlikeliest places. 

And somehow, it all gets done. Some days I churn out enormous wordcounts, stiff-legged and sore-backed. Other days, requests from accountants, publicists etc keep me busy, but not creatively. But it all works out. I’ve learned to switch from one type of brain to another pretty quickly, going from reclusive word-spinner to business strategist to public speaker, sometimes all in one day. It’s my process and as such I guess it’s perfect in its imperfections. 

I’ve learned that a story is always much more robust than you think. I used to fear that any interruption, however slight, would chase the story away. When you’re in the grip of a powerful narrative drive it seems so counter-intuitive to stop and do anything else. But in practice, no matter what cropped up, however frustrated I was at having to stop, when I got back to the laptop, it all came flooding back. 

But what about when Life gets really tough? I’m not talking about tax returns and leaky ceilings, I’m talking about real emotional tsunamis. Recently, I’ve been navigating such a time. My mother has been seriously ill for several months now, including ten weeks in hospital. During that time my father was also unwell twice. I have no siblings, so there was just me to care for two parents in two different places. 

Suddenly, several basic “essentials” for work were stripped away. Time: suddenly I’d lost several hours from the day. A certain peace of mind: as people I love suffered, I started to feel like an emotional punch bag. Yet in the first month, I still got some work done. A morning’s writing. A research day. Things like that. Even in small doses, I found that writing was refuge and comfort.

As time went by and the situation progressed, something had to give. The first things to go were things I’ve learned through experience are so important: self-care; exercise; inspiration. You can manage like that for a while, but not indefinitely. Inevitably work took the next hit and, for the first time since becoming a professional author, my writing suffered. Yes, I’d already learned that I needed less time than I thought I did. But a certain amount, obviously, is necessary. A couple of half-hours per week, during which I was worried and depleted, weren’t enough. I finally reached the point where I couldn’t write anything of any charm or coherence. That was scary. 

Eventually, Mum came home. She still needs a lot of care, but this development has enabled me to work again. It took me a while to find my way back into the story, but when I did, it was waiting patiently, true to form. The words started to flow again. Thank God!

When you strip it back to basics, perhaps the only thing that’s really needed to get a book written is faith. Faith in yourself, that you will make the decisions you need to make and keep moving forward one step at a time. Faith in your story, that it will weather delays and difficulties and wait until you’re ready again. And faith in the mysterious processes of Life and Writing, and the way that the two dance together, sometimes one taking precedence, sometimes the other, but always, ultimately, moving and flowing.

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Tracy Rees was born in Swansea. She always wanted to be a writer and at the age of four she wrote her first (unfinished, unpublished) novel, The Adventures of Princess Tulip and her Friends. She studied languages at Jesus College, Cambridge, then moved to London. She worked in medical publishing for eight years then retrained and worked as a counsellor for people with cancer and their families for five years. She has also been a waitress, bartender, shop assistant, estate agent, classroom assistant, university lecturer and workshop leader. Tracy lives on the Gower Peninsula of Wales, dividing her time between Wales and London, where her partner lives. She was the winner of the Richard and Judy Search for a Bestseller competition and the Love Stories Best Historical Read award and was shortlisted for the RNA Epic Romantic Novel of the Year award.

Website: www.tracyrees.com

Twitter: @AuthorTracyRees

Instagram: @tracyreesauthor

THE HOUSE AT SILVERMOOR

A tenderly evoked and compelling read. The House at Silvermoor deserves to be a huge success’ Rachel Hore, author of The Love Child

‘I loved The House at Silvermoor. Tracy’s writing is always so warm and the story is both romantic and compelling’ Rosanna Ley, author of The Lemon Tree Hotel

England, 1899. A new century is dawning, and two young friends are about to enter into a world of money, privilege and family secrets…
Josie has never questioned her life in a South Yorkshire mining village. But everything changes when she meets Tommy from the neighbouring village. Tommy has been destined for a life underground since the moment he was born. But he has far bigger dreams for his future.
United by their desire for something better and by their fascination with the local gentry, Josie and Tommy become fast friends. Wealthy and glamorous, the Sedgewicks of Silvermoor inhabit a world that is utterly forbidden to Tommy and Josie. Yet as the new century arrives, the pair become entangled with the grand family, and discover a long hidden secret. Will everything change as they all step forward into the new dawn…?

‘I adore Tracy’s writing and have from the moment I read Amy Snow when it first came out. The House at Silvermoor is a sweeping saga full of likeable characters. What a joy to read!’ Lorna Cook, author of The Forgotten Village

‘Tracy Rees has a rare gift for making us care about her characters from the very first pages. I rushed to pick up my copy in any spare moments, because I needed to know what would happen next. It’s a compassionate and compelling novel, with a heart-warming love story at its core’ Gill Paul, author of The Lost Daughter

‘A rich, riveting and romantic read’ Joanna Courtney, author of Blood Queen

 

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Category: Contemporary Women Writers, How To and Tips