Weekend Happenings

My brother is getting married in three weeks and on Saturday we had an engagement party for his fiance. It was outside at a local picnic area and the weather was perfect! While waiting for all of the group to arrive, three of us began playing petanque on the large grassed area beside our picnic mat. The only problem was that the grass was quite long and the small golden ball kept sinking into the grass, making it difficult to know where to aim the larger petanque balls. One of us would have to tread the grass down around the golden ball so that it was visible to the others.

Everything was fine until one person (not mentioning any names) decided to throw it in a slightly different direction. The tiny ball disappeared into the long grass and no one knew where to look for it. We spent at least twenty minutes, possibly longer, searching for the ball - which was very similar to the golden snitch except without the wings. As each new person arrived for the party, we enlisted them in the search. We slowly covered the ground, heads down, peering intently at the long green blades of grass. Just when we were considering mobilizing all the other innocent picnickers, my sister finally discovered the ball. Hooray!

We decided to play croquet instead of petanque - those balls are much harder to lose.

Its been a while since I posted anything! I came down with a nasty head cold just over a week ago - one of those head colds that make you feel groggy and ill for days. Then, when I was pretty much recovered, it was off to Church Family Camp in Staveley for the long weekend. On the Sunday afternoon, we all gathered in front of the main building for a group photo. Here is Lynn Clevely's snap of us all.

Between the speaking sessions, there was a selection of activities to keep the campers occupied, such as playing rugby (of course!), shooting competitions, card games, impromptu music jam sessions and exploring some of the nearby countryside. I took my small sketch book along and spent a few hours over the weekend trying to finish a pencil sketch portrait. It always takes me a long time to complete any pencil drawing and this one was no exception - I still haven't finished it. Lynn Clevely snapped this shot while I was drawing on Sunday afternoon.

Although the camp officially finished on Monday afternoon, Dad and I left before 10am because I had a stall at the Plains Railway and Museum which is just out of Ashburton. It was a celebration day (well it was over the whole weekend really, but I could only make it to the Monday events) for their 40th anniversary. My table was set up inside the station, beside the children's activity area. I thoroughly enjoyed the day - it was a well run event with lots of people passing through the station. I sold twice as many books yesterday as I did at the Big Model Train Show!

Well, the plan was to have lots of photos to upload onto my blog after the Big Model Train Show. But it hasn't worked out that way.
We remembered to take the camera and tucked it into the bag full of all the other necessities for the day. As soon as I arrived at the venue, I began to rearrange the picture books on my stall table and set up the information displays. Dad (he helped out for the day) taped two posters advertising 'Custard and Carriages' to the wall behind us - I forgot to bring blu-tack so we had to use some tape from one of the neighbouring stall holders.

Soon after the doors opened and the first groups of people began to circulate around the venue, Dad hunted out the camera and positioned himself a short distance from my stall, ready to take some photos. I was distracted with talking to people as they stopped to look at my books, but I could vaguely see him lining up the camera to snap some shots. He seemed to be taking a long time. Eventually, Dad made his way back to my stall and whispered that the camera was dead - the battery needed to be recharged. So that was the end of our photographic attempts. If you want to see some images from the show, try this site.

During the full day that I was at the show, many people came by my stall and showed a lot of interest in the picture book. There were several stacks of information brochures about my book on the table and quite a number of people took a flyer with them. However, in terms of sales, it was a very slow day. Although I tried not to be too discouraged, I find that it is hard to remain confident that the book is actually any good after a tough sales day. That is when supportive family members are very valuable!

As I've been busy this week with preparations for the Big Model Train Show, I haven't done any writing for a while. I always feel frustrated and useless when a period of time elapses and I've not been able to write for whatever reason. I find it helpful to read about how others relate to the act and occupation of writing. It reminds me that other people also wrestle with the difficulties associated with creating stories. Here are some astute and brilliant comments about writers and writing:

The story I am writing exists, written in absolutely perfect fashion, some place, in the air.  All I must do is find it, and copy it.  ~Jules Renard, "Diary," February 1895

Writing is easy:  All you do is sit staring at a blank sheet of paper until drops of blood form on your forehead.  ~Gene Fowler

A writer is somebody for whom writing is more difficult than it is for other people.  ~Thomas Mann, Essays of Three Decades, 1947

"People sometimes ask me when I'm going to write a 'real' book - for adults. I give them a big smile and tell them, 'When my stories are no longer good enough for chldren, then I'll write for adults." - Verla Kay

"A professional writier is an amateur who didn't quit." - Richard Bach.

“I think that all artists, regardless of degree of talent, are a painful, paradoxical combination of certainty and uncertainty, of arrogance and humility, constantly in need of reassurance, and yet with a stubborn streak of faith in their own validity no matter what.” -  Madeleine L'Engle

One Week To Go

The Big Model Train Show is only one week away! The show begins for me on Friday, when all the stall holders go to Pioneer Stadium to set up all the different displays. On both days that the show is running (8th and 9th) I think I will be at the stadium between 8am-5pm at least. Various family members have offered to help out during the weekend - yay! It would be terribly exhausting trying to run the stall by myself the whole time. Hmmm, I have a suspicion that I will be exhausted by the end of the two days anyway!

In other news: All Books New Zealand has agreed to sell 'Custard and Carriages' and the book will appear in their monthly catalogue. All Books specialise in supplying books, audio CDs and selected NZ DVDs to libraries, schools and tertiary institutions throughout New Zealand and they are based in Christchurch. Check out their website here. I'm excited to have them selling my picture book!

Also, Paper Plus Greymouth has ordered some copies of the book and are selling them in their store. So, if you're in the area, pop into the Greymouth branch and take a look at 'Custard and Carriages'.