Bluey’s Café

Bluey Miller lives a charmed life in Calico Bay, a small rural town on the east coast of Australia. She built her popular wholefood café from nothing, and it has garnered a well-deserved reputation for world foods. When her mother dies, Bluey discovers that there was far more to her mother’s life than she’d realised. Why so many secrets? As she begins to unravel her mother’s past, she’s left wondering about their relationship. They had been so close over the years, yet now Bluey feels like she didn’t know her at all. Her very identity hangs by a thread. Who am I? she wonders. Who was my mother?

Seemingly insurmountable challenges lie ahead, and Bluey must face them without her mother by her side. She finds strength from her local community and daily nourishment from the welcoming atmosphere of her café, but is this enough? Drawing succour from the Australian bushland around her, friendships, emerging spirituality, a life-changing romance, and the memories of good mother love, Bluey must somehow find enough courage to allow the best of the past to become the foundation for her future.

Bluey’s Café is Veronika’s second novel. She lives in rural Cumbria, UK, with her husband and their teenage daughters. www.veronikarobinson.com

Cover illustration by Sara Simon www.sarasimon.co.uk

Published by www.starflowerpress.com and available online, or from www.themothermagazine.co.uk or, from December, Amazon and all good bookshops.

ISBN 978-0-9575371-2-5

Published by Starflower Press

www.starflowerpress.com

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data.

A catalogue record for this book is available from the

British Library.

Starr Meneely's What a Lovely Sound!

One of the joys of being a writer is being able to celebrate other writers. Do have a look at this trailer for Starr Meneely's wonderful new children's book (illustrated by Susan Merrick) called What a Lovely Sound! It is published by Starflower Press. www.starflowerpress.com

I love the story and the artwork, and can't wait to share it with some of my favourite children!

http://youtu.be/sJzj7NH9_Sc

 

The Isolated Writer

Writing is a lonely job, or so it is said. I don’t feel lonely when I write. How could I possibly be lonely when there is a gorgeous male character inhabiting my head space? Nope, loneliness does not feature in my (fiction) writing. Finding someone to share the craft with, however, could possibly feel isolating for some writers. The world is full of blocked creatives: people who want to create something but don’t, usually out of fear of rejection or criticism. Such people are dangerous to have around your creative life because their jealousy becomes a dagger of destructive critique based on their own inadequacies. Stay clear of such people, or at least keep them well away from your creative life.

In my life I am blessed with a handful of women with whom I feel safe to share my raw writing work. One, in particular, is a gifted singer-songwriter, and it brings me such joy when―despite us living in different countries―at the click of a button we can share each other’s work: I ping my chapters to her, and she pings me back MP3s of her latest songs. It’s magic! I dance in the composite energy of our creative outpourings.

Regardless of our journey in life, or whether we pursue a creative path or not, we all seek to have someone witness our story, our life, our path. I, for one, am very grateful to have the witnesses that I do. Alone, as a writer, yes. Lonely, no.

The Writing Rhythm

For quite some time, my writing rhythm involved waking up early and having a few hours of writing time before my family woke up. But for the past few weeks, everything has been turned on its head. My formerly home-schooled daughters started school (A levels and GCSEs), and so my mornings haven’t been about writing and watching the sunrise over the fells outside my window: they’ve been about making delicious school lunches, porridge with cinnamon and cranberries, and ironing uniforms.

I have missed my writing enormously, and have to reconsider how I start the school day. Now, it might seem obvious to some: write during the day when they’re at school. The truth is that that isn’t an option for me. Once the rest of the world wakes up, phones start ringing, emails demand answering, and other diversions intrude into the mind of a writer. By day, I’m a magazine editor. My job is looking at other people’s writing, not my own. Nope, there is only one time of the day which truly works for me when writing imagination-based work: pre-sunrise.

The same imagination required to write, now has to be utilised to clear my early mornings and keep them free for my sacred space. Perhaps my 17 and 15-year-old daughters should be making their own breakfast and lunches, and doing their own ironing. The answer was in front of my eyes the whole time! Somehow, though, I can’t see them getting out of bed any earlier to undertake such creative and sacred nurturing tasks.  

Lightning Fingers

My fingers type at the speed of lighting, which is handy. My thoughts are quick, and to be able to get my ideas on paper as quickly as they rush through my head is quite a gift. It hasn’t always been like this. In secondary school, my typing teacher (Mrs Hoffman) used to hit my knuckles with a wooden ruler when she caught me looking at the keys. Cow!

It didn’t stop me, and eventually she put a bib over the keyboard so I could learn to type without looking at the keys. That didn’t work either, so she went back to the wooden ruler. Needless to say, I quit typing class. I valued my knuckles!

Several years later, I began work on my local newspaper as a reporter. Now, here’s the thing. You can not be a two-fingered typist if you want to survive in the world of journalism. Somewhere between day one of phoning the emergency services for news stories and the next Monday when my first story made the front page (whoop whoop!), my typing speed increased enormously.

I watch my husband, a slow, two-fingered typist, and it’s like watching a bull stuck in quick-sand. It’s painful. I feel ill. I’m desperate to help. 

Typing is my friend. As a writer, I'd be lost without it. 

The key to touch typing is to place your little fingers on the a and the colon buttons, ring fingers on s and l, middle fingers on d and k. Those fingers hit those keys AND the ones above and below. The pointer finger is king. He’s in charge of six keys (per finger). He’s The Power.

Left pointer finger is in charge of f, g, r, t, v and b. The right is in charge of j, h, u, y, m and n. 

If you make it a practice to keep your eight fingers sitting on the middle keys, and only use the right fingers on the correct keys, then in no time your typing speed will increase. Don’t be like Mrs Hoffman and get caught into believing you can’t look at the keyboard. In time, you won’t need to look at it because you’ll feel comfortable. Typing will be rote (like driving a car).

The Love Dilemma

After I finished writing my second novel, Bluey’s Café, I decided to develop a career as a romance novelist. Why? I spent my teenage years reading romance novels. I could read a Mills and Boon in two hours, and they saved me from the boredom of secondary school. For whatever people might think of this genre, the truth is that it’s the best selling genre of all. People want love. They need love. If they don’t have it in their lives, then they want to live it through someone else. And even if their relationship is brilliant, it can’t hurt to enjoy the pleasure of sharing in someone else’s love journey, can it?

My dilemma as a romance writer is this: when I met my husband, Paul, it was ‘I’ve known you forever at first sight’. We literally moved in with each other next day. We simply ‘knew’. There was no long engagement, nor dancing around the dating scene for months on end. Nope, not us. We knew we had ‘found’ each other, and immediately wanted to create a family.

Now, I’m rather fond of our love at first sight/you’re-my-soul-mate story, but this just doesn’t work in romance novels (well, I let it work in my novel Bluey’s Café). A romance novel needs drama and tension and hurdles to overcome. Sheesh, aren’t there enough of those in life anyway? Can’t they just get together like Paul and I did, and then face the drama, shoulder to shoulder? Nope!

Our romance novel lovers have to face challenges before they get together, and then they live happily ever after. Romance lovers don’t have dramas once we’ve finally hooked them up!

I began my first novel specifically for the romance market on May 16^th this year. Since then, my days have revolved around the stories in my head, and the drama of the characters. I’ve almost finished writing my fourth novel of this sort.  I have ideas for an assortment of novels, but for now, the romance ones have taken centre stage in my writing head. They are what get me bouncing out of bed each morning before sunrise. It is my duty to take these characters beyond their egos and into the arms of love. 

The Power of the Written Word

We all have that little something that we’re passionate about. For me, that is communication. You’d think with the advent of modern technology such things as laptops, emails, and so on, would make the life of a communicator a bit of a breeze. Far from it.

Most of human communication comes from our body language. Without it, the recipient of our words doesn’t get the gist of whether we’re happy, sad, joyful, thoughtful, apprehensive, joking and so forth.

I hate emails. I despise them as a form of communication. Sure, they’re quick. And yes, you can keep in touch with people from all over the world without relying on Royal Mail or planes/ships to carry your precious words, but there is SO MUCH missing from the message that relationships can be tarnished. Many people have fallen out over a wrongly worded (but more accurately, wrongly interpreted) message.

When we receive a communication, we bring ‘baggage’ to it so that regardless of what the sender was implying, the recipient will see the message through their own eyes (pain/agenda).

I remember in 2001, a dear friend phoning me from Latin America and asking me if I had email. ‘I don’t need email,’ I laughed. A year later I was editing and publishing The Mother magazine, and emails were part of my daily life. At first, it was fun. Now, it’s a drag.

Two days away from my inbox brings me a karmic load for daring to be away from a computer for so long. The inbox groans and heaves with so much correspondence all demanding my immediate reply. It gets to the point that I can’t even log onto Facebook for a quick nosey at what my friends are up to without feeling huge guilt for knowing there are dozens of emails waving their little red flags up at me.

There is always the dilemma of a box full of emails: who to read first? That one from a dear friend travelling the world or the one querying a subscription? The one from a friend who is struggling or the one wanting advice about their teething toddler?

Where possible, I try and reply to emails first thing in my day when I’m well rested. The day brings so much my way through family, friends, strangers, and all their needs, that I find it best to steer away from written communication at the end of the day when I’m tired (or feeling particularly hormonal!).

I love the written word, and take great care to ensure that I communicate as clearly as I can. What I have learnt, though, over the years, is that there is no such thing as perfect communication. We can never have ‘control’ over how someone perceives our message. The best we can ever hope for is to write from the heart, and to always come from a place of love.

K

Today’s blog is brought to you by the letter ‘k’.

My keyboard is missing the top button above the k. Very inconvenient when your name is Veronika, and you have to type it dozens of times a day when signing off emails. Now, the ‘k’ is still accessible, but it requires a much firmer approach than my touch typing needs for the speed at which I navigate my keyboard. However, over time, muscle memory has made hitting that key, at three to four times the strength needed for every other letter of the alphabet, instinctive. One of my daughters (also a writer) refuses to use my laptop because of said ‘k’.

One day, I’ll have a new laptop and a new ‘k’….and I’ll have to retrain that finger to be gentle…ever so gentle and quick, like the other fingers and thumbs.

We’re funny, us humans. We can get used to all sorts of things, and to retrain ourselves. Often, the only thing that stands in the way of progress is our determination or lack of it. My missing ‘k’ has taught me a lot.

Writer's Block

I can't say that writer's block is something I experience. The limitations I have are due to time, family and other unavoidable commitments ~ oh, and a job! To make the most of uninterrupted writing time, I wake up very early, feed the cats, and head to my laptop.

There are times, though, when I come up against a pause in my story line and wonder which direction to go with it. I know better than to sit at a computer screen when I reach such a crossroad. I head to the shower. 

Hot steamy water is relaxing, and also changes the brain waves. Ten minutes in the shower always gifts me with the ideas I need in order to make progress. 

The other antidote to writer's pause is to walk in nature. It never fails to ignite stories, character habits and qualities, and plot twists. The world around us is rich with ideas, and we need to immerse ourselves in it if we wish to find our writing voice.

lost for words

My writing blog has been neglected because I've been....writing! I recently finished my fifth novel. Now for the editing. I shall return soon.

hoorah!

I finished the first draft of my fourth novel this morning. Hoorah! Such an amazing feeling to bring my characters to completion. I can now leave them at their happily ever after (after a few edits!), and find another couple to bring together. I love my life. I kinda like this whole playing matchmaker game.....

Boundaries and Nurturing

Today's Full Moon in Capricorn is a Super Moon. This means it is very close to the Earth.

What does it mean when the Moon is full in Capricorn?

Capricorn is about structure and boundaries, and defining territory. Its opposite sign, Cancer, is about nurturing, protection and mothering. 

When we have a Full Moon it illuminates the shadow side of both zodiac signs.

So what message can you take from this particular Full Moon? In order to be an effective care-taker (mother or other nurturer) ensure you have firm boundaries in place so that you, and those being taken care of, do not feel violated or that you don't end up feeling like a martyr.

Take the best of both signs, and make them work for you.

Passionate, fun, dynamic, love-filled, joyous...

Have you found your passion in life?

Do you love waking up each morning ready to live life fully? You do? GREAT!

Would you like to understand your children better? Would you love for them to be guided to what is already in their hearts?

Psychological astrology shines a laser light onto our birth chart, revealing what the soul has come to Earth to learn. It shows our learning style, what drives us, where we feel fearful and inhibited, and so much more.

To book an astrology session for yourself or your child (in person at my home in Cumbria, or by phone to anywhere in the world), visit: http://www.themothermagazine.co.uk/astrology.shtml

The Writer's View

‘Mum, why did you google Breast Cancer Hospitals this morning?’ my daughter asked.

‘Snooping in my search history, were you?’ I laughed. ‘I’m a writer. Don’t judge me by anything that I google! It’s all in the name of research.’

Dreaming you into life

Oh how I love to wake up from a dream with a character or storyline. It feels like such a gift!

What I don't like is having to ask my characters to wait because I've got other things on my to-do list. But still, I let them chat, and I see their faces come fully into my mind. I sit at their table while they drink tea or coffee, and I drive in their car. I listen to their hearts ~ what saddens them or makes them happy. It can feel invasive, but it's also an honour. What a joy to be the one who dreams them into life.

The Book Hangover

...that moment when you've finished a book and you're still immersed in the lives of your characters; they're still talking to each other, and you're still eavesdropping.

However, there are new characters, new storylines, new locations all demanding brain time...they're all saying 'it's our turn now. Write about us now'. They clearly don't know that the day only has 24 hours, and a girl has to eat, read, sip coffee in the sunshine, exercise, cuddle her kids, do her 'day' job, hang out the washing, mop the floor, and so on.

yes, my friends, that is the book hangover...

Sunrise

When you're a mother of toddlers, these early morning sunrises usually bring a moan of 'go back to sleep'. When you're sleep deprived, first light just aft 4am is anything but thrilling...Where are the black out curtains? Where is my SLEEP?

But as a mother of teenagers who have perfected the art of sleeping in, I adore these early sunrises. It's a gift that says 'Veronika, here is a whole bunch of extra time in your day for you to write'.

And it's true. It's just me (after feeding the hungry cats), the sunrise, the calves in the field outside my garden, and the birds singing in the day. I hold onto every single minute, and the minutes turn to an hour, and some days, there are quite a few hours in which I write. All guilt free. And then, when the family has awoken to the day, and it's clear I'm not going to be able to write a thing, I magically turn into a mother and wife again. 
 

Come and visit...

 Do come and visit my website ;-)

http://www.veronikarobinson.com/

Veronika

Steam and Stir-fry

I’m currently writing my third novel, and have two others brewing in the furthest reaches of my mind…biding their time until I have time…time to write, time to be, time to listen to the needs of my characters.

When I finished Mosaic, I figured it would be the only novel I’d ever write, and I said to more than one person “I only have one novel in me” ~ I write non-fiction….that was, until March 23^rd, as I was making dinner. 

The radio was on softly in the background and I heard the name Bluey. It reminded me of an amazing friend I had. I met Bluey when I was ten….skiving from a school sports day. He was in his 50s, and his truck had broken down by the side of the road. The boys I was bunking off school with started talking to him about trucks…but somehow they ended up heading down to the river and I stayed behind and talked to Bluey. We talked for hours about all things esoteric, and he read my palm. We swapped addresses, and became dear friends. 

So when I heard the name Bluey on the radio, I thought about him, and then I wondered if any women were ever called Bluey? I thought about it as a character name, and within half an hour I had the story for Bluey’s Café. That book was written in five days (if only covers got to be painted that quickly!), and it is such a pleasure to have the time to sit with the characters and fine-tune the writing.

And then I thought…I couldn’t have any more novels in me, and no sooner did that thought occur to me than characters, locations and storylines were nipping at my thoughts. And now…now I can’t imagine not writing novels for the rest of my life! Funny that. But of course, it could all change tomorrow.

I come to the keyboard hours before my family wakes up…and I meet the page. I step back into the world of my characters. But the truth is they’re with me all the time, particularly in the shower (lost of ideas and inspiration in that ten minutes of hot, steamy bliss each morning), and when I’m cooking a tasty meal.  Perhaps it’s because they’re both such sensual experiences, and to write you need to get out of your head and feel. The scent of basil leaves ripped into my tomato salad, or the taste of stem ginger in the heart of a chocolate cupcake; rose and geranium soap on my skin ~ these are the simple pleasures which ignite the writing brain.

The characters carry on conversations, share their feelings with each other, and I… I eavesdrop. Many of their conversations and anxieties and pleasures may not make it into the book, but it gives me a strong sense of who they are.

Happily Ever After by Veronika Sophia Robinson

Let me just say that no matter how many novels I end up writing, they will always have a happily-ever-after ending. Why? 

We all need to hope; need moments in life where we can feel good, where we can feel like we're 'home'. So, no matter what drama, torture, tragedy or pain I put my characters through (or indeed, that they put me through), we will come to a point where we can both breathe ~ where we can say 'life feels good right now'.

And I want my readers to sigh when they read the last page; to come through the journey and feel that, just for now, it's going to be okay. Why? Because we ALL deserve the chance to feel good.

As I young woman I walked out of the cinema at the end of the movie, Somersby, crying my eyes out. I was utterly distraught. The usher stopped me and asked if I was okay. 'No. It had the wrong ending', was all I could blub out. And I wasn't any better at the end of The Bridges of Madison County. 

My characters will always have a happily ever after....even if they don't know it yet!