Feedback - Joe Story
My wife thrust the advert under my nose and in a kindly but firm voice said “You’ve been talking about writing for long enough, do something about it and get it out of your system”.
Some weeks later therefore, after a journey of a couple of hundred miles, I arrived at Ullswater for the first Lakes Writing Course. Having been involved in preaching and teaching for decades, I knew I could express myself orally, but could I write? That was the burning question for me. I had been trying to do so for some time but nothing was completed and certainly nothing had been published.
As someone who enjoys food, cooking and socialising, I gravitated towards the kitchen. The tea was welcome and the greetings friendly, but the bags of vegetables were a little disconcerting. The type, quantity and unprepared condition of the food was more akin to a boot camp than a writing course. I began nosing around. We would certainly not go hungry – provided of course that the food could be got ready to eat. When I realised that there were no basics such as butter, cooking oil or even salt, I decided to move into ‘bossy’ mode. I am uncertain exactly how it happened, but one other participant and I took charge of the kitchen and started preparing the evening meal. It could not have been too bad, as I have been allowed to do the cooking for every course since. I have persuaded Authentic that I can cook, but what do they think of my writing?
From the beginning Ali Hull took me under her editorial wing, an experience akin to being succoured by a mother she wolf – secure and nourishing, but not a relationship to be entered into lightly. Under her tutelage I have been provoked and chastened into
re-considering my approach to writing. I realised that my aspirations and attempts were to produce a masterpiece when I had never learnt the rudiments of the trade. I was like a would be carpenter, dreaming of making a Georgian style wardrobe when I had not yet produced a simple coffee table.
Encouraged by the courses I therefore began to explore writing letters and short articles of news or views for magazines and newspapers, both local and national. I was fortunate in having some printed, including a front-page lead item in the Christian Herald. This gave me the confidence to give writing a higher priority in my life. I am now producing monthly articles for both a local and a national publication and writing book reviews and other ad hoc items as well. I am also seriously working on a couple of books and Ali is encouraging me to submit one manuscript to Authentic for their consideration. For me the course has made all the difference between a tentative ‘if’ and a definite ‘when’.
Joe Story