I’m delighted to have a short story appearing on supermarket shelves this week!
AN AUGUST AFFAIR
This summer story wasn’t written in summer at all. It was submitted months ago - in fact, at the turn of winter into spring - those dark days when you start to dream of summer and all that it promises!
When I sat down to write a summer story, I briefly thought of all things summer. I’d previously written stories inspired by places I had visited, so this time my mind turned to something else entirely.
We were married in August. The end of August to be exact, and I wore a dress and hairstyle reminiscent of Kylie Minogue’s character, Charlene, in Neighbours, which was so popular at the time it had a lunchtime spot and an evening spot on TV when we only had five channels to choose from.
When I sat down to write this short story, I was thinking about summer weddings and what that might mean to someone who wasn’t necessarily looking to get married, wasn’t particularly dewy-eyed at the thought of attending a huge family summer wedding, and what might help that story be a little bit different.
Of course, you’ll have to read the actual story to get all the juicy bits, because I’m not allowed to place it here! It will appear in The People’s Friend (Weekly) in supermarkets from Wednesday 20th August.
I originally titled it ANOTHER AUGUST as I felt that title encompassed the repeat of the summer weddings, but also incorporated the main male character’s name. Titles are always subject to change in a magazine for a variety of reasons!
ELEVATING THE STORY
Several things went into elevating the story.
First off, my characters had to seem relatable, and I think I managed that right in the opening scene when they are getting dressed and ready for the wedding. We see and hear the little quirks of the family right in the opening.
My little, extra, character was introduced right in that moment, and he’s a real dog!
Photo by Jackie Morrison: illustration by Pat Gregory for D.C.Thomson
Crumpet the dachshund exists in real life, and looks remarkably like this illustration by Pat Gregory for publisher D.C.THOMSON!
Crumpet attended the Edinburgh Writers Forum at the Edinburgh Book Shop. He was very well behaved, and I decided on the spot that I just had to have a dachshund in my next story!
Isn’t he cute in the illustration wearing his little wedding outfit?! He had a very important job as ring bearer at the wedding, but was yet to reveal his secret skill as a matchmaker!
These details alone made the story a gentle, enjoyable one, but as is often the case, there was something else needed, and I ruminated on it for a while. Our stories need to have a point!
Often, it is finding something to hold it all together. I gave more thought to the B-story of the best friend who misses the wedding because she’s about to give birth, and the developing relationship of the two main characters.
I usually have to play around with names, same with descriptions of characters, as I’ve written so many stories now, I have to be careful not to repeat myself!! I also like my characters to have interesting jobs and quirks, and I loved the little details about these two being linked by seaweed!
The final detail fell into place as I decided on a name for the male character and how this tied in with the female character’s best friend, who was about to give birth. I knew as soon as I added this detail that it rounded the story off. Don’t ask me where the name came from, as I didn’t search for it, but I was writing a summer story set in August: so the male character became Gus, Augustus - and it was perfect (I hope you agree if you read the story!)
I was very pleased by the end of the story to feel that certain flow. The feeling that the story was now complete. It’s difficult for me to explain this - it’s just something I feel in my body when I get to the end of the read-through. There’s a little flip of joy, or a tear of acknowledgement (this was the case with TIME FOR A CLOSE-UP).
Writing summer, and in particular, a summer wedding, felt warm, breezy, romantic, relaxing, and all the kinds of cosy I feel for summer. The reply to this submission came very quickly, and I knew by the nature of the story title that it would appear some time in August!
A NEW MEMBER OF THE FAMILY - FICTION BECAME REALITY!
What do you know? We have a new member of the family who we met on our last visit to London. He is a dachshund - a wiry-haired one (a teckle? I believe) - so not the miniature one in the illustration.
Meet Dougal, who can be found striding the streets of London with his human parents (our son and his partner). He’s a teckel: a sporting dachshund!
Photo: Jackie Morrison, Dougal the Dachshund
He’s small, feisty, very smart, and pulls a crowd wherever he goes!
What is it with the universe? I wrote about a dachshund, and one arrived in the family?
SEASONAL WRITING
What to keep in mind if you are writing seasonally?
While we are still in summer, you can write down some details about your summer days - things that are particular to you. Your routine in summer, the smells, the tastes, what you are surrounded by. Take note of any little quirky things you see. This way, you can have details in your notebook for when you may write out of season. Often, this is the case if you are submitting to a magazine seeking stories around six months ahead of publication time. So, in January, you are writing June! Of course, there’s nothing wrong with writing a summer story right now and storing it away for later - that’s much more practical!
You might want to keep such seasonal or travel notes in one particular notebook that you can refer to. I used to keep little scrapbooks of my trips, tickets, and other items. Now I mainly do this on my iPhone journal app as it also attaches photographic prompts, which is pretty useful! I’m quite a visual person, so I enjoy that feature.
This task might be made more enjoyable by writing some little musings or poems as you go along - and if you are doing this electronically, you can add photos or build a Pinterest board for your seasons.
I have several tiny notebooks on my shelves that returned from far-flung travels, and I love to look through them as they’re stuffed with maps, receipts, and tickets. There’s just something so tactile about having those little handwritten notes to look through!
If you’d like a FREEEEE prompt sheet, then head to the bottom of this Newsletter Post as I have a free download waiting for you there!
WE ARE GROWING!
It looks like my subscriber number may hit a nice round number over the coming weeks. I’ve no idea how it happened - I just write and share and move on to the next thing, hoping that some of it sticks!
I remember being astonished when I reached my first 100 subscribers, and I celebrated by posting up a poem of mine that was a finalist with the Urban Tree Festival. You can find it here:
Celebrate with me - a poem for you
Thank you subscribers! You are one of my very first 100 subscribers and to celebrate, I’m sharing a poem with you. Waiting For You was shortlisted in the Urban Tree Festival and appeared in the beautiful chap book called Canopy.
GIVEAWAY
I am going to celebrate by posting another short-listed piece of work that fits the summer vibe, so look out for that!
Do let me know if you’ve been writing anything related to Summer!
Thanks for being here! Do me a favour and share, comment, or restack as I no longer do a Paid Subscriber option as I’ve chosen to keep my Posts (Newsletters) free for now.
Love, from Jackie in the Little Writing Corner in Scotland x x
FREE FOR YOU: Seasonal Prompt Sheets:
SEASONAL PROMPTS_Little Writing Corner_Jackie Morrison: Free Giveaway
(Click the link above to receive the Seasonal Prompts set and if you’d like to access future freebies like this, then sign up now as a subscriber for them to come directly to your email box!)
Wiry Haired Dachshund: Wiry Haired Dachshund
The Edinburgh Bookshop in Bruntsfield: edinburgh bookshop
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