The Indie Showcase presents, Joy Lennick.

The blank page and other Syndromes The return of an old friend

The Indie Showcase presents, Joy Lennick.

My guest today has a fascinating story, I must thank her for contributing.

Looking back a long time…I probably wanted to
emulate my Dad, who was a dab hand at Calligraphy and letter writing. I enjoyed
writing in pristine exercise books, and was soon in love with words. The
passion has never faded.

When World War Two broke out, I was
evacuated, to Wales,
along with my two brothers, and to placate the loneliness felt on being parted
from my parents, joined the local library and read everything I could get my
hands and eyes on. Each night – by candlelight – I consumed frightening stories
by The Brothers Grimm and had nightmares…Hans Christian Anderson stories were
usually kinder, and I worked my way through a whole raft of fairytales and
several books written for adults, plus many of the classics, including Dickens,
as the years rolled on. “Jane Eyre” remained a favourite. I attended seven
schools during the war period and had an abysmal education, so my mother sent
me to Pitman’s College to smooth out the rough edges and learn shorthand and
typing, which opened up another world to me when I left school at fifteen. (I
took my A level Literature exam as an adult amid several, more youthful
stares…)

I worked for a Secretarial Agency for a while
and, later on, secured my favourite post as secretary to the two editors of the
publishing company Kaye & Ward Ltd., in the city of London. Sometimes meeting authors and
illustrators and making ‘mock-ups’ of one or two children’s books was a delight
and I was in my element.

By then, married with three sons,
and in business with my husband, my life wandered down different pathways for a
while, but I still wrote short poems and a few articles which – eventually – when
they saw the light…were published in several newspapers and magazines. Another
of my interests was cooking and meeting people, so, as we often entertained, we
decided to buy a “ Tea Rooms,” a desire, it seemed, shared by half the
population! They were just too expensive, so we plumped for running an
attractive Edwardian hotel instead (see https://joylennick.wordpress.com/
) in Bournemouth. We thoroughly enjoyed the
experience, hard work though it was, but times and fancies were a-changing and
people were going abroad more. Nevertheless, we were quite successful, although
needed a cash injection to improve the ageing hotel… and eventually decided to
change course, which we did. What happened next still amazes me to reflect on…

Having moved back to Essex and bought a house, a letter was following,
offering ME?! the chance of writing a book on hotel life. Wow. An editor at
Kogan Page Ltd of London
happened…to ask one of my old bosses did she know anyone suitable for the
task. So I did, it sold so well there
was a second imprint and they asked me to update a few of their books, which I
was happy to do. They further asked me to write a book on Jobs in Baking and
Confectionery, and I really enjoyed the research for it.

‘Life,’ took a dip for a while,
during which period I didn’t write much, until the sun came out again and I
started a poetry club called Odes for
Joy. After that, it was Upwards and Onwards.

I then joined a local writing circle and met a charming, knowledgeable teacher, who was most helpful.

SUNSET

Did you see who lit the match

which set the sky on fire?

Surely one who was intent

on poets to inspire.

Or had Turner’s mistress painted

a scene to inspire wonder –

a scene to tug at heart and soul

and wrench belief asunder?

~~~~

Although, I was reading prodigiously
and writing many short stories during that period. I realise now I wasn’t as
committed as I should have been (I tend to go with life’s flow and am not very
ambitious.) I suppose that figures, as I was more introverted than the
opposite. Confidence doesn’t always rush to help, does it?!

Fast forward to the year 2,000, and we moved to Spain. The Culture department of the Town Hall ran the first Torrevieja International Short Story Competition five years later, I entered and won first prize. I have to use a cliché here, as I really was over the moon! I was a judge for the following two years and joined the Torrevieja Writing Circle, which was great fun. I then wrote several articles for the only English magazine in the area, and was introduced to an “adventuring sailor” called Andrew Halsey. He asked me to write an account of his rowing ventures at sea and had already conquered the might of the Atlantic! He then rowed off across the Pacific, leaving three, salt-stained Log books with me for deciphering and deleting generous expletives…I felt pity for him as he was epileptic (harnessed in when rowing) and he nearly died during two attempts to cross the Pacific. Doubtless a brave and formidable man, but it cost me dear to publish his book “Hurricane Halsey” – took two years and quite a few euros. . A costly lesson in trust, but I put it down to “life experience.”

I next wrote my memoir of evacuation in the war years (which went to No. 1 on Kindle in the social history and memoir category), followed by a novel based on the true 2005 terrorist bombing of a London train and the fate of the two fictional protagonists. On its heels came a collection of short stories, written with writer friend Jean Wilson (nicknamed “The Angel of Aldgate” due to her wonderful work in the East End of London as a nurse after the war). A local friend then gave me his grandfather’s memoir to upgrade: “From the Prairies to Passchendaele” (an incredible man), and I had several more short stories and poems included in anthologies. After editing and typing a memoir written by my husband, we worked together on a modest, humorous book called “The Moon is Wearing a Tutu” (short poems and jokes).

And I am at present working on another book called “The Highs and Lows of the Dombrowski Family.” Asked to write several lines from the seventh page of the book, they are as follows…

‘Then the thoughts took on a different form. Had he – his teenaged self – really been so sharp with his loving, warm, over-needy Mama; disenchanted with the sometimes cloying atmosphere of the home he really loved? He shrugs, briefly reliving the testosterone-absorbed years. His Papa came into focus: bearded, prematurely white-haired, sharp-featured (‘his nose could pierce a can’ from his Mama) and serious. How he had insisted on absolute commitment to him learning Hebrew, the Talmud and Russian! That he, Daniel, held a very different opinion on organized religion soon came to light.’

I enjoy interacting with other writers, and have interviewed a few on my web-site. Writing a book can be a daunting prospect, but what else would I do with the words?

MY GENTLE WAR

THE CATALYST

WHERE ANGELS AND DEVILS TREAD (SHORT STORIES)

THE MOON IS WEARING A TUTU

SEVERAL ANTHOLOGIES

( All available from Amazon, Kindle, Kobo and joylennick@gmail.com)

The Chair at Writers Ink, Ink Spot:(www.writersinkspot.com/)

Columnist with the Costa Blanca Newspaper (Re Writers Ink)

~~~~

Thanks, Joy, for a great post. I hope you all enjoyed it.

While you’re here,
why not have a look around the site? There are FREE things and a whole lot
more, just follow the links at the top of the page.

If you want to be
featured in a future Showcase, where you can write about whatever
(within reason) you want, then please let me know. Use the comment box below
and I’ll get back to you.

You can catch up on previous Showcase posts by clicking HERE

If you’d like to try my new Novel Life and Other Dreams, you can pre-order
it now and you’ll receive it on Feb 15th. Just visit https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07KVHG384