A Writing Story

(No this is not Tuesday. It’s Friday night. But next Tuesday I will be doing research..)

Recently I had a chance to go back to the country – not to visit friends or restaurants, or to enjoy the country breezes – although we often do that. This time I went back to give a talk about my writing. I was invited by a writers’ group that I had helped organize back in about 2007. While it’s still on my mind, I want to share some of the highlights of my writing “career” with you, dear readers. This is not the stuff of best-selling autobiographies, but it has some funny parts.

I started writing as a young girl in grade 8, when my teacher asked me to be the editor of the class yearbook. Of course I saved that yearbook; printed on an old duplicating machine which gave off those heavenly alcoholic fumes; now faded and tattered. The contents are very amateurish, full of errors and omissions. But that experience gave me the love of the printed word. I didn’t stop to think that writing is not a lucrative career – which is a good thing!

The next step in my writing career began in university where I started a quarterly newsletter on my floor in residence. My last name was Allcock at the time so I called the newsletter Allcock and Bull. It was full of gossip and stories about life in residence, and it was copied using carbon paper, 2 pages at a time. After graduating, I abandoned writing for a while, but when my kids were born and we lived in a family neighbourhood, I began writing a similar kind of column for our quarterly newsletter, the Henry Farmer. I did that for 15 years and got a lot of positive feedback. But no salary.

As an educator I wrote a few articles for professional journals and got paid about $150 per article which works out to around 1 1/2 cents a word. I also answered requests in the Toronto Star for material such as “Describe your experience moving from a house to a condo.” I especially remember that one because a photographer came to my condo to take a photo. He asked if my cat could be in the picture with me; apparently the cat was much cuter. But I got $100 anyway.

When I moved to the country to live with Peter, I became an editor of a local arts magazine, King MOSAiC. It was great fun. I wrote a few articles and enjoyed interviewing the various neighbourhood celebrities. But this role wasn’t lucrative at all. In fact one time I interviewed the owner of a popular restaurant whose specialty was butter tarts. As we talked, I could see the yummy butter tarts in the display case nearby. I guess the owner didn’t notice me salivating all over my notes, because the interview ended with only a handshake.

In 2018 Peter and I moved back to the city and I searched around for another opportunity to get my words on a page somewhere. And that’s when I came up with a 21st. century idea – a blog! I still love writing Seventy In The City, which is now 3 years old, and I know you enjoy your Tuesday morning fix because I get a lot of positive comments. But again, no $$$.

On my days off, Wednesday to Monday, I have been doing some other writing. My husband Peter, aka Pietro, loves to tell stories. And, after 15 years together, I know them all by heart. Peter’s life has been propelled forward by education, and a lot of the stories have a school focus. One day I thought: a compilation of these stories could actually become a book, with a theme. And so Pietro Goes To School was born.

Then I had another thought: maybe I could Sell this book. Maybe I could even make some money! Maybe I could become a best-selling author!! OK so maybe I was getting ahead of myself…

Anyway, after many rejection letters from publishers, I had the book published by a Toronto Public Library service and began to distribute it. And I think I may have found a buyer! A school is considering using my little book as resource material for adult students. This would be the best: a tribute to Pietro and his commitment to education and, after all these years, a little remuneration for me.

Sue

PS This piece is not meant to solicit funds from loyal readers. Honest!