No more shopping with mother

A couple of months ago I reported an adventure while in a shopping centre with my mother. Now, I must report that my wonderful, maddening mother has died. Recovering from an unexpected operation, her tired heart gave out. She was tiny in body, but big in impact, and to the very last she was making her presence felt: in order to be at her bedside I had to return in haste from Barcelona to the UK having been there barely 12 hours! And the day before she died she was pressing doctors into service to get chairs for her visitors. Always polite, if not always tactful, I remember an occasion when my late father was taken ill and she responded without hesitation. 'I'd have rung the Queen if I thought she could have helped,' she said. This fearless habit of going straight to the top once caused me much embarrassment, when she came to my school and asked the Headmistress to deliver my forgotten lunch. But then I was 13, an age when the least thing makes you cringe.
Her sudden passing has released a huge flood of love and support towards me and my family. 'She always made you welcome.' 'She always wanted to give you something.' 'I'll miss that cackling laugh when she rang me.' 'She never forgot your birthday.'  'She was a one-off, an inspiration.'
I will miss her very much, of course; especially in the last three years since my dad died, she has been in my thoughts a lot of the time, and even after she died I caught myself thinking one bitterly cold day, 'I hope mother is warm enough.' But I am not sad for her. She lived independently, with a bit of help, right to the end, and that end was mercifully swift, with her beloved granddaughters by her side, and me too in the last few hours. I don't know if she knew we were there; people say that hearing is the last sense to go, but she'd mysteriously managed to break her hearing-aid - the bane of my life - so it's anybody's guess. Like the funeral, these necessary rituals and assurances are for the living.
As she grew older and less mobile, her fund-raising activities were curtailed, but she continued to knit blanket-squares for a  local charity, and in  few weeks' time her last blanket will be draped on her coffin. Flowers will be few, because she hated to see cut flowers die. Instead, we will raise donations for that same charity, and I feel sure she would approve. Her funeral will be as much of a joyful celebration as we can make it. She was a woman of faith, and I have no doubt that she has gone to her great reward. If the angels have pocket-money, she's probably got it from them by now for some good cause.
Sad, yes, sometimes. Clearing her house, with all her things still there, will not be fun. But mostly I am thankful: for a long life well lived, for all the love she gave and received, and for the many hilarious things she said which are her most appropriate memorial. Go forth upon your journey, Christian soul.

A fine new review

My first book 'Leviathan with a Fish-hook' has recently been blessed with a wonderful review, posted on Amazon (.com and .co.uk) and on Goodreads. The best thing is knowing that there's been a contact between  minds and imaginations. Finding that your writing has had a positive impact on someone you will probably never meet is a great encouragement. Thank you, Elaine! (If you have a moment why not go over to one of these sites and take a look?)

An illuminating book

I've just posted a review on Amazon (uk and .com) of 'The Mystery of Spiritual Sensitivity' by Carol A. Brown. I've never met Carol, and chances are, sadly, that I never will, but I have got to know her via the internet and read some of her work. She is a remarkable person who has achieved a great deal and continues to forge ahead in her calling despite considerable problems of her own. I recommend a look at this and other books of Carol's, especially if you are in some kind of Christian ministry, (which means all of us who are Christians, of course!) Carol has also written some great books for children.

A new interview

I've been interviewed today by Rebeccah Giltrow about my life as a writer. Here's the link: http://rebeccahgiltrow.blogspot.co.uk/2013/02/writer-sue-russell.html

Shopping with mother

At the weekend I happened to mention to my mother - who was, as usual, having Sunday lunch with us - that I was hoping to buy a new coat with money received at Christmas. 'I could do with a new coat too,' she said. So today, having some spare hours, I took her to a local shopping centre. We decided to take her wheelchair because, although she can walk perfectly well with a stick, it would be tiring and progress would be slow. Fairly soon we found something suitable in the sales, but it was too small. So I pushed her to the other end of the shops, but we found nothing: too big, too dull, too bright. 'There was another coat like the one you tried on,' I said. 'Only two sizes bigger. How about you try that one, then we'll know your size for certain, and if necessary I can order it on the internet.' She agreed, and back we went. I turned away from her for a few seconds, trying to find the coat on the rail. There came a strangled squeak. I turned back and saw her almost on the floor, hanging on to the wheelchair's arm-rest, having somehow slithered off the seat.  'What are you doing down there?' I said. 'I don't know.' I hauled her back onto the seat and she said she was unhurt. The story ends well: the bigger coat fitted, and we bought it, at sale price. My mother is the most generous of souls, but she was raised in a frugal generation and likes a bargain, so she was happy. In a few weeks' time we are having a party to celebrate her birthday. She will be 95. Every outing's an unknown quantity. Oh yes, and she managed to lose a glove.
Talking of losing things, I also had to telephone an old people's home where mother thought she might have left her glasses while visiting an old friend before Christmas. They weren't there; where they are, nobody knows. In her friend's car? In the street? In the sock drawer where she once came across her missing hearing-aid? But the loss of her spectacles is not a problem. 'I found some others around the house,' she said blithely. 'I don't know whose they are, but they'll do.'
Could it be her attitude to life that has given her such longevity?

The Next Big Thing - continued

I am now able to tag fellow-author Carol Brown who will be posting on her blog next Wednesday 12th. Carol is the acclaimed author of a number of great books, including the 'Sassypants' series for children. Visit Carol's blog at http://connectwithcarolbrown.blogspot.com

The Next Big Thing

I've been tagged by the very talented Claire Dunn  (C.F.Dunn, 'Mortal Fire') to take part in The Next Big Thing, which is a way of telling potential readers about our WIP (Work in Progress.)I didn't manage to tag any other authors to take part but if this changes I'll put them in a future post. You might like to visit Claire's website, though - there are lots of good things to read there and news of her latest projects which are very exciting. (www.cfdunn.co.uk.)

So here are my (sometimes slightly baffled) answers to the NBT ten questions.

What is the working title of your book? 
I call it, for now, 'A Shed in a Cucumber Field'. The titles of my previous books ('Leviathan with a Fish-hook', 'The Monster Behemoth' and 'The Land of Nimrod') are all Bible quotations and this one is no exception. It comes from Isaiah 1 verse 8. Some people don't like this title at all, others think it's great. I might change it to 'Lost Sheep.'

Where did the idea for the book come from? 
Don't think me obtuse, but...where do ideas come from? I don't know.

What genre does your book fall under?
It's contemporary realistic adult Christian fiction with a British background. Is that a genre?

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?
I have a very clear picture in my mind of what my characters look like, and they don't resemble any actors I can think of. At a pinch, perhaps Meryl Streep for Vic.

What is the one-sentence synopsis for your book?
Two sisters, estranged for many years and thrown together by circumstance, are forced to deal with their difficult past and come to greater understanding.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?
This has not yet been decided. I self-published my trilogy and I don't regret that for one moment but now I am thinking it would be good to try a more traditional route.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?
I started cogitating and note-taking at the beginning of this year. I started writing in July and finished in October.

What other books would you compare your story to within the genre?
I haven't read hundreds of books in Christian fiction, but what I have read isn't anything like mine.It comes chiefly from America and has many forms there. So that is one clear difference: the cultural background. But also my stories aren't romances, don't contain much that is supernatural (in the spooky sense), nor are they historical, nor triumphalist...Now I've told you what they aren't, perhaps you'd better read one to find out what they are! I would be delighted if you did and am always glad to have honest feedback.

Who or what inspired you to write this book?
These questions are tough. If this doesn't sound hideously conceited (it isn't intended to be) I think it was the Holy Spirit.

What else about your book might pique the reader's interest?
It's different!
It's overt and unapologetic Christian fiction, so it is a 'clean' read, in other words there isn't any swearing or graphic sexual description. (I think such things are best left to the reader's imagination anyway.) Apart from that it's about  people we can almost all identify with, people with daily lives and recognisable issues.Readers have said that my stories make them think, but not in a heavy or preachy way.