As tired as a very tired person who can't find a metaphor by Sheena Wilkinson

Readers, I am as tired as a very tired person. A person too tired to find an actual image even though I am, in fact, a writer.

I FEEL as though, in the last five days, I have:

Organised and hosted a book launch attended by many people, involving a great deal of planning and wine-buying and speech-writing, and also involving leaving my dress behind and only realising it when we were already on the motorway;

the dress was worth going back for 

Delivered a workshop on poetry writing at my local primary school;

the kids were worth it too and no, we weren't focusing on spelling 

Engaged in online essay one-to-ones with Scottish sixth year students, as part of my work with the Royal Literary Fund's Bridge project;

Facilitated an in-person but not at all local personal writing workshop with trauma-experienced adults as part of my work with the RLF's Writing for Life project;

Been interviewed for an online literary 'salon' mostly with pre-published writers;

this was fun!

Visited a Belfast independent bookshop to sign copies of Miss McVey Takes Charge, which they are stocking;

Thank you NO ALIBIS!

Attended an Arts Council workshop on dealing with disappointment and rejection, and been very amused when a writer I know, who's at the pre-published, querying stage, said, 'What are you doing here? What can you know about rejection?' (Er, how long have you got?)

some writers I know were cynical about this, but it was very helpful

Looked forward all week to getting to my desk for the first time today, Friday (apart from admin) to work on my novel, only to realise my ABBA post is due...

And readers, the reason I FEEL as though I have done all those things in the last five days is because I have. I know my life is no busier than anyone else's, and it's certainly easier and jollier than when I was a full-time teacher, but I seem to have a lot of different hats to wear these days!

I have left out all the life stuff: choir practice; dog-walking; gym; shopping; visiting close friend in hospice; getting stuck in a two-hour traffic jam (luckily NOT while going back to pick up the forgotten dress); getting up at 6 the day after the launch to drive the book's dedicatee to the airport -- she came to stay for the launch, which was great fun -- and no, I haven't had time to change the spare bed, so if you are coming to visit me, please know that you are welcome, but give me a few days. 

And now, for the rest of today, apart from dog walking and signing some books and putting them in the post for readers who wanted to buy directly from me, I intend to go to 1925 and stay there. My characters are having an equally varied time, and it's up to me to make sense of it all for them...

The writing life. It's certainly varied.