Previously on ABBA - A fistful of nostalgia. Linda Strachan

Looking back at my previous ABBA blogs it was a bit daunting to see that there have been over 80 of them, since the first one written in July 2008!  

I thought I might revisit some of them with you...

I recall being very nervous about writing that first one, not having had much experience of blogging.  It was -

 'A Life More Interesting ' 
about how I wished I'd lived a more exciting life so that I had more
interesting things to write about in my bio for my first YA novel!  

I've written about such a variety of things some serious others more light-hearted.  Quite a few are about the struggles when writing.

There was the - 

ode for Valentine's day  

 about  Falling in and out of love…  with the book you are writing!

Interestingly the one that sparked the most interest was on -

 Diversification or How to survive as a writer    

Not surprising, perhaps as writers there are always ups and downs   "We're all doomed! DOOMED!" as Private Fraser (played by actor John Laurie) used to say, in Dad's Army.  To survive we do need to look at other ways to use the skills we have.   

K.M.Lockwood commented on this post that,  '... diversity brings creative stimulus in its wake, too.'  

Some of my other most read blogs have been on the subject creativity such as this one  -

Ideas and Creativity -They are fragile things! 

which seemed to touch a nerve in many other writers.

I have written about the threat and the need to preserve our school libraries and librarians  in Sept 2012 -

School libraries and librarians- essential for our children and society. 

and again -

School Librarians - A Precious Resource 

in December 2013. But sadly the threat of losing these champions of books and reading, is still as great.

I've written about festivals and deadlines, travelling and finding time to write, what happens when I am not writing and the struggles when I am.   It has been quite a journey and I hope you have enjoyed it as much as I have. ABBA has such a wonderful variety of writers and subject matter that it is well worth dipping into the past blogs -

So why not take a lucky dip and see what comes up.  ENJOY!

One that I will leave you with is from Nov 2008. I recall being just a bit of fun - and Brian Keaney added a great end-piece to it in the comments -

The one that got away  

Your see there is this little squat horn-toes creature with sharp ears and a rather long chin. He is on his way along a winding path though what is obviously a fairytale land.  You can tell that by the lane that meanders through unbelievably perfect countryside with undulating hills, all the optimum size for 'pleasantness'. 

He is muttering and mumbling to himself as he approaches a small house with a happily drooping roof, which might just look like it had been knitted, if you looked at it in the right light. 

He has several packages under his arm that all look similar in shape and size.  They are each wrapped in brown paper and tied with a piece of old knotted string.....   

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Linda Strachan is the author of over 60 books for all ages from picture books to teenage novels and the writing handbook - Writing For Children.

Linda is currently Chair of the SOAiS - Society of Authors in Scotland 

Linda's latest YA novel is Don't Judge Me . 
She is Patron of Reading to Liberton High School, Edinburgh.

Her best selling series Hamish McHaggis is illustrated by Sally J. Collins who also illustrated Linda's retelling of Greyfriars Bobby.

website:  www.lindastrachan.com
blog:  Bookwords