Paying it forward - again

I've been asked for some dates to deliver a workshop this week, a paid gig.  This comes on the back of doing a free one for a writers' group I belong to, and was a lovely surprise.

When I was checking my diary it set me thinking how much I'm paying it forward to the writing community.  First there's Havant and District Writers' Circle.  I and writer friend Carol Westron rescued the long-running circle from collapse back in 2014, when the previous chairman passed away.  By that time the Circle had shrunk to a handful of members.  We've now rebuilt the group up to a lively one of fifteen committed members.

Them theres's Portsmouth Writers' Hub, the group I gave the talk to last Thirsday.  We're about to start a bid for grant funding, and I've volunteered my services, as an ex-lawyer who has some knowledge of applying for grant funding, to help the group with its application.  I have a feeling that could become quit a sizeable commitment,

Then theres's T'Articulation, where I'm regularly writing short spoken word pieces to perform at their events.  This is probably giving me in return more than the time I put into it.  I am learning to write flash fiction pieces to set themes, and I'm learning to edit them down to a specific time length.  And as a bonus, I've met a lovely new group of writer friends.

The next big thing I'm involved in is Portsmouth Bookfest.  I'm giving a talk for the Writing and Publishing Weekend.  Last year I talked about pitching ficfion.  This year I'll be taking the discussion on a little further to talk about how to deal with rejections and the monumental indifference to our work that writers encounter when pitching.

This last thing I've volunteered is three panel topics for the upcoming World Science Fiction Convention in Dublin in August this year.  I'm still waiting to hear from the organisers whether they'll use any of my panels, and whether they'll put me on them.

All this work goes onto around my main task of writing the current novel.  That I count as my 'day job', and the other things slot in around it.  I do work hard, but it's by choice on things I love, in stark contrast to my paid work days.

And when I do eventually get that elusive publication contract I already have some contacts and networks which will help me with book publicity.  But most of all, paying it forward is fun, and at a time of life when I could sit around all day doing nothing, it gives purpose and structure to my life.