It's been a while since I have had much time for posting. Always seems to be something getting in the way and not always able to side-step the distractions.

Have been writing some articles, trying out a few more filler items and generally looking for new places to send writing. Each year I set out to find new people to approach - partly because I like to spread my wings a bit and partly because there are only so many pieces that a magazine will accept at a time. I also run out of items to submit for certain markets yet I can recycle work already published in a different format - letter from article or vice versa, story from funny photo and so on. I have just submitted an article on a theme I have often written on, village signs. This time I won't be paid but I have other ideas for the magazine and if they like what they get this time there is a better chance of being accepted for other topics. A couple of weeks ago I came across a website looking for short factual gardening pieces in exchange for vegetable seeds. Well, I would buy those anyway, so if I wrote for seeds it wouldn’t be unrewarded. I was even asked to select the seeds I would like.

Next task is to re-write an article I have submitted unsuccessfully. The article was fine, I was told,  but the magazine is not accepting new material at present and this is time sensitive so a quick jiggle to fit it more closely to another magazine's style and it can be sent back into cyberspace with the hopes of hitting the mark second time around. I can do another re-jig for a different market again and hopefully one (or even both) with prove acceptable.

Now I need to think what to do with these photos, just some of a group I took before the snow fell yesterday. On a trip out we came across these frozen scenes alongside a puddle on a country road. The water splashed up had frozen into magical scenes but elsewhere there was no sign of frost. The hedges were dull brown, the verges green and the road clear. We were not the only ones to stop to take photos. I was really thankful I have taken to always having a camera in my bag or pocket, even on a trip to the shops!