Jane Wallman-Girdlestone

Not everyone has the luxury of creative hibernation so while I have the opportunity I’m making the most of it.
I’ve done this for the last few years and it has been a creative gold mine; a time when my focus is firmly on writing and painting.
This year will be a little different.  I begin with an exploratory conference.  Then I’m training with my new guide dog before settling into creative work and retreat.  
Usually I emerge in the Spring with a manuscript and a strong need to run wild.  It works for me.
Hibernation is a time to focus down.  It’s different from my usual work patterns in that the priority of the day is different.  I choose to dig deep and not be easily distracted.  I choose to let others do things that free me up to get on.  I choose an anonymous, weirdly under cover existence for a bit.  I become a people watcher and not a people engager.  I contemplate questions and give myself the space to face complex answers.
I work hard but I love it.  I feel like a miner at a word rock face; a teller of tales rolling in paint.
I’m terribly excited but staggeringly nervous.  It always feels like an extraordinary act of faith in the meaningfulness of creativity.
In amongst the fear are the stirrings of creative risk-taking.  That takes energy, determination and concentration.  I’m off to prepare.  Wish me luck.