Today I’m thinking about Maeve Binchy
If you’ve never read her books stop reading thie right away and go and get one!
Maeve Binchy is an Irish national treasure. She passed away on the 30th of July 2012 in her beloved Dalkey, a lovely little seaside town in County Dublin. I think of her often but especially today as I read an article about her in the Irish Times. She’s quoted as saying ‘in my books ugly ducklings don’t turn into beautiful swans, but into confident ducks.’ I love that idea. And I loved her.
I read everything Maeve ever wrote. From an age when some of the themes might have been a bit mature for my young mind, Maeve taught me about life, about love, about dreams and unbeknownst to my teenage self, she taught me about writing.
There was something warm and friendly about her, something real. She wrote about real people, having real reactions and through her I came to understand that no matter who we are, where we come from, what age we are, or colour, or religion or gender, we all just want to feel connected. To love and be loved. To have autonomy over our destiny, and to do something with our lives that fills our souls (and our wallets if possible) .That’s it. The secret of life right there.
I’m reading Your One Wild and Precious Life at the moment, by another Irish woman, Dr Maureen Gaffney and I cant recommend it highly enough. It discusses the nature of ageing and she frames it in such an exciting and exhilarating way that I’m actually looking forward to the changes that each spin around the sun can bring.
We are growing and evolving all the time. We are constantly a work in progress. Becoming, as Maeve might say, ‘more confident ducks’ with each passing year. For me, the concern for what people will think of me is ever diminishing, which is a charity I can tell you.
I’ve finished the first draft of Roaring Liberty, that’s book 4 in the Queenstown Series and and while there’s a bit of donkey work to do in fixing it up, I’m very happy with it. I feel like I might be finished with Harp, for now at least. But sometimes characters have other ideas, we’ll see. You can preorder it here: https://geni.us/RoaringLiberty
So what’s next? Well, something I’m a bit nervous about to be honest. I’ve a book half written, but it’s a bit different to what you expect from me. Five years ago I would have been terrified to even consider publishing it, but the new 50 year old me is a braver woman.
We have to change, to evolve, otherwise we’re stagnant. So onward, and it might work, and readers might like it, or they might not, but if I don’t try, then I’ll never know. I won’t say any more for now, but watch this space.
Meanwhile, have a great week, and I’ll leave you with another Maeve-ism.
‘If you don’t go to a dance, you can never be rejected. But you never get to dance either.’
Le grá agus buiochas,
Jean xx