July has arrived, whether we like it or not, complete with sky-waking fire hazards, biters, and boiling suns. We happily chill and work through the heated months in our newly renovated Rose Cottage. I have much to list! My shop will soon refill with new photography, stationery, artwork, and darling books. In the coolest hours, the last bit of exterior boards swiftly change from dirty old blue to cosy fresh heavy cream. Cabinets assemble in the evenings. Sweet tiny bird families build thyme refuges in the shade. We redo old gardens, spreading anise hyssop seeds all along the pathways. My imagination scribbles away all day, all night. It is such a relief to have a new writing tool, see below, to translate my loving stories into printed books with less strife and pain. There are worlds in the hearth of every soul. Express love and peace. There and then, roses bloom ever so sweetly.
I am so happy to finally have a piece of technology that serves me, at least in the recording stage of my stories. Aptly named, reMarkable reduces my arthritis pain and migraine aura, and it quickens my writing process. I write nearly 24/7 so this little lovely, unlighted, non-screen screen helps me out. (Unsponsored review, as always.)
It’s not yet ideal because I still have to transfer this wonky text and edit it fully on a computer in two separate programs to make the lines into books. This step does help more than the inept vocal recording systems out there or just plain notebook copy-typing myself into a blind state of exhaustion. It is pretty good at getting most of my handwriting into text. I do have a lot of spaces to erase and quotes to redirect, a bug for them to work out for the next version. We do love the note pages and being able to practice our calligraphy without having to borrow back our blotting paper from our Borrowers.
After a week of use, I’m grateful for how it allows me to work more naturally and in my own handwriting. Not having to look back and forth whilst typing makes me less dizzy. I write more neatly again because there is no ink and less pressure on the hand to push onto the page. Also, one really does want to get it right the first time so there is less to decipher/edit. I never had to charge my pen or notebook, but I can buy way less ink refills and bulk sets of notebooks, which are two of my biggest expenses. This item wasn’t inexpensive either, so I hope it will last a very long time. It feels good to be once again in the proofreading stages. I predict that I will be able to publish more books in the next year. Too bad the cost of printing hasn’t gone down, though. In the meantime, I’m thinking about self-printing again to solve this issue. We’ll see. Printers are highly irritating creatures. Please fix those bugs soon, Techies.
This new process gives me less mass to physically store, which is good in a way, but I’m not sure if I like not having the first books. I will still keep printed copies of both the originals and the last proofread drafts to look back on as the archival rough drafts for each story. I feel like I can’t truly count on paper or digital files. They’re too fragile. If only I could store my words and pictures under the bark of a tree. Never in some organized, no-so-private, faux cloud. Even my own mind’s translation is muffled from its original spark. And, with so many new stories coming in, my best bet is to hurry up and get all of the books made. Translating ideas is an odd one. Illustration is even trickier for me. At least with writing, I just record the lines in my head. It’s hard to keep up. Painting depends more on my physical arm, back, tailbone… and how long they will be in the right frame of mind to try. The image is more specific, elusive, and more difficult to capture. It’s fleeting. So are the words, though. A steady home set up with a dependable timed-out routine helps allow both aspects of my storytelling to be themselves. I can listen well in the silence. This isn’t easy to balance with a family, homeschool, or exterior pollution, but I’ve just now been able to set a pretty good schedule. Stories ramble out. They speak to me just as people can stroll down many routes. Images are more strict on me. I let them be free to emerge and show themselves. I don’t feel that being a human makes sense for translating the senses. It’s difficult to find that one moment of alignment where things hurt less and you can breathe it out. Any tool, or made-up process, that I find to help me is a gift to the creative process. I like to keep things going…because ideas never stop…
Author Process Note: All illustrations will still be done by hand. Also, the next ~400 books to release were all hand-written. I’ve written about 4 this week on this tablet. It’s not as organic or free, but the editing stage is less consuming. It feels ever so good to move on and to add more Amor Milagre tales to my bookshop! Revisit my shop soon for all kinds of love stories.
*Update about ReMarkable 9-7-25. I’ve experienced a lot of restarting and dysfunctional non-operating moments with this device. It doesn’t send emails as it says, it doesn’t convert text consistently, it needs too many factory resets to even function or turn on as it stops working and goes to sleep often now. The company is not helpful. They have many bugs to sort out, and after system updates more issues occur. It’s frustrating because this would be helpful to my process if it worked well. Ugh…
Like a writing or painting process, our new rose-clematis trellis is a good structure to hold strong, allowing beauty to sprawl about as naturally as it buds and blooms up to be adored.
New nature photography, books, oil paintings, notecard-wax seal sticker sets,
and artwork will release this season.
A happy, safe summer to you and your Dear Ones! Love, ~Amor Milagre
