Two Days Writing Anne Cassidy

1989

I am writing my first untitled detective novel for teenagers (BIG GIRLS SHOES). I am in the English department room at Somerset Boys’ School in Haringey. The school is closing and in its last year so there is plenty of free time. In between lessons I sit at an electric type writer and write the story. I use every free minute I have to type. When I finish a few pages I read it. Then I sometimes go back and type the whole thing over again because I don’t like some of the lines. I don’t bother with carbon copies I photocopy what I do. Somebody mentions something about a word processor but I won’t have anything to do with it because I’m suspicious of new things. When people come in I usually cover up what I’m doing because I’m embarrassed to admit I’m writing a story. I read over my words and like some of what I’ve written. At the end of the day I square up my pages and unplug the typewriter. Then I put the cover over it and leave. I find I have written half a chapter and feel pleased.

2010
I get up and turn the computer on. It’s the first thing I do every day. I work in my study next to my bedroom. After I’ve had a cup of tea I sit in my nightclothes and look at my emails and then Twitter. Then I go through all the blogs I like. Finally I make myself settle down to work on a chapter of the first book of my four book series THE MURDER NOTEBOOKS. Using a timer clock I write for fifteen minutes. It’s important for me to get something down on paper early. Then I go and have breakfast and get dressed and tidy up then I write for a while. After a break I go on to FACEBOOK and have a look around. I check my ratings on Amazon and feel grumpy for a while. Then I write some more. I print out sections of what I’ve written because I don’t really trust the computer to look after it. I deal with some emails from readers and then go on Amazon and look up my ratings and feel ridiculously pleased because they are higher than last time. Then I put the title of my latest book into Google and search for reviews. Then I write. I read through some of what I’ve written over the last weeks and try to see where I’m going. I go on Twitter and try to think of something pithy to say. This goes on all day. At the end of the day I turn my computer off and square up my pages and feel pretty pleased.