Tuesday, August 17, 2010

There's always another deadline...

I apologise if I've been a bit quiet on the blogging front. I mean to, and I want to, but after a day hard out writing, I look at the screen and contemplate posting something witty and erudite, or informative and realise, oops, I seem to have used up my daily allocation of witty, erudite and informative and the well is dry.

Writing you ask? Is it the next novel? A short story for the Sunday Star Times competition? Nah, sorry, it's something quite different - I'm in the final throes of a thesis. Muggins here decided she needed to do some post-graduate study, that life wasn't busy enough with being a mum and writing novels and all the other associated stuff, nope, I thought I'd become a student again.

Oh you silly cow, you say, and you'd be right - the extra pressure has been hard, BUT it has been a lot of fun and a journey of discovery.

So what does a Crime Writer/ academic wannabe study then? For those out there that like official titles, I'm doing a Post Graduate Certificate in Pharmacy Research. But here is the fun bit - I'm researching a crime writer, and not just any crime writer, I'm researching Ngaio Marsh. What the hell does Ngaio Marsh have to do with Pharmacy research you ask? Well, she used the occasional poison, didn't she? Et voila, we have a connection.

So there is some method to my madness - I get to tick lots of boxes in one go. I get to look into the workings of a writer I hugely admire, I get to satisfy my inner geek and I get to look closely into the world of crime writing. It's all good.

But it does make me a bad blogger, just for a while.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Vanda - I think it's exciting that you're going to be studying - and Ngaio Marsh is a wonderful topic, too : ). I hope you'll let us know how you're progressing.

I know how you feel: I got my Master's Degree while I was working full-time and my Ph.D. after my daughter came along - and while I was working full time...

Kerrie said...

Sounds good enough to me - but you'll be even busier!

Anonymous said...

Hi Vanda,

Thats great news about starting study again.

I'm about to pick up the books again myself after a gap of "longer than I care to think about" and can't wait to try it again as a mature student.

Hope you enjoy the topic, its sounds really interesting!

Jason Payne
Back in EnZed For A Few Weeks

Erin (Homemade Cards by Erin) said...

Don't worry the blogging world isn't going anywhere. Your fans love you regardless! Dan just said that while visiting the Wanaka library the other day he overheard a woman ask the librarian to help her find a Vanda Symon book. :) (He helped her, don't worry).