Gwyneth Box

Square photo of a white short-haired cat lying asleep. The cat is stretched full length and is positioned across the centre of the photograph. In the foreground is a dark textured fabric - part of an inside doormat. Behind the cat, in the background, part of a white wooden screen doorframe is visible, and through the screen netting an outdoor space with terracotta tiles. The legs of a couple of pieces of patio furniture are also visible, along with a couple of large plant pots.

My creative writing tends to sit somewhere in the blurred borderlands between writer & narrator; translation & creation; memoir & invention; poetry & prayer.

Watson tends to sleep in the narrow border between inside & outside; between kitchen & patio.

#liminalspaces #caturday #writingcommunity

Watson, the writer’s cat, has his own personal take on “twist in the tale”.

#writingcommunity #writers #genrefiction #caturday

Looking forward to reading - and listening - at this online event tomorrow!

#poetry #writingcommunity

Square photo of a three-colour short-haired cat sitting on a step looking straight at the camera. The cat has dark, tabby markings on head, back and tail, but the muzzle, belly and front legs and paws are white. The cat looks well fed, but wary. The steps and wall behind the cat are whitewashed concrete and terracotta tile. There are two black iron railings sloping upwards from right to left, which are presumably part of the staircase.

Skinner & Watson are a bit fed up with being #Caturday stars, so they suggested I find someone else to provide a new angle.

What do you do when you find your writing is in a rut?

#Writingcommunity #writers #changeofperspective

Square photo of a quiet Spanish village corner at sunset. The light is rosy orange on the square white house fronts. In the distance there are mountains.

El Dorado

At midday
incandescent angles
pierced my eyes.
Now all that remains
is honey-gold. Swallows rise
on updraughts: smuts
above the embers of the day.

---------------------

Poem written decades ago in Madrid.
Photo is Andalucía 2025 but has just the right honey-gold light.

#poetryarchive

There aren’t many rhymes for “tuna”!
:-)

Square photo. The photo shows the angles and sides of a large cardboard box. there is a small gap showing the dark interior of the box with a small tabby cat's face looking out. She looks startled or frightened. Further back in the box a white cat can just be seen.

I’ve been reading some of my poetry aloud to see how it sounds. I didn't think it was too bad, but Skinner and Watson seem to think it’s terrifying!


Have you ever done a reading that fell flat because it was the wrong content for the audience?

#Caturday #WritingCommunity #AudienceAppreciation

Square photograph. Most of the photo shows a close up of part of the metal wire grill structure of an electric fan. Behind the fan and visible through the wires, is a white cat who is lying on the ground with his head raised and pink ears alert. The cat is out of focus and so is the background, although there appear to be railings and a patch of terracotta - perhaps tiles or roof tiles beyond a balcony rail.

Watson hasn’t really understood the way the electric fan works and doesn’t realise he might be cooler in front of it rather than behind.

How do you feel when a reader gets hold of the wrong end of the stick and completely misinterprets your story or poem?

#WritingCommunity #Caturday #Perspective

Square photo of a white cat lying stretched out asleep on a wooden floor. The photo is taken from above, showing the silhouette of the sleeping cat with front paws outstretched and tail high as if he were running.

Watson says all good writing should start with an outline.
But he doesn’t think any outline is likely to be as fine as his is, displayed to advantage on the kitchen floor.

#Writingcommunity #Caturday

Square photograph of a grey short-haired tabby cat. The cat is looking directly at the camera, eyes wide open and head very slightly cocked to the cat's left side. Only the head and top part of the body are visible as the cat is sitting inside a dark green zip-close suitcase. Very little of the case is visible.

Skinner’s reproving stare from my now unpacked suitcase says she does not consider travel a sufficient excuse for forgetting #caturday, the #summersolstice and various other recently missed commitments.

As a writer, how do you keep track of deadlines, submission windows, etc.?

#writingcommunity

Square photograph of a white cat on a dark grey spongy-looking background. The cat is asleep, curled round on his left side and his silhouette makes a smooth round curve from his head all the way round to his tail.

Watson likes to sleep on a dark mat as he thinks it sets off his fur to best advantage.

As a writer’s cat, he knows that background and setting are both very important.

#Caturday #Writingcommunity #Writing #Writers

Square photo of a small tabby cat sitting down and covering its face with one paw. The rest of the picture is incidental, but includes some pine panelling, a yellow wall and the white fur of another larger cat sitting alongside.

Ever re-read something you wrote and just feel you want to hide your face and deny responsibility? 


Skinner sends sympathetic thoughts and thinks perhaps getting peer feedback or working with a trusted writing coach might help you improve.

#caturday #writingcommunity #writebetter #writinglife

Square photograph of a young grey tabby cat lying in front of the books on a white built-in bookshelf- She is looking up warily and looks ready to react if you reach for one of the books she is apparently guarding. The books include hardbacks and paperbacks and appear to be an assortment of fiction, including “San Manuel Bueno, mártir” by Miguel de Unamuno, “Big Fish” by Daniel Wallace, "Before I Go to Sleep" and “Second Life” by S J Watson, complete short stories by HG Wells, a book by Mary Wesley and a collection of works by Oscar Wilde.

Skinner says these are her books and she’s not letting anyone else have them.

Mostly, I’m happy to lend my books, although there are a few I won’t let out of the house as I’d hate for them not to be returned.

Do you lend your books or are you as reluctant to share as Skinner?

#caturday #bookcat

Square photo. Close up of a spray of orange blossom. There are maybe a dozen flowers in the foreground in different stages of opening. The flowers are small and white, with long waxy petals and the long stamens and the central pistil are yellow tipped. There are leaves around the flowers, suggesting that they are still growing on the tree.

Just a few weeks ago, the streets of southern Spain were filled with the scent of orange blossom.

The flowers themselves aren’t particularly impressive but the scent was strong enough to drown out traffic fumes.

Do you remember to include different senses in your writing?

#writingcommunity

Square photo. Close up of a white cat who is sleeping soundly on a cream coloured carpet. The photo is taken at an angle, so the cat's body - of which we only see the upper half - is foreshortened and the front paws, which are very near the camera, appear unnaturally large.

It's Saturday afternoon and Watson says it's time for a big pause.

Are you working on your manuscript, or taking the weekend off?

#writingcommunity #caturday #itstheweekend

Square photograph looking out of a window. There is a white cat perched walking along the balcony railing. In the background there are the red-tiled roofs of houses and a view over green countryside and off towards distant mountains. It looks as if the cat is very high up and the roofs are several storeys below him.

Watson is trying to see the big picture.

Do you get bogged down in details when you write, or can you hold all the plot lines in perspective at one time?

#Caturday #writing #writingcommunity

Square image with bright coloured blocks in pink, yellow and dark blue - the brand colours of the South Warwickshire Literary Festival. The Festival logo is in the top right hand corner. Various phrases are distributed around the square, all in bold, san serif font. The text is also in the SWLF brand colours (pink or blue when on a white background and white when on a pink or blue background block.) The phrases say: Tickets on sale NOW! #SWLitFest Literary evening 12th June 1 Mill Street, Leamington Spa Featuring Dr Adam Sharp and Sarah Jane Downing. Hosted by Jo Durrant Idioms, proverbs, general nonsense... and Jane Austen's 250th!

Very much looking forward to the #SWLitFest June event.
Have you got your tickets yet?
Full details & booking via the website: www.southwarwickshireliteraryfestival.com

#LoveLeam #LeamingtonSpa #Warwick

Square photograph of a small grey tabby cat sitting in a shopping bag looking upwards towards the camera. Only her head is visible . Her ears are pricked and her pupils are small, so she looks very nervous and alert.

I’m not sure what she was trying to avoid, but Skinner was very keen to go shopping with me today.

What’s your displacement activity when the writing isn’t going as planned?

#motivation #writingcommunity #caturday

Square photo of a white cat lying on top of some printed unbound sheets of paper on a white desktop. The cat’s head is in the foreground and he is stretched out fast asleep. The corner of a computer keyboard is also visible. As well as the bottom corner of a computer monitor. There is sunshine coming from the left and the cat’s head and most of his body are in direct sunshine.

Watson reckons there’s nothing like a little snooze in the sun to recoup after a long morning at the computer.

How do you relax when it’s time to take a break from your manuscript?

#writingcommunity #writers #writerscraft #caturday

Square photograph of a built-in bookcase with many books. There are two columns of shelves, with six on the left and five on the right. On the right, the second from the top is double height and has some oddments of brass and knick-knacks but no books. The other shelves are almost completely full of books, mostly paperbacks.

Spring cleaning :-)

I moved and dusted all my downstairs books today (the photo only shows a small section of the fiction shelves.)

There were a lot, but, sadly, I didn’t think to count them. Maybe next year. By which time there will no doubt be considerably more.

What are you reading?

Square close up photo of a sprig of hawthorn blossom. The flowers are small, five-petalled, white with pink-tipped stamens. There are five wide open flowers in the foreground and a number of other flowers and buds farther from the camera. The blossom is growing on a tree. The background shows grass, suggesting the tree is in a field or a park.

Today is International Workers’ Day, so I wanted to post a photo of a bee. But I couldn't find a good one as I tend to keep my distance from those who are working, especially when they might sting.

Instead, then, here’s some May blossom. Which probably does fine for those celebrating Beltane.

Square photograph of two cats sitting on a brown and beige doormat. The cat nearest the camera is a white cat and he is looking out through a screen door. You can see a small part of a terracotta tiled patio outside. The other cat is a tabby. She is mostly hidden by the white cat. She is looking away from the door. The background shows a pale wooden skirting board and a wooden panel, which is presumably the end of a piece of furniture.

“The cat sat on the mat” - not very original, even if we make both cat and mat plural.

Skinner & Watson want to know what tips you have about clearing the clichés and the worn-out phrasing from your writing.

#caturday #writingcommunity #writers

Close up of a full blown red rose. It takes up almost the full frame, but there are some leaves visible, and there is a red brick wall in the background.

Yesterday I said it was St George's Day.

Now I've learned that the Anglican Church doesn't celebrate any Saint's day in the week immediately before or after Easter, so St George's has been postponed until April 28th.

Apparently fact checking matters, even when you're sure about things!

Square photo with small red rose flower in centre foreground. The rose is one of the type that has multiple blooms and, while this single flower is wide open, it is surrounded by many tightly closed buds. The background is out of focus, but more buds and splashes of red flowers can be seen against a plain white wall.

It's World Book Day & St George's Day.
In Spain, particularly in Catalonia, the two celebrations combine in the tradition of giving a book & a red rose.

So, if you use the coupon code SantJordi you can download any of my Spanish Life books free for the next 48 hours: gwynethbox.com/collection/s...

Close up photo of a borage plant. The main focus of the picture, in the centre of the image, is a purple-blue flower, which is small with five narrow pointed petals in a flat star shape, alternating with long narrow sepals. The flower centre is white with a dark protruding point. There is another flower to the right and there are many unopened buds. The picture was taken from below, showing the flower against a clear blue sky and with some other plants behind it.

After all the Easter hullabaloo, it’s “back to old clothes and porridge”.

But, much as I like porridge, it isn’t very photogenic, so here’s some borage instead.

“Old clothes and porridge” was one of my mother's expressions. Do you have sayings that remind you of people?

#Idioms #language

Square photo of two cats lying on the corner of a table, silhouetted against a white wall. Very little of the table is visible, except for a few papers and a clip board, which the cats are lying on. The head and shoulders of the cat nearest the camera can be seen. She is a grey-brown tabby and is looking directly at the camera. A white cat is lying behind her. Only his head is visible peeking out round the side of her hear, and his front paws can be seen on either side of her neck.

Sometimes, Skinner and Watson are best friends.
(Sometimes they aren’t, so I’m not actually sure if Watson is hugging his sister here or trying to throttle her.)

Today their #caturday question is: Do you have a writing buddy and, of so, how do they help you?

#writingcommunity #writers

Photograph of a life-sized, three dimensional Christ figure carrying a cross, silhouetted against a misty grey dawn sky. The photo is from a Spanish Easter procession. In the foreground there are two ornate gold lantern-style lamps, with candles inside, which are part of the float that the statue is atop.

When I was a little girl, we were taught a chorus in Sunday school that began “The best book to read is the Bible”.

I suspect many would disagree, but I mention it as it’s Good Friday and I have a suitable photo to post.

What do you think is the best book to read?

#Books #reading #Easter

Square photograph of four shabby books. The front covers of two are shown, above them are the horizontal spines of two more. All of the books look well used. At the very top is a book with a black spine and a small coloured geometric publishing house symbol. The title of the book is in white sans serif type and reads “Diccionario Esencial Santillana de la lengua española”. The word “Esencial” is in very large font, all caps. It is printed from left to right in the image (therefore from bottom to top of the book spine in reality.) It takes up about half the length of the spine. The other words are all in small caps and written horizontally across the spine. The other horizontal book spine is a dull orange-red. The title is shown in a serif font in gold as “Chambers Concise 20th Century Dictionary”. The book on the left has a dark blue dustcover with big red type showing author and title “BREWER ı The Dictionary of Phrase & Fable”. The subtitle is in smaller white type: “The Classic Reference for Writers, Speakers and Students”. To its right is a slightly smaller book with a mostly white cover with a mix of black and red type in a mix of fonts. The cover text reads: “The Authorized Roget’s Thesaurus of English words and phrases”. Then there is a red medallion-style ornament with the text, “A new edition for the nineties” in capitals, and below that the text reads “edited by Betty Kirkpatrick”. The logo of Penguin publishing house is visible in the very bottom right of the cover, but is partially obscured as the book is well-thumbed and the bottom right-hand corner is ragged.

270 years ago today, Dr Johnson’s "Dictionary of the English language" was published, so I’m thinking about some much loved –and well-thumbed– books that shaped my writing skills.
I grew up with Chambers 20th Century, Brewer, & Roget.
Then, much later, came my first real Spanish dictionary.

Photograph of a white cat sitting on top of a wooden box on top of a white unit. There are other wooden items on top of the unit. Behind the cat is a mirror in which the viewer can see the cat's reflection and two bookcases with many books on them.

Watson's #Caturday reflection for writers is about the importance of making copies of your work.

Have you ever lost an important manuscript because you forgot to make a back up?

#writingcommunity #writing

Thanks! He's looking a wee bit smudgy as his other advice this week - not just for writers - is: don't put your head up sooty chimneys :-)