Writing Wednesday: My Mslexia Hit

I was wondering yesterday what to write this week when what should fall through the letter-box but the new Mslexia magazine - the writing magazine for women. Instant inspiration! Us women are clever, creative people and this never fails to recognise this.

I promise you that I am not being sponsored to write this post. I was one of 2000 people who contributed my opinions for their revamped magazine via questionnaires. I was quite anxious that the new product would be very different: too much poetry (for me), too little opportunity to contribute my style of writing, too little education about the writing and publishing processes, too much that is uninteresting.

But the moment I saw it, through its clear plastic wrapper, I was excited. How great is that? I love the more solid feel of it, without resorting to glossy pages. At a glance, I found it easy to read and am looking forward to picking it up over the next few weeks (if I can hold back that long).

I always find it inspirational as I read others writing and am sparked with ideas for my own. At the back of my mind for some time now I have had a storybook for pre-schoolers (to learn colours, extending to a three-book series with ABC and numbers) and so I'm looking forward to reading the article on writing for toddlers. Maybe it will actually make me get my thoughts onto paper.

The competitions are also great, as they provide an opportunity to get one's writing known. Of course, my masterpiece (ahem!) didn't win the competition I entered ... but still, I'm not holding a grudge!

My only problem is that they have stuck to producing it quarterly: I could easily cope with this inspiration monthly; even bi-monthly would be better. So if you don't subscribe, buy a copy and try it out for yourself.

Writing Wednesday will take a break over the Easter holidays.