• About
  • Masthead Picture
  • My Books
  • The Vieux Chateau du Cros

Victoria Corby

~ Reading, writing, living in France

Victoria Corby

Tag Archives: Mary Wesley

Never Too Late

05 Wednesday Sep 2012

Posted by victoriacorby in Books, Writing

≈ 8 Comments

Tags

Andrea Camilleri, Mary Wesley, Patricia Angadi

Amongst all the doom and gloom written about your chances of ever getting a book published, one of the “truisms” that is stated over and over again is that if you’re a little past school leaving age you’re going to find it twice as difficult.  As well as being a superb writer you’ve got to be young, fit, gorgeous and generally make it really easy for the publicist to get your photo in the papers – unless of course you’re a celeb when it doesn’t matter what you look like as things will still be easy for the publicist, and your writing skills don’t matter as someone else will have written the book for you.

Us – ahem – older ones are advised to stock up on support stockings and denture fixative and yes, dear, enjoy your writing, it’s very good for you dear, helps with that nasty Alzheimer’s, but do it for your own pleasure but don’t expect to get it published because frankly dear, you’re waaay past it and just don’t have your finger on the pulse any longer.  What do you mean you’d be writing for people like yourself who read lots and lots?  There are young writers doing that.

Of course there are exceptions to the rule – Mary Wesley being a glittering example. She’s actually an exception to two rules; the one that says you can’t make it when you’re old as she wrote seven best-selling novels between the ages of 70 and 79. and the one that states if you’ve been published once and weren’t a big success you’ve pretty well had it – she  published two children’s novels when she was in her fifties which didn’t do much.  Joyce Windsor wrote a charming novel called After The Unicorn when she was 70 but frankly neither of these ladies can hold a candle to Patricia Angadi for general vim, get up and go.

Patricia Angadi was a middle class girl, an unsuccesful debutant and artist who  fell in love with an Indian, she married him in 1943 against her family’s wishes (some of her friends never spoke to her again), had four children, set up the Asian Music Centre with her husband, introduced Ravi Shankar to the Beatles and finding herself short of money, aged 54, trained as a teacher. Patricia painting George Harrison and Patti Boyd’s portrait.

When she was in her sixties her husband went back to India, Patricia refused to follow him, started dating, turned her house into a commune and threw outrageous parties.  She then retired,  and with time on her hands ,started writing.  The Governess was published when she was 70 and another six followed.

Andrea Camilleri, the creator of the wonderful Inspector Montalbano, is another late bloomer and exception to lots of rules.  To be polite he’s no pin-up – and he published two novels in his early fifties which weren’t successes, then when he was 69 he wrote a best seller.  The first of the Inspector Montalbano books followed two years later, he published the 19th this year.  He’s 87 and is still working as a TV and theatre director.

As someone who felt on her 20th birthday that she was already past it – hell, my teenage years were over and I hadn’t done any of those glamorous things that you saw college students doing in Coca Cola ads – I find all of this enormously encouraging and inspiring too.  Fortunately I’m not in need of support stockings or denture fixative yet but I have to be realistic and admit that I’m middle-aged and which probably puts me at even more of a disadvantage – there’s a story in “Septuagenarian’s big break-through” none in “Middle-aged woman publishes book” – but that still doesn’t mean I can’t make it.

Perhaps I should dye my hair grey though…

 

Recent Posts

  • Old Friends
  • Learning Something New…
  • The Reading Box
  • Enfin, le Soleil…
  • Roofers – 0, Mrs Corby’s Emergency Roof Repair Service – 1

Recent Comments

jay53 on Knocked down by a feather
antalya escort kızla… on Knocked down by a feather
alexraphael on I’m trying…
alexraphael on The Reading Box
alexraphael on Old Friends

Archives

  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
  • January 2012
  • December 2011
  • November 2011
  • October 2011

Blogroll

  • Writing Home
  • Desperate Anglo Housewives Bordeaux
  • Literary Relish
  • Crimepieces
  • Susie Kelly
  • Life on La Lune
  • fotoartdirect
  • Read Eng, Didi's Press
  • Steve Bichard
  • French Immersion

Categories

  • Books
  • Cats
  • Cooking
  • Desert Island Bookcase
  • Dogs
  • France
  • Gardening
  • Historical Monuments
  • New Experiences 2012
  • Reading
  • Uncategorized
  • Vieux Chateau du Cros
  • Wildlife
  • Writing

Meta

  • Register
  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.com

About my books on Facebook

Victoria Corby, Author

Promote your Page too

Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com.

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
  • Follow Following
    • Victoria Corby
    • Join 259 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • Victoria Corby
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...