About Me, Biography
The Very Core of May More
Not everyone calls me May but that is definitely who I am.
I was recently accepted to write for Illumination and wanted my first story to be an introduction to May More. So as not to repeat my previous biography, written for About Me Stories, today I will answer the good old –
Who, What, When, Why, Where, and How questions regarding me and my writing — though not necessarily in that order.
Who am I?
My name is May More — I love home cooked food, Italian wine, walking in the woods and writing.
Six years ago I decided to create an identity — a pen name — because on occasions I was writing about sensitive or erotic topics on my newly created WordPress lifestyle blog. I wanted the anonymity that a nom de plume affords. I decided on May More as it is actually part of the name I was born with before I was adopted and re-named.
I didn’t realise the extent to which writing would lead me to explore my psyche and dig deep within, to finally embrace being me. It may be that I came to this self-awareness a little late in the day — I’m over fifty— but am proud of the achievement. Being May More enabled me to stand tall, and now, even though I have reached the point when I would happily write under my legal name, I don’t want to desert May. Anyhow… What's in a name?
Not everyone calls me May but that is definitely who I am.
When did I start writing?
Of course, I started to write at school. Some of my earliest memories involve writing of some kind. Such as attempting to create a newspaper-style bulletin aged nine. Winning a writing competition run by Paper Mate when I was ten. Attempting a mini fan-fiction novella when I was eleven and at twelve receiving ‘eleven out of ten’ from my English teacher for a creative writing story about shape-shifting into a fox.
I still have the handwritten fan-fiction manuscript and a copy of a poem I wrote at primary school. Perhaps it was the Paper Mate entry? Here’s the first verse. Please remember I was very young!
Autumn Autumn has come Crisp golden leaves fall of trees Spiders webs are covered with tiny shimmering beads of dew The days are getting shorter, the nights longer and the air fresher. It feels as if the world was made yesterday.
May More — aged nine or ten.
I attended an all-girls convent school and recall how some of my classmates would ask me to write romantic-style poems about them and their boyfriends.
Then, at fourteen I stopped. Teachers should harness their pupil’s dreams, not quash them. I made it clear I wanted to be a writer of some sort. A journalist perhaps. I was told that as I was dyslexic such a career option would never be open to me. Crestfallen, I thought it best not to continue with creative writing and put my pen away.
The annoying thing was that school didn’t seem to offer any other career guidance so I left — thankfully with some A-levels — but without knowing what on earth I wanted to do. This indecision may have been a blessing as variety became the order of the day. I traveled and tried out various different jobs including; banking, computer programming, retail management, and even waitressing. I attended University and picked up an honours degree in psychology and a diploma in nutrition. However, apart from keeping a diary, I didn’t write anything (outside of my studies) from the age of fourteen until five years ago when I began blogging.
How do I find the time to write?
Before Covid, I was involved in animal care alongside my partner. That was our job, a 24/7 occupation, but it also meant when the animals were chilling I had time to write. Our thriving business effectively came to a standstill during the UK lockdowns. As a result, I had lots of space to think, write and investigate other avenues beyond blogging, such as Medium.
The last year and a half have been a challenge for many different reasons. I think out of adversity comes opportunity and a chance to really decide who you are, what you want — and where you want to go. Luckily, that was easy for me. I love writing and supporting a community and that is exactly what I have continued to do.
Why do I write?
From the moment I decided I was going to return to writing, it literally seemed as if all the unwritten words, from those years of ignoring something I loved, spilled out onto paper. Well, on to the screen actually.
Writing fulfills a creative need I have to express myself.
Dyslexia hasn’t hindered me, instead, it gave me licence to write without fear, to write freely, with my own style. I write like me. I’m not trying to be anyone else. I want to write as a person, not as a particular type of writer. I want my words to evoke emotion, laughter, and deep thinking. To get through to the reader and inspire them to write. I want them to believe if I can do it, then they really can too.
As I said, I really enjoy the community aspect of writing. I get a thrill from supporting the work of others. That is definitely part of why I write. Interaction with like-minded individuals inspires me.
What I Write
I started writing about life, love, sex, and relationships on my blog. It felt liberating to share this with the world. Not only that, it lead me to reflect and ponder on mistakes made and things I had got right. This turned out to be a healing experience, enabling me to move forward, away from past events that had previously held me back. I also started to receive rewards for my work by being commissioned to write for various online magazine sites.
Then in 2018, I entered an erotic story writing competition. I still hadn’t written any fiction since I was fourteen. Ten months later, I found myself in the final. I couldn’t quite believe how much I enjoyed using my imagination to create strong characters and emotive storylines. Energised by the experience, I wrote and self-published a taboo novella on Kindle — The Curse.
Since then my love of fiction has gone from strength to strength and I am constantly discovering new aspects I enjoy. I like to write in many voices using strong dialogue and realistic characterisation. Recently I seem to have acquired a knack for including satire or humour in my tales. I’m on a learning curve. But aren’t we all?
The other day I read an article by the founder of Illumination Dr Mehmet Yildiz about fiction not really getting the same amount of attention on Medium as other areas of writing. I do hope that changes. To be able to write something that can transport the reader into a different world or evoke a heartfelt emotion is indeed something that should be promoted and praised. Hallelujah for fiction, I say.
Often I find myself thinking deeply. We don’t have a television at home which means there are oodles of opportunities for quiet reading or solitude. I’m not afraid of my own company, appreciating the clarity that goes hand in hand with silence. These times provide a chance to reflect and write about personal growth or self-awareness. When writing my more opinionated posts the inspiration comes directly from life, concerns, and the world as it trespasses into my atmosphere.
During the first weeks of the lockdown in 2020, when the whole world was wondering how the restrictions would affect them, I had an impulse to create a diary-style e-book. The project involved collaborating with other writers from my blogging community. The finished product — Seven Days in April — is about seven very different people, recording their lockdown experiences of seven consecutive days at the beginning of April 2020. It is an engaging read as we were all attempting to navigate a new way of living.
Thoughts
One of the things that really appeals to me about Medium is the feeling of being safe to express myself within the platform walls. I thrive within a community and Medium is excellent at bringing writers together and encouraging the individual to shine.
As soon as I decided at the beginning of 2021 to start publishing my work on their platform, as well as my blog — Sex Matters — I knew I wanted to give back and created Tantalizing Tales.
I spoke to my friend Posy Churchgate and the publication was born from our joint love of fiction and supporting new writers. MrsK writes and help with editing on an ad hoc basis. Now, we are very happy to have a growing community with many other writers on board. Check it out here and follow us too.
Update: Recently I was very happy to join Paul Mansfield publication Redemption Magazine as an editor. The publication provides a home for our own — and other writers — trangressive fiction.
In 2021, without realising what a massively influential publication PS I Love You was, I sent them a draft — Catch the Catcher — which was accepted. It is my best story and I am thrilled that it ended up on PSILY. Shortly after another of my stories was also featured. Along with many Medium writers I was sad to see them go. But happy days — Illumination has added a Love/Relationship category and I am looking forward to sharing much of my work on their publication because if truth be told, I want to write about everything.
I’m a top writer in Fiction and Short Story and I always get a thrill if a piece gets chosen for further distribution. Not only that, last month I was surprised and proud to receive a Medium bonus for being one of the writers who revived a high amount of reader interaction during July.
The future is not small— the future is Medium….
Contact Details
Follow my personal account on Twitter…
Email me at [email protected]
Find all my Medium Distributed work here…
A few links that tell you more about who I am and what I am involved in…
Thanks to…
I decided to write this introduction for Illumination after reading this article from Tree Langdon
Thank you to Claire Kelly for answering my Illumination queries.
