Lots happening. Have included links to Cafelit to two of my new stories now up on their website. Hope you like them!
Facebook – General and Chandler’s Ford Today
My Chandler’s Ford Today post this week looks back at last weekend’s 10th-anniversary celebrations at the Winchester Discovery Centre. Regional authors took part (including me!) but there were other events happening such as the Winchester Fusion Choir singing from the top floor of the Centre. They were wonderful.
More details in the post but I should add that, despite working in Winchester for years, I had never been in the Centre before. It is a lovely building, I loved the clock decoration in the children’s section with quotes from children’s literature coming from it, and, as well as getting to talk to people and sell some books, I even managed to take in an art exhibition while there!
Facebook – General
My Chandler’s Ford Today post this week takes a look back at last weekend’s celebrations at Winchester Discovery Centre, as they commemorated their 10th anniversary. A number of regional authors took part, including yours truly. More tomorrow. Nice to get to go to the Centre. I’ve passed it countless times but had not visited before. Very nice building.
Also had my first swim at the new Fleming Park. Sorry everyone locally WILL call it that, not Places Leisure, Eastleigh. What kind of name is that? (Clue: unimaginative!). Must say though the pool and changing facilities are lovely though I’ll be glad when the car park is sorted out properly. Hopefully, this will happen soon.
Off to London (not to visit the Queen) but to go the Bridge House/Cafelit/Chapeltown Books/Red Telephone celebration.
And talking of Cafelit, another new story from me is now up on their website. (There’ll be another in December).
Yesterday’s story and today’s are two examples of where I’ve played with the flash format a bit by telling my tales in rhyme. This came about as a result of a question put at the flash fiction talk at Swanwick this year as to whether flash fiction counted as prose or poetry, given the person who asked had come across poems that could count as flash. They tell a story after all and briefly after all… Anyway, thought I’d give it a go. See what you think!
Image below is part of my book stand at the Winchester Discovery Centre but given it shows several of the anthologies my stories are in for Cafelit and Bridge House, I thought it would be appropriate to use it here!
Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again
Hope everyone coming to the Bridge House/Cafelit/Chapeltown/Red Telephone event in London tomorrow have good journeys and a great time at the said event! Look forward to seeing you there.
I’m hoping to read from From Light to Dark and Back Again and I’ve selected a couple of pieces I hope will “hit the spot”. Glad to say am now on to editing my second book. Do second books always take longer than first ones or is that just me?!
Good to have more work up again on Cafelit too. Hope to do better on that front in the New Year. This year has been a strange one in that I’ve not submitted nearly as much work as in previous ones, but have had the book published, been involved in marketing it (and still am obviously), and taken part in events etc. All good fun. Think I’ve learned a lot from it all. I’ll know for sure if I have if, next year, I manage to balance writing time with marketing time better!
Fairytales with Bite – Reading Out Loud
One thing that came out of the Winchester Discovery Centre celebratory event last weekend was a lovely comment from a lady who really enjoyed my reading some of my flash fiction from From Light to Dark and Back Again to her. She said how lovely it was to be read to.
It occurred to me after this to wonder how often are we read to? Regular listeners of audiobooks do have this joy but isn’t there something nice about being read to specifically (and live by an author too)? So this is another very good reason to support a writing event. You can hear what the author has written, pick up the tone directly and that will be a good indication for whether you are going to like the style or not.
I find reading work out loud a really useful part of the editing process. I tend to save doing this until I’m almost ready to submit the work. If all has gone well with the editing to date, I will be able to read the work smoothly (and almost as if someone else had written it). If not, I will stumble over the words and it’s back for another rewrite! But it is best I pick that up rather than a potential publisher!
This World and Others – Balancing Time
To quote the old phrase, “It’s a good trick if you can do it!”.
I don’t know about you but I find it difficult to get the right balance between marketing current work and getting on with the next book. I’m sure this is something I will get better at with succeeding books to From Light to Dark and Back Again.
I’ve loved taking part in the various events and signings I’ve been involved with this year (including last weekend’s celebrations at the Winchester Discovery Centre), and obviously hope to do more in 2018, but I would’ve liked to have finished the draft of my second book a lot earlier than I have done. (I’m now editing that second book. I love editing. The work is going to get better!).
I am hoping to increase the number of hours writing I do as from early next year, which will help, but the one consolation I think is knowing every writer has this dilemma. We all find our own ways of getting the balance right so I’ll get there. Goodness knows when but I will get there! (Famous last words I know…)
In the meantime, I’m off to another event in London tomorrow – the Bridge House/Cafelit/Chapeltown/Red Telephone celebratory “do”, it will be fantastic to meet up with my fellow authors again and the writing? I might get some done thanks to the marvels of the smartphone on the train. I am getting better at using “dead” time. When I had to take my car in for a service recently, I was almost annoyed they finished quicker than I expected as I really wanted to finish the story I was working on!! I balanced time there well enough!
The children’s clock decoration in Winchester’s Discovery Centre
Celebrations at Winchester Discovery Centre today for its tenth anniversary. Okay no fireworks but there WERE balloons and cake! Image via Pixabay
Fantasy may look at other worlds but often reflects on our own. Time is different too. Image via Pixabay.
Books can make you lose time but what a way to lose it! Image via Pixabay
Social Media Tree. Image via Pixabay.
Association of Christian Writers – More than Writers blog spot
My monthly blog spot this time looks at the joys in the Christian life and how others’ joys can strengthen you and yours can do the same for them.
Allison Symes: Collected Works 