Stories!

November 30, 2018Leave a comment

Facebook – General – and Chandler’s Ford Today

My latest CFT post is a review of one of my favourite stories, A Christmas Carol, as performed by the MDG Players at the Dovetail Centre recently. Well done to all!

And this is the only production where the audience got to join in! If you want to know how, read the post! Oh and yes I joined in too.

I forgot to mention I’ve had a couple of stories on Cafelit recently. Anne Boleyn fans will like my story, Consistency, published by Cafelit on 24th November. It’s been a good week on Cafelit given my Moving On was published by them on 27th November. Hope you enjoy them both.

My Doubting the Obvious was published by Paragraph Planet on 22nd November. I need more weeks like this! The link should take you to their archive for November, which is why I’ve listed the date in case you need to scroll through to find this. Having said that, have a look good at the other stories here (and indeed on Cafelit too). There is some wonderful writing here – all very entertaining tales!

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Facebook – General – and Association of Christian Writers’ More than Writers blog spot

I discuss writing goals in my monthly spot on the Association of Christian Writers’ More than Writers blog.

Do you set any? Have you achieved what you hoped to do? Did you take part in NaNo? I didn’t because I know I’d exceed the word count on some days, be under on others, and while it might balance out in the end, I just don’t need the guilt of “not achieving”! And I would feel guilty…

See what I DO do about setting goals in this post.

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Facebook – General

My CFT post this week will be a review of A Christmas Carol as staged by the MDG Players.

A Christmas Carol is my favourite Dickens story and one of my favourite tales overall. It has everything – a villain (at least to begin with), ghosts who reveal why Scrooge has become the way he has and what it will mean for him if he doesn’t change, and redemption. The story is its own little world and just works so well.

Still love the Muppet version with Michael Caine. Is on my must watch list again this year. It is just really well done. Looking forward to sharing my post on Friday.

CAN you manage time? Pixabay image.

So true. Pixabay image.

I remember using a manual typewriter. Pixabay image.

Decisions, decisions and a not terribly helpful signpost. Image via Pixabay.

Be open to change. Pixabay image.

Just what is your story then? Image via Pixabay

Memories are fragile especially over time. Pixabay image.

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Sometimes I write flash fiction with a historical flavour to it. Here’s one for Anne Boleyn fans. Consistency was published by Cafelit on 24th November. Hope you enjoy. Link given above.

Good advice – and it applies to our characters too. Image via Pixabay

What journeys are your characters going on? Image via Pixabay

The Tower of London, setting of Jennifer C Wilson’s first Kindred Spirits book. Image via Pixabay.

The Tower of London. Setting for Kindred Spirits: Tower of London by Jennifer C Wilson. Image via Pixabay.

Aiming for more “magic” from my stories this year! Image via Pixabay.

Always good advice. Image via Pixabay.

Escape with a good book. Image via Pixabay.

I’ve been talking about achieving goals as my monthly Association of Christian Writers’ blog has been about that. See below. I don’t set a particular number of flash fiction stories to write or submit in a year. What I DO try to do is seek to produce a regular number of stories and then submit them to outlets as often and consistently as I can.

Goals don’t have to be huge but can give you a huge sense of achievement as you tick them off. Pixabay image.

Write your piece, leave it for a while before editing. Pixabay image.

And which is the right way?! Pixabay image.

Walking into the words maybe. Pixabay image

Puns can be visual. Pixabay image.

Let one creative idea spark another. Pixabay image.

What worlds will emerge from your writing? Pixabay image

Set goals for the short, medium and long terms. Pixabay image

The time turner. Pixabay image.

Where is the point where a story really comes alive for you?

For me, it is when I realise I have GOT to find out what happens to the character, whether I love them or loathe them. I generally want to see villains get their comeuppance so read on to see if they do! Equally I want the “good guys” to win through so again read on.

So when creating my own characters, I am always trying to ask myself will this one grip a reader? Is the character strong enough? What is there to love and/or loathe about them?

Your blog, your topic, your theme – just be sensible on copyright and libel issues. Image via Pixabay.

Social media has made the world a smaller place. Image via Pixabay.

Indeed! Pixabay image.

Love writing, love reading, love books. Pixabay image.

Diary keeping as I recall it but I skipped the gingham! Image via Pixabay

A good writing group will help you discover this. Pixabay image.

Characters no matter what their world should resonate with readers. Image via Pixabay

How does gravity and time work in your settings? Pixabay image.

Does your story conjure up your setting well enough? Pexels image.

This made me smile! Pixabay image.

Assemble your characters, assemble your world. Image via Pixabay

Fairytales With Bite – When Is a Story Ready to be “out there?”

There is no hard and fast answer to the above question, of course, but what I have found to be true is that a story is ready for submitting when:-

1. You really cannot edit another word of it without spoiling it in some way.

2. The story haunts you – and you wrote it! (Good chance readers will be haunted by it too).

3. Having deadlines to submit (for reputable competitions say) can be really useful as it makes you work to a date and encourages you to let a story “go”. It can be easy to keep editing and polishing. At some point you need to pluck up courage and test the market with your stories.

4. When you can genuinely envisage your piece as suiting Publication X, say, because you have read several of their editions, have a feel for their style and your story or article fits in beautifully. If you are right go on and send it in but be sure to follow their submission guidelines.

5. You come across other published stories which you have cause to feel are not as good as yours. Only one way to find out if you’re right or not: send your one in!

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This World and Others – Story Moods

What’s your favourite mood for a story or does it depend on what mood you are in at the time of reading?

I love humorous and poignant stories and am glad to say Cafelit have published one of mine in each of these categories in the last few days. Consistency is a historical piece and Moving Onis a changing job story, both very different in mood. I should add the mood varies for my Chandler’s Ford Today pieces too. My post this week is a review of A Christmas Carol as staged by the MDG Players recently. In articles like this, as well as the actual review, I like to give some background to either the material or the writer of the material which is being performed so I generally go for an informative. chatty style. For my scam alert pieces, I obviously adopt a more serious tone.

The key, of course, is having the right “mood” for the right story or article. Yes, you can have funny crime and I’ve read and listened to some wonderful stories in that genre, but generally, unless it is flagged up, you would expect crime stories to have a fairly sombre tone to them. This is where the blurb on books is so important. A reader will pick up on the mood of the book and decide if it suits them thanks to that so it is vital to get this right.

With my From Light to Dark and Back Again the title is the big clue that there is a variety of moods here (as is my strapline – “a story to suit every mood”).

Yes, I think you should play to your strengths when writing so if that is serious writing, go for it, but I would also say don’t be afraid to experiment and play with words. If you find you can write in more than one mood or tone of story, so much the better. It will open up more competitions and markets for you to try. Good luck!

Says it all really but reading your work to yourself will show up where dialogue is weak. Image via Pixabay.

You can’t beat the trusty notebook and pen for interview notes. Image via Pixabay.

The world’s most beautiful library perhaps? Image via Pixabay. But lots of lovely stories to read which may well spark off ideas for other stories. Only problem? Where to start!

Magical lands. Image via Pixabay.

What world will you enter when you next read a good story? Image via Pixabay.

Flash – for light or dark fiction! Image via Pixabay

I could spend many a happy hour here – the library at Prague. Image via Pixabay.

Fantasy may look at other worlds but often reflects on our own. Time is different too. Music can interpret worlds too. Think of classic film scores like that for The Lord of the Rings. Image via Pixabay.

Where many a first draft starts life. Old technology still has its uses! Image via Pixabay.

Books can make you lose time but what a way to lose it! Music can do the same. Image via Pixabay

Two formats for reading and Chandler's Ford library stocks both. Image via Pixabay.

Two formats for reading – why limit yourself?

Goodreads Author Programme Blog – Impact of Writing

The impact of writing on the world in general cannot be underestimated.

As well as the Bible, Shakespeare, Dickens etc., all of which have contributed so much to our language and whose stories have been the inspiration for so many others, there are things like the Domesday Book and Magna Carta.

Historical documents which colour so much else in life and law. Nobody could have foreseen at the time of writing just how much impact these would have (though there would have been many hopes about the Magna Carta. Not least that King John was hoping to get rid of it again as soon as he possibly could! An early recognition of dangerous writing perhaps?).

What makes us love our favourite books and stories the way we do? It is also down to impact. The impact of them stays with us. We want to be like the heroic lead characters perhaps. We feel fear for the characters we love as they face dangers. We feel relief, joy etc when our favourites survive.

So do writers’ play with their readers’ emotions then? Yes but it is always best done subtly. The reader has to be willing to go along with the writer here. The writer has to deliver on the promise of his/her opening lines. We have got to be able to identify with those in the story to want to find out whether they make it through to the end or not.

So the impact of writing is everything then. As readers then we need to decide what impact we want to experience.

Grow as a writer? Grow your reading! Image via Pixabay

Brainstorming ideas, just one of many good things to come from well run writing conferences and the exercises set there. Image via Pixabay.

A world of technologies means more places for stories to appear! Image via Pixabay

Flash fiction for impact. Image via Pixabay

The good old notebook. Image via Pixabay.

Heavenly books. Image via Pixabay

The old way of writing a story! Image via Pixabay

All books are gateways to other worlds, fantasy and science fiction especially I think. Image via Pixabay.

What fictional world have you created? What ways and rules have you set for your characters? Image via Pixabay.

Escape into another world. Image via Pixabay

Getting Started and Moving On

November 27, 2018Leave a comment

Facebook – General

I often think the hardest part of writing is getting started! Once I’m away on a piece, whether it is a FB post like this, a flash fiction or longer short story, I get the “bit between the teeth” and get on with it until I’ve got that first draft down.

I’m not deliberately procrastinating incidentally. I set myself down to write at pretty much the same time every night and get on with it. It’s just finding those first few words to get the ball rolling…

Ah well, time to get on with the next piece!

Drafting those ideas… image via Pexels

Good reading – and writing to be done – here. Pixabay image.

So true. Pixabay image.

The joy of writing is you never stop learning. Pixabay image.

Says it all really and applies to non-fiction equally as fiction. Image via Pixabay.

Escape with a good book. Image via Pixabay.

Notes about your characters can help you portray them more accurately. Not every note has to make it into the story itself. Pixabay image.

Sadly a very familiar sight! Pixabay image

Wonderful writing desk. Pixabay image

Write first, edit later. Pixabay.

Does music help you with your creativity?

I write usually with classical music on in the background (courtesy of #ClassicFM most of the time). It doesn’t matter whether it’s Beethoven’s 5th or his Moonlight Sonata, I find that just having the music on relaxes me and I just get on and write more effectively.

I am very fond of the Saturday Night at the Movies show on Classic and it is amazing how the right music can make a film. I bet you can name at least four John Williams’ themes for a start. Think of the films you’ve thought of WITHOUT that music. Almost impossible, isn’t it?

Sometimes when I create characters, I think of what music would best suit them. It never makes it into the story itself but it does help me to picture them better so I write about/for them with more depth and that DOES show in a story.

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Enjoying the new series of I’m Sorry I Haven’t A Clue on Radio 4. Always love the word play on here. You can’t keep a bad pun down, no matter how much you might want to!

Playing with the language, inventing puns etc, is something I occasionally do as a writing exercise. Always good fun. Makes you think in a different way. (Just how excruciating can I get with a pun?!). Sometimes that has triggered story ideas precisely because I’ve allowed my brain to go off on a tangent for a bit. Try it and see what you come up with. If nothing else, you should have fun with some mental word games here!

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Delighted to share more publication news. My flash fiction piece, Moving On, is now live on Cafelit. Hope you enjoy, especially if you’re considering a career change!

Always good advice! Pixabay image.

Online writing -v- on a line writing! Image via Pixabay

Books are fabulous, whatever the format. Image via Pixabay.

Generating the writing ideas. Image via Pixabay.

Planning your characters. Image via Pixabay.

Just what is your story then? Image via Pixabay

Books have their own sense of time and space. Image via Pixabay.

Your blog, your topic, your theme – just be sensible on copyright and libel issues. Image via Pixabay.

What characters will you come up with? Image via Pixabay

Thoughts are free but check images used are either free to use or your own! Image via Pixabay.

A familiar sight to many of us. Image via Pixabay.

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

When do you know if a flash fiction piece has had impact?

If you’re really lucky, a reader will tell you so but for me generally it has been when I can recall most, if not all, of the story days later and it still makes me feel the way I did on first reading it. And that applies whether I’ve written the piece or not. There is a kind of “hits you between the eyes” feeling to stories like this.

Stepping into another world.. Pixbay

There be dragons. Pixabay

Love writing, love reading, love books. Pixabay image.

Plugging in for new ideas? Pixabay image

Clarity and constructive criticism are always useful. Pixabay image.

PC playing up do you think? Image via Pixabay.

Waiting for an upload to finish. Image via Pixabay.

What a beautiful home for books. Image via Pixabay

A huge but lovely library. Image via Pexels

The art of the flash (fiction). Image via Pixabay

Stories are magical and inspire other stories. Image via Pixabay.

Reviews can have global reach. Most impact I think can often be local to the writer.

Looking forward to sharing more publication news next week. Also looking forward to the Bridge House event in London next Saturday and seeing old friends and meeting new ones there!

Plus, as ever, am planning to do plenty of writing on the train journeys. All hail, Evernote, I get so much done!! I find I either write several flash fiction stories or draft one or two CFT posts in an average train journey. So at some point I ought to go on a long train journey – hmm… what could I get drafted on the sleeper train to Scotland I wonder? If I ever find out, I will report back.😀😉

Does your story conjure up your setting well enough? Pexels image.

How is your world governed? Is it done well? Pixabay image.

How does gravity and time work in your settings? Pixabay image.

The perfect place to reflect and take stock. Pixabay image.

Fiction can take you anywhere. Image via Pixabay.

Let your writing sparkle. Image via Pexels.

Good advice. Image via Pixabay.

Some very strange creatures are in books. Image via Pixabay

You can’t beat notebooks for jotting down ideas. Image via Pixabay.

Let the creative process flow! Image via Pixabay

Will be reading some flash fiction pieces at the Bridge House event on Saturday. Looking forward to that. Looking forward to hearing all the other wonderful stories from my fellow authors there as well. I love sitting back entranced. And how often, as adults, do we get to be read TO? Not often enough I suspect.

To love writing you have GOT to love reading (though taking in stories via other forms such as audio is fine but nothing for me will beat a book). I owe a huge debt to my late mum for instilling a love of stories and reading in me at a very young age. She got to see my first published story – A Helping Hand in the Bridge House Alternative Renditions anthology – and my dad got to see my first book, From Light to Dark and Back Again, published. There’s a pleasing symmetry to that.

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My latest flash story, Moving On, which is now on Cafelit, was one of those tales where I started with the opening line and based the story around it. I wanted something different to the normal meaning associated with “learning to let go”. I like taking phrases like that and putting my own take on them. Give it a go, it is good fun!

http://cafelitcreativecafe.blogspot.com/20…/…/moving-on.html

A VERY familiar sight, alas! Pixabay image.

Beautiful pens. Pexels image.

What stories will come from this pen? Pexels image.

Edit, edit, edit! Pixabay image.

Play with words and fill that blank page. Pixabay image.

My laminated book cover on the way into the Fair. Image by Allison Symes

There can be reality behind fairytales. Image via Pixabay (and image used as part of book trailer for From Light to Dark and Back Again)

Let the writing flow and if music can help it along even better! Image via Pixabay

What will this be for your writing journey? Pixabay image

Good advice – and it applies to our characters too. Image via Pixabay

Let those ideas flow! Image via Pixabay,

Fill that blank sheet with ideas from non-fiction as well as other fiction works - image via Pixabay

Goodreads Author Programme Blog – Impact of Writing

The impact of writing on the world in general cannot be underestimated.

So the impact of writing is everything then. As readers then we need to decide what impact we want to experience.

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Light and Dark

November 24, 2018Leave a comment

Facebook – and Chandler’s Ford Today

My latest CFT post is called The Light Fantastic and looks at light and dark in terms of fiction, mood, and vision (including photography). I look at how fantastic light is but why we also need darkness – and this is true for fiction writing too. Hope you enjoy.

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Had a lovely evening at the Dovetail Centre watching A Christmas Carol performed by the MDG Players. Review to follow on CFT on Friday week.

A Christmas Carol is one of my favourite stories and Dickens is one of the few authors to add something to the Christmas tradition. (The others include Christina Rossetti with In the Bleak Midwinter, Mrs Cecil Frances Alexander with Once in Royal David’s City etc, Charles Wesley with Hark the Herald Angels Sing etc and Clement Clark Moore with The Night before Christmas). Favourite version of Dickens’ classic for me is The Muppet one though!

Talking of stories, I am thrilled my Doubting the Obvious is on Paragraph Planet. 75 words including the title is a good challenge! Work to come in next few days on Cafelit too.

DOUBTING THE OBVIOUS Jemma knew monsters existed, the monsters knew they existed, so why did everyone else scoff at the idea and end up eaten by the things? They weren’t getting her that way. Jemma was prepared. She had her dart gun. She had a fire roaring in the forest clearing. Everyone knew monsters were attracted to the warmth. It meant food. An hour later one monster discovered that was true. Jemma was barbecuing him.

Allison Symes – Published on Paragraph Planet 22nd November 2018

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Really loved seeing the moon rising through the trees tonight, both at home, and on a late walk with better half and Lady. Lady has to have a clip on light to her collar, otherwise you really wouldn’t see her, so she goes around lighting up the world like a little Christmas tree. She’s not impressed by this – but I am! And it means I can see my dog!

I was impressed with the amount of light the moon was giving on the walk tonight. Absolutely beautiful. My theme for CFT this week funnily enough is light and dark in terms of mood, fiction, and vision (in every sense). It’s too easy to take too much for granted and the way the brain processes light is one of them.

As for light writing, I have a 75 word piece coming up online tomorrow. More details then but I will say my heroine isn’t afraid of the monsters in the dark! Mind you, most of my heroes/heroines aren’t but then that’s how I like my characters!

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Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Light and dark is the theme for my Chandler’s Ford Today post this week. Very appropriate given my book’s title! Do you enjoy writing and/or reading the lighter stories in a collection for do your prefer your tales on the dark side?

I love both of course. Much depends on my mood as to which I prefer at any one time. What I do know is the 100-word story is ideal for where I want to make an impact and also the simpler the theme the better. More likely to “deliver” on the promise of the theme set.

There can be reality behind fairytales. Image via Pixabay (and image used as part of book trailer for From Light to Dark and Back Again)

Is travelling in time a good idea? Where would you go if you could? Pixabay image

Flash fiction for impact. Image via Pixabay

Grow as a writer? Grow your reading! Image via Pixabay

Nobody gets their ideas right first go. Image via Pixabay.

No matter how strange your characters or setting, there must still be identifiable elements for a reader. Pixabay image

Stories can take you to fantastic places. Pixabay image.

Does your dialogue make a powerful impact on the reader? Pexels image

Use personal reviews to help you generate character and story outlines. Image via Pixabay.

What galaxy is your world set in? Pixabay image

How does gravity and time work in your settings? Pixabay image.

Where do your characters like to take time out to reflect and why? Pexels image

Love this clock. Pixabay image.

Contrasts are often used in fiction as they are a great way to generate conflict between characters or between a character and their situation. I’m reminded of magnets here – contrasts can either attract or repel!

Contrasts can also be internal within a character especially on things they would like to do and things they are actually able to achieve. (There can be some great comedy out of that scenario too! Think of all the comedy characters who’ve clearly thought more of themselves than they should have done and how they always fall flat on their face – in the famous Del Boy falling through the bar scene in Only Fools and Horses, that was quite literally too!).

There can be be the obvious contrast between light and dark between two characters or within one character. Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde resonates as a story precisely because we can all identify with a character’s struggles to be “good”.

Diary keeping as I recall it but I skipped the gingham! Image via Pixabay

Clarity and constructive criticism are always useful. Pixabay image.

Lovely and treasured book collection here. Image via Pexels

If your story grips you, all sense of time will go! Image via Pixabay.

Or get away from it all in one book. Pixabay image.

I try NOT to chain down my creativity! Pexels image.

Your blog, your topic, your theme – just be sensible on copyright and libel issues. Image via Pixabay.

Lost in a world of books. Pixabay image.

Edit, edit, edit! Pixabay image.

A good writing group will help you discover this. Pixabay image.

Looking forward to sharing latest flash fiction story to be published online tomorrow. I will say it is a 75-word one so that will give fellow flash fiction writers a big clue as to where it is appearing! More tomorrow.

I must admit one of my favourite writing sessions is when I have got “the bit between the teeth” and I draft lots ot flash fiction stories of differing word counts. I edit later and eventually submit them to different places. All good fun.

Another thing I love about flash is when I know I won’t have a lot of time for writing, there is always enough to draft a story or two here, even if they are just of the one line variety. Sometimes I expand those stories out when I DO have more time. Sometimes I leave them as they are (and I must try and submit some of these to the 25-word competitions, they’d be ideal for that).

When is your writing time? Pixabay image

Plenty to enjoy here! Image via Pixabay

Books invite you into their world. Image via Pixabay

Fiction is strengthened when backed by fact. Image via Pixabay

Escape with a good book. Image via Pixabay.

Reviews can have global reach. Most impact I think can often be local to the writer.

Flash – for light or dark fiction! Image via Pixabay

Some of the strongest ideas have a simple theme. See A Christmas Carol as a classic example. Image via Pixabay.

Stories reflect all sorts of moods. There is a story to suit everyone out there! Image via Pixabay.

I write fairytales with bite as flash fiction and short stories in particular. Image via Pixabay.

There's still a place for writing directly to paper. Image via Pixabay

There’s still a place for writing directly to paper. Free writing can really help you become more creative as you allow any “barriers” to go. Let your subsconscious work! Image via Pixabay

Fairytales with Bite – Light and Dark

The Light Fantastic is my latest Chandler’s Ford Today post and looks at light and dark from the perspectives of vision (including photography), mood and fiction. Light and dark are crucial to fiction. If there is no dark in a story, there is no conflict, there is no drama, nothing happens for better or worse, and any potential tale here collapses.

Fairytales are full of the contrasts between light and dark in the way they portray their characters. Fairytales are often grim and perhaps the antidote here has been what has become the “happy ever after” ending. Light and dark have to be in the right proportions. All darkness is just oppressive. All light would be blinding.

Look at the light and dark qualities of your characters. Are they in balance? What weakness in your character really lets them down? What virtue really makes them? How did they develop these things? Do they actively try to fight the weakness?

It isn’t always appropriate for a story to end happily of course but the finish must be appropriate. I like to see stories end on a note of hope even if the finish is a sadder one.

What ever writer needs. Image via Pixabay

Let your stories have impact. Image via Pixabay

Big screen, little screen, LOTS of stories on either! Image via Pixabay

Preparing a talk or a flash fiction story perhaps. Image via Pixabay.

Says it all really and applies to non-fiction equally as fiction. Image via Pixabay.

Fairies are definitely not twee and you do not want to come across one that has had a bad day due to Murphy’s Law affecting her. She will take it out on someone. Image via Pixabay.

One way through to the magical world but is it all sunshine and flowers? I doubt it! Image via Pixabay

One of my favourite book images. They really are magical. Transportation into other worlds and around this one in a few hundred pages. Brilliant! Image via Pixabay.

I loved the long, light evenings in the Far North of Scotland. Image by me.

You can almost feel the mood from this picture. Image via Pixabay.

Lovely late autumn day at Hiltingbury Lakes.

This World and Others – Pointers for World Building

Some useful pointers for world building include:-

1. Ensure there is some sense of how your world is run. We may not need to know how it is done, we need to know it IS done, and your fictional world isn’t in a state of anarchy.

2. Ensure your characters know what they need to know at a local level. For example, if there are rules in the region of XYZ citizens can’t go out after a certain time at night, your characters need to know this. Breaking such a rule could, of course, be a major part of your plot here. If so, ensure your characters know the consequences of breaking the rules and what they are facing in doing so. It all helps increase the tension!

3. Your characters will, presumably, need to eat, sleep, find shelter etc so again there should be some sense of how your characters do this as they have their adventures. Things don’t “just happen”!

4. I like to see a general picture of how the different species interact with each other, including whether there could be any Romeo and Juliet situations where two “people” from rival backgrounds fall for each other.

5. What is expected OF your characters by the world in which you’ve placed them?

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Mixing It Up

November 20, 2018Leave a comment

Facebook – General

Which author do you turn to when the world is grim and you just need to step away from it for a bit? My mother always used to say “stop the world, I want to get off” when the world seemed particularly madder than usual, a feeling I totally understand at the moment.

My go to choices are Pratchett, Austen or Wodehouse. In a grim world, comedic writing is very much my first choice of escapism. (And unlike alcohol and chocolate has no calories in either!).

One of my big bugbears is why humorous writing can be looked down in certain circles. If something looks easy, that writer worked their socks off to get their prose to that point. Easy writing is hard writing and even harder editing.

Writer at work. Image via Pixabay.

Humour can be shown in expression, writers must use words! The right ones in the right way too! Image via Pixabay.

Studying to see if all the corrections have been dealth with. Pixabay image.

A great new idea makes me smile, as does this image. Pixabay image.

Heavenly books. Image via Pixabay

Someone likes a light read. Pixabay image.

Great characters should show humour. Image via Pixabay.

Great characters should show humour. I love both of these two! Image via Pixabay.

If you see this in your mirror, you are in big trouble and the wrong time zone. Pixabay image

Plugging in for new ideas? Pixabay image

Time for the SERIOUS reading! Pixabay image.

I’m a big fan of the “what if?” school of developing story ideas. I look at all possibilities when I’ve got an interesting theme/title/character to play with (one of them is the trigger – it isn’t always the character for example. I would say it’s a pretty even split between my three triggers here).

I start by writing down the “obvious” links and dismiss those but in the act of writing those down, the thought “oh I could do this instead” crops up and that’s when the ideas really start flowing. It’s also when the writing really kicks off and that’s a great place to be.

I do use spider diagrams sometimes. Sometimes I draft a series of sentences outlining possibilities and then go with the one I like the best. (You can guarantee if it’s quirky, 95% of the time I’ll go with it!). But I like to play with ideas before I commit to one. The great thing with this approach is if Idea B appeals to me but Idea A is stronger and appeals to me more, than I’ll go with A. But there’s nothing to stop me having another look at B and developing that further for another story another time.

May require help turning the pages. Pexels image.

The tools of the medieval writer’s trade

Very old school writing. Pixabay image.

Notebook to hand ready for those story ideas. Image via Pexels.

Or not as the case may be! My fiction is quirky!Image via Pixabay.

Reviews can have global reach. Most impact I think can often be local to the writer.

The good old notebook. Image via Pixabay.

A VERY familiar sight, alas! Pixabay image.

One downside to online writing is auto-correct! Image via Pixabay

Use personal reviews to help you generate characters and story outlines. Image via Pixabay.

Editing is vital. Nobody gets it right first go. Pixabay image.

A good writing group will help you discover this. Pixabay image.

Busy night yesterday submitting flash fiction pieces so pleased with that. Third collection coming along well too.

I often draft fiction and non-fiction pieces with eyes open to potential markets and then submit at a later date. This is to give me time to put work aside for a while and then look at it with fresh eyes before editing and submitting those pieces.

Regarding the non-fiction, which is relatively new to me, I’m putting those pieces aside for a bit as I need to work on pitching to the markets I have in mind (but I wanted to make sure I had written the articles first. There is no such thing, to my mind, as wasted writing. If I find I can’t sell these pieces, I will end up recycling them in other ways. Also, you do write better the more often and regularly you write even if you can only write a small amount each time. It all builds up over time and I am one of those writers who likes to know they have the work to submit before approaching a market!).

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Am looking forward to seeing a local production of one of my favourite stories, A Christmas Carol, on Thursday night. Review will follow in due course.

Am also pleased to say I’ll have some publication news, from different places, over the next few days and am looking forward to sharing some links to new stories with you.

Am also looking forward to sharing an interview with an author of a very special cookbook via Chandler’s Ford Today in next couple of weeks.

My post this week will be looking at light and darkness. Link to go up on Friday.

Not impressed with the cold weather. Am very much looking forward to dodgy CH boiler pump being sorted out tomorrow. Meanwhile, I am wearing loads of layers! It is just a pity that writing isn’t a warmth generating activity but there you go!

What wonderful worlds will you come up with? Pixabay image

Words have power, whether funny or tragic. Pixabay image.

What world will you conjure up for us in your stories? Pixabay image.

Hope your Christmas books take you to all sorts of wonderful places! Pixabay image

Walking into the words maybe. Pixabay image

Series novels contribute so much to the wonderful world of books. Pixabay image.

Reading should be a joy always. Pixabay image.

Just how fantastic is your setting? Pixabay image.

Write your piece, leave it for a while before editing. Pixabay image.

All writers feel this way sometimes. Pixabay image.

So true. Pixabay image.

Reading immerses you in another world. Pixabay image.

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

F = Fun stories, told briefly
L = Lights up the characters
A = Animated dialogue and internal thoughts
S = Show, not tell (and what else could this be)
H = Hard impact from few words

F = Fantasy and fairytales feature in what I do
I = Imagination running riot (what fun!)
C = Characters compel you to find out what they’re up to.
T = Truth emerges in fiction, better than straight telling.
I = Inventiveness emerges from using low word counts
O = Omnipresent narrator, first person or third? I use all.
N = Narrator must be intriguing to your readers.

Some thoughts about flash fiction!

Where do your characters like to take time out to reflect and why? Pexels image

I write fairytales with bite as flash fiction and short stories in particular. Image via Pixabay.

This statue reminds me of myself when I was a lot younger. Okay I wasn’t made of stone (I’m still not!) but I did always have my head in a book. (And do so as often as I can now!). Image via Pixabay.

The Heavens Declare the Glory of God - image via Pixabay

Time flies when reading or writing. Image via Pixabay

I could spend many a happy hour here – the library at Prague. Image via Pixabay.

Flash fiction can help you grow your writing skills for other forms of writing. Image via Pixabay.

Escape with a good book, it’s good for you! Image via Pixabay

Does your story conjure up your setting well enough? Pexels image.

Flash – for light or dark fiction! Image via Pixabay

Simply stunning… image via Pixabay

Time for some more one line stories.

1. The swirling leaves made a great disguise for a human-hungry shapeshifter as nobody spotted him turning up for his latest snack.

2. When even the bats find the dark too scary, you know there is going to be trouble.

3. The fairy godmother smashed her wand against a pane of glass and watched as the splinters turned into a pair of beautiful shoes – one user only for these.

4. Find the monster, the people cried, though they screamed when it was found.

5. Being befuddled was Molly’s normal state of being, which is why they didn’t let her have her magic wand any more.

Allison Symes – 18th November 2018

The world is shrinking thanks to technology. Image via Pixabay.

No matter how strange your characters or setting, there must still be identifiable elements for a reader. Pixabay image

Whenever and whatever you read, enjoy. Image via Pixabay.

Generating the writing ideas. Image via Pixabay.

Would Dickens have loved technology like this? Image via Pixabay

Love the great outdoors and use it to fire ideas for your stories and posts. Pixabay image.

Too much to do, too little time perhaps - Pixabay image

Stories can take you to fantastic places. Pixabay image.

Escape into another world. Image via Pixabay

Reach for those ideas. Pixabay image.

I have three main triggers for writing flash fiction: a character who intrigues me, a theme I just have to write about, or a title with interesting possibilities so I just need to find out which is the most fascinating and go with that!

I’ve found it pays to have different writing triggers. It keeps things fresh and I’ve never believed in the “one approach suits all” school of thought. I’ve never seen how that can work! Being open to different methods helps with competitions where the theme is set for you anyway.

I do recommend having brainstorming sessions every so often where you just jot down potential ideas. I must do so again myself soon but it is great to come back to these later and work them up into stories or articles for Chandler’s Ford Today, as the case may be. It also means never being short of anything to write about!

(And photos can make a great trigger too. Another reason to love Pixabay!).

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Publication news coming later this week with new flash fiction stories from me and in different places too. Looking forward to sharing the links with you as and when. Nice mixture of word counts here too.

What makes me decide when a piece really won’t work as a flash fiction story and that it has to be a standard competition length short tale instead?

When the theme is such a powerful one, I need to give the characters more room to explore it is the basic answer. As you write more, you develop a gut feel for when to stop a story (nearly always turns out to be a piece of flash fiction) or when you need to continue (this is where it can become a 1500 short story instead). Just be open.

Two formats for reading – why limit yourself?

Always a good idea! Pixabay image.

Never give up, work hard, be disciplined… all valuable traits for success, whether you’re a tennis player, a writer or a character in a story! Image via Pixabay.

Would love to get lost in here for a while. Pixabay image.

A truly beautiful library but do the books in it meet my criteria for what makes a good story. I would hope so! Image via Pixabay.

Let the creativity spill out. PIxabay image.

Says it all really. Image via Pixabay. And am glad to say my poorly border collie, Mabel, has very much been showing this spirit.

Or get away from it all in one book. Pixabay image.

The joy of writing is you never stop learning. Pixabay image.

Something I’ve yet to see happen! Pixabay image.

Where almost all stories spring from these days. Image via Pixabay.

The virtual library. These days ebooks and emagazines are available at libraries. Chandler’s Ford library are running surgeries about them. Image via Pixabay.

Goodreads Author Programme Blog – Mixing It Up

I like to mix up what I read in terms of genre and word count. I love (and write) flash fiction, likewise short stories, but there are times when nothing but a full length novel will do. There is no way Tolkein could have done justice to The Lord of the Rings in three short stories!!

Having said that, I am still stunned they managed to get three films out of The Hobbit, given it was only one book. Hey ho…

The correct word count for any story, of course, is when no more can be said and when to remove anything would be to the detriment of the tale in some way.

I think as a reader of too many years to count, you do develop an instinctive feeling for when a writer has got the word count right. I want to feel at the end of a story disappointed it has come to an end, but at the same time, know within myself, there really was no more to be said. Naturally that’s a challenge to me for my own writing but this is a good thing. It keeps me on my toes!

One of the things I love about creative writing is one of the best tips any writer has to improve their skills is to read widely and across the genres, including non-fiction. You do learn by absorbing what others have done before you. Absolutely no problem with that, then, and bring it on!

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All About Time

November 16, 20181 Comment

Facebook – General – and Chandler’s Ford Today

My latest CFT post looks at time management (and oh I would love to be better at that!) and at time travel. Naturally a certain Doctor makes an appearance in the post and I also look at if time travel were to become possible, where would you go and why? What would you do while there? Comments as ever welcome on the CFT page.

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I discuss the art of time management and time travel in this week’s CFT post. (I suppose thinking about it further, you could say one of the earliest forms of time management in the UK was when the railways standardised time for us all).

On the assumption time travel ever becomes possible (and I’m not counting the gags that say something like travelling on XXX railway makes you feel as if you’ve gone back to the 1860s!), where would go and why?

Thinking heads on. Link goes up tomorrow. Comments welcome in the CFT comments box when post goes live. (If you’re really keen it goes live at just after midnight but you may have to wait to get a reply from me! Unlike Cinderella, I know where I’m going to be at midnight and it won’t be at my keyboard… ah the joys of middle age!).

Love that clock. Pexels image.

We dare not forget. Pixabay image.

It always is! Reflecting first helps a lot! Pixabay image

My writing desk is nowhere near as elegant as this one. Pixabay image.

Beautiful pens. Pexels image.

Books and a cup of tea = lovely! Pexels image.

Love this clock. Pixabay image.

Have never understood the point of the clock changes twice a year. Can’t we just stick to one? Image via Pixabay.

Great characters = great books. Image via Pixabay.

Be open to change. Pixabay image.

Memories are fragile especially over time. Pixabay image.

Great characters will engross you. You will lose time reading their stories. Image via Pixabay.

Stories can take you to fantastic places. Pixabay image.

One good thing about the dark nights coming in earlier is it does encourage reading and writing!

I don’t need much of an excuse to curl up with a good book or get on with various writing projects as it is but the lighter evenings during the summer months can make me feel a bit guilty about not getting more gardening done etc. Note the “a bit”. Easy enough to squash so I can get on with reading and writing! I just wish I could stop feeling the slightly guilty feeling at all!

I often prefer lighter reading and writing during the darker months too. Contrast in mood perhaps? Whatever, it’s definitely time to get on with some writing once again!

A good read means you ARE in a world of your own. Pixabay image

Back cover of FLTDBA. Image by Allison Symes

Chapeltown Books have a distinctive central image in a frame such as with mine. Image by Allison Symes

My reading at the local railway station. Image by Janet Williams

Let the creativity spill out. PIxabay image.

Great characters = great books. Image via Pixabay.

Books are a fantastic form of escapism. Image via Pixabay

Great way to relax. Now where are those biscuits? Image via Pixabay

A good writing group will help you discover this. Pixabay image.

Gorgeous covers. Image via Pexels.

Lost in a world of books. Pixabay image.

Signing books for a friend. Image by Adrian Symes

Lovely and treasured book collection here. Image via Pexels

The love of writing must equal the love of reading. Pixabay image.

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

I often use lightning flashes in my photos for posts like this, given I think they reflect accurately how a flash fiction story illuminates and impacts on the reader. Very briefly and then over, but you don’t forget the impact.

A short story (say 1500 words+) to me is like shining a torch around – more light for a greater period of time but the impact can be diluted.

Sometimes you want that – you want the story as a whole to impact on your reader and you can only know if it‘s done that by reading and re-reading the whole thing.

The novel is like having a great big light on constantly. When you switch it off (stop reading it), that’s when you think about the impact it has made on you. Or that is how it has always seemed to be to me. I didn’t really appreciate the greatness of The Lord of the Rings until I’d finished reading it. You then take a mental step back and realise the huge scale of the trilogy.

Flash fiction makes you focus on the little details but the great thing with that is you can take this and use it to sharpen your longer works of fiction. No dull bits ever, thank you! The sections that are necessary to link the action should still carry the reader with them. The reader should be as keen to read those sections as they are the main scenes. Flash makes you tighten up your writing and this is enormously useful for ensuring your longer stories flow as they should.

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Time is the theme of my CFT post this week (time management and time travel. If the latter ever becomes possible, you will have to be really good at the former to make said travelling work well for you!). I’ve used time as a theme for a few of my flash fiction pieces – Telling the Time (there’s a clue somewhere here!) and Time Waits for No Man (likewise!).

My main use of time though for flash fiction is deciding on when I’m setting the story. Am I going to tell it as it “happens” to the character or will I get the character to look back on an event? I use both regularly and usually it is clear which would work better. So much depends on the character A reflective type would be best suited to looking back at something that had happened (which I do in They Don’t Understand). An active “go get them” kind would probably be better off telling the story AS it happens, implying the passing of time as we go through the events with them.

I write fairytales with bite as flash fiction and short stories in particular. Image via Pixabay.

From Light to Dark and Back Again. Image taken by Allison Symes

Whenever and whatever you read, enjoy. Image via Pixabay.

Books are fabulous, whatever the format. Image via Pixabay.

This, for me, would be a magical place to be. Image via Pixabay

The delights of the open page. Pexels image.

So true. Pixabay image.

Love writing, love reading, love books. Pixabay image.

Flash fiction, by its nature, has to take one look at a situation to be a story but you can get quite a bit into that “one look”. Image via Pixabay.

The first draft, the second, the tenth? Pixabay image

Says it all really but reading your work to yourself will show up where dialogue is weak. Image via Pixabay.

Flash – for light or dark fiction! Image via Pixabay

What do I look for in an opening line for flash fiction? I don’t necessarily need to know who the lead character is funnily enough, but I DO need to know the setting, the attitude of the narrator (especially if this is a first person piece), and some indication of what the problem is. That problem and how it is overcome IS the story of course.

Something about the narrator/lead character has got to intrigue me enough to make me want to read on. A great piece of flash fiction will make you ponder whether YOU would have acted in the same way as the character you’ve just read about!

Love this library. Mine is somewhat smaller than this! Image via Pixabay.

I don’t understand those who dislike books, in whatever format. Image via Pixabay.

The magic of stories. Image via Pixabay

I could spend many a happy hour here – the library at Prague. Image via Pixabay.

Let your stories have impact. Image via Pixabay

Good advice. Image via Pixabay.

Fiction or not, books are the gateways to other worlds. Image via Pixabay.

Big screen, little screen, LOTS of stories on either! Image via Pixabay

Poets stand and stare and then write down. Image via Pixabay.

What ever writer needs. Image via Pixabay

It can take a lot of self-belief to be able to call yourself this at times. Image via Pixabay

Fairytales with Bite – Favourite Times

What are your characters’ favourite times? Curling up with a good book? Lazing in the bath? Going for a good walk with the dog?

Use questions like this to help you establish your character. The answers may not appear in your story but knowing something about the character before you start writing about them will be enormously helpful. You don’t need to know each and every little detail. What you want is enough information that you can write clearly for them, knowing how they would react to a situation and why. The reader will pick up on the fact you really do know your character (even if they do this subconciously, in many ways it is better if they do pick up on this that way) and the writing will flow better as a result.

Of course, working out what your characters’ favourite times will tell you so much about them. Do they curl up with a good book because they can’t face what is their real life? Why can’t they face it? Dig deep. Maybe you will surprise yourself with what your characters show you about themselves. Use that.

All writers feel this way sometimes. Pixabay image.

Words have power, whether funny or tragic. Pixabay image.

The perfect place to reflect and take stock. Pixabay image.

Plugging in for new ideas? Pixabay image

There was always something magical about having a blank page to write to. Image via Pixabay.

Words are the power source of so much creativity. Pixabay iamge.

Assemble your characters, assemble your world. Image via Pixabay

Write first, edit later. Pixabay.

Outline the characters and away you go! Image via Pixabay

Walking into the words maybe. Pixabay image

Characters no matter what their world should resonate with readers. Image via Pixabay

How is your fantastic world governed? Pixabay image

Very old school writing. Pixabay image.

This World and Others – Time

My Chandler’s Ford Today post this week talks about time management and time travel. Guess which one I want to get better at! Joking aside, this led me to think about how we use time in stories.

A lot of my flash fiction stories are set within a very short time period (appropriately) and are written in the first person, precisely because I want to achieve a sense of “immediacy”. For other pieces I have the lead character looking back at their lives and being reflective so the time within stories like that is longer, “stretched” if you like, and the pace of the story is slower. What grabs you with those kinds of tale is the character – something about them intrigues you enough to make you want to find out more.

Time in itself can make a useful theme for stories (too little of it, too much of it etc) but I’ve found it helpful to think about the kind of story I want to tell and then work out what the best time frame for that tale would be. In my Pressing the Flesh the opening line is “It was 3 am”. The impact of that is to make you wonder (a) why the time is important and (b) to assume the character concerned is unlikely to be up to any good at that time of night. (Quite right too – see my From Light to Dark and Back Again for the whole story!).

The magical world of the imagination. Image via Pixabay

A way into the magical realm, perhaps? Image via Pixabay.

The way to the magical realm perhaps? Image via Pixabay.

Creative writing takes many forms, including blogging. Image via Pixabay.

What wonderful worlds we can creat! Image via Pixabay.

Reach for those ideas. Pixabay image.

Notebooks old and new – image via Pixabay. Ideas have to be jotted down somewhere!

Where many a first draft starts life. Old technology still has its uses! Image via Pixabay.

The Writing Life. Pixabay image.

Preparing a talk or a flash fiction story perhaps. Image via Pixabay.

The perfect way to unwind. Image via Pixabay.

Enjoying writing the follow up to FLTDBA. Image by Allison Symes

Magical lands. Image via Pixabay.

REMEMBERING – AND THE POINT OF FICTION

November 13, 2018Leave a comment

Facebook – General

I had a friend, now sadly gone, who couldn’t understand the point of fiction. He only read non-fiction and thought the world was too wonderful to want to make things up!

I had some sympathy for that view funnily enough, as I could see what he was getting at, but I did point out that fiction can show truths facts can’t always do. Fiction can show elements of human nature in a better way than just relating a list of what we are capable of.

I also think fiction should encourage empathy. We root for characters we like. Why? Because there is something in them we can identify with or aspire to in ourselves. So does it follow then the more we read, the more we encourage empathy in ourselves? I like to think so.

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Very moved by the Remembrance events over the weekend. So many stories we know about, so many still untold (not everyone wants to “open up” about what they went through). So much history recalled – personal, national and international. I was also pleased to see the animals who served in the war (especially horses and dogs) were also remembered at various times over the weekend.

One common theme running through Doctor Who is how one action, no matter how small, can change the history of the individual and, from that, the history of their country, the planet even. Very much a chain reaction.

So when are we planning our characters and stories, look for the pivotal moments that are going to turn everything upside down. What is behind those moments? What makes your characters act and react the way they do (given there is always an opposite reaction to be considered)? Is the motivation of your character strong enough to justify the stance they’re taking?

We dare not forget. Pixabay image.

Memories are fragile especially over time. Pixabay image.

Indeed. Pixabay image.

The Tower of London poppies from a few years ago. Pixabay image.

Photos the old school way. Pixabay image.

Where do your characters like to take time out to reflect and why? Pexels image

Image via Pexels

What journeys are your characters going on? Image via Pixabay

What impact do your stories have on your readers? Image via Pixabay

Poetry conjures up images so beautifully. Image via Pixabay. See Sandra Lyn Gordon’s wonderful poem on Chandler’s Ford Today for another example of great imagery.

Glad to hear one of my favourite radio shows, I’m Sorry I Haven’t A Clue, is back on Radio 4. Some fantastic word play here. Got to see the live show a little while back. Good fun. If you get the chance to go, do so. Laugh a minute is not an exaggeration!

I’m very fond of a good pun. (Am also very fond of a dreadful one!). I like playing with the language like this. (This is also why the late great Frank Muir and Denis Norden are much missed. They were fabulous at this).

I occasionally get to give my characters a humorous one liner, which I enjoy doing, but I think it has more impact because I don’t do this all the time. Also the humour has to arise out of the situation I’ve put the characters in and mustn’t feel forced. A reader will spot that a mile off.

But having fun with the language is one of the great joys of writing.

Puns can be visual. Pixabay image.

Transistor radio. Pixabay image

Walking into the words maybe. Pixabay image

Maths joke of the week. Pixabay image.

Puns can be very simple. Pixabay image.

Even Paddington likes a pun. Pixabay image.

So true. Pixabay image.

It always is! Reflecting first helps a lot! Pixabay image

A great new idea makes me smile, as does this image. Pixabay image.

My CFT post this week will look at the art of time management and takes in a quick look at time travel too. More on Friday.

How does time work in your stories? I don’t tend to think of it much as most of my flash fiction is very much in the “here and now”. I’m not sure though whether my using the first person encourages that or if the here and now encourages the use of the first person! Jury out here…

Even those pieces where a character is looking back at a period of life have a kind of bracketed time zone. It can only be for so long. I suppose you could argue I use time as a kind of a frame for my flash fiction and that does work well. As ever, though, be consistent with your use of time throughout the story.

Photos the old school way. Pixabay image.

All writers have felt this way at times. Pixabay image.

Picking up wriitng tips will help you improve your work. Pixabay image.

Hope your Christmas books take you to all sorts of wonderful places! Pixabay image

How does gravity and time work in your settings? Pixabay image.

A beautiful woodland walk. Pixabay image

Wonderful writing desk. Pixabay image

Write first, edit later. Pixabay.

Write your piece, leave it for a while before editing. Pixabay image.

Let one creative idea spark another. Pixabay image.

The medieval scrivener’s wares. Image by Allison Symes

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

R = Recalling the debt we owe
E = Engaging with the past so we do not end up re-living it
M = Memories to be treasured and learnt from
E = Elegies and the war poetry of Sassoon and Owen amongst others
M = Men fallen and wounded, numbers too vast to comprehend
B = Bugles and the moving notes of The Last Post
R = Regiments, so many of them “old pals” networks. Reflect an almost forgotten era.
A = Armistice Achieved Eventually.
N = Never again they said. Sadly they were wrong. What can WE do then? Remember, recall, DON’T repeat.
C = Creatures such as the horses that also saw active service, amongst others.
E = Edith Cavell, Nurse, who rightly wanted to help the injured of both sides.

Allison Symes – 10th November 2018

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How do the seasons affect your characters? The reduced amount of sunlight throughout the autumn and winter months is known to affect many people in terms of moods, being more prone to depressive attacks (in terms of quantity and how long each episode lasts). Should our characters reflect this too? I think so.

As well as the general point of acknowledging depression openly, (pretending it doesn’t exist or happen helps nobody), I think it unrealistic to have characters in a “set” state of mind. Their moods are bound to fluctuate, whether it is due to the lack of sunlight, the earlier and longer nights, or the circumstances they’re facing or a combination of that.

When we portray our characters, we must show them honestly for them to have any resonance with our readers. While there isn’t the word count room in flash fiction to show a lot of change of moods (you’d need the longer short stories and novels for that), you CAN give an indication of a character’s usual mood and where/what has changed it.

For example, in my They Don’t Understand, I start with my lead character showing us he has blamed himself for something. As the story progresses, he recalls his life with his wife, and then the ending, the “punch in the gut” end as I like to think of it, shows why he blamed himself at the start. This was one of my longer flash fiction pieces and I needed all the words available here to convey this sense of mood well enough. But without those changes of mood, and the reasons for them, the story simply wouldn’t have impact.

Write your piece, leave it for a while before editing. Pixabay image.

View from near where I was staying in Scotland. You wouldn’t want to rush away from this. Image by Allison Symes

Is everything black and white in your stories? Image via Pexels

Again from Swanwick. Literally a place to reflect! Image via Allison Symes

The Hayes Conference Centre, home of the Swanwick Writers’ Summer School. Image by Allison Symes

Let the creative process flow! Image via Pixabay

Write first, edit later. Pixabay.

Plugging in for new ideas? Pixabay image

I’ve never read a book in these conditions, have you? Pixabay image.

Let those ideas flow! Image via Pixabay,

Flash fiction isn’t a new idea, far from it. The name of it might be but the concept isn’t. Aesop’s Fables would count as flash fiction as would many of Jesus’s parables in the New Testament. (Many come in at under 100 words!). (The longer story of the Good Samaritan is a great example of the Rule of Three in action too!). Truly, there is nothing new under the sun!

Having said that, the challenge for flash fiction writers now, as with any story writer, is to come up with strong characters and engaging ideas which grip your reader so much they HAVE to read your story through. I call it the “do I have to read this and read it NOW?” test. If the answer to that is a resounding “yes”, you are definitely on to something!

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What are your favourite times for writing? I find late afternoon into the evening works best for me. With most of the day’s cares behind me, I can focus on writing something I love and relish every moment of it.

I’ve found the biggest thing about having a regular writing “slot” is it conditions you to accept this is the time you will write so you settle down and get on with it (never a bad thing that!).

I try to mix up what I write during the week as a whole. I focus on my CFT post first, then get on with the flash fiction and other, longer term, projects I’ve got in mind. Keeps the imagination busy!

What wonderful worlds we can creat! Image via Pixabay.

Let the ideas flow and let journeys encourage that! Image via Pixabay

Books are the keys to knowledge. Image via Pixabay

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

The perfect place to reflect and take stock. Pixabay image.

Ebooks and print – both have their own frustrations when it comes to publishing. Image via Pixabay

Get those ideas coming! Pixabay image

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Unless in a thunder storm or high winds, this is a good idea! Image via Pexels

The fantastical should still be grounded in reality (even if you create some of that reality too). Pixabay image.

Hopefully the Book Fair will encourage even more reading! Image via Pexels

See! It is a good idea, weather permitting! Image via Pexels

Goodreads Author Blog – Remembering

I write this on the eve of Remembrance Sunday/Armistice Day 2018 when all thoughts turn to remembering those who sacrificed so much.

This is where the war poetry of Sassoon and Owen amongst others hits home. This is where historical writing – fiction AND non-fiction, can truly show what life would have been like in the trenches (and make us devoutly thankful we’ll never face anything like that).

The testimonies and local history records should be treasured. Reading others’ experiences and thoughts should encourage empathy in us (and I think is one of the truly great things about fiction generally).

There are so many stories – someone local to me has found out the stories of those on our War Memorial. Imagine that happening up and down the UK. Every single person recalled and their story told.

Fiction is wonderful and should reflect the human condition but the sheer brutal facts of non-fiction around things like the World Wars should never be forgotten. We owe a huge debt to those who wrote things down so we have those written records. We dare not forget (else be destined to re-live) and writers play a crucial role here.

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Memories and Motivations

November 9, 2018Leave a comment

Facebook – General – and Chandler’s Ford Today

My latest CFT post, The Importance of Memories, is timely of course as we enter Remembrance Sunday/Armistice Day, but I also look at the topic from the angle of how and why memories are vital to us all as individuals and as countries. I look at the impact of dementia and how singing helps with memory. I also discuss how fiction writers can use memories.

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One tip I’ve found useful when planning out my stories is making sure my characters’ motivations ARE strong enough.

It doesn’t necessarily have to be a “do or die” approach either (though the dramatic qualities of that are obvious), but if, for example, Character A wants to buy a special present for Character B, then you must show why Character B means the world to A. Motivations have got to be something any reader is going to be able to identify with (but not necessarily agree about!).

Let the creativity spill out. PIxabay image.

Clarity and constructive criticism are always useful. Pixabay image.

Walking into the words maybe. Pixabay image

Write first, edit later. Pixabay.

Books invite you into their world. Image via Pixabay

How does gravity and time work in your settings? Pixabay image.

Writing, whether it is fiction or otherwise, is a wonderful way to create something new - image via Pixabay

What an upgrade from Shakespeare’s quill! Image via Pixabay

Hope your Christmas books take you to all sorts of wonderful places! Pixabay image

How is your fantastic world governed? Pixabay image

A good writing group will help you discover this. Pixabay image.

What is your favourite form of writing and/or reading – fiction or non-fiction?

I love (and write) both. Non-fiction can and has inspired ideas for my fiction. It also means having different projects to work on, I never get bored, and I am exercising more “writing muscles” than if I did just write one thing. (I just wish I had more time but then don’t we all?).

I also think where you have a fictional world but which has solid basis in fact (i.e. you have thought about how gravity works in your fantasy setting, what form of government there is etc, based on what we know here), your story has got to be more convincing and stronger as a result.

Photo by Kaboompics .com on Pexels.com

The writing necessities! Pixabay image.

The wonderful world of writing should include non-fiction, which benefits from creative techniques too. Image via Pixabay.

The lights fantastic. Pixabay image.

Love writing, love reading, love books. Pixabay image.

Words are the power source of so much creativity. Pixabay iamge.

Fiction is strengthened when backed by fact. Image via Pixabay

Let your writing sparkle. Image via Pexels.

Outlining your characters, perhaps. Image via Pexel

Let those ideas flow! Image via Pixabay,

Use what you know of our world and your imagination to create something really special. Image via Pixabay

PART 3 - A well written book will make you feel as if you are on the journey with the characters - Pixabay

Words have power, whether funny or tragic. Pixabay image.

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

The best flash fiction is where the writer has stuck to ONE simple idea/theme and followed it through. There really isn’t the room to do anything else and the impact of the story is greater for keeping it simple.

This is not the same thing as simplistic though. The best flash fiction will hit you emotionally, can make you think, can frighten you, make you laugh etc, all in a few words.

Simple writing is where the editing has been done (and often several times) and, to quote the late great Eric Morecambe, albeit in different circumstances, “you really can’t see the join”!

Use personal reviews to help you generate character and story outlines. Image via Pixabay.

The ultimate smartphone maybe?! Image via Pixabay

The writer’s desk. What do you hope will emerge from yours this coming year? Image via Pixabay.

Escape with a good book. Image via Pixabay.

Never in my fiction. Image via Pixabay.

Wonderful writing desk. Pixabay image

Fiction should show you new ways of looking at the world. Image via Pixabay.

Assemble your characters, assemble your world. Image via Pixabay

Preparing the blog. Image via Pixabay.

This made me smile! Pixabay image.

Books are fabulous, whatever the format. Image via Pixabay.

Well, let’s do so by writing lots of stories! Image via Pixabay.

Favourite themes of mine for flash fiction include rough justice, alien life being as intelligent as ours (and usually more so!), and crime (often showing the criminal’s justification, if only to themselves, as to their course of action). It is perhaps ironic that the really big themes – love, justice etc – can be summed up in one word but the amount of variety of stories you can get from these is vast.

I believe the simpler the theme, the better. It comes across well too. You don’t need your readers scratching their heads trying to work out what the theme is.

If your story grips you, all sense of time will go! Image via Pixabay.

Remembering… image via Pixabay

Is everything black and white in your stories? Image via Pexels

The first draft, the second, the tenth? Pixabay image

For jotting down those initial ideas. Image via Pixabay.

Plugging in for new ideas? Pixabay image

Edit, edit, edit! Pixabay image.

What journeys are your characters going on? Image via Pixabay

Image from Hampshire Writers Society where I was a guest speaker last year. Great fun! Many thanks to HWS for permission to use the photo.

Love that clock. Pexels image.

Looking forward to the Bridge House celebration event in early December. Less than a month to go!

One of the nice things about writing is getting to meet other writers. It is lovely knowing you are not the only one who wants to get their imaginary world down on paper and send it out there in book form.

I suppose one of the biggest things I’ve learned is never to underestimate how long it takes to get a book together! It always will take far longer than you think, as will the editing process, but it will be worth it in the long run.

My latest CFT post. Image kindly supplied by Gail Aldwin.

Gill talks with Dawn Kentish Knox and me. Image thanks to Paula Readman.

Paula Readman, Dawn Kentish Knox and I celebrate where our stories have appeared! Many thanks to Paula Readman for the picture.!

Connections to what you read and what you write. What are yours? Image via Pixabay.

Dawn Kentish Knox, fellow flash fiction writer, reads some work from her excellent book, The Great War. Image by Allison Symes

Gill James reading from her January Stones collection. Image by Allison Symes

I read three stories from From Light to Dark and Back Again. Many thanks to Dawn Kentish Knox for the picture!

Preparing a talk or a flash fiction story perhaps. Image via Pixabay.

Memory is my theme on Chandler’s Ford Today this week but it plays a vital role in fiction too. For characters to seem real and therefore believable, they must have a past. That past doesn’t need to BE the story you’re telling but it should impact on it in some way (if only because it has made the character turn out to be the way that they are).

Also the setting in which your characters live, that world should have values and rules, which will be formed by its history. There are likely to be ceremonies and special days which your characters will observe or note in the course of your story.

With flash fiction of course this has to be condensed right down. In my Helping Out, my opening line has a witch helping a fairy and acknowledging she is not supposed to do so. Those last few words immediately imply a whole history of feuding between the two magical groups and the witch is remembering it and, in this case, ignoring it! The story goes on to explain why but her memory of usual behaviours impacts on her actions here. Memories = realities = more convincing fiction.

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Fairytales with Bite – Character Memories

I write about The Importance of Memories in my Chandler’s Ford Today post this week. I touch on the subject of memories and fiction writing here too but below are some specific reasons why memories should come into your stories (even if they are just implied. They often are just implied in flash fiction due to the limited word count but to my mind that makes the impact more hard hitting).

1. Characters need to seem real to be believable. Real people have memories. So do real characters.

2. Our behaviour is affected by memory – memory of what we did wrong, memory of what we did right and the difference between the two! Our characters should reflect this too. They’re not going to get it right all the time (good thing too – no story there!) but do need to show they’ve learned from their mistakes. That is where memory comes in of course.

3. Your world setting will have rules and values it expects its citizens to live by. Your characters will know what these are, will know what special days and ceremonies there are, and will live their lives i obedience to all of that or be rebelling against it, but again your characters need to know and remember what these are!

4. We are shaped by our memories in terms of who we are and why we are the way we are. Our characters should be too.

5. We can be haunted by memories, especially of those we’ve loved and lost. Our characters should be too.

Great characters = great books. Image via Pixabay.

Let the writing flow and if music can help it along even better! Image via Pixabay

The dark can seem to overcome the light but light will prevail. Image via Pixabay

So true. Pixabay image.

Pressing on towards the light. Image via Pixabay

Is the truth welcome in your fictional world? How does your community react to it?. Image via Pixabay.

Love the sunshine through the trees. Pixabay image.

There can be reality behind fairytales. Image via Pixabay (and image used as part of book trailer for From Light to Dark and Back Again)

What impact do your stories have on your readers? Image via Pixabay

Glorious autumn. Time to take stock briefly and then move on. Pixabay image.

Flash fiction for impact. Image via Pixabay

We dare not forget. Pixabay image.

The perfect place to reflect and take stock. Pixabay image.

This World and Others – Character Traits

What are the most useful character traits for a writer to use? My thoughts would be:-

1. Whichever trait you choose, it has to be “open” enough to go in several directions. For example, if your character has a “brave” trait, does this mean they are brave all the time? Are there some fears they really cannot face but because they are brave in other areas that hides this? Are they brave when out and about with friends but cowardly at home? Lots of directions you could go in there.

2. Whichever trait you choose, it should be something most people can identify with/aspire to. Most of us want to be decent, kind, brave etc. I love reading characters who have those traits and who overcome against all the odds. Instant reader sympathy.

3. Whichever good trait you choose for a character, they should also have a fault that goes against it, something they have to manage and control. (A good example of that is The Incredible Hulk! Mild mannered most of the time but boy when he becomes angry the sparks fly!). You have internal conflict here and also what happens when another character has seen the good side and suddenly comes to see the bad side for the first time? What are the reactions there?

In Remembrance and with thankfulness. Pixabay image.

Memories are fragile especially over time. Pixabay image.

The men have fallen. Image by Stuart Wineberg.

The men have fallen, the curtain is down and John Macrae says it all

The fantastical should still be grounded in reality (even if you create some of that reality too). Pixabay image.

Let’s hope your characters have a good sense of direction! Image via Pixabay.

What decisions will your characters make? Image via Pixabay.

Images from the magical world… Image via Pixabay

Writing in many forms… Image via Pixabay

Writing Acronyms

November 6, 2018Leave a comment

Facebook – General

Possible writing acronyms coming up… see what you think.

ABC = A Biro, Candidly (when asked what the best thing to write with is!).

DEF = Definitely Edit Flash. It may be a very short story but editing is still required! No short cuts. No matter what its length, a story still has to be fine tuned and honed. I don’t think there has ever been anyone who can turn out the perfect short story in one go and leave it that AND keep on doing this for short story after short story etc etc. I know I’m not going to be the one to break that rule of thumb.

GHI = Get Huge Imagination. Best way of doing that? Read widely. Read lots. Read books. Read magazines. Listen to audio books. Watch films. Absorb stories no matter what their format. Think about what the writers here have done and then work out how you’d do it and why especially where you think something doesn’t work. (Or at least doesn’t work for you. Have a look at what that is – what can you learn from this that you can apply to your own writing).

Next installment tomorrow!

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Some more writing acronyms then…

JKL = Just Kill Lines. Lines that aren’t working. Lines that don’t flow as well as you thought they would. (Reading work out loud is a good test for this, you will literally hear the words flow well or not). Whatever doesn’t move your character or your story forward (or shows something the reader needs to know but STILL takes the story forward) has to go!

MNO = Manage Named Objectives. What are your character’s objectives? What must they achieve? Know what these are in your own mind before putting pen to paper or writing to screen. The idea is for your readers to discover what the objectives are through your characters rather than telling them directly. It is also a good idea to keep objectives straightforward and having them based on a need is useful foo. LOTR – need to destroy Sauron’s ring of power. Straightforward, to the point, and “simple”. How the objective is then achieved (or not!) is where the story really kicks off.

PQR = Practice Quality Reading! (Confession time: I did look up literary words beginning with Q and could only find Quatrain! The poets amongst you can make far better use of that than I can!). What do I mean by quality reading? I think of it as reading widely, often, across genres, non-fiction as well as differing types of fiction. See this as feeding your imagination. Ideas spark from other stories. You will see how an author wrote a story. You think to yourself well I’d do it this way… So go on and do so! But the more you read, the more you can kick start your own imagination and that has got to be a good thing.

Walking into the words maybe. Pixabay image

Lovely and treasured book collection here. Image via Pexels

I’ve never read a book in these conditions, have you? Pixabay image.

A truly beautiful book. Pixabay image.

The writing necessities! Pixabay image.

Love this clock. Pixabay image.

Good reading – and writing to be done – here. Pixabay image.

A house full of books. Pixabay image.

Words have power, whether funny or tragic. Pixabay image.

Books invite you into their world. Image via Pixabay.

Even in the heart of a city, books can provide escapism. Image via Pixabay.

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

How about some autumnal flash fiction stories? Some even go up to three lines!

1. The falling leaves were suffocating her.

2. You know they call that cold wind the Beast from the East? Well, it devoured three workmen, two posties and a milkman on its way through our villages last night.

3. The creature liked the nights drawing in so early. Hunting time was extended and there was always someone slowly trudging home to pick off at leisure. The creature called it Happy Hour.

Hmm… there’s a theme developing here! Hope you enjoy.

Allison Symes – 3rd November 2018

Now here’s a statue that I like! Image via Pixabay

What are the difficulties in your characters’ way? Pexels image.

Where will your characters take you? Image via Pixabay

Love writing, love reading, love books. Pixabay image.

Shedding some light… Pexels image.

Reading immerses you in another world. Pixabay image.

Poetry conjures up images so beautifully. Image via Pixabay. See Sandra Lyn Gordon’s wonderful poem on Chandler’s Ford Today for another example of great imagery.

The way to the magical realm perhaps? Image via Pixabay.

Where do your characters like to take time out to reflect and why? Pexels image

Come sunrise the fairies (and fairytale witches) must vanish. Image via Pixabay.

On the surface a lovely woodland. What magical creatures could lurk here? Image via Pixabay.

The challenges with writing flash fiction are:-

1. Ensuring every line grips your reader.
2. Ensuring the tantalising opening line is backed up with a powerful closing one. No damp squibs here, thank you!

I have brainstorming sessions every so often where I jot down lines. Some are obvious opening lines (to me anyway!). Others look as if they could finish a story. So I either work out ideas that could come from an opening line OR work backwards from a closing one and see how I could have got to that point. All good fun.

I think it a good idea to mix up your writing methods like this. It keeps you on your imaginative toes for one thing.

: Making the most of the writing time. Pixabay image

: Plugging in for new ideas? Pixabay image

: All writers feel this way sometimes. Pixabay image.

: Let the creativity spill out. PIxabay image.

: Editing is vital. Nobody gets it right first go. Pixabay image.

: A beautiful woodland walk. Pixabay image

: The joy of writing is you never stop learning. Pixabay image.

: A truly beautiful diary. Image via Pixabay

: How they USED to put pictures into books! Image via Pixabay.

: Notes about your characters can help you portray them more accurately. Not every note has to make it into the story itself. Pixabay image.

: Your blog, your topic, your theme – just be sensible on copyright and libel issues. Image via Pixabay.

We’re in fireworks season here in the UK at the moment. (Fortunately my dog, Lady, is not at all phased by them). So if you are setting your story in a fantasy world of some sort, what would they use to mark occasions? I always did love Gandalf’s fireworks in The Lord of the Rings (and the film really did do justice to these in the opening scenes).

What sort of music would your world have? Is music banned? Do only the privileged elite celebrate anything or does everyone join in? Some story ideas there I think!

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I believe the simpler the theme, the better. It comes across well too. You don’t need your readers scratching their heads trying to work out what the theme is.

Get those ideas coming! Pixabay image

Escape with a good book. Image via Pixabay.

Beautiful pens. Pexels image.

The Ring from Lord of the Rings - image via Pixabay

Fiction can take you anywhere. Image via Pixabay.

I prefer to sit and read rather than stand! Pexels image.

Love the sunshine through the trees. Pixabay image.

The writer’s desk. What do you hope will emerge from yours this coming year? Image via Pixabay.

The perfect place to reflect and take stock. Pixabay image.

Hobbiton - Frodo gave up his comfortable home - image via Pixabay

Goodreads Author Programme – Blog – Seasonal Reading

Do you worry about reading according to the seasons?

I generally don’t, though will concede I read more during the autumn and winter. There is just something about the longer dark evenings that encourage getting the Kindle out or raiding the To Be Read pile. For me, it is one of the joys of the colder times of year. (The other is hot chocolate!).

But what I read doesn’t change much during the year. I read according to mood. So if I fancy crime, I read that. If I want historical I go for that. (Sometimes I fancy historical crime!!). The great thing about reading and writing flash fiction is one collection can cover a lot of moods in one volume! Mine falls into that category.

I will put my hands up to re-reading Terry Pratchett’s Reaper Man around Harvest Festival Time and his Hogfather in the run up to Christmas though but that is about it for me for seasonal reading.

What I would like to do more of though is read more poetry. I know what I like in that line when I come across it but it is remembering to do so. For me it is the easiest thing in the world to reach for prose to suit my moods. And of course the majority of the time that is exactly what I do.

I do have what I call “comfort reading” books and these are generally humorous like Pratchett or Wodehouse. When I want a sure fire bet to entertain and amuse me, these are where I head first.

So what do you read seasonally?

Aids research whether it is tea, coffee, hot chocolate etc! Image via Pixabay

Enough books to be going on with for now anyway…. Image via Pixabay

Books – love them, don’t mind the format. Image via Pixabay

Always good advice this. Image via Pexels

Books are magical – image via Pixabay

Always good advice! Pixabay image.

The blank page (or screen) is ready for your diary (or blog!). Image via Pixabay.

Let the ideas flow and let journeys encourage that! Image via Pixabay

Writing in many forms. Image via Pixabay.

Reviews and Remembering

November 2, 2018Leave a comment

Facebook – General – and Chandler’s Ford Today

It was a delightful and very moving experience to watch the Chameleons’ production of Blackadder Goes Forth last week. My review for CFT this week shares some wonderful pictures from the set (and many thanks to Stuart Wineberg and the Chameleons for kind permission to use these). The production was a sell out run and I am not at all surprised.

The way the very famous final scene was carried out on stage worked so well too. For more, see the post.

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Looking forward to sharing my review of the Chameleons’s most recent production, Blackadder Goes Forth, later in the week. Found a particularly nice Youtube clip to go with it which fits in beautifully. It is always nice to uncover gems to go with posts like that.

Remembering is a fundamental part of being human (which is why Alzheimer’s is the tragedy it is). It should feature in your fiction too. What makes your character the way they are? What do they remember that they fight against or go with? Do they join in with their society’s collective memories or would they be what we would know as a revisionist?

What ceremonies are special on the world you’ve set up and what memories have led to these ceremonies taking place at all? Is everyone expected to join in or is it only for the privileged few?

Great characters = great books. Image via Pixabay.

My latest Chandler’s Ford Today post. Image via Pixabay

Poetry conjures up images so beautifully. Image via Pixabay. See Sandra Lyn Gordon’s wonderful poem on Chandler’s Ford Today for another example of great imagery.

One thing that has been true throughout history is the need for a good edit! Image via Pixabay

The joy of editing but a major part of my writing rituals is to always keep this separate from creative writing. Image via Pixabay

Great characters will engross you. You will lose time reading their stories. Image via Pixabay.

Funny day today. Saw my sister go off to NZ (holiday and catching up with family). Not been to Heathrow for years. Last time was when our parents went over there. Mum and Dad went over at exactly the right time. It wasn’t long after their return that Alzheimer’s became “openly apparent” in Mum. Had they delayed at all, they would not have been able to go. The decisions we make…

What decisions do your characters make that turn out to be pivotal? They don’t necessarily need to be “obvious”. Something as simple as deciding to take a journey at a particular time as opposed to a later or earlier time could make all the difference to your story outcome but you will need to show why and how. Plenty of possibilities for drama and conflict there (especially if your lead is arguing with others as to the best way and time to go about their “mission”).

Books are wonderful. Pixabay image.

All writers feel this way sometimes. Pixabay image.

Generating the writing ideas. Image via Pixabay.

Series novels contribute so much to the wonderful world of books. Pixabay image.

What will this be for your writing journey? Pixabay image

Fiction can take you anywhere. Image via Pixabay.

A good book will illuminate some truth. Image via Pexels

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

I’ve been thinking a lot about journeys today (my sister is off to NZ as I type this), but of course every story is a journey in and of itself, regardless of its length. You have a character, something happens (the moment of crucial change) and then there’s the outcome (not necessarily a happy or good one).

The main difference with flash fiction of course it that this tends to be a short, sharp journey and there’s no hanging around for the outcome!

A truly beautiful diary. Image via Pixabay

Hope your Christmas books take you to all sorts of wonderful places! Pixabay image

Very old school writing. Image via Pixabay.

Nobody gets their ideas right first go. Image via Pixabay.

Editing is vital. Nobody gets it right first go. Pixabay image.

Old diaries can be fascinating but it is where cut and paste really was just that. Image via Pixabay.

Or get away from it all in one book. Pixabay image.

Books are the keys to knowledge. Image via Pixabay

I’ve never read a book in these conditions, have you? Pixabay image.

Books are wonderful. Pixabay image.

LIKES POST - a familiar sight to us all - Pixabay image

Let the creativity spill out. PIxabay image.

Notebook to hand ready for those story ideas. Image via Pexels.

I sometimes write pieces where a character reflects on their life. My They Don’t Understand is a good example of this. Not an action story as such but one where, hopefully, the characterisation grips you and you have to find out how the character did in the end.

Naturally there has to be something special about the character to get you to keep on reading. Often it is their voice that is compelling. Know how your character would think, act, and therefore speak. It will make a huge difference to how you write them.

The writing necessities! Pixabay image.

Which number draft is this? Pixabay image

The Writing Life. Pixabay image.

It always is! Reflecting first helps a lot! Pixabay image

Good reading – and writing to be done – here. Pixabay image.

Always a good idea! Pixabay image.

How they USED to put pictures into books! Image via Pixabay.

Some of the books I’ve appeared in and FLTDBA of course. Image by Allison Symes

I sometimes write pieces where a character reflects on their life. My They Don’t Understand is a good example of this. Not an action story as such but one where, hopefully, the characterisation grips you and you have to find out how the character did in the end.

Generating the writing ideas. Image via Pixabay.

A great new idea makes me smile, as does this image. Pixabay image.

Is it Time for a Change for the dragon in my story on Cafelit? Image via Pixabay

Books have their own sense of time and space. Image via Pixabay.

I recall using a manual typewriter and manually copying and pasting. Pixabay image.

Fiction is strengthened when backed by fact. Image via Pixabay

How does gravity and time work in your settings? Pixabay image.

Plugging in for new ideas? Pixabay image

Books are fabulous, whatever the format. Image via Pixabay.

A clean sheet can lead to some fascinating characters and stories. Image via Pixabay

The scrivener’s tools – image by Allison Symes

Thoughts for starting to write flash fiction:-

1. Pick out or invent a title and see what story ideas can come from that. Ideally try not to go with your first idea, as usually that is a way in to finding deeper, better ones to work with!

2. Know who your lead character is going to be and what their chief characteristic is. Very useful way to get started!

3. Don’t worry about the word count limitations at this stage. Write the story. Edit it. Read it out loud. Edit it again. Then see what its word count length should be. Some stories really do work better at 100 words, others at 500. The great thing is there are markets for both!

4. Keep the idea simple. Don’t try to be too clever. You want the reader to identify with your characters and for the idea to be a plausible one (no matter how fantastic the setting of the story). Being too clever will just tie the story (and you!) up in knots and won’t do anything for a potential reader.

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

A house full of books. Pixabay image.

Content is indeed king. Image via Pixabay.

Love this clock. Pixabay image.

Lost in time, thanks to a good book. Pexels image.

Whenever and whatever you read, enjoy. Image via Pixabay.

Let the creativity spill out. PIxabay image.

So many places to share your blog. Image via Pixabay,

Lost in a good book. Image via Pixabay.

Fairytales with Bite – Character Dialogue

Character dialogue has to sound natural when a reader comes to it, whether they read it aloud or not and whether they read a print or ebook or listen to the story on audio first. Often character dialogue is a “tidied up” version of what we say in life with few hesitations (best used sparingly in writing. It looks gimmicky and is “tiring” to read.).

I’ve found reading work out loud (sometimes recording it and playing it back) is a great way of checking to see if my dialogue is up to scratch. If I stumble over my words, a reader will too as out with the old editing pen again! It is wise to use accented speech sparingly. You want to give a sense of what a character’s accent is. You don’t need to use an accent for each and every word they say. Again, that is tiring to read, especially in a longer work.

You need your characters to speak in different styles so readers can easily tell them apart during “conversational pieces”. Sometimes this can be done by the choice of words a character uses. Sometimes it can be that Character A always speaks in short, sharp sentences, while Character B takes their time in getting to the point!

I love getting my characters to “chat” even if sometimes it is to themselves via their own internal thoughts. This is where you and, later, a reader can find out so much about them.

What world will you conjure up for us in your stories? Pixabay image.

Making the most of the writing time. Pixabay image

What populates your fictional world? Pixabay image

Hope your Christmas books take you to all sorts of wonderful places! Pixabay image

Just how fantastic is your setting? Pixabay image.

How does gravity and time work in your settings? Pixabay image.

How is your world governed? Is it done well? Pixabay image.

What wonderful worlds we can creat! Image via Pixabay.

Or get away from it all in one book. Pixabay image.

I’ve never read a book in these conditions, have you? Pixabay image.

This World and Others – Packing a Punch With Your Writing

This topic has come about as a direct result of my Chandler’s Ford Today post this week, which was a review of the Chameleon Theatre Company’s recent production of Blackadder Goes Forth. This last series in the Blackadder canon is by far the best of them and with humour and irony conveyed the horror of life in the trenches in World War One. Blackadder would have been mad NOT to have tried any means possible to get out of there. The writing is excellent and the tragedy of what happens is beautifully portrayed. How?

A lot of the writing is understated. Blackadder’s final “good luck, everyone” is said calmly and without emotion as the men are about to go over the top. There is a wealth of emotion behind those three words. Anyone watching knows those men are about to go to their deaths and that they know it too. So you don’t need lots of words to make a powerful impact on your reader. There is a lot to be said about quiet courage (as shown by Blackadder funnily enough). Think about then what impact you want your readers to experience, then look at the best way of achieving that.

Humour can achieve a great deal here as can quiet acceptance of what is about to happen. Raging against the unfairness of it all can engender some sympathy but I’ve found a better approach is for characters to fight the odds as much as they can and if they lose, it is clear from the story it is NOT because of anything they’ve said or done. It is for your reader to conclude that it is unfair on the character, rather than have the character do it (as you run the risk that the character may come across as being whinging).

: Does your story conjure up your setting well enough? Pexels image.

: What are the difficulties in your characters’ way? Pexels image.

: Does your dialogue make a powerful impact on the reader? Pexels image

: Where do your characters like to take time out to reflect and why? Pexels image