Tag: beginnings

Relatable Characters

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Image Credits:-
All images from Pixabay/Pexels unless otherwise stated with many created in Book Brush. Book cover images from Chapeltown Books and Bridge House Publishing. Screenshots taken by me, Allison Symes.
Hope you have had a good weekend. Lovely one here and even more spring flowers emerging. Good to see. Lady enjoying the better weather too. Busy on the writing front but had a productive weekend, which always pleases me.

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Hope you’ve had a good day. Another lovely sunny one here.

Looking forward to going to an Association of Christian Writers Zoom session tonight. The talk sounds interesting.

Won’t be getting much writing done today due to that but I do go to these things, when they’re of interest, when I can. I see all of this as part of what you do when learning your craft, looking to develop further etc. Investment in time for your writing is seldom wasted.

Plus it will be lovely to see ACW friends online again! One of the aspects of the writing life I love is the social side to it – online and in person.

Another lovely day and Lady got to see her Rhodesian Ridgeback and Hungarian Vizler pals today so win-win all around there. How come it is the end of March already?

Author newsletter out again tomorrow. Will be looking at humour as my topic this time.

Writing Tip: You’re tired. It’s been a hectic day. (Mondays always are for me). The thought of writing much seems to fog your already tired brain. So focus instead on writing little bits.

It’s what I use Mondays for with my writing. I add bits to my newsletter, start drafting blogs and flash pieces (but with no pressure to get these things completed that same day). I see this as building up my stock of material I will complete later on.

And the funny thing? I always feel better for having written those little bits. Creativity is good for you, even in small amounts.

Another lovely sunny day with a promising week ahead. Lady and I plan to enjoy as much of that as we can. Will be “zooming” around again this week as I have an online ACW event to attend on Tuesday evening and will be hosting another ACW group on Wednesday which is one I usually go to for a good old chat about all things science fiction and fantasy related.

Will be sharing What Makes a Story Work on Chandler’s Ford Today on Friday.

Author newsletter is out again on Tuesday, of course. If you would like to know more about flash fiction and discover tips and story links do head over to my landing page at https://allisonsymescollectedworks.com

Character Thought: What is the one thing you know your character wouldn’t dream of doing in normal circumstances but you then make them face it? What would their response be? It’s absolutely fine to drop your creations in the mire! I find it great fun but this could, of course, just be me!

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Am delighted to be back on More Than Writers, the blog spot for the Association of Christian Writers, with my latest post – Relatable Characters. I share thoughts on why my favourite Easter stories resonate with me and also share tips on how we can create our own relatable characters. Hope you find the post useful.

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Hope the day has gone well. Nice one here.

Character Tip: In getting to know your character before writing their story up, think about what would be a nice day for them and why. What would be a horrible day and why?

Both of these things have to have a reasonable chance of happening in your story. Think further about how they would handle each type of day and what that reveals about them. There will be insights here you will be able to use in your story. Your characterisation will be deeper and better for it too.

It’s a lovely sunny Monday but it has been hectic for me and it is still Monday when all is said and done. I share Garfield the cartoon cat’s attitude towards disliking Mondays in general. Time for another story from me on YouTube then. Hope you like my latest here – Craving.

What could my character be hiding in her food shopping she really cannot explain, especially since at her age she should know better? Find out here.

Hope you are having a lovely weekend. Happy Mothering Sunday to those who celebrate. Looking forward to flash fiction Sunday as ever. It’s a nice way to wind down after a busy week and I get more stories written – win-win there!

Most of the competitions I send flash pieces into don’t count the title as part of the overall word count you’re allowed. I am always pleased about this! It helps – a lot! 

But a useful tip for those places which do count the word title as part of the overall count is to reserve three to five words for your title. If you end up using less what you have “left over” could be used for the story itself if you need that.

Hope you are having a good weekend. Pleased to be out in the garden for a bit. Mowed the lawn and kicked the football for the dog. It does make quite a sight but it keeps Lady happy and away from the lawnmower. Am sure she sees it as an outdoor vacuum cleaner (which she also still sees as “the enemy”). I had hoped she’d have grown out of that but alas no!

Looking forward to catching up with friends on Zoom later on.

Writing wise, I’m a fair way towards another flash fiction collection in terms of word count. (Don’t yet know when the third one will be out but I have had the nod on it). Have a couple of stories I want to look at tomorrow as part of my flash fiction Sunday as I have competitions in mind for these. Both stories have now had the required “rest time” so I should be able to read them as a reader would. It’s the only way I find works for me which helps me spot the flaws. Then I can do something about said flaws!

Goodreads Author Blog – Beginnings

While true every story has to have a beginning, a middle, and an end, the beginning is what writers tend to focus on because we know readers won’t get to the middle yet alone the end if the beginning doesn’t grip them enough. No pressure then!

Also many of us study classic opening lines (from say Pride and Prejudice, 1984 and many more) to help us learn our craft here.

I know what I look for in a beginning, when I am reading, is to have a sense of setting and who the lead character is likely to be. I love stories which start with dialogue as that is like eavesdropping on an interesting conversation (here I can do this legitimately!). You also get a sense of the two or more characters involved in that conversation.

Basically, there has to be something which engages my interest immediately so have that “must know what happens next” moment.

With my own stories, my beginnings are rarely exactly the same as I first drafted them. When I come back and edit I can see how I can strengthen them so I do. Every word matters. I have to look for maximum impact on a reader. Hopefully that means they go on to have a great beginning with my stories and then discover what else those tales contain.

Every writer in history has had to do this. It is why the classics are the classics. Their beginnings have stood the test of time. It wouldn’t surprise me at all if as you read this, you can think of your own favourite beginnings to stories. I’ve done so in writing this.

Of course, I don’t think you can ever beat the classic fairytale opening of Once Upon A Time. That got me into reading fairytales, fantasy, and reading in general so plenty to like there!

WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

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Story Tips

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Image Credits:-
All images from Pixabay/Pexels unless otherwise stated with many created in Book Brush. Book cover images from Chapeltown Books and Bridge House Publishing. Screenshots taken by me, Allison Symes.
Happy New Year! Am slowly resuming my usual writing routine and it is good to get back to it. Having said that, I did enjoy the Christmas break and I hope you did too. This week, the first full week “back” for many (bar New Year’s Day of course), is going to be the tough one, I think, but I hope reading and writing help a lot – I know they do for me. Both take you away from it all for a bit!

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Hope you have had a good day. Lady got to see her Hungarian Vizler pal today so she was happy.

Am pleased to share my first Chandler’s Ford Today post of the New Year. I look at Story Tips and this, I hope, will be useful whether you write flash fiction, short stories, or anything longer, fiction wise. As well as sharing tips I’ve found useful, I look at taking in stories via song and film as well as books, and share what I think the story writing challenge is to all writers. Hope you enjoy the post.

Story Tips

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It was a much pleasanter but colder day for walking Lady today and she got to see her Hungarian Vizler and Rhodesian Ridgeback pals this morning so she has a good but tiring day, the kind she loves. Enjoyed listening to Classic FM at the Movies for a lot of New Year’s Day. Glad it finished with the Wallace and Gromit tune – the best thing on TV over Christmas we felt. Loved all the film references.

Also appreciated Classic FM playing one of my favourite movie film tunes – the only one I can think of which inspired a cartoon series. What can it be? Nothing else but The Pink Panther of course. Those of you of a certain age will now have had your first earworm of the year but it is a great theme!

Does music ever influence what I write? I find not at all with classical on in the background. What the music does for me is help me relax. When I’m relaxed I’m happy to write and keep writing.

Character Tip: What would your characters like musically and why? What does this say about their personalities? How could you use that to flesh them out more for your readers? Could their choice of music have a direct effect on the plot?

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1st January 2025

Happy New Year! Started 2025 by going for a long, wet, and muddy walk with other half and Lady though the weather here wasn’t as stormy as had been predicted. We got home again less wet than expected and Lady had a fabulous time.

Will be sharing Story Tips on Chandler’s Ford Today on Friday. See above. Glad to say there will be an author interview coming up later this month and I’ll be reviewing a pantomime by my local amateur theatre company as well. It’s good to be back in business!

Writing Tip: It’s natural for us to think of new beginnings at this time of year so think about what new start your characters would like to have and why. There will be great story ideas to come exploring that thought. Have fun!

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No Friday Flash Fiction story from me today but they are open for submissions again from next week – see screenshot. Am hoping to be getting back to sending tales in to them regularly from then onwards. Did like the break though and I am sure they would’ve done too! If you’d like to check out some of my stories on here do follow the link.
Screenshot 2025-01-03 at 10-02-13 Holiday - Friday Flash FictionWill be sharing Story Tips on Chandler’s Ford Today tomorrow. Useful for flash fiction and writers of any length of story. Link up tomorrow. See above.

Plan to be submitting work to Friday Flash Fiction again from next week. Haven’t yet chosen my first flash competition of the year yet to have a crack at but I’m keeping my eyes open. I do already have a couple of standard length short story competitions on my To Do list though and hope to start work on those in the next week or so.

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1st January 2025

Happy New Year!

Hope you enjoy reading and writing more flash fiction over the next twelve months. I plan to!
Later in the month there will be another session of the Association of Christian Writers Flash Fiction Group, which I’m looking forward to very much. I expect by then January will have felt as if it has gone on for ever. Do check out Brian Bilston’s wonderful poem Mnemonic for the definitive thoughts on that!

Less is More is the theme for flash fiction writers

Fairytales with Bite – Beginnings

At the start of our New Year, it is natural to think about beginnings. In your setting, how is time marked out and what day/month would your characters know to be the beginning of a new passage of time for them? (Doesn’t necessarily have to be in the form of a year of course).

Do your characters welcome new beginnings as set by the passage of time or is it something they dread? Are there communal celebrations as we know?

What beginnings would your characters like to have? What is getting in their way to achieving these? Which would they fear and why? What would happen if they have to face up to those fears?

Beginnings are a chance to start again, to do better, and the marking of time is one way to set a new beginning. How would you characters make the most of this? Or what would they do to get out of having to face up to a new beginning?

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This World and Others – Changes

A New Year is a change to make changes to normal life. I don’t bother with New Year Resolutions. They tend to be broken by the end of January (at best!). But I often take the chance at New Year to look at where my writing is at and consider where I would like it be by the end of this coming twelve months. I make changes as I need to so I have my best chance of achieving what I would like to see done. Same as most people, right?

But what about your characters? Do they welcome changes or fear them? Do they have to be dragged/forced in to making any changes at all? Which changes should they make and why? Who is pushing them to do this and what are their motives for pushing your characters to change? Those motives don’t have to be great, naturally! How do your characters react to the ones trying to make them change? As ever, what are the consequences?

If there was to ever be an ingredients list for a great story, I would list characters, conflict, action, consequences. Wharever your word count, having those things in a tale (and ensuring all are delivered on) will help your story be well on its way to being a great one.

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AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

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The Joys of Writing Dialogue

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Image Credits:-
All images from Pixabay/Pexels unless otherwise stated with many created in Book Brush. Book cover images from Chapeltown Books and Bridge House Publishing. Screenshots taken by me, Allison Symes. A huge thank you to fellow author friends for taking various publicity shots of me last year. Much appreciated and said shots are being put to good use!
Well, the New Year in the UK has got off to a very stormy start. Hope you are all okay. Plenty of flooding and high winds in my part of the world. Have well and truly christened the new boots received for Christmas!

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Facebook – General and Chandler’s Ford Today

My first Chandler’s Ford Today post for the New Year is all about The Joys of Writing Dialogue. I love getting my characters to talk but I do have to ensure what I get them to say is relevant to their story and moves the tale on in some way. Otherwise there is a risk of conversational ping-pong which gets in the way of a good, pacy story.

I share thoughts and tips on what I’ve found useful in writing dialogue. I also share why knowing your character types helps with this aspect of writing too. Hope you enjoy the post and find it helpful.

The Joys of Writing Dialogue

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Hope you are all okay. Stormy weather today. Enjoyed my swim but that was the only occasion today when I welcomed getting wet. Even Lady didn’t like the heavy rain and it was very heavy. Did our walk in record time this afternoon!

Another reason to love creative writing – it is something you can do in the dry! Talking of which, I will be sharing The Joys of Writing Dialogue for Chandler’s Ford Today tomorrow. See above.

My interview with Val Penny will be Friday week so plenty of good things to look forward to (and I hope you enjoy reading them in the dry!).

Will be having a busy weekend looking at some drafts for competitions. Deadlines are in February but I follow my own advice to get my entries in at least ten days before said deadline, having gone through my scripts several times. Yes, even for flash. It’s amazing how typos can get through several edits.

The one consolation here is this happens to every writer but I know to look out for this and my final edit on anything is to specifically look for these. So I set myself dates where I will have an edit to check the story works done by a set date, then I will have another edit a few days later to ensure I am still happy with the plot and go through for errors. Then a few days later still I do my final edit for typos and get the story submitted. Then off to the next story!

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The weather was a complete contrast with yesterday. Lady and I didn’t get wet at all. She did get to see her best pal, the Rhodesian Ridgeback, and a riotous time was had by both of them.

Am looking forward to interviewing Val Penny for Chandler’s Ford Today again soon on her book of short stories. More details nearer the time but did I want to quiz a novelist about switching to the short form? You bet I did! All sorts of questions arose from that which I look forward to sharing later, along with Val’s answers.

Writing Tip: Never worry about rubbish first drafts. That’s the point of a first draft. You just get the story down and tidy up later. Nobody ever writes a perfect first draft. Shakespeare didn’t either. There is some consolation in that thought, I think!

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It’s great to be back on Friday Flash Fiction with my first story for 2024 called, aptly, A New Start. Find out if Gemma does actually have her own new start this time. Hope you enjoy the tale (and many thanks to those of you who have already commented on this one).
Screenshot 2024-01-05 at 10-03-40 A New Start by Allison Symes

Sometimes I use a theme as a title. One example of this is The Power of Suggestion in Tripping The Flash Fantastic. I get my character to show how the power of suggestion changed their life and whether it was for the good or not. Themes are fantastic hooks for stories and I like the thought of having a double whammy here by using them as titles as well.

Writing Thought: Why not write down a list of your favourite themes (and this can include proverbs and sayings too) and pick one or two to write stories up for? Think about your favourite films, TV shows, books etc – is there a common theme or two behind what you like most?

I’m attracted to the thought of people not always being what they seem (this is a classic idea in fairytales) so the moment I came across Strider in The Lord of the Rings, I did guess correctly there was more to this character than was apparent. I also thought this was true for Severus Snape in the Harry Potter series.

So do I write stories where characters are not all they seem to be? Oh yes! Simply because it is a theme I care about and working out what those are for you can be a great place to start when looking for new story ideas.

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There are several good reasons to have a try at the flash fiction and short story competitions.

Firstly, these are excellent ways to practice writing to deadlines.

Secondly, following the submission rules (and these do vary) gets you some useful practice in following any future guidelines on submissions of longer work.

Thirdly, if you are long or short listed or win or get a runner’s up spot, all of this makes for excellent material to put on your writing CV. This is especially true when you are submitting longer work. It will show a publisher/agent someone else judged your material to be of a standard to get any of those placings.

Fourthly, you get in useful practice in sticking to word counts. This is especially true of the flash fiction competitions where there are those who want you to write to an exact word count. Not one word more. Not one word less. It is a good idea, when you’re drafting flash for future use, to draft some which come in at the 250, 300, and 500 word counts as these are some of the most popular categories I’ve come across for competitions.

Flash Fiction focuses on THE important aspect of a character's life

Fairytales With Bite –

New Year Acrostic – Tips for Visitors to the Magical World

N = Never underestimate a fairy waving a wand.

E = Expect the worst if you come across a witch with a cauldron as she is highly unlikely to worry about your health and safety.

W = When visiting a magical world, expect strange creatures but the good thing is they’ll think you’re odd too.


Y = Your three wishes, if you are fortunate enough to get any, cannot be extended or transferred.

E = Expect high moral standards here, even with strange creatures about – greed is generally looked down on, for example.

A = Always treat anyone you meet with respect – you never know what powers they’ve got and prudence is a good thing here.

R = Restrict yourself to following the proper tour with guide and don’t go wandering off – it won’t end well for you if you do.

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This World and Others – Beginnings

At the start of a new year, it is natural to think about beginnings. For fiction, we can look at beginnings for characters but also for settings.

How did your magical world begin? How did it get to where it is now in terms of development? Has the use of magic enhanced your setting or weakened it? Have there been magical wars? Has power had to be controlled to stop chaos erupting?

For example, if magic polluted your world, was there a point when the “bosses” said enough was enough and limited the use of magic to prevent further damage? How did your setting and characters then cope with a new beginning of limited magical use? How difficult was it to adjust?

For your characters, what beginnings have they had to face up to and were these welcome or not? What are they leaving behind so they have their new beginning? Do they have regrets or are they only too glad to have a new start (and what could lead them to feeling that way)?

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Screenshot 2023-12-05 at 21-13-46 The December Magazine isHereAMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES
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Beginnings

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Image Credit:  As ever, all images are from Pixabay unless otherwise stated. Think I’ve finally nailed the “have an appropriate title for the start of a New Year for your blog post” game!

Facebook – General – and Chandler’s Ford Today

Well, Beginnings is an appropriate topic for the start of 2020! I look at why beginnings are so important for any creative art (especially storytelling), share some of my favourite story openings, and discuss New Year’s Resolutions. Talking of which, Happy New Year!

As my CFT post on Beginnings mentions, I see the end of the old year as the time to take stock of where I am writing wise, so I am raring to go again as soon as possible writing wise after the festive season.

My initial goals are to continue to try to get more work in more anthologies and to develop professionally in other ways too. I hope to share more of the latter as I go throughout the year.

I am aiming to submit two of my big projects by the spring and see how I go with those. I’d like to finish another project by the end of the summer if possible and see if I can be submitting that by the autumn.

I’m also hoping to pitch more non-fiction articles too.

I don’t set specific dates ever because life can and does get in the way and no writer should feel bad about that. My deadlines are only set for my CFT posts and competitions and I work to those fine but it is lovely having longer projects to work on too. I like a good writing mix and am loving all of the writing I do. I hope that comes through in what I write.

So onwards then. Happy New Year and happy writing and reading!

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Sent off my two short stories yesterday so that gets 2020 off to a promising beginning! I’m also working on some writing prompt exercises and those are proving to be good fun. Hope to resume my major projects over the weekend.

Appropriately my CFT post this week is on Beginnings. As well as sharing what I think of New Year Resolutions, I discuss why beginnings are so important to get right for any creative piece of work. I also share a couple of my favourite beginnings. Link up tomorrow as normal. I am SO grateful to CFT, especially this week. It means I know tomorrow is Friday!! (On weeks like this one, having a good writing routine helps so much!).

(Oh and the pictures of fireworks below, courtesy of Pixabay, are the only place I like to see such things. Lady agrees with me on that one).

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Wow! Absolutely adored Doctor Who tonight (shown in the UK on New Year’s Day) and can’t wait to see Part 2. Cracking storyline and am intrigued to see how it pans out.

Getting off to a reasonably good start as I have two stories I’m planning to submit this week. I then have two competitions to prepare material for plus, at the weekend, I hope to get back to my longer projects.

Have been out and about with other half and Lady in the New Forest today. I hope all the exercise will prove to be refreshing to the imagination as well as much needed after the Christmas festivities! (Lady had a great time at the festivities and on the walks!).

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Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Plans for 2020 include submitting to even more competitions (flash fiction and short stories). I am pleased I did enter more last year though nothing happened with the tales themselves. Still, that is material I can edit and resubmit elsewhere.

Little is wasted in writing especially if you can take a step back, analyse your story and be prepared to change things to make the tale stronger if it is needed.

Bear in mind sometimes a story not “making it” can be because the competition organisers/publishers have already chosen a story using the same theme you have. Sometimes, even when they want the same theme, someone else’s tale has just got a bit more bite to it which has clinched things for them. I’ve found it helps to see this as a challenge to me to “up my game”. That aspect of writing keeps me on my toes and I think that’s a good thing. Never take anything for granted!

Look at work that hasn’t been accepted in the cold light of day. Still can’t see any changes needed? Try submitting the story elsewhere. If you can get feedback on it, even better. And good luck with your writing plans for 2020.

What lies beyond the shore…. ideas for stories? Image via Pixabay
The dark can seem to overcome the light but light will prevail. Image via Pixabay
The road should not be an easy one for your hero/heroine. Image via Pixabay
What journeys are your characters going on? Image via Pixabay
Reflections at Swanwick. Image by Allison Symes
Whenever and whatever you read, enjoy. Image via Pixabay.
Books are fabulous, whatever the format. Image via Pixabay.
What every writer needs. Image via Pexels.

I’m having fun at the moment coming up with linked stories based on the same character but set at different word lengths. Worth a go! (And a big thanks to #DawnKentishKnox for the tip). Will definitely be trying this again.

One huge advantage to writing prompts (which is where the above idea comes from) is they make you mix up how you approach writing a story. That keeps you on your toes, I’ve found it keeps writing interesting for me (and hopefully that comes through to a reader), and differing approaches can encourage you to try different styles. Well, you never know what you like here until you try it! I DO know you don’t want to get stuck in any kind of rut with your writing,

See Prompts by #GillJames on Amazon. Highly recommend.

 

Prompts 2020 by [James, Gill] Image by Gill James

Lovely afternoon walking in the New Forest with other half and Lady (New Year’s Day). Was eerie the way the mist suddenly appeared though. Of course the problem with having any kind of imagination at all is being able to visualise what kind of monsters that mist could be hiding!! Fortunately, only the New Forest ponies were company for us (and Lady looks at them curiously. We think she thinks they’re some kind of very big dog!).

Hope to get back to flash fiction writing shortly (though my immediate plans are to submit a couple of standard length short stories). I must admit the break has been great but the lovely thing about writing is I always look forward to getting back to it again.

Onwards and upwards! Or maybe for flash fiction that really should be onwards and downwards (with the word count!😀).

For jotting down those initial ideas. Image via Pixabay.
I know I have lots of stories and books in my head but I didn’t mean it literally! Pixabay
The perfect place to reflect and take stock. Pixabay image.
If your story grips you, all sense of time will go! Image via Pixabay.
Love the sunshine through the trees. Pixabay image.
Good reading – and writing to be done – here. Pixabay image.
Notebook to hand ready for those story ideas. Image via Pexels.
Doing something with those ideas! Pixabay image
Glorious autumn. Time to take stock briefly and then move on. Pixabay image.

Fairytales With Bite – Starts

So many of the classic fairytale characters have awful starts to their stories but, of course, the real tale is in how they overcome those things (with or without the help of a fairy godmother).

This is why Hans Christen Andersen’s The Little Mermaid is such a revelation. It was the first fairytale/story I’d come across where there isn’t a classic happy ever after ending (well not for her anyway. Do check out the original tale and you’ll soon see why Disney couldn’t film it as true to the original. Well not and keep their All Ages certificate anyway!).

How do you start your stories off? I like to set up an intriguing situation and/or characters quickly (it usually is both together) and then I happily dump my characters in it. I have fun in finding out how my characters sink or swim and I hope if I have fun in writing that, readers will also have fun in discovering the same thing for themselves.

I nearly always have to chop the start of a story when I go back and edit it. It can be tricky to work out where a story should start but what matters is getting that draft down. Then you can see, after time away from the tale to give you some distance to be able to be objective, where the opening should be. But you do need to get  started on a tale and I’ve learned never to worry that an awful lot will be chopped later. That’s okay. It is a case of looking for the nugget of the story and ensuring that shines through. Anything not helping that nugget to shine gets cut.

Happy editing!

Never stop… Pixabay
Well? Pixabay
The lightbulb moment is not so easy to capture as drawing it! Pixabay
What questions do you put to your readers via your characters? Pixabay
The magic of reading. Pixabay
A writer’s life. Pixabay,

This World and Others – Celebrating

I hope you had a wonderful time celebrating Christmas and the New Year. When it comes to our fictional worlds, what kind of celebrations do they have? What is the history behind those celebrations? You almost certainly won’t put all of that into a story.

I’ve found it useful to work details like this out and then select those a reader needs to know. I’ve found working things out gives me the confidence to write the story and I think something of that confidence comes through. (It can also be useful to have this material to hand for use on your website as additional information for readers. I know I love reading material like that on favourite author websites. Little is wasted in writing. It is a question of finding an appropriate use for material at times!).

If your world does not celebrate anything, why is that? Was there a time when it did? What went wrong? There should be some interesting story thoughts there.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

KNOWING WHAT I DO NOW…

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Facebook – General

Are there things connected with writing that you are glad you know now? This is definitely the case for me and my list would be:-

1. When offered a contract, get it checked out by the Society of Authors. I did and it stopped me entering into something that would’ve been a vanity publishing contract. I’ve never regretted not going for that (though at the time I wasn’t published elsewhere nor was there anything in the pipeline). Talking of which:-

2. Don’t be afraid to turn things down. You have got to be happy with what you are doing writing wise. And, as with so much in life, if it seems too good to be true, it is. There’s no shame in walking away from such a thing.

3. You really do need to edit on paper and not on screen. You WILL miss typos, grammatical errors etc on screen. I’m sure there must be a logical reason to this, probably based on how the brain interprets things on screen as opposed to paper. All I know for sure is when I edit on paper, I pick up far more that needs correcting (and so save myself a great deal of embarrassment in NOT submitting something with errors because I’ve not seen the wretched things and dealt with them!). It IS worth taking the time here.

What would you list here?

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Facebook – General

New story from me coming up on Cafelit on Tuesday (5th June), will share the link then. If you like dragons, it will be for you!

Am sorry to be missing the Winchester Writers’ Festival this year. Hope all who go have a wonderful time. Likewise all going to the Waterloo Arts Festival and to all of the winning authors who will be reading their stories out here, have a great time and good luck!

Am looking forward to the Hursley Park Book Fair later in June and Swanwick Writers’ Summer School in August. Much later in the year will be the annual Bridge House Publishing/Cafelit/Chapeltown Books get-together in London.

Immediate writing plans are to get more stories out to Cafelit and press on with my third flash fiction book (though I am happy with how that is going). I would like to write more non-fiction and a long term goal is to do something more with that.

Am also pleased to say a new mini-series will be coming up on Chandler’s Ford Today shortly which is about art by Graham MacLean. I was the series editor on it and it was lovely to work on. Some wonderful pictures by Graham illustrate the three part series. These will be appearing on 7th, 14th and 21st June.

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Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Does the mood of your characters match your mood as you’re writing their stories?

Definitely not in my case and this is just as well given a lot of my flash fiction has themes of murder, revenge, poetic justice and so on! When I’m not writing on those topics, I often write about magical beings you would not want to meet, yet alone cross, or I’m writing about poignant situations.

So is all human life then in From Light to Dark and Back Again? Quite a bit of it is, yes – and a fair amount of non-human life too!

Fiction can take you anywhere. Image via Pixabay.
Reading is wonderful. Image via Pexels.
Pressing on towards the light. Image via Pixabay
The dark can seem to overcome the light but light will prevail. Image via Pixabay
What worlds could there be out here? Image via Pixabay
What lies beyond the shore…. ideas for stories? Image via Pixabay
Hard at work. Pexels image.
Where will your characters take you? Image via Pixabay
Great characters = great books. Image via Pixabay.
The wonderful world of writing should include non-fiction, which benefits from creative techniques too. Image via Pixabay.
Use what you know of our world and your imagination to create something really special. Image via Pixabay
Time to have another home perhaps? Good stories to be had here! Image via Pixabay
What writing triggers will help you create your new worlds? Image via Pixabay
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)
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.
Let the writing flow and if music can help it along even better! 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.

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

One of the most difficult things about writing flash is ensuring that it is a “proper” story and not just a piece of prose cut abruptly short. The need for a beginning, middle and end applies to whatever length of fiction you’re writing, though I suppose it is more obvious for things like novels and short stories.

This is where twist endings help a lot as you can’t go beyond that without spoiling the effect. I’ve occasionally written a flash piece as a letter (Punish the Innocent is a good example of this) and the great thing with that as a device it it has GOT to end with the sign-off (or possibly a PS at most!).

I think of the middle of the story as the “pivot point”. It is where the problem in the tale has been set out, it has got to be resolved, and your reader can see that being done in at least two different ways. (You’ve got to keep them guessing!).

I write fairytales with bite. Image via Pixabay
The classic beginning for all stories… 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 virtual library. These days ebooks and emagazines are available at libraries. Chandler’s Ford library are running surgeries about them. Image via Pixabay.
Is a fairytale world really magical to live in for those who find it hard to keep their chin up and fit in with the rest? Image via Pixabay
Helping out especially if there’s a change of direction to navigate. Image via Pixabay.
May require help turning the pages. Pexels image.
The way to the magical realm perhaps? 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.
A good reading pile! Pexels image.
Have notebook. Will jot down ideas for how to drop my characters right in it and work out how they get out of it again. Image via Pixabay.
I loved the long, light evenings in the Far North of Scotland. Image by me.
Well, what is it then? Image via Pixabay.

Goodreads Author Programme – Blog – Holiday Reading

I’ve recently picked up three lovely paperbacks which will be part of my holiday reading. Many thanks to generous friends and family for the book shop gift cards. I’ve finally had a chance to go and use them on:-

1. Double Cross by Ben McIntyre
2. London by Peter Ackroyd
3. View from the Cheap Seats by Neil Gaiman

I love history of all sorts (and am intrigued by the idea of having a biography of a city!). The Neil Gaiman book is a collection of his non-fiction pieces and I’m really looking forward to reading that.

As ever, my trusty Kindle will also be with me on my holidays this year. I love both ebooks and paperbacks and switching between the two formats is another joy to reading as far as I’m concerned.

Now all I need to do is catch up on my reviewing!

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com
Hopefully the Book Fair will encourage even more reading! Image via Pexels
The ultimate book tunnel? Image via Pexels
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com
Photo by Kaboompics .com on Pexels.com
Unless in a thunder storm or high winds, this is a good idea! Image via Pexels
See! It is a good idea, weather permitting! Image via Pexels
Trusted notebook! Image via Pixabay