Book Fair News and Writing Challenges

June 13, 2023Leave a comment

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.

Still humid and hot here. Lady fine and is a good water drinker. Not all dogs are – my first two weren’t! Writing wise, I’ve the first part of a great interview with YA fantasy author, Francesca Tyer coming up this week. Plus there will be more wonderful interviews to come later in the month too. Meanwhile I’m taking part in a 30 day writing challenge which is great fun – details below.

Facebook – General

Again, very hot. Again, Lady and I keeping cool. Hope you are too. Now a little while ago, I mentioned I would be taking part in a Book Fair. Am glad to now share more details.

The event will be at The Hilt, Chandler’s Ford on Saturday 8th July from 1.00 pm to 5.00 pm. Entry is free but if you book a ticket, you will be entered in to a raffle. The prize is £10 which you can use to buy a book from any of the authors at the event (who no doubt will be pleased to sign it for you too. I know I would be!). I’ll be posting more about this nearer the time (and will do a future Chandler’s Ford Today post on it as well).

So if you are planning to come, do book a ticket and good luck with the raffle. This event is a great opportunity to find out what the local authors do – there are a fair few of us and the range of what we write is incredible. There is bound to be something you like! Do come along and check things out.

Best of all? The event is being held at a good time for you to top up your holiday reading list!

Another hot and humid day here. Lady all okay. She drinks well and is sensible about heading for the shade. We’re sensible about taking her out at apt times. It all helps. The latter is vital. I’ve got a nice spot here where I can do a pavement test – it gets the sun directly so is a good place to monitor about whether walking Lady is okay or not.

I have already cancelled one walk with her where the air was far too hot (last Saturday) and have seen pictures of dogs with burned pads on Facebook. It is just not worth it. Be careful with your furry friends, folks.

Can’t stress that point enough. And talking of getting the point, do check out my most recent tale on Friday Flash Fiction called, you guessed it, Getting The Point!

Cooler day, even had some rain, air much nicer. Was nice to take Lady out earlier. She appreciated it too. (Was she sorry she stayed put yesterday? Not a bit of it. Had a great day in the shade and/or indoors and was much happier for it too, as indeed was I!).

I’ll be talking to YA fantasy author, Francesca Tyer, in the first part of a two part interview on Chandler’s Ford Today later this week. It’s a great interview. Do look out for it. More details mid-week or so.

I’ve mentioned before I’ve interviewed my own characters prior to writing their stories up. I find this a useful technique. It means I get a real “feel” for their likes and dislikes and the kind of character they are. I can then write their story up with confidence. I don’t need to know every single thing about them. I just need to know enough to know I’ve “got” them and know why they would act the way they are in my tale.

The Scrivener short story function has a template for both character and setting but there is no reason why you can’t create you own. It is a question of working out what you need to know. Elements of that will differ from author to author. I don’t need to know physical appearance. I do know other authors find that knowledge crucial.

A very hot day today. Lady had her exercise at appropriate times and spent the rest of the day resting. She wasn’t sorry. Neither were we. On the plus side, my washing was dry in under two hours. It is always the simple pleasures in life which give the most joy!

Many thanks to Val Penny for a fabulous interview on Chandler’s Ford Today yesterday. More author interviews coming soon. And starting this coming week as I begin a two part interview with Francesca Tyer. What I love about author interviews is there is always something useful to learn from them. Hope you find the same.

Am enjoying taking part in a 30 day writing challenge issued by Auscot Publishing and Retreats. Some of the pieces I’ve drafted so far I know I can turn into flash fiction pieces and get out to competitions, markets etc. Others – hmm… the jury’s out there. I may be able to do something with them later but at least I will have the option of having something to try and work with. Equally if I discard these at a later date that’s fine. I gave the exercise a go. Didn’t quite work out for me but at least I know.

If you get the chance to take part in a challenge like this, do so. It encourages you to be more productive. And it is just good fun to give these things a go and see what you can do. That, after all, is how I discovered the joys of flash fiction – I gave it a go!

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Am looking forward to waving the flag for flash fiction at The Hilt, Chandler’s Ford for a Book Fair being held on Saturday 8th July between 1.00 pm and 5.00 pm. The organisers hope this will become an annual event. I hope so too. We have lost a lot of bookshops over the last few years though I am glad there are still some in the area (which covers Southampton and Winchester too). Will be posting more about the fair nearer the time.

I often demonstrate what flash is by reading some and I hope to get to do that again. It is good fun and always results in sales!

Screenshot 2023-06-13 at 20-02-23 Join the guestlist – Chandler's Ford Book Fair – The Hilt

Screenshot 2023-06-13 at 17-05-35 BOOK FAIR - FREE ENTRY Facebook

It’s Monday. It’s a very hot Monday. Time for a story though I can’t promise it will cool you down. Hope you enjoy Recall, my latest on YouTube. Is loosely based on a true story which happened to my late father and I.

As flash fiction is so short, it has to be character led. Readers need to care about the characters to read on and there isn’t the room for much description anyway. What you want for that is the odd telling detail which will set enough of the scene to help readers visualise it.

But clues can be given to character status through the use of names. People will have different expectations from a Charlotte than they would from a Karen (and I am not saying whether that is a good or bad thing, I just know people will!). Of course whether your story lives up to those expectations will, I hope, be the hook that makes people read on to find out if they were right or not.

But another thing you can use to show something of a character is their nickname. I just went on to a random question generator I often use and the first question which came up was What is your nickname? You could apply that to a character and the story could be about how they got it. It could also reveal something more about them. If Charlotte prefers to be known as Lotte or Charlie for example, there will be a story about why that is the case.

One of my longer flash fiction pieces is Rewards which is in From Light to Dark and Back Again. It takes up pretty much the whole 1000 words maximum for flash.

My lead character, Becky, reveals a lot about herself through her thoughts , including how she is haunted by another woman. The story reveals how she deals with said woman.

What I like about this piece is I reveal more and more about Becky as the story goes on but I am drip feeding this in to the plot. I also like Becky’s attitude. Doesn’t mean I agree with what she does though! But it is always a lovely moment when you know you have just “got” your character. The story spark is in that moment.

Goodreads Author Blog – Books To Dip Into

I love books you can dip into but what do I mean by that? Well, short story anthologies and flash fiction collections are ideal for this, of course. I will admit to being biased here given I have work in anthologies and two flash collections of my own out there. But I also love the reference books to dip into as and when.

A great one for this is Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable which goes into the origins of well known fables and phrases. Fascinating book to dip into. It’s a massive one as well – another one to avoid dropping on your foot.

I also love books like the Agatha Christie short story collections. Her novels I will read from cover to cover, naturally, but for the collections I can pick a story at random and then come back to another at random later if I wish. I find this to be a refreshing way to read from time to time.

I have a number of writing advice books on my shelves and I can dip into those to refer to specific topics now I know what it is I need to know. When you start out as a writer, you generally don’t know. You find out what you do need to know about the writing world as you go along. But I am at that point now where I can just refer back to selected chapters as and when I need it. (This frees up more time to read other things so win-win there and proves there is value to dipping into books at times).

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

Allison Symes - Book Collection and TTFF

liked Allison Symes's blog post: Books To Dip Into https://t.co/B665MtS7lH via @goodreads I look at books to dip into for this week's Goodreads post. I consider the value of story collections and reference books here. pic.twitter.com/zjozj860AK
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) June 10, 2023

https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

It’s Monday. It’s a very hot Monday. Time for a story though I can’t promise it will cool you down. Hope you enjoy Recall, my latest on YouTube. Is loosely based on a true story which happened to my late father and I.https://t.co/juA1nLk8YD
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) June 12, 2023

https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

I'm part of a Book Fair at The Hilt on Saturday 8th July. Free entry. If you book a ticket, you'll be entered into a raffle. Prize = £10 which you can use to buy a book from any of the authors. Come and boost your holiday reading list! https://t.co/6qRPXKX6U2 pic.twitter.com/niLCPbPFJJ
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) June 13, 2023

https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

Processing…

Success! You're on the list.

Whoops! There was an error and we couldn't process your subscription. Please reload the page and try again.

Character Types and Story Essentials

March 29, 2019March 29, 2019Leave a comment

Facebook – General – and Chandler’s Ford Today – and More Than Writers (ACW blog page)

Busy day on the blogging front. Firstly, my CFT post is about Signs of Spring– the ones I love and some I loathe. Comments as ever welcome on the CFT comments box.

Image Credit: All the images are from Pixabay as usual, do see the CFT and More than Writers’ links for the captions I put to these originally. Hopefully the pictures will intrigue you. I love the one showing clocks going off into space!

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Secondly my spot on the Association of Christian Writers’ More than Writers blog is about When Writing is Difficult. I share some hints and tips. Hope you find them helpful.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Had a lovely mini-Swanwick meet up with the fab JuneWebber in Winchester today. Lovely weather, great company, and lots of talk about writing and stories. Now that is what I call a good day. Looking forward to Swanwick itself in August of course.

My CFT post this week will be a seasonal one, all about the signs of spring I love (and a couple that I loathe). Link up tomorrow.

Have almost got my 750-word story ready for submitting. I always find the first edit to reduce word count is the easy one. I take out my known wasted words, find ways of rephrasing things etc and that brings the word count down significantly. The hardest edit is when I’ve done all this and I still need to reduce the word count yet without “losing” the story itself. Almost there though.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Righty-ho, on to the final section of my What I Like From a Good Book A to Z.

U = Uniqueness. There must be something about the book that makes it stand out (and most of the time this will be down to how good the characters are. I’m on the characters’ side in the character -v- plot debate because a weak character will drag down a strong plot. I think it is the “cast” people remember from a good book, rather than the plot. How often have you said, when asked if you’ve read a certain book, something like “oh is that the one with so-and-so in it?” I know I have, too many times to count!).

V = Variety (of pace). I want plenty of fast paced action/dialogue etc but I also want the “in between” bits which move the story on, tell me what I need to know, and give me chance to get my breath back before the next action scene.

W = Writing that is a sheer pleasure to read because it flows. Yes, clever lines are wonderful, but it is the overall effect I’m after here. You want to feel at the end of the book that the writing couldn’t have been better (whoever said writing is easy hasn’t done any!).

X = Xeno. Okay, confession time. I looked this one up. It means strange. I wasn’t going to cheat by using eXtraordinary for this one or anything like that and X-rated seems too easy! So then, strange (oh and trust me I’ll be remembering xeno the next time I play Scrabble!) – well I love quirky fiction so this ties in beautifully with that. I love stories of strange creatures and worlds BUT they have got to make sense within that setting and still have something we can identify with to make us want to read on to find out more. So xeno or being strange has its place in a good book but it has got to be integral to it and not an add-on.

Y = Yield. An odd one to choose? I don’t think so. A good book at the end of it should have yielded to you the reader an enjoyable read when all is said and done. For me it is always the characters that make a book work or not. Also it is interesting to follow characters working out when they should yield on a point to develop the story or to get themselves out of a big hole. Whatever the reason for a character yielding or changing their mind, there should be a justified reason for it.

And finally…

Z = Zero. This is in terms of feeling that absolutely no words have been wasted. There is nothing that could be changed without spoiling the story in some way.

Happy reading!

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

I find I have to know the voice of my character before I can really get into the story and do it justice. This is where outlining is so useful.

For flash fiction, I often find a line or two about what the character’s attitude to life is and why is a good place to start. I soon know whether a character is bossy but kindhearted with it, a pain in the neck to all and sundry etc. I see this kind of prep work as essential. It’s just that novel writers have to do more of it!!

Indeed! Pixabay image.

Good question! Pixabay image.

Books invite you into their world. Image via Pixabay

A good adaptation will confirm images the reader has already conjured up from the original material. Pixabay image.

A good interview will bring the best out of the interviewee.

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

No room for gobbledygook here. Image via Pixabay.

Reaching out for writing ideas. Image via Pixabay.

Plenty to enjoy here! Image via Pixabay

What ever writer needs. Image via Pixabay

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

Books should show you other worlds. Image via Pixabay.

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

Themes for any story are best kept simple to (a) avoid overegging the pudding and (b) avoid you managing to tie yourself up in knots as you write the thing.

The strongest themes can often be condensed to one word only – love, revenge, justice, adventure etc.

The best plot lines are exactly that – a line. For example:-

Mother vows to avenge child killed by drunk driver. (My Punish the Innocent).

Villager vows to stop the animal cruelty going on at home. (My The Circle of Life)

Now the nice thing here is the take you put on these themes is up to you. Punish the Innocent is a serious crime story. Couldn’t really be anything else I feel.

For The Circle of Life, I turned this into a humorous story (my character finds a very neat way of thwarting his fellow villagers who don’t share his views).

The great thing is to have fun with what you write. I’m convinced it does show through in what you produce.

Flash fiction for impact. Image via Pixabay

The importance of literacy cannot be overstated

Sometimes the words flow, other times they don’t! Pixabay

What every author would like to achieve or set, yes? Image via Pixabay

Creating great characters does mean hard work. Image via Pexels.

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

Where will inspiration strike? Pixabay image.

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

Always a good idea! 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)

Despite technology, you still can’t beat the trusted notebook and pen. Image via Pexels

Let one creative idea spark another. Pixabay image.

Generating the writing ideas. Image via Pixabay.

Trusted notebook! Image via Pixabay

Fantastic day out today as a post-birthday treat with better half and Lady at West Bay in Dorset. Lovely weather. Good time had by all. All shattered.

But time to do something different every now and then is useful both in terms of health but also for your writing. You do come back to it refreshed and that’s important. I see writing as very much a long haul thing and stamina is needed (to cope with the rejections and other disappointments along the way for one thing). So breaks away can help with that enormously.

Another way of giving yourself a break, when going to the beach is not immediately available as an option (!), is to give yourself time to free write, brain storm, jot down notes for future ideas etc. I find this great fun, put said thoughts aside for a while and come back to them later. If the ideas still appeal (and they don’t always), I then write them up!

The Writing Life. Pixabay image.

Cannot beat having a good chew on a favourite ball

Guess who had a fab time at the beach? Image by Allison Symes

And have fun! Pixabay image.

Getting the balance right in adapting work is never easy. Pixabay image.

Adapations take more than one draft! Pixabay image

Goodreads Author Blog – Books to Dip Into

I love books you read straight through from cover to cover but I also adore those where you dip into them as and when.

Things like the Guinness Book of Records come into that category. I’m currently reading a “big book of facts” produced by Classic FM but will almost certainly have regular dips into this, rather than read it straight though. (To be fair it is a HUGE book).

I also like the way this mixes up my reading a bit as I read flash fiction (as well as write it), short stories, and novels. I also dip read. Dip reading is also useful when I’ve finished a book and am not quite sure what I’m going to read next.

I often fancy a change of mood after completing a novel and until I know what is next on my reading “menu”, I will dip into books like this until such time as I do know.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Fairytales With Bite – Favourite Character Types

This is by no means a definitive list and I suspect you could add many of your own but my favourite character types include:-

1. The underdog. (Most of the fairytales have good examples of these. Cinderella is not expected to do well by her stepmother and stepsisters!).

2. The character who is not expected to be a hero but becomes one. (Frodo Baggins is a great example).

3. The rebel (especially one who can see through the faults of their own side and has tried to rectify them but to no avail. My fairy godmother character, Eileen, is of this ilk. Characters like that are great fun to write for).

4. A well rounded animal character. I have a soft spot for anthropomorphism. Where would The Wind in the Willows be without it?! I also adore Gaspode in Terry Pratchett’s Discworld.

5. Those who deal out justice to those worthy of receiving it! This is usually where some character thinks they’ve got away with something and our hero/heroine turns up to prove them wrong. Or it can be someone like Terry Pratchett’s Lord Vetinari who deals out what he feels is appropriate justice (and is usually right. Look at how he deals with Moist Von Lipvig in Going Postal).

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

This World and Others –

The A to Z of Story Essentials Part 3

Moving on from last week then…

K = Killer Lines. The ones that make you gasp, laugh out loud, or simply make you wish you could’ve written something that good! Use them as inspiration to do exactly that!

L = Logic. A strange thing to put for this perhaps? I think not. A story must make sense, even if it set in the most fantastical place imaginable. The characters must make sense. Your story needs a structure that follows through from start to finish. So the story then must have its own internal logic. Anything that doesn’t “feel” like a story when claiming to be one will, I think, put readers off. We have expectations that stories will work and it is because the logic of them works.

M = Murder. I do love a good crime story and most of those are based on murder. But this can be applied to other genres here if you take murder to mean “killing your darlings” if they’re in the way of your story. When you read of the death of a character in a story, there should be a point to it and move the story onwards. A character that doesn’t do anything for the story should not be in it and good writers will ensure their characters do earn their place. Sometimes that will mean literally killing them off as part of the story. Sometimes it will mean realising this character isn’t strong enough so back to the drawing board for one that is!

N = Narrative. Should be compelling, drive the story on, tell the reader things they need to know in a way said reader is going to find entertaining (no lecturing!) etc.

O = Overwhelming Odds. I do love a character that has to face up to these and overcome them. It is fascinating to find out how they do it. It should also show depth to that character and it’s even better when the character is surprised as they look back at how far they’ve come on, what they’ve been able to achieve etc. Incidentally the overwhelming odds can be something as dramatic as Frodo Baggins’ quest in The Lord of the Rings but it can be something which, to us, might seem mundane, but to your character is everything. As long as reader knows it really is everything to that character and why, they should want to find out whether the character overcomes or not.

More next time…

Always time and space for the pen and paper method of drafting

What writing triggers will help you create your new worlds? Image via Pixabay

Let those ideas flow! Image via Pixabay,

Getting work right takes time

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)

Books make wonderful gifts. Image via Pixabay.

Books are wonderful – whether in print or electronic, whether as audio stories or told by a storyteller. Image via Pixabay.

Characters seeking to change the world are often on a physical journey too. Image via Pixabay.

Writing to screen. Am using smartphone more for this.

Plenty of books to be getting on with. Image via Pixabay.

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

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

Fiction is strengthened when backed by fact. Image via Pixabay

TOP TEN ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND DIPPING BOOKS

March 23, 2019Leave a comment

Many apologies for not being able to share my CFT post yesterday. I’m glad to say the site is now up and running again, hence this extra post.

Facebook – General – and Chandler’s Ford Today

Glad to say I can now share my CFT post for this week. I look at what I think are the Top Ten Accomplishments of mankind. I don’t stick to one particular field and my comments have to be a summary but I have picked photography, the domestication of the dog, and space exploration amongst others.

As ever, comments welcome on the CFT page.

Image Credit: All images in the following slideshow are from Pixabay and are related to my CFT post. You could play “guess the accomplishment” by looking at the slideshow first!

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

With flash fiction, you are focusing on one specific moment of change for a character. There literally isn’t the word count for more so the challenge is to make sure that specific moment is strong enough to be worthy of having a story written around it.

I look for impact on me as the writer, and then on what I think the impact will be on readers, when I decide on whether a story idea is strong enough or not. That idea has to generate a strong emotional reaction whether it is to make me laugh, cry, scream or what have you.

How many story ideas could come from an image like this? Pixabay.

Stepping into another world.. Pixbay

Wormhole. Pixabay image.

What kind of defeats and downfalls do your characters experience? Pixabay image.

A good photo shows light at its best. Pixabay image.

Where will inspiration strike? Pixabay image.

Whatever you write, enjoy it! Pixabay image

Goodreads Author Programme Blog – Books to Dip Into

I love books you read straight through from cover to cover but I also adore those where you dip into them as and when.

I often fancy a change of mood after completing a novel and until I know what is next on my reading “menu”, I will dip into books like this until such time as I do know.

But the important thing is I keep reading!