Tag: flash fiction

Remembrance and Prompts

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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. Had a lovely one with family (Lady loved it and was shattered by the end of it as she usually is). Also the weekend was noted for always moving Remembrance events (as was Monday 11th).

Remembering (candle image)

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Hope you have had a good day. Cold but sunny here. Nice autumn day. Lady didn’t get to see any pals today but had a lovely run around all the same.

Writing Tip: When I get a prompt (as I am all this month with Flash NANO), I note down a few thoughts which immediately occur to me as to the direction in which I could take this. I then go with the idea I like the most because it has the most impact on me and I figure readers are likely to react the same way.

Any thought that gets a “nah” or “hmm, doesn’t float my boat” response from me gets binned. Don’t be afraid to reject your initial ideas and go with something better. Other ideas will come.

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11th November – Armistice Day

The sun came out for Armistice Day today which was lovely. I always think back to my grandfathers at this time of year – one was in the Forces then, when invalided out, he became an ARP warden/fire watcher and the other worked in a reserved occupation (munitions – Woolwich Arsenal – always getting bombed out).

My father was too young to be evacuated when World War Two broke out and was only evacuated later on but he and his mum, my gran, went through the Blitz. My mother was evacuated immediately and didn’t like it. It’s a time to be grateful for what we we have, I think. One of which was my appreciating the freedom I have to watch my Lady having a huge amount of fun in the park this morning with her two best friends.

Writing wise, am pressing on with Flash NANO. Hope to do today’s prompt later on but may have to go into tomorrow given I’ve a busy but lovely evening ahead. Will also be sharing an author update for me on Chandler’s Ford Today on Friday. I appreciate the freedom to read and write too. Still not a given even now, which is sad.

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10th November – Remembrance Sunday

Moving Remembrance Sunday service today. For me, it always highlights the power of the right words to convey feelings – they shall not grow old as we that are left grow old – and the importance of taking time out to actively remember. Remembrance is an act of will.

Had a fabulous family do yesterday – so good to see everyone – and yes the dog loved it all and was shattered by early evening as I expected! She was happily shattered though.

Writing wise, will be busy with flash fiction pieces shortly, including for Flash NANO 2024. Did get these written.

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Family do today. I don’t go in for predictions but can say with confidence we will all have a lovely time, Lady will love every second and be exhausted by 7pm today! It’s what happened last time. She lay in the hall and just wouldn’t move for ages. I got the “Mum, I think I’ll stay here “ look!

Will be sharing a quick update on what I’ve been up to writing wise for Chandler’s Ford Today next week. More author interviews to come towards the end of the month and going into December. Plus I’m looking forward to going to the Bridge House Publishing Celebration event which is in just under a month’s time.

Writing Tip: Want to know more about your character? Ask one simple question – ask what is their all time favourite piece of music?

The answer to that will open up more details about their background, their other tastes connected to this piece and so on. If my character picked a classical piece of music, it is unlikely I will find them at a hard rock concert unless they have no choice but to go there (it’s their job – I have written a piece on this. Good fun to put my character through the mill here! Their reactions were understandable and funny. Would have worked just as well the other way around).

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Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

I use Book Brush to help me create my videos for YouTube. I find it easy to use and there is a nice choice of video templates for the subjects I tend to write about.

YouTube has a lovely audio library where you either don’t have to give credits or they make it easy for you to do so when you do have to and it means I can add an audio track so easily. Fun to do and another way of sharing flash fiction. Win-win!

 

It’s Monday. It’s time for a story. Hope you like my latest on YouTube – Remembering. Memories come flooding back to my lovely gentleman character as he prepares to leave this life but he asks a pertinent question for us all to consider.

 

This weekend and tomorrow we will rightly focus on remembering. It is vital we recall the past and the sacrifices made. I do believe in the truth of the saying “those who do not remember history are destined to relive it” and the act of remembrance is designed to record our gratitude for our freedoms and to try to prevent the reliving of the horrible bits.

Writing wise, remembering is an excellent theme for stories. What one memory would your characters treasure above all else and why? There would be some wonderful story ideas to come from that, some poignant, but I could see there being room for humour too. If you give this a go, good luck.

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Hope you’re having a good weekend. Later will be having a lovely time catching up with family and seeing just how tired my dog can make herself as she interacts with everyone!

Will probably have to catch up with Flash NANO Day 9 tomorrow as I won’t have much chance today and will also crack on with Day 10 so flash fiction Sunday afternoon will be busier than normal. It will also be even more fun though!

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Goodreads Author Blog – Humorous Fiction

I have a very soft spot for humorous fiction, ranging from Jane Austen’s irony in Pride and Prejudice (in particular) all the way through to Wodehouse and Pratchett. Story writing is challenging enough but to make it funny as well takes a particular skill set and one I think the world could do with much more of especially now. Well, let’s be honest, 2024 has not been a great year, has it?

So books and stories which make me laugh will always go down well with me. I do wish humorous fiction was taken more seriously, funny enough. I’ve long held the view it is looked down on a bit because it “looks easy”, Big mistake there. I learned years ago if someone makes something look easy, that same someone has worked hard for years to get to that point.

For a writer to come up with funny lines for their characters, they have to know their creations inside out and ensure that what the characters speak is something which arises naturally out of the situation they’re in. Nothing must seem forced in any book. It never works.

Humour especially cannot be forced – readers literally won’t buy it. It’s the equivalent of laughing at your own jokes, which most of us don’t do.

But when a writer gets the humour right, it is sublime.

Screenshot 2024-11-09 at 13-59-04 Allison Symes's Blog - Humorous Fiction - November 09 2024 05 58 Goodreads

WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

This time I share the December 2023 edition of the magazine which took as its topic Finishing Strong. I look at Finishing Strong in the Short Fiction Forms in this plus I wrote a piece about the Association of Christian Writers Flash Fiction Group, which I run on Zoom for ACW, which was the writing group of the month. Plenty to read and enjoy here.

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

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The Writing Life and Competition Placing News

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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. One image of me demonstrating flash fiction was taken by Penny Blackburn at Swanwick 2024 and the image of me taken at the Book Fair at the Hilt 2023 was taken by my lovely Chandler’s Ford Today editor, Janet Williams. Screenshots taken by me, Allison Symes.
Hope you have had a good weekend. Had a lovely time at the Book Fair and was then delighted to find I’d won third prize in a competition (more details on that below and a link to my story). I had known about the competition result a little while ago but was waiting for my story to appear before saying more. But all in all a good weekend. Lady has made a good start to her week too by seeing her Hungarian Vizler and Rhodesian Ridgeback pals.

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Facebook – General

Hope you have had a good day. Lady got to play with her Hungarian Vizler and Rhodesian Ridgeback friends today and the rain mainly held off until we were all back home so we’ll take that as a win!

Looking forward to seeing I’ll Be Back Before Midnight, which is the latest production from The Chameleon Theatre Company. Will be meeting my lovely CFT editor Janet Williams, there. I always see these things as CFT “works outings” and a good time is had by all. Can’t wait for the Chameleons pantomime – it is always good fun – oh yes it is! – and that will be with us before we know it.

Writing Tip: If you’re writing for the Christmas market, you left it too late for this year but you should be in good time for December 2025. All magazines take in their Christmas material during the summer (and some earlier than that, always check but their websites should make what they want and when by clear) but the good news here is given we all know Christmas is coming year on year, there’s nothing to stop you preparing and polishing your material and sending it in good time for the next one.

This also acts as a reminder to me – I usually prepare flash fiction stories for the festive season towards the end of the month. Good fun to do, perhaps especially so as the darker nights draw in.

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A huge thank you for all the lovely comments, likes etc regarding my post yesterday about coming third in Esther Chilton’s flash fiction competition. All much appreciated and catching up with these was a lovely way to start what has proved to be a dull, dreary Monday! (Lady got to see her Hungarian Vizler pal so she has got off to a great run around the park Monday).

Am delighted to say I’ll be welcoming Debz Hobbs-Wyatt to Chandler’s Ford Today for a super two part interview beginning this Friday. Debz talks about her new novel, If Crows Could Talk, but shares so much good advice and tips relating to writing, editing, the writing life etc, it is, I feel, a must read, wherever you are at in your own writing journey. Link up on Friday.

Will be a busy couple of weeks on CFT as I’m off to see The Chameleon Theatre Group’s latest production, I’ll Be Back Before Midnight, later on this week and a review will follow in due course. Plus I will share a write up about the Book Fair at The Hilt. So plenty to look forward to writing up and sharing. A new writing week beckons – time to get stuck in!

464240156_10162349579597053_5369256382132747140_nCompetition Placing News: Am thrilled to say I won third prize in Esther Chilton’s flash fiction competition which she set up at The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick. Word count was a maximum of 250 words. Definitely my territory!

Hope you enjoy my Catching Up (see link) and many thanks, Esther, for the kind words beneath the story.

Third Placed Story – Catching Up

19th October – Book Fair

Good to be back at The Hilt for the Book Fair. The sun even came out, always useful for any event.
As per last year, there was a good number of authors and genres represented. I plan to write more on this for a future Chandler’s Ford Today post but it was lovely catching up with authors I met last year and to meet new people.

Do support any writing events local to you. That support is always appreciated. And you may well be pleasantly surprised to find out just how many talented authors you have in your midst!

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Almost time to start thinking about festive flash fiction, folks. Now in fairness if an idea occurs to me earlier in the year (and it often does) I will write the story up and put it aside. This is useful for any fixed event. It will be interesting and fun to find out if Flash NANO, starting on 1st November, throws up prompts I can use for festive flash this year. Will report back!

464150532_10162352309122053_8182550517772300368_nIt’s Monday. It’s been dull, damp, and dreary in my neck of the woods. Not much natural light at all today. Time for a story then.

Hope you enjoy my latest on YouTube – The Hairbrush. Now what could possibly go wrong handling and using an old hairbrush? Find out here.

 

Looking forward to my Sunday flash fiction afternoon (and it’s especially nice having come third in a competition this week, see my author Facebook page for more on that – also see above). Given it’s wet and stormy outside, the idea of writing away in a cosy room is even more appealing! Hope the weather isn’t too horrendous where you are.

Looking forward also to the Association of Christian Writers Flash Fiction Group meeting on Wednesday. Plus I’m off to my local theatre company’s latest production on Thursday. I enjoy their shows but I especially love those “little moments” in their plays which tell you something more about the character etc. I like to think of them as flash moments!

464061794_10162346176887053_3245492783491129070_nPleased to spread the word about flash fiction at the Book Fair at The Hilt today. This year I took part in the talk slots which were on offer.

My approach here is to share a little about what flash fiction is and to then share some stories. The best way to demonstrate flash is to read some!

The nice thing here is I can mix up the style and mood of the tales I read.

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Goodreads Author Blog – Book Fairs/Events

I’ve been at a couple of book related events over the last fortnight. Both were great fun and it was especially nice to catch up with fellow authors.

It is so nice not having to explain the urge to write and, of course, the one thing which unites us all is our overwhelming love for books.

I’ve inherited my love of books from my late mother who read to me regularly and encouraged my own reading. Book events are great opportunities to bring books to people and make them aware of what is available in their own area.

So if you get a chance to support events like this, please do. Books – we need to spread the word!

Screenshot 2024-10-19 at 18-03-07 Allison Symes's Blog - Book Fairs_Events - October 19 2024 10 02 Goodreads

WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

This time I share the bumper January/February 2024 edition of the magazine. I ask Flash Fiction Romance: Is it Possible? I also look at New Beginnings for Characters.

 

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

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Brainstorming and Spreading the Word about Flash Fiction

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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 had a great weekend. I had a lovely time at the Association of Christian Writers Autumn Gathering writing event on Saturday in Rugby. Plan to write more about that and supportive writing groups for Chandler’s Ford Today on Friday. Do look out for it. I’ll be sharing some tips on what to look for if you’re thinking of joining a writing group. Lady has had a good start to her week, seeing her best pals. Always comes home looking so happy when she’s met up with them.

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Hope you’ve had a good day. Lady got to see her Hungarian Vizler pal again today. Two happy dogs went home.

Will be sharing a bonus Chandler’s Ford Today post tomorrow advertising the local Book Fair. Do look out for it (and the event itself is this coming Saturday, 19th October. More details in the post tomorrow and if you can come along even better).

Writing Tip: Every so often have a brainstorming session. Jot down ideas for titles, opening/closing lines etc. It’s good fun, a great creative exercise, and later once you’ve reviewed what you’ve come up with, you will find something you can work up later. What’s not to like about that?

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Has been drizzly and murky here but Lady didn’t worry as she got to see her Hungarian Vizler and Rhodesian Ridgeback pals today. Good time had by all.

Will be writing about the Association of Christian Writers Autumn Gathering and Supportive Writing Groups for Chandler’s Ford Today on Friday. I’ll be sharing useful tips for what to watch out for when you’re thinking of joining a writing group. Link up on Friday. More author interviews to come soon too.

Hectic day today so won’t be getting so much writing done today but Mondays are always like this for me and I more than make up for it during the rest of the week. What I do on Mondays is focus on little “bits and pieces”. I can tick some of those off my writing to do list at least. Makes Mondays a bit better for me!

463270484_999554918851036_116990171191685620_nHad a fabulous time with the Association of Christian Writers yesterday. Will be writing more about that for Chandler’s Ford Today this week but it was just marvellous getting together with people I haven’t seen in person for some time. Regards to all and I hope you all had safe journeys home.

Have spent this afternoon copying over various pieces of writing I managed to get done on the train journeys – did more than I thought. Good use of time that!

Will be back to editing and judging later today, once I’ve written and edited some of my flash pieces.. Am almost there on the story judging and plan to get results back to the writing group this week. It’s a lovely task to do and many thanks to the writing group concerned for inviting me.

Will have some news to share later in the week about my being judged for one of my stories too. I’ve often been on both sides of the editing fence at the same time but this is the first time I’ve been on both sides of the competition judging one!

Screenshot 2024-10-13 at 19-41-28 ACW - The Association of Christian Writers

12th October 2024

Am on my way to the Association of Christian Writers Autumn Gathering at Rugby.

Looking forward to seeing everyone, the talk by Paul Kerensa, and the workshops. Will be a long but excellent day. I hope to write about this and the value of supportive writing groups for Chandler’s Ford Today next week.

Have seen dawn rise as I travel. Very nice but also proof the mornings are darker for longer. Will be pitch black when I go home again.

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Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Will be spreading the word about flash fiction at the local Book Fair this coming Saturday 19th October. I’ll be sharing a bonus Chandler’s Ford Today post on this tomorrow with more details. But it has been great last weekend and this coming one to be out and about on the book stands once more.

 

It’s Monday. It’s been more hectic than usual for me so I too am glad to take time out for a story. Hope you enjoy my latest on YouTube – The Day Out. What on earth Could Vera have done to make headlines in her home world? Find out by following the link.

 

I was glad to share the benefits of flash fiction yesterday when chatting with various people at the Association of Christian Writers Autumn Gathering. The ACW group leaders who were present invited people to join them to discuss what their group does as the last event of the day.

I waved the flag for the online groups given the Flash Fiction Group could never get together in person, we live hundreds of miles apart, and there are a number of ACW groups like this now which have formed to cover different genres. With Zoom distance isn’t a problem though wifi connections can be at times but that’s tech for you and I found out long ato there is no such thing as the totally perfect system.

One major benefit I was keen to share about flash fiction is it helped me to get my head around the whole idea of show, don’t tell. I have got to get my characters to show you what you need to see because I don’t have the word count room to do otherwise. This is no bad thing though and it has benefited my other writing, even my blogging, because I have learned to write “tight” with no wasted words or anything that could be construed as padding!

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Am on the train today and as I travel I get glimpses of “other lives” especially as I go through the towns. Could any of that inspire flash fiction? Oh yes.

As well as Kipling’s Serving Men of who, what, where, when, how and why coming in handy here, my favourite addition of what if will also help me develop ideas. If you don’t like outlines as such, but need something to get you started on flash or other writing, all of these questions are brilliant places to start. Often I find just a one line answer is enough to trigger the ideas.

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Goodreads Author Blog – Special Book Moments

I’m sure all of us have special book moments when a story just “clicks” with us. I love those moments.

I recall studying Pride and Prejudice at school and remember loving it so much I read it again immediately at home. My mum loved Jane Austen and this novel remains a comfort read of mine. I had an excellent English teacher (Miss Mackenzie) who brought to life for me the fabulous use of irony in this book.

As for Terry Pratchett, my first Discworld novel was Jingo. Loved the cover and blurb. Hooked by the end of page one! Naturally had to read the rest of the series after that.

As for The Lord of The Rings I was intrigued by the hobbies and Gandalf from the start so naturally kept reading.

Books are so special anyway but are even more so when they give you fabulous memories too.

Screenshot 2024-10-15 at 20-03-28 Allison Symes's Blog - Special Book Moments - October 12 2024 00 01 Goodreads

WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

This time I share the December 2023 edition of the magazine which looked at Finishing Strong, always an apt title for an end of year issue. I looked at Finishing Strong in the Short Fiction Forms and shared a separate piece under the Writing Group of the Month section about the Association of Christian Writers Flash Fiction Group which I lead monthly. Much to enjoy in this issue and it really won’t be long now before the magazine is back!

 

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

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Outlining and Prompts

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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 few days. Looking forward to going to the Association of Christian Writers Autumn Gathering in Rugby at the end of the week. Will be good to catch up with folk. Am looking forward to the workshops too. Won’t be long before Flash NANO starts in November either. Have found that great fun to take part in over the last couple of years and am looking forward to being part of it again.

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Taking part in Flash NANO

Facebook – General

Hope you have had a good day and managed to avoid at least some of the rain. Mu gutters were doing their usual splendid impersonation of Niagara Falls at 9 am today! Thankfully it was dry when Lady and I went out and she did get to see her Hungarian Vizler friend, much to the delight of both dogs.

Looking forward to sharing a fabulous interview with Miriam Drori about her new book, Loyalty and the Learner, on Chandler’s Ford Today on Friday. Looking forward also to my trip to Rugby on Saturday to join the Association of Christian Writers for their Autumn Gathering. Am hoping the weather will be better!

Writing Tip: I often outline my characters by interviewing them. A couple of pertinent questions gets the ball rolling nicely. Once I know the character well enough, I can write their story up. So I look at what motivates them (and from that, why). I also look at what secrets they might keep and why.

For example if my character is motivated by the need to be discreet, I would probably discover a secret from their past which is so horrendous, discretion has become second nature for them. I can then decide whether to reveal their secret and how they handle the outcome of that or take another route and get them doing something drastic to keep that secret. Either would be a good story to write up.

PROMPTS - I like to mix up the kinds of prompts I use, it encourages more creativity

7th October
A deeply sad day.

Writing wise, I’m working on blogs, editing, judging, as well as flash fiction at the moment. Enjoying it all too. I find writing therapeutic at times in terms of it giving me a creative outlet and I escape for a while into the world I create. Reading helps me escape into worlds other writers create – love that too.

Having said that, I don’t always like what my characters get up to and some of them I definitely wouldn’t want to meet for real, so to speak. It is the way of things but I also take comfort from the fact my characters should have a life of their own, else they would only be cardboard cutouts. Nobody relates to those.

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Drizzly but clearing up here today. Hope your weekend has been a good one.

Busy editing and judging at the moment. Will be enjoying flash fiction Sunday afternoon too today.

Character Creation Tip: It’s not unknown for authors to base their characters on aspects of themselves. Well, you draw on what you know here, right? True but I’d be wary about doing this if writing horror, erotica or even crime! You do want to separate the author from their work!

My approach is to take what I know about human nature/behaviours – and specifically what can result from a trait – and ask myself questions especially the What If one. The What If question is useful for getting an outline/rough idea together. I look at what a character would do and why.

Knowing the why is important for me because I can then write the story up with confidence knowing where it and its characters are going. The why makes motivations understandable (though not necessarily nice).

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Hope you have had a good start to your weekend. I’m looking forward to going to the Association of Christian Writers Autumn Gathering next Saturday. Looking forward to catching up with people and enjoying the workshops.

On Chandler’s Ford Today next week, I’ll be chatting to fellow Swanwicker, Miriam Drori, about her new novel, Loyalty and the Learner. Looking forward to sharing that.

Writing Tip: What have I found to be the most useful piece of writing advice I’ve picked up over the years? I’d say it was to write first and to edit later and that’s it’s okay to write a rubbish first draft. Everyone does! Just get those ideas down and then come back to them, after a suitable break away to evaluate them properly and then do the inevitable tidying up work which needs to be done.

The time away from your first draft is vital to be able to judge it properly but I use that time away to go and draft something else. I can then rest that one and come back to the first piece. It means I always have something on the go. I like that.

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Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Looking forward to the Association of Christian Writers Flash Fiction Group meeting in a couple of weeks. Will be looking at how to make the most of Flash NANO, which stars on 1st November, and I’ll be sharing tips on how to make the most of writing prompts. I’m writing on prompts again for Authors Electric this month (due out on 18th October).

I use a wide variety of prompts. It keeps things interesting for me but it also means I’m not fazed when I’m set them by other writers. I know I can produce something. I can polish things up later and only I see the first draft!

I use the prompts directly but I often do put my own twist on them and get yet another idea. So if an opening line prompt says something like He wasn’t amused to get a parking ticket, I would change that to something like The alien wasn’t amused to get a parking ticket. I know I could have fun with that one!

PROMPTS - The advantage of writing to prompts is it gets you used to writing to topics set by someone else, handy for competitions with set themes, and writing events
It’s Monday. Time for a story. Hope you like my latest on YouTube – Lighting Up. I expect many will identify with this one!

 

There are plenty of flash fiction competitions out there. A quick Google search will bring up loads of them. All of that is good news but do make sure you check out the terms and conditions and you are happy with these.

I never enter competitions which require me to sign away all of my rights (just what is in that for me?! I also may want to do something else with a the story in the future. Signing away my rights means I can’t do that).

I also check the entry fee is proportionate to the prize on offer. I also check out the competition’s website. Usually there are FAQs here which I find it pays to look at. The competition should be easy to find online. If they have a Facebook page, do check out the comments. If you’re not sure about a competition (a) walk away, you have to be comfortable with where you’re sending your work as you want it to reflect well on you and (b) do ask the writing community.

If you’re part of online writing groups do ask around here too. Someone is likely to be able to answer your query. Also the competition organiser should cover a lot of the common queries in their FAQs and, if not, be amenable to you putting a query to them.

Always walk away from those who don’t want to be helpful – you have to query why, right?

462210759_992961259510402_736286537237125836_nOne reason I love writing something for Friday Flash Fiction most weeks is it gets me back to my first introduction, and therefore love of the flash fiction format, the classic 100 word story otherwise known as the drabble.

For flash competitions and markets, unless they want a specific word count, I write to just under the overall limit. I want to make the most of the word count room I have available. So if I have a 250 words limit and my story comes in at 150, I will save it for a competition or market which is looking for word counts of 200 words or fewer.

The reason for that is so I can make every possible use of the word count limit I have got. If I’ve got the room for that powerful line which shows something useful about the character it’s going in. Here it is a case of adding depth to the story and character.

No line will ever go in, regardless of word count, if it doesn’t add something useful to the story in some way but if I’ve got some extra room, I see it as a wasted chance if I don’t use it this way.

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Goodreads Author Blog – Books With Impact

To an extent, all books have impact. The first impact is on you as the reader making you decide whether you loved the book or not. But when I talk about books with impact, I mean those stories which stay with you long after you’ve read them initially and which you will happily re-read at any time.

For me, this includes The Lord of the Rings, Pride and Prejudice, most of the back catalogues of Agatha Christie, P.G. Wodehouse, Terry Pratchett, and the classic fairytales.

What pleases me now is I’m increasingly adding non-fiction to that mix. It makes for an interesting “reading diet” and I would include most of Ben Macintyre’s books in the “will happily re-read” category.

I don’t mind the book format I use either. I mainly read paperbacks and ebooks with hardbacks every so often coming into the mix (but I have to be very sure of the author for those!).

The impact I look for in fiction is entertainment. For non-fiction it is in learning something new to me in a way that entertained me (and I welcome the development of creative non-fiction here because this is one of its strengths).

Screenshot 2024-10-05 at 17-43-41 Allison Symes's Blog - Books With Impact - October 05 2024 09 43 Goodreads

WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

This time I share the link to the September 2023 issue of the magazine which had marketing as its theme. Always a timely topic, that one! I have two pieces in here – Marketing Your Books and Writing for Online Magazines. And it really isn’t long to go now before the magazine is back with us again!

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

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Newsletters and Competition News

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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 had a good weekend. Lovely to catch up with family and friends and relieved the weather held. It was bucketing down again on the Sunday! There are times my gutters do a credible impersonation of the Niagara Falls! Writing wise, am busy judging a flash fiction competition at the moment and editing, as well as writing my usual materials. Plenty going on but that’s the way I like things. Also have had some exciting competition news of my own – see below.

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Facebook – General

How come it is October already? Having said that, I like October. It can be a lovely month, weather wise, though today it has been changeable in my part of the world.

Still the first of the month always reminds me to get my author newsletter out and accordingly my latest went out earlier today. I guess producing one of these a month makes it easier for me to spot how quickly the year is passing!

Writing Tip: I know it’s an oldie but this tip is a goldie and one I use a lot. The moment you get an idea jot it down as soon as you can. Don’t rely on yourself to remember. You don’t. I know I’ve lost ideas this way. I try never to do so now.

Now what do you do when said idea strikes at an awkward moment? Often does for me – the shower is a favourite location for my brain to decide it is suddenly going to show up with some inspiration. Goodness knows why, though I am grateful it never happens just as I’m trying to sleep. I know that would irritate me no end.

Anyhow, I have notebooks in different places to allow for this. Alternatively, I grab my phone and use the note feature on that to jot things down. Sometimes I’ve just jotted down key words but have found that is enough to get the idea “back”.

Have been known to mutter words to myself re the idea until I can get to that notebook or my phone. It may sound odd but it works, honest! Just helps to have an understanding family though!

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Screenshot 2024-10-01 at 16-21-40 Allison Symes - October 2024 - Writing Events

Hope you have had a good start to the week. Lady saw her Hungarian Vizler and Rhodesian Ridgeback pals this morning. A good time had by all despite the dodgy weather.

Glad my Newsletters post on More than Writers (I shared the link yesterday – see below) has triggered questions. I have now responded to those for those of you who commented on the post itself. I will add in that I was a late comer to having an author newsletter but am now glad I have one. It is an easy way to engage with readers and I find them fun to put together too. I believe in keeping it simple and being consistent, two good qualities for any writer!

And talking of which, my next newsletter is out tomorrow, 1st October. To sign up do head over to my landing page at https://allisonsymescollectedworks.com – and many thanks to all who have subscribed.

 

It’s my turn again on More Than Writers, the blog spot for the Association of Christian Writers. This time, I talk about Author Newsletters and share tips as to what I’ve found helpful in setting up and running mine. Hope you find the post useful.

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Hope you have had a good day.

Will be looking at Story Inspiring TV and Its Music for Chandler’s Ford Today next week. Am sure it will bring back many happy memories for many of you. Looking forward to sharing that on Friday. Then it will be back to author interviews again. More details to come nearer the time.

You often hear the advice to treasure the moments (and we should do too) but you can make this true for your characters too. Think about what moments they would treasure and why. Sure to be a story or two behind answering those points.

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Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Competition News:  Had a lovely email in this morning saying one of my stories has come third in a competition, I can’t say any more than that yet but will share more when I have a link to share as the story will be published. Could do with more emails like that!

Mind you, while I have been on both sides of the editing fence at the same time before, this is the first time I’ve been on both sides of the competition judging fence at the same time as I am currently judging flash pieces for a Scottish writing group. Lovely position to be in though.

 

It’s Monday. The weather here has been iffy to say the least. It’s time for a story. Hope you like my latest on YouTube – Cake and Candles, a timely theme as I was celebrating a family birthday over the weekend. Well, they say write what you know, do they not?

 

I’ve always had a soft spot for characters who can see beyond the obvious and who are not necessarily prepared to go along with the crowed (especially if they can see said crowd is being foolish).

One of my characters like this is from The Terrified Dragon (Tripping the Flash Fantastic) where the local butcher can see a way of putting an unexpected dragon to use (well, be fair, it is never good news when one turns up in the neighbourhood), instead of just trying to kill the thing. Great fun to write and I always find characters like this more interesting to write for. I start by working out what it is about them which makes them different to the rest.

Another example of mine is from The Circle of Life (From Light to Dark and Back Again) where my character finds a novel way to stop animal cruelty. Funnily enough, I didn’t name either of these two characters (for longer stories I would’ve done) but they’re memorable because they stood out against the crowd.

Allison Symes - Flash Fiction CollectionsI used the random object generator recently and used what came up, a cookie tin, as inspiration for my stories on Friday Flash Fiction (The Old Bat and the Cookie Tin) and on my YouTube channel (Appreciation) this week. Two different characters, two different story lines, two stories full stop and all from one object idea! I like this! Hope to play again with the random object generator soon.

You can make even better use of the generators by changing the parameters you use for them but I’ve found not generating too much in one go is a good idea. I limit myself to two or three things at a time.

By the time I’ve clicked a couple of times something will have rung my inspiration bell and off I go with an outline and first draft. Having too much in one go I’ve found tends to swamp me. I have got to see the wood for the trees!

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Goodreads Author Blog – Encouraging Reading

It is no surprise all authors are always huge fans of reading. It is usually a case of having loved stories all of our lives, we then want to write some of our own. I’m all for things like World Book Day which encourages children to engage with books. Would like to find ways of encouraging adults to read more though!

I do think one of the most important things about children’s literature is in its role in engaging kids to read at all and then to keep them reading, Every writer of stories for adults owes a debt to the children’s writers given they grown our audience for us.

It is not unheard of for someone to discover books as a an adult but it is far more often the case someone has developed a love of reading which started when they were children. It is said the best way parents can encourage children to read to let their children see them read for pleasure.

I can vouch this approach works. My late mother encouraged my love of reading this way and also by ensuring, when very young, I was read to every night. The oral tradition of storytelling is an ancient one and must never die! It does lead on to reading for yourself.

So let’s hear it for the children’s writers and also get on with our own reading. In doing the latter we support other writers and I would hope encourage those around us to read for pleasure too if only by setting a good example here ourselves.

Screenshot 2024-09-28 at 14-00-03 Allison Symes's Blog - Encouraging Reading - September 28 2024 05 59 Goodreads

WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

This time I share the November 2023 issue which had novels as its theme. My article is on Writing Novels and is based on what I learned from writing mine. That book is still unpublished though I hope to return to it soon.

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

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Twitter Corner (2)

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Author Interview: Behind The Curtain with Anita D Hunt

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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. Many thanks to Anita D Hunt and Lynsey Adams for pictures supplied for the Chandler’s Ford Today post this week.
Hope you have had a good few days. Torrential rain and brief spells of sunshine here. Hoping it brightens up for the weekend as have a family event. Writing wise, have more superb author interviews coming up on Chandler’s Ford Today in October. Will say more nearer the time though I find it hard to believe we’re almost at the tenth month of the year already! Where has the time gone?

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Facebook – General and Chandler’s Ford Today

As part of her blog tour, I am delighted to welcome fellow Swanwicker, Anita D Hunt, to Chandler’s Ford Today to discuss her new domestic noir novel, Behind The Curtain.

Anita shares many useful tips and plenty of great advice in this in depth interview, in which she also discusses how it can be painful getting inside your characters’ heads at times and what to look for in a writing group.

She looks at what she likes about creating characters and how Cornwall, her home county, plays a major part in her work. She discusses themes and shares an invaluable tip about writing blurbs. Do check out the interview and settle down for a riveting read.

Behind The Curtain with Anita D Hunt

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Glad to say the Association of Christian Writers Flash Fiction Group meeting on Zoom last night went well. The theme was marketing (many thanks to Rosemary Johnson for suggesting it) and I shared a few ways flash fiction can help with this.

If nothing else, sharing flash fiction stories every now and again can act as a marvellous advert for the rest of what you do. It doesn’t take long to read, it entertains potential/actual readers, and it showcases you/your work. Nothing to dislike there, I think.

And talking of marketing, it’s time for me to put in my usual end of month reminder about my author newsletter. The next one goes out on 1st October and I share stories, tips, advice (based on what I’ve found useful myself), news etc. If interested do head over to my landing page at https://allisonsymescollectedworks.com where you can sign up. A huge thank you too to all of my subscribers here and on my YouTube channel.

Thought for Today: Every writer has their fair share of rejections, not doing well in competitions etc, but there’s nothing to stop you revisiting your old work, seeing if you can polish it up and get it out somewhere else. I’ve had work published that way.

Sometimes I will review a piece and with the benefit of time and that useless aid, hindsight (I would far rather have the ability to spot something wrong at the time I’m working on a piece and see my mistakes before I send anything out!), I can see why a piece failed but even that can be useful because I’ve learned from it.

So maybe hindsight isn’t so useless after all. I would still prefer foresight or at the time sight though! Suspect most of us would.

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Hope you have had a good day. Lady has had a smashing one given she got to play with her Hungarian Vizler and Rhodesian Ridgeback pals today. I’ve managed to avoid most of the rain today too so will take that as a win.

Don’t forget I’ll be talking to Anita D Hunt about her domestic noir novel, Behind The Curtain, on Chandler’s Ford Today on Friday. The interview is packed full of useful tips and advice too so do look out for it. See above. Glad to say there will be more author interviews to come on CFT in October too.

Writing Tip: I know some writers dread marketing and would far rather focus on writing. I understand that but there are creative aspects to marketing your stories too. After all the challenge here is to make what you have to say here about your work interesting and appealing to readers and not switch them off. (Saying buy my book all the time does do precisely that).

I’ve found if I can make the marketing fun for me to do it is more likely to be appealing to a reader. Sharing something of interest and/or value to readers/writers as I discuss what I’m up to writing wise is also marketing. I think it is more likely I can keep this kind of marketing going too.

My aim with posts like this one then is to have a chatty informative style, while sharing useful tips and something like oh by the way my newsletter is out soon, if you want to sign up head over to etc etc. I take the view if it is something I wouldn’t mind reading if I were on the receiving end, other readers (or at least some) will take the same view.

So work out then what you like to see in marketing you receive. Figuring out what works for you as a reader will help you come up with material based on your work you won’t mind sharing with your readers (and they won’t mind it either). The focus has to be on engagement, I think. Stories about your writing life work well too.

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

It’s Friday, end of the week time, weather iffy so definitely time for a story then. Hope you enjoy my latest on Friday Flash Fiction – The Old Bat and The Cookie Tin. Think I’ve found a contender for one of my all time favourite titles!

Screenshot 2024-09-27 at 10-09-12 The Old Bat and The Cookie Tin by Allison Symes - Friday Flash FictionHope you’ve had a good day. Lady didn’t get to see any of her pals today though she hopefully will tomorrow. Have a family event at the weekend. Lady loves these because (a) she loves people, (b) she loves getting extra food and getting to be an outside Hoover, and (c) she loves playing with the visiting dog, with whom she gets on brilliantly. Am expecting Lady to be shattered on Saturday night. She was last time but happily so!

Looking forward to the local Book Fair in October and literally the week before the Association of Christian Writers Autumn Gathering event. I shall be off to Rugby for that one and will be back to London in December for the Bridge House Publishing Celebration event. Lots going on all connected with writing and I plan to enjoy every minute! I also get to spread the word about flash fiction of course.

Prompt Idea: Events mean different things to different people so why not invent one for a character of yours and show what they make of it? Do they organise it? Do they love it? Do they dread it? What happens at this event which changes things for them?

461332721_10162283069397053_7196259478840081979_nI’ve mentioned before the importance of using the right telling details to help your readers picture your world/setting/character/any combination of those. In my The Terrified Dragon (Tripping The Flash Fantastic), I start with the line The dragon was surrounded by angry humans with weapons and realised to his dismay he was supposed to blast them all away.

Note I haven’t told you what those weapons were as that isn’t the important thing. What you need to know is the main character is a dragon who has got into trouble (which is odd in itself given dragons are usually the cause of fire-related trouble!). You need to know about the angry humans (and you don’t need telling why they’re angry given a dragon turning up is seldom good news).

But you also see something of the dragon’s attitude. He knows what he is meant to do but is strangely reluctant to do it. There is something strange about this creature. Only way to find out what is to read on. Job done.

I’ve always found it useful to figure out what a reader has to know and then decide how I am going to plant those things in the story. When I’ve outlined my character well enough, I can see how the story will develop and where those things should go. It will arise naturally, which is what you want.

BB - Flash with a Dash for TTFF

Fairytales with Bite – Flying Around

Now I know I moan about traffic in my area – I suspect most of us do – but what would this traffic look like in a magical world? How is the Eye in the Sky supposed to work when all around them are flying on broomsticks and other magical craft?

Would there be speed limits? Would there be corridors magical flying beings are supposed to stick to (if only to give the wildlife a half decent chance of being able to fly anywhere in safety? I feel sorry for birds in magical worlds. In any other kind of world the skies would be theirs. Not in this kind of environment it isn’t!).

Now we all know there are certain kinds of car driver (usually with specific brands of vehicle too) who are notorious for tailgating, jumping traffic lights, being awful at junctions etc. What would the magical equivalent of these things be in your setting? How is flying traffic controlled or is it a free for all and it is assumed the fittest/fastest/strongest survive and it’s tough luck on the others? What are the accident rates?

Are the state of the skies in your setting better than they used to be or worse? Can any magical being fly? Are the “vehicles” restricted to certain speeds?

You could have some funny stories here about the magical traffic cop and how they rein in anyone who breaks the rules here. I once wrote a festive flash piece where such a character tried to pull Santa over for speeding! Great fun to write.

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This World and Others – Policing the Skies

Linking in with Fairytales with Bite, who does police the skies? How seriously or otherwise is this role taken? Does it get the support of the general public or it is looked down on? Are there any perceptions that certain flyers (e.g. witches and wizards) get away with traffic faults and other more lowly kinds (such as the trainee fairies etc) do not?

Who does control the skies in your setting and how do they do it? We consider keeping control of our own air space as vital to our defences (as proven by the Battle of Britain in World War Two) so I would assume your setting’s government would take the same view.

Who would they need to defend their skies against? What is the history behind that? What is the history behind how your government does police the skies? What have they found works well and what less so?

I quite like the idea of a traffic cop on a broomstick with a flashing blue light pulling over other magical beings for speeding etc. What punishments can be given? How are other magical beings stopped from avoiding these and/or giving the cop a hard time?

Story ideas here (and possibly funny ones too).

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WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

Since marketing has come into this round up tonight, I thought I’d share the link to the September 2023 edition of the magazine given it has marketing as its theme. I have two pieces in here – Marketing Your Books and Writing For Online Magazines.

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

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Story Judging

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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 few days. Autumn coming in rapidly here and Lady and I have had our first soakings of the month! Looking forward to sharing two fabulous author interviews on Chandler’s Ford Today towards the end of the month plus I hope to have news of another writing event in October before long. Meantime, keeping busy writing and editing here. Huge advantage to this is I keep dry!

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Facebook – General and Chandler’s Ford Today

Lady and I had another soaking this morning. We may have been marginally less wet than yesterday but there wasn’t much in it!

On a much happier note, I’m pleased to share Story Judging for Chandler’s Ford Today this week. I look at where competition judges can tell how much (or little) editing has been done on the pieces they get to read and I share what I think story judges are looking for. I also share handy tips.

Hope you find the post useful and good luck if you are entering competitions. I find they’re a great discipline for helping you to get used to writing to deadlines.

Story Judging

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Lady and I had a real soaking this morning! Hope it wasn’t too bad where you are. Only time I was pleased to get wet today was when I went swimming!

Don’t forget Story Judging is up on Chandler’s Ford Today this week. Link up tomorrow. See above. Will be back to see The Chameleon Theatre Group’s latest production in October so will review that in due course for CFT too.

I’ve mentioned before I often use Zoom to record stories and play them back. Well, I was glad I did last night. A story I’ve got in mind for submission has to come in at under the three minutes mark. Discovered mine was over four! Have already edited the piece so hope it will now be to the right time length but I will re-record later and make sure. I’ve found it is the only sure way to make sure my timings are right.

 

Hope you have had a good day. Lady had a cracking time in the park with her pal, Coco, and then got to see two other rescue dog pals she sees every now and then. Grand time had by all. Rain held off too so will count that as a win.

I’ve been thinking of music and books a lot recently, partly inspired by the recent Classic FM Movie Music Hall of Fame chart which they played on Bank Holiday Monday. Wonderful music and many of the pieces relate to books or plays. Shakespeare turned up a few times for that chart. Would like to think he would be pleased about that. (Jane Austen and Charles Dickens were represented in there too).

Character Tip: Why not see what your character’s musical tastes are and why they have them? This could reveal something about their background and/or personality. Also think about a piece of music which would suit your character and think about why it would be that one. (If you pick Jaws, you are either writing about a shark or your character is of the kind I am likely to avoid!).

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Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

It’s Friday. It’s the end of the working week for many of us. Weather here has been frightful too. So definitely time for a story then and I hope you like my latest on Friday Flash Fiction – The Clock.

Screenshot 2024-09-06 at 09-03-25 The Clock by Allison Symes - Friday Flash Fiction

Names can reveal a lot about characters such as age and social status. Sometimes I know the character’s job before I know the name but sometimes that occupation inspires my name choice. In Being Yourself (Tripping the Flash Fantastic), I knew my character was a librarian and then worked out a name to suit (I came up with Jane Stephens for this one).

Sometimes I don’t need to worry about names at all as I know the story will work best in the first person but even there I can show a character referring to or talking to someone else by name. What they call someone can be enlightening too. Do they use the full name? Do they use a contraction? When they speak the name is it with affection or contempt?

 

I’ve mentioned before you can have a lot of fun writing flash because, despite the limited word count, there is much you can do with it.

For example, I write across the whole spectrum from 50 words to the full 1000 and pretty much everything in between. I also mix up the genres I write in here and also the moods of the stories. I mix up writing in first and third person. I’ve occasionally used second person too.

But I also mix up the formats I use so sometimes I use acrostics (especially on Facebook and my blog round up). I have also written flash pieces in diary format, as letters, and in poetic form too. At some point I may have a go at flash in tweets because that is do-able.

The important thing in all of this? Having fun with it! You have to enjoy what you write/the process of writing and accept you are in for the long haul.

But the joy of creating something you hope others will enjoy I think is a great thing and feedback from sites like Friday Flash Fiction is enormously encouraging too. You can’t assume anything in the writing life but you can give it your best shot and have fun as you do that.

Being open to improving your craft matters too but that is fun in itself when you have the support of fellow writers. It is my experience the writing community is a tremendously supportive one and it is lovely being part of that.

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Fairytales with Bite – Rough Justice

Justice can be very rough indeed in the fairytale world. The prince didn’t expect to be turned into a beast in Beauty and the Beast, did he?

But for a wider fantasy setting, what would count as rough justice? Would it be the misuse of magic for aggressive purposes or would it be the withholding of magic when it could be used to help a character?

Who determines the usage of magic and when that usage spills over into abuse of power? Someone has to set the rules. There would have to be some rules given the lack of them would lead to anarchy, though you could give some thought to who would want to stir that up in your setting.

If someone is after power, which is what characters so often want (just so like us, eh?), how would they stir up that anarchy and then bring it under control again so they could rule?

Often when there is a power struggle, justice and truth are trampled on. Who would bring these things back and how would they do it? Who would ensure justice was just that only without any rough bits?

Story ideas there I think!

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This World and Others – Good -v- Evil

One of the things I love about fairytales is they call out evil for what it is. There is a clear divide between good and evil.

It doesn’t mean good characters are flawless – they’re not, any more than we are. It does mean they know what is right and wrong at least at the basic levels and the heroes here, to my mind, are those who are prepared to stand up for what is right, regardless. (See The Lord of the Rings, the Narnia series and so much more for more on that).

In your setting, is the divide clear? Would your readers know who they should be rooting for to succeed? Yes, sometimes you can have a “good villain”. The Sheriff of Nottingham, as played by the much missed Alan Rickman, in Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves is one such but it was still right he did not succeed in the end.

The problem with evil winning is it is so depressing. The brute forces win, characters are oppressed, where is the hope in that kind of story? Indeed, where is the story? Frankly, we also see enough of all of that in the news!

So we need characters then who are prepared to stand up against evil. They’re not always going to get it right. Many of them will die. (To paraphrase Lord Farquaad in Shrek, that is a sacrifice the bad guys are prepared to make!).

But the interesting story is when those on the side of good do take up a stand against evil. We want to see what they do and whether it succeeds or not. If they face setbacks, which I would expect, do they overcome those? How do they overcome them? Is the cause of good upheld successfully?

One of the joys of fantasy and fairytales is when good is upheld. It gives hope. Yes, it may be escapism but I’ve never seen the problem with that. I want characters in conflict with each other and the right ones succeeding in the end. I guess I have wanted that ever since I first read the classic fairytales. I’ve seen no reason to change that view!

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WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

This time I’m sharing the November 2023 edition of the magazine which focused on novels. My article is on Writing Novels and I shared what I learned from writing my (as yet) unpublished novel.

 

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

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Swanwick 2024

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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 thanks to all who contributed to the pictures for my Chandler’s Ford Today post about Swanwick this week. I especially appreciate those of me taking part in events. Always tricky to do those shots yourself!
Hope you have had a good few days. Weather all over the place once again. My Chandler’s Ford Today post this week was a particular joy to write – well, it was on Swanwick 2024 a subject close to my heart. I hope the post gives you a good flavour of what makes Swanwick special for so many writers, including this one.

Swanwick 2024 - Open Prose Mic Night and Lift Up Your Pens

Facebook – General and Chandler’s Ford Today

Hope you have had a good day. For those of us having a bank holiday this weekend, hope it proves to be a good one.

I’m delighted to share Swanwick 2024 as my Chandler’s Ford Today post this week. This one was a labour of love! I review my week there, share something about what makes The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick so special, and celebrate its 75th anniversary.

I also got to have an almost red carpet moment with fellow Swanwicker, Dave Bromley, but find out more about that in the post. Link below.

Swanwick 2024

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Not great weather today though it didn’t stop Lady having a lovely time with her Hungarian Vizler chum this morning. Mind you, I got to reprise my excellent impersonation of a bedraggled rat! Wasn’t quite enough rain to be a fully fledged drowned rat!

My Swanwick 2024 post is up on Chandler’s Ford Today tomorrow. If you want to know something about why The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick is so special, do check my post out. See above.

My next events will be the Association of Christian Writers’ Autumn Gathering In October and the Bridge House Publishing event in December, both of which I’m looking forward to already.

Don’t forget my author newsletter will be out again soon. I know. It’s hard to believe we’re so close to September, one of my favourite months, (and only one more Bank Holiday to go in the UK before…. Best left there I think).

Oh and a sneak peak at a lovely moment from Swanwick. I was delighted to get to present a Swannie to Dave Bromley this year. To find out more about Swannies and what this was all about see my CFT post tomorrow.


Hope your Wednesday has gone well. Looking forward to the Association of Christian Writers Flash Fiction Group meeting later this evening. Also looking forward to sharing Swanwick 2024, my post for Chandler’s Ford Today this week. Link for that up on Friday. See above. The next best thing to being at Swanwick is to write about it!

Character Tips: Especially for my flash fiction, I need to know the character well. They are my way into the story. It doesn’t mean I have to know every last detail though. I just need to know enough to help me picture them and envisage the sorts of situations they would end up in and how they would react to these.

So often working out answers to a couple of pertinent questions such as what would you never do and why will reveal a great deal about my character’s attitudes and assumptions and I can make good use of those. I can, of course, make them have to face the thing they don’t want to do but I will know their reasons for this and I think that helps me create a more believable character.

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Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Friday Flash Fiction is currently closed for submissions, understandably taking a break after their recent competition. I look forward to sending pieces in again to them soon but what I am especially grateful to them for is helping me rediscover the joys of the drabble, the 100 words flash fiction type.

I started in flash fiction writing 100 worders (for CafeLit) but then branched out into writing the longer forms of flash and short stories (which I still write). The discovery of Friday Flash Fiction led me back into writing the 100 worders regularly and I am loving doing this.

I like the discipline of creating a brand new 100 word story for them most weeks of the year. I also appreciate the feedback and support from other writers on the site plus I get to enjoy a thoroughly good read every week. What’s not to like about that? If you would like to check out my stories here do follow the link.
Screenshot 2024-08-23 at 19-24-27 Friday Flash Fiction - Search Results

One of my favourite comments about flash fiction comes from the good people at The Bridport Prize who refer to it as “the art of just enough”. I think that’s a great summary of it.

I have it in mind when I’m drafting my stories. I think about what the reader needs to know and give them that and nothing else. They do get the “just enough” so they can make inferences needed, where appropriate.

I know when I’m reading I don’t want the author to spell out everything. I want them to give me enough, regardless of the length of story, so I can figure some things out too. It is always fun going on to find out whether I’m right or not.

Allison Symes - Flash Fiction Collections

Hope you have had a good day – has been trying here. But knowing how I feel when days are trying is something I can transfer to my characters when I put them in trying situations. (I make sure I do of course!).

Drawing on what you know in terms of how you feel when things go wrong or disappointment hits is something you can transfer to your characterisation. It makes for believable characters readers will identify with because they know where the character is coming from and why they are feeling the way they do. We’ve all been there. Our characters can go there too!

One of the great comforts about reading, I think, is when we read characters going through hell and high water and think well at least it isn’t us or we know how the characters feel. Stories are fabulous for encouraging empathy like that.

Do I find it relaxing when I put my characters through the mill? It can be amazingly therapeutic at times but my goal is to ensure it all works out and becomes a good story a reader will enjoy. That’s the challenge and I love rising to it.

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Fairytales With Bite – Accountability

With my writing, I find having deadlines makes me accountable. I have to get columns done by a certain date, stories off to competitions and/or markets by a certain date and so on.

Leading on from that thought, in your world, when a task (magical or otherwise) has to be done, who makes sure it gets done and in the right way? Who follows through? Who reports back X has been done in the right way? Who reports back when it hasn’t been?

What you are looking for here are story possibilities from the chain of command which must exist. Even in the most democratic of fantasy settings, someone does have to give the orders, there will be others below them and so on.

There would be room for humorous stories here too. It doesn’t have to be deadly serious. As ever, I will flag up Discworld here where there is no doubt about who is in charge of Ankh-Morpork but so much humour does come from those wonderful novels. I’m especially fond of the Sam Vimes books here. He knows he’s accountable to Lord Vetinari. Doesn’t mean he has to like it though! When Moist von Lipwig comes into the stories, he finds himself accountable to His Lordship and to an extent Vimes as well (see Raising Steam).

So who would you have accountable to whom? How does this work?

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This World and Others – Record Keepers

Every society has its history and archives. Some treasure these more than others. Every society has its good and bad history. Some acknowledge this. Others definitely don’t.

In your setting, which records are kept and why? Who can access them? Are there any secret records only a privileged few can ever access? Have any records been destroyed and, if so, which ones and on whose orders?

Are the record keepers treated well or are they kept under the thumb by dictatorial bosses? How did the record keepers get to hold that position in the first place? I would envisage connections working here – the old boys’ network perhaps – especially if there is anything which has to be kept secret from the general public. You would want someone you could trust in positions like that.

Also give some thought as to how far the records go back and in which manner they’re kept? Is technology used or is it all kept on scrolls? When you have a character needing to look something up, how easy or otherwise would they find doing this? Do they find the information they’re after?

Records matter. They’re used for all sorts of things including family history research. Would your characters need to look up some of their ancestors and, if so, why? Would they be pleased or horrified at what they find out?

Story ideas there!

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WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

Well, given my editing course at Swanwick recently, I thought the April 2024 edition of Writers’ Narrative on that theme was the best one to share this time! In the magazine my article asks Editing: Do You Love It or Loathe It? Always a timely question!

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

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The Joy of Writing Events

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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 goes to Penny Blackburn for the image of me reading at the Swanwick 2024 Open Prose Mic Night, to Jen Wilson for taking the one of me at the Lift Up Your Pens session, and to June Webber for the Swanwick celebration photo. (I swear I was on the apple juice and NO not cider!).
Must admit the weekend was mainly spent recovering from Swanwick week but I suspect every other attendee did much the same! Have slowly resumed my usual writing routine this week. I find having a routine helps enormously. I know what I am writing when and by the end of the week I’ve got more done precisely because I haven’t dithered.
Of course most of this week I’ve also been thinking about what was I doing at Swanwick a week ago. It would never surprise me if other Swanwickers do the same.

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Facebook – General

Hope you have had a good day. Glad to be swimming again. First time back in the pool after Swanwick. I came out feeling a little bit less like a beached whale! (You do get looked after very well at The Hayes!).

Writing Tip: Even if you’re not thinking of being published or are published yet, it would still pay you to work out what you would say if someone asked you about what you write. That question does make for a good ice breaker at events like Swanwick so it would pay to be ready for it.

Should the time come when you’re submitting work to a publisher/agent, they will want you to be able to describe your work succinctly. If you are writing a book or a short story collection, it also pays to think of your one line hook for it because these take more time than you might expect to get right.


Looking forward to the Association of Christian Writers Flash Fiction Group on Zoom on Wednesday. Plan to share some useful tips, after which I hope people will share a piece or two of flash fiction.

It’s not a bad idea to get used to sharing work in an environment where you are comfortable doing so. It gets you used to reading your work out. You receive immediate feedback from a friendly audience. It can be a major source of encouragement.

Talking of which I was encouraged Bridge House Publishing shared an excerpt from my Tripping the Flash Fantastic. See screenshot. Nice start to the week.

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Pleased to be back on Authors Electric with a timely post. I talk about The Joy of Writing Events, two days after returning from the wonderful The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick. Post went out originally on 18th August 2024.

I look at the joys of being with like-minded people who understand the joys and frustrations of writing and discuss the benefits of joining in with writing events. Zoom, of course, has come into its own thanks to the pandemic making online events possible. I regularly run a workshop on flash fiction using this.

What is great is that there are benefits from both types of event. For me, being with others who understand that urge to write is one of the biggest ones. No need to explain anything!

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I was mugged by Lady on getting home from Swanwick yesterday as expected. Lady duly delivered and she was delighted to see her best pal, the Rhodesian Ridgeback, as we returned from our lunchtime walk today. Win-win for the dogs!

Eventful journey home yesterday as the train to London St. Pancras had to stop at Kettering because of a medical emergency and everyone had to change trains. Just hope that poor passenger is okay. Especially glad to get home after that and see everyone.

Will be writing about my week at Swanwick for Chandler’s Ford Today next week. Looking forward to writing that one up! The rest of the weekend though is booked for recovery time. As expected, I came back from Swanwick, re-inspired, re-enthused, and shattered but these are all signs of a truly great week!
Many thanks to June Webber for the picture too!

Celebrating at Swanwick 2024 - photo from June Webber
Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

I was resting a flash fiction competition entry prior to going to Swanwick. Glad to say I have now reviewed it and submitted it.

I knew there wasn’t a lot to do to it but those who came to my editing course will know I talked about having a “final, final edit” where I look for typos, ensure I’m following all the rules etc. I then get the story sent off which is now done for this one. I won’t know anything until much later in the year but I’m 11 days ahead of the deadline so that pleases me too.

Never leave submissions to the last minute – you will miss something. I’m not guilty of this one myself but have known it to be done. It never pays off.

So on to the next flash competition then and I do have something in mind to have a try for here. Now to get on with a first draft (though I will probably add this on to my flash fiction Sunday afternoon spot later this week).

Sometimes I know which competition I’m trying. Sometimes I have an idea for a character, write their story up, and then if a suitable competition comes up, I will review my story and after polishing it, send it in. But I do always like to have some flash “on the go”. That does pay off!

Polishing your manuscriptIt’s Monday. It’s the first Monday back from Swanwick. I need a story! Hope you like my latest on YouTube – Dial a Character.


I suspect it will be a slow return to normal after the bliss of Swanwick week. Having said that, one thing which will help enormously is having my usual flash fiction writing on a Sunday afternoon! I also had the lovely task of judging some flash stories for a competition and I have now sent in my choice. It was hard to pick a choice (which is alway a good sign of great quality writing overall). I’ll be judging flash stories again for a writing group in September and am looking forward to doing that. Will also be resuming my editing work later this week.

Oh and have managed to submit a story for a flash competition, which I was “resting” during Swanwick week. I’d drafted it at the end of July, edited it a week or so into August, and then rested it, came back home, minor tweaks only required, and off it has gone.

One of the things I mentioned in my editing course was having a deadline by which you will send a piece off somewhere. It is possible to use editing as a form of procrastination and I am aware of this so always set myself deadlines to get work out by. It gets around that issue nicely.

456023104_10162139308377053_632554507637700600_nLooking forward to seeing everyone next week at the next meeting of the Association of Christian Writers Flash Fiction group on Zoom. I plan to share some top tips and I hope people will get the chance to share some of their flash pieces. Well, everyone likes to listen to stories, right?

Pleased to share the word about flash fiction at Swanwick. It is also a fabulous format to use at Open Prose Mic Nights because you can give your audience complete stories and still not over run. Win-win there.

Am looking forward to resuming my usual flash fiction writing on Sunday afternoon. Nice way to end the week. Good luck to anyone who has entered the Friday Flash Fiction competition (which is timed to run as the Edinburgh Festival runs).

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Goodreads Author Blog – Celebrating Books and Those Who Write Them

I’ve recently returned from my highlight of the writing year – a week spent at The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick, which is set in the lovely county of Derbyshire. I have a week of workshops and courses (I ran a two part one on editing there this year) and spend a week immersed in the wonderful world of writing with other authors who understand the drive to write at all.

It is also fantastic catching up with old friends in person. For the rest of the year we stay in contact online. It’s also lovely getting to meet new people and chat with them about what they do writing wise. (The topic is a guaranteed ice breaker).

I like to see Swanwick as a chance to celebrate books and those who write them. I come back refreshed, reinvigorated, and shattered! You can feel the creativity in the air, I think.

In general terms, I would like to see more celebrations of books and their authors. Books are one of the best things humanity has ever given to the world.

Screenshot 2024-08-17 at 20-12-50 Allison Symes's Blog - Celebrating Books and Those Who Write Them - August 17 2024 12 12 Goodreads

WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

This time I’m sharing the recent May 2024 edition which was based on memoir. My article was on using memoir techniques for character creation.

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

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Lifting Up My Pen at Swanwick 2024

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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. Many thanks to Jen Wilson for taking the photo of me leading the Lift Up Your Pens session about using numbers in fiction.
It is so good to be back at The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick and a joy to catch up with friends in person. Have learned so much from the courses and workshops so far.

Marvellous to catch up with friends and to see the fish in the lake again at Swanwick 2024

Facebook – General

Another lovely day at Swanwick. Enjoyed the sessions on The Write Mindset (Sarah Harlow) and Powerful Public Speaking for Writers (Simon Hall). Always plenty to learn from sessions like these. Sometimes it is just reassuring to know you are on the right lines!

On Tuesday afternoons there is spare time (which is done deliberately) where I hope to catch up with some of my writing. Later tonight I am due to take part in the Open Prose Mic Night and am looking forward to that. It does make a great advert for what flash fiction can be.

One of the beautiful lakes here at Swanwick - you might just spot the fish here - Swanwick 2024

Many thanks to Jen Wilson for taking the shots of me at the Lift Up Your Pens session yesterday. It was a joy and privilege to lead the Lift Up Your Hearts session this morning, a short devotional session for all denominations.

Was back at Vivien Brown’s Short Story course this morning and then went on to Road to Self-Publishing Success led by Lizzie Chantree. Both packed full with useful information. Plan to get along to Anthologies Collaborations too.

There is so much choice here. It is one of the strengths of Swanwick and you choose how many or how few of those courses you go to. I trust the Book Room is also seeing brisk sales as if there is one thing I know about writers, it is none of us can ever have too many books!

Discussing how we can use numbers in stories as part of Lift Up Your Pens - Swanwick 2024

Glad to say the session for Lift Up Your Pens which I hosted at Swanwick this morning went well. I was looking at different ways of using numbers in stories. There are more than you might think and using numbers at all encourages you to think outside of the box, which is also a good thing.

Thoroughly enjoyed Vivien Brown’s Short Story specialist course, the fist part of which was this morning. I went on to Twist in the Tale hosted by Val Penny which was on before and after lunch. Both of these topics are right up my writing street of course.

But one of the lovely things about creative writing is there is always something you can learn which can help you improve your craft further. Now that is a very good thing indeed!

The grounds at The Haye are glorious - Swanwick 2024

Am on my way to Swanwick 2024. So looking forward to seeing everyone. Lady, with my other half, saw me off. I expect to be mugged by her when I get back. It’s what usually happens.

Will be talking about Never Fear The Editing for Chandler’s Ford Today. It is timely given my Swanwick course is on Editing as an Author, Editing as a Competition Judge. Link up on Friday for CFT (I just love scheduling in advance!).

Am getting back to my old habit of getting some writing done on the train. The notes app which came with my phone is great and proving to be a good replacement for Evernote as I don’t have a need for a paid subscription which they effectively now are.

You can't beat the trusty notebook and pen for work in groups or at events like Swanwick

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Will be taking part in the Swanwick Open Prose Mic Night later tonight. Hoping to read from my books and one or two pieces from my stories on Friday Flash Fiction. Did take part in the general knowledge quiz last night – the team came 5th out of 8 though the placings between 5th and 2nd were very tight. Might pay to brush up for next year!

Nice to have a chat with fellow Bridge House authors, Linda Payne and June Webber, today. Always good to wave the flag for a lovely publisher.

From Left to Right below:  June Webber, yours truly, Linda Payne.

Waving the flag for Bridge House Publishing and CafeLit - June Webber, Allison Symes, Linda Payne

Having a fabulous time at Swanwick. I swear you can feel the creativity in the air! The gardens are as lovely as ever, as are the lakes, and I’ve found it refreshing to take walks around the latter at break times. Have never seen the fish so busy in those lakes as I have done this year.

Glad to have caught up with the lovely Linda Payne – she and I are the Bridge House Publishing contingent for this year! Also glad to have caught up with Susan Pope and Vikki Thompson (of the lovely Mermaids writing group. I’ve given a couple of talks for them on Zoom but it is so nice to see the ladies again in person).

Have some ideas from exercises already set but suspect I need to be back at home before I get a chance to write them up though.

But I haven’t forgotten it’s Monday and it is still time for a YouTube story from me. Hope you like my latest – One Hour. I shared in Lift Up Your Pens at Swanwick yesterday how to use numbers in fiction and one way is to use it as a time. Here’s my response to that!

Many thanks to Val Penny for the shout-out as part of her Twist in the Tale course at Swanwick today. Yes, for flash fiction, you can only have the one twist and that is it because you don’t have the word count room for more. However, it is precisely due to that I find twists in flash fiction have a more powerful impact as there is nothing to “water it down”.

Have put my name in the box for reading out at the Open Prose Mic Night. Flash is a great form for this bcause you can’t take too long. Goes down well with organisers and audiences, that one!

The grounds at The Haye are glorious - Swanwick 2024

Hope to share some flash fiction at Swanwick again. It is a great format for Open Prose Mic nights as it doesn’t take long and the audience gets to hear complete stories. Have brought new material for this year.

Hope to get some flash written while away too. Am sure some of the exercises I will be set will end up eventually as flash tales.

Always time for a laugh with fellow writers-1

Goodreads Author Blog – Collections

There is a great meme doing the rounds which claims it isn’t hoarding if it is books. I have a lot of sympathy for this viewpoint and confidently expect to add to my own hoard courtesy of the book room at The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick, which is my base for a few days.

I also love story collections and have done from an early age thanks to the collected fairytales Reader’s Digest brought out as a two volume set a long time ago.

I’m not unbiased given many of my stories are in collections and I often edit them for others. I love the mixture of tales in these and to be able to dip in and out of the books as I wish.

I often read them in between reading novels. I like to mix up reading the short and long forms. A well curated collection is a joy to read.

Screenshot 2024-08-13 at 09-18-54 Allison Symes's Blog - Collections - August 10 2024 06 07 Goodreads

WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

This time I’m sharing the link to the June 2024 edition which was on the theme of poetry. My article looks at the links between flash fiction and poetry. Hope you enjoy it.

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

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