PowerPoint, Writers’ Narrative, and Doing Right

March 22, 2024Leave a comment

Screenshot 2024-02-28 at 16-25-51 Allison Symes - The Society of Authors

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 seeing friends and family at the weekend for birthday get together. We all have a fab time. Lady loves (a) seeing everyone, you should see her face when they go home, looks so sad (aaah!); (b) Lady loves playing with a family spaniel, the lovely Lily; and (c) both dogs make excellent hoovers and have a great time there too! Not so much writing over the weekend but I will, to quote the Terminator, be back! Meantime a huge thank you to all who have donated to the Salvation Army through my fundraising post on Facebook.

Facebook – General and Chandler’s Ford Today

A huge thank you for the birthday messages coming in today (22nd March). Much appreciated.

First up tonight, I discuss PowerPoint for this week’s Chandler’s Ford Today post. It is an odd thing to have something come back into use after a period away from using it. Usually something is superceded. PowerPoint is the rare exception to the rule here.

With the advent of Zoom, PowerPoint has come back into its own and I use it frequently. I share thoughts and tips on making the best of it and hope you find the post useful. (Combined with Zoom, it makes for an excellent way of presenting presentations).

PowerPoint

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Secondly up tonight, I am delighted to say the April edition of Writers’ Narrative is now out. Just in time for the perfect weekend read, I’d say!

The theme this time is editing and my piece is called Editing – Do You Love It or Loathe It?

There is a great deal of excellent advice on what can be a thorny topic in this month’s magazine. Do check it out.

Lady got to see just her Hungarian Vizler chum today, both had a lovely time. Bluebells out on our regular walk back home. Lovely to see them (my garden ones always come up later).

I’m discussing the joys of PowerPoint for Chandler’s Ford Today this week and will be sharing useful tips. The advent of Zoom for writing workshops has brought PowerPoint back into my regular usage again. I use it at least once a month. I find it handy especially for the Association of Christian Writers Flash Fiction Group I lead. Will be using it again at next week’s meeting!

PowerPoint is a good match up for online work but appropriate too. It encourages you to keep to the point. There’s nothing for a flash fiction writer to dislike there, is there?!

Link up tomorrow. See above.

Hope you have had a good day. Nice to see some spring weather. Got warm! (First time since last autumn!). Lady got to see her Hungarian Vizler and Rhodesian Ridgeback pals – all three had a fabulous time. Not going to get much writing done today as off to a meeting this evening but this kind of thing happens and it is where my planning out how to use the available writing time pays off. So have a few small jobs to do which I can tick off my list. Back to longer pieces of work when I have more time tomorrow.

Looking forward to the Association of Christian Writers Flash Fiction group meeting next week. Will be looking at Endings and Beginnings (and yes deliberately that way around as I thought it apt as the meeting will be so close to the Easter weekend. Good Friday is an ending. Easter Sunday is a new beginning. Naturally I will be looking at crafting good endings and beginnings for flash fiction).

Writing Tip: Have a range of writing tasks to do. It’s fun. It helps you make the most of available writing time. On busy days, you will still feel like you have written something useful for the excellent reason you have! Also pockets of time mount up if you see them over a longer time period.

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Pleased to be on Friday Flash Fiction with my 100 words tale, Doing Right. This is my first entry for the Andrew Siderius competition FFF are running for the next couple of weeks.

My story next time will have to be eligible for the longer flash word count section. No comments on any of the stories at the moment either for obvious reasons. Comments return after the competition is over. Good luck to all who are taking part.

I’ve always liked creating characters. It’s my favourite part of storytelling. I like to know who my “stars” are going to be. Flash fiction writing means I am creating characters all the time and the more you do this, the easier it becomes to find ways into creating characters. I’ll be looking at this more for a future Chandler’s Ford Today post.

Flash makes you focus. The word count limit means you have to work out how to make the best use of it. I’ve found characters leading the way into the “action” of the story helps keep the word count down because they won’t waffle on. They will want to get straight on and do what has to be done to get the story resolved. Also readers can be taken straight into the characters’ mind sets and the tale feels more immediate because of that, I feel.

It helps to know what you like and loathe about character portrayal. You will know what you want to achieve and what you want to avoid. This is where reading widely is a must I think for writers, regardless of story length. You do find out likes and dislikes.

When I have small amounts of time in which to write (and today is one of them!), a good writing exercise to try is just to jot down titles, opening lines, closing lines etc. You can then come back to these when you have more time. The time away will give you the break you need to evaluate these ideas properly and which ones are worth your writing up and which ones are not.

For titles, I like to keep things open. I like to be able to take titles in more than one direction so I can then decide which mood I’d like to go for.

For example, my story Bypassing The System (Tripping the Flash Fantastic), I could take in several ways by working out which system, who is doing the bypassing, and are they doing this for criminal or more honourable intentions. Not going to say which way I went on this one but I do like to have manoeuvre room with my titles. I find it triggers even more ideas. That I always welcome!

Fairytales with Bite – Birthdays and Other Celebrations

This is a timely post as this will go out on my birthday. Looking forward to seeing friends and family soon too.

In fiction, my favourite birthday celebration is that of Bilbo Baggins at the beginning of The Lord of the Rings. Say what you like about Gandalf, he knew how to do fireworks! Also hobbits know how to throw a good party.

For your own characters, and the settings in which you’ve placed them, are birthdays marked in any way? Are celebrations only saved for “official” events and is everyone expected to take part in those, whether they like it or not?

If private celebrations do happen, are they similar to what we would have or are parties etc literally not of this world and what forms would they take? What would the food and drink be like?

Who would your characters invite to events? Who would they leave out? Bear in mind that can have consequences. See Sleeping Beauty for more on that one.

Could you use a celebration event as the trigger for a story? If you use a birthday here, what would happen to your character(s) between one celebration and the next?

This World and Others – Public Gatherings

Following on from Fairytales with Bite, does your setting allow for public gatherings? Are these strictly regulated or not? Who administers such regulations? What forms do public gatherings take?

Also give some thought as to what events those in power would want there to be public gatherings for. What would be the history behind these? How to the authorities persuade folk to to? Does anyone resist that?

Are there public events which are not celebrated or remembered but which should be and are kept suppressed by the authorities because they fear public reaction to them? What would happen if someone broke the mould here?

Give some thought too as to how public gatherings are organised. Is there a police force overseeing everything? What would happen if things went wrong? What would cause a public gathering to go wrong? Who would be behind it and what are they trying to do?

Story ideas here for sure!

WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

Screenshot 2024-03-22 at 15-23-10 Writers' Narrative April 2024

Screenshot 2024-03-22 at 15-24-20 Writers' Narrative April 2024

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Doing Right, by Allison Symes – Friday Flash Fiction https://t.co/ggtJZXdrKc Doing Right is my first entry for the Andrew Siderius competition FFF are running at the moment. My next tale will have to be eligible for the longer word count section. Good luck to all taking part. pic.twitter.com/KIfKFKVAC6
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) March 22, 2024

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

PowerPoint https://t.co/DWPMOPRDFS I discuss PowerPoint for CFT this time. It is an odd thing to have something come back into use after a period away from it. With the advent of Zoom, PowerPoint has come back into its own. Combined, they are great for presentations.
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) March 22, 2024

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

Delighted to say the April Writers’ Narrative is now out. Just in time for the perfect weekend read! The theme is editing. My piece is called Editing – Do You Love It or Loathe It? There is a wealth of excellent advice here on what can be a thorny topic. https://t.co/CXVYIQtqO2
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) March 22, 2024

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.

Online Workshops and Broadcast News

March 15, 2024Leave 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.

Hope you have had a good few days. Delighted to share broadcast news this time (and there will be publication news in the next post too). Weather still all over the place though have had some spring sunshine. Lady is as loveable as ever and continues to have a great time with her pals.

Facebook – General and Chandler’s Ford Today

Am pleased to share my latest post on Chandler’s Ford Today and this week I’m talking about Online Workshops. I discuss the advantages of these and share tips on how to make the best of them, whether you’re an attendee, a tutor, or, like me, you do both. Hope you find the post useful.

Mind you, if you find the refreshments on offer at an online workshop are not all they should be, you really do only have yourself to blame!

(Will be having some fabulous author interviews coming up on CFT in April and May. Am so looking forward to sharing these too. More to come later).

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Broadcast News: Am delighted to announce my story Budding Betrayals will be broadcast on Saturday 16th March on North Manchester FM. I have an unusual lead character in this one but you will have to listen in (live or on catch up) to find out more.

Hannah Kate is hosting a special Spring Equinox show in her Saturday afternoon slot and I am delighted my tale will be part of it. Many congratulations to every one else taking part too. See link and screenshot for more. I hope to share the link to the show itself sometime next week.

Today would’ve been my mother’s 90th birthday. Many thanks for the gift of reading, Mum. It has led to a lot!

Don’t forget my next author newsletter goes out on 1st April. Not an April Fool, honestly! To sign up for news, tips, prompts etc, head over to my landing page at https://allisonsymescollectedworks.com

I chose a monthly time slot deliberately as it gives me plenty of time to put the newsletter together and it isn’t too frequent an arrival in your inbox! All of the author newsletters I subscribe to are either monthly or occasional. Does anyone send one out weekly? How would you have the time?!

Having a newsletter forms part of my marketing, of course. It’s a joy to put together and it also gives me an opportunity to share links to my stories on Friday Flash Fiction for the month and to my videos on my YouTube channel. It makes a good “one stop shop” for me here.

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Am delighted to share my latest tale on Friday Flash Fiction – Neighbours. Neighbours are not always what they appear to be and that is the case for the characters in this story. Hope you like it.

(From tomorrow, 16th March 2024, Friday Flash Fiction are running an annual competition in memory of Andrew Siderius. Check out the home page for more information).

Pleased to have another flash fiction tale due to be broadcast by Hannah Kate on North Manchester FM this coming weekend. (Saturday 16th March 2024). I hope to share a link to the show itself sometime next week. This news came as a nice surprise today.

Am making good progress on what I hope will end up as a fourth flash fiction collection in due course too.

I love flash for its flexibility in mood, style, genre I write in, and even the word count I write to, as long as I don’t go over 1000 words. Great fun to do. It also makes for an excellent warm up writing exercise. Why not give it a go? I did. Two published books later and another in the pipeline, I’d say I made a good call!

Screenshot 2024-03-14 at 09-49-18 North Manchester FM Hannah's Bookshelf Spring Equinox Special Saturday 16 March 2-4pm - Hannah Kate

My mother would’ve been 90 today. She saw my first published story in print. She would’ve been pleased about the flash fiction collections. I owe my love of stories and books in general to her. It is the gift which keeps on giving.

Looking forward to the Association of Christian Writers’ Flash Fiction group meeting later in the month. Always good fun. It’s also an opportunity for folk to share news of relevant competitions etc as no one writer can know them all and I was told about Flash NANO via the Flash Fiction group. Am appreciative of that!

I sometimes write what I call “slice of life” flash tales. One of these is Judgement Day from Tripping the Flash Fantastic which has a “punch in the gut” ending. You would root for my character in this one and that, of course, is the reaction I wanted to generate with this story.

When I write slice of life tales, I focus down on what matters most to my character and that then is the story. There will be change. There will be development. There will be reflection. All of this comes together to bring about an emotional tale, which I hope gives readers pause for thought. For me, that is the purpose of a slice of life tale.

Fairytales With Bite – Humorous Fantasy

I am very fond of humorous fantasy and my favourite series here is the Discworld one by the much missed Sir Terry Pratchett. Humour can often get across points better than “telling”. People are more willing to “take in” humour.

Humour has its place in the world of the fairytale too and many of my flash fiction pieces fall in this category. I love ending a fairytale piece with a punchline ending.

One of my own favourites here is Making The Grade from From Light to Dark and Back Again. I often read this one at Open Prose Mic Nights as it is short (100 words), has a punchline ending, and involves a magical character and exams. All good fun!

I’ve found a good way into writing this kind of humorous fairytale is to have a strong character in mind first. Ensure you know what their main traits are. My character in the story above is determined to do things her way and a lot of the humour comes from that.

I also find knowing a rough idea of the ending helps. I often write down a potential punchline finish first and then work out what could lead to that. It means I have a logical structure in place. I’m just writing from B to A rather than A to B.

So think about what your characters would find funny. Also what situations could you put them in where humour could develop. I am a big fan of outlining (yes, even for 100 word stories) and find jotting down ideas helps clear my mind and sparks other ideas too. I then go with the one which has the biggest impact on me as that will be the same reaction other readers will have.

But do have a go at writing humorous fairytales. They are good fun. I find they work best when kept relatively short but there are places in the flash fiction market which would be open for these kinds of stories.

And they make people smile. I like that.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

This World and Others – Humour In Your Setting

Linking with Fairytales with Bite, I thought I’d look at humour in your setting. Does your setting have anything intrinsically funny about it? Does it have species which are considered to be funny by others and if so, what are they? What is it about them that produces the smiles? (I think there is something intrinsically amusing about the duck-billed platypus, for example. I like the way it breaks the rules. Mammals aren’t meant to lay eggs but it does).

What would your characters find funny? Do the powers that be in your setting encourage humour or suppress it, given humour is often linked to freedom of thought and speech? What would your characters do or where would they go to find humour? Is there an underground humour movement? (For more on this kind of idea do check out The Goodies’ show Goodies Rule UK? It is brilliant).

Do all of your main species have humour or do only some have it? What kind of problems could their humour cause, especially where it is not shared? Could you use humour in your stories to bring species together, maybe to even wrap up your stories?

Humour is a powerful and wonderful thing. Tastes in humour vary too. That could be something to be explored in your character portrayal too.

WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Which is your favourite Easter story? I have a soft spot for two – Doubting Thomas and Mary mistaking Jesus for the gardener. I find both easy to relate to, which is a challenge for us when creating characters. Can our readers see where our creations are coming from? pic.twitter.com/W1tQhtGKUV
— ACW (@ACW1971) March 13, 2024

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

🌼 Coming up on Saturday at 2, it's the Hannah's Bookshelf Spring Equinox Special on @normanfm1066, featuring seasonal stories from @jennyhsanders, Peter Barnes, Carmen Walton, @noodleBubble and @AllisonSymes1! 🌼 pic.twitter.com/ou2MHBviMd
— Hannah Kate (@HannahKateish) March 13, 2024

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

Easter shows the triumph of good over evil. For our stories, we need to show our characters “deserving” their triumph over evil. We want readers to be rooting for them every step of the way, another reason why readers need to understand where our people are coming from. pic.twitter.com/AqQ1XaAQoS
— ACW (@ACW1971) March 14, 2024

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

Delighted to say my story Budding Betrayals will be broadcast on Saturday 16th March on North Manchester FM. Hannah Kate is hosting a Spring Equinox show in her Saturday afternoon slot. Many congratulations to every one else taking part too. https://t.co/nTFgzNB8j8 pic.twitter.com/gLaaYbuePt
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) March 14, 2024

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

I have found it incredibly helpful to outline my characters. I just need enough information so I feel I know them well enough to write them up. Their own characteristics reveal to me the kind of situations they’re likely to end up in and that’s useful too. pic.twitter.com/EN67h2kZ7O
— ACW (@ACW1971) March 15, 2024

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

Neighbours, by Allison Symes – Friday Flash Fiction https://t.co/m7L9R6UQxp Am delighted to share my latest tale on Friday Flash Fiction – Neighbours. Neighbours are not always what they appear to be and that is the case for the characters in this story. Hope you like it. pic.twitter.com/KUE8pHal1A
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) March 15, 2024

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

Online Workshops https://t.co/rnSJScdnjk Am pleased to share my latest post on CFT. I discuss the advantages of Online Workshops and share tips on how to make the best of them, whether you’re an attendee, a tutor, or, like me, you do both. Hope you find the post useful.
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) March 15, 2024

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.

Publication News and Writing Tips

March 12, 20242 Comments

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

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 good weekend. Garden starting to look really nice with daffodils all over the place. Lady has got off to a good start to her week by having a tremendous run around with her best pal, the Rhodesian Ridgeback. Both of them tired out. Job done! Writing wise, got lots done over the weekend so pleased with that.

Facebook – General

Hope you are having a good Tuesday. Am glad it’s dried up somewhat.

Will be looking at Online Workshops for Chandler’s Ford Today this Friday. Will also share tips on how to make the most of these from the viewpoints of attendee and tutor. Hope it will prove useful.

Writing Tip: Got a competition coming up? Good. Give yourself plenty of time for it. My own approach is to draft a story, rest it for a few days, and then come back and edit it. Seeing it with fresh eyes after a reasonable gap does make all the difference in spotting errors, things you could do better etc. I send my competition entries in about ten days before the actual deadline, having carried out a final edit to ensure no pesky typos have slipped the net.

I also double check (as part of my editing) that I am following all of the guidelines issued by the organisers to the letter. Once all done, I’m drafting more stories. I like to having something resting, to be creating something new, and to be jotting ideas down for future stories/competitions I like the look of (where I’ll note down possible themes).

Publication News: Delighted to hear a recently edited story of mine has been accepted and will appear on CafeLit this time next week. Looking forward to sharing that.

Just to flag up as well Friday Flash Fiction will be running the annual Andrew Siderius competition. I hope to have a go – one week in the 100 words category and a longer flash in the longer word count section for the following week. You can enter over two weeks but can only have one go at each word count category. There is a also a poetry category so potentially you can send in three entries in total. More details to follow.

Do keep an eye out on the website for more on this but why not give it a go? Good fun to have a go at.
Happy Mother’s Day to all mums, past and present, and to all mother figures. Hugs to all who find it a difficult day for whatever reason. You are remembered.

It is both a lovely and a strange day for me as I miss both my mum and mum-in-law. My lovely mum-in-law was a second mum to me. Know I was so lucky there.

My mum would’ve been 90 this coming Wednesday. She encouraged my love of reading and taught me to read before I started school. That one is the gift which keeps on giving. She did get to see my first published story in print and my late Dad got to see my first book. There is a kind of symmetry there.

Many thanks to all who have sent in wonderful comments on Point of No Return, my latest tale on Friday Flash Fiction. That second line has raised a few smiles!

Sometimes a line like that just comes to you and you know deep down it is a great one. Moments like that are so special for any writer and I treasure my special writing moments. And if you haven’t checked out my second line, see the link and screenshot!
Hope your weekend is going well. Lady got to see her friend, Coco, in the park today and the pair had a good run around. Nice day out there too. Even managed to give my lawn its first cut of the year (and entertained Lady by kicking her football for her as I was doing that. Makes quite a sight. One leg in, one leg out, kick her football all about etc!).

Will be looking at Online Workshops for Chandler’s Ford Today. Link up next Friday. Will be discussing the advantages and disadvantages of these and sharing tips on how to make the most of them.

Writing Tip: Do read the writing magazines. I’ve often found information useful to me immediately but have just as often come back to information when I’ve had a need for it later. It happens! To start you off, do check out the March issue of Writers’ Narrative magazine (oh and remember subscribing to this is free, details on how to do so are in the magazine itself).

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

One of my favourite flash pieces is Calling the Doctor, which I used as the book trailer for From Light to Dark and Back Again. I’ve often changed the mood of the story in the last line or two (and still do of course!) but this one was an early story where I managed to change the mood on the last word. I’ve also found it makes a great piece to read at Open Prose Mic Nights for that reason.

I do have a lot of fun playing with story moods in flash like this. When I’m drafting a tale, I already know what mood it will be, who my character is, and a rough idea of the likely ending. Yes, sometimes that can change. It did with Calling the Doctor. It was on the editing I realised changing what my last line is to what it is now would have far more impact on a reader/viewer.

Hope you have had a good Monday. But as ever it’s story time. Hope you enjoy my latest on YouTube – It’s Good To Be Wrong.

Happy Mother’s Day to all who celebrate and to all who remember and to all who do both, as I do.

Occasionally I write about another kind of mum – the kind who is the human mum to a dog. Well they do say talk about what you know! One of mine from From Light to Dark and Back Again is called She Did It Her Way, Kind Of.

It’s one of my longer flash pieces – right up at the 1000 words end – and it shows Jane Westbrook and her puppy, Harry, figuring out how to get along after the death of William, Jane’s husband and who would’ve been Harry’s trainer. It is one of my reflective, feel good pieces, but if there was anything I could change about it now, it would be that title. I went for this title initially as a twist on a well known phrase (doing it your way) and it does work as that but I know now, as I didn’t back then, I could’ve simplified it!

Having said that, it is a dog-related tale I’m very fond of and I suspect most dog owners would identify with it.

I was delighted to be notified by my publisher the other day they’d received a lovely review of Tripping the Flash Fantastic.

One good thing about reviewing flash fiction collections is it would be highly apt to keep reviews short! The quote below is from another short review for this book.

If you enjoy a diverse collection of stories, this is the book for you!

If you can do review books you’ve enjoyed. It means a great deal to the author to get feedback like that. And I review as much as possible myself (most writers do). Great thing – it doesn’t have to take long and is the second best thing you can do to support writers after buying their books. Thanks!

Goodreads Author Blog – World Book Day

I like the whole concept of World Book Day (which was just held on 7th March 2024). Having said that, judging by the writers I know and this goes for me too, there isn’t a day ever when a book doesn’t feature in it somewhere. Often it is more than one book too!

I like the way children are encouraged to think of/dress up as their favourite characters. Books are meant to be interactive in that they draw you into their worlds. It’s one of the aspects of reading I love most. You really can lose yourself in a good book.

I should imagine the most difficult comes from deciding which character is your favourite, which is the one to dress up as this year etc. I was never into dressing up but books have been a major feature of my life since very early days.

I have my late mother to thank for encouraging that love of reading. She taught me to read before I started school. She was moaned at for “doing it the wrong way” but I’ve never felt her way of doing it was wrong, far from it. She herself read everything from history to science fiction (H.G. Wells in particular for that) so she can’t have been doing too much wrong!

I don’t know which favourite character I would dress up if I was the right age for this. Mind you, given I am not endowed with a great height, I suspect I would end up dressing as a hobbit! (Before you ask, I don’t have hairy feet. Just want to be clear on that point!).

I hope everyone taking part had a fabulous World Book Day and it enthuses all ages for reading more until the next one comes around again.

WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

liked Allison Symes's blog post: World Book Day https://t.co/GoyNUrXVQD via @goodreads It may be a couple of days late but I thought this week's Goodreads post from me really should focus on World Book Day. Hope you enjoy it. pic.twitter.com/Y9a7dyx93x
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) March 9, 2024

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

Hope you have had a good Monday. But as ever it’s story time. Hope you enjoy my latest on YouTube – It’s Good To Be Wrong.https://t.co/e1ep7rev3G
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) March 11, 2024

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

One of my favourite flashes is Calling the Doctor. I used it as the trailer for From Light to Dark and Back Again. I’ve often changed a story mood in the last line or two (and still do!) but this was an early story where the mood changed on the last word. https://t.co/6PeGgHqJyx
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) March 12, 2024

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.

The Task of the Opening Lines

March 8, 2024Leave a comment

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

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. Many thanks to Geoff Parkes for taking the shot of me reading at a previous Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick. Screenshots taken by me, Allison Symes.

Hope you have had a good week. Weather slowly improving. Making good progress on various writing projects and there will be some wonderful author interviews coming up on Chandler’s Ford Today in the next couple of months I really can’t wait to share.

I often read/listen to author interviews (including a recent one with Gill James from Bridge House Publishing on Hannah Kate’s show on North Manchester FM). Always learn something interesting. If you’re starting out as a writer, do take note of the questions asked. What would you say about your work if you were asked about it? It’s never too early to start thinking about that.

Facebook – General and Chandler’s Ford Today

Delighted to share The Task of the Opening Lines for Chandler’s Ford Today this week. Hope you find it useful regardless of whether you write fiction or non-fiction or both.

I share thoughts as to what opening lines need to do and tips on what I’ve found helpful. I use various ways of creating opening lines which are likely to make the reader want to read more.

I also discuss why practicing writing potential opening lines is an excellent writing exercise to try when you have five or ten minutes spare. You can come back to these ideas later and then see what you can do with them. I also look at testing your opening lines to see if they are as strong as you think.

Happy drafting of opening lines!

The Task of the Opening Lines

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Happy World Book Day! I haven’t done anything special for it but I think it is a fantastic idea. Am also thrilled to bits to see the return of the BBC 500 Words competition for children and understand the winners will be announced at Buckingham Palace by the Queen.

If ever there was a fantastic way to encourage children to write (and in flash fiction format too!), this is it. Congratulations to all of the finalists and I hope everyone who took part enjoyed doing so.

I can’t think of any author I know for whom a day passes without a book being involved, whether we’re reading or writing them or doing both. But to have a special day to celebrate all books is a wonderful thing, I think. I know the focus will be on fiction but there are fabulous non-fiction works out there and I am so glad to have added non-fiction to my own literary diet.

Am also pleased to be writing fiction and non-fiction. It is lovely to have both in my writing life and I’ve learned so much (and continue to do so) from them. With writing you are always learning, striving to improve what you do. Good for the old brain that!

Talking of writing, I will be looking at The Task of the Opening Lines for Chandler’s Ford Today tomorrow. Relevant to all writers that one! See above.
Weather much better today and Lady got to play with her two best girlfriends so we’re all taking that as a win!

Glad to say my copy of Writing Magazine arrived today. First thing I do is flick through it and see how many names I recognize from Swanwick, ACW, etc. If the number is ever less than three, I consider it a bad month! Well over that this time.

Writing Tip: Numbers can be useful in writing, odd as that may sound. I’ve used numbers as part of an address where the action of the story takes place. I’ve also used numbers as a time and then turned that into a countdown.

For flash fiction in particular you could use a randomly generated number as your word count for your story, just as long as your number is 1000 or less.

For non-fiction, you could look at why certain numbers are associated with luck (bad or good), the history of numbers (we haven’t always had the zero for example), and the joy (or otherwise) of numeracy.

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Sometimes you just know early on a story is going to be great fun to write up and, for my latest on Friday Flash Fiction this week, it was the second line which confirmed this to me. See what you think. I hope you enjoy Point of No Return.
The BBC 500 Words competition for children is coming to its conclusion this evening at Buckingham Palace. As I mentioned on my author page, I hope everyone who took part enjoyed it. I understand about 44000 entries were received and were whittled down to a total of 50.

It’s a good idea when writing flash fiction to practice writing to different word counts. There are plenty of competitions out there which specify word counts of 100, 250, 300, and 500 words in particular so it pays to work on stories at these levels.

Writing Magazine has a 750 words competition and often when publishers are putting calls out for submissions of flash they will specify the maximum word count you can write to. Some do ask for specific word counts.

But it pays to be able to turn your hand to a wide range. It is also great fun to do. Try it and see! (All of these also make for great warm up writing exercises even if flash isn’t your main writing form but why not try and get your flash pieces published too?).

I sometimes start a flash fiction piece (or a short story) with a question. It makes a great hook because I would hope a reader would want to find out what the answer to the question was and the only way to do that is to read on.

Also I can use that question to show something of the character who is asking the question. I can also use the question to show something of the setting too or the character’s likely attitude. You can tell much by how someone asks the question – it shows attitude for one thing.

Fairytales With Bite – Magical Power

M = Magic, as with any form of power, has its advantages and disadvantages.

A = Advantages include speeding up processes and/or coming to the aid of someone where “ordinary” methods are not possible.

G = Granting wishes or using magic should come at a cost to your characters.

I = Imagine a character who could use magic with no consequences – there would be no story.

C = Conflict and resolution is the life blood of any story so limitless power means no conflict, one character would just dominate.

A = Allowing them to trample anything and anyone in their way – I would find that so depressing to read.

L = Limitations mean characters have to find other ways of doing things and means those without magical powers have a chance to survive.

P = Power comes with responsibility then and there should be consequences for those misusing it (doesn’t just apply to magical powers!).

O = “Ordinary” characters with no or fewer magical powers should be able to have ways in which they can prove themselves, otherwise they are just there to be a kind of fictional cannon fodder. Again no story in that.

W = Wizards, witches, fairy godmothers etc should (in my view) be accountable and it be possible to challenge them.

E = Ensuring magic is used responsibly and those abusing it are stopped.

R = Resulting in satisfactory stories for characters (magical or now) and, more importantly, for the readers. I like to see the “little” people/characters win through against the odds, even magical odds.

This World and Others – The Natural World

In your setting, what would make up your natural world? What would be its landscapes, flora and fauna, atmosphere(s), ways of producing food (on the assumption your setting does grow its own and doesn’t rely on imports? What would be the dangers of your natural world to your characters? How would your characters be helped by the natural world around them?

What would your characters see in the equivalent of our skies and seas? What would they hear? What aspects of the natural world do they like or loathe? How does your government(s) make use of the world and is this done in a responsible, sustainable way?

There is a big development in cli-fi (climate change fiction) which, naturally, does have the natural world at the core of its stories. On your setting, would there be those concerned about their climate? What actions would they take to put things right? Are they themselves right?

What would live where in your natural world setting? Would it be similar to what we have here or alien? Could it be a mixture? Your setting has blue skies but pink seas for example?

Does anyone in your setting look after the natural world? Would that be something which was expected from everyone or do your characters ignore the natural world until it starts causing problems?

So there are story ideas here. Also where you are using the natural world as a backdrop to the main story, share enough details to help readers picture it but drip feed this information into the story. Readers will pick up on a detail here, a detail there as they read on and you won’t slow down your story pace.

WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Our More than Writers' blogpost for Leap Year Day came from @AllisonSymes1 https://t.co/CHDjx7gsNE
— ACW (@ACW1971) March 7, 2024

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

Point of No Return, by Allison Symes – Friday Flash Fiction https://t.co/P6sAxjmiIu Sometimes you just know early on a story will be great fun to write up. For my latest on FFF this week, it was the second line which confirmed this to me. Hope you enjoy Point of No Return. pic.twitter.com/2pclFbbv1k
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) March 8, 2024

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

The Task of the Opening Lines https://t.co/DfK7nRZmlw Delighted to share The Task of the Opening Lines for CFT. Hope you find it useful regardless of whether you write fiction or non-fiction or both. I discuss what opening lines need to do and share tips on what I find helpful.
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) March 8, 2024

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.

Writing Tips and Writing Progress

March 5, 2024Leave 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.

Hope you had a great weekend. Pleased with how mine went – lots of writing and some gardening done (prefer it that way round!). More signs of spring in my garden and elsewhere – do find it cheering. More submissions sent out (in one case recorded and sent out). Good to see signs the daylight is lasting that bit longer. Makes it nicer for Lady’s evening walk.

Facebook – General

Hope you managed to avoid the heavy rain earlier today. Lady and I didn’t! Got a good soaking. March has come in like a lion, as the old proverb says. Can only hope it does go out like a lamb. Mind you, am seeing more spring flowers about so something has got the benefit of all of that rain!

I’m looking at The Task of the Opening Lines for Chandler’s Ford Today on Friday. I like to hit the ground running with my stories and posts and will be sharing my thoughts and tips on opening lines in this post. Hope it will prove useful.

Opening lines don’t necessarily have to be the ones you started with in your first draft either. I often change mine once I’ve had chance to judge my piece objectively. I will often spot a stronger opening line further down so just move things around. Much easier to do this day and age and, yes, I did use to have to literally cut and paste. I really don’t miss that!

Writing Tip: When you’ve got a few minutes and you want to write something but don’t know what and time is short etc., why not grab a notebook and jot down some potential opening lines? What you need is a character, an action, maybe a sense of setting.

For example one of mine is ‘What gave me away?’ Maisie scowled. This is the first line from Visitor Expected (Friday Flash Fiction). You can come back at a later date and work out what could come from your draft opening lines. I like the idea of having something to come back to like this and I get to use up pockets of time for some useful writing after all.

Hope you have had a good day. Lady got to play with her Hungarian Vizler and Rhodesian Ridgeback girlfriends. All three dogs very happy about that.

Am making progress (finally!) on my long term project and am investigating possible homes for it when I’m ready to submit it.

Making very good progress on a fourth flash fiction book too. A lot of what I do here goes on around the backdrop of my blogging, regular story submissions etc. It means I always have something of interest to work on (I don’t like being bored, life is too short for that). There are certain things I would like to get done by the summer and am on track so far.

I also love writing the short forms of fiction because they give me a lovely imaginative “break” from the longer work I’m doing. Plus I can get those shorter pieces out and submitted and hopefully receive publication credits in the meantime too.

Nothing to dislike here but it does mean planning out my writing time. I have found that pays off. Some days I do write more than others. That’s the way of it but what I want to do is make the most of whatever time I’ve got whether it is ten minutes or four hours.

Hope today is going well for you. Lovely to see some sunshine after the frost this morning.

Looking forward to sharing some smashing author interviews on Chandler’s Ford Today in the next couple of months. More details nearer the time. It’s always a joy to host these as I find I learn so much from what other writers do. I’ve picked up lots of tips on time management for one thing – and these have paid off for me too.

Writing Tip: Put yourself inside your character’s head. What can they see and hear? Why do they feel the way they do? When you know what your character is doing and why, it simplifies writing their stories up. You will know what they would do. You will also know what they wouldn’t. Their reactions will seem like second nature to you too. All useful.

Hope you are having a good weekend. Good to see some sunshine. A huge thank you for the lovely comments coming in on my latest Friday Flash Fiction story, Visitor Expected. Am thrilled even more comments have come in since yesterday. If you haven’t had chance to check the tale out, see the link. I like the Mrs Harrises of this world. Think you will too.

My Chandler’s Ford Today post for next week is on a topic close to my heart – The Task of the Opening Lines. Especially for flash fiction, the opening line is so important. I like to hit the ground running with my openings because that helps me to make the most of my word count and it also helps to hook the reader in immediately. Link up on Friday.

Screenshot 2024-03-01 at 09-40-46 Visitor Expected by Allison Symes

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

I like to mix up the flash fiction word counts I write to because (a) it’s fun, (b) it’s a good challenge, and (c) there are a wide range of competitions out there, all of which want differing word counts. So it pays to be able to turn your hand to several of them!

Have just submitted a flash piece and am working on a sub-300 words piece for another competition. Mind you compared with what I write for Friday Flash Fiction 300 words seems a huge amount!

You do get better, over time, at judging word counts when you see something written (on paper or in screen). When I guess, I am usually within 30 words or so. But being able to visualise what different word counts look like is handy as it helps me to gauge for this story I might need three paragraphs, for another I might only need the one. So just knowing that gives me a rough story structure immediately.

It’s Monday. The heavy rain’s back. It’s Monday. It’s time for a story. Hope you like my latest on YouTube -We’re Off.

Motivation is vital to the success of character portrayal in any story. In Tripping the Flash Fantastic, I have a character who is out for revenge because their boss put them on a duty they really did not want (Camping It Up). I ended the tale with their revenge carried out but if I had decided to write a longer piece here, I could have had the consequences of that revenge come home to roost for my character. That would have been as understandable and believable as the character’s initial wish for revenge.

When I do use revenge as a motive, regardless of length of story, I always ensure there is a good reason behind it. You have got to understand where your characters are coming from. You don’t have to agree with them though and I often don’t agree with mine!

I occasionally write flash in poetic form. It’s good fun to do and an interesting challenge. One example of this is Choices in Tripping the Flash Fantastic. The key point is I always work out what the story will be first and then decide whether it would suit a poetic form and, if so, which kind.

I usually go for four or five line stanzas with a simple rhyme scheme as I have a soft spot for rhyme. (I’ve read some spectacular free verse by the way but my preference always has been for rhymes).

The editing challenge here is interesting too as I have to ensure my syllable count is consistent. Where I need to change words to fit that, I still need to ensure it makes sense for the story. Basically the joins shouldn’t show!

Writing a flash piece in poetic form is an interesting writing challenge too. Why not give it a go?

Forms by Allison Symes
This writer says give poetic flash a go.
But do remember you will still need to show
A proper tale with a start, middle and end.
Check all is well with your words before you send
Your story out there into the big, bad world.

Allison Symes – 2nd March 2024

Goodreads Author Blog – Taking In Stories

One of the things I love most about stories is there are so many ways to take them in. My favourite will always be the paperback, followed by the hardback, followed jointly by ebooks and audio. I especially love audio books for long journeys and will look forward to hearing some old favourites again when I go on holiday later in the year.

But don’t forget audio itself comes in more than one medium. Stories on radio work astonishingly well, whether they are readings from books or plays (which are scripted stories). Also film and TV can share stories amazingly well.

The Lord of the Rings film trilogy directed by Peter Jackson got members of my family into that terrific story. They would never have read the book. I had read it, loved it, and thought the film trilogy did the original justice. (Though I must admit I would have liked the films to have included what really happened to Saruman after Sauron’s fall).

I also love the fact adaptations to help breathe new life into classic books. Win-win for the written word there I think.

WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

liked Allison Symes's blog post: Taking In Stories https://t.co/Y6mCZmgpJa via @goodreads I celebrate the various ways in which we can take in stories for my Goodreads post this week. pic.twitter.com/oOykSHXqui
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) March 2, 2024

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

It’s Monday. The heavy rain’s back. It’s Monday. It’s time for a story. Hope you like my latest on YouTube -We’re Off.https://t.co/7wnwwDeYN2
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) March 4, 2024

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.

Light Writing and Leaping Into Writing

March 1, 2024Leave a comment

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

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 and also you made the most of having an extra day on 29th February. I used the theme of Leap Years for the ACW Flash Fiction Group this month – odd topics can encourage lateral thinking and a great deal of wonderful creativity came out of our session, especially on the 29 words flash fiction exercise I set. Lady is still waiting for spring. So am I.

Facebook – General and Chandler’s Ford Today

Author newsletter out this morning. I look at Seasonal Writing and share a prompt I hope you have fun with!

And, as it is Friday, it is time for my Chandler’s Ford Today post. This week I look at Light Writing. I celebrate the works of P.G. Wodehouse and Sir Terry Pratchett and discuss why light writing may look easy but is anything but when it comes to writing it.

I also think it shouldn’t be looked down on as any less worthy as literary fiction, say. I also look at reading being a form of communication between writer and reader and light reading can encourage that communication in a way the “heavier” tomes simply cannot. See what you think – link below.

(Also glad to say there will be more author interviews coming for CFT in due course).

Light Writing

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Two posts from me on my author Facebook page today (29th February 2024). First up, I am delighted to be back on More than Writers, the blog spot for the Association of Christian Writers. This one is a rare beast as I only get to do a post here once every four years given my day here is the 29th of each month! Normally there isn’t a 29th February!

This post is all about Leaping into Writing and I hope you find it an encouragement. Many thanks to all who have commented so far on this one. Sometimes a topic can set off resonances with other writers and this one seems to have done so, especially when I discuss small wins. For more see the link.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

29th February – Second Post – more on March WN

Second post from me today. I mentioned briefly yesterday the March issue of Writers’ Narrative is now out. (See further down).

My piece on Writing for Children is on Page 16 and my Writing for Anthologies is on Page 38. Do check out the whole magazine, it is free, and I strongly recommend subscribing so you don’t miss out on excellent writing advice for writers at all levels.

To mention just some of the articles in this edition, you will find:-

How to Develop a Children’s Book Series (Jennifer Navarre)
Publishing an Anthology (Wendy H Jones)
Writing For Children – What a Privilege (Jenny Sanders)
The Power of Writing Collaboratives (Morna Milton-Webber)

And there are many more besides. Time to put your feet up and have a good read? That’s a good idea if ever I heard one!

Delighted to discover via my copy of The Author (the quarterly journal from the Society of Authors), I can set up a member’s profile page. Have had a pleasant time this afternoon doing just that. Can’t share the link (you have to be a member to access) but it was nice being able to set up a gallery of useful pictures. I have shared below the screenshot from that.

Looking forward to the Association of Christian Writers Flash Fiction Group meeting later this evening.
And am thrilled to say the March edition of Writers’ Narrative is now out. See above. Will talk more on this tomorrow (I did, see further up!) but meantime do have a fabulous read. Theme this time is on Writing For Children and I have a piece in the magazine on that and also on Writing for Anthologies.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Glad to say my author newsletter went out earlier today. I do share links to my stories on Friday Flash Fiction and on my YouTube channel as part of this. It makes a handy “one stop shop” so to speak.

Talking of Friday Flash Fiction, I am thrilled so many lovely comments have come in already on my latest one here. I hope you enjoy Visitor Expected too.
Delighted to say the Association of Christian Writers’ Flash Fiction Group meeting went well on Zoom last night (meeting held on 28th February 2024). My topic was Leap Year Flash and it produced some wonderful creativity.

One of the exercises I set was to write a 29 word story (with one other word to be used for the title – Flash NANO set a 30 word exercise only last year). I loved the 29 word stories folk came up with. Good fun to do. It’s an excellent writing exercise and links into the topic of Leap Year and our extra day on 29th February nicely too.

Do give it a go. See this as having a line where you set up a story and another line or two at most to resolve the story. One of my examples from last night’s meeting is below.

Unfair
Jenny seethed. How like her mother to swan off to a do in a silk gown and leave her to do the chores. Had she not heard of Cinderella?
Ends
Allison Symes – 28th February 2024

Hope you have had a good day. Lady had a fabulous time with her best buddy, the lovely Rhodesian Ridgeback.

Looking forward to talking flash at the Association of Christian Writers’ Flash Fiction Group meeting later this evening.

Had a great time over the weekend drafting stories (one of which is a flash tale) for submissions (and I have ideas on where to submit these pieces). Will be looking again at these tales over this coming weekend, having had a few days away from them. It is the only way I know to be able to judge my work more objectively and see what needs fixing. There always is something but that is fine – I just get on and do it!

Oh and I had a nice surprise too – lovely comment on my books page on my website today.
Newsletter will be out again on Friday. To sign up do head over to said website at https://allisonsymescollectedworks.com

Screenshot 2024-03-01 at 19-12-03 Allison Symes - March 2024 - Seasonal Writing

Fairytales with Bite – Why I Love Fairytales

I’ve loved fairytales since I was a small child. My late father bought me The Reader’s Digest Collection of Fairy Tales, a wonderful huge two volume set with fabulous colour illustrations. I still have those books. One of them has the spine bound up with tape! I used to love hearing the stories read to me and, later, loved being able to read them for myself.

I also like the fact that in most fairytales kindness is rewarded and justice is done. The arrogant are brought down several pegs and the ill-treated end up living a full and proper life well away from those behind the ill treatment. (Usually something horrid happens to them!).

I knew even as a kid real life isn’t always like this. Fairytales can be escapist but there is nothing wrong with wanting kindness to prevail, even though, so often, the real world has other ideas.

I also like the way those who underestimate older people are brought down because said older people are normally powerful magical beings in disguise. The disguise is a test. Those being arrogant fail said test and are then made to see the error of their ways. (See Beauty and the Beast especially on this one).

Fairytales confirmed to me love and kindness are important, they are vital, and that message is as relevant as it ever was.

This World and Others – Fantasy Settings – Advantages and Disadvantages

I love fantasy, especially the humorous type, and the best of the lot is Discworld by the much missed Sir Terry Pratchett. Fantasy settings have their advantages and disadvantages.

The advantages include the writer can’t get it wrong because they make it up and they decide on the rules. I like this – a lot.

You can also bring in magic or other powers into your setting and use these to create things we don’t have here but which could be echoes. For example, you could use magical transport and in some ways that transport will resemble what we have here, it will just be powered differently.

You could also show the disadvantages of magic (and compare that to the misuse of power which goes on here. Fantasy is great for making points and reflecting on what we do know here).

The disadvantages are people can be derisory of fantasy simply because it is made up and nothing like we have here. My answer to that is fantasy is not meant to be a documentary. I think the rise of steampunk is interesting given it takes inventions from the Industrial Revolution and puts a twist on them. Jules Verne’s Around the World In 80 Days could only happen with the invention of the hot air balloon. Some would see that as steampunk.

You also do need to think about how your world would work and be consistent with whatever rules you decide need to be in place to make it work.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

Screenshot 2024-02-28 at 16-50-09 Writers Narrative March 2024 Issue

Screenshot 2024-02-28 at 16-52-00 Writers Narrative March 2024 Issue

Screenshot 2024-02-28 at 16-52-45 Writers Narrative March 2024 Issue

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

Allison Symes - advertising books and services resized 640

More than Writers: Leaping Into Writing by Allison Symes https://t.co/LauMIF2Bm7 Delighted to be on MTW, the Association of Christian Writers' blog. I post here once every four years given my day is the 29th of each month! I hope you find Leaping into Writing helpful. pic.twitter.com/3C2YvjY4ta
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) February 29, 2024

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

The March Writers’ Narrative is out. My piece on Writing for Children is on Page 16 and my Writing for Anthologies is on Page 38. The magazine is free, and I strongly recommend subscribing so you don’t miss out on excellent writing advice for all writers.https://t.co/r9BXBD62cX pic.twitter.com/KqxKYmPVMd
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) February 29, 2024

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

I am thrilled so many lovely comments have come in already on my latest story on Friday Flash Fiction. I hope you enjoy Visitor Expected too.https://t.co/Rk4VbyTV5M pic.twitter.com/8w8BgPcQ2B
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) March 1, 2024

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

Light Writing https://t.co/7YIP1YkDMC This week I look at Light Writing for CFT. I celebrate P.G. Wodehouse and Sir Terry Pratchett and discuss why light writing may look easy but is anything but when it comes to writing it. See what you think. https://t.co/7YIP1YkDMC
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) March 1, 2024

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.

Caring for Characters

February 27, 20242 Comments

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

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, as was the photo of a frog. Find out below why I needed one!

Hope you have had a good few days. The heavy rains have stopped but we now have strong gale force winds! Lady has got to play with her Rhodesian Ridgeback pal so all is well in her world. Am busy working on what will be author interviews for Chandler’s Ford Today (to go live a little later on in the year). I love the behind the scenes work on these. I’ve always loved research especially when it comes to writers and their works.

Facebook – General

Hope you have had a good day. Enjoyed my swim earlier. I did think when I took up swimming seriously I would use the time in the pool to think about stories, blogs, work out ideas etc. Not a bit of it! I do find my mind goes blank so when I come out I feel refreshed physically and mentally. Maybe that is the point of swimming!

Having said that, I do get ideas at odd times. I just write them down as soon as I can. It can’t always be immediately. I am thankful though I am never woken up by potential ideas. I’d be too grumpy for having woken up early for anything I then wrote down to make any sense!

I do have notebooks/post it notes all over the place. It pays. I’ve been known to email myself with ideas too. Smart phones are handy there. I wish I could train my brain to come up with ideas at times which are convenient to me but I suspect most writers wish for that.

Not a bad start to the working week though we have had gale force winds in my part of the world today. Not that this stopped Lady having a riotous time with her Rhodesian Ridgeback pal today. Dogs like to keep things simple!

Don’t forget my author newsletter is out again on Friday. How are we nearly at March already? If you’d like to sign up do head over to my landing page at https://allisonsymescollectedworks.com

The joy of author newsletters (and I subscribe to several) is finding out what is going on writing wise with your favourite authors and I always learn from the tips shared. I hope folk learn from the tips I share in mine. The goal is always to improve our own writing and newsletters are a great way to share useful information like this.

Hope you’ve had a good weekend. Weather up and down though Lady got to see Coco again today. Both dogs pleased with that.

Reading Tip: I like to mix up reading novels and short story/flash collections. I also like to mix up moods of both kinds of book. I feel doing this immerses me in a wonderful world of books. Also I don’t want grim/dark all the time. Neither do I want light frothy fare all the time. Life is a mixture of things so I like my reading to reflect this. Taking this forward….

Writing Tip: I also like to mix up the mood of my flash and short stories. So, yes, there are darker ones but I make sure there are also plenty of lighter ones. I know what I like to read in terms of mood and try to reflect that in what I produce. Again I think it is a reasonably accurate reflection of life. I want my writing to move people and to entertain.

Lady got to see her pal, Coco, today and the dogs had a good run around before the heavens opened.

Will be looking at Light Writing for Chandler’s Ford Today next week. Hard to believe we’ll be into March for that one. Still it does mean spring is getting ever closer, always a good thing! I’ll be looking at what I think light writing actually is and share my thoughts on it. I will say now though I don’t think it should be underrated. Link up on Friday.

I occasionally look up the random theme generators. Sometimes these trigger ideas for stories, occasionally for blog posts. I did so for this post but had to smile. The theme that came up? Well, I doubt if I’ll be writing on the theme of vampires for Chandler’s Ford Today or Writers’ Narrative any time soon!

Logically I could do so. I would look at the history of vampire stories etc., but it is not a topic I’m especially keen on and that is the reason why I wouldn’t do it. You do have to like the topic you’re writing about, I think.

For stories, you do need to care for the characters, even if you do want to see them fail and for me the sign of a “good” villain is where you don’t want them to win but have a sneaking sorrow they didn’t. Top notch villain here? The Sheriff of Nottingham as played by the much missed Alan Rickman in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves.

And I guess I have got a post out of vampires – this one!

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

What do I look for first and foremost in a flash fiction piece, whether I’ve written it or not? Impact is the simple answer. I want the story, whether it is six words, fifty words, or the full one thousand allowed in flash, to make me react, whether it is to make me laugh, cry, wince, or feel fear. (The theme for Jaws is excellent for the latter incidentally. Have never watched the film. Have no wish to do so. The music is scary enough but it is brilliant – also has made me react!).

For stories, I absolutely have to care about the lead character. If not, why read on to find out what happens to them? (Oh and I know they needed a bigger boat for Jaws. Assume they got one!).

It’s Monday. The rain has stopped. There are gale force winds where I am and it’s still Monday. Time for a story then. Hope you enjoy Stranger in Town, my latest on my YouTube channel. Moral of this one: be nice. Find out why here.

I like to mix up the way I open a story of whatever length. I do this to keep things interesting for me and hope it will prove to do the same for readers. Sometimes I will give you a scene setting first line. Sometimes I ask a question (which you know the story will have to answer). At other times, I use dialogue or internal thoughts.

But all are designed to hook the reader in and get them to keep reading until the end of the story. I’ll be talking about this in more depth for a future Chandler’s Ford Today post, but the opening line is so important when you consider if people don’t get past that, they’re not reading any further. No pressure then!

Many thanks for the comments coming in on Facing the Frog, my latest tale on Friday Flash Fiction. Good fun to write.

Not quite an alliterative title but almost there! I try not to use these too often as I think it can look gimmicky but every now and again they can have a great effect.

For this story, I came up with the title first, knowing someone was going to be at the rough end of a spell against them, but I wanted a character who was determined to just cope with the temporary curse as best as they could. They would face up to being a frog for a bit. You can find out how they did at the link.

Let’s just say I came up with a character who is even more slippery than I first envisaged and I wouldn’t trust them either in frog or human form!

Image of frog below taken by me a while back!

Goodreads Author Blog – Non-Fiction and Fiction – Where Worlds Combine

I love reading history, fiction and non-fiction. Just sometimes the worlds cross. The Daughter of Time by Josephine Tey is one of my favourite books and is the only novel to have made me change my opinion about a historical figure – Richard III. The fictional story of Tey’s Inspector Alan Grant is woven with history beautifully but it is still fiction.

I’ve read Philippa Langley’s books on her search for Richard III’s remains and, her current book, The Princes in the Tower. I am sure Josephine Tey would’ve loved both of them.

But in this case it was a fictional work which got me interested in the actual history here. Fiction has led into greater non-fiction interest here and this is a good thing.

I love it when different types of book feed into each other. Fiction and non-fiction are equally wonderful things.

WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

liked Allison Symes's blog post: Non-Fiction and Fiction – Where Worlds Combine https://t.co/XLksgMn1TF via @goodreads I look at how fiction and non-fiction can feed into each other. It happened for me with, of all people, Richard III. Find out how here. pic.twitter.com/4lzKhQk8ZM
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) February 24, 2024

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

It’s Monday. The rain has stopped. There are gale force winds where I am and it’s still Monday. Time for a story then. Hope you enjoy Stranger in Town. Moral of this one: be nice. Find out why here.https://t.co/o7EgviSpkB
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) February 26, 2024

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.

Ways Into Creating Characters

February 23, 2024February 23, 2024Leave 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. Many thanks to Geoff Parkes for taking the photo of me at one of my Swanwick Open Prose Mic Nights.

Hope you have had a good week. Lady and I have had a wet week -with many soakings! I am so glad writing is generally an indoor activity where I can stay dry! I share a flash fiction in Fairytales with Bite this time which I hope you enjoy. I also share how I wrote this. I look at character vocabulary too.

Facebook – General and Chandler’s Ford Today

Am pleased to share Ways Into Creating Characters as this week’s post on Chandler’s Ford Today. I hope you find it useful. I look at why stories are character led (I have good reason to think this given how many I invent over a year), and share various tips.

I look at picking a trait, interviewing characters, and thinking of situations you want to write up (as from that comes the kind of character who would work best in those situations) just to name a few thoughts and tips. I also discuss why a writer needs to know their characters well enough.

What is “well enough” will change from writer to writer as so much depends on what you need to know to be able to picture your people/other beings of choice in your head but you should figure out what it is you do need to know. I have found that last bit to be invaluable.

Ways Into Creating Characters

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Lady and I had a real soaking this morning. She dries off far quicker than I do! Then I went swimming…. That soaking I didn’t mind at all!

I’ll be looking at Ways Into Creating Characters for Chandler’s Ford Today this week, link up tomorrow. Hope you will find it useful. Looking forward to sharing it. See above.

Am also looking forward to the Association of Christian Writers Flash Fiction Group meeting on Zoom next week. Theme will be on the fact it is a leap year and how we can use that in our flash stories.

Am also busy working on PowerPoint presentations and enjoying writing these. I hadn’t used PowerPoint for years until Zoom came into my writing life. It is useful for this. Flash writing helps for this kind of thing too. The slides work best if you don’t put too much on them! Far better to have more slides than crammed ones.

Hope you haven’t got too soggy today. Lady and I probably soaked up your share when we were out this morning. No ducking it today! Am glad rain doesn’t make you shrink otherwise we’d both be in trouble.

Newsletter out again shortly. Where does the time go? Having a monthly newsletter brings home how quickly it does pass. To sign up do head over to my landing page at https://allisonsymescollectedworks.com

Writing Tip: I work out my characters’ likely vocabulary as part of my outlining process. I have an idea of the kind of speech they would use (based on what I believe their educational levels would be) and, just as importantly, what they wouldn’t come up with unless under great stress.

So if I get a non-swearing character to suddenly change their mind on that, there has to be a great reason behind that change which plays out in the story. It does mean I would’ve dropped them right in it and the kind of situation they’re in is likely to produce this effect.

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Time to end the working week with what I hope you will find is a fun story. Am delighted my latest piece is now up on Friday Flash Fiction. Hope you like Facing The Frog.

When I take part in Open Prose Mic Nights, I look for a mixture of flash pieces to read in terms of mood. I like to try and show what flash can be capable of and that it can produce moving, punch in the gut type tales as well as laugh out loud on a punchline ending ones.

I also mix up whether I read pieces in the first or third person. Flash works well for both. And yes when I am reading a first person piece, I do try to get “into” the character so it is almost a performance rather than a straight reading.

Why? Because I am showing the audience my character. Acting out their story helps me to get them across more vividly I think. And it is huge fun. I am being the “I” in the story after all even if I “just” read it so I may as well get right into the character’s head and “perform” their tale.

I’ve mentioned before flash is great for twist and/or humorous punchline endings. It is also great for giving a character who deserves it their comeuppance fast. Is fabulous fun to do.

One of my favourite stories of mine here is A Kind of Hell from From Light to Dark and Back Again. Comes in at 94 words, excluding the title, and I paint a scene where my horrible character does get justice and in an appropriate way too.

With these kind of stories, again I work out what the appropriate justice would be first, write that out, and then work out how I could logically get to this point. It works!

Fairytales with Bite – Crossing Spells

Crossing Spells by Allison Symes
The great inventors always discover things by accident. Oh they write down what they think will happen but something always goes awry and either there is an explosion or they find something which is even more useful to us all. There is never any middle ground here. Same goes for us fairy godmothers with spells.

Happened to me last week. I looked up my spells, made sure I had all the ingredients to hand, and then what should have been a pumpkin turned into a coach, let’s just say she turned up to the royal ball smelling of squash! I don’t know what I crossed to get that.

Still I must say the pumpkin style coach did have something about it. My critics say yes, it had a strong pong and the rats, which had been turned into footmen, remembered their original form and started eating away at the coach before it reached the Palace.

I had cast the right spell. Miranda, my best friend at fairy college, tells me I mispronounced one word and hence the desired effect was crossed with the basic ingredient and it all went horribly wrong.

Still the girl got there. Neither she nor His Nibs seemed to care and they’re getting wed next week. So no great harm done. But it has had the effect of whenever I go out and about, people point at me and chuckle. Some wag keeps leaving pumpkins on my doorstep too.

Miranda swears it wasn’t her but why did she stink of squash recently? She tells me she’s taken up gardening. Well if she has, she has the cleanest hands of any gardener I’ve known!

On the plus side, I have been invited to give the annual address to the Pumpkin Growers’ Society this year and I get paid for it too. I just hope the payment isn’t my weight in pumpkins though!

Ends
Allison Symes – 21st February 2024

Hope you enjoyed that. One of my favourite forms of writing is taking a well known fairytale and coming at the story from another angle. It works best when kept short and, I hope, funny and flash fiction is ideal for this.

Here I took the idea of a well meaning fairy godmother not getting things quite right and seeing what would come from that. So start with your character. Who are you using and why have you chosen them? What could you get them to do to bring something different to the tale?

And have fun writing the tale up!

This World and Others – What We Know as Science

What we know as science covers a wide field, of course, but what would it be thought of in your setting. Would science be seen as that or as a kind of magic?

I went to a medieval fair some time ago and spoke to the herbalist there. She was brilliant but told me that in medieval times, women who were renowned for their use of herbs were okay if things went well for their village because of that herb usage. If anything went wrong, they were likely to face accusations of witchcraft and a horrible death usually followed.

Yet in discovering you could cure headaches with the bark of a certain plant (which we now know led to the development of aspirin), that would have been seen as some kind of magic. What the herbalists had done was simply observe the effects of this bark. This had been observed repeatedly too as one or two spotting this would have just been dismissed. The fact that this was a known remedy meant this has had been tested and found to be true many, many times.

Observation and testing are core skills in any and every science.

So with this in mind, what would your characters make of what we call science? Are they accepting of it or suspicious? Has the practice of science (magic in your setting) gone wrong and led to suspicion of it? How could that be overcome?

Story ideas there I think.

WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

Screenshot 2024-01-31 at 14-34-15 Writers'Narrative eMagazine January_February 2024 Issue

Screenshot 2024-01-31 at 17-25-18 Writers'Narrative eMagazine January_February 2024 Issue

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Facing The Frog, by Allison Symes – Friday Flash Fiction https://t.co/sGunSCGKAe

Time to end the working week with what I hope you will find is a fun story. Am delighted my latest piece is now up on Friday Flash Fiction. Hope you like Facing The Frog. pic.twitter.com/GNmQW9W4Ta
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) February 23, 2024

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

Ways Into Creating Characters https://t.co/sT0xXl5qbD Am pleased to share Way Into Creating Characters on CFT. I look at why stories are character led (I have good reason to think this given how many I invent over a year), and share tips, which I hope you'll find useful.
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) February 23, 2024

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.

Writing Themes and Saints’ Days

February 16, 2024Leave a comment

Screenshot 2024-02-13 at 16-54-12 Tutor 1 1 Sessions Swanwick School

Screenshot 2024-02-13 at 16-54-38 Tutor 1 1 Sessions Swanwick School

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 week so far. Mixed bag weather wise. Hope you enjoy the three line flash fiction story I share below based on love (given it was St. Valentine’s Day this week, it had to be the theme, yes?). The very short flashes are great fun to do. One or two lines then conclusion. To the point and often good for a smile or two. Give them a try. They make for a great writing exercise too.

Facebook – General and Chandler’s Ford Today

Pleased to share my latest post for Chandler’s Ford Today on Writing Themes and Saints’ Days. I look at how you can develop topics to write about from the latter for fiction and non-fiction.

Odd sounding topics can be great for encouraging you to think laterally and to come up with ideas for stories, blog posts etc., you would not have thought of otherwise. In the case of the saints I refer to in the post, you can also look at using the flowers associated with them for further ideas.

Hope you enjoy the post.

Writing Themes and Saints’ Days

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Flash fiction is great for turning the tables on characters. You have to deliver on the twist quickly and the impact is immediate. Over the course of a novel, you have longer to see a twist might be coming. You may guess what the twist might be. I have to say this is one of my favourite things about crime novels. I am always looking out for twists and turns and have great fun finding out whether my guesses were right or not.

But in a flash story you don’t have the time to ponder for long on whether your guess was right or not. In my story The Terrified Dragon from Tripping the Flash Fantastic, the idea here is to entice the reader in to find out why such a beast is terrified. Fear is not what you would usually associate with them – you would expect them to be the cause of the fear!

So do I deliver on the why terrified bit here? Oh yes and then I flip things around with the reaction of those who find said terrified dragon. The reaction, particularly from one, is not what you would expect. Great fun to do. Done in a couple of hundred words or so too.

There always has to be a good reason for the twist though. I work that out first and then what can lead to the twist happening so everything happens organically within the story. Nothing is coincidental.

Hope you have had a good day. Happy St. Valentine’s Day if you celebrate (though I like the thought of celebrating love in general and that could and should include all). I’ve used the theme of saints’ days to help inspire my Chandler’s Ford Today post this week. I’ll be talking about Writing Themes and Saints’ Days. See above.

I hope you will find some of the thoughts and tips I share here will act as writing prompts. Also I share ideas as to what you can write about linked to saints’ days, including non-fiction. Link up on Friday.
In the meantime here is an “instant” flash fiction love story for you.

Home Time
She couldn’t wait for him to get home so she could lick him all over. She was a black border collie. She believed in love.
Ends.
Allison Symes – 14th February 2024
Hope that made you smile. Lady, naturally, was the inspiration for this one.

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Glad to be back on Friday Flash Fiction with Wrong Turn. Many thanks to those who have already commented on this one. Find out what lies in store for Alice when confronted by a group of middle-aged, scowling ladies.

Repetition can be used to good effect in flash fiction. This may seem odd. You only have so many words, why would I want to repeat one (other than the little words we all repeat)? I do this from time to time to set up a rhythm. This is where flash can have some links with poetry – words chosen for deliberate effect and the use of repetition to strengthen said effect.

In Watching Myself from From Light to Dark and Back Again I start with the lines Experiments happen. Experiments go wrong. In five words, two sentences, I have set up the scene for you. The task then is to find out what experiment went wrong and what the consequences were but that is for the rest of the story to unravel. But starting two sentences with the same word gives a strong emphasis I wanted to kick start this tale and to keep readers reading on.

St. Valentine’s Day is about love of course and it is a major theme for stories. But bear in mind it is a huge theme and can be broken down into various categories. Love doesn’t just have to be about the romantic kind.

For big themes, I like to split things down in to sub-categories. Love, for example, can be broken down into romance, the love between friends, love for pets and the love they show their owners, the love for parents for children and vice versa (especially when dealing with older parents and the adult children have to give more support).

For any theme, I do know I have to care about the characters I’m creating to be able to write their stories up at all so this is another reason why I outline them so I can find out if I do care enough. If I don’t a reader is unlikely to do so.

Fairytales With Bite – Love in the Magical World

I am writing this on St. Valentine’s Day so there could only be one topic. Love comes in many forms and, logically, that must apply to the magical world too. So how do your magical beings find love? Are what we would think of as marriages set up, and everyone is expected to go along with this, or are your characters able to make their own choices? Is your world encouraging of relationships between different types of magical being or are they expected to stick to their own kind only?

Is love appreciated in your setting or is it just tolerated because the powers that be accept there has to be a way of reproducing more fairy godmothers etc? What would happen if anyone defied cultural expectations here? Would that defiance be punished? Would it lead to a loss of magical powers and/or exile? Love can come at a price sometimes. How could your magical characters reflect that?

Fairy godmothers, especially, intervene to help the course of love along – see Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella etc for more on that – but what if they come across a client they don’t want to help, a client perhaps not worthy of that help? What would they do? Would their love for practicing their craft “properly” overcome any reluctance to do what would be expected of them? If they are prepared to be defiant, what would happen, if say, the equivalent of Cinders did not go to the ball?

Interesting story ideas there I think.

This World and Others – Relationships

They say love makes the world go around but does it do so for your fictional world? Linking with Fairytales with Bite above, what kind of relationships in your settings are (a) expected, (b) approved of, and (c) forbidden on pain of death?

In the case of (c), why are these relationships forbidden? Does the populace accept this or is there a hidden world, away from the prying eyes of your authority figures, where these relationships do happen? I would expect there to be some restrictions on relationships between magical and non-magical beings here on the grounds these could prove to be grossly unfair to the latter (how would they fight back when needed, for a start?).

Give some thought as to the kind of relationships your characters have. Which are the most important to them and why? Remember love doesn’t just include romantic love. The love of friends is a major theme (and for me Sam Gamgee in The Lord of the Rings is the ultimate example of this. Mind you, I do love the way friendship develops through the book between Gimli and Legolas, some of which is so funny).

As with any relationship, there will be ups and downs. How do your characters handle these? Could you get funny/sad stories here?

WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Wrong Turn, by Allison Symes – Friday Flash Fiction https://t.co/FXanTZEtGC Glad to be back on Friday Flash Fiction with Wrong Turn. Many thanks to those who have already commented. Find out what lies in store for Alice when confronted by a group of middle-aged, scowling ladies. pic.twitter.com/A1Hiz2PeXw
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) February 16, 2024

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

Writing Themes and Saints' Days https://t.co/XRoHQiupKz I look at how you can develop topics to write about from saints' days for fiction/non-fiction. Odd topics are great for lateral thinking, leading to ideas for stories, blogs etc., you would not have thought of otherwise.
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) February 16, 2024

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.

Resting Stories and What ARE your characters like?

February 13, 2024Leave a comment

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

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 one of those lovely weekends where I was out in the garden and managed to get lots of writing done. Lady has had a good start to her week, seeing her two closest girlfriends on Monday. It is smashing to see them get on so well. When we’re leaving the park, it does look a bit like “the girls are back in town” as the three dogs walk together!

Facebook – General

Drizzly all day. Never worries Lady though she didn’t get to see her chums today.

In happier news (Lady misses her pals when they’re not in the park), I’ll be running a two part course on editing at The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick in August. So looking forward to that but I will also be offering 1:1 sessions during that week too. My topics are flash fiction and editing (general tips). See screenshot for more information. Looking forward to this too.

My attitudes to editing became far more positive on realising good edits make all the difference to being published or not. Prior to that, I’d just seen it as a chore. Now I see it as part of the overall creative process but do find I have to get the story written (or blog post) and then edit later. I can’t do the two tasks at the same time. That just doesn’t work for me.

Hope you have had a good start to your week. Lady got to see and play with her two best buddies, so she has had a good start to her week. Crocuses are starting to spring up. Lovely to see that.

Writing Tip: Think about what your characters like in terms of what they like to eat and drink, do they appreciate the natural world, what kind of music do they like etc. Also think about what they loathe.

Now put them in a situation where they have to put up with what they loathe, they have no choice. How do they handle this? How do they get out the situation which has landed them in it? Good story possibilities there. Could also take this in a humorous way or a more serious one so give some thought as to what mood you want to convey here.

Today has been lovely. Nice church service. Sunny, a bit warmer than recently, and more signs of spring on the way. Love days like this. Lady does too.

Don’t forget my next author newsletter will be out on 1st March. How quickly February whizzes by! To sign up for news, tips, links to stories etc., do head over to my landing page at https://allisonsymescollectedworks.com and I will just say many thanks to all of my subscribers. Support much appreciated!

Writing Tip: I’ve talked before about resting stories before editing them but how long should a rest period be? There is no one straight answer to this but I’ve found a couple of days is another for a flash fiction piece.

I tend to rest a longer short story (1500 words upwards) for a week or so. The advice I’ve come across for novelists is to leave your work for at least a month. The reason for resting any kind of story is so you can “escape its world” for a while and when you come back to you will see the tale with fresh eyes, as if coming to it for the first time. That is the way to be objective about your stories.

Hope you have had a good weekend so far. At least it’s dry today in my part of the world. Managed to get out and do some gardening. Had a lovely task today – to proofread my three stories which will be in The Best of CafeLit 13. That was a joy to do!

I’m looking at Writing Themes and Saints’ Days for Chandler’s Ford Today next week. What on earth is the link there and how can writers make use of it? I will share all on Friday. Looking forward to sharing that. Ideas come from a wide range of sources and this post is an example of one that came as a surprise to me but I trust the post will prove useful to other writers.

Have had a good week. I’ve submitted another story to a different market. Will say more assuming I hear more though this may not be for some time. I followed my own advice and, having checked things out and being happy with what I found, I figured I had nothing to lose. Didn’t cost anything either. There are good reputable free to enter competitions and markets out there. It is just a question of finding them.

In this case, it was from a tweet I saw and I then followed it up. Have done this kind of thing before but previously, on checking things out, I found something I wasn’t comfortable with so didn’t go further with it.

Never be afraid to walk away from a market or competition if you are not entirely happy with it. There are others out there with which you will be happy. You need to think a little longer term here and think along the lines of would I be happy with my work appearing here. If the answer is not an emphatic yes, do walk away.

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Many thanks for the views coming in on Likely Story, my latest YouTube story which I posted yesterday. (See below). Much appreciated. Subscribers to my channel are always welcome.

I love creating the flash tales here. I use Book Brush to help with creating the video itself and then use YouTube’s own vast library of audio tracks (free to use etc) to add music. But I create and edit the story itself first. Sometimes I have to think laterally to come up with a suitable video background but that is always a good challenge!

Screenshot 2024-02-13 at 20-06-47 Allison Symes - YouTube

It’s Monday. It’s slowly getting lighter in the evenings where I am. Hooray! More spring flowers emerging. Double hooray! Still Monday though. Still time for a story. Hope you like my latest on YouTube – Likely Story.

I’ve occasionally started two flash fiction pieces with a similar opening line. See Mishaps and Jumping Time in Tripping the Flash Fantastic. These stories were written together, are meant to follow on from one another, and were fun to do. It meant I could take the character I created for Mishaps, the first story, and get even more use out of him for the second story!

As both of these are humorous tales, there was more fun to be had with two tales rather than just the one. They also worked better as two stories rather than one, there was a natural end point for the first story, which gave me a good start for the second one.

I had in mind from the start how these two stories would look on the printed page later, naturally hoping they would make it into print! It is no coincidence one is on the left page and the other on the right either. Layout can sometimes help your stories have more of an impact too.

So this is another aspect to flash fiction you could use. If you have a character you love, put them in more than one story. Use that to help you sort out your running order for your book in due course. It will flag up to a publisher and future readers this is a deliberate use of the same character.

Also to get the most impact from two or more stories with one “star”, that impact will be the greater for keeping the tales together.

One of the things I love about writing for Friday Flash Fiction is that I am effectively given a weekly challenge to produce new writing to a 100 word count. So I do! The themes I can set, it is just the word count which is fixed, and I know now, after a lot of experience, 100 words looks like two to three short paragraphs. You can see what I mean via the link.

I find being able to visualise what the word count looks like enormously helpful. I know I’ve got two paragraphs and the second one of those has to wrap the story up. The first one, of course, reveals what the story is so there, straight away, I have a story structure in place. Love that too.

Screenshot 2024-02-09 at 09-56-05 Horizons by Allison Symes

Screenshot 2024-02-13 at 09-59-30 Search Results

Screenshot 2024-01-01 at 17-04-27 Friday Flash Fiction

Goodreads Author Blog – Themes in Stories

Do you have favourite themes for stories? I think mostly this is an unconscious thing. I know I like to see justice done, to name one example of a theme, so this is one reason why I love the classic fairytales, where it generally is done.

I also like crime novels where justice is done. (It is one reason why I love the Agatha Christie books).I don’t like the ones where justice is perverted. But I pick the fairytale or crime novel to read based on what I can read of the plot outline and then decide whether it is for me or not. It is funny though how favourite themes do come out time and again in what I choose to read.

As for themes I like to write to, I do like the character who turns out to be more than what others expected. Again I’ve got fairytales to thank for that one, especially The Ugly Duckling by Hans Christen Andersen. It is a good lesson in not judging by appearances, another theme I love reading about/writing for.

The best stories do have timeless themes behind them. Writers will always have something to say about these things. These themes will always have resonance with readers. Certain things about us as a species will not change which is why these themes resonate and why they make such great stories.

WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

In the run up to St. Valentine’s Day, I thought looking at the theme of love for our stories, blog posts etc would be apt. Love takes many forms – romantic, sacrificial, love for an ideal and so on. What will your take be on the theme? pic.twitter.com/qjaoM1RiHk
— ACW (@ACW1971) February 10, 2024

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

liked Allison Symes's blog post: Themes In Stories https://t.co/KO81XkcCnq via @goodreads For Goodreads this week, I look at why themes are such an important part of the stories we love reading and often they come through unconsciously. pic.twitter.com/HCoRmI1Lrx
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) February 10, 2024

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

Love can also lead to second chances for characters who have made mistakes. Interesting stories could come from showing what those mistakes are, what your characters learn from them, and how they go on to do better. pic.twitter.com/2EDrBFKhxn
— ACW (@ACW1971) February 11, 2024

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

For non-fiction, you could always write blogs on the stories surrounding St. Valentine. Then how about the factual stories of those who invent things to benefit mankind and they do that out of love for humanity? pic.twitter.com/EWfwRfY8uX
— ACW (@ACW1971) February 12, 2024

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

It’s Monday. It’s slowly getting lighter in the evenings where I am. Hooray! More spring flowers emerging. Double hooray! Still Monday though. Still time for a story. Hope you like my latest on YouTube -Likely Story.https://t.co/YmznGTpiks
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) February 12, 2024

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

Thanks for the views on Likely Story, my new YouTube story. Subscribers to my channel are always welcome. I use Book Brush to create the video and use YouTube’s library of audio tracks (free to use) to add music. I create and edit the story itself first.https://t.co/UABhvVRjC1
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) February 13, 2024

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.