Tag: Kindred Spirits

A Busy Week and Relishing Flash Fiction

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Publication News

Delighted to say my short story, Three Wishes, now out on Cafelit. Hope you enjoy it.

Facebook – General

Am on the train again today so out comes Evernote and my trusty stylus! Lovely early morning sun over Hampshire countryside too.

I use my writing sessions on the move as free writing ones. The only thing I like to get done for sure is to draft my blogs for a Saturday. I post them later on the way home when I’d like to do some writing work but am too tired to do much. The creative work I’ll do shortly after my drafting while the old brainbox is relatively fresh!

So will it be flash fiction, a longer story, or a brainstorming session for future stories and posts? Right now as I draft this at 7.36 am, I don’t know but I will have fun finding out!

Am posting this now at 7.58 pm (on Saturday 21st September). Have drafted a fair amount towards a new CFT post for future use. Well pleased.

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Looking forward to sharing a new short story tomorrow when it goes live on Cafelit (done – see above link!). One of my favourite things about writing (and I think it always will be) is not losing the “buzz” of excitement when you know work of yours is going to be published. It also spurs you on to greater efforts and that’s never a bad thing either.

On the flip side, there’s a couple of competitions I haven’t heard back from (which by now I should have done had my stories got anywhere). Still, I can and will look those stories up, edit as necessary and re-submit elsewhere.

I’ve found writing is rarely wasted and that’s true even when I decide not to re-submit a story for some reason. Nearly always the latter decision is due to timing. There has been a spate of stories on Subject X in Magazine Y so they’re not going to need another one on a similar theme from me! But I can “park” my story and see if I can do something with it later on.

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Delighted to find out my posts have been liked 1000 times. Let’s see if we can get that up to at least…. oh I don’t know… 1001!!

Am thrilled to share my latest short story on Cafelit called Three Wishes. See above link. Hope you enjoy. Definitely not a flash piece this one but I am very fond of my two lead characters here. Hope you will be too.

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A big thank you to fellow Swanwicker, Jennifer C Wilson, of the Kindred Spirits series (and The Last Plantagenet and The Raided Heart) for hosting me on her blog today. Good fun!

(Am looking forward to having to update the picture in December when The Best of Cafelit 8 and Nativity (Bridge House Publishing 2019 anthology) are due out!).

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Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

One nice thing about train travel is you can get snapshots of scenes and characters by simply looking out of the window and observing, discreetly, your fellow passengers.

Naturally there are times you hear their conversations when you would really rather not! Even there though, you can use how that makes you feel to inspire creating a character who feels the same way.

Do they suppress how they feel or tell people to shut up? What are the consequences? Where is your character going and why? Do they need peace to be able to focus on what they’ve got to do at journey’s end? What is that, do they succeed, and does the journey affect the outcome?

Food for thought there, I think.

 

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My favourite form of flash tale is the one where not a word could be added or taken out without tipping the balance of it. That can sometimes mean my story has ended up becoming a 25-word tale or, more often for me at least, a 100-worder or more.

It’s also the way I judge a story of mine. I ask myself IS any more needed for this? You CAN over-egg the pudding, to use that wonderful phrase. When I’m pondering, I ask if the details I’m thinking of adding in really will make any difference to the story. If the answer is no, then they stay out. Well, they really would be no point in adding them, would there?

If ever there was a form of fiction where you don’t write a single word more than you have to, it is flash fiction!

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It’s an evening for sharing stories I think. I was pleased to share my latest short story on Cafelit, Three Wishes earlier on. Now for a flash fiction piece. Complete opposite end of the scale when it comes to word count!

EATING OUT
The gull enjoyed the look of astonishment on the day tripper’s face, almost as much as the bird loved the stolen battered cod. Dessert was sorted – the gull went back and pinched the same tourist’s mint choc chip icecream.

Ends

Allison Symes 2019

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Very pleased to be guest blogger on Jennifer C Wilson’s blog today.

I will be starting a new series on Chandler’s Ford Today soon about What Books Mean to Me and I’m glad to say Jennifer will be taking part in that. I asked a number of writer friends three questions and I look forward to sharing their responses soon. I answer the questions myself right at the end of the series. I didn’t make them easy ones, honest!

It has been a good week with Three Wishes out on Cafelit yesterday and it’s only Tuesday. Hmm… time to press on then.

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Goodreads Author Blog –

Why are your Favourite Books your Favourites?

I don’t have just one favourite book. Do any of us, come to that?!

The reasons for my favourite books being so favoured vary enormously and can depend on how I’m feeling at any one time. What links the favourites is one solid fact – I couldn’t part with any of them!

So I have favourite books because:-

1. They’re classic childhood stories.

2. They were given to me by loved ones, now passed on.

3. They were given to me by friends and family whom I cherish.

4. They first introduced me to irony and humour in fiction. (Wodehouse, Austen, Pratchett).

5. Sherlock and Poirot are just brilliant, albeit in different ways.

6. The Lord of the Rings – no need to say more!

7. Discworld – likewise!

8. The books are written by me or are anthologies with my flash fiction and short stories in them.

9. The books are written by friends!

10. Some are photo books of my dogs with apt captons for my first two collies and now Lady too.

So why are your favourites your favourites then?

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Waterloo Arts Festival and Ingesting Stories

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Facebook – General

Had a fab time at the Waterloo Arts Festival. Loved hearing the extracts from the winning stories for the WAF Writing Competition. St. John’s Church is absolutely stunning and its own artwork incredible.

The theme, and title for the ebook compilation of the winning stories including my The Professional, was taken in very different ways by the writers.

The compilation is called Transforming Being.

Transforming Being Medium

Transforming Beings. Image via Gill James

I love things like this. It is proof, if it were needed, every writer has a unique voice. It is that voice which comes through in the stories. So how do you develop your writing voice?

By writing of course! Lots and lots of writing. There are no shortcuts for anyone here. This is part of the “behind the scenes” work for every writer, as it applies equally well to non-fiction.

The good news is the work you put in here won’t be wasted. Some of it may well find its way into stories or articles which are published later. You will get to find what works and what doesn’t. That will save you time and help you be more productive later on. See it as the ground work you build on later.

Good luck!

Image Credit:  Most of the images below were taken by me but many thanks to Ana Coelho for taking the lovely shot of Paula Readman, Gail Aldwin and I having a great pub lunch and conversation ahead of the Festival today.  Also thanks to Ana for the images of a happy bunch of Bridge House/Cafelit/Chapeltown writers and of me reading from The Professional. It is always lovely to meet up with those writers that for most of the year you can only “see” online!

 

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Managed to draft a 1500-word short story, draft some posts for FB, and prepared my Goodreads blog on the train and while in Costas at Waterloo yesterday ahead of the Festival. Well pleased with that. I love Evernote! All it meant, when I got home after a wonderful day feeling shattered, was all I had to do was post those blogs and that was me done for the day.

I hope the story, once edited and polished, will be submitted for competition. I’ve got a couple of others in mind I want to have a go at too.

Next event is the Winchester Writers’ Festival over the weekend, though I’m only going on the Saturday. Looking forward to the courses, catching up with friends, and making some new ones! Encouragement and inspiration to come from the event I’m taking as read!

What writing can give you over time. Pixabay.
Never stop… Pixabay
A writer’s life. Pixabay,
Warning: Writer at Work. Pixabay
Pixabay.
Still room for pen and paper drafts. Pixabay
I prefer tea generally and NOT hanging over the edge of a cup. Pixabay.
The writing life. Pixabay
Always good advice. Pixabay
Ah! The joy of the edit! Pixabay.
So many lovely forms of writing… Pixabay
A familiar sight at writing conferences! Pixabay image
Still useful despite technology and look no batteries! Pixabay image
Listening to a good course. Pixabay
King Alfred’s Statue, Winchester. Pixabay

Do you play word games at all? I like online Scrabble but have yet to use any of the odd two and three letter words you’re allowed into any writing. Can’t see any immediate use for them!

I occasionally have a go at a crossword (usually the Quick ones. I’ve got to be feeling particularly brilliant to have a go at the cryptic type and that doesn’t happen often enough!).

I find word games a great way to wind down AFTER a writing session. And I’m still playing with words when all is said and done. It is a kind of reward for getting to where I want to be on my stories.

A big thanks to #AnaCoelho for taking the picture of me reading from The Professional at the Waterloo Arts Festival and for kind permission to use the picture. The venue, St. John’s Church, is lovely and has some stunning artwork of its own. Oh and Ana very kindly provided proof that Bridge House/Chapeltown/Cafelit are a happy bunch of writers!

NB  I make no apology for repeating the pics!

Happy writers at the WAF - photo taken by Ana Coelho

Proof positive that Bridge House/Cafelit/Chapeltown authors are a happy bunch. Image taken by Ana Coehlo.

Reading part of the Professional at the WAF. Photo taken by Ana Coelho

Loved reading from The Professional. Many thanks to Ana Coelho for the image.

Sorry for slight delay in posting tonight. Have no idea why but the create post box has literally just appeared so here I am typing away! No idea why it vanished. If anyone has any thoughts on why and how to fix it, please say!

It’s thrown me as I’d not changed anything. Obviously would like to avoid this happening again. All rather bizarre. Facebook, please note – one not happy author here! Also would like to flag this up as it may well happen to others. I have reported it.

On to happier things. I’m looking forward to going to the Winchester Writers’ Festival on Saturday. It’ll be lovely meeting friends, hopefully making new friendships, learning from the courses, and all the lovely conversations you get into over tea/coffee breaks and lunch! Have often picked up news of competitions etc I’d not heard of previously.

Naturally I shall have a good browse around the Book Shop too. Well, you have to, yes?

Good reading – and writing to be done – here. Pixabay image.
Sometimes the books come to you! Pixabay
I’ve never read a book in these conditions, have you? Pixabay image.
Books are their own world. Pixabay
Reading can make it seem as if you are in your own bubble! Pixabay image
Writing regularly, even in short bursts, encourages your imaginative side to flourish. Pixabay.
Read your work out loud to hear how it sounds/how your reader will read it. Pixabay image.
Set goals for the short, medium and long terms. Pixabay image
So true. Pixabay image.
A VERY familiar sight, alas! Pixabay image.
Books are so special. Pixabay

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Every story has a theme underpinning it. These are planned of course but what is fun is when you’ve written a piece to your chosen topic and, on re-reading it, you find another theme has emerged.

It can be exciting, and sometimes worrying, to discover just what did emerge from your subconscious as you were writing!

I’m sure you’ll have heard the advice to dig deep for your writing. Sometimes you can do that without realising you have!

Of course, what you then do with that writing is up to you!

What we all need… Pixabay
Recharge yourself when you need to. Your writing will be better for it. Pixabay
Plenty to choose from here. Pixabay
Read widely to inspire these. Pixabay
I’ve yet to see an idea flash above my head like this! Pixabay
A familiar sight to many of us. Pixabay
Most writers will know how this feels… Pixabay
All great ideas for writing but you still need to “apply the seat of your pants to the seat of the chair” (P.G.Wodehouse). Pixabay image.

Good to see more competitions and markets for flash fiction. Always opportunities about.

The problem I think a lot of writers have, and this includes me, is finding enough time to have a crack at all the competitions I’d like to try. As that never really works, I look at a few and go for the ones where the theme appeals most and discard the others. There are some competitions I enter yearly and where I’d love to be shortlisted. If you don’t have a go…

It pays to work out a strategy that works for you when it comes to story submissions. Look at what your writing strengths are and what you most like writing and then find the market/competition to match. For example, I can tell if a piece is going to work best on Cafelit and sure enough I send it there!

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Pleased to have written and sent off a 100 word story for a competition over the weekend. The competition was flagged up to me by pal, #JenWilson, (who writes the wonderful Kindred Spirit series), and this is one of the great things about the writing community.

Information gets shared. Sometimes you’ll share something that will be of use to others. Other times, you’ll use information that’s of use to you. What goes around comes around etc.

And always take notice of scams doing the rounds. No industry is exempt from these. Sadly, the creative industries are not the exception. If you’re not sure about whether something is a scam or not, check it out. Don’t be afraid to ask.

For competitions, I always check out terms carefully. I don’t submit work to anywhere that wants all my rights (and usually for ever and ever amen at that). If you’re not happy with a competition for whatever reason, move on to others. There are more out there for flash now which is a great thing.

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Glad to be able to post as the create post box on here has only just appeared. Goodness knows where it went or why it vanished at all. Have reported it. Don’t know if this is just me or whether there has been an overall issue on FB tonight.

On to happier things… Very pleased with how reading The Professional went at the Waterloo Arts Festival on Saturday. It was such a treat listening to the other stories too. I’ll be talking about the joys of reading aloud in my Chandler’s Ford Today post later this week.

Flash fiction is great to read at events of course because it doesn’t take too long. It’s a good way to catch a would-be reader’s attention too. And twist endings, which really grab attention work brilliantly in flash. What I love is when I’ve enjoyed a story like that and then realised how brilliantly chosen the title was. It encourages me to up my own game here.

I usually choose a title and then write but sometimes a better one will occur while doing that. So fine, I change it. As with the body of the story itself, I want the title to be the most appropriate and have the greatest impact on a reader.

Escape with a good book. Image via Pixabay.
Aiming for more “magic” from my stories this year! Image via Pixabay.
No room for gobbledygook here. Image via Pixabay.
The keyboard beckons…
Says it all really and applies to non-fiction equally as fiction. Image via Pixabay.
Hope your Christmas books take you to all sorts of wonderful places! Pixabay image
Books are the keys to knowledge. Image via Pixabay
Let the ideas flow and let journeys encourage that! Image via Pixabay
Use flash fiction techniques to help you develop other forms of writing so you grow as a writer. Image via Pixabay
What wonderful worlds we can creat! Image via Pixabay.
The Writing Life. Pixabay image.
Ebooks and print – both have their own frustrations when it comes to publishing. Image via Pixabay

Goodreads Author Blog – Ingesting Stories

Ingesting? Really? Yes and we all do so more often than you might think, as it’s not just a conscious thing.

You hear snippets of conversation on a train and a writer’s mind will want to fill in the gaps. I refuse to believe that is just me!

A reader’s mind may well be reminded of stories they’ve read based on similar themes to what they’ve overheard. There will be something!

Ingesting stories can also be done via audio books/going to oral storytelling events and so on. We ourselves are stories and our lives reflect tales that have influenced us.

Look at what your favourite stories are and ask yourself why you picked these. It is the reason why these stories speak to your soul that is so fascinating.

Really great stories do reflect what we know of ourselves and humanity in general. We take in those stories with themes that fascinate us most.

The good thing then is to have a healthy reading diet. Stories take us to places we physically cannot go. This is especially true for science fiction and fantasy, but stories should feed our minds and open them.

So ingest plenty of tales (and the best non-fiction is a creative narrative too) and enjoy what’s on the menu.

Transforming Beings. Image via Bridge House Publishing
Stories reflect all sorts of moods. There is a story to suit everyone out there! Image via Pixabay.
Books are wonderful – whether in print or electronic, whether as audio stories or told by a storyteller. Image via Pixabay.
My flash fiction collection from Chapeltown Books!
Let the writing flow and if music can help it along even better! Image via Pixabay
Writing to screen. Am using smartphone more for this.
The wonderful world of stories. Image via Pixabay
My stand at the Winchester discovery Centre event. Image by Allison Symes
Some of my published works, most anthologies. Image by Allison Symes

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

STEPPING BACK IN TIME

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Facebook  and Chandler’s Ford Today

My Chandler’s Ford Today post this week is part 2 of my interview with paranormal historical fiction writer, Jennifer C Wilson.

She shares her thoughts on the joys and woes of writing ghost stories and crossing genres. She discusses the research she carries out and reveals what it was like to go to Richard III’s funeral. How many historical fiction writers can claim to have gone to the funeral of their subject several centuries later?!

Many thanks, Jennifer, for sharing your insights. Good luck with the next in the Kindred Spirits series too.

 

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Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

I must admit, with my dog walking hat on, I am not keen on the nights drawing in so early. (Lady is not that keen either!).

However, with my reading and writing hats on, the earlier nights do tend to encourage me to have cosy nights with something nice to drink (usually hot chocolate!), as I spoil myself with books and stories, whether I am reading them or doing my best to write them!

Yes, I do read and write during the spring and summer obviously, but there is something about the nights drawing in that drives me to my desk/book shelves that bit more readily! So there are compensations to the darkest of the seasons then…

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Facebook – Round-up Posts from From Light to Dark and Back Again

The real art to flash fiction writing is to be able to say something concisely and leave your readers to fill in the gaps. Good fun to write and read. I suppose in some ways it is the exact opposite of the epic novel.

Plans for next year include trying to enter more flash fiction competitions, hopefully having a second book out, and I’d like to do more with standard length short stories. Whether the plans come off is another matter!

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Flash – for light or dark fiction! Image via Pixabay

One great thing about having an author in your life is you won’t be short of ideas for Christmas presents for them!

There are the books they want to read, of course, (there WILL be a big list!) and then there’s the world of nice stationery. There are the notebook fans, writers can never have enough paper for the printer or ink cartridges/toners etc, and as for good quality pens…. lead me to them!

These days you can even buy gift vouchers for conferences, which I think is a fab idea and can make the difference to someone going or not going at all to such a thing.

So have fun choosing (and if you are the writer, get your wish list in!)

Blogging via diaries and tablets, ancient and modern technologies via Pixabay

What ever writer needs. Image via Pixabay

Fairytales With Bite – The Joys and Woes of Writing in Genres

My Chandler’s Ford Today post this week is part 2 of my interview with paranormal historical fiction writer, Jennifer C Wilson, author of the Kindred Spirits series.  She talks about the joys and woes of writing ghost stories/crossing genres.  If you are looking for ghost stories that are a bit different, do check out her series.  There are two books so far:  Kindred Spirits: Tower of London and Kindred Spirits:  Royal Mile.  The former “stars” Richard III and the latter Mary, Queen of Scots.  The common link here?  Fotheringay Castle – one for happy reasons, the other the complete opposite!

Whatever genre you write in, there will be challenges to overcome and joys to relish!  The important point, regardless of whatever genre you write in, is to ask yourself honestly would your story grip someone who doesn’t know you and who has discovered your stories by accident?  This is where having trusted beta readers can be really useful as they will point out what works and what doesn’t.  Another good way is to make yourself put your work away for a while before you come back to it and look at it with fresh eyes.  It is much easier to read  your book as a reader would if you do this.

One thing I did with From Light to Dark and Back Again was use Scrivener to export the book as a .mobi file so I could actually see what it would look like as an ebook.  By putting it into this format, I found it easier to pretend I was new to the book and so I could read and edit it far more effectively. (The ability to change formats in Scrivener is one of the things I love about it).

The real challenge to genre writing is to win over readers who are NOT already fans of it.  But it is a good challenge and keeps you on your toes as a writer!

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This World and Others – Stepping Back in Time

Time travel is possible….  if you’re a good historical fiction writer or wonderful composer like Ralph Vaughan Williams, whose Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis is, for me, one of my favourite pieces of music and conjures up the Elizabethan world so beautifully.

As for historical fiction, my Chandler’s Ford Today post this week is part 2 of my interview with Jennifer C Wilson.  She writes historical fiction crossed with ghost stories in her Kindred Spirits series.  In the interview, she shares some of the joys and woes of writing ghost stories/crossing genres and discusses the research she does for the historical side of her work.  If you are looking for ghost stories that are different, do check out her series.

Good historical fiction should make you feel as if you have stepped back in time and as if you are the proverbial fly on the wall in whatever era and setting the writer has chosen.  Can you sense the smells of that world?  Can you picture how things would look?

One thing about history I love, whether it is fiction or non-fiction, is the way it shows how others lived.  It makes me grateful for things I think we take for granted – the ability to read and write for the vast majority of us, decent sanitation etc.  It does no harm to reflect every so often how fortunate we are to have these.  They were not always a “given”.

So the secret here then is to give your readers enough information so they can picture and sense your world without giving them so much, they lose all sense of what the story is.   This is true for every genre you care to name too.

A fallen knight – and even his enemies acknowledged Richard III as this. Image via Pixabay. Richard III is the lead in Jennifer C Wilson’s Kindred Spirits: Tower of London novel.
Richard III did kill Henry Tudor’s flag bearer at Bosworth and almost killed Henry. So much would have changed had Richard done so! Image via Pixabay.

CROSSING GENRES AND SECOND BOOK SYNDROME

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Facebook – General – and Chandler’s Ford Today

My Chandler’s Ford Today post this week is Part 1 (out of 2) of my interview with paranormal historical fiction writer, Jennifer C Wilson. She creates a world where the heroes are ghosts and Richard III gets a MUCH better write up than he ever had from Shakespeare!

Jennifer also shares her three top tips for writers, what her trigger for writing was, and names her own favourite historical fiction writers. More next Friday when, amongst other topics, she shares the joys and woes of crossing genres and how being able to go to Richard III’s funeral influenced her writing. Just how many historical fiction writers get to go to the funeral of their leading star is debatable but there can’t be that many!

Many thanks, Jennifer, for your time and for sharing some great insights. Looking forward to sharing Part 2 next week but in the meantime here’s the link to Part 1.

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Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

There will be more Christmassy flash fiction tales from me on Cafelit over the next couple of weeks. (I hope these will eventually make it into my second book). Do head over and check out their Advent Calendar. There are wonderful stories on here. Don’t miss them!

I think flash especially comes into its own at this time of year when people are under pressure, time-wise, to get things done. It is the ultimate in the quick read after all!

Many thanks to Finian Black, children’s author, for taking this photo.
Enjoy what you write and read! Image by Allison Symes
Some of the books I’ve appeared in and FLTDBA of course. Image by Allison Symes

Facebook – Posts from earlier this week

What do I find most interesting and useful in author interviews?

Questions that encourage the writer to expand on what they do and why rather than simply allow them to give a Yes/No answer. By giving fuller answers, you have much more of an insight as to what makes that particular author tick. I’ve found reading author interviews to be a good source of encouragement. They also make me think about what I write and why.

Am sharing a photo which has gone up on Paula Readman’s wonderful For Writers Only Who Want to Write without Fear of Rejection. Many thanks, Paula, and also to my better half for getting the Christmas tree up today without which this photo would not have been possible (as they say)…

My book on our Christmas Tree as part of Paula Readman's wonderful For Writers Only Who Want to Write without Fear of Rejection Facebook page. Image by Allison Symes

My book on our Christmas Tree as part of Paula Readman’s wonderful For Writers Only Who Want to Write without Fear of Rejection Facebook page. Image by Allison Symes

Facebook – from earlier this week – From Light to Dark and Back Again

My better half and I celebrated our 30th wedding anniversary earlier this week. (We can’t believe where the time has gone either). Looking back at wedding photos etc raises smiles and causes some sadness as we recall those we’ve lost. So much has changed in that 30 years – from computers to cars to new forms of storytelling being invented (flash fiction of course!).

It led me to think about what kind of time scale do your characters work on? Can they see the long-term bigger picture or are they of the kind who resolutely sticks to the past and treats all new things with suspicion? Some great stories could come from those questions. Happy writing!

What are the changes your characters seek to make? Are you showing your characters doing this rather than telling us? Image via Pixabay.
Always time and space for the pen and paper method of drafting
Big screen, little screen, LOTS of stories on either! Image via Pixabay
Personal books like these, and non-fiction, generally help make up an interesting reading “diet”. Image via Pixabay.
The joy of editing but a major part of my writing rituals is to always keep this separate from creative writing. Image via Pixabay

It was good fun reading three stories out from the book on Saturday (at the Bridge House/Cafelit/Chapeltown Books/Red Telephone celebration event). As well as good experience for me, audience reaction to each story let me know the emotional impact of each story was precisely what I meant it to be! It is a bit difficult to gauge this accurately when you’re on your own! (I use reading work out loud, when alone, to help me get my dialogue right and this is also very useful).

Love the booklet Inspiring Ideas that has come with this month’s Writing Magazine. Shall be finding this useful! It has picture prompts, tips from famous authors and sets exercises too. Will be staying by my laptop for some considerable time I think. What is nice these days I nearly always turn to the Members’ News and letter pages first in the magazine and see if I spot anyone I know from writing events in there. Glad to say I often do!

I read three stories from From Light to Dark and Back Again. Many thanks to Dawn Kentish Knox for the picture!
Paula Readman, Dawn Kentish Knox and I celebrate where our stories have appeared! Many thanks to Paula Readman for the picture.!
Reading out loud is a joy for writer and listener.
Many thanks to Finian Black, children’s author, for taking this photo.

I read three stories at Saturday’s Bridge House event. I chose Serving Up a Treat (poetic justice), Making the Grade (humorous magical story) and Pressing the Flesh (horror. This one is also in the Best of Cafelit 6 as it started life on Cafelit). I think of this as a kind of “pick and mix” of my stories (and those old enough to remember Woolworths will know where that term comes from!).

Image: Thanks to Dawn Kentish Knox for taking the photo of my reading and to Paula Readman for sending me the image of Dawn, Paula and I together showing off where our stories are! Three very happy authors!

Fairytales with Bite – Second Book Syndrome

It’s funny how things often don’t work out quite the way you think they will.  My initial plan this year had been to have the follow-up to From Light to Dark and Back Again with my publisher, Chapeltown Books, by, say, the end of October.  Hmm…  I am glad to report I am now editing my second book and, if I can, I hope to have it off to Chapeltown by the year end/very early into the New Year.

I can confirm there’s a nice mixture of fairytales with bite in the second volume and, as ever, some of my characters even I wouldn’t want to meet in any kind of alley, yet alone a dark one.  However, they are huge fun to write for!!

Why the hold up?  Well, I’m glad to say it has been for the best of reasons.  I’ve been involved in Book Fairs, signings, extravaganzas and library events ever since From Light to Dark and Back Again came out and these have eaten into my time more than I thought.  I know I haven’t quite got the balance between writing new material and marketing the current book right but also know I will get there eventually.  It is a great comfort to know other writers have this same struggle to get this balance right!

I thought I’d leave this post with an extract from the second book, which has also recently appeared on Cafelit.

Can I also recommend checking out Cafelit’s Advent Calendar of stories?  There is a lovely mix of styles and lengths of story here.  Am glad to say some more of my Christmassy ones will appear in the next couple of weeks.

Oh and if you want to know what to give the writer in your life?  If they have a book out, reviews on Amazon and Goodreads are always welcome!

Allison Symes’s books on Goodreads

This World and Others – Crossing Genres

My Chandler’s Ford Today post this week is Part 1 (out of 2) of my interview with paranormal historical fiction writer, Jennifer C Wilson. She creates a world where the heroes are ghosts and Richard III gets a MUCH better write up than he ever had from Shakespeare!  In her Kindred Spirits series (two so far:  Tower of London and Royal Mile), she combines historical fiction with ghost stories.

Now I’m sure you’ll have come across the maxim you are not supposed to cross genres but some of my favourite books do exactly that.  Jennifer’s series does so brilliantly.  The most famous example of cross genre work is J.K. Rowling with her Harry Potter series – boarding school stories meet magical stories.

When done well, crossing genres can create a complete new sub-section of fiction and bring new life to the two genres crossed.  Christopher Booker’s The Seven Basic Plots feels there are only so many plots and so stories are going to come into at least one of the categories he lists in this book.  (A long read but a very interesting one and well worth checking out).

In my own case I cross flash fiction with fantasy, sometimes with crime, sometimes with horror and have a wonderful time doing so!  And, of course, there are those books which are hard to categorise but you just know you love them when you read them.

So mix away but choose your ingredients carefully!  I think it essential to have a thorough love and knowledge of the two genres you’re crossing (so you could work well in either if you ever had to pick one because a publisher or agent wants you to do so.  I also think there will be a stronger element of one genre than the other in the overall mix which is where your natural preferences will take you and this could well be a good guide if you have to pick a category for your work to go in).  It will also show through in your writing that you know both genres well and, as a result, your story will be so much more convincing to the reader.).

My latest CFT post – image supplied by Jennifer C Wilson
Jennifer’s first book. Image supplied by Jennifer C Wilson
Jennifer’s second book. Image supplied by Jennifer C Wilson
Jennifer’s self published novella. Image supplied by Jennifer C Wilson

Goodreads Author Programme – Blog – Crossing Genres

There is a theme emerging tonight!

This topic has come up as my Chandler’s Ford Today post this week is Part 1 of a two-part interview with Jennifer C Wilson, author of the Kindred Spirits series. She crosses historical fiction with ghost stories.

I cross flash fiction with fantasy, sometimes crime, sometimes horror, sometimes character studies. It occurred to me that, despite all the advice I’ve come across in my time to NOT cross genres, some of my favourites stories and books have done exactly that!

When well done, crossing genres breathes new life into both of the genres the new story uses. So mix away! I do think you need to love and know well both genres you’re writing for but as Jennifer says in her interview, the most important thing is getting the story down and worrying about what genre it fits into much, much later on.

Is it me or is creating new sub-divisions of fiction a healthy thing? I see it as creative, inventive and good for storytelling as a whole.

The beautiful clock decoration in the Discovery Centre. Wonderful quotes stream from it. Image by Allison Symes. (And doesn’t time just fly when you’re enjoying a good read?)
Non-Fiction Corner at the recent Book Fair. Image by Allison Symes (and non-fiction makes for fascinating reading too).
Writers finding out what we all write! We love to read as well as to write. Without reading we wouldn’t write. Image by Allison Symes
Flash Fiction Corner: Damon Wakes and Allison Symes at the Chandler’s Ford Book Fair.. Image by Janet Williams, CFT’s editor. Short on time to read? Try a dash of flash!
The Secret Lives of Chandler’s Ford ladies also enjoy meeting their readers at the recent Book Fair. Add short stories to your reading mix! Image by Allison Symes
Visitors browsing a wide selection of books

 

READING FOR PLEASURE AND QUICK TIPS

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FAIRYTALES WITH BITE

Reading for Pleasure shares reasons why doing this is one of the most important things any writer can do to improve what they do.  (I think it is the most important thing).  Reading opens your mind to other worlds and so on.  What do your characters read for pleasure?  What books and stories would they choose?  Use that to explore more about them.

THIS WORLD AND OTHERS

I share three Quick Tips which I hope you find useful.  I discuss reading your work out loud (and why it matters).  I also discuss marketing and not panicking about it – if you have a book out, you will be marketing it in different ways (without driving everyone nuts!) not just in the short term but in the long term too.  I also discuss the need to find the right balance between marketing, getting on with your writing commitments and finding time to write new work.  This last one I am struggling with at the moment but I know I will find the right key eventually.  When I do I’ll stick with it!

CHANDLER’S FORD TODAY

I didn’t get time to blog much yesterday but my current article for Chandler’s Ford Today is a review of A Comedy Trio staged by the Chameleon Theatre Group.  This consisted of three short but very funny plays, all of which I found entertaining and were excellent character studies too.  I also enjoyed playing “spot the reference” in some of them.  One of the plays in particular had a distinct nod to the Rocky Horror Picture Show!  Another had me sympathising with not just a hostage victim but the hostage taker too and yet it was funny.  Really well done by the Chameleons and some excellent writing.

FACEBOOK PAGE – GENERAL

Yesterday, Friday 5th May it was about my Chandler’s Ford Today post.  Today I discuss the joys of the Kindle and why I always seem to forget to take it with me when travelling because I’m too busy enjoying reading from it the night before and consequently leave it behind!  Oh, the joys of human fallibility!

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FACEBOOK PAGE – PUBLICITY NEWS

I’m in Writing Magazine this month in the Members’ News Page plugging both From Light to Dark and Back Again and Baubles, the Bridge House Publishing anthology for 2016.  My short story, Helping Out, is in there. The piece looks good and thanks go to friend and fellow Swanwick devotee, Jennifer C. Wilson (author of the excellent Kindred Spirits historical ghost fiction – it’s a great mix, go and have a look!) for sharing the page all over FB!!

Always enjoy spotting a familiar face in Writing Magazine!

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FACEBOOK PAGE – FROM LIGHT TO DARK AND BACK AGAIN

Again I share news of the Writing Magazine spot and some images I thought appropriate to go with it (some of which appear in the book trailer).

In a separate post I discuss how I got into flash fiction in the first place.

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Flash fiction should make a positive impression, no matter how brief it is!  Image via Pixabay