Tag: reading

Finding a Fresh Angle, Blogging and Adjusting Your Reading

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Well, there’s a nice mixed bag of topics for you.  Plus I will share my top 10 tips for helping the writer in your life.  (Fellow writers, you can always drop a lot of hints to non-writing friends based on my list!).

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When you’ve had a website or a blog for a while, it pays from time to time to go back into your older posts and have another look. I do this a few times a year and inevitably I can think of a fresh angle on the topic I’ve pulled out of the archives to have a look at. Hey presto – a new post!

Some other ways to generate ideas for fresh posts include:-

1. Think about what irks you most about writing and why. Share! You won’t be alone. (My biggest bug bear? Never having as much time to write as I’d like. Answer: Just make the most of the time I do have!). You can share tips about how you overcome these bugbears or how to minimise their impact.

2. Think about why you started writing in the first place. Think about where you are now with your writing. Be encouraged by how far you’ve come but again this topic is great for being able to share what you’ve learned on your own writing journey.

3. Think about your favourite writers and stories and why you love these. Share your thoughts and invite comments. Briefly, I love the works of Terry Pratchett, Jane Austen, and P.G. Wodehouse (now there’s a combo if ever there was one!).

4. Share writing advice that you’ve found helpful and equally that which has not been relevant for you. Other writers will find this really useful.

5. What would you have found most helpful to know when you were starting out as a writer that you only found out much later on? Share!

Above all, have fun writing your posts. My CFT post this week will be Part 2 of Why I Blog. I’ll share the links later in the week but finding out what other writers have to say on a topic is (a) fascinating and (b) you learn so much yourself.

What worlds could there be out here? Image via Pixabay
From Light to Dark and Back Again perhaps? Image via Pixabay (and so beautiful)
Beautiful light. Image via Pixabay.
Beautiful pens. Pexels image.
What journeys are your characters going on? Image via Pixabay
Is it Time for a Change for the dragon in my story on Cafelit? Image via Pixabay
Great characters = great books. Image via Pixabay.
Outline the characters and away you go! Image via Pixabay
I don’t understand those who dislike books, in whatever format. Image via Pixabay.

My CFT post this week will be Part 2 of Why I Blog. Many thanks again to all the fab writers for taking part in both parts of this. Lots of interesting insights and proof people really do blog for all kinds of reasons. More on Friday when I’ll put the link up.

Will be reviewing the recent Hursley Park Book Fair soon too. Good fun, lots of footfall, a very promising start to what I hope will be an annual event.

And Swanwick Writers’ Summer School draws ever closer too!

Potentially your blog can go global. Image via Pixabay
Or you could ask some simple questions! Image via Pixabay.
A checklist can be useful for quizzing your characters. Image via Pixabay.
Content is indeed king. Image via Pixabay.
Books invite you into their world. Image via Pixabay.
Hard at work. Pexels image.
Finding time to follow social media is difficult so pick the one or two you like the most. Image via Pixabay
Hopefully the Book Fair will encourage even more reading! Image via Pexels
Your blog, your topic, your theme – just be sensible on copyright and libel issues. Image via Pixabay.
Use personal reviews to help you generate characters and story outlines. Image via Pixabay.

 

Do you adjust your reading according to the seasons?

The nearest I get to it is that I make sure I read or listen to Terry Pratchett’s Reaper Man around September time and his Hogfather in the run up to Christmas. (I also sneak in either reading or watching A Christmas Carol during December – the Muppet version is my favourite!).

I suppose summer is associated with “light” reading to match the longer, lighter days, but I don’t change my reading much here. I am still reading history (and historical fiction), flash fiction, short stories, novels across the genres etc. What affects my reading choice more is mood.

As for writing, well it’s always a case of “game on” for my flash fiction and blog posts!

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I think every flash story has to contain an element of surprise for it to engage the reader. Okay, you may well see where the author is going but isn’t the fun to be had there in finding out whether you are right or not?

That is what keeps me reading when I think I’ve guessed ahead correctly (and sometimes I’m right, sometimes the author twists the tale again and fools me. I like both of those options!).

Having said all that, it doesn’t mean the surprise has to be a nice one, far from it!

I write fairytales with bite. Image via Pixabay
Ready to write? Image via Pixabay.
What characters will you come up with? Image via Pixabay
Books help you wind down, can be a trigger to escape life. Image via Pixabay.
Fairytale magic. Image via Pixabay
A world of technologies means more places for stories to appear! Image via Pixabay
I loved the long, light evenings in the Far North of Scotland. Image by me.
Fiction or not, books are the gateways to other worlds. Image via Pixabay.

What should come through in your flash fiction pieces above all else is what makes your character tick. There is usually room for 1, maybe 2 characters, at most and their attitude should come through clearly. The attitude doesn’t need to be a “nice” one but it should be one readers can understand and, as they read on, see why the character has developed this.

As ever, it is the telling detail that matters here. For example, in The Outcome, the opening line is “I’m pleased to be wrong about my misgivings”. The attitude here is of a character who is open to the possibility of being wrong and being willing to admit it. Of course you then hopefully want to find out what they were wrong about! But it is that hook, the attitude of the character, which draws you in, I think.

The way into the magical realm perhaps? Image via Pixabay.
Reach for those ideas. Pixabay image.
Clarity is vital. Pixabay image.
The world is shrinking thanks to technology. Image via Pixabay.
It’s amazing the worlds a book can show you. Image via Pixabay.
Come sunrise the fairies must vanish. Image via Pixabay.
Always good advice! Pixabay image.

Top ten tips to help the writer in your life:-

1. Buy their books!

2. Review said books. Doesn’t have to be a long review but must be honest.

3. Go to their book events to show support. Trust me, it is appreciated and, as a certain supermarket would say, every little bit helps.

4. Always get them nice notebooks and pens. The idea that any writer could ever have enough of these is just plain wrong! From your point of view, you’ll never be stuck for present ideas for your writer friend ever again. Win, win here.

5. If you are a computer whizz and can act as technical support, fantastic! You’ll save them a small fortune. No doubt your grateful friend will put you in their next book and not as a character to be killed off horribly either.

6. Plentiful supplies of tea/coffee/chocolate/other treats generally go down well with said writer. If it lifts their mood because they’ve got bogged down in Chapter 8, it benefits you. Do away with moody-writer-syndrome. Feed them their favourite treats. You know it makes sense.

7. If you really do feel you can’t get your writer friend any more notebooks and YOU feel like getting them something different, go for book vouchers or vouchers towards a writing course/retreat. Will go down well.

8. Accept said friend will often seem to be in a world of their own. That is because they are! Give them time to come back to earth before engaging in conversation. You’ll get more sense out of them for one thing doing that.

9.Never ask where they get their ideas from. You want to stay friends with them, yes? Just trust me on this one. If you insist on asking, don’t blame me if your friend gives you a long lecture on well this idea led to that one, I was inspired by one paragraph in A Christmas Carol, I thought I’d add a twist here and there, etc etc. Your friend should be able to go on at length as to where they get their ideas from. If you get bored, (and you almost certainly will), you only have yourself to blame here.

10. And last but not least, do spread the word about their books. It all helps.

 Goodreads Author Programme – Blog

What do you have in the way of book accessories?

I love bookmarks and those clear plastic stands for displaying books at signings etc. They make such a difference to your presentation.

I also like nice pens with a book logo on them and had some produced to go with my flash fiction collection when that came out. Likewise, a nice spiral notebook with the cover of the book on also went down well as prizes for my launch.

But the ultimate book accessory for me I think is the hardback and jacket! While nothing will diminish my love of the paperback, I do have some wonderful hardbacks, including a Sherlock Holmes collection, where the book itself is simply beautiful (and the contents brilliant! Got to hand it to Conan Doyle…).

I must admit when I do choose a hardback, I tend to have a quick peep to see if the cover has been reproduced on the book or if it is just on the jacket. A lot of the time it is the latter, all to keep costs down, but I have some where the cover has been reproduced on the book itself. Always looks great.

Even with a “plain” cover, a hardback book can be lovely in the way it has been bound etc.

So while the contents of the book are always the most important thing for me, I do enjoy the aesthetics of a lovely tome as well.

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WEATHER, PLANS, AND THE WRITING JOURNEY

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Must admit I struggle a bit in the heat, due to being asthmatic (much easier to breathe in cooler air). But then I still don’t really associate Britain with heatwaves, really. It just doesn’t feel right for this country.

And yes I do remember the summer of 1976. Government appointed a Minister for Drought and within about a week the heavens opened. Someone liked a laugh there!

I don’t tend to use the weather in my stories but how your characters react to (a) standard and (b) unusual conditions can help your readers find out more about them. I wilt in the heat. Others get edgy. How do your characters react? Does their behaviour and attitudes change notably?

Food for thought when outlining your characters as, even if you don’t use this in a story directly, just knowing how they would react helps you as a writer to show something of that in the situations you do put them in.

Characters no matter what their world should resonate with readers. Image via Pixabay
Assemble your characters, assemble your world. Image via Pixabay
Your blog, your topic, your theme – just be sensible on copyright and libel issues. Image via Pixabay.
View from near where I was staying in Scotland. You wouldn’t want to rush away from this. Image by Allison Symes
Is it Time for a Change for the dragon in my story on Cafelit? Image via Pixabay
Lovely nib! Image via Pexels.
What stories will come from this pen? Pexels image.
Heading to the light. Image via Pixabay.
From Light to Dark and Back Again perhaps? Image via Pixabay (and so beautiful)

Time really does fly – hard to believe it’s July already. Still, on the plus side, it’s just over a month to the Swanwick Writers’ Summer School. Really looking forward to that.

Need to get some more submissions out so will try and focus on that. (Third flash fiction book coming along nicely though). Am also beginning to look at some non-fiction work I’d like to do. Would like to make good progress on that by the end of the year.

Am reading well, which is great. I see reading as the fuel to writing. How can you know what you like to write unless you know what you like to read? Deliberately mixing up my reading formats. Sometimes I focus on the Kindle, other times good old fashioned paperbacks, still other times catching up with magazine reading. All wonderful material.

Planning your characters. Image via Pixabay.
Part of the lawns at Swanwick. Image by Allison Symes.
Always good advice. Image via Pixabay.
Chapeltown Books have a distinctive central image in a frame such as with mine. Image by Allison Symes
The Hayes Conference Centre, home of the Swanwick Writers’ Summer School. Image by Allison Symes
The lakes at The Hayes. Image by Allison Symes
A lovely place to reflect during Swanwick. Image by Allison Symes
What characters will you come up with? Image via Pixabay
Writing is rewriting. Image via Pixabay.

When you first start out as a writer, you look to improve what you do (and this is something you continue to keep on trying to do). Then you aim for publication. Then you see if you can be published again and again and again etc.

All the time you are trying to improve what you do in terms of output and quality. You are also getting to grips (or trying to!) with marketing and promotion, arranging book events, using social media effectively to attract a readership and so on.

So at no point in the writing journey are you standing still and that is a good thing.

But it does pay every so often to stop and look at where you are and what you would like to do next (and then go for it!). Focus on enjoying what you write – that enjoyment will help you keep going through the tougher times.

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Flash fiction is a good outlet for one liners which sum up a character.

One of my favourites comes from Making the Grade: “Still, as I told Mother, if this is what I can do when I’m honest, just think of the possibilities when I’m not!” Attitude to life, feisty character all in one line!

Flash fiction is the epitome of economical writing! This is another reason why I love it. It challenges me to convey as much information as possible in as few words as possible. All good fun!

Whenever and whatever you read, enjoy. Image via Pixabay.
Fiction can take you anywhere. Image via Pixabay.
Books have their own sense of time and space. Image via Pixabay.
Content is indeed king. Image via Pixabay.
Fiction should show you new ways of looking at the world. Image via Pixabay.
Escape with a good book. Image via Pixabay.
Books are the keys to knowledge. Image via Pixabay
Your blog, your topic, your theme – just be sensible on copyright and libel issues. Image via Pixabay.

I love an intriguing first line
Be it in flash or short story.
But what is wonderful and fine
Is the ending in its glory.

Allison Symes – 1st July 2018

I’m partial to some doggerel too! Having said that, intriguing first lines are fabulous but the story has to follow through on them. The story must never peter out. The ending must back up all that has come before. You want your reader to feel they’ve had a satisfying read, whether it is a funny tale or a grim one.

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Flash is a great vehicle for sci-fi and fantasy, even though both are known for (a) epic novels and (b) world building (which leads to the size of said epic novels!). Why?

Because you can conjure up a world with a few well chosen words and leave the rest to your reader’s imagination. In my The Truth, I refer to a Mark 3 Intergalatic Spacecraft with the latest time warp technology. I haven’t room in this 100-word story to tell you more than that, but the great thing is YOUR vision of what such a spacecraft would be like is as valid as mine would be. And you can picture the kind of world that would have such a thing in the first place.

I like to have fun with my flash stories in giving the one telling detail a reader would need to know and leaving it at that! I’m not being rotten, honest. I think a reader engages much more with any story if they have gaps to fill in. I know I love this when I have to fill in gaps on stories I read.

N.B. Do you think they have trouble changing head light bulbs on your average UFO given the trouble most of us have trying to do the same task on our cars? Just a thought…!

Use flash fiction techniques to help you develop other forms of writing so you grow as a writer. Image via Pixabay
The art of the flash (fiction). Image via Pixabay
Let the writing flow and if music can help it along even better! Image via Pixabay
Let your stories have impact. Image via Pixabay
You can almost feel the mood from this picture. Image via Pixabay.
Characters seeking to change the world are often on a physical journey too. Image via Pixabay.
There can be reality behind fairytales. Image via Pixabay (and image used as part of book trailer for From Light to Dark and Back Again)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Being Creative

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I think most of us need to find some form of being creative – whether that’s using a pen to write or gardening tools to make the “perfect plot” (pun intentional, no apologies!).

I suppose it is because creativity gives us an outlet, especially if most of the time we are doing something far more humdrum. (I love that word humdrum, just sounds good, and conjures up the exact image of what it means).

Creativity is good for mental and physical health so why does it seem sometimes as if it is something that is “indulged in”? (I don’t have that problem, my family are very supportive of my writing, for which I am enormously grateful as I know not every writer can say that).

 

I finish my writing rituals for the day by having a good read. Immerse yourself in books! Image via Pixabay.
Stories are magical and inspire other stories. Image via Pixabay.
Doesn’t look comfortable to me. Pexels image.
Editing – the crucial part to getting a story right. Image via Pixabay.
Beautiful pens. Pexels image.
What great books and stories will emerge from your laptop this year? Image via Pixabay.
The world is shrinking thanks to technology. Image via Pixabay.

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Pleased with writing achievements on the train yesterday. A whole CFT post written for next week and a flash fiction story (though one at the higher word count end for me). Hope to have a good look and edit of the latter during the week and submit it somewhere.

Looking forward to taking part in the inaugural Hursley Park Book Fair in June. Over 40 authors are taking part and I will have more details nearer the time via a CFT post about it.

Reading, for me at the moment, is pretty much split 50/50 between paper and Kindle. That is a change for me as it used to be 80/20 paper to Kindle. (But you can’t beat the convenience of slipping your Kindle into a bag with loads of books to choose from over having to limit yourself to one or two paperbacks, depending on the size of one’s bag of course. Goodness knows how men manage here. Is that a paperback in your pocket or…. well you can fill in the rest!😁).

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I’ll be resuming my 101 Things to Put into Room 101 series for CFT this week. Up to No. 76 already! Drafted this on the train at the weekend. Had no problem thinking of things to shove (hard) into the vault of doom.

Am hoping to get a couple of flash fiction stories off for competition later this week. I am pleased (and frankly relieved) so many competitions now accept online submissions. I used to spend a small fortune in postage when I first started writing – and yes, the dinosaurs did still walk the earth then. I was one of them – easily spotted. I was part of that sad group forever in a Post Office queue! (I could almost guarantee I’d be out of stamps when I needed them for a competition. I guess the online equivalent would be finding out your server is down just as you’re trying to send your story in. Murphy’s Law does get everywhere).

A good reading pile! Pexels image.
May require help turning the pages. Pexels image.
I now use a laptop. Pexels image.
Reading outdoors can be wonderful. Pexels image.
Books – love them, don’t mind the format. Image via Pixabay
A huge but lovely library. Image via Pexels
Let the ideas flow and let journeys encourage that! Image via Pixabay
Ebooks and print – both have their own frustrations when it comes to publishing. Image via Pixabay

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Glad to say I’ve had to order more copies of From Light to Dark and Back Again ready for book events coming up over the summer months. Will post more about those nearer to the time of each though I am glad that at one of them in particular, I should have the chance to catch up with friends, which is always a lovely bonus.

I did manage to write some flash fiction on my train journey today – one of my longer pieces. (I also wrote an entire CFT post too so a productive day!)

Can’t beat a good book or several. Image via Pixabay.
The perfect way to relax. All writers love to read. Image via Pixabay.
Even in the heart of a city, books can provide escapism. Image via Pixabay.
Books are the keys to knowledge. Image via Pixabay
Let the creative process flow! Image via Pixabay
The wonderful world of writing should include non-fiction, which benefits from creative techniques too. Image via Pixabay.
Getting the word out! Image via Pixabay
Books can make you lose time but what a way to lose it! Music can do the same. Image via Pixabay
Says it all really but reading your work to yourself will show up where dialogue is weak. Image via Pixabay.

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I am definitely going to have to go on more train journeys as all of the ones I’ve taken so far this year have meant I’ve drafted LOADS of flash fiction stories, which I hope will end up in a third collection eventually. Just a pity my Swanwick trip in August is going to involve a replacement bus service due to major works happening at Derby Station over the summer. Will be interesting to see how I write while on a bus – assuming I can of course.

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The nature of flash fiction in that it gives only a glimpse into the world of its story makes it useful for when you want to imply your character is a time travelling alien or what have you but don’t need to set up a lot of details as to the world they’ve come from.

I’ve found the odd line showing the character’s reaction to the world they’ve left can be telling. It can be a case of what they don’t say that will imply to the reader the world they left was horrendous. Equally a comment, a throwaway line from the character will show their attitude and from that a lot can be deduced.

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Goodreads Author Programme – Blog – Broadening the Mind

The old saying goes that travel broadens the mind and, of course, it can do. But so can reading widely across genres and non-fiction.

Also reading contemporary AND classic fiction is useful here as the former keeps you in touch with what is out there now, and the other keeps you in touch with where writing has come from.

Also I’d argue that writers such as Wodehouse, Austen, Dickens etc have all stood the test of time and will continue to do so. What is fun is to watch out for those contemporary (or near contemporary) authors who will go on to stand the test of time. (I’d have the late, great Terry Pratchett as a certainty here. Also J.K. Rowling for Harry Potter.).

Writing, especially when it involves any kind of research, also encourages mind broadening. (The great thing with this is most of us don’t want our waists to broaden, but you can broaden the mind as much as you like! No calories involved whatsoever…!).

So read and write away!

Books should show you other worlds. Image via Pixabay.
So many ways to network online now. Image via Pixabay.
This notice may make you smile though. Image via Pixabay.
A beautiful home for lovely books. Image via Pixabay.
Or you could ask some simple questions! Image via Pixabay.
Use personal reviews to help you generate characters and story outlines. Image via Pixabay.
Can’t beat the notebook and pen for quick notes. Image via Pixabay,
Social Media Tree. Image via Pixabay.
Some of the strongest ideas have a simple theme. See A Christmas Carol as a classic example. Image via Pixabay.
You can’t beat a good book. Image via Pixabay.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

READING AND WRITING PREFERENCES

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What do I like to write best – my flash fiction or non-fiction such as my Chandler’s Ford Today posts? No contest. Love them both. Wish I had more time for both. Also means I never, ever get bored.

I find it helpful to spend some time writing, say, flash fiction and then I switch over to CFT posts. It is just great to be inspired by writing something different to what I had just been working on. I have to take different approaches to what I write and going from one to the other and back again keeps me on my toes.

I am going to try this year to prepare more of my CFT posts (the non-time dependent ones) in advance as I have done this before and find it a great way to free up time overall for other writing work. Didn’t get to do much of this in 2017. I like being able to schedule posts in advance and it is a facility I could do with making more use of.

The To Be Read pile. Image via Pixabay
A clean sheet can lead to some fascinating characters and stories. Image via Pixabay
Good advice. Image via Pixabay.
Some very strange creatures are in books. Image via Pixabay
You can’t beat notebooks for jotting down ideas. Image via Pixabay.

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Am having a lot of fun writing my 101 Things to be put into Room 101 mini-series for Chandler’s Ford Today. Part 1 went up on Friday and I’ve already drafted Part 2. Am not having any trouble at all coming up with things for this! Grumpy old woman, moi? Surely not!

The joy of writing non-fiction like this is I can have fun with my writing in a different way to my fiction. With that, I love inventing my characters and the situations I put them in but with articles like this, I put my imagination to work and bring facts in to back it up! Well, sometimes anyway. Features like this one are, of course, opinion pieces but it is great to have fun coming up with something you hope will entertain others as well as being able to express views.

And I still want wasps booted into Room 101!

My current CFT series. Image via Pixabay
Good advice – and it applies to our characters too. Image via Pixabay
Plenty to enjoy here! Image via Pixabay
Not arguing with this! Image via Pixabay
Well, let’s do so by writing lots of stories! Image via Pixabay.

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An interesting point came up in the comments box on my latest CFT post which referred to characters “knowing” they were about to die and later it turned out they hadn’t!

My response was that stories, of whatever length, do have to be logical and make sense. In this case, I would have written the character as genuinely believing they were about to die (and I would also have shown some of her bodily reactions to this – shaking, racing heart etc).

Equally later in the story, if the character had just been plain grateful to have been wrong about her earlier assumption, that would have modified things. But this comment reminded me my characters can only believe things. Their knowledge has to be based on what they CAN know or honestly believe to be true.

This comment also acts as a reminder when editing a story to go back and check that everything does make sense. Otherwise, you will lose your readers as they will see straight through anything illogical like this.

Let creativity spill out - image via Pixabay

Let the creative process flow! Image via Pixabay

The fantastic world of books must include non-fiction too - image via Pixabay

The wonderful world of stories. Image via Pixabay

Books illuminate and fiction is made stronger by using non-fiction to support it - image via Pixabay

Fiction is strengthened when backed by fact. Image via Pixabay

Historical records can be an invaluable source of inspiration - image via Pixabay

Historical records can be an invaluable source of inspiration. Image via Pixabay,

Good books should bring illumination to a situation, make you see things as you haven't before - image via Pixabay

Aiming for more “magic” from my stories this year! Image via Pixabay.

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What is your preferred form of reading? The paper/hardback or Kindle?

I love both but must admit the Kindle is a boon for when I’m away and has saved so much room in my suitcase! It is also nice to know I will definitely not run out of things to read. Also, I find the battery life is reasonable and I do like being able to go to weblinks etc from within an ebook.

However, you can’t beat a good browse in a bookshop and a leisurely half hour with a paperback and a cup of tea, My only complaint here? I wish I could do it more often!

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Benefits of writing flash fiction:-

1. You really do learn to write to a tight word count!

2. Your editing skills improve as you use the more powerful words to conjure up images in your reader’s minds. No room for waffle here!

3. It can act as really good practice for writing a blurb etc.

4. You focus on what is the nub of the story and get to the point quicker.

5. You can now enter all the flash fiction competitions!

 

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Am enjoying drafting some opening lines I plan to write up as flash fiction stories.

I like coming up with the bizarre, the other-worldly and the simple statement which I sometimes twist into something less simple!

For example, in from Light to Dark and Back Again in Health and Safety, the story starts with my character wondering why people are moaning. The tale then reveals the character is Goldilocks and she is sharing her version of events, but that opening line could have been ANY character in ANY setting at ANY time. It did not have to necessarily be a fairytale character.

I do like lines like that which offer so many possibilities.

I write batches of flash fiction at a time, polish them, submit them (and hopefully they then end up in a collection!).

Love this image! Image via Pixabay
Alas, too late for me! Image via Pixabay
Time to have another home perhaps? Good stories to be had here! Image via Pixabay
Use personal reviews to help you generate characters and story outlines. Image via Pixabay.
Nobody gets their ideas right first go. Image via Pixabay.
The keyboard beckons…

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What is the special something about your characters that mean you absolutely HAVE to write their stories?

I often use the major trait of a character as a starting point (and find it easier to write characters whose traits I like. With the ones where I hate the traits, I have to get inside the head of the character to see how they justify their attitude. That can be disturbing at times when you realise how easily they can justify their stance!).

Stories are magical and inspire other stories. Image via Pixabay.
This was part of the pub decor at the place where Bridge House had their event. Very apt! Image by Allison Symes
Escape with a good book. Image via Pixabay.
Is the truth welcome in your fictional world? How does your community react to it?. Image via Pixabay.
Classic Books. New Books. Love them all!
A good interview will bring the best out of the interviewee.

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Part of the role of fiction is to show up truths that can’t necessarily be proven by pure fact. Truths about the human condition, truths about what love is and so on.

Flash fiction does this too but in fewer words! I like to think of flash fiction as shining a spotlight on a theme and, of course, the shorter the piece, the greater the intensity of that spotlight!

The challenge can be where you direct that beam or sometimes even knowing where you’ve aimed it! Sometimes you write a piece and the theme can take even you by surprise.

I always write to a character. I know who my leading people are and why they are in that role. I don’t always write to a specific theme and sometimes the theme just leaps out at me AFTER I’ve drafted the story.

When I was editing From Light to Dark and Back Again, it struck me then just how many of my stories dealt with some kind of poetic justice. I never set out to write to that theme (though I guess the things you feel strongly about are bound to come out in your writing somewhere along the line!).

My story Helping Out is in Baubles, the Bridge House anthology for 2016
Historical records can be an invaluable source of inspiration. Image via Pixabay,
Write, edit, write, edit… image via Pixabay
How the very best fairytales start… Image via Pixabay
Where stories emerge these days… Image via Pixabay
Where stories used to start… image via Pixabay.

Goodreads Author Programme – Blog

What I Like in a Book Review

This applies to reviews for my From Light to Dark and Back Again as well as those I give for other books!

A good review has:-

1. No spoilers but enough information so the reader knows what they will be reading in terms of genre etc.

2. What the reviewer likes – good characterisation, twist in the tale endings etc.

3. No waffle.

4. No negativity. (The way to criticize a book is to say what you liked, what you thought didn’t work so well etc as the writer will be expecting this. Your thoughts on what didn’t work so well can be very useful to them. What you don’t write is a “hatchet job” on the book or the author).

5. A rough idea of book length and time taken to read it (though I must admit I don’t always remember this one! I DO stress when reviewing flash fiction collections the great thing about this genre is you can read it one sitting but it is also great for dipping in and out of).

6. What you would like to see from the author next time (i.e. next book in the series, continued great characterisation, less of the blood and gore, if appropriate etc).

7. Total honesty from the reviewer.

What would you add to this list?

Notebooks, pens, beverages… bliss for the writer. Image via Pixabay.
I read three stories from From Light to Dark and Back Again. Many thanks to Dawn Kentish Knox for the picture!
My first book! Am finishing off my second. Image by Allison Symes
My book is now on sale at MIBI Gift Shop. Image by me.

BRIDGE HOUSE/CHAPELTOWN/CAFELIT/RED TELEPHONE EVENT

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Had a wonderful time at the Bridge House/Chapeltown/Cafelit/Red Telephone celebration in London on 2nd December.  It was fabulous to meet up with fellow writers again and to share news of what we were up to and to share some of our stories with each other too.

Facebook – General AND From Light to Dark and Back Again

It has been a busy but lovely weekend, especially with the Bridge House event yesterday. One great thing about talking with fellow writers about what you are working on is it DOES encourage you to get on and do it! Am now editing what I hope will be my second flash fiction collection (finally!).

I talk a little about this on my Goodreads blog as well tonight, but I really enjoyed hearing the stories being read out yesterday. There is something special about being read to, especially when many of us only get to do the reading, whether it is to children, or to help us with our own editing. The standard of stories was very high and I enjoyed reading from From Light to Dark and Back Again too.

Already looking forward to next year’s event! (Many thanks to Dawn Kentish Knox for taking the picture of me reading yesterday. All other pictures were taken by me and show some of the many readers/writers at yesterday’s event. Check us out at Cafelit, Bridge House, Chapeltown and Red Telephone Books. You know it makes sense… last minute stocking fillers anyone?).

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Facebook – General

Had a wonderful time in London at the Bridge House/Cafelit/Chapeltown/Red Telephone celebration event. (It was for the launch of the Best of Cafelit 6 and Bridge House’s Glit-er-ary anthologies. I have a story in Cafelit 6 this year). Fabulous to catch up with friends, especially Gill James, Dawn Kentish Knox and Paula Readman.

Loved the story readings (one image below is of Gill James reading from her Chapeltown collection, January Stones) and I read three of mine from From Light to Dark and Back Again. I will be writing more about this for a later Chandler’s Ford Today post but for those of you at the event who claimed to be “just readers” (and you know who you are!)… ahem! No such thing as “just”. Writers love readers! Indeed without being readers ourselves, we wouldn’t have become writers.

The image below is of Dawn Kentish Knox with The Great War and Extraordinary, Paula Readman with Glit-er-ary and The Best of Cafelit 6, and yours truly with From Light to Dark and Back Again. Thanks, Paula, for sending the fab photo. All other images by yours truly.

Oh, and I got to fulfil a vague ambition by accident on the way into town. I should’ve taken the Edgware tube to get to Chalk Farm, but managed to get the High Barnet one which stops at Camden Town and goes down another route. So I got off at another stop and caught the right tube which was behind the one I was on. I am a huge fan of Radio 4’s I’m Sorry I Haven’t a Clue and I really did have to take a picture of this particular tube station image! Fellow fans of the show will understand why I’m sure. Mornington Crescent! Nice to see the Christmas decorations up at Waterloo too. The chandelier was in the Ladies! They obviously believe in posh loos for pubs in Camden!

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The chandelier in the Ladies at the Princess of Wales pub! Image by Allison Symes

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FORMATS AND FAIRYTALE REVENGE

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Facebook – General – Formats for Reading

Pleased to catch up on some magazine reading this week. I tend to have weeks where I get little chance to read much or am able to read loads. There seems to be no happy medium for me. Not sure why this is but do know it can be annoying!

I do read on my Kindle most evenings and I love the ‘”portable library” aspect of that. Really useful but only this week I’ve ordered a paperback, which has just arrived. Love books, love all the formats they come in is my motto!

Not all formats suit all people. I can think of family members who would never read a paperback (especially if it is of the length of The Lord of the Rings trilogy, which I adore, though to be fair if you drop THAT on your foot, you’ll know it!), but they do love audiobooks. I only listen to those when on lengthy car journeys but they are fabulous for that.

So what is your favourite format for a book? I think predictions of the death of the paperback are just plain wrong. I think the swing towards ebooks and then back again towards paper books will continue. (New Kindles come out, leads to boost in sales of ebooks etc).

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Facebook – General – Part 2 – Winchester Discovery Centre

Looking forward to taking part in the Winchester Discovery Centre’s 10th-anniversary celebrations next Saturday, 25th November.

A group of local writers, including yours truly, will be giving short talks and readings throughout the day. There will be a range of other activities going on throughout the day too.

There is a video clip on the link below. Hope to put up more details a little later on in the week but, if you can, do come along and enjoy the day at the Centre. Should be fun.

Libraries are fabulous places. Go and explore! Image via Pixabay.
Looking forward to being at the Discovery Centre in Winchester on 25th November. If you have time go and visit the Catherdral too. Jane Austen is buried here. Image via Pixabay.
Classic Books – old and new can be found in the library. Enjoy! Image by Pixabay.
Great stories often start this way but historical narrative shouldn’t! Image taken by Allison Symes
Beautiful books. Image via Pixabay.
Libraries and bookshops are vital to encourage literary – image via Pixabay.
A truly beautiful library but do the books in it meet my criteria for what makes a good story. I would hope so! Image via Pixabay.

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again Part 1

Just sometimes I like to write something different for my blog posts!  This story will end up, I hope, in my second book.

I ran till I could run no more.
I dropped to the thick forest floor.
The sounds behind me had now gone
But I knew it was a big con.
They weren’t fooling me anymore.

I guess it would’ve helped if I had
Chosen not to go to the bad.
But when a girl’s luck is so down
And she can nick a pretty crown,
To not do so would just seem mad.

Who would miss that one little piece?
Not the king. Not even his niece
And she was the one who wore it!
No, I thought, I do need a bit
Of luck my way, the bad to cease.

I’d sell this lovely work of art.
I knew I must make myself part
With it so I could try to use
The money to feed my own muse.
Well, all writers need a good start!

Allison Symes – 18th November 2017

A poem or flash fiction or both? I occasionally write stories in verse though I do prefer the more obvious prose format. It is nice to throw something different into the mix now and again though!

Enjoying writing the follow up to FLTDBA. Image by Allison Symes
Some of the books I’ve appeared in and FLTDBA of course. Image by Allison Symes
View from behind my stand at the recent Chandler’s Ford Book Fair. Image by Allison Symes

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again Part 2 – Vengeful Fairies

If you were ever in any doubt that fairies could be downright nasty when it suited them, have a look at my “mini-series” on this theme in From Light to Dark and Back Again. Job Satisfaction and Collector’s Piece show fairies having a great capacity for revenge (and why it pays never to annoy the Tooth Fairy. And you thought going to the dentist was bad enough…).

I’ve always loved J.M. Barrie’s portrayal of Tinkerbell. Definitely not all cute and sweet. When children are told to clap if they believe in fairies and Tinkerbell wishes she could “get at” the ones who didn’t clap, well I think that one passage alone sums up the fairy folk attitude to life admirably! (Oh and fairies are definitely not twee in Shakespeare either so why fairytales can sometimes be seen that way and “just for kids” is beyond me).

Fairytale magic can go awry – characters lose powers or become power obsessed. Neither is a pretty sight. Image via Pixabay.
The world of the imagination should play a role in your stories. I can’t imagine any world without some form of the arts. Image via Pixabay.
Fairies are not twee creatures… Image via Pixabay
The way to the magical realm perhaps? Image via Pixabay.
On the surface a lovely woodland. What magical creatures could lurk here? Image via Pixabay.

 

ASPECTS OF THE WRITING LIFE

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Facebook – General

What aspect of the writing life do you find most enjoyable? I find mixing with other writers at conferences and so on is the best here. I love finding out what others write (and often why too) and their inspirations.

Biggest problem? Finding enough time to read widely so I continue to feed my mind with ideas! Solution: working on it. I read at bedtime but am often too tired to read as much as I’d like to do.

I love that spark of creativity that comes as you write that initial draft. I also love the editing process and I swear I can almost feel that story improving as I take out all of my unnecessary words. I do sometimes wonder how many drafts Shakespeare, Dickens etc went through. I am grateful cutting and pasting is confined to the computer now. I have done this literally and it’s not fun.

What would I like for the future? I’d like people to make time for reading. I’ve heard people say they don’t read. Why? It beats me and saddens me as to why people don’t see the importance of reading.

Feature Image - Flash Fiction - Books are Gateway - image via Pixabay

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

Fill that blank sheet with ideas from non-fiction as well as other fiction works - image via Pixabay

The basic necessities of the writer’s life!

 

Facebook – General and look ahead to Chandler’s Ford Today post

My Chandler’s Ford Today post for this week will talk about what book launches mean for an author and share a report on a recent one by children’s writer, Anne Wan. More details and the link tomorrow.

This post made me think more about the special moments in a writer’s life. The first is completing your first story or article. Okay, it will need a lot of work. Okay, it may never be published but it is proof you are on your way as a writer.

First publication (online or in print) is an obvious special moment. Someone else liked your work enough to want to publish it. (Even those you know who aren’t fond of books or understand your wish to write WILL understand this one is special).

Receiving your first comments on blog posts or your website (and hopefully they’ll be positive ones) indicates you are reaching out to your readers. Going to your first writing conference and meeting with writers in and out of your genre and learning from them and the courses you go to is a stand-out time too. You learn to network from things like this and each course will be a mini-master class.

So what would you count as a special writing moment?

Anne Wan and Allison Symes at Bay Leaves Larder

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

All of my stories in From Light to Dark and Back Again are under 1000 words and most of them are in my speciality, the 100-word tales. But there are some 250-words, 500-words etc tales in there too. The longer stories have room for a greater depth of characterisation, which can make the difference to your tale “working” or not.

Some of these longer flash fiction tales focus on familiar fairytales but others are complete crime stories. They were all fun to write! In all of the stories in the book, the length of the tale is right for that particular story. And that is what matters whatever you write.

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From my railway station signing. The lovely origami boxes were made by my CFT editor, Janet Williams.

 

And Finally – Personal Note:  Mabel

I have sometimes mentioned my border collie, Mabel, when writing online and I am sorry to have to say she had to be put to sleep last week.  She was 13 and had been ailing for some time.  While we knew it was coming, her loss has been and continues to be a huge loss for my family and I.  In the fullness of time, we hope to adopt and rescue another down on its luck collie but right now we mourn Mabel but are grateful for the five very happy years we had with her.  She nearly died five years ago when she was abandoned on a cold January night and tied to a lamp-post.

In the fullness of time, we hope to adopt and rescue another down on its luck collie but right now we mourn Mabel while grateful for the five very happy years we had with her.  She nearly died five years ago when she was abandoned on a cold January night and tied to a lamp-post. She was rescued by animal charity, Oldies Club, who specialise in rehoming older dog.  They send their dogs out to fosterers so reports can be written about how the animals settle into home life and a big thank you must also go to Mabel’s fabulous fosterer, Wendy Nutland.

Mabel-Gracie

My two girls, both much missed. Mabel, the border collie, left us last week. Gracie, the bearded/border cross, left us five years ago. And yes it is the same ball. They both loved it.

 

IN THE MOOD FOR READING AND WRITING…

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Facebook – General

My Chandler’s Ford Today post this week will be an overview of the recent Hiltingbury Extravaganza. It was my first experience of being “behind” a stall too and I’m glad to say all the writers at the HE sold books and spread the word about creative writing, the Hampshire Writers’ Society and so on. More details tomorrow.

What is the important thing about writing? That it encourages reading, I think. Reading widely and well, whether it is non-fiction or fiction, encourages the development of a wider vocabulary and can help develop empathy (as you root for specific characters), It also sets the imagination free to explore worlds you would never visit (especially if you read sci-fi or fantasy!), or to explore ideas new to you.

And there’s always the joy of trying to work out who the killer in a crime novel is long before getting to the end of the said book! I can sometimes guess this correctly, other times the author keeps me on the hop, and occasionally I name the killer but fail to spot the real motive behind the crime. Reading crime novels can be like puzzle solving.

So whatever you read I hope you enjoy it and find more books to relish. I always feel sad when people say they don’t have time to read. That tells me someone is not taking time out to feed their minds with literature. It also tells me they are missing out on a great deal too!

 

More of the books

At the Hiltingbury Extravaganza.  Image by Allison Symes.  (The weather certainly wasn’t extravagant!)

 

The writers' book stand

The books here range from my flash fiction to YA fantasy/time travel and short story collections.  Image by Allison Symes

 

Barbara hard at work spreading the word about books and ours especially

And romantic comedy is represented here.  Image by Allison Symes

 

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Do I find it easier to write the funny or darker flash fiction tales?

Difficult to tell as both humorous and more sombre writing come naturally to me but if I have the character in my head and a rough idea of where I want to finish the story, then away I go.

Also, a lot depends on mood. On a day when nothing seems to go right, it can be more of an effort to write anything remotely funny! On days like that though if I want to write about an irritated character, that comes very easily indeed. I don’t even have to put myself in the character’s head for that one!

Writing can sometimes be likened to method acting when you are trying to work out motivations. Being irritated yourself and then writing about an irritated character, well there’s no pretending required. You know something of what would lead that character to feeling uppity so can write with ease about it. I’ve found it’s one of the few good things about being edgy – if you need to write edgy, it will be easy and it can get a lot of that edginess out of your system writing it out of yourself and into a character instead!

The downside? Writing about a real monster of a character and people wondering what inspired you to write that! (Don’t tell them or come out with a really good story like Mary Shelley did and blame it on a dream!). Happy writing!

 

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Dark or funny stories?  Which are easiest to write?  Image via Pixabay

 

WHAT I LIKE IN MY FICTION

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What I Like in My Fiction

When not writing, I love to read crime fiction, history (fiction and otherwise!), fantasy (naturally) and non-fiction such as the Ben Macintyre books. (Particularly enjoyed Operation Mincemeat, which gave the true story behind The Man Who Never Was).

The problem with history, of course, is we all know it is written by the winners, something Richard III would have good cause to complain about if in a position to do so! (Don’t you just know the story would be very different indeed if he’d won Bosworth!). What always annoys me with his story is the historian John Rous given he praised Richard to the heights during Richard’s reign and then condemned him during Henry Tudor’s time on the throne. The very definition of hypocrisy I feel!

Classics - image via Pixabay

Classics – image via Pixabay

So how DO you write about history using fiction to do so? My interview on Chandler’s Ford Today on Friday will be with Gill James and we talk about her historical work, The House on Schellberg Street.

We discuss, amongst other things, why write historical fiction when “real” history is full of stories anyway. Gill gives some wonderful insights into writing historical fiction.

The interview will be in two parts and I hope it will show what historical fiction can achieve. It can fill the gaps where facts do not exist for one thing. It shows what could’ve happened and leaves you to think about it (which is why I love The Daughter of Time by Josephine Tey).

Shakespeare had his quill, modern writers have their laptops. Image via Pixabay.

Such a familiar look. Image via Pixabay.

Capturing Moments in Time

 

If a short story captures a moment in time, then I think it is fair to say that a flash fiction piece captures half of that. Sometimes you don’t need to see the whole moment to gauge what a character is like or how the incident in the flash fiction piece would unfold if the writer expanded the tale out to the more usual length of a story. A glimpse can be more than enough to tell you what you need to know!

Flash fiction is a good vehicle for quirky stories that perhaps do not have the most obvious home to go to. Less really is more at times. For me, the best stories (of whatever length) are on the understated side. You feel the characters’ pain, anxieties etc. They are not forced on you. You as the reader are left to work things out. I love doing this myself. It can be great fun reading on to see if you guessed correctly.

 

The magic of stories. Image via Pixabay

The magic of stories. Image via Pixabay

 

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Never give up, work hard, be disciplined... all valuable traits for success, whether you're a tennis player, a writer or a character in a story! Image via Pixabay.

Never give up, work hard, be disciplined… all valuable traits for success, whether you’re a tennis player, a writer or a character in a story! Image via Pixabay.

The magic of stories. Image via Pixabay

WHY I WRITE AND “CIRCLE STORIES”

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POSTS FROM MY FACEBOOK AUTHOR AND BOOK PAGES

General – Why I Write

The big advantage of a wet Sunday afternoon? Staying in and reading without feeling guilty about it instead of rushing about trying to get odd jobs done ahead of the coming week!

Am looking forward to my writing this week as I will be sharing a fantastic interview (a two-parter) with a historical fiction writer on Chandler’s Ford Today with Part 1 to come on Friday. More details later in the week.

I love reading and writing in my own genre (fairy tale/fantasy) but I enjoy reading outside of it more. Why? I’m expanding my horizons for one thing.

For another, it is so important not to lose sight of why you write at all. For me, it is because I love words and stories and want to share my tales in the hope people will like what I write as I like the way other people write. It is an ongoing virtuous circle I think. We all build on what has gone before and try to leave something behind that others in their turn can build on.

If you can make a living out of writing, even better, but because you can’t know that you will, there has to be this basic, deep down reason to write at all to keep you going during those times when all you receive in the inbox/post are rejections. Ironically you do need those rejections to help you learn to improve what you do and increase your chances of acceptances but it is never something that writers face with any great joy!

Reading outside my own genre reminds me directly of that fundamental love.

 

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FROM LIGHT TO DARK AND BACK AGAIN

Many of my flash fiction pieces in From Light to Dark and Back Again are what I think of as “circle” stories. You can see how the openings lead to what are the inevitable (to me anyway) endings.

I am also fond of the “eyewitness” kind of tale and I often use this for different takes on standard fairy tales. For example in The Outcome, my narrator is Cinderella’s fairy godmother. My first story in print, A Helping Hand in Bridge House Publishing’s Alternative Renditions anthology, took the same fairy tale but told it from the perspective of the younger ugly sister. Same events, very different views on it, two very different stories despite the powerful link between them.

I’ve also found this technique useful for getting into different kinds of characters’ heads and working out their motivations and what REALLY drives them. Knowing that makes my writing for them more effective and you may find this too. Certainly worth a go if you are trying to work out just why someone is acting in a way other characters would consider perverse, villainous etc.

Well, what is your story - image via Pixabay

Books make wonderful gifts. Image via Pixabay.

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

 

Allison's books

Where some of my earliest works appeared in print.  Image taken by Allison Symes