Tag: Salisbury URC

Blog Tour for Seeing The Other Side – Days 1 & 2 – and Meeting Readers

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Image Credits:-
All images from Pixabay/Pexels unless otherwise stated with many created in Book Brush. Book cover images from Chapeltown Books and Bridge House Publishing. Screenshots taken by me, Allison Symes.
Hope you have had a good weekend. Busy one here. Lovely time at the book event for Seeing The Other Side at Salisbury URC on Saturday, new CafeLit story out on Sunday, and my blog tour starts this week too. So plenty going on. Lady has been catching up with friends she hasn’t seen much of over the holiday so all well there too.

Facebook – General

8th September 2026 – second post

Delighted to share another blog tour post today. I was interviewed by Wendy H Jones on The Nuts and Bolts of Flash Fiction as part of the tour for Seeing The Other Side.

It was wonderful answering the in-depth questions and I had great fun here. Amongst topics discussed are what drew me to flash fiction writing, why I think flash is growing in popularity as a genre (and long may that continue), and I share thoughts on first steps in writing flash too. There is much more in the interview so do check it out.

There is also another fabulous review for my new flash fiction collection so many thanks to Wendy for that and the interview.

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8th September 2026 – 1st post

Day 2 of the blog tour for Seeing The Other Side sees my book reviewed by Maressa Mortimer on her Vicarious Living website. Many thanks, Maressa, for a fabulous review.

To check the full review out and a great summary of what flash fiction is and can be do see the link. Meantime one happy author will share a snippet of that review here.

Seeing the Other Side is a great collection of Flash Fiction stories, the third in the series. Allison Symes, the author, has done a brilliant job with this third book. Although each of her books are slightly different, this new collection is varied and attractive. Seeing the Other Side is another great looking book, and as the stories are so short, it makes an ideal present or coffee table book.

Seeing the Other Side ~ Allison Symes

 

7th September – Writers’ Narrative – 1st post

Busy day today. More posts from me today too. First up is my latest article on Writers’ Narrative, where I look at The Business of Writing In The Short Fiction Forms.

I discuss why networking with other authors, as well as being great fun, can do so much with your getting to know the writing industry. You do need to know that which is relevant to your writing.

Part of the problem can be in not knowing what you need to know or knowing you need advice but have no idea where to turn for that. This is where supportive fellow authors are a real blessing. I’ve learned so much over the years from talking with other writers which has been so beneficial.

It was another author who told me about The Society of Authors and someone else mentioned The Association of Christian Writers, both of which have given me so much help and support over the years.

I also look at knowing what to expect for submissions and I share useful tips too, all of which I’ve made good use of and continue to do so.

Hope you find the post useful.

7th September – 2nd post – start of my blog tour for Seeing The Other Side

Second post tonight is to celebrate the start of my blog tour for Seeing The Other Side. Many thanks to Lynsey Adams of Reading Between the Lines Book Vlog for organising everything.
It is apt she starts the tour by interviewing me about what inspired me to write my new flash fiction collection and by also sharing a splendid review. Do see the link and screenshot for more.

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7th September – 3rd post – Substack story
Third post tonight and just in case you thought I’d forgotten, given it’s Monday, it’s story time. I share The Advert which I first shared on my Substack platform yesterday. Do look out for my YouTube story which I’ll be sharing on my From Light to Dark and Back Again Facebook page because the two stories are linked.

Hope you enjoy both but first up for your delectation is The Advert.

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6th September – CafeLit story
Hope the weekend has gone well. Good to have a quieter day after being out and about yesterday. I hope to join Salisbury URC again later in the year for their Christmas Fayre. More details nearer the time.

Blog tour for Seeing The Other Side starts tomorrow, 7th September. Looking forward to that.
Meantime, I’m delighted to have another story up on CafeLit – Truth Hurts. Doesn’t it just at times? Hope you enjoy it. And now to crack on with writing more flash fiction.

5th September

Many thanks to the lovely people at Salisbury URC for enabling me to have a book event as part of their regular book stall sales. It was great to catch up with people I know from the church and, as well as making sales, it was good to chat to people passing by. It was especially encouraging seeing and chatting with folk about encouraging the love of reading as early as possible. The children’s book stall did especially well which was fantastic to see. It was encouraging too. Children do read.

I had a fantastic time and the train journey is especially nice. It goes through some beautiful scenery. I hope to join Salisbury URC again later in the year to have a table at their Christmas Fayre. Yes, I know, but it will be with us before we know it. The event happens in November and I’ll share further details nearer the time. Always nice to come home with another “gig” booked up too!

Writing wise, I’ll be looking at Using Autumn In Your Writing for Chandler’s Ford Today next week. I share plenty of tips and suggestions here and hope you’ll find it useful. It’s certainly timely! Link up on Friday.

 

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

One of the joys of creative writing as a whole is you never stop learning. You always want to improve on what you do and you do with good advice and practice find the ways which work for you. This is especially true for flash fiction, I think, given you have a restricted word count to work with but that limitation can and does inspire creativity.

Flash fiction has shown me what my wasted words are, how to tighten phrases and express things in a clearer, tighter way, all with the objective of saving on the word count, but it does also have the benefit of improving your writing. I’ve found those techniques have also helped with my article and blog writing.

Flash fiction writing has made me think along the lines of what images do I want to plant in a reader’s head, how do I want to make them feel by the end of the story, and all of that means I am always writing with my audience in mind.

No bad thing that!

It has been an especially busy Monday for me given my new Writers’ Narrative article is out and the blog tour for Seeing The Other Side has also begun today. See above for all here.

But it is still Monday and around here that means it’s time for my latest story on YouTube. Hope you enjoy The Summoning. It links to my Substack tale, The Advert, which I’ve shared on my author page on Facebook. Both are inspired by one word from a prompt set by writing friend, Jennifer C Wilson. At some point I will do the prompt itself!

Meantime I hope you enjoy The Summoning.

Can there ever be a time when an advert in a paper is more effective than using some magic to bring someone back to where they need to be? Find out here.

 

Nice quiet Sunday. Lovely autumnal weather too. Will be looking at ways to use autumn in writing for my Chandler’s Ford Today post next week. Plenty of tips and prompt ideas to come from that. Have used some of these thoughts already but all of them are timeless and you can return to them again and again. Do look out for the post on Friday.

About to start flash fiction Sunday. I did get to share some stories from Seeing The Other Side at my event in Salisbury yesterday. It remains the best way to show what flash fiction is. I’m all for showing what a great format it is.

Flash Tip: I often start a flash story with dialogue but do get your character to hit the ground running with whatever it is they say. You want to create intrigue in the reader so they have to find out what follows on. The dialogue doesn’t have to be overly dramatic either.

I’d be intrigued to read on if I was to read something like ‘Jane, what have I told you about pegging your washing out properly? Your underwear is halfway to Portsmouth by now. Look outside.’

I would have to find out what Jane did or tried to do next, wouldn’t you?

Had a fantastic time at Salisbury with the URC for my book event today. I hope to write more about that for a future Chandler’s Ford Today post in a couple of weeks time.

Meantime, I look forward to having another story on CafeLit tomorrow, 6th September. It has been a while since the last one. Will try and rectify that. Hope tomorrow, as well as getting on with my usual Sunday flash fiction afternoon, to record a story for submission. Don’t want to leave it until last minute but I must admit I can’t believe where this week has gone. Did get the recording done and the story sent off. Now to wait to hear back.

And Monday sees the start of my blog tour for Seeing The Other Side. So all go on that front which is great.

Will be nice to write some more flash tomorrow though. I find it a hugely enjoyable way to finish my writing week. And you should love what you do generally because if you don’t enjoy it, why should anyone else?

Goodreads Author Blog – Meeting Readers

I was at a book event for my Seeing The Other Side recently which formed part of a wider bookstall selling good quality second hand books which raises funds for a church I know. It was great fun to take part in this and I had some wonderful conversations with people who did buy from me and others who didn’t.

What was fabulous was seeing so many still have the love of books and reading. I suppose that shouldn’t come as any surprise given we’re all on Goodreads after all but sometimes all you see in the media is depressing news about people, especially children, not reading for pleasure as much.

All I can say from my observations at the event was take this with a pinch of salt. Books and stories are still very much valued and I found that so encouraging as a writer with a love of reading I owe to my late mother.

Ebooks are appreciated – they do have their uses – but people still love the paperbacks. I hope to go back to this venue later in the year for a Christmas event and hope to meet even more readers, and maybe other authors, then.

I’ve also put in a pitch for a library talk locally to me and hope it comes off as that is also a fabulous way to meet readers and supports the library.

I think the hardest thing any lover of books and stories has, whether you write them as well or not, is trying to convey something of that joy to those who are not convinced. Always worth a go though!

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ALLISON SYMES ON SUBSTACK 

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AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

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Out and About in Salisbury

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Image Credits:-
All images from Pixabay/Pexels unless otherwise stated with many created in Book Brush. Book cover images from Chapeltown Books and Bridge House Publishing. Screenshots taken by me, Allison Symes. IMAGES OF ME AT A LOCAL BOOK FAIR WERE TAKEN BY MY LOVELY EDITOR AT CHANDLER’S FORD TODAY, JANET WILLIAMS.
Hope all is well. Am slowly resuming normal swimming in terms of distance – am about 80% there. Lady has seen her Rhodesian Ridgeback pal this week so is well pleased with that, as was the Ridgeback.
Looking forward to my book event for Seeing The Other Side at Salisbury URC tomorrow, 5th September. Hope to report back on that later.

Facebook – General and Chandler’s Ford Today

Hope the day has gone well. Lady caught up with her Hungarian Vizler chum and Coco, the lovely Labradoodle. Hasn’t seen either in ages. All three dogs had a super time.

Writing wise, I’m pleased to share Out and About In Salisbury for Chandler’s Ford Today this week. It flags up my writing event at Salisbury URC tomorrow, Saturday 5th September, and celebrates Salisbury itself to an extent. It is a lovely city to visit.

Hope to report back at a later date on how the event tomorrow goes though I hope the Salisbury URC, their book stall and coffee shop and I all do well! I do know it will be fun! And if you are in the city, do pop by and say hello.

Out and About in Salisbury

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Am thrilled to be able to share the following Facebook reel created by Lynsey Adams of Reading Between the Lines Book Vlog ahead of my blog tour for Seeing The Other Side. That kicks off from next week from 7th September.

Meantime I have also just sent in a pitch to give a talk at my local library after an interesting chat with them yesterday. Fingers crossed time! Would so love to do something here.

I’ll be sharing Out and About in Salisbury for Chandler’s Ford Today tomorrow, giving details of my book event at the URC on Saturday. It is all go but in a good way. See above.

Hope the day has gone well. Popped up to my local library. Hope to pitch an author talk to them – they were interested so fingers crossed. Blog tour for Seeing The Other Side starts next week too.

Will be hosting an online group for the Association of Christian Writers later this evening. Was delighted to see in the latest Christian Writer a friend of mine has joined them and got his book in there. Mine has gone out via the ACW newsletter. Hope it gets into the magazine too in due course. It’s a useful membership perk!

Writing wise, am busy blogging and drafting and proofreading, as well as marketing, so not sure of things to be getting on with but I like this. I love the variety. Keeps me on my creative toes and that’s never a bad thing. Filled in the feedback form for The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick today too. Did appreciate being able to have my book launch there. It was useful.

Marketing Tip: Start small, build up. Find things you know you’ll enjoy doing. I like sharing stories so will always find ways to do that, for example. Carve out marketing time away from your writing time. I say that because you want to enjoy your writing. Without that you would have nothing to market anyway. You also don’t want to resent marketing eating up your writing time either.

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Looking forward to tomorrow’s event (5th September) at Salisbury URC for Seeing The Other Side. Next week will be blog tour week for the book and I look forward to sharing the various links. Have now got my pitch into my local library for a talk there but have no idea how long it will be before I hear back but as the saying goes, if you don’t ask etc etc.

I hope over the weekend to submit my story for potential broadcast and on Sunday 6th September I’ll have another story up on CafeLit, which will be lovely.

Flash Tip: Know your character. Know what makes them stand out for you. That aspect of them will resonate with your readers too. You want to feel as if I’ve got to write this character’s story up. If they grip you like that, they will grip others. It’s why I swear by jotting down a few thoughts as to a potential character. I’ve mentioned before I like traits because they are a good way in to likely attitudes and behaviours. You can do a lot with that.

Lady has had a great day, having had a wonderful playtime in the park with her Rhodesian Ridgeback chum. The grass is also coming back! It’s much nicer to walk on and it’s fabulous seeing some green reappear.

Writing wise, as well as various things connected to Seeing The Other Side going on right now, I hope to submit a story for potential broadcast over the weekend. Happy with the piece. Just need to send it in.

I always record stories for this kind of thing on Zoom and play them back but doing this also means I know I can’t go over the allotted time span. I know what the time allowed is (three to five minutes usually) and I know what Zoom is telling me I’ve come in at! I also hear how the story sounds and whether I stumble or not. All useful stuff.

There’s also a story I need to edit considerably but hope to work on this over the weekend as well.

Always pleased to have plenty to do.

Flash fiction was something I found by accident.
But it made me a published author with books to my name.
Not every writing accident is a bad one!
The writing life should be seen, I think, as a long term game.
Allison Symes – 2nd September 2026

I’ve learned over time to be open to trying new forms of writing which is how I got into short stories and flash fiction at all. But I had to be willing to give it a go and take the view what did I have to lose?

I take the same view with competitions. Give it my best shot and send something suitable in. If I am shortlisted or win, brilliant. If not, at least I knew I tried. And, as I’ve mentioned before, when I’ve looked at work again, I’ve had another edit on it and gone on to have it published second time around.

There are no shortcuts in writing but there is plenty of support on the way. It’s the biggest thing I love about the writing community. With rare exceptions, it is supportive.

Fairytales With Bite – Musical Magic

Had a fabulous time earlier this week listening to the Classic FM Movie Music Hall of Fame. I suspect many take in classical music without realising it. Enjoy a Spielberg film? Composer will almost certainly be John Williams. I’ve always understood classical to be music which uses all of the sections of the orchestra and most film music does and to great effect too.

I love a wide range of music and think it is truly magical but would this apply in your setting and to your characters? Good music can take you out of yourself but would your characters ever want that? If not, why not?

What would the music be like in your magical setting? Similar to ours or literally like nothing on Earth? Would your setting/characters copy musical styles from Earth once they became aware of them? Could our music be one thing which might make them think better of us and could change a course of action they’d been planning to follow?

Story ideas there for sure.

This World and Others – Appreciation of The Arts

I love music, especially classical. I love poetry especially when it is read to me at Poetry Open Mic Nights. I love writing and reading, especially flash fiction and short stories. I love wonderful paintings (but am of the school of thought I know what I like when I see it). Generally, I appreciate the arts for what they can give us and those who practice the arts. I’ve got a lot of sympathy for the behind the scenes work and practice over years which must happen here.

But how do your characters appreciate the arts? Do they appreciate them at all or think they’re just for the “snobs”? What art forms are there in your setting? Could comparisons be made with what we have here or would they be far beyond us here in terms of scale, technical ability etc?

Do they have art forms which can only be on their setting due to its nature/your characters’ natures? What would humans make of these if they discovered your setting?

Can art help improve relationships between species? Could an appreciation of the arts change behaviours, attitudes, promote understanding etc?

Again there are story ideas there.

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WRITERS’ NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

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ALLISON SYMES ON SUBSTACK 

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AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

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New Season, New Books and Blog Tour News

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Image Credits:-
All images from Pixabay/Pexels unless otherwise stated with many created in Book Brush. Book cover images from Chapeltown Books and Bridge House Publishing. BLOG TOUR POSTER FOR SEEING THE OTHER SIDE FROM LYNSEY ADAMS OF READING BETWEEN THE LINES BOOK VLOG. TOUR STARTS NEXT WEEK, 7TH SEPTEMBER 2026. Screenshots taken by me, Allison Symes.
Hope you’ve had a good weekend. Finally had some proper rain. Already the grass and plants are looking better. Looking forward to my book event for Seeing The Other Side at Salisbury URC on 5th September. Am hoping the weather stays dry for that one because while I’ll be indoors, footfall is better when it isn’t wet!

Facebook – General

Hope you’ve had a good day. Not bad here. Had the best swim in terms of distance since my fall. Really enjoyable. Okay, I’m not going to break any speed records right now but that wasn’t the idea and recovery continues to go well, I’m relieved to say. Being in the water has helped too.

Am delighted to share the poster for the blog tour for Seeing The Other Side. Many thanks to Lynsey Adams of Reading Between The Lines Book Vlog for this and to the lovely folks who will be hosting me soon. Am so looking forward to sharing the links.

Meantime I’ve a book event to prepare for on Saturday at Salisbury URC. Am looking forward to that too.

Also author newsletter out this morning. It’s a good reminder of how fast the year is going!
Hope to submit a story for potential broadcast later this week too.

Have enjoyed a bank holiday Monday (most of the UK bar Scotland has had one today, scary thought is the next one is Christmas!) enjoying the Classic FM Movie Music Hall of Fame.

Delighted to hear The Lord of the Rings soundtrack came in at No. 1 again. I voted for it but do feel it has everything – classical, choral, opera, Enya and Annie Lennox. What more could you want?!

Today has been a treat for the ears and Lady had a treat too – she played with her Rhodesian Ridgeback pal for the first time in a while today. Both dogs so excited to see each other. It is so sweet to see.

Author newsletter out again tomorrow. Will share some details about my blog tour for Seeing The Other Side tomorrow. Lots going on. See above.

Meantime, and as it is Monday, it’s time to share the story I put on my Substack platform yesterday. Hope you enjoy my Menace.

Who will you sympathise with – Mrs Wilkins, Mrs Lake or my narrator?

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Hope the weekend has been a good one. Good to see some rain. Will be cracking on with flash fiction Sunday shortly.

Am making good progress on some proofreading work too. So looking forward to next Saturday’s book event for Seeing The Other Side at Salisbury URC. Will be writing about that for Chandler’s Ford Today this week too.

Have also got a couple of places where I’d like to submit some flash fiction so hope to start some drafts later today.

Character Tip: What makes you want to write about the character you’ve got in mind for a story? What is it about them that intrigues you? Are they “strong” enough to deliver the impact you’d like your story to have on potential readers?

I’ve mentioned before the first person the characters have to grip is you, their creator, but it is worth repeating. Usually with me I can hear a character’s voice in my head and something about their attitude/what they say is enough to make me think yes, this character has got sparkle, this one is definitely worth writing up.

Am delighted to be back on More Than Writers, the blog spot for the Association of Christian Writers, with my latest post, Summer Writing. Do you find your writing winds down during the summer months? I find it is a season of peaks and troughs.

I find I need to take some time out to calm the buzz I have on returning from The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick. A day or two later and I’m raring to go again. I don’t think the heatwave this year has helped either despite my following all the advice on hydration. There are times you need to step back and be kind to yourself. For me, summer is one of them.

I’ve always found lots of “little bits” of writing keep my creative mind “ticking over” until I’m ready for the full writing work schedule again. Writing flash helps here. I know I can get something written in, say, fifteen minutes. I feel better for having written something.

My post goes on to share ways in which you can use summer in your writing. I also associate summer with “light” so want “light” reading. Light reading I think is misnamed. Lighter reads can still look at issues but they are primarily there to entertain and I’ve never seen anything wrong with that.

Hope you enjoy the post.

Summer Writing

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Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Had some late news come in yesterday but am thrilled to say my Truth Hurts will be on CafeLit on Sunday, 6th September. It has been a while since I last had something on there so am pleased about this. Will share the link later this week.

Meantime why not check out the CafeLit website? Link here takes you to the Read Our Stories page. There is a great mixture here of flash fiction and short stories, across a wealth of genres, from newbie to more experienced writers. A new story appears at 4pm just in time to enjoy with tea/coffee and cake of course!

Had a lovely productive weekend writing. Have a draft ready for some polishing and then submitting later this week. Also received some good news about a CafeLit submission of mine – more on that tomorrow.

But as it is Monday, a busy one as always, it is time for my latest YouTube story. Hope you enjoy Plausible Deniability.

To be told you should master plausible deniability is one thing but does my character manage it? What cause could they have to want to do so? Find out here.

 

Have selected a competition to have a go at for some flash fiction. It’s the first time in a while I’m getting some stories out there but it has been so lovely to be focused on having a new book out and all that needs to be done around that. Thankfully, there is no use by date here though I hope to set up events relating to Seeing The Other Side later on.

Sometimes the competition theme will indicate a likely mood of a story, sometimes it is wide open, as is the case for the one I’m shortly going to be trying. So I will take a little time out to think about the mood of the story I want to write for that theme. I like to mix up writing lighter and darker stories. Suits my style and reflects my reading tastes too.

Flash Tip: It’s fun to mix up using first, second and third person for flash. I use all three, though the second is the one I use the least often. It can be highly effective though. Depends on how well your narrator comes across here so you do want a strong, interesting character to stand out here.

I found when I was writing more and more flash, I was falling into the habit of using the first person so have deliberately rebalanced to make sure I get plenty of the third person in too. Now when I’m thinking of a story, I will also convince what “voice” the story would work best in – first, second, or third. Some ideas naturally lend themselves to one so I will go with that.

How can it be almost September already? Well, that reminds me my next author newsletter will be out again next week. To sign up head over to my landing page at https://allisonsymescollectedworks.com

I hope to report back on how my Salisbury event goes for the October issue but plenty going on for the September one, along with my usual story links etc. The newsletter is always a joy to put together and if I have one top tip for marketing it is to enjoy what you do. It makes it more sustainable for you in the longer run. It also means it doesn’t feel like a chore.

Flash is wonderful for sharing as part of an overall marketing schedule which is why I put stories regularly on Substack and YouTube. More to come on both of those platforms tomorrow and Monday.

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GOODREADS AUTHOR BLOG – New Season, New Books

September is just around the corner as I write this and is very much the start of a new season. I have a soft spot for autumn. I love the changing colours of the leaves and the one good thing about the darker, longer evenings is they do give you the perfect excuse to read and/or write more! (And if you can do that while drinking scrumptious hot chocolate even better!).

September in many ways is the kick off point for new books coming out. There will be lots of events in the run up to Christmas (and I’ll be holding some too for Seeing The Other Side, which is lovely. My last launch for Tripping The Flash Fantastic was in 2020 when everything had to be online. I’ve been enjoying getting out and about in person again and hope to do more of this over the next few months).

I also can’t think of a better way to welcome in a new season than to do so with new books or with books new to you, whether you buy them or borrow them. I’ve sometimes done the latter and then loved the borrowed book so much then went on to buy my own copy.

There is never a wrong time for new books and to treasurer the older ones.

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The Joys of Book Rooms/Stalls

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Image Credits:-
All images from Pixabay/Pexels unless otherwise stated with many created in Book Brush. Book cover images from Chapeltown Books and Bridge House Publishing. Screenshots taken by me, Allison Symes.
Hope you’ve had a good weekend. Much cooler, almost feeling autumnal now but this is most welcome. Am looking forward to the book blog tour for Seeing The Other Side in September, along with my signing event at Salisbury. I hope there will be more things to come here – more news as I have it. Glad that writing and my new editing job is going well. Like to keep busy and Lady can always help me fill my time too, I guess she sees it as her job!
Also, late news coming in, am so very sorry to hear of the death of Dolly Parton. A great singer and an even greater person. Her literacy work was amazing. Favourite songs? Hard to tell but I love Jolene, 9 to 5, her own version of I Will Always Love You (and I like Whitney Houston’s cover too), Islands in The Stream and so many more. She will be much missed.

Facebook – General

Hope the day has gone well. Had a gentle swim today. It was nice. Good to see some chums too. Still feeling bruised from my fall but am considerably better so hope another gentle week will put the rest to right. Thankfully, writing can be done sitting down, which helps a lot. Standing desks definitely wouldn’t be for me right now.

Writing wise, I’m getting back into my pre-Swanwick routine. Have prepared some non-fiction pieces and scheduled those ready to appear later this month/early September. Have almost finished drafting my September newsletter. Would like to have a crack at a flash competition this weekend I think. It’s been a while since I last had a go at one. Always good to keep your hand in!

Want to resume working on my long term non-fiction project later on in the autumn. Picked up some useful thoughts for it while at Swanwick and want to put them into practice but know I need to clear my diary a bit for that and October is likely to be the earliest for that.

Mind you, that will be here before we know it. It’s a matter of time before we see the adverts for the festive chocolates and it wouldn’t surprise me if they’re already out, says she, sighing heavily!

Hope you’ve had a good start to the working week. Not bad here. Cooler and pleasanter, both Lady and I appreciated that.

But it is Monday so it’s time for my story which I first shared on Substack yesterday. Hope you enjoy First Home. If you think to do lists are a good idea but struggle to stick with them, this one may resonate.

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Hope the weekend has been a good one. Much easier walking the dog now the temperature has gone down a few notches!

Will be working on flash fiction Sunday shortly. Good to be back to that again. Had a lovely chat on Zoom with fellow writers last night. Great way to spend a Saturday evening.

Don’t forget it won’t be long before my next author newsletter is out. To sign up for news, tips, stories and more do head over to my landing page at https://allisonsymescollectedworks.com

Newsletter Tip: I make a point of sharing tips which will be of use to other writers in mine (and even more so when I have lots of news to share about what I’m up to, as is the case at the moment). I want readers to find the newsletters useful as I know the majority of my subscribers are fellow writers.

I will sometimes share links to articles I’ve written elsewhere given these can be a good summary of the topic for the month for the newsletter. And I do this because I subscribe to a number of author newsletters myself. Love them and these kind of “useful bits” for readers is what drew me into them in the first place and keeps me subscribed to them.

I’ve found it pays to draft the newsletter a bit at a time as the month goes on so there is no rush to get it out on your chosen date. I draft a lot of things as I go during the month as it is so it made sense to do this for the newsletter too.

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Will be nice to have a quiet weekend. August has been pretty hectic though the combination of a family wedding and The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick is a smashing one!

Writing wise, I’ll be looking at The Joy of Responding To and Setting Writing Exercises for Chandler’s Ford Today next week. Plenty of tips as you’d expect. Link up on Friday.

Writing exercises are great for stretching the creative mind. Many of mine end up as finished work, published in print or online or both. Others I know I won’t take further but I am never sorry to have had a go at the challenge in question.

Sometimes it is a case of this particular exercise not being the best for me but until I gave it a go, I wouldn’t know. Sometimes even there the spark of the idea I had I can use in another story. Little is wasted in writing. It might take a while for you to use it but the prospect is there.

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Nice time in the park with Lady earlier though I suspect we’ll catch up with human and doggy friends once the new school term starts. Holiday times can be a bit odd like this. You don’t see your usual crowd. You do see people you wouldn’t normally come across.

And a bell in the back of my head is telling me there are flash fiction stories to be written about that thought!

Fancy a go?

Meantime I’m looking forward to taking part in some writing exercises I’ve set with members of the Association of Christian Writers Flash Fiction Group tomorrow. I sometimes draft an exercise response in advance to give an example but I don’t always do this. Sometimes I write live on the night with the others which I hope to be doing again tomorrow. It’s good fun!

It’s Monday but at least it isn’t as hot and sticky as it was a couple of weeks back. Still time for a story though. Hope you like my latest on YouTube – The Perfect Recipe.

Mum has found the perfect recipe for a cherished family dish but will a certain blonde brat agree? Find out here.

 

One of the joys of having fun with what Vistaprint has to offer writers is getting to update my business card. It is one of the most useful things a writer can have on their book event table. People do take them and I attribute spikes in my Kindle sales to people taking these and looking up my books later on.

I’ve taken the chance to have thumbnails of all three flash collections of mine on my updated card, plus my latest author photo, plus my website details on the front. On the back I’ve gone for a simplified version of where you can find me online.

As well as sharing them at my recent book launch at Swanwick, I’ve had opportunities to give them out elsewhere since then including on the train home from Derbyshire. I do usually keep some on me on the “just in case” principle. It has been nice to act on that principle recently!

Looking forward to the next meeting of the Association of Christian Writers Flash Fiction Group this coming week too. Have set some fun exercises and plan to do them myself on the night.

It’s a great way to get more flash written and I love “live” writing exercises. Always an enjoyable challenge.

Am looking forward to joining the good folk at Salisbury URC for my book signing event there on Saturday 5th September from 10.00 am to 12.30. See the link for more info.

Am pleased to say September will be a busy month as the blog tour for Seeing The Other Side also happens then from 7th to 13th September. More details to come on that.

I hope to set up some local (to me) events but will come back on that as and when I have something set up. Having my own card reader now is going to make life easier here.

Looking forward, as always, to flash fiction Sunday tomorrow. Am so glad I responded to the CafeLit 100 words challenge all those years ago. Three books later…

Saturday September 5th, 10am-12.30 Meet the author

Goodreads Author Blog – The Joys of Book Rooms/Stalls

I’ve not long returned from one of the highlights of my writing year – The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick. This year was even more special as I had my book launch for my third flash fiction collection, Seeing The Other Side, there. It was a huge success. I sold two-thirds of my stock at the event.

Later the same day, I took part in an Open Prose Mic Night, read from my new book, and then discovered the next day in the Swanwick Book Room, the rest of my stock had been sold. I’d also sold copies of my earlier flash collections, From Light to Dark and Back Again and Tripping The Flash Fantastic. To say I was thrilled would be a considerable understatement.

I make a point, when at events, of always going to their book room/stalls etc. As well as contributing to what is on offer, such things give me a good chance to browse the works of other authors. I nearly always come away with purchases and love getting them signed for me by the authors in question.

Much as I find the ebook useful, this is where I think the paperback will always win. There is something special about getting a signed copy of a book from its author (and even more special when you’re doing the signing on one of your books – I wish I could bottle that feeling!).

I’ll be having a signing event at Salisbury URC on Saturday 5th September to celebrate my new book. They have a regular book stall there and it will be good to support that (and their coffee shop) as well as have my signing event.

Books and book rooms bring people together and, as an author, I relish the chance to chat with potential readers too. Books and stories are special. Chatting to readers directly is also very special and I hope promotes the written word more too.

MAILERLITE – ALLISON SYMES – NEWSLETTER SIGN UP

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WRITERS’ NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK 

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ALLISON SYMES ON SUBSTACK  

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AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

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