Author Interview – Val Penny and Historical Short Stories – The Ring

May 23, 2025Leave a comment

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Image Credits:-

All images from Pixabay/Pexels unless otherwise stated with many created in Book Brush. Book cover images from Chapeltown Books and Bridge House Publishing. Screenshots taken by me, Allison Symes. A huge thank you to both Lynsey Adams (Reading Between the Lines Vlog) and Val Penny for great author, scene, and book photos for the Chandler’s Ford Today interview this week.

Slowly getting back to normal after our Northumberland break. Has been lovely to see Lady catching up with her friends here. All overjoyed to see each other again. Resuming the writing routine too and am making progress. I don’t know why it is but the first week back after a break is always the tough one to get through.

Facebook – General and Chandler’s Ford Today

Hope you have had a good day. Lady loved seeing her pal Coco, the lovely Labradoodle, today so this means she has got to see all of her closest chums this week.

Writing wise, I am so pleased to welcome back Val Penny to Chandler’s Ford Today to discuss her latest adventure in print. Val has written a short story, Hunter’s Luck, which is part of The Ring charity anthology which is raising funds for The Reading Agency.

Val is well known for her crime novels in the DS Hunter Wilson/Edinburgh Crime Mysteries series as well as her Jane Renwick Thrillers. So writing a short story based around a historical object is definitely something new for her!

In a fascinating interview, Val shares how this project began, her own love of historical fiction, and working on this anthology and more. Do check it out.

Author Interview: Val Penny and Historical Short Stories – The Ring

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Another lovely day over the park where Lady got to see her Hungarian Vizler friend again. Lady gets so much out of being with her buddies. Mind you, don’t we all?!

Don’t forget a fabulous interview with Val Penny is on Chandler’s Ford Today this week. Will share the link tomorrow. Do check this out, especially if you’re a fan of short fiction, anthologies, and historical fiction as this interview combines the lot! See above.

Marketing Tip: Think consistency. What can you do regularly to share news about what you write? How can you make it entertaining for your readers so it doesn’t just come across as “buy my book”?

Sharing something of your writing process is a good help here. Many of your likely readers will be other writers and we are always fascinated by the process which works for colleagues. I try to think about what will be of value to readers when I do any marketing.

Sometimes a story about how you wrote something is a good way in here. It is my experience folk never mind this.

Hope you have had a good day. Lady got to see her Hungarian Vizler friend today. Nice time had by both.

Today is the eighth anniversary of Dad’s passing – can’t believe it has been that long.

Writing wise, I’m looking forward to welcoming Val Penny back to Chandler’s Ford Today on Friday to discuss her short story, Hunter’s Luck, which is in the new charity anthology, The Ring. The book is raising funds for The Reading Agency. More details on the post later this week. See above.

Am always pleased to celebrate short stories and anthologies! Okay the fact I have work in several may mean I have a slight bias here! I maintain it is good bias to have though…

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Thrilled to be back on Friday Flash Fiction with my latest drabble, Unimpressed. Find out why the Lady Frances Haversham has excellent reason to be unimpressed by someone walking through the wall and what she does about it. Hope you enjoy the story.

As you know, I sometimes take part in Open Prose Mic Nights (always good fun) and flash fiction is a perfect form for this. Doesn’t go on too long. Listeners still get complete stories in the allotted time span. Plus you can mix up the mood of what you read to give a good feel for what flash fiction is and can be.

I rehearse my stories using Zoom to help me. I play back my recordings so I can hear how I come across. When I first did this, the playback made me realise I was speaking too fast so now know this is something I have to watch for and not do.

I may not be able to “see myself as others see me” (to paraphrase Robert Burns’ “O wad some Power the giftie gie us To see oursels as ithers see us!”) but I can hear myself as others would hear me. That is so useful.

Anniversaries, sad, happy, historic or what have you, can make great themes for stories. Also have you thought of giving your characters anniversaries which mean a great deal to them and cause them to act in certain ways on certain days.

Story ideas there, I’m sure, especially if other characters have to get to the bottom of why Character A is behaving the way they are on a certain Sunday, for example. Could work as funny tales too. Your main character could have an anniversary about something ridiculous – what are the reasons for it? Do they realise it is ridiculous? Does another character have to show them this?

Fairytales with Bite – Resuming Work

Resuming work after any kind of break, especially a well needed one, is hard. Doesn’t matter what line of work you’re in for this to be true. So how would your magical characters get back to their normal routine after a holiday or even if they’ve been deployed somewhere else for a while? Are they glad to get back or has their break away made them restless for something better? (It may be they think it is something better but this isn’t necessarily the case of course).

How do those they return to welcome their return? Are they glad or are they wary of how your character will be towards them now? Do they have cause to think this? I always thought Frodo moving on into the west with the elves made sense in The Lord of the Rings. He had been damaged so much he wasn’t going to be able to settle in The Shire, whereas Sam Gamgee could. He had someone to return to as well, which made a huge difference.

Assuming all goes well on the resumption of work, how does the break away, for whatever reason, impact on your character? Has it made them better at what they do? Could your magical employers send people off for breaks, knowing they need them every so often so this is something everyone does and is therefore used to doing?

Story ideas there, not least because there could be a character or more who refuses to have a break, feeling they don’t need it or fear it for reasons of their own.

This World and Others – Leaving Your Life Behind

Having a career or any other kind of break can make you feel as if you are leaving your life behind, even if it is for a short while, even it if is for something good like a holiday. How do your characters handle this or is it a case they definitely want to leave their lives behind? What has driven them to feel that way? Does the break help them?

When your characters has to leave their life behind, what is the driving force behind that? Are they successful? What kind of new life do they make for themselves? Is magic involved at all? To help them escape or is it that they’re escaping from?

What are the consequences of leaving a life behind? Who else is impacted by this? Do they try to get your characters back again? Are they successful?

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WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

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Thrilled to be back on Friday Flash Fiction with my latest drabble, Unimpressed. Find out why the Lady Frances Haversham has excellent reason to be unimpressed by someone walking through the wall and what she does about it. Hope you enjoy the story.https://t.co/802R8m6mNK pic.twitter.com/2uMxFRyeNs
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) May 23, 2025

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Author Interview: Val Penny and Historical Short Stories – The Ring https://t.co/sONlhtGlfM Am so pleased to welcome back Val Penny to CFT to discuss her new short story called Hunter’s Luck. This is part of The Ring anthology which is raising funds for The Reading Agency.
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) May 23, 2025

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Why I Write – Guest Blog Appearance – and Characters

January 7, 2025Leave a comment

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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. Many thanks to Janet Williams for the photo of me signing books – always good to share those photos! Image from the Autumn Gathering in October 2024 (an Association of Christian Writers event) was taken by me, Allison Symes, as were all screenshots taken by me.

Hope you have had a good weekend. Ghastly weather all over the UK. Very wet with some flooding here. I hope all clears up soon. Writing wise, it was good to get back to my usual flash fiction Sunday afternoon, the first of the New Year. Am also looking forward to sharing author interviews on Chandler’s Ford Today in due course. And I’m delighted to say I was on Val Penny’s blog as a guest writer looking at Why I Write. Link below.

Facebook – General

Sorry running very late today (7th January 2025). Have had one of those days – good but busy. Lady was delighted to see her Rhodesian Ridgeback pal again today and I was delighted later, to have my first swim of 2025. The water seemed warm compared to the cold outside!

What one thing about creative writing do you enjoy the most?

My answer is creating characters who come to life as I flesh them out more. I love that process. It means I know I’ve got a character who has a story to share.

Okay, what other thing about creative writing do you enjoy the most?

My answer is getting the story finished, submitted, and accepted!

Best get on with things then!

Hope the first Monday of the New Year hasn’t gone too badly. Lady got off to a good start by seeing her Hungarian Vizler and Rhodesian Ridgeback pals again. Avoided part of the park (think muddy ski slope and you have a good idea as to why my doing this was a good idea!).

Glad to see Writing Magazine have issued their competitions guide again. Will have a good look through at at some point soon and mark up some possibles. I find doing that is a good inventive to then get something in for said possibles!

Character Tip: Give some thought as to what you most love about your character and also what you loathe about them. Think about why you come up with the answers you do here. It will give you further insight as to what your character is made of and you are bound to find that useful as you tell your story (sorry, their story!).

Hope you are having a good weekend. No snow here, thankfully, but it is very wet and there is flooding in the usual places around here.

Will be looking at a topic close to my heart for Chandler’s Ford Today this coming week. I’ll be discussing The Joys of Fairytales. It’s apt too as later in the month I will be going to see Cinderella, as staged by my excellent local theatre company, The Chameleon Theatre Group. Looking forward to seeing that and sharing something about my love of a classic story form on Friday.

Also glad to report there will be more author interview coming on CFT too. More details nearer the time.

4th January 2025
Many thanks to Val Penny for inviting me on to her blog today. It was a joy to talk about Why I Write. It is a great topic!

It makes you think about why you put yourself through producing work you don’t know will see the light of the day. (It’s why acceptances mean so much when you get them). You do need a thick skin and the love of story I think to be able to keep going despite setbacks (which every writer faces).

I also share something of my writing journey as that has a huge impact on why I write at all. See link.

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

I usually submit stories for Friday Flash Fiction over the weekend so will look forward to doing so again this coming one. It will keep me on track (though they are open for submissions again from today, 7th January).

I like to mix up my story moods for all flash I write and go from a mixture of light and dark (which directly inspired the title of my first collection, From Light to Dark and Back Again. Sums the book up well, I think).

Given fiction reflects the human condition – with all our failures and vices – I think a mixture of light and dark is appropriate for that reason too!

6th January 2025

It’s the first Monday of the New Year. It’s dark, the weather’s ghastly, and it is still a Monday. Definitely time for a story. Hope you like my latest on YouTube – Making the Best of Things. Perhaps an apt title!

I get my inspiration for my flash fiction and short stories from many different sources. I like this a lot. I’ve found it pays to keep the ways you’re inspired varied as it keeps things more interesting for me too and encourages me to “raise my game”.

Naturally I’m inspired by books and stories I love written by other authors. The various prompts are a huge source of inspiration, especially if I tweak them a bit to suit my purposes better.

The proverbs and well known sayings are often great for use as themes for your stories. And ideas do occur as I’m out walking the dog. (I note them down as soon as I can on getting home again). Reading comes into all of this a lot. I’ve been inspired for stories by interesting non-fiction articles or books as I wonder what my character might make of what is in that article or book.

Ideas are all around but it is a question, I think, of expecting there to be ideas and thus to be open to spotting them. Reading does expand the mind. It can expand your own imagination too. I like that a lot too.

The one thing I consistently find is if I’m especially tired, that is when ideas can be harder to spot. So I aim to be kind to myself, get some rest, and read. I know that will fire up my own imagination again in no time, spurred on by that rest.

Hope you have had a good day. No snow here but did have a very heavy frost. Am so thankful writing is something I get to do in the warm!

Looking forward to resuming my flash fiction Sunday afternoons tomorrow. I’ve also got a couple of short story competitions I want to enter so will try to start fleshing out ideas for those as well. Plan to send in a story for Friday Flash Fiction when they re-open next week.

Good to have my copy of Writing Magazine come through the letter box. Pleased to see Debz Hobbs-Wyatt’s piece in there. I recently interviewed her for Chandler’s Ford Today re her novel, If Crows Could Talk. I always see it as a good month when I know (or have heard of) at least four or five authors in the magazine. It is a good month this time!

Goodreads Author Blog – Influences

Isaac Newton claimed “If I have seen further it is because I have stood on the shoulders of giants”, rightly meaning he was building on what had gone before. But every single writer does this, regardless of what we write. Every reader will experience it, regardless of what you read. Why?

Simply because every author has their influences – the writers who have gone before. I have too many to mention but I especially love Pratchett, Austen, and Wodehouse (what a trio!). Every writer is inspired by what they read and readers get the benefit of that though they won’t know it directly.

Austen showed me the wonderful use of irony in fiction. Pratchett showed me fantasy and humour were a superb mix. As for Wodehouse, his mastery of the English language is sublime and his creations live on long after him. Nobody will forget Jeeves and Wooster.

Any time I enjoy a book, I am indirectly taking in what and whom the writers of those books were influenced by. I think this is a lovely thing.

WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

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Allison Symes @AllisonSymes1 gives a fascinating insight into an author’s world and she’s on my blog today. https://t.co/Yzckrmi3Do #flashfiction #shortstories #authors
— Val Penny (@valeriepenny) January 4, 2025

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Many thanks @valeriepenny for inviting me on to your blog. Always a joy to talk about why I write! https://t.co/szGZP0VeSJ
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) January 4, 2025

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https://t.co/piKtsH5Pou Many thanks to Val Penny for inviting me on to her blog today. It was a joy to talk about Why I Write. It is a great topic! I also share something of my writing journey as that has a huge impact on why I write at all.
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) January 4, 2025

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liked Allison Symes's blog post: Influences https://t.co/UzS2lQuaQq via @goodreads I look at influences on authors and readers for Goodreads this week. I have too many to mention. I won't be the only one who feels this way. pic.twitter.com/3sGGjUs7r5
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) January 4, 2025

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It’s the first Monday of the New Year. It’s dark, the weather’s ghastly, and it is still a Monday. Definitely time for a story. Hope you like my latest on YouTube – Making the Best of Things. Perhaps an apt title! https://t.co/9lWrcWK559
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) January 6, 2025

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Author Interview: Val Penny – Hunter’s Rules and Lynsey Adams – Book Blog Tour Organiser

July 26, 2024July 26, 2024Leave a comment

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Image Credits:-

All images from Pixabay/Pexels unless otherwise stated with many created in Book Brush. Book cover images from Chapeltown Books and Bridge House Publishing. Screenshots taken by me, Allison Symes. Many thanks to Val Penny and Lynsey Adams for images associated with their interview on Chandler’s Ford Today this week.

Funny old week again. Lovely sunshine followed by heavy rain – the British summer is in full swing! Had a lovely time watching The Chameleon Theatre Group’s latest production – review to follow on Chandler’s Ford Today in due course. Do check out your local amateur theatre companies. I’ve seen some splendid shows staged by The Chameleons. You may well be in for some good surprises here with your own companies. Also I see plays as staged stories so that and the idea of supporting local theatre all at the same time is a fabulous one I heartily endorse.

Facebook – General and Chandler’s Ford Today

So pleased to welcome back Val Penny to Chandler’s Ford Today. We celebrate her Hunter’s Rules, which was recently launched at the Harrogate Crime Festival. Well done on achieving something so prestigious, Val!

In this in depth interview, Val shares with me the joys of coming back to write about familiar characters, writing straplines, what she loves about book blog tours and crime fiction, and much else besides. Plenty of useful thoughts and advice here – do check this out.

I also have a brief chat with Lynsey Adams who organised Val’s book blog tour. Lynsey shares a few tips on what authors should think about when planning their own book blog tour. Again do check this out.
Am sure you will find plenty of information which is useful and entertaining from both ladies. Thank you both for taking part in this.

Author Interview – Val Penny – Hunter’s Rules and Book Blog Tour Organiser interview – Lynsey Adams

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Am off to see Bleak Expectations, the latest show to be staged by The Chameleon Theatre Group, tonight. Looking forward to that and catching up with my lovely editor at Chandler’s Ford Today too. Plays are staged stories when all is said and done so I see these as another way of taking in wonderful tales I might not come across another way. Nothing to dislike about that!

Writing Tip: When you’ve enjoyed a fabulous tale of any word count, why not look at it again and work out what it was you especially liked. If the characters gripped you (as I would hope they would), work out what it was which made them “do” that to you. What made them stand out? How did the author achieve that? Which details were key in getting the character across to you that way? There will be something!

Another thought – re dialogue. Now we know that fictional speech can only replicate real speech but it has the advantages of having far fewer hesitations and repetitions in it because we don’t want our readers to nod off due to boredom. But if you’re tempted to abbreviate fictional speech think about how it will look on the page/on the screen to your reader. It still has to “look right” to read right.

Hope you’ve had a good day. Lady managed to see her Hungarian Vizler friend and Gertie, a lovely Golden Retriever, whom we see from time to time. Lady went home shattered but happy (as one of her favourite tricks is to suddenly get a burst of energy and run around pals showing off as she plays with her toys. I have no idea if that impresses them but it impresses her).

Am off to the theatre again tomorrow for a Chandler’s Ford Today works outing! My lovely editor and I will be seeing Bleak Expectations (a stage play based on the hilarious radio comedy of that name) being staged by The Chameleon Theatre Group. Review will follow in due course. Am expecting plenty of laughs and Dickens based jokes. Should be a lot of fun. If you can, do check out the radio show. I thought it was fabulous.

Talking of CFT, I’m talking with Val Penny about her Hunter’s Rules and Lynsey Adams about book blog tours on Friday. Lots of useful information from both ladies. Be sure not to miss it and well done to Val for having her new book launched at the Harrogate Crime Festival too. See above.

As for this evening, I’m running the Association of Christian Writers’ Flash Fiction Group meeting on Zoom later. Theme is summer. Jury is out as to whether summer has turned up. I have had the sun back out today so I would give a cautious thumbs up to this one (given I know the rain is back for me tomorrow!).

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Delighted to be back on Friday Flash Fiction with my new story, Life Dreams. What does someone, whose species uses dreams to communicate, do to avoid being caught by them and dragged back to their own planet? Find out here!

Do look out for Friday Flash Fiction’s annual Edinburgh Festival competition (it runs in conjunction with the actual festival). See screenshot but more details will be put on the website soon. The FFF competition runs over two weeks. Worth having a go. It is free to enter. You can enter one 100 word story per week for the fortnight the competition is on so two stories in all.

The 100 word category is a popular one for competitions. It is a great discipline for sharing what matters to your characters. You give the reader what they need to know and the rest they can infer. Well worth practicing regularly (which is one reason why I submit stories to FFF often!).

Writing to closing lines is great practice for coming up with punchlines or twist endings. Every so often one of my brainstorming sessions will be to do this. (I also use such sessions for coming up with title ideas and opening line possibilities).

Once I’ve got some closing lines down, I rest them for a while before having another look and seeing what I could use. Inevitably there will be some discards but there will be ideas which literally stand the test of time with me. I then have the fun of working out how I could get to that closing line. The line will throw up different possibilities and I go with the one which appeals to me the most.

For example, if my closing line was And the day had started so well too, I could use that line to produce a humorous story. I could also use it to produce a sad or slice of life tale. I would then decide what mood I wanted to write to and then figure out what character could serve my purposes here. All good fun and then I write my first draft.

But what I am keen on is to ensure that lovely closing line I’ve got seems like the only way to end my story. It has to seem natural and not tacked on though that is true for any line for any length of story.

Fairytales with Bite – Agencies

In your fantasy setting, what agencies exist? Is there one, for example, to train fairy godmothers to an acceptable standard? Is there a law and order agency (and, if not, why not? Who would ensure criminal magic did not run riot here?). Who runs the agencies and are they accountable to higher powers? How do those higher powers operate?

Within the agencies themselves, what hierarchies exist and how did these come about? There would be potential for humorous stories here I think as well as dramas. Where you have organisations you have the competent, the incompetent, and those who muddle their way through. You could have fun here!

How would your characters fit into that kind of set up? Could one of your “muddling” characters develop something which proves to be brilliant? How would they handle their unexpected success, given others wouldn’t have expected it either?

You may not want one hugely powerful magical being running everything. It would be bound to drain powers etc. So how would the ones at the top of the tree farm out jobs for others to do and where could your characters fit in to this?

Would the agencies be your world’s major employers and how easy or otherwise is it to get a job with them? Does it depend on the “old boys’ network” and could someone break that if so?

Story ideas there I think.

This World and Others – Who Does What?

Wherever there is a setting, no matter how far away or fantastical it is, you have administration! It does get everywhere. To be fair, a job has to be done, someone has to do it (and therefore has to organise how they do it).

I’ve always loved the quote about Death from the Discworld novels by the much missed Terry Pratchett. The Archchancellor refers to Death as a Professional fellow with a job to do. And if you read the Death novels here you will discover there is an immaculate system of hour glasses and books. There is a reason why Death has a huge desk!

So for your characters who does do what job? Is it based on their species, their class status, or a mixture?

Do certain species have certain talents so your setting rightly deploys them for the jobs requiring those skills? How did those talents develop in the first place? Who organises your setting? Discworld has the Patrician and the Guilds. Who runs your world? Are they good at it? Is there any threat to their position? Do they give the most awkward jobs to the ones who might challenge them? Do they give offers others cannot, dare not, refuse? (Good way of dealing with enemies!).

If your characters are nowhere near the seat of power, and perhaps glad to be so, what would they do? What would they be expected to do in usual circumstances? If those change, what would your characters have to learn to do (and quickly)?

WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

This time I’m sharing the link to the May 2024 issue which was about memoir. My article is about Using Memoir Techniques for Character Creation.

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

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Life Dreams, by Allison Symes – Friday Flash Fiction https://t.co/mYH2ONTHoJ Delighted to be back on FFF with my story, Life Dreams. What does someone, whose species uses dreams to communicate, do to avoid being caught by them and dragged back to their own planet? Find out here! pic.twitter.com/PGFyVvaN6E
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) July 26, 2024

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Author Interview – Val Penny – Hunter's Rules and Book Blog Tour Organiser interview – Lynsey Adams https://t.co/H4miuL2TnT Pleased to chat with Val Penny about her Hunter’s Rules (launched at the Harrogate Crime Festival). I also talk with Lynsey Adams who shares blog tour tips.
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) July 26, 2024

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Author’s Voice, Revising, and Parties as Settings

July 23, 2024Leave a comment

Image Credits:-

All images from Pixabay/Pexels unless otherwise stated with many created in Book Brush. Book cover images from Chapeltown Books and Bridge House Publishing. Screenshots taken by me, Allison Symes.

Hope you had a good weekend. Lovely one here. Family party which we all loved and Lady was brilliant with our youngest family member (1 this coming week!) and a visiting spaniel. We found Lady crashed out in our hall at about 7.30 pm! I suspect the spaniel crashed out too. This week I’m running a flash fiction group for ACW and am off to the theatre on another evening so all go but should be fun all around.

Facebook – General

Hope you have had a good day. Lady got to see Willow, a lovely small Jack Russell, today, and Daisy, a very gentle spaniel. Whenever Lady gets to see any of her pals, she feels her day has not been wasted! Hope to be back in the swimming pool later this week. Missed it today. Was waiting for MOT result on my car today, thankfully it passed.

Writing wise, I’ve redrafted a competition entry. Am now resting it again. Have got it to the required word count simply by tightening up how I’ve phrased things. For short stories (this one has to be 250 words maximum), I do find it easiest to run it out on paper and edit it the old-school way. Doing that for this one highlighted where I could phrase things better and so I have!

Am planning to submit it over the coming weekend (deadline is end August but I want to make sure I don’t forget to do it before heading off to Swanwick).

A busy day but changeable weather again. Lady did get to see her Hungarian Vizler though. Lots of affection shown and they both mug the Vizler’s owner for treats. Two happy dogs went home.

Looking forward to sharing a fab interview with Val Penny on Chandler’s Ford Today on Friday. I’m also popping in a couple of questions to book blogger, Lynsey Adams, as part of this as she organises Val’s blog tours. Lots of good tips and advice from both writing and book blogger viewpoints. Be sure not to miss it!

In other news, I’m thrilled to say Writers’ Narrative will be back in December, earlier than originally thought. Will share more information nearer the time.

Am counting down the days to The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick too. Not that far away now.

Despite the rain, we had a wonderful family party yesterday. Am recovering today (as is the dog, who was just brilliant. She loves people. She is literally a party animal).

Thinking about your characters, are they the type who love parties or hate them? Are they the type of characters people would be only too keen to invite along to a do or do folk ensure these never get invited to their place? Whatever your answers here, give some thought as to why the answers are the way they are. Story ideas are likely to crop up. To name just one, suppose a character turns up at a party. They have had the invite. It was sent out in error. What happens next?

Also thinking of having a party as a setting, what could happen there to change a character’s life for good or ill? Do they end up regretting going to that do or are so pleased they did go? Potential I think for feel good and humorous stories here. Goodness knows, the world could do with many more of both of those kinds of tale!

Hope you’ve had a good day. Apologies this is later than normal but have had a fabulous day celebrating other half’s birthday with family. Lady and my cousin’s dog, Lily, a lovely spaniel, get on really well and had a magnificent time. They also make excellent biological vacuum cleaners!

Am looking forward to welcoming back Val Penny to Chandler’s Ford Today next week. She’ll be discussing Hunter’s Rules with me, her new book which will be launched at the Harrogate Crime Festival in the next few days. Well done, Val, on that! I’ll also be having a chat with Lynsey Adams as part of this interview about book blog tours and there will be tips shared. So please do look out for this. It will be an excellent and enlightening read.

(What’s nice is I’m due to see Val again on Zoom soon. After that I’ll be meeting up with her in person at The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick. Looking forward to both of those things!).

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Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Don’t forget my next author newsletter will be out again soon. If you’ve missed any of my YouTube stories I do share links for the month in my newsletter. I also share links to anything I’ve had on Friday Flash Fiction for the month.

To sign up do head over to my landing page at https://allisonsymescollectedworks.com and I will also take this chance to say a huge thank you to my subscribers. Support much appreciated.

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It’s Monday. The weather has been all over the place again. It’s still Monday. Time for a story then. Hope you enjoy my latest on YouTube – Selections. Does the genie finally get to meet a non-greedy human? Find out here.

It took me a long while to discover what my author’s voice is and what helped me discover it at all was to write and to keep on writing. As I produced more short stories, blogs, flash fiction etc, a style emerged and I realised that was my author’s voice coming through. (Reading my work out loud regularly also has helped me hear my style and voice emerge).

One thing which is underrated, I feel, is the need to have a backbone of steel so you do keep on writing. You accept there will be rejections and disappointments but you also realise this happens to every writer. I’ve found knowing that makes me feel a bit better when the turn downs do come in, funnily enough.

I hope when I mention here I’ve had a rejection it will encourage others to realise that it doesn’t mean you stop writing. What you do try and do is write better, while accepting not everyone will get what you do. You have to allow for subjective tastes too.

The other thing which has helped a lot is reading more widely and in contemporary fiction, as well as the classics and favourites we all know and love. This is why going to writing events and discovering authors and books new to you is such a wonderful aid to any writer because you can’t know in advance always what will inspire your own stories (and it is fun finding this out).

I mix up how I decide my flash pieces are going to be. Sometimes I know the mood of the story I want to write. Sometimes I know the theme. Sometimes I have a character making themselves known to me and I have to get their story down.

For competitions, I like the open theme and the set ones. The latter challenge me to write to what someone else has decided here and that is a good discipline and worth practicing.

The former challenges me to think deeply about my theme and characters. Given the competition is an open one, I have to ensure my storyline and characters stand out. They have to be memorable to the judge who is likely to be reading several stories.

Goodreads Author Blog – Children’s Books

I have a very soft spot indeed for children’s books. My late mother encouraged reading and a love of stories from an early age, something I’ve always appreciated. I have fond memories of children’s classics such as Black Beauty, the Famous Five, Heidi, and, of course, my beloved fairytales.

Being hooked on red reading early on encouraged my development into reading adult books. No such thing as a YA category in my day – I would’ve loved it and I think it is a superb idea. I collected the works of Agatha Christie via Odhams Book Club (remember them, anyone?) and still have these now. But without my love of reading the children’s books, would I have gone on to read the Queen of Crime? I doubt it.

Someone has to hook you into reading in the first place and this is where the children’s authors come in. It has long been a belief of mine that all writers of books for adults owe a huge debt to the children’s writers. They do grow our audience for us.

It was a great joy, when I became a parent, to select children’s books and, later, to see my child pick their own. (That’s a good thing to encourage too). I was especially fond of the children’s treasuries of stories (as my child was) precisely because there were lots of tales to dip into. They are the perfect books for that.

Each generation needs its children’s writers. It also needs its adult writers. I don’t know if any survey has ever been done on this but it would not surprise me much if it was found 90% + of all readers say they owe their love of reading to loving books as a child.

WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

The fabulous news is Writers’ Narrative will be back in December 2024, earlier than anticipated. Meanwhile, I hope you enjoy the edition from June 2024 which focused on poetry. My article explored the links between flash fiction and poetry. There are more than you might think!

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

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liked Allison Symes's blog post: Children's Books https://t.co/NvpVq4VRL4 via @goodreads I always enjoy writing my Goodreads posts but this week's one is on a subject very close to my heart – children's books. Hope you enjoy it. pic.twitter.com/pooRCuwRmg
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) July 20, 2024

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It’s Monday. The weather has been all over the place again. It’s still Monday. Time for a story then. Hope you enjoy my latest on YouTube – Selections. Does the genie finally get to meet a non-greedy human? Find out here.https://t.co/CC4JUsot54
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) July 22, 2024

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Characters and Lost In A Bad Book

January 9, 2024Leave a comment

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Image Credits:-

All images from Pixabay/Pexels unless otherwise stated with many created in Book Brush. Book cover images from Chapeltown Books and Bridge House Publishing. Screenshots taken by me, Allison Symes.

Hope you had a good weekend. Had first snow in my part of the world but it didn’t settle. Big coat time! Mind you, Lady takes the view her coat suits all weathers and all occasions! Was pleased to be back on Friday Flash Fiction last week and have managed to get in my first competition entry of the year so a good start.

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Brrr…bitterly cold in my part of the world today, not that Lady noticed. I did though!

Delighted to say I’ll be welcoming back Val Penny to Chandler’s Ford Today this week to discuss her new short story collection, Hunter’s Christmas and Other Stories.

Naturally I was intrigued by the challenges a novelist like Val faced when writing the much shorter form of story. Writing short stories and flash is a challenge anyway but when you are used to writing the longer works, perhaps they are even more so!

Look out for interesting thoughts and tips on writing the short form and what led Val to go down this particular writing route. I’ll be sharing the interview on Friday and it will be part of Val’s blog tour this week.

Hope you have had a good Monday. Had some snow here but ground still so wet from the horrendous rain late last week it wasn’t going to settle. Lady got off to a cracking start to her week by getting to play with her Hungarian Vizler and Rhodesian Ridgeback pals.

Pleased with my writing weekend. I finished a story I’d been working on and got that sent off to a competition I had my eye on so nice to get the ball rolling with this one. Also working on various blogs and a couple of PowerPoints for future use.

It is one of those things that I do tend to write a fair bit over the weekend and less so on a Monday (too many other domestic things going on which even I can’t put off) but I take the view as long as over the week as a whole I’ve got certain things done, that’s fine.

I don’t set myself a word count target per day because I know life can get in the way of that. I do set myself a task I’d like to get done each day (and for longer works to get to a next stage on them). Most of the time I do it and that’s fine because when I can’t, it’s because I’m away, ill etc. Learning not to beat yourself up as a writer helps a lot! A relaxed writer is (usually) a reasonably happy one!

Hope you are having a good weekend. Weather has dried out but it has become bitterly cold. Still, it is January. Lady doesn’t mind the weather but when the rain is especially heavy she’s not sorry to get home either.

Characters are the bedrock of any story in any format because they are what readers/listeners/viewers get behind. We like Character X. We hope Character Y gets their overdue comeuppance etc. This is why I start with working out characters and then figuring out the kind of story they would star in to be at their best or worst (depending on whether they’re the villain or not. A “good” villain will be at their worst after all).

So understanding what makes us tick is key to understanding what could make your characters tick. This is where reading widely comes in because it gives you the chance to work out the kind of characters you like reading about. From that, you can work out what it is you like and then how you can apply that to your own creations. There will always be a need for good and bad characters in fiction – what matters is how we portray them.

Many thanks for the great comments coming in on A New Start, my first story on Friday Flash Fiction for 2024. Hopefully, many more stories to come and do check out the website – there are marvellous tales here.

Why do I love the drabble/100-worder?

Firstly, it was my introduction to the world of flash fiction so it will always have a special place in my heart just due to that.

Secondly, I just adore the tightness of this word count limit. You have enough words to give enough detail but nothing more.

Thirdly, these are great for twist endings and/or humorous ones. These work well in the longer forms of flash fiction too but I think there is something more direct about the 100-worder. Impact isn’t diluted because the word count here is so tight.

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Writing for online sites such as CafeLit and Friday Flash Fiction is a great way to hone your writing skills and, in the case of the latter, to get useful feedback on your stories.

In the case of CafeLit you have the chance to end up in their annual print anthology too. CafeLit takes stories from 100 words up to 3000 words so there is plenty of scope there for the flash fiction and short story writers. Why not give both websites a try?

With Friday Flash Fiction, you need to send in one x 100 word story. If they like it, that goes on their site on the following Friday. Then you can do the same again. After that they will be open to you sending in longer flash pieces but you do have to have two x 100 word stories on site with them over two weeks before you send in longer work. The idea with them is you create a new piece of flash for one Friday and then another one for another week. You don’t get to send in two stories in one week. See the link for further information.

Have fun here. I do!

It’s Monday. It has been snowing. Being a dog owner, am used to having to put a big coat on! It’s dark. It’s cold. It’s story time then. Hope you enjoy my latest on YouTube – Lost in a Bad Book.

One of the challenges of writing flash fiction is in continuing to come up with interesting characters. Thankfully, it is a challenge I love!

I mentioned over on my Facebook author page that characters are the bedrock of any story. See above. This is especially true for flash fiction. There isn’t the word count room for lots of description so I make sure I focus on the telling details which will reveal something of the setting and/or the character, leaving readers to fill in the gaps and they do.

It is one of the charms of the form. Readers do have to work things out. This is also true for crime fiction. Who doesn’t like trying to guess who the murderer is after all?

My job is to make sure I have put the right clues in place so readers can do this. The idea is at the end of the story, people can go back and think, yes, this clue should have made me realise this could be the outcome here. Twists must come from within the plot and character. Even in a fantasy setting, it all has to make sense.

Hope you are having a a great weekend, the first “proper” one back after Christmas. I see Amazon have updated the look of the Author Central pages. I like the new look. You can check mine out at the link.

With their update, I took the opportunity to update my author bio on here so it now includes what I write/do for Writers’ Narrative. Periodically it pays to have a look at this and update accordingly. It is too easy to forget to do it though!

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Goodreads Author Blog – The World of Books

I can’t imagine a world without books. I don’t want to either. But that does not mean I need my stories (whether I write them or read them) to be solely set in this world, a planet we know. I love fantasy, fairytales, and sci-fi. These story worlds can show us something of what we are like. Stories set in the future show us what we could be.

I love the way books can take us anywhere – past, present, future – and any setting – known or fantastical. While some fantasy worlds are easier to understand than others, I find I’ve got to salute the imagination behind them all. What is a book without imagination behind it? Blank!

Yes, there has to be imagination behind non-fiction works too. How does the author conjure up, say, a historical world which will intrigue present day readers? They have to think of the details which will draw us into this world.

I love historical fiction and non-fiction. I remain thankful I live in the era I do, for all its faults, but I can explore past worlds via books. Safest way to to do it too. I really would not fancy being at the court of Henry VIII, say, but I can explore that world thanks to books.

The world of books is an amazing one – any time, any place, anywhere. There is also room for more worlds to be invented in fantasy and sci-fi too. The only limit is our imagination. Books encourage us to develop that imagination.

WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

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AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

liked Allison Symes's blog post: The World of Books https://t.co/z1nAQBiBzM via @goodreads I celebrate the world of books for Goodreads this week. For me this includes fantasy/fairytale, sci-fi, and history. Books enable me to explore settings past, present, and invented. Fun! pic.twitter.com/DghWrKrUv5
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) January 6, 2024

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It’s Monday. It has been snowing. Being a dog owner, am used to having to put a big coat on! It’s dark. It’s cold. It’s story time then. Hope you enjoy my latest on YouTube – Lost in a Bad Book. https://t.co/bpzEcVARLK
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) January 8, 2024

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Delighted to say I’ll be welcoming back Val Penny to Chandler’s Ford Today on Friday to discuss her new short story collection, Hunter’s Christmas and Other Stories. Naturally I was intrigued by the challenges a novelist like Val faced when writing the much shorter form of story. pic.twitter.com/OO64pkIvUJ
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) January 9, 2024

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Locations and Author Interviews

October 10, 2023Leave a comment

Image Credits:- All images from Pixabay/Pexels unless otherwise stated with many created in Book Brush. Book cover images from Chapeltown Books and Bridge House Publishing. Screenshots (and photos from wonderful Northumberland) taken by me, Allison Symes.

My post this week comes from glorious Northumberland where my other half, the dog, and I are enjoying an autumn break. Gorgeous scenery. Lots of walking. Cosy cottage to stay in. Bliss! Oh and I get to write as well. Lovely!

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Glorious day spent at Seahouses and Bamburgh. Wonderful beaches, great walks, and fabulous views of Bamburgh Castle. One tired and happy dog again – result! Also am enjoying catching up with Terry Pratchett audio books while we are touring. Today, we managed to get most of the way through Thud and should finish that tomorrow.

Will be interviewing Val Penny for Chandler’s Ford Today later this week. She’ll be sharing news of her new book, Hunter’s Secret, and sharing good advice on blog tours. Link up on Friday.

I was writing postcards earlier this evening and it reminded me that one of the many names for flash fiction is postcard fiction, the idea being you can only write what you can fit on the back of a postcard. Now I have tiny writing so I can get 150 words on there (yes, really). Others in my family have huge writing. They’d get 50 on!

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Had a wonderful day in and around the Kielder Forest today. Gorgeous woodland walks, superb lake views (Kielder Water). Again one tired and happy pup in Lady! Looking forward to another day on the coast tomorrow. We like to mix up beach play and forest walks. Weather has been good too.

Writing Tip: Little touches can add great depth to a story. Near where I’m staying at the moment is a lovely bench which reads “Sit and Chat Bench”. Anyone sitting there is open to having a chat. I thought it a lovely idea but there are stories here too.

Fictionally, and in a setting of my own, I could invent someone who set up that bench and explore why they did it. Which characters would sit on a bench like that? Who would they talk to? What would the conversation lead to (because it would lead to something)? Conversations can change a great deal!

Lovely day out and about at Druridge Bay Country Park. Great beach. Useful visitor centre. Great walk around the huge lake on the other side of that centre. A perfect day out for dog walkers! Lady has come back shattered but oh so happy.

Will I be using some of the locations I visit this week in future stories? Don’t know right now but I will have them in mind if I want to describe a certain setting. I often find though that the odd telling detail is enough. For example, I could mention my character walking along a lonely, sandy beach and you may well conjure up in your own minds where that beach could be. (I can think of several in Scotland as well as in Northumberland which would come to mind for me if I read that).

What matters to me is having a picture in my mind. I usually focus on character but sometimes that will show me their setting as well. I then work out what I need to share in the story so it makes sense to a reader. Still I am going to have some cracking ideas for future settings during my time in Northumberland and it is great to be back here.

Am staying in glorious Northumberland for a break with other half and Lady. Looking forward to lots of lovely walking.

Will be sharing a fab interview with Scottish crime writer, Val Penny, for Chandler’s Ford Today next week. She will be sharing news of her new book, Hunter’s Secret, and wonderful advice on blog tours, something which is a major part of marketing for many writers.

What do I look for in any author interview, whether I conduct it or not? I like to have the sense the interview is a proper conversation as useful tips and information comes out of that. I like to see how the author’s experience is helping them now when it comes to marketing. We all try different things. Some work. Some don’t work so well. All of that can save time, money, and effort for other writers.

I do know I am grateful for all I’ve learned from author interviews over the years. And they’re fun.

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Many thanks for the great responses coming for Being Engrossed, my most recent tale on Friday Flash Fiction. In case you missed it, see the link below. Would you do what my character, Stephen, is planning to do here?

It’s Monday. It’s time for a story. Hope you enjoy Thirteen Hours, my latest on YouTube.

Flash fiction is great for use in various marketing ways. Firstly, I can (and do) create mini videos via Book Brush and YouTube to share on my social media timelines. Secondly, I can add these to my website. I sometimes create exclusive stories (video and plain text) for my author newsletter. I see all of that as advertising what I do.

When out and about at book signings, it is easy enough to share an example of flash fiction to people by reading out one or two. Doesn’t take long. Shows what flash is and what it can be capable of quickly. My experience has been people love being read to and I have made sales as a direct result of doing that!

And flash has helped me no end with my own editing. I am not afraid to cut where it is needed. I remember, years ago, being tentative over that. After all, who really wants to kill their darlings? They’re your darlings for a reason, right?

Hmm… writing flash sorted all of that out. If it doesn’t move the story on, out it goes and that’s that.

Flash focuses on moments but these can take many forms. An event is an obvious moment but so can be that moment of realisation when a character switches direction. What triggers that moment of realisation?
Also something a character says to another can be the spark for the changing moment. But the changing moment really does have to be important enough to trigger the required change. All stories show change.

Goodreads Author Blog – Writing Guides

Most writers, including me, have a number of writing guides collected over many years. The need for guides changes through a writer’s career. I started with the beginner guides and, much later, went to marketing and publishing books.

What I was after (and still am) is clear information presented in an entertaining way. I find I recall things better if I like what I’ve read. Also guides should be encouraging, otherwise why read on?

My favourite writing guide is On Writing by Stephen King. I am also fond of the Wannabe Writer guides written by the much missed Jane Wenham-Jones.

A good test of a guide is its readability (and re-readability). Which guides have you found useful?

WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

liked Allison Symes's blog post: Writing Guides https://t.co/NKA8X21vF7 via @goodreads I discuss writing guides for this week's Goodreads post. pic.twitter.com/ysdKKEGtcc
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) October 7, 2023

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It’s Monday. It’s time for a story. Hope you enjoy Thirteen Hours, my latest on YouTube.https://t.co/uzV5im0Z1i
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) October 9, 2023

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Writing Believable Characters and Writers’ Narrative Magazine

August 22, 2023Leave a comment

Image Credits:-

All images from Pixabay/Pexels unless otherwise stated with many created in Book Brush. Book cover images from Chapeltown Books and Bridge House Publishing. Screenshots taken by me, Allison Symes. Images from Writers’ Narrative magazine kindly supplied by Editor in Chief, Wendy H Jones.

Hope you have had a good weekend. Back to the kind of sunny weather you expect from August. Thrilled to say the September issue of Writers’ Narrative is now out – full details below. Don’t miss it. It truly is a great read and the theme is marketing. Is there any writer for whom that topic is not appropriate? I think not.

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Hope you’ve had a good day. Lovely to be back swimming today. The downside to writing is it can encourage the development of Writer’s Spreading Bottom, which is never a pretty sight. Walking the dog and going swimming helps!

Writing Tip: having regular time set aside for writing will help you produce more. I can never do 9 to 5 but there are hours I can do so I do them! I also see it as confirming to myself writing is important so book time for it. I think the regularity trains my brain into realising this is writing time (as opposed to editing time, say) so it encourages me to get on with it.

Delighted to say the September issue of Writers’ Narrative magazine is now out. The theme this time is marketing and the magazine is packed full of useful information. Pleased to say I have two articles in here – Marketing Your Books and Writing for Online Magazines.

Link to the actual magazine is below.

To ensure you don’t miss a copy you need to subscribe (for free) here – http://subscribepage.io/WritersNarrative

Oh and it is a fabulous read but don’t just take my word for it – do check it out.

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Sorry the Lionesses lost but well done to them for doing so much for women’s football and congratulations to Spain too. Am not a huge football fan I admit but I do love a good story. No surprises there. And it is a cracking story that two teams got to the Women’s World Cup final for the first time.

Favourite sporting moment for me was when Andy Murray won Wimbledon for the first time. As well as enjoying tennis, this was special because I rang Dad the moment Murray won. Dad was an avid tennis fan and he was so overjoyed the 70 year duck had been broken here. (I suspect the Duke of Kent who was then President of the Lawn Tennis Association felt similarly!).

It was a lovely moment because we’d not long had to put Mum into care as her dementia had taken a real hold by now and there was no way that could be managed at home. This moment – a shared joy over the phone with Dad was special to us both especially after such a difficult time. Yes, we were delighted when Murray did it again!

Talking of stories and how to create them, I will be looking at Writing Exercises for Chandler’s Ford Today later on next week. Labour of love writing this one! Link up on Friday.

Many thanks to Val Penny for inviting me on to her blog today. I’m talking about Writing Believable Characters. I create characters a lot for my flash fiction and short stories. I’ve alway believed the story is driven by characters readers can get behind. So it was lovely to talk about this topic with Val. Hope you find the post useful.

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Sometimes a phrase will pop into my head and I get with that an inkling of the kind of character who would say it. Instant outline right there. Often I will use that phrase as my opening line as it is always something to intrigue. Would like this to happen more often, it’s useful.

Dialogue is a great way to open a story. You get a couple of characters immediately (unless you have someone talking to themselves. That can intrigue. I would want to know why they’re doing it.). You also get a sense of character attitude and likely premise coming up. They are likely to discuss what has just happened as the story opens or what they think might be about to happen.

Bonus post tonight. Not going to forget it’s Monday. It’s time for a new story. Hope you enjoy my latest on YouTube – Getting the Message.

As part of the flash fiction group I lead, we share competition/market news we come across. The good news is there are loads of flash fiction competitions, certainly many more than when I discovered flash as a format. Indeed I don’t think it is possible for one writer to know them all but this is where writers help one another. Others have told me about sites like Friday Flash Fiction and CafeLit for example. Have been very glad of that information!

I must admit this is where I find a writing magazine helpful as it flags up competitions and markets to me. I also follow some writing groups on social media and these can be great sources of information. I see it as part of my marketing keeping up together (as much as I can) with this information.

Talking of marketing, the latest issue (September) of Writers’ Narrative is now out and the theme this month is on that topic so do check it out. Link to the actual magazine here (but do subscribe – it’s free and in the magazine itself is information showing you how to do this. Check the box on Page 33 entitled Subscriber News).

Sometimes it can be fun to put something unexpected in a story title. One of my favourites from Tripping the Flash Fantastic is called The Terrified Dragon. Well, you have got to read on and find out what on earth (or other realm) could make a dragon terrified? That’s the idea of course. The hook is right there in the title.

I have judged competitions where writers have not used a title even though the title was not part of the word count. Please don’t do this. A title is your first hook for a reader and you can use it to set mood and genre. It’s a golden opportunity for writers without using up your previous word count in a restricted form like flash fiction. Don’t waste that opportunity.

I find I have to have a working title as I write my first draft. Sometimes a better title idea comes along, I make a note of it and decide which is better later on. I also find having a title is a great way to get me started. I guess it is because deep down I know a story has to have a title so let’s start with that then!

Looking forward to the Association of Christian Writers Flash Fiction Group meeting on Zoom next week. Always good to talk about and write flash fiction And I am sure we will get some useful writing done in this session. We usually do and I am so pleased some have gone on to have their work published online and broadcast too. Keep it up, folks! I get to do more writing too. Will be looking at seasonal writing this time.

When is the best time to write anything? Depends on the writer. For me, it is in the afternoon and evenings. Mornings are pretty much out for me. What matters though is getting into a regular habit of writing.

I find that regularity spurs me on. You decide on the regularity of course. Once a week stuck to is far better than every day for a week and then you don’t write again, say. I’ve learned not to overlook those odd pockets of time we all get. They’re perfect for drafting down ideas I can return to when I’ve got more time at my desk. It also means I hit the ground running when I am back at my desk. I like that aspect.

Goodreads Author Blog – Favourite Short Stories

Confession time, I don’t have an overall favourite short story. I love too many of them to pick an outright favourite. But the classic fairy tales are amongst them. I also love the short stories of Agatha Christie and P.G. Wodehouse, as well as being a fan of their longer works. Sometimes a story is better told in the short form – I admire those writers who can do both.

I make a point of mixing up what I read in terms of genre but I also do so for word count. I deliberately read short story collections and flash fiction anthologies in amongst my novels and long form non-fiction books. I think a mix is good for you!

I will often use a short story or flash collection to decide what genre of novel I will be reading next. I don’t strictly read to order on my To Be Read pile. Does anyone? I go with what I fancy reading and work my way through! But the short story and flash collections can help me work out what I do fancy reading next!

WRITERS NARRATIVE SUBSCRIBER LINK

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AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

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A helpful article about Creating believable characters in fiction by @AllisonSymes1 Allison Symes is on my blog today. https://t.co/Wt54IyPiUp
— Val Penny (@valeriepenny) August 19, 2023

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Not long back from my annual writing event at The Hayes, Swanwick, so I thought I’d ask what you look from a workshop. I look for information, handy tips, and writing exercises I can have a go at. I get some drafts down then. What do you think? pic.twitter.com/5OzHDXRmL8
— ACW (@ACW1971) August 19, 2023

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https://t.co/C2p2ITSEkf Many thanks to Val Penny for inviting me on to her blog today. I’m talking about Writing Believable Chracters. I create characters a lot for my flash fiction and short stories. I’ve alway believed the story is driven by characters readers can get behind.
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) August 19, 2023

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liked Allison Symes's blog post: Favourite Short Stories https://t.co/UOtcvC2tdp via @goodreads Do you have a favourite short story? I love too many of them to be that specific but I do celebrate the short form of story for Goodreads this week. pic.twitter.com/oqzg07c248
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) August 19, 2023

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When I prepare a workshop, I outline what I would like those going to it to get from it. For my writing (fiction or non-fiction), I ask what a reader will get from it. It’s a good idea to bear this in mind, especially when editing your draft. What is in this for the reader? pic.twitter.com/EGJ6KRtsEJ
— ACW (@ACW1971) August 20, 2023

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Delighted to say the September issue of Writers’ Narrative magazine is out. The theme is marketing and the magazine is packed with useful information. I have two articles in here – Marketing Your Books and Writing for Online Magazines. Link below. https://t.co/PmCLtOLqun
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) August 21, 2023

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Bonus post tonight. Not going to forget it’s Monday. It’s time for a new story. Hope you enjoy my latest on YouTube – Getting the Message. https://t.co/C3fTAcq5fH
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) August 21, 2023

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I find on returning from a writing event, no matter how long or short it is, I need to give myself time to take in what I heard. Then I can figure out how I am going to use this information to help with my flash writing, blogging etc. Do give yourself that time. pic.twitter.com/hADFISLAmi
— ACW (@ACW1971) August 21, 2023

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Val Penny – Author Interview and News Update

June 9, 20231 Comment

Image Credits:-

All images from Pixabay/Pexels unless otherwise stated with many created in Book Brush. Book cover images from Chapeltown Books and Bridge House Publishing. Screenshots taken by me, Allison Symes. Many thanks to a kind colleague from Swanwick for taking the picture of me book signing there on my phone. Always tricky to do that kind of thing yourself!

Gorgeous, sunny week and Lady has seen many of her pals so a good week for her. Following on from my last round-up, am pleased to report more poppies emerging in my garden. I love those splashes of red. Writing wise, it is lovely to share a wonderful interview with Scottish crime writer, Val Penny, for Chandler’s Ford Today this week. See below for more. And a huge thank you to Val for supplying author and book pics and some great shots of Edinburgh.

There will be further author interviews to come soon too. I love sharing these as I always learn from them and I find it endlessly fascinating finding out what other writers are getting up to! Mind you, it does add to my To Be Read pile considerably…

Facebook – General and Chandler’s Ford Today

Am delighted to welcome Scottish crime writer, Val Penny, back to Chandler’s Ford Today.

We discuss The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick, Val’s two series of wonderful crime fiction, scheduling your work, and much more besides. I hope you enjoy a fabulous in depth interview with her as much as I enjoyed conducting it. (Am also looking forward to when Val brings out her collection of short stories – we talk about that too).

Val Penny – Author Interview and News Update

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Lady got to see a couple of pals unexpectedly while out on walks today and she loved that. Mind you, she loves seeing people. Most affectionate dog. Delighted more poppies coming out in my garden – love those splashes of red.

Talking of colour, I do use it sometimes to add to my flash pieces and short stories. It can make something easier to visualise. But I try not to just use vision when adding senses to a story. It is the obvious one to go for but I must admit I find it difficult at times to add in taste.

Well, for one thing, my flash pieces can be so short, my characters are in and out of the story again before they’ve had chance to eat or drink anything!

I never add anything in for the sake of it. I will bring senses in to a story, regardless of length, when it is apt to do so. But I must admit I do tend to fall back on vision and sound as the two basic building blocks here. I think many writers do.

Mind you, maybe my characters would be grateful for the chance to hear music, grab a bite or two to eat etc. I came across a lovely story in The Oxford Book of Humorous Prose compiled by the much missed Frank Muir where an author’s characters come to life and berate him for giving them such a hard time. Hmm… something to think about then!

Another lovely day in the park for Lady and her girlfriends. Three happy but tired dogs went home (and long before it got hot in my part of the world too).

Looking forward to sharing a smashing interview with Scottish crime writer, Val Penny, this week on Chandler’s Ford Today. Val shares her latest news, why she is now a member of the Committee for The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick, and looks ahead to her forthcoming collection of short stories. Plus there’s more. Link up on Friday. See above (and a great photo below of the two of us taken at Swanwick on my phone by a kind colleague!).

Reading/listening to author interviews is a useful tool for other writers because not only can you learn from them, you can use the questions to work out how you would answer them if an interviewer put them to you.

This in turn gives you the chance to really think about what your book/stories are about. That’s a good thing. Being able to talk concisely about your work stands you in good stead for pitching to publishers/agents (and for chatting to other writers at events).

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Amazon made me laugh today. You know they send you emails recommending what they think you’ll like. Well, I had one of those today and what did they think I would like? A copy of From Light to Dark and Back Again! Can’t have noticed the name on the cover! Okay they’re not wrong but…

Pleased to say Getting the Point is now up on Friday Flash Fiction. Hope you enjoy it.

Pleased to have got my story submitted for a competition last night (closing date is the end of this month, 800 words maximum word count so perfect flash territory). Have another story to work on for another competition later in the year plus interviews to get ready for Chandler’s Ford Today. It’s a lovely mix of writing work.

So looking forward to being at The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick again in August. I’ll be running my one hour editing workshop there. I have another workshop to run on flash fiction in July. So busy, busy, busy which is how I like it but it is also why I need to plan out what I’m doing when. Having said that, it means I get more done including entering more flash and story competitions.

A writing exercise I’ve sometimes used is to take an old story of mine and see if I can cut it in half. I’ll take a 1500 words story, say, and see if I can get it down to 750/800 words without losing anything important.

Sometimes I really can’t but I will get the story down to, say, 1000 words. Sometimes I can though and it is an eye opener as to what can be discarded and how the story tightens up considerably. Asking yourself the old question does this story/character really need this is an amazing aid to editing!

Just give yourself time for this exercise. It does take longer than you think but the results can be amazing.

Fairytales with Bite – Fairytales and Proverbs

Don’t discard your old book of proverbs. They are so useful in providing themes for your stories and fairytales use these a lot. For example, the saying Don’t judge by appearances would apply to Puss In Boots who is far smarter than his master. It can also apply to any tale where a wizened old man or woman turns out to be a powerful magical being in disguise (Beauty and the Beast).

There is a strong sense of right/wrong/justice in the classic fairytales and that will often be based on proverbs, well known sayings, Biblical quotes etc.

I have sometimes used a proverb or well known saying to provide a title for my story and I do use these as themes a lot. Part of the reason for that is these things are timeless. There will always be room for stories based on, for example, truth will out. You could take that in many directions and show the consequences – for good or bad – here.

Also if your setting is a strange one, having a basic theme which people will identify with will help “anchor” your setting. People will take to it because, even if they can’t identify with your setting, they can do so with the theme. Your setting can of course have its own proverbs (but it will help if they are loosely based on what we have).

Another favourite of mine is beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Think about The Ugly Duckling. Didn’t consider themselves a “looker” at all. Thinks about what your characters believe about themselves. Are they right? If not, who or what can make them see themselves for who they really are?

Many wonderful stories can come from having themes based on the proverbs.

This World and Others – Wise Words

What would your fictional world consider to be wisdom? What would be their wise words? Is the constitution of your world based on these? Are there wise words nobody argues with (and is that because they don’t want to argue or they dare not?).

Who gives your fictional world their wise words? What great teachers/philosophers have your setting had? Have their words been proven to be true?

Now characters (as indeed we will) can argue about what defines wise words. What can seem like wise words to one can seem like foolishness to another. What could that lead to in your setting? War? (People have fought over far less a motive than words after all). How would your characters resolve it?

Think about whether you have a character who is especially wise (the Gandalf motif if you like). How could they share their wisdom with others without being too dominating?

And do wise words “win out” in the end ?Can the right wise words said at the right time (or discovered written down) change the course of the characters/story?

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

Always love signing my books for people at Swanwick

Today I’m visiting Allison Symes @AllisonSymes1 to chat on her blog about The First Cut and all things writing . You can read our chat here. https://t.co/Q0D55hxDvQ
— Val Penny (@valeriepenny) June 9, 2023

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Getting The Point, by Allison Symes – Friday Flash Fiction https://t.co/AcuE3ZEmQX

Pleased to say Getting the Point is now up on Friday Flash Fiction. Hope you enjoy it. pic.twitter.com/m1gBxhmLMU
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) June 9, 2023

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Val Penny – Author Interview and News Update https://t.co/2g5zmueNbC Am delighted to welcome back Scottish crime writer, Val Penny, to CFT. We discuss The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick, Val’s crime fiction series, scheduling, and much more. Hope you enjoy this great interview.
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) June 9, 2023

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Anniversaries, Attitudes, and Interviews

June 6, 2023Leave a comment

Image Credits:-

All images from Pixabay/Pexels unless otherwise stated with many created in Book Brush. Book cover images from Chapeltown Books and Bridge House Publishing. Screenshots taken by me, Allison Symes.

Hope you had a lovely weekend. Pleased to say poppies from seed I planted last year are now flowering. Am especially pleased as I’m not the world’s greatest gardener by any means. Lovely splashes of colour and it occurs to me that with the right telling details in our stories, we can add splashes of “colour” to the portrayal of our characters, making them seem more real to readers. The use of the senses can help a lot here. I can picture a character in a red coat, say, rather than one in a dull coat. Dull isn’t a strong enough image for me.

Facebook – General

Today would have been my maternal grandfather’s birthday. It is also, of course, the anniversary of D-Day. (I’ve only seen mention of that on social media incidentally. Am surprised not to have seen at least a mention of it elsewhere). He was in a reserved occupation for the war. Other members of the family were in the forces and then went into the ARP and fire watched.

Anniversaries can be tricky subjects to write about given so many emotions are tied up with them. On those grounds, I tend not to write about them directly but where stories can help, I think, is where you have a character showing the reader what something, including anniversaries, means to them. The action of the story should show why they feel this way.

The nearest I’ve got to this is in my They Don’t Understand from From Light to Dark and Back Again where my character shares a poignant snapshot of his life. He references events many would identify with and certainly I just felt for my poor character in this tale. I hope other readers have done too. Sympathy and understanding are much to be encouraged and stories do have an important role here.

Lady got to play with her Rhodesian Ridgeback and Hungarian Vizler girlfriends today. All had a nice time. Mind you, Lady couldn’t believe the Ridgeback’s human mum really did not have any treats in her bag. Lady had to stick her nose right in said bag to make sure. Why can you never get a camera out quickly enough for things like that?! Lady looked so comical.

Good laugh had by all and Lady no doubt wondered what the fuss was about. All dogs can do a very good impersonation they are not fed enough, they desperately need more food/treats etc. Don’t believe a word of it, well at least as far as Lady is concerned anyway!

Writing wise, am busy working on another interview for Chandler’s Ford Today, as well as looking forward to sharing the one with Val Penny this coming Friday.

Also looking ahead a little will be preparing material soon for the next Association of Christian Writers Flash Fiction Group meeting at the end of the month. These presentations are always great fun to do and I set plenty of exercises. I do write up the exercises myself and on the night of the meeting too. Live writing like this is a good challenge.

The great advantage to it is nobody expects perfection. You simply can’t do it in the time scale (often only minutes) you’ve been given. The idea is just to get something down. The polishing and editing can happen later.

Another lovely day in my part of the world. Am almost at the end of reading 1000 Years of Annoying the French. Good read, humorous, and an interesting look at history. Highly recommend.

I’ve developed a love for non-fiction in recent years and often find ideas for stories spark from something I’ve read in non-fiction. Think about the spouses of past inventors who were never appreciated in their life time. How did they handle that? Did they appreciate what their spouses were trying to do? Story ideas there for a start!

I like to mix up my reading so the next on my list is a crime novel I’ve been looking forward to reading so that will be fun. Your reading as well as your writing should be fun (at least most of the time).

I’ll be interviewing Scottish crime writer, Val Penny, for Chandler’s Ford Today next week. Looking forward to sharing a bit more about that nearer the time. The interview itself will be up on Friday.

Talking of interviews, I do sometimes quiz my characters as I’m coming up with an outline of a possible story. I need to know my character is the right one to be the “lead”. I do see it a bit like casting the right actor for the right part.

I need to know their main trait (and that will often show me likely attitudes to spring out of that). I also need to know what would they not do if they could at all avoid it and then put them in a situation where they do have to face this.

Dumping your characters right in it is a fabulous way of finding out what they’re made of – it’s also great fun. Okay not for them but it is for you, the writer. It will also keep your readers gripped as they will want to find out what your character does to get out of the situation (or If they do at all of course).

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Many thanks for the wonderful comments coming in on Telling It As It Is, my most recent story on Friday Flash Fiction. All much appreciated. The views on my lead character’s behaviour is pretty much unanimous!

Mondays are especially busy for me so by the time I get to my desk, I’m already feeling tired. But the good thing is I am aware of this so I use Mondays for “little bits and pieces”. It makes me feel better I’ve got something done. Being creative at all helps me unwind which is just what I need after a busy day.

And one of my “little bits and pieces” is to share my latest YouTube video with you. Hope you enjoy Walking Away.

Sometimes I use an attitude as the basis of a story. One I’ve used is the idea of having to make the best of things. My story, Decisions, from Tripping the Flash Fantastic is an example of this.

So think about attitudes you love/loathe and think about how your character(s) could “act” that out. You are not telling the attitude here. You are getting your character to show it and readers will pick it up and run with it. I like to go with positive attitudes (it’s not a bad idea for life!) and as with Decisions, these can often lend themselves well to humorous pieces.

I love writing humorous flash stories. The mini story form is ideal for funny tales and to end with a punchline is a delight. I try to ensure the humour arises naturally from the characters and their situation. This means it is is less likely to date. Some things we will always find amusing and it is that kind of humour I try to tap into with these stories.

So think about what you find funny and why that is. One important thing to remember is normally in a comic story, the character themselves does not find their situation funny. It is for the reader to do so. A character can think their situation tragic (and with cause) while we, the readers, fall about laughing. If you look at the classic TV (and radio) comedies, watch (and listen) out for this.

Goodreads Author Blog – Book “Flops”

What do you consider makes a book “flop” for you? Thankfully, I’ve not had too much experience of this but if a character doesn’t grip me quickly, I’m unlikely to read much further. I have to care about the character. I have to care about what happens to them and what they do or don’t do to help themselves. There has to be the hook to draw me into reading more and then more etc.

For non-fiction, firstly the topic has to grip me. Secondly, the narrative has to be interesting. I don’t want a list of dates. I want a good read which helps me take in useful information as I go. (This is where I welcome creative non-fiction which uses techniques in fiction writing to great effect in presenting non-fiction material in a more engaging manner. I’ve mentioned before I love the works of Ben Mcintyre. His books read as novels though they are all non-fiction. Case in point here I think).

The biggest killer of a book is dullness. Dull presentation. Dull characters. Funnily enough, you can learn from books you didn’t enjoy and work out what it was that failed for you to help you avoid doing the same in your own work.

AMAZON AUTHOR CENTRAL – ALLISON SYMES

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liked Allison Symes's blog post: Book "Flops" https://t.co/EafkylhLVi via @goodreads I look at what can make a book fail and how, as a writer, learning from this can help with your own writing. pic.twitter.com/GxpOyXyNOl
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) June 3, 2023

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Mondays are especially busy so I use them for “bits and pieces”. It makes me feel better I’ve got something done. Being creative helps me unwind which is just what I need. One of my “bits and pieces” is to share my new YouTube video – Walking Away.https://t.co/Z4tqJ3cqIu
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) June 5, 2023

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Author Interview: June Webber – Publication: Never Too Late

January 20, 20233 Comments

Image Credits:-

All images from Pixabay/Pexels unless otherwise stated with many created in Book Brush.Book cover images from Chapeltown Books and Bridge House Publishing. Screenshots taken by me, Allison Symes, as were photos of The Hayes, Swanwick as part of my CFT interview this week. Talking of which, many thanks to June Webber for great author and book pictures for her interview with me on Chandler’s Ford Today.

Has been a cold week hre but Lady has got to have many “puppy parties” this week with her best friends over the local park so she’s happy at least.

Facebook – General and Chandler’s Ford Today

I am thrilled to welcome dear friend and fellow Swanwicker, June Webber, to Chandler’s Ford Today, to share her writing journey in Publication – Never Too Late. Her writing story is an encouraging one. I very much hope you enjoy the post and find it encouraging too.

Author Interview: June Webber – Publication: Never Too Late

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Hope you have had a good day. Another bitterly cold one here. Looking forward to chatting with June Webber on Chandler’s Ford Today – link up tomorrow. Her story is an inspiring one and I’m only too pleased to be sharing it. See above.

Where do you get your inspiration for writing from? As well as using the random generators to trigger ideas, the biggest inspiration comes from what I love reading.

I’ve always loved the classic fairytales so they are a huge influence on me. I love the humour of Austen, Pratchett, and Wodehouse, so those are huge influences on me.

This is why the more you read (in terms of numbers of books read and genres), the bigger and wider are the sources of inspiration for you to draw on. Other sources of inspiration can be topics on which you have strong feelings. I like to see justice done and the evil not to get away with it (again the fairytales have a definite influence on me there) so I will read crime stories which reflect this.

So having a broad reading diet then is a very good idea indeed!

It’s my turn on the Authors Electric blog and this time I’m talking about Flash NANO – A New Challenge In the Old Year. I look at what Flash NANO is and share what I found useful about it. It is good to be stretched, writing wise, every so often, and Flash NANO did that for me. Looking forward to the next one already.

Facebook – From Light to Dark and Back Again

Delighted to share Reasons, my latest Friday Flash Fiction story. Many thanks for the great comments coming in on this one already.

Looking forward to giving my flash fiction workshop this weekend and also the Association of Christian Writers’ Flash Fiction Group meeting next week. I like a mixture of in person and Zoom events – both kinds of event have their bonuses.

If you’re thinking of putting a collection together, remember the independent press is a great avenue to explore as they are much more open to approaches from non-agented writers. And having short stories/flash fiction published online or shortlisted in competitions makes for great material to put in your query letter.

Many thanks to #ValPenny for sharing Writing Pitfalls, a recent blog I wrote for Chandler’s Ford Today on her blog today. A great way to spread the word! One writing pitfall I didn’t mention either here or earlier on CFT is not realising just how many kinds of writing there are out there and therefore to take your time working out which suits you best. I am so glad I discovered flash fiction for instance though I’d never heard of it when I started out.

Fairytales with Bite – Magical Seasons – Characters and Magic

How does your magical world have its seasons? Are they similar to Earth’s four and, if so, is magic more prominent in any one of them? If so, why? Does the winter, for example tend to dampen down magical activity? Does magic abound in the spring with longer days and brighter weather?

Do your characters have seasons in their life where their magical performances are significantly better or worse than others? Indeed, are waning powers a sign of illness/a character’s life coming to an end, again on the grounds everything has its season and it applies to characters too? Or does everyone experience a drop in performance at certain times and they’ve learned how to cope with that?

Do you have characters who cope with the down times better than others and how do they achieve this? Does the availability of light make a difference?

I also love characters who are older but with tonnes of useful magical experience behind them yet are still capable of “outgunning” those far younger than them because of that experience. How would their magical season progress?

This World and Others – Climates

Does your world have one predominant climate or several? How does this/these affect the geography of your fictional world? Equally how does the geography affect the climate that can only exist because, for example, your world has a lot of water in it? Can your characters change the climate (for better or worse) and. If so, how?

Are there wars between different peoples because one has a better climate than the other? What pressures are there on food production etc which could lead to such conflicts and how are these things resolved?

What kind of climate do your characters prefer to be in? There will always be those who relish causing trouble so like a climate in which that is easily done. They would be bored senseless in a climate where peace prevails and nobody argues about anything. (Would make for a boring story too).

And how do shyer characters cope in a climate where people/other beings of choice are expected to be upfront and dominant? My thinking here is climate can be about social context and prevailing attitudes, as well as the geographic kind.

https://t.co/KRIRXYqyIv Thanks to #ValPenny for sharing Writing Pitfalls, a blog I wrote for Chandler’s Ford Today. Another pitfall is not realising how many kinds of writing there are and to take your time working out which suits you. I'm glad I found flash fiction for instance!
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) January 18, 2023

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Authors Electric: Flash NANO – A New Challenge in the Old Year by Al… https://t.co/lgiGhtQqjc I talk about Flash NANO this time and share what I found useful about it. It's good to be stretched, writing wise, and Flash NANO did that. Looking forward to the next already. pic.twitter.com/VXCIMv7Cjp
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) January 18, 2023

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Reasons, by Allison Symes – Friday Flash Fiction https://t.co/jVDkYhkcvB Delighted to share Reasons, my latest Friday Flash Fiction story. Many thanks for the great comments coming in on this one already. pic.twitter.com/nsKOgy3xL6
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) January 20, 2023

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Author Interview: June Webber – Publication: Never Too Late https://t.co/YbGX1BDvrM I'm thrilled to welcome fellow Swanwicker, June Webber, to Chandler’s Ford Today, to share her writing journey, which is an encouraging one. Hope you enjoy the post and find it encouraging too.
— Allison Symes (@AllisonSymes1) January 20, 2023

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