This month’s Writing Magazine had me shortlisted in the Mid-Sentence Competition, which was a lovely surprise. I had hoped my story might do well, since I was very pleased with it, but it was quite bizarre and Writing Magazine are usually fairly mainstream in their choices for competition winners. So shortlisted is very satisfying and […]
Author: Annie
The Amazing ALCS
There was an article in Writing Magazine some time ago about The Authors’ Licensing and Collecting Society, suggesting that all published authors should sign up and log their publications on the website. So I did, not really knowing what it was all about. The ALCS collect money for ‘secondary uses’ of writers’ work – […]
Weeknotes – S03E13 – Double Novel Progress!
Summary: Two really productive days of writing this week, with some other useful bits and pieces in between. Plus, I have formulated reasonable plans for finishing both novels. The slump is definitely over! Monday: I wrote reviews for the weekend’s reading retreat. I also did some planning for later in the week. Thursday: […]
Weeknotes – S03E12 – Hopefully Coming Out of the Slump
Summary: Still not really feeling it this week, but much more positive after an awesomely relaxing reading retreat weekend. Monday: I booked in a session with Ann at the Turk’s Head to provide motivation to at least write something today. I started out slow and easy with a couple of reviews, then worked my […]
Weeknotes – S03E11 – The End of a Trend
Summary: This was the inevitable week when daily writing became a chore rather than a positive source of motivation. So, I let it go. Monday: I caught up on reviews and also looked at the worksheets for the first two weeks of the Six Month Novel Programme plotting boot camp. Then I did a […]
Experiencing the Inevitable Slump
I had such a great start to the year, I guess it was inevitable that it wouldn’t last. In the space of two months, I developed a daily writing habit, wrote six new short stories and two articles, took part in multiple short fanfic challenges, got high praise from someone I respect for my […]
Weeknotes – S03E10 – Structural Wranglings
Summary: Trying to sort out the structure for a novel with four viewpoints and four separate timelines turns out to be quite complicated! Definitely time to stop tweaking and actually write the thing now, though… Monday: I wrote a review. Tuesday: I realised the new structure for Colours wouldn’t work so I rethought […]
Weeknotes – S03E09 – The Wonders of Stickwick!
Summary: Ah, Stickwick! The writing retreat of champions! Five new short pieces completed, lots of brainstorming and a ton of structural work on the second novel. A very productive week. Monday: I was up early so I found homes for a few unassigned pieces, sending them back out into the world for judgement. On […]
Learning From Reading
I’m gearing up to take part in the Six Month Novel Programme, which starts next week. One of the first tasks you have to undertake is to select what is called a ‘companion novel’ to read. You’re supposed to choose something that contains an aspect of writing you want to work on in your own […]
Weeknotes – S03E08 – Completing and Submitting
Summary: Typical short story cycle this week. After weeks of not being able to start, I sat down and completed the first draft in one sitting. If only I could do this on demand! Monday: Judicious use of a five-hour gap between appointments saw me ensconced at Good & Proper for the afternoon. […]