I got back from NAWG Fest yesterday, after two days of workshops, q&a with agents, and lots of chatting with other writers. I didn’t learn anything new. But it was still a valuable (and highly enjoyable) experience because there was a lot of reinforcement of things I already knew. As humans, we develop […]
Category: Blog
Weeknotes – S01E01
Someone my husband, Dave, knows started a project called Weeknotes, whereby he puts together a summary of what he’s done at work each week and posts it online. Other people have started to do it too, and I wanted to join in. I wasn’t overly enthused about compiling Weeknotes for my day job, but I […]
A Balanced Life
At the moment, I am struggling with finding balance in my life. I work in an office four days a week, and often have several social engagements throughout the week and at the weekend. So, it can be difficult to find time to write. It helps a lot that I have several writer friends […]
Second Draft Done!
Yesterday, I experienced a profound sense of accomplishment. The four-month writing period of the Six Month Novel Programme is coming to an end, and I actually finished writing the last scene of my current draft about three weeks ago. That felt pretty great, not least because it happened on a writing date with a […]
Felixstowe Book Festival
Last weekend, a few friends and I went to Felixstowe Book Festival. This was my third event of this kind, and probably my favourite so far. NAWG Fest in September last year was an intensive two days of excellent workshops, with a couple of author talks thrown in. Tremendous fun, but very tiring. Chipping Norton […]
Same Lesson Every Time
I didn’t write anything all last week. Then, I had a tiring, somewhat stressful but ultimately enjoyable weekend away at a gaming event, getting home later last night than planned. And I’d completely forgotten about my dentist appointment this morning. All I wanted to do with the rest of today was sit on the sofa […]
Music for Writing
My relationship to aural input whilst writing has changed dramatically over time. I used to need complete peace and quiet in order to write, and I certainly wouldn’t be able to listen to music at the same time. Then, I started using instrumental music as a way to focus and block out distracting background noise. […]
Dreaded Revision Not So Dreadful
After two writing weeks on the Six Month Novel Programme, I am six chapters and over 30,000 words into the new draft, which is way more than I anticipated. The outline has changed multiple times, I’ve discovered major issues with the order of events, my favourite character has disappeared from the story altogether, and I’ve […]
The Wonders of Outlining
When I wrote the first draft of my novel, it took five years, a lot of teeth-pulling, and a gradual progression from the original 1,500 word story to the eventual 90,000 word novel. There was a lot of mystery and excitement along the way, coupled with periods of staring into the void, wondering what on […]
A Novel in Six Months? I Must Be Mad!
Whilst on the retreat in Devon last month, I got to talking to my lovely host, Charlie of Urban Writers’ Retreats, and she mentioned she was taking applications for her annual Six Month Novel Programme. Since I had just reached the conclusion that the next step for my novel was a blank page rewrite, I […]