Just keeping everyone updated on what’s been going on. First up, I really enjoyed writing the short story, so much so that I went ahead and wrote a second one. It’s a little rough around the edges, but expect to see an upload soon. I’ve been really enjoying listening to podcasts on creative writing and self publishing, and recently listened to +Joanna Penn and her interview with Ashleigh Gardner, head of content at Wattpad (If you’re interested you can find the interview here). It got my curiosity, so I decided to start an account. It looks like it could be a great place to publish some work and I intend to put my short stories up there. I’ll let you know when I add anything, but …
Are you sitting comfortably? The Visit
To follow is my entry for the Writers and Artists short story competition. Unfortunately, other people entered, and so I didn’t win. However, I’m now free to share the story with you. I hope you enjoy it, and please let me know what you think, good or hideously bad. Ladies and gentlemen, I present: The Visit Alex hated prisons. He always had, for as long as he could remember. There was a smell to them, he decided; a damp smell, a stale odour that hung in the air. Was that what despair smelled like? The sun was shining as he reached the gates, but the grey exterior of the prison was stark, dominating the skyline and blotting out the blue …
Making the Habit
What’s your routine when you wake up in the morning? What do you do first, pour your coffee or prepare your breakfast? When you’re putting your shoes on, do you put your right shoe on first or your left? When you’re brushing your teeth, which teeth do you start with? Chances are you probably had to think before you answered. However, tomorrow morning, you won’t have to think about this. You’ll just do it, no thought required. Force of habit. Habits are a fascinating subject, actions carried out by the subconscious but which are incredibly useful for getting things done without exerting any substantial mental effort. I’ve just started reading The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg. Early on he talks …
No Likey, No Lighty – AKA The reason your project is no good.
There’s a television show in the UK called ‘Take Me Out.’ If you’ve never seen it, think ‘Blind Date’ but on steroids. The premise is that one man is brought before thirty women with the aim of impressing them and winning a date with one. At the start all the women have a light on in front of them, but as the rounds progress they can turn off the light ‘if they do not believe a meeting with this man would be constructive to their well-being’ (Thank you Wikipedia). No likey, no lighty. It’s the ultimate in guilty pleasure TV and the kind of show that no self-respecting person would ever admit to watching, especially in a blog post that could be read …
The Ones You Love To Hate – Villains
It has been said that without conflict, there is no story. Cinderella met the Prince and lived happily ever after. Romeo and Juliet fell in love and lived happily ever after. Luke Skywalker lived with his Uncle and Aunty and lived happily ever after. Clark Kent met Lois Lane and lived happily ever after. I love the fact that as much as we apparently long for the happy endings, these stories fall flat without the conflict that delays it, or even prevents it completely: Romeo and Juliet never got their happy ending, and Clark Kent seems destined to battle Lex Luthor or some other super villain until the end of time. The fact is that every protagonist needs an antagonist, …
Natural Ability vs. Nurtured Ability – 3 Ways To Improve Your Skills
Just what is a ‘natural’ ability? Is there such a thing? The question was raised when I shared a point from an article with my friend Jonathon Ogden. The article in question stated that ‘natural abilities’ could be enhanced, and went on to give examples of craftsmanship and design. You can read Jonathon’s thoughts on whether this is wholly accurate here. Semantics aside, the article and the subsequent discussion got me thinking on how much our skills are down to innate natural abilities. This probably comes out more in the realms of physical activities. We tend to think of the professional athletes, the Olympians and so on as being genetically gifted. However, this classification does reach out further; chess grandmasters, nuclear physicists, …
Short Stories – Good things in small packages…
So last Saturday was the deadline for the Writers and Artists 2014 short story competition. True to form, I submitted my entry with just over two minutes to spare. Where would I be without deadlines??This was the first writing competition I’ve entered since I left school, and it was a little strange to be honest. I’ve written two first draft novels with the aid of NaNoWriMo, and although there’s a very real sense of pressure, getting that rough draft done within 30 days, that’s where it ends. Theoretically I could leave those drafts on the shelf, where they would never be read. Theoretically, I could spend an eternity polishing them up, trimming an adjective here, expanding some dialogue there. But …
NaNoWriMo 2013
So, NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month to the uninitiated) is almost upon us. 30 days of chaotic, messy, beautiful writing, as thousands of writers attempt to create a 50,000 word out of fresh air.For the first time, I’m approaching this NaNoWriMo as a ‘Pantser.’ Whereas most sensible people approach this task with some planning, an outline maybe, some character profiles etc, I will be among those who, as midnight ushers in November, sit down with nothing more than caffeine fueled optimism.Well, strictly speaking, I have a rough idea of what I want to write about, but I’ll be as interested as anyone to find out what actually happens next.And I can’t wait, though I expect lots of procrastinating blog posts …
First Words
The first words in a story seem to be the hardest for me. I can have every detail set out clearly in mind, know the conclusion with absolute certainty, but the start simply eludes me. The saying goes that the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, but who knew that step would be so hard? So, I find myself at a new beginning. I’m starting this blog, with the primary purpose of chronicling my endeavors to publish a book, to share my thoughts and hopefully, somewhere along the way, to entertain. The story so far: at last years NaNoWriMo, I managed to finish 50,000 words of an extremely rough draft of my story. The joy of …