Monthly Archives: December 2011

Action!

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Well, I finally finished my action piece today. It’s taken me ages lol…. I wrote 3 short stories trying to get it right, the balance between dialogue and things actually happening. Anyway, all I have to do now is type it up and I’ll post it to my other blog later today 😉 I’m thinking I might use it for this 3000 word story comp i keep meaning to do, but, the trouble is it doesn’t really go anywhere, it’s just a scene about domestic violence. There I go again not writing the happy stuff lol

In my attempts to get my action piece done I did a lot of faffing (I love that word lol) about with my notebook…..and one of the things I did was an exercise on Quests….what is it that people/characters seek? Here’s my list so far…….

Money
Success
Power
Fame
A Different Life
A Soul Mate/Love
A Cure For A Disease
Adventure
Excitement
A Purpose
Spiritual Enlightenment
Fullfillment
Companionship
Happiness
Salvation
Peace & Quiet
Community
Support
Strength
Good Physical Health
Good Mental Health
Knowledge/Education
Change
Immortality
Faith
A Perfect Body
Youthfulness
Friendship
To Be Liked
A New Start
Freedom
To Be Needed
To Win
To Be The Best

I’m sure there must be hundreds…..so this is a page that will definitely get added to over time. Something will suddenly come to me when I least expect it lol (I’ve even added 3 more since I’ve been typing this lol). All characters are seeking something aren’t they? It’s what drives the story.

I won’t get much writing done today as I’m out later, with a friend for afternoon tea….I don’t think she’d appreciate me whipping out my notebook do you? Lol 😉

Where Do The Hours Go?

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Last Christmas hubby bought me a book…….this book >>>>>>>>

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I have an enormous Amazon wish list and every year he picks some off the list and buys them for me 🙂 Soooo, last Christmas I had this one (amongst many others lol). At the time I just kinda flicked through it. Picked it up again in the summer, and had another flick……Fast forward to October and I came across it again, only this time, I made a diary entry on my phone instructing my future self to start this book on January 1st 2012

Judy Reeves has a great web site. So much stuff to read and I’m really excited about working with the book next year 🙂 I’m just so gutted I don’t live in San Diego *pouts*

So yes, thanks for that Judy……your web site is a complete time suck lol 😉 I should have been working on my 3000 word short story, I should have been writing my “action” piece for my course. But instead, all I’ve done is read Judy’s web site.

No, tell a lie…..i did make some notes on basic plots. The common ones that crop up all the time. You know, like Quest, Rags To Riches, Voyage, Rebirth, Revenge, etc etc. I’ve managed to compile a list of 25……I wonder if I could write a short story for each one? Hmmmmm…….

Best Article I’ve Read In A Long Time ;)

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I’ve been reading Kirsten Lambs Blog for a while now, but this post is great. Although, the idea of calling myself a writer? Perhaps when I’ve had something published eh? Lol 😉 I totally see where she’s coming from, but I dunno, personally, I just can’t do it lol

Aspiring is for Pansies–Tough Love & Being a Writer.

Yesterday I was awake at 4.45am….I only went to sleep at 12.30 for gods sake! Still, it did mean that I had some nice quiet time to catch up with other peoples Blogs and make a start on my “mundane task” description 🙂 I completed that and then started to tackle the next exercise.

I have to write a piece that describes some sort of fast action. Initially, I’m thinking, ahhhhh, that’s not too hard, but I’ve gone a bit blank. Ended up getting about 400 words into a piece and giving up with it as there wasn’t enough action. Back to the start again today then 😉

I also completed and sent off another competition entry. A 2000 worder this time. Over the next couple of days I’ll be working on a 3000 word short story for another comp. It feels pretty damn good to have 2 stories now that are complete…..finished and edited (hopefully) to a fairly decent standard…..although, I’m sure if my OCA tutor saw them, she’d have a fit lol

Weekend Writing

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It’s so hard to get any writing done at the weekends. With hubby at home, if I don’t get up early, ie before him, I don’t tend to get much writing done lol.

Don’t get me wrong, he’s very supportive. I just feel bad, like I’m neglecting him 😦 Friday night he watched a film and I was able to finish my current short story. It needs a bit of editing (something I’m hoping to get done today) and then I’ll submit it 😉

He’s not feeling very well at the moment, so I sent him to bed for a couple of hours this afternoon, which gave me enough time to work my way through the next section of the course, and make some notes on the next exercise.

I have to write a piece in my own voice, about something mundane I do every day. After making a list of all the mind numbingly boring things I do every day. I’ve finally chosen to write about tidying the house, something I do every morning.

So now I have the subject, I guess I better crack on and write about it lol. I did consider writing about the daily ‘de-pooing’ of the garden, but thought that would probably be going a bit too far 😉

Finding A Persona

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The last 2 exercises on my course have brought up a very interesting point…….

If I’m brutally honest with myself, when I write from a 1st person POV the persona of the narrator, doesn’t change much lol….. That’s ok if you take each individual short story separately……but, if you look at a couple together, compare them, it could quite possibly be the same person telling both stories 😦 Hmmmmm….. I really need to sort that out don’t I *slump* lol

So I managed to get 2 exercises done (YAY) and get them up on my other blog which I’m going to use as my Learning Log for the OCA.

Also managed to finish my short story (1800words) called ‘What Lies Beneath’ although hubby seems to think there was a film called that so I might need to change the title. It’s going to be submitted in a competition, after some extensive editing. Pleased with it though 🙂

Talking of my course, I’ve discovered, that, to achieve the degree, my next module will be a whole 9 months of poetry study/writing *huge groan*…..I can’t do it, I really can’t 😦 So at the moment, I’m looking round for alternative Creative Writing Courses…… Not found another degree one which is a bummer, but I quite like the sound of the one run by The London School of Journalism but there’s no actual qualification…..and then of course there’s Faber & Faber’s The Faber Academy which is outrageously expensive. No qualification with that one either, but looks good on the old CV don’t you think? Lol.

Then again, I could just go back to the good old OU….but I wouldn’t be able to start their diploma course until September 2012 *pouts*…..if they’ll have me back that is…..looooong story lol

Anyway, I’m not going to worry about it too much over Christmas….think about it again seriously in the New Year 🙂

No Longer A Competition Virgin ;)

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I’ve entered my very first writing competition….go me! I’m quite proud of myself but I’m under no illusions….so I don’t expect to hear anything back from it.

It’s a 500 word short story entitled “Keep You” which is about a woman who’s baby son was abducted by her ex husband. The 500 words describe the scene where she actually sees her son for the first time in 4.5 years (who said I don’t do happy stories?). At a later date I’d like to elaborate it and extend it so that we see her get her son back. The whole thing was inspired by a photo I saw of a woman who had her head in her hands crying.

Plan for today will be to get at least 1 of the exercises done for my course, 2 if I can manage it 🙂 I also want to do some work on another short story I’m working on for another competition. It’s about a woman who’s husband is a famous author. I have just over 1000 words, but can submit up to 2000. Most of the competitions offer a critique service. I didn’t bother asking for one with “Miss You” but I think I will with this one 😉

I have this idea……at some stage in the future I’m sure I will have piles and piles of rejection letters….so I’ve promised myself that when I do, I will decorate a wall in my dressing room with them. I know I have to develop a thick skin, I know that I’ll have to get use to “thank you, but no thank you” on a regular basis….and that’s ok, I know that often, being a successful writer doesnt necessarily go hand in hand with talent. I’ve read books by famous authors that, to be quite honest, are complete shite! Likewise, the writing of amateurs that I’ve thought is amazing but they never get that break.

At the moment, I’m happy to just keep plodding along, learning all that I can, and tentatively dipping my toe 😉

Assignment 3 – Feedback

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I didn’t get much writing done today, well, saying that, I did type up a short story from one of my notebooks for use, hopefully, as a competition entry……if I can double the word count. Will see how I go with that over the weekend 🙂

I received my tutors feedback today on my 3rd OCA Assignment. Very pleased with her comments although, re-reading the piece I submitted, I did manage to miss some really silly mistakes. The odd piece of tense (one of my major weaknesses) and some punctuation 😦 Hopefully, things I will get better at with more practice.

I also need to stop stating the obvious, ie, let the reader fill in the blanks and concentrate more on my show…..stop telling lol 😉

As I’ve decided to enter a few competitions and perhaps send out some submissions, I did a bit of research. It seems that most of them want work that hasn’t been available anywhere else, inc being published on Blogs, unless they’re private. So, I decided to start a notebook, specifically for subs and competition entries, so I can keep track on what I’ve submitted where.

Looking for a title for my current short story idea I ended up surrounded by all my notebooks….. It’s a good job I do my writing on a 6 foot dining table! Lol

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The top 4 are the ones I’m currently working with. I love flicking through them and playing with the ideas I’ve jotted down over the last 14 months 🙂

Sooooo, I now have a date for my next Assignment……30th January…..but I have to work through the next set of exercises first 😉

Research

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Spent most of yesterday researching style. Now, I’m not completely stupid, I know there are different styles of writing, it’s just my own I can’t identify lol

Unfortunately I got distracted quite a bit with the arrival of my first Copy of the Mslexia magazine….and all I can say is wow what a great resource!!!! I’ve read it cover to cover!!!!! There’s a huge section at the back that lists competitions…..gunna try my hand at a couple, you never know……and i never will unless i submit something 😉

Very interesting article entitled “The Case for 4×4 Fiction” all about publishers not being interested in publishing stories that are about the middle classes…..oh dear, that’s definitely my stuff out the window then lol. Both of my Nano novels are about middle class families, set in suburbia. Apparently, if I change my stories, so that they’re about poverty stricken people I’ve got a much better chance of publication lol

My Amazon wish list took a pounding….. After reading said article I managed to add another half a dozen books lol

Today’s task, (in between the washing machine repair man, a friend popping in for coffee and baking lol) is the next exercise on the course, regarding my “audience”….. Who is the invisible reader at my shoulder when I write? I’m pretty sure I write what I like to read (which I’ve now discovered I have no chance in hell of getting published lol).

Sooooo, my audience? 40 something housewife who likes to read about other peoples lives, so she can believe that others are having a shittier time than she is LMAO 😉

OCA Part 4 Project 1

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I’m still struggling with the whole “what is my style?” question and yesterday’s exercise was to write a piece that takes you approx 20 minutes. I’m a bit confused as to whether I was suppose to actually imitate a style or what, but hey ho…..I did manage to write a piece, as to what style it is, I’m open to suggestions lol.

You can find the story, or rather part story here

I decided to use a picture prompt (something I love to do).

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I haven’t got a clue where I got it from, but it’s been sat in my notebook for a while. I initially decided that he would be a man who would witness a murder…..but, then I applied the what if question, and that completely turned it around 🙂

Style & Genre

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I’ve never thought of myself as a thriller writer. It’s not really a genre I like to read…… Having said that, there seems to be a distinction between Crime and Thriller according to The Guardian. So why don’t the bookshop’s follow that rule? If you go into Waterstone’s all crime and thriller titles are in the same section, on their website, it’s even worse, there’s only a crime section…..pout 😦

I tend to write about people’s lives, how a persons life can change in the blink of an eyelid. I never really thought about what genre my writing would fit into, and nowadays it seems that you have to fit into a category. Soooo, ok, there is an element of suspense/mystery in what I like to write, but crime? Really? I don’t think so lol. I always thought that crime was about case solving, a detective (or at least Police) chasing a baddy…..Serial killers and murderers.

Linda Gillard brought my attention to this Guardian Article which is quite scary, and means that from my point of view, if I ever hope to get published I have to make sure that I somehow fit neatly inside a publishers box if I have any hope of getting published….. How sad is that? 😦 Do i write Popular Fiction? Literary Fiction? Contemporary Fiction?….*brain throbs*

As to style? What is my style? I like Fay Weldon, but I don’t write like her. I love Anita Shreve, but my writing is no way anything like hers either lol. The last 2 books I have read (inc my current read) have been by gay male authors (lots of sex scenes) and I definitely don’t find myself being influenced by that lol. So what am I influenced by? Strong female characters overcoming adversity? (is that chick lit? Lol) Character driven plots? The good and the bad in all of us?

Perhaps I need to decide whether I’m writing for myself (where style & genre is irrelevant) or a wider audience (where genre is everything) before I make a decision as to what direction I want to go in…..or I could always just throw in the towel and start writing Sci Fi 😉