Reading

Posted on March 18, 2012 by Vikki Thompson

Philip Roth said that reading was a way to keep the circuits open and to think about the piece he’s working on while getting a little rest from the actual work in hand.

Sooooo, the question is….should I join a book club? I’ve been thinking about this for over a year now, but never actually done anything about it. “Mount Toobie” (sorry, slipping into BookCrosser mode there), my to be read pile is huge, verging on thousands, which is what has always put me off….but.

My writing style is very similar to my reading preferences. I tend to read what I call “real life stuff”. No fantasy or sci-fi. I’m not even keen on crime either. I like emotional character driven stories, about people, their lives, and how they overcome obstacles. Which, is kinda what I write about.

But does that allow me to grow as a writer? Am I missing out on the opportunity to “broaden my horizons” so to speak? Also, would joining a book club/reading group give me an insight to what readers want from their books?

Jack Heffron says “Don’t try to write a short story until you’ve read fifty of them, preferably a hundred. Don’t try to write a novel until you’ve read fifty of them, preferably a hundred. The same is true for scripts, essays, poems and so on.”

I do copy writing I like into my note book. I collect pieces that I think are powerful. I did at one stage start doing book reviews, but now I just use Goodreads.

Are you a member of a reading group/book club? Do you feel your writing benefits from it?

Whilst compiling this post an update email hit my inbox from Kitty Hietala’s blog which I found very interesting.

Here’s a pic of just one of my book shelves lol.

I wasn’t really inspired by today’s prompt, the emergency exit. I ended up writing a story about 2 young girls running out of the ice rink because the boy one of them fancies comes in. Today’s prompt is eating at a diner so I’m hoping I’ll be a bit more inspired today 😉

Generating Titles

Posted on March 17, 2012 by Vikki Thompson

As I said a couple of days ago, I love finding names for my characters, but, what I love even more is finding Title Ideas 🙂 A good title idea can prompt a story in itself, and often does for me. An interesting title will intrigue a reader, I know it does me. One of my 2 favourite examples from successful books are:

If Nobody Speaks Of Remarkable Things
and
The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Nightime

Both, fantastic examples of how a title can sell a book. Imagine if Mark Haddon had just called it “The Dog” *yawns*

I’m sitting here at the moment, in front of my sons birthday cards. It was his birthday on Wednesday. I found one of his cards very inspiring.

Bam! “Dressing Like Dad” what a great title for a story. I’m conjuring up the scenes in my head as I type lol

I find title ideas absolutely every where and I allocate a page in my note book where I write them all down, the minute I spot one. So here are a few tips on finding those titles…..And the stories to go with them 😉

1. Lines from poetry.

2. Quotes.

3. The Titles given to pieces of art, especially modern art.

4. Writing prompts. I often use words from the actual prompt I’m using as a title.

5. Flick through a non fiction book, the titles of the chapters (even self help type books can be good for that!) or go to the library and look at all the titles of non fiction books.

6. A Theasaurus is brilliant. Think of your title, then look up the words to see if you can make it better, a different word can add so much more meaning to the title.

7. Newspaper headlines and magazine article titles.

8. Subjects of e mails….I know, you’re looking at me strangely lol…. Try it! I had an e mail yesterday from a web site I subscribe to and the title was “Hire a Hooker for Your Husband” *snigger* Now you’re looking at me like I’m a real weirdo lol.

9. Song lyrics and titles….the song itself could inspire a story.

10. Eavesdrop on people’s conversations, in cafe’s, shops, sometimes, someone will come out with a gem. If you don’t get out much TV and films are good too, even the news programmes. I wonder if Lionel Shriver overheard someone say We Need To Talk About Kevin ?

So that’s where I get my ideas from….I could sit here and type out my current list, which stands at about 30, but hey, you might steal one 😉

Today’s prompt about sinking turned into a tory about a guy, in sales, who’s wife has left him and he’s been called to the bosses office as his figures are going down. Lots of options on how to end that depending on how nasty I’m feeling 😉 Tomorrow’s prompt is an emergency exit which sounds good 🙂

The Naming Game

Posted on March 15, 2012 by Vikki Thompson

I’ve had this post in my draft folder for a couple of days, and yesterday morning, I sat, with my cup of tea (every morning I read other peoples blog posts while I drink my first tea of the day lol) and discovered that a fellow blogger was talking about exactly the same thing…. spooky!

Check out journeyofjordannaeast where she talks about the struggles of naming characters 🙂

Anyway, as most of my regular readers will know, I do a prompt a day, a short story or the start of one. So everyday I’m trying to come up with names for characters. Every couple of weeks I sit and dedicate a whole page in my notebook to ‘Name Ideas’ so I’m always on the look out for methods, tips and resources 🙂

So here are some ways/places I get my character names from:

1. The credits on a film I’ve just watched. (I’ve been known to play the end credits frame by frame before now lol).

2. Books on quotations. I’m currently using a battered old copy of The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations that I picked up in a charity shop for a quid 🙂

3. Wikipedia which is a great source. Say I needed the name for a male character of a certain age who comes from Brazil. Search for the Brazilian football team and bobs your uncle! (English version of hey presto lol) You have a list of all the players 🙂

4. One of my absolute favourites…..any excuse obviously lol…..FaceBook! If you’re the member of any groups, check out the members list, you can usually see how old people are from their photo’s. Or if you have a friend (or family member) who has millions of friends (like my daughter who I think has about 800), check out their friends list.

5. Here in the UK a lot of our local papers have a Births, Deaths & Marriages section. Can be quite useful as you will know exact ages (as too can be the reporters names in the same paper).

6. Stuck for a surname? Google Maps 🙂 Pick a town, city, place…..road/street names are excellent for surnames. Or even a paper map (they do still exist you know lol)

My favourites from this one: Green – Ridley – Addington – Hartley – Cliffe – Halling and of course Rochester (hasn’t that one already been used? Lol)

7. And finally, name generators online. I don’t often need to use these sites, but if I do, my favourite is Seventh Sanctum which has loads of links to creativity generators.

Obviously you can use baby name books, but I find the modern ones hard because a name that is listed may have only been in existence for a few years. No good if trying to name a 45 year old.

One final thing about using real peoples names>;;>;;>;;>;;>;;>;; When I use FaceBook for name ideas I’m very careful to mix up surnames with first names. I don’t ever use their first name and surname combined. That could get you in a lot of hot water. But, if you think about it, whatever name you choose there is bound to be someone out there who has that exact combination of first and second name.

One last tip…..make sure all your characters names all start with different letters and don’t sound the same. Your reader will be way confused. I recently read a story where a dog was called Taylor and the baby was Tyler. I had to re-read a whole section as I thought it was still talking about the dog, and wondered what it was doing in a cot 😉

So how do you come up with your characters names? I would love to hear yor ideas/tips and resources.

Yesterday’s prompt was write about fruit flesh. Yuk, that just sounds wrong! lol. I know it is flesh, but….. Lol. Anyway, I came up with a sweet little story about a girl on a bench eating a pear. An old man sits down and chats and it turns out he’s a retired market stall holder (his son has taken over the business) who use to sell fruit and vege. That’s as far as I got, but I’m thinking there’s a romance there, especially as the son is a hunky barrow boy *sniggers*
Today’s prompt is this is how lonesome feels which is already depressing me and I haven’t even started writing yet lol

It’s Just Not Working

Posted on February 8, 2012 by Vikki Thompson

This whole story board malarkey lol. Perhaps it just doesn’t really work with a short story. Anyway, here is my 2000 word short story, split down into scenes of a story board.

Eating Out

Not much of a plot exactly is it? *snigger* 😉

After a really unproductive day, I had a really productive evening. I managed to extend “Eating Out” into a 1100 story and even used Autocrit to check it over, which was very interesting LMAO…… I’m now hooked, paid for an annual subscription, and will be using it a lot 🙂

So I guess the Mslexia competition is out the window…..I’ll just have to find one that’s up to 1200/1500 so that I can use this story. Will spend today doing some more editing before taking it to The Write Place tonight.

Yesterday’s prompt was eating out, and developed into the story I’ve been using today. A couple in a restaurant, and I’m not saying anymore 😉 Today’s prompt is living as he did…. so I haven’t got a clue where to start with that one.

I finished note book number 9 yesterday. It’s sad finishing a notebook, but soooo exciting starting a new one. I’m now using a lovely purple one 🙂

Damn & Blast

Posted on January 8, 2012 by Vikki Thompson

Why is it that I always come up with ideas for stories when I’m in bed trying to get to sleep?

They say you should have a notebook next to your bed, which is all very well if you want to sit up, turn the light on, and completely lose that sleepy feeling lol…..but, if you suffer from insomnia like me and you feel yourself finally drifting off, there is no way you’re gunna jump up and write an idea down in your note book 😉

So Friday night/Saturday morning (I think it was gone midnight) I came up with the first couple of lines for a story…..but, do you think I could remember it by 6am when I woke up? 😦

Yesterday’s prompt, where the road leads was ok. I wrote about a woman who is a bully. She marries a man who’s life she dominates. The tables turn when she discovers she’s infertile and her husband blackmails her with the promise of IVF treatment (I’m such a happy soul).

I spent Friday night (while hubby was watching 24 lol) looking at all the possible competitions I could enter. There’s actually 4 I’ve got my eye on, all with closing dates before the 1st February. I’m building up a nice collection of stories, but most will need elaborating on (and some major editing) before they can be submitted….so that’s the aim over the next week. So what with the writing and the fact that I promised I’d start decluttering the house, and start cooking healthy meals, it looks like its going to be a busy week lol

Today’s prompt is on the horizon

I’m gunna try to think outside the box with this one. So far, I’ve been taking these prompts pretty literal, so I’m going to push myself a bit more. I did come up with an idea in bed last night, and I’ve actually remembered it lol 😉

The Wrong Way

Posted on December 27, 2011 by Vikki Thompson

I spent most of yesterday finishing A Walk Between Heaven and Earth and making notes in my notebook. To say that I found it ‘unputdownable’ is an understatement 🙂

There are so many interesting passages and inspiring ideas, too many to mention, but the one that really struck a cord was when Holzer talked about ‘the right way’……

She says that too often we focus on learning the techniques of writing, that this overshadows the writing itself. She goes on to say that “It is hard to get excited about writing, when 90% of what comes to mind is not good enough, or not right somehow.”

Is this the rut I’ve got myself into?

Am i no longer content to just write, for writings sake? I’m constantly trying to improve, do things right, learn the rules…..punctuation, grammar, syntax, nouns, adjectives…..*deep sigh* It’s hard work….. 😦

But, is it still exciting? Does having the constant pressure of having a ‘right way’ and a ‘wrong way’ take away the pleasure? And, if that is indeed the case, whats the answer? Quit my creative writing courses and just write for me? Give up any ideas I have of publication?

No, sorry, I don’t agree with her. I’m enjoying learning, I want to improve my writing. To do that I need to study and I need to do things the ‘right way’. I’ve always been fascinated by learning, eager for knowledge about everything around me.

Yes, having a ‘right way’ and a ‘wrong way’ leads to self criticism and self doubt…… But don’t we need that to strive to be better? Wanting to be good at something and succeed isn’t a bad thing is it? 😉