This Weeks Goals 28th to 3rd

Posted on May 28, 2012 by Vikki Thompson

Yesterday’s postcard from the Tate prompted a story for me about a guy who had been thrown out of his apartment, on to the street. All he has left in the world is the sofa and some black bags. The question is….why has he been thrown out? I’m kind of thinking along the lines that he’s divorced, and lives with his son. His son has got involved with some very dodgy characters, which has resulted in the fact that he’s taken all his dads money to pay the debts off….and now he’s disappeared……

I’m guest posting today, over at Creative Writing Studies for the lovely Anthony Haynes. Go and have a peek to read me talking about why I blog, and what I LOVE about it! 🙂

I’ve had a pretty productive week 🙂

Last weeks goals were:

1. Turn the prologue back into 3rd person (again lol).
DONE!

2. Try to nail chapter one, so that I have something to read out at class on Wednesday night.
DONE!

3. Finish sorting out the formatting/layout of the whole thing.
HALF WAY THROUGH!

4. Have another read through and work on the ending. I think I’ve worked out where I want it to go, I’ve just got to write it now, which means changing stuff in other places. So yep, I’ve been avoiding that lol.
NOT EVEN ATTEMPTED!

Oh dear, well ok, it wasn’t that productive. I don’t know why I’m avoiding it so much. No, yes, sorry, I do….because its hard work, because I’m confused and don’t know exactly what I want to happen, because I know it will mean changing other stuff that I’ve already written 😦

So this weeks goals are:

1. Finish sorting out the formatting/layout of the whole thing, and I mean REALLY finish lol.

2. Have another tinker with the Blurb.

3. Try to do something constructive towards the ending, even if it’s only 500 bloody words! Lol.

4. Get Chapter 2 sorted, polished up and in ship shape 😉

I’ve come to the conclusion that overwhelming myself with a to do list doesn’t achieve anything, so I’m trying to be a little easier on myself (ha ha ha).

so what are your writing plans for the week?

My current read, recommended by Jeff Goins

Picture Postcard & Where I’m Guesting

Posted on May 27, 2012 by Vikki Thompson

I’m currently guesting over at Virginias blog Poeta Officium so do pop in and read my “One Most Important Piece Of Advice To Writers”

Now, where was I? Lol

I bought this postcard when I went up to the Tate Modern recently, because it intrigued me 🙂

It’s acrylic on canvas by a German artist, Martin Kippenberger and is called “Ohne Titel”. I thought initially it was a photograph!

I wonder what inspired him to paint it?

Would love to hear what story line you can come up with for this one?

I’ll share my ideas tomorrow 🙂

Why Do We Do It?

Posted on May 25, 2012 by Vikki Thompson

There’s been an image floating around Facebook, have you seen it? This one……

With a bit of investigation, I’ve discovered it’s come from The Weldon Owen Publishing blog and it seems to have inspired lots of debates.

One of my favourite bloggers, Roger Colby featured it on his blog a few days ago, and it made me ask my self the question….. If this writing and publishing malarkey is so goddam hard….why do we do it? Why do we put ourselves through it?

Have you ever asked yourself that question? Or is it just me?

I’ve been doing some Googling lol….from what I can tell (the figures vary) its less than 1% of all manuscripts that get submitted that actually find their way on to our shelves in book form. It’s a tiny amount when you consider the hundreds of thousands of MS’s that must land on agents and publishers desks every day.

So, here’s exactly why I put myself through it.

1. I LOVE writing and I love words

2. It’s escapism, a chance to get away from my own life and envelop myself in someone else’s lol.

3. To get down on paper the thoughts going round in my head.

4. It’s a chance to explore, learn and grow.

5. Because there’s still that tiny piece of me that hopes i might, just might, be in that 1% *snigger*

So I’m determined to stay positive, determined to continue on my writing journey, and if I never get published, so be it….I’m doing something I really enjoy 🙂

So why do you do it?

The Blooming Blurb

Posted on May 23, 2012 by Vikki Thompson

*sighs deeply*

Ok, so I’ve been working on my blurb for “But Not Forgotten” recently, and the current version is below…..See what you think…..

Married to successful accountant Daniel, Laura has it all. A nice house, nice car and money in the bank. But when Daniel kills himself, the events of 1984 re-emerge, threatening everything Laura holds dear, including her daughter Ruby.

Ruby and Laura need to learn how to rebuild their lives. But Daniel’s brother Ronnie tries everything in his power to reek revenge on his brother, and those he loved. Laura finds herself torn between the two brothers. Will she be able to throw everything away, to rekindle her love for Ronnie? And if she can, how will she cope with Daniel still controlling her from beyond the grave?

The Write Inspiration posted an excellent article recently, giving advice for blurb writing. Do have a read if you’re struggling like I am lol

So is it too short? Rubbish? Ok? Your thoughts would be much appreciated 🙂

My orchid is blooming, my blurb, unfortunately, isn’t lol 😉

This Weeks Goals 21st to 27th

Posted on May 21, 2012 by Vikki Thompson

I had lots of ideas about The New Zealander, but in the end I decided that he had come to find his family in the UK. After lots of struggles, problems, highs and lows, he finally finds that his birth parents are dead and that he was in fact kidnapped when he was a baby. Perhaps the happy ending could be that he either finds a sibling, or the love of his life on his journey 🙂

Yet again, I didn’t get as much as I’d like done last week. I blame my birthday lol

I had some lovely comments about my prologue from my Writing Group, but the general consensus was, why was it in first person POV? Hmmmmm lol.

So the plan for this week is…..

1. Turn the prologue back into 3rd person (again lol).

2. Try to nail chapter one, so that I have something to read out at class on Wednesday night.

3. Finish sorting out the formatting/layout of the whole thing.

I’m going to a “write in” with some fellow writers tomorrow morning, so that should motivate me 🙂

On Saturday, I went up to Foyles in Central London (my favourite book shop!) to spend my voucher that hubby got me for my birthday. Here’s what I brought home…..whoops! Lol

so what are your writing goals/plans this week?

The New Zealander

Posted on May 20, 2012 by Vikki Thompson

Last weekend I went up to the Tate Modern which is probably my favourite gallery, as I’m a huge fan of modern art 🙂

As if the art work inside isn’t enough, there is also art outside. Martin Karlsson has a display of drawings outside to enhance the building work that is going on there. I find his work fascinating and soooo inspirational for stories (I will post some more in the coming weeks).

So today’s photo is “The New Zealander” by Karlsson.

So what is the New Zealander doing in a London Cemetery, so far from home?

Can’t wait to hear your ideas, and of course, I have my own theories that I’ll share tomorrow 🙂

Writers Block…..My Top Tips

Posted on May 19, 2012 by Vikki Thompson

*shudders*

It’s a pain isn’t it?

The nightmare situation for most writers….a blank page (or computer screen) and your mind, desperately searching for the words that just won’t come *gulp* 😦

The lovely Andy Szpuk wrote this poem which, to me, sums it up very nicely 🙂

You sit there looking at the page
The page stares blankly back at you
You’re locked in a wordless cage
You sit there looking at the page
So glad you’re not up on stage
With your heart and soul all askew
You sit there looking at the page
The page stares blankly back at you

“Locked in a wordless cage” is the line that really made me think, the connection between being blocked and being inspired, is freedom. Ok, now bear with me on this lol.

Inspiration isn’t going to fall into your lap, it doesn’t just magically show up the minute you sit down to write (ok, perhaps it does for some people lol). Most of the time, you have to find it…..and that’s why I’m a big believer in always carrying a notebook 😉

As writers, most of us don’t bother to nourish our muses with experience. So, for me, when the words just won’t come, I try to come up with things that will excite my muse 😉 we need to give him/her the freedom to experience new things, great things, small things 🙂

Here are my top 10 things to do to free my muse from that cage:

1. Go to a cafe or park and people watch. Take your notebook, write down snippets of conversations and free write.

2. Go to an art gallery (most of them here in the UK are free). Immerse yourself in visual stimulation.

3. Sit on a beach and stare out to sea (one of my favourites….I love beaches 🙂

4. Make soup! Lol…..can’t cook? Yes you can, don’t tell porkies 😉 Making soup is so therapeutic, all that chopping lol

5. Listen to music, read, or watch a film, depending on your preference. All can be really inspiring, and relaxing, coz lets face it, being blocked is stressful 😦

6. Go for a walk. I must confess, I’m not a huge fan of exercise, but, I love walking down a street and looking at people’s houses, imagining who lives behind each door and what their lives are like.

7. Do something arty. Paint, draw, do some colouring, or make something out of modelling clay.

8. Go notebook shopping. Always fun IMO and a great purpose to boot!

9. Do some gardening. Ok, so you haven’t got a garden….but I bet you have a windowsill that could do with a few pot plants or herbs?

10. Tidy your desk/work area….ORGANISE even if that means you have to invest in a couple of pretty folders or brightly coloured plastic wallets (ooooo, another excuse to visit a stationery shop! Lol).

And my top top tip …….wherever you go, and what ever you do….take a camera!!!!! (or mobile phone lol). Any photos you can take can be used as prompts 🙂

What do you do to excite and stimulate your muse?

Available for Weddings and Bar Mitzvah’s

Posted on May 18, 2012 by Vikki Thompson

*snigger* 😉 Now you’re intrigued aren’t you?

Do you remember my post, Be My Guest, Or Not? Well, I’ve made a decision…… *drum roll*

I am happy to host guests on my Blog, on one condition…. And this is probably where I’m going to lose you lol….. My condition is that rather than do “Guest Posts” we do a “Blog Swap” 😉 (although I will take Guest posts from people who don’t have blogs, or have Blogs that center around a topic I know nothing about). Perhaps like an interview, where we both answer the same set of ‘writer’ orientated questions.

Now, this kinda implies that I consider myself so goddam interesting, presuming you’d want me, and that’s really not the case. I hope those of you who have been following my blog for a while really don’t think that. No, this is about giving back and being fair.

I know it’s not about the figures, but, I see “Blog Swapping” as a good alternative to Guesting, where both bloggers get the best out if the situation 🙂

So what do you think? Would you be interested in a blog swap interview? I’ve already set one up (which should happen in the next couple of weeks). Can I interview you?

Drop me a line if you’re interested I’m angelchildvikki over on gmail if you want to get in touch, or leave a comment and I’ll e mail you 🙂

Don’t ask what the connection is with the photo lol….I just enjoy reading it 🙂

Pitching The WIP

Posted on May 16, 2012 by Vikki Thompson

This week I’ve been scribbling in my notebook how to pitch my novel. If I’m talking to an agent or publisher (which could very well happen in the not too distant future) I need to be able to say exactly what my novel is all about.

So here’s what I’ve come up with……

I’ve just finished my novel, called But Not Forgotten. It’s the story of 2 brothers who fall in love with the same woman and how the elder brother frames the younger brother for murder, well, so you think. It starts with a suicide and contains corruption, black mail, romance and emotional conflict. A kind of modern day family saga where the action takes place in 2010, but the characters are responding to the events that took place in 1984

Hmmm, now what about genre, that terrifying word. Would you know what genre my book was from that description? Lol….I really need to sort that one out lol

There’s a classic love triangle, albeit that one party is dead, and it also confronts issues around a young woman suddenly discovering that the man she thought was her father, is, in fact her uncle.

Hmmmm, leave out the dead bit? Does that give the impression it’s a ghost story?

It’s told from multi viewpoints, which gives the reader an insight into what is going on inside the 3 main characters heads.

Do they need to know that? I was thinking along the lines that it’s my unique selling point, but, that just sounds confusing doesn’t it

The guy who was the villain at the start, appears to be the hero at the end, but that depends on how you perceive the ending.

So what genre is it? Lol Does your WIP straddle more than one genre?

I spoke about the whole Genre thing here back in December, and it seems that I’m not the only one struggling……

The Write Inspiration

This Weeks Goals 14-20th May

Posted on May 14, 2012 by Vikki Thompson

So did you give the photo prompt a go yesterday?

I was thinking along the lines that it was a guy returning to his family home to introduce mummy & daddy to the latest girlfriend. Mummy & Daddy are Lord & Lady Hampton and the new girlfriend is a cockney, who drinks pints of Ale, smokes roll ups and works as a lap dancer 😉

Right, where was I? Ahhhh, yes, the goals…..

I’m afraid, I failed miserably 😦 My reason? I had to have my dog put to sleep on Wednesday night (the 9th). It was fairly sudden, she became ill over the weekend, vet gave her antibiotics for a chest infection (she was having trouble breathing) and by Wednesday night we ended up at the emergency vets, where an X-ray confirmed a tumour on her lung. Too large to operate on and causing her distress. Always a difficult decision, but we didn’t want her suffering any longer. The vet said it was only her spirit that was keeping her alive. She was 12.

So as you can imagine, I’ve been on a huge downer….bouts of tearfulness and generally the inability to even pick up a pen 😦

My darling Georgie, I will miss you so much….the house feels so empty without you….but, I know I have to pick myself up, carry on, because I know you’re somewhere, reunited with Bill (our Shih T Zu who died of a heart attack in 2010). I know in my heart that one day I will see you again.

*blows nose and wipes eyes* Does how you feel emotionally affect your ability to write? It feels like I’ve just been plunged into a dark space, and I’m finding it hard to focus my eyes. Oooo, that sounds a bit dramatic doesn’t it….I’m fine really.

Right, so lets crack on, I needto focus…… I needto get back into some kind of routine 🙂

The original list from last week was:

1. Finish the spell check (and do it again incase there’s something I’ve missed). DONE
2. Check that’s it’s set out correctly (ie paragraphing and indenting dialogue). STARTED
3. Check punctuation (I have a tendency to forget all about it during dialogue). STARTED

The rest, I’m afraid, didn’t get tackled….however, I did print all 202 pages off. I find it much easier editing it when it’s on paper in front of me.

Yep, so guess what the plan is this week?

4. Change tense where needed (one of my worst habits, I tend to flit between past and present during a longer piece lol). STARTED
5. Print off to start the re-write (I’ve decided to change a few things quite considerably). PRINTED OFF
6. Do the research needed.
7. Write the ending (GULP).
8. Write a synopsis.
9. Decide who to pick on as Beta readers lol (Think of questions to ask Beta readers)
10. Think about what to do with it next (depending on Beta readers comments, I could be starting back at number 1 lol).

What are you hoping to achieve this week? And how about editing Do you do most of it on the PC or print off and use the red pen?